Portable industrial fiber optic inspection scope

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11022760-B2
Application number	US-201615143314-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 29, 2016
Priority date	Apr 29, 2015
Publication date	Jun 1, 2021
Grant date	Jun 1, 2021

Abstract

An apparatus includes a camera, a dark field illumination source, and a fiber inspection housing including a fiber connector input situated to receive an optical fiber connector so that an optical fiber output end of the optical fiber connector is removably insertable into an interior region of the fiber inspection housing and securable at a predetermined location in the interior region, a camera input situated to receive and secure the camera so that the camera is in optical communication with the interior region and the optical fiber output end, and a dark field illumination source input situated to receive the dark field illumination source so that light emitted from the dark field illumination source is received by the optical fiber output end at a dark field illumination angle and is scattered by contamination or defects associated with the optical fiber output end so as to be detectable by the camera.

First claim

We claim:

1. An apparatus, comprising:
a camera;
a dark field illumination source;
a fiber inspection housing including a fiber connector input situated to receive an optical fiber connector so that an optical fiber output end of the optical fiber connector is removably insertable into an interior region of the fiber inspection housing and securable at a predetermined location in the interior region, a camera input situated to receive and secure the camera so that the camera is in optical communication with the interior region and the optical fiber output end, and a dark field illumination source input situated to receive the dark field illumination source so that light emitted from the dark field illumination source is received by the optical fiber output end at a dark field illumination angle and is scattered by contamination or defects associated with the optical fiber output end so as to be detectable by the camera; and
a bright field illumination source coupled to the fiber inspection housing and situated to illuminate the optical fiber output end so that contamination or defects associated with the optical fiber output end are detectable by the camera;
wherein the bright field illumination source is spaced apart from the camera on the opposite side of an optical axis of the fiber connector input and situated to direct a bright field illumination along an optical axis that is at an oblique angle with respect to an optical axis of the camera.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising the optical fiber connector inserted into and secured in the interior region of the fiber inspection housing with the optical fiber output end is situated to receive light from the dark field illumination source.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the dark field illumination angle is greater than or equal to 30 degrees and less than or equal to 90 degrees between an optical axis of the optical fiber output end and a dark field illumination source axis.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the fiber connector input is situated to receive and secure the optical fiber output end at the predetermined location so that the optical fiber output end is rotatable about an optical fiber axis.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the fiber inspection housing includes a cleaning access port situated to allow cleaning of the optical fiber output end situated at the predetermined location in the interior region.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a baffle situated to block at least a portion of the light emitted by the dark field illumination source that propagates at greater than the dark field illumination angle or that propagates to surfaces other than the optical fiber output end.

7. An apparatus, comprising:
a camera;
a dark field illumination source;
a fiber inspection housing including a fiber connector input situated to receive an optical fiber connector so that an optical fiber output end of the optical fiber connector is removably insertable into an interior region of the fiber inspection housing and securable at a predetermined location in the interior region, a camera input situated to receive and secure the camera so that the camera is in optical communication with the interior region and the optical fiber output end, and a dark field illumination source input situated to receive the dark field illumination source so that light emitted from the dark field illumination source is received by the optical fiber output end at a dark field illumination angle and is scattered by contamination or defects associated with the optical fiber output end so as to be detectable by the camera; and
a diffuser situated to diffuse light from a bright field illumination source so as to improve a camera image detail.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the fiber inspection housing is made of a plastic or other non-conductive material so as to inhibit an interlock trigger associated with contact between one or more surfaces of the optical fiber connector and the fiber inspection housing.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the fiber connector input includes a metal sleeve insert having a recessed portion so as to provide a gap between the metal sleeve and an interlock contact of the optical fiber connector.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the camera is part of a mobile device, and the camera input is situated to receive the mobile device so that the mobile device camera is removably insertable into the camera input so as to detect defects on the optical fiber output end.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the fiber inspection housing is portable so that an image of the optical fiber output end with the camera is obtainable without requiring the mounting of the fiber inspection housing to a surface.

12. An apparatus, comprising:
a camera;
a dark field illumination source;
a fiber inspection housing including a fiber connector input situated to receive an optical fiber connector so that an optical fiber output end of the optical fiber connector is removably insertable into an interior region of the fiber inspection housing and securable at a predetermined location in the interior region, a camera input situated to receive and secure the camera so that the camera is in optical communication with the interior region and the optical fiber output end, and a dark field illumination source input situated to receive the dark field illumination source so that light emitted from the dark field illumination source is received by the optical fiber output end at a dark field illumination angle and is scattered by contamination or defects associated with the optical fiber output end so as to be detectable by the camera; and
a bright field illumination source coupled to the fiber inspection housing and situated to illuminate the optical fiber output end so that contamination or defects associated with the optical fiber output end are detectable by the camera;
wherein the bright field illumination source is adjacent to or adjoining the camera and situated to direct a bright field illumination along an optical axis as emitted from the bright field illumination source that is spaced apart and parallel to an optical axis of the camera.

13. An optical fiber inspection method, comprising:
removably receiving in an optical fiber connector input of a fiber inspection housing an optical fiber connector having an optical fiber axis so that an output fiber end of the optical fiber connector is situated at a predetermined location in an interior region of the fiber inspection housing;
securing the optical fiber connector in the fiber inspection housing against axial and lateral translation with respect to the optical fiber axis;
rotating the optical fiber connector;
bright field illuminating through the interior region of the fiber inspection housing at least one surface of the output fiber end and obtaining a first image of the at least one surface with a camera optically coupled to the output fiber end through the interior region; and
dark field illuminating through the interior region the at least one surface of the output fiber end and obtaining a second image of the at least one surface with the camera.

14. The optical fiber inspection method of claim 13 , further comprising:
comparing one or both of the first image and second image to one or more baseline images of the output fiber end so as to determine a change in contamination or damage associated with the output fiber end.

15. The optical fiber inspection method of claim 13 , wherein the dark field illuminating includes directing illumination light at an angle of incidenc

Assignees

• Nlight Inc

Inventors

• Brown Aaron
• Kliner Dahv A V
• Karlsen Scott R
• Young Jeremy
• Hawke Ryan
• Balsley David R
• Stevens Ron

Classifications

• H04N23/56

  provided with illuminating means · CPC title

• H04N23/57

  Mechanical or electrical details of cameras or camera modules specially adapted for being embedded in other devices · CPC title

• G06T2207/30164

  Workpiece; Machine component · CPC title

• G02B6/385 Primary

  Accessories for testing or observation of connectors (means for centering or aligning the light guide within the ferrule with auxiliary facilities for movably aligning or adjusting the fibre within its ferrule, measuring position, eccentricity G02B6/3843; mechanical features associated with the optical testing of optical fibres G01M11/088) · CPC title

• G06T7/0004

  Industrial image inspection · CPC title