Method of making ferrule connectors for optical fibers
AssigneeLucent Technologies Inc.
InventorsRobert George Ahrens, Herman Melvin Presby
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for controlling a bore diameter of an optical fiber ferrule is disclosed. The diameter of the bore is controlled by collapsing the ferrule around a rod inserted in an over-sized bore formed therein. The diameter of the rod is selected to match the diameter of the optical fiber to be supported by the ferrule. Thus, after the rod is subsequently immersed in liquid nitrogen removed from the ferrule, the ferrule has a bore diameter which is defined by the diameter of the rod. Suitable materials for the ferrule and the rod include glass and metal, respectively.
Claims17
A method for fabricating an optical fiber ferrule, comprising the steps of:
- providing a optical fiber ferrule with a bore extending axially therethrough, wherein the bore has a first diameter;
- inserting a rod at least partially into a first end of the bore, wherein the rod has a second diameter that is less than the first diameter and wherein the rod is inserted so that the axis of the rod is aligned to the axis of the bore;
- rotating the optical fiber ferrule;
- heating the optical fiber ferrule to collapse the ferrule around the rod;
- contracting the rod by immersing a portion of the rod not in the bore in liquid nitrogen;
- and
- removing the rod from the optical fiber ferrule.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.