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AssigneesDavid J. F. Cooper, Peter W. E. Smith
InventorsDavid J. F. Cooper, Peter W. E. Smith
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The present invention provides a method and device for to implement time division multiplexing of a fiber optic serial Bragg grating sensor array containing more than one Bragg grating. The device provides a pulse read-out system that allows for a reduction in system noise and an increase in sensor resolution and flexibility. The optical signals reflected from the Bragg grating sensors are gated by an electronically controlled optical modulator before any wavelength measurement is performed to determine the sensor information. This offers significant advantages since the sensor information is encoded into the wavelength of the optical signal and not its intensity. Therefore the sensor signal information is not distorted by the gating. Since the gating or switching of the optical modulator between transmission and attenuating states is performed on the optical signal, the speed of the electronic processing needs only to be performed at the speed of variation of the sensor information and the choice of methods of wavelength measurement is not influenced by the gating action.
An optical fiber serial Bragg grating sensor device, comprising:
A device for time domain demultiplexing serial optical fiber Bragg grating sensor networks, the network including a light source adapted to produce optical pulses connected to an optical fiber network with the optical fiber network including a sensor array having at plurality of spaced Bragg gratings, comprising:
A method for time domain demultiplexing a serial fiber Bragg grating sensor network, the sensor network including an optical fiber having at least two spaced Bragg gratings and a light source for producing light pulses that propagate along said sensor network and are incident on said at least two Bragg gratings, comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.