Method for pre and post image association in fiber optic inspection

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9880105-B2
Application number	US-201214124115-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 21, 2012
Priority date	Jun 21, 2011
Publication date	Jan 30, 2018
Grant date	Jan 30, 2018

Abstract

A fiber optic connector inspection display system including: a input unit which receives fiber end-face images; a display mode selection unit which allows a user to select at least one of an image capture mode or an image review mode; a capturing unit which captures the fiber end-face images; a storing unit which stores the captured images as a first still image and a second still image; a display unit which displays the received fiber end-face images from the input unit or the stored first and second still images, and a control unit which stores each of the first and second still images with a user defined identification label, and the control unit may further label the each of the first and second still images with a preset image pair mode label if the user selects a preset image pair mode.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A fiber optic connector inspection display system comprising:
an input unit which receives fiber end-face images;
a display mode selection unit which allows a user to select at least one of an image capture mode or an image review mode;
a capturing unit which captures the fiber end-face images;
a storing unit which stores the captured images as a first still image and a second still image, wherein the second still image includes the same fiber optic equipment of interest as the first still image and is taken at a different time from the first still image, wherein the first still image is taken before an event, and wherein the second still image is taken after an event;
a display unit which displays the received fiber end-face images from the input unit or the stored first and second still images, and
a control unit which stores each of the first and second still images with a user defined identification label,
wherein the control unit further labels the each of the first and second still images with a preset image pair mode label if the user selects a preset image pair mode, wherein the present image pair mode is selected prior to inspection, and wherein the preset image pair mode is for inspection comparisons of the same fiber optic equipment of interest before and after the event.

2. The fiber optic connector inspection display system of claim 1 , wherein the control unit couples the first still image and the second still image if the first and the second still image has the same user defined identification label and the same preset image pair mode label.

3. The fiber optic connector inspection display system of claim 1 , wherein the preset image pair mode comprises at least one of before/after, input/output, cleaning, mating and documentation preset.

4. The fiber optic connector inspection display system of claim 2 further comprising a filtering unit which filters the stored images based on the at least one of the before/after, the input/output, the cleaning, the mating and the documentation preset.

5. A method of analyzing fiber optic connector inspection images, the method comprising:
selecting an image capture mode;
receiving fiber end-face images;
capturing the fiber end-face images as a first still image and a second still image, wherein the second still image includes the same fiber optic equipment of interest as the first still image and is taken at a different time from the first still image, wherein the first still image is taken before an event, and wherein the second still image is taken after an event;
storing each of the first and second still image with a user defined identification label, wherein if a user selects a preset image pair mode, storing the first and second still image with a preset image pair mode label, wherein the present image pair mode is selected prior to inspection, and wherein the preset image pair mode is for inspection comparisons of the same fiber optic equipment of interest before and after the event;
selecting an image review mode; and
displaying the received fiber end-face images from the input unit or the stored first and second still images.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising coupling the first still image and the second still image if the first and the second still image has the same user defined identification label and the same preset image pair mode label.

7. The method of claim 5 , wherein the preset image pair mode label comprises at least one of before/after, input/output, cleaning, mating and documentation.

8. The method of claim 5 further comprising filtering the stored images based on the at least one of the preset image pair mode of before/after, input/output, cleaning, mating and documentation.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a computer program causing a fiber optic connector inspection display system to execute a method of analyzing fiber optic connector inspection images, the method comprising:
selecting an image capture mode;
receiving fiber end-face images;
capturing the fiber end-face images as a first still image and a second still image, wherein the second still image includes the same fiber optic equipment of interest as the first still image and is taken at a different time from the first still image, wherein the first still image is taken before an event, and wherein the second still image is taken after an event;
storing each of the first and second still image with a user defined identification label, wherein if a user selects a preset image pair mode, storing the first and second still image with a preset image pair mode label, wherein the present image pair mode is selected prior to inspection, and wherein the preset image pair mode is for inspection comparisons of the same fiber optic equipment of interest before and after the event;
selecting an image review mode; and
displaying the received fiber end-face images from the input unit or the stored first and second still images.

Assignees

• Thompson William Henry
• Afl Telecommunications Llc

Inventors

• Thompson William Henry

Classifications

• G01N21/94 Primary

  Investigating contamination, e.g. dust (G01N21/85 takes precedence) · 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

• G01M11/31

  with a light emitter and a light receiver being disposed at the same side of a fibre or waveguide end-face, e.g. reflectometers · CPC title