Rapid optical fiber link restoration solution

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11914208-B2
Application number	US-202117485457-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 26, 2021
Priority date	Mar 30, 2021
Publication date	Feb 27, 2024
Grant date	Feb 27, 2024

Abstract

The present invention relates to a rapid optical fiber link restoration solution rapidly deployed by pulling, blowing, jetting or hanging in an aerial, on-ground, underground or inside a duct includes an optical fiber connector and an optical fiber cable. The optical fiber connector is connected at both ends of the optical fiber cable. Particularly, the optical fiber cable is dielectric and has a tensile strength 2500 N and a crush resistance of 2000 N/100 mm. Moreover, the optical fiber connector has water resistance for 1.5 meters of water-head for a maximum period of 30 minutes.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An optical fiber link restoration solution allowing restoration of an optical fiber link without on-field splicing comprising:
an optical fiber cable with a plurality of optical transmission elements, and the optical fiber cable is pre-connectorized by an optical fiber connector at both ends of the optical fiber cable, wherein the optical fiber connectors are plug and play connectors, and wherein the optical fiber cable is dielectric optical fiber cable thereby deploying the optical fiber cable by pulling, blowing, jetting or hanging, and deployable in aerial, on-ground, underground or inside a duct wherein a plurality of optical fiber cables is joined using pre-connectorized male-female combinations of multi-fiber connectors.

2. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the optical fiber cable has a crush resistance of at least 2000 N/100 mm.

3. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the optical fiber connector is a water resistant for 1.5 meters of water-head for a maximum period of 30 minutes.

4. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the optical fiber cable has a tensile strength of at least 2500 N.

5. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the optical fiber cable further comprises sheath, dielectric armouring, tube, optical fiber ribbons, a plurality of optical fibers, a water blocking gel, rip cords.

6. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the tube 104 c is made up of PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), polypropylene (PP), polyamide, thermoplastic material or a combination of any suitable material.

7. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the plurality of optical transmission elements includes a plurality of optical fibers, a group of loose optical fibers, a group of optical fiber ribbons or a stack of optical fiber ribbons, a group of bendable ribbons, a group of corrugated ribbons, a group of intermittently bonded optical fiber ribbons.

8. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the optical fiber cable has one of a water blocking gel, water swellable yarns and a water ingression prevention material providing a water ingression resistance.

9. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the water ingression resistance is provided for 3 meters sample of the optical fiber cable up to 24 hours in a 2 meters water-head.

10. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the optical fiber cable is a unitube optical fiber cable having a dielectric armouring surrounding a core of the optical fiber cable.

11. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the dielectric armouring has a diameter in a range of 1 mm to 1.2 mm.

12. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the dielectric armouring of the optical fiber cable comprises a plurality of strength members.

13. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 12 , wherein the plurality of strength members are made from FRP (Fiber Reinforced Plastic) or ARP (Aramid Reinforced Plastic).

14. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 12 , wherein the plurality of strength members has at least 90% space occupancy around the unitube of the optical fiber cable.

15. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 12 , wherein the plurality of strength members is coated with EAA (Ethylene Acrylic Acid) or EVA (Ethylene-Vinyl Acetate).

16. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein an operating service environment of pre-connectorized connectors may be anyone of an indoor controlled environment, an outdoor aerial environment, an outdoor ground level environment, an outdoor subterranean or a subsurface environment.

17. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 1 , wherein end points are terminated with pre-connectorized single-fiber connectors to connect with fiber management systems.

18. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 17 , wherein the single-fiber connectors forms a plurality of fan-out connector.

19. The optical fiber link restoration solution as claimed in claim 18 , wherein the plurality of fan-out connectors may be a lucent connector (LC) and/or a snap-in connector (SC).

Assignees

• Sterlite Tech Ltd

Inventors

• Balachandran Binod
• Bhaumik Sudipta
• Gopi Ajayakumar

Classifications

• G02B6/44528

  Patch-cords; Connector arrangements in the system or in the box (routing arrangements H04Q1/00) · CPC title

• G02B6/564

  Repair sets · CPC title

• G02B6/46 Primary

  Processes or apparatus adapted for installing {or repairing} optical fibres or optical cables (installation of cables containing electric conductors and optical fibres H02G) · CPC title

• G02B6/4471 Primary

  Terminating devices (demountable connectors G02B6/3807); Cable clamps · CPC title

• G02B6/566

  Devices for opening or removing the mantle · CPC title