REFLECTOR FOR CURING OPTICAL FIBERS AND METHODS OF USING THE SAME

• Main Authors: Quist, Zachary Joseph, Billings, Kenneth Duane, Moore, Robert Clark, Belleza De Pedro, Hector Michael, Todt, Michael James
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 23.03.2022
• Subjects: AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING; BLASTING; CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF GLASSES, GLAZES, OR VITREOUSENAMELS; CHEMISTRY; FUNCTIONAL FEATURES OR DETAILS OF LIGHTING DEVICES OR SYSTEMSTHEREOF; GLASS; HEATING; JOINING GLASS TO GLASS OR OTHER MATERIALS; LIGHTING; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; METALLURGY; MINERAL OR SLAG WOOL; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDEDFOR; SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; STRUCTURAL COMBINATIONS OF LIGHTING DEVICES WITH OTHERARTICLES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; SURFACE TREATMENT OF FIBRES OR FILAMENTS MADE FROM GLASS,MINERALS OR SLAGS; SURFACE TREATMENT OF GLASS; TRANSPORTING; WEAPONS; WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE, IN GENERAL

An apparatus for curing a coating composition disposed on a glass optical fiber. The apparatus includes a reflector, the reflector having an interior surface delineating a boundary of a cavity, the interior surface including a plurality of portions, each of the portions extending along a different curved contour. Furthermore, each of the plurality of portions is configured to reflect curing light so that the reflected curing light is concentrated to a curing zone within the cavity such that all the reflected curing light within the curing zone has an intensity of about 60% or greater relative to a maximum intensity of the reflected curing light. A fiber location for the glass optical fiber is located within the curing zone. Additionally, the plurality of portions includes at least a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a different degree of curvature than the second portion.