WO2019052149A1

WO2019052149A1 - Optical fiber tapering apparatus and method

Info

Publication number: WO2019052149A1
Application number: PCT/CN2018/080983
Authority: WO
Inventors: 苏明样; 郑渚; 丁庆
Original assignee: 深圳市太赫兹科技创新研究院有限公司; 深圳市太赫兹科技创新研究院
Priority date: 2017-09-14
Filing date: 2018-03-29
Publication date: 2019-03-21
Also published as: CN107473581A; CN107473581B

Abstract

An optical fiber tapering apparatus and method. The optical fiber tapering apparatus comprises: a bottom plate used for providing support; a rotating module provided on the bottom plate and used for rotationally stretching an optical fiber to be processed that is connected to the rotating module; a heating furnace provided on the bottom plate, disposed side by side with the rotating module, and used for heating a portion of the optical fiber to be processed to a molten state in order for stretching; and a heating pipe provided in the heating furnace, and used for the optical fiber to be processed to pass through, so as to fix the optical fiber to be processed and prevent the portion of the optical fiber to be processed that is located in the heating pipe from being oxidized during heating. An optical fiber tapering method based on the optical fiber tapering apparatus comprises the steps of interspersing, placement, winding, ventilation, heating, stretching and the like.

Description

Fiber optic taper device and method

Technical field

The present invention relates to the field of optical fiber device production, and in particular to a fiber optic taper device and method.

Background technique

At present, with the continuous promotion of micro-nano fiber and its outstanding characteristics, more and more manufacturers have great interest in its manufacturing process. Nowadays, the manufacturing process of micro-nano fiber is generally to change the shape and optical performance of the fiber by a taper. The fiber taper technology is an extremely simple method for fabricating micro/nano fiber. The basic process is to close the two fibers with the removed coating layer in a certain way, and then connect them to each other by heating with an oxyhydrogen flame or a resistance heating furnace. It is in a molten state, and then stretched at a certain strength at both ends thereof to obtain a micro/nano fiber in the middle of the fiber. Since the machine used for the fiber taper is a oxyhydrogen flame heating type taper, a CO2 heating type taper, an electrode heating type taper, etc., this type of taper is mainly based on a stepping motor, and its structure is relatively Complex, high manufacturing costs, not practical for experimental research, so to a certain extent limit the extensive research and application of micro-nano fiber.

Summary of the invention

Based on this, it is necessary to provide a fiber optic taper device and method for the structure of the taper machine which is complicated in structure, high in manufacturing cost, and not suitable for experimental research.

A fiber optic taper device for drawing a fiber to be processed to form a micro-nano fiber, comprising:

a bottom plate for providing support; a rotating module disposed on the bottom plate for rotationally stretching the fiber to be processed connected to the rotating module; a heating furnace disposed on the bottom plate and coupled to the rotating module a side by side arrangement for heating a portion of the fiber to be processed to a molten state for stretching; a heating tube disposed in the heating furnace for passing the fiber to be processed to fix the to-be-processed The fiber and the portion of the fiber to be treated that is located within the heating tube are oxidized upon heating.

In one embodiment, a collimating module for preventing fiber jitter is provided, the collimating module being disposed on the bottom plate, the collimating module being located between the rotating module and the heating furnace.

In one embodiment, at least one height of the collimating module and a height of the heating furnace are adjustable; a distance between the collimating module and the rotating module, the rotating module and the heating furnace The distance between the heating furnace and the collimating module is at least one adjustable.

In one embodiment, the collimating plate is provided with a plurality of grooves of different widths to accommodate the fiber to be processed.

In one embodiment, the rotating module includes a fiberizing module for securing an optical fiber to the rotating module and a rotating table for providing rotational power, the fiberizing module being disposed on the rotating table.

In one embodiment, a groove is formed in a sidewall of the fiber winding module.

In one embodiment, the number of the rotating modules is two, located on both sides of the heating furnace, for respectively connecting with both ends of the fiber to be processed after passing through the heating pipe.

In one embodiment, the heating tube includes an air inlet and an air outlet and an optical fiber access hole.

The invention is based on the above fiber optic taper device and further provides a fiber taper method, the method comprising the steps of:

Passing the fiber through the fiber entry and exit hole of the heating tube;

Passing the optical fiber passing through the heating tube through the collimating module;

Winding the optical fiber coming out of the collimating module on the rotating module to adjust the position of the rotating module;

Passing an inert gas to the heating pipe;

The optical fiber is heated by the heating furnace, and the optical fiber is stretched by the rotation module.

The above optical fiber taper device and method replace the complicated structure of the stepping motor by using a simple structure of the rotating module, thereby overcoming the problem that the motor structure is complicated and the manufacturing cost is high, because the fiber optic taper device The common components of the laboratory such as the bottom plate, the heating furnace, the heating tube and the rotating module are used to overcome the problems that are not suitable for experimental research, thereby achieving the purpose of simple manufacturing, convenient experimental research and cost reduction.

DRAWINGS

1 is a schematic structural view of an optical fiber taper device in an embodiment;

2 is a schematic structural view of a fiber optic taper device in another embodiment;

3 is a schematic structural view of a rotating module in an embodiment;

Figure 4 is a schematic view showing the structure of a heating pipe in an embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a schematic structural view of a collimating module in one embodiment.

Detailed ways

In order to facilitate the understanding of the present invention, the present invention will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings. Preferred embodiments of the invention are given in the drawings. However, the invention may be embodied in many different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be more fully understood.

It should be noted that when an element is referred to as being "fixed" to another element, it can be directly on the other element or the element can be present. When an element is considered to be "connected" to another element, it can be directly connected to the other element or. The terms "vertical", "horizontal", "left", "right", and the like, as used herein, are for the purpose of illustration and are not intended to be the only embodiment.

All technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs, unless otherwise defined. The terminology used in the description of the present invention is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments and is not intended to limit the invention.

Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of a fiber optic taper device in one embodiment. An optical fiber taper device for stretching a fiber to be processed to form a micro-nano fiber, comprising: a bottom plate 100 for providing support; and a rotation module 200 disposed on the bottom plate 100 for rotary stretching An electric fiber to be processed connected to the rotating module 200; the heating furnace 300 is disposed on the bottom plate 100 and arranged side by side with the rotating module 200 for heating a part of the optical fiber to be processed to a molten state for stretching; the heating tube 400 is provided In the heating furnace 300, a portion for the fiber to be treated passes through to fix the fiber to be processed, and a portion of the fiber to be treated located in the heating pipe 400 is oxidized upon heating.

In one embodiment, the bottom plate 100 may be in the shape of a rectangle, a square, a diamond, or a circle, and the bottom plate 100 may be an optical breadboard, a honeycomb breadboard, or the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, in one embodiment, the rotary module 200 can include a rotary table 220 for providing power and a fiberizing module 210 for securing one end of the fiber to be processed. The fiber-optic module 210 has a cylindrical structure, and a groove may be formed on the sidewall of the fiber-optic module 210. The rotary table 220 may be an electric rotary table, a manual rotary table, or the like. The manner in which the fiberizing module 210 and the rotating table 220 are connected includes at least one of screwing and welding. The connection mode of the rotation module 200 and the bottom plate 100 includes at least one of pinning and welding. The number of the rotating modules 200 is preferably two, which are respectively located on both sides of the heating furnace 300 for respectively connecting with both ends of the optical fiber to be processed after passing through the heating pipe 400.

In one embodiment, the heating furnace 300 may be an inner hollow cylinder, and the heating furnace 300 may be an electric resistance heating furnace. The axis of the heating furnace 300 is parallel to the bottom plate 100, and the heating furnace 300 is connected to the bottom plate 100 through a post.

As shown in FIG. 3, in one embodiment, the heating tube 400 may be provided with an air inlet hole 410, an air outlet hole 420, and an optical fiber entrance hole 430. The heating pipe 400 is fixed inside the heating furnace 300 by a dimming plate, and the axis of the heating pipe 400 coincides with the axis of the furnace body of the heating furnace 300.

It can be understood that, as a preferred embodiment, the bottom plate 100 is an optical breadboard and has a rectangular shape. The rotating table 220 of the rotating module 200 is an electric rotating table, and the rotating module 200 is pinned and fixed on the bottom plate 100, and the winding module 210 and the rotating table 220 are welded and fixed together. The heating furnace 300 is an electric resistance heating furnace, and the heating furnace 300 is pinned and fixed to the bottom plate 100. The heating tube 400 is a quartz tube and is fixed in the heating furnace 300 by a dimming tube for fixing the bare fiber of the coating layer and preventing the oxidation of the bare fiber, and effectively avoiding heating of the heating tube 400 at a high temperature. A burst occurs during the process.

In one embodiment, the shape or size of the bottom plate 100 is adjustable, that is, it can be adjusted according to the length between the two rotating modules 200 to provide support, or can be adjusted according to the length of the optical fiber to be processed to obtain micros of different lengths. Nano fiber. The rotational speed of the rotary table 220 of the rotary module 200 can be controlled according to the degree of stretching of the optical fiber to be processed. The distance between the rotary module 200 and the heating furnace 300 can be adjusted by disassembling the post that the heating furnace 300 is connected to the bottom plate 100. The height of the rotating module 200 can be achieved by adjusting the distance between the fiber winding module 210 and the rotating table 220, and the height of the heating furnace 300 is achieved by adjusting the distance between the post and the heating furnace 300.

The above embodiment realizes the laboratory manufacturing of the micro-nano fiber by using the combination of the heating furnace and the rotating module, overcomes the problem that the existing motor structure is complicated, the manufacturing cost is high, and the problem is not suitable for experimental research, thereby achieving The purpose of manufacturing is simple, convenient for experimental research, and cost reduction.

FIG. 4 is a schematic structural view of a fiber optic taper device of another embodiment. An optical fiber taper device for stretching a fiber to be processed to form a micro-nano fiber, comprising: a bottom plate 100 for providing support; and a rotation module 200 disposed on the bottom plate 100 for rotary stretching An electric fiber to be processed connected to the rotating module 200; the heating furnace 300 is disposed on the bottom plate 100 and arranged side by side with the rotating module 200 for heating a part of the optical fiber to be processed to a molten state for stretching; the heating tube 400 is provided In the heating furnace 300, a fiber for the fiber to be processed passes through to fix the fiber to be processed, and a part of the fiber to be processed is prevented from being oxidized during heating; the collimating module 500 is disposed on the bottom plate 100. It is used to prevent the upper and lower sides of the fiber from shaking.

As shown in FIG. 5, in one embodiment, the collimation module 500 includes a bracket 510 for support and a collimating plate 520 for achieving fiber collimation and a post 530 that connects the bracket 510 and the collimating plate 520. The manner of connecting the alignment module 500 to the bottom plate 100 includes at least one of pinning and welding. The collimating plate 520 may be an iron block, a stainless steel block, or the like. The shape of the collimating plate 520 may be a square, a rectangle, a diamond, or the like. The collimating plate 520 is provided with a plurality of groove lines having different widths and slightly larger than the fibers of different diameters. The groove lines are parallel to the bottom plate 100 and parallel to the axis of the heating furnace 300.

It can be understood that, as a preferred embodiment, the bottom plate 100 is an optical breadboard and has a rectangular shape. The rotating table 220 of the rotating module 200 is an electric rotating table, and the rotating module 200 is pinned and fixed on the bottom plate 100, and the winding module 210 and the rotating table 220 are welded and fixed together. The heating furnace 300 is an electric resistance heating furnace, and the heating furnace 300 is pinned and fixed to the bottom plate 100. The heating tube 400 is a quartz tube and is fixed in the heating furnace 300 by a dimming tube for fixing the bare fiber of the coating layer and preventing the oxidation of the bare fiber, and effectively avoiding heating of the heating tube 400 at a high temperature. A burst occurred during the process. The collimating plate 520 of the collimating module 500 is an iron block having a square shape, and the collimating module 500 is pinned and fixed to the bottom plate 100.

In one embodiment, the shape or size of the bottom plate 100 is adjustable, that is, it can be adjusted according to the length between the two rotating modules 200 to provide support, or can be adjusted according to the length of the optical fiber to be processed to obtain micros of different lengths. Nano fiber. The speed of the rotating table 220 of the rotary module 200 can be controlled according to the degree of stretching of the fiber to be processed. The distance between the rotating module 200 and the heating furnace 300 can be adjusted by disassembling the post connected to the bottom plate 100 by the heating furnace 300. The height of the rotating module 200 can be achieved by adjusting the distance between the winding module 210 and the rotating table 220. The height of the furnace 300 is achieved by adjusting the distance between the post and the furnace 300, and the height of the collimating module 500 can be achieved by adjusting the distance between the post 510 and the collimating plate 520. The number of the collimating modules 500 is preferably two, and the collimating module 500 is located between the rotating module 200 and the heating furnace 300. The distance between the collimating module 500 and the rotating module 200 can be adjusted by disassembling the connecting rod of the collimating module 500 and the bottom plate 100. The distance between the collimating module 500 and the heating furnace 300 can be removed by disassembling the collimating module 500 and the bottom plate. The 100-connected post is adjusted and can also be adjusted by disassembling the post that the furnace 300 is connected to the base plate 100.

The above embodiment realizes the laboratory manufacturing of the micro-nano fiber by adopting the combination of the heating furnace and the rotating module. Because the collimating module is added, the upper and lower left and right shaking of the fiber stretching is effectively reduced, and the collimating plate adopts iron. The block effectively reduces the cost, and overcomes the problems that the existing motor structure is relatively complicated, the manufacturing cost is high, and is not suitable for experimental research, thereby achieving the purpose of simple manufacturing, convenient experimental research, and cost reduction.

In one embodiment, based on the fiber optic taper device, the bottom plate 100 is configured to provide a support; the rotating module 200 is disposed on the bottom plate 100 for rotating and stretching the optical fiber to be processed connected to the rotating module 200; The heating furnace 300 is disposed on the bottom plate 100 and arranged side by side with the rotating module 200 for heating a part of the optical fiber to be processed to a molten state for stretching; the heating pipe 400 is disposed in the heating furnace 300 for being processed. The optical fiber passes through to fix the optical fiber to be processed and prevents a portion of the optical fiber to be processed from being located in the heating tube 400 from being oxidized upon heating; the collimating module 500 is disposed on the bottom plate 100 for preventing the upper and lower sides of the optical fiber from being shaken.

A fiber taper method is also provided, including the steps of:

Passing the fiber through the fiber entry and exit hole of the heating tube;

Passing an inert gas to the heating pipe;

Specifically, a fiber of the middle removal coating layer is passed through the fiber entrance and exit holes at the front and rear ends of the heating tube, and the heating tube is fixed on the heating furnace through the adjustable light, and the heating furnace is fixed on the bottom plate; Both ends of the fiber behind the tube pass through the groove line in the two collimating modules to ensure the collimated stretching of the fiber, and reduce the up and down and left and right shaking during the stretching process; the two ends of the fiber coming out of the collimating module are wound around On the rotating module, adjust the position of the rotating module and fix it on the bottom plate to make the optical fiber tangential to the circumference of the fiber winding module; a certain amount of inert gas is introduced into the air inlet hole of the heating pipe to control the circulating flow of the gas and discharge through the air outlet Residual air to prevent oxidation of the fiber at high temperature; heating the fiber through a heating furnace, after softening the fiber, starting the rotating table of the rotating module, providing power to the fiber-optic module, stretching the fiber, and stretching the fiber After that, the rotating module and the heating furnace are turned off; after the optical fiber is sufficiently cooled, the addition of the inert gas is stopped, and the cooled optical fiber is taken out from the heating tube.

The above embodiment realizes the preparation of the micro-nano fiber in the laboratory by using the combination of the collimating module, the heating furnace and the rotating module, overcomes the complicated structure of the existing motor, and has high manufacturing cost, and is not suitable for experimental research. The problem, in turn, achieves the goal of simple manufacturing, convenient experimental research, and reduced costs.

The above-mentioned embodiments are merely illustrative of several embodiments of the present invention, and the description thereof is more specific and detailed, but is not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. It should be noted that a number of variations and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

An optical fiber taper device for performing a stretching process on an optical fiber to be processed to form a micro-nano-order optical fiber, comprising:

a bottom plate for providing support;

a rotating module, disposed on the bottom plate, for rotating and stretching the fiber to be processed connected to the rotating module;

a heating furnace disposed on the bottom plate and disposed side by side with the rotating module for heating a portion of the fiber to be processed to a molten state for stretching;

A heating tube is disposed in the heating furnace for allowing the optical fiber to be processed to pass through to fix the optical fiber to be processed, and to prevent a portion of the optical fiber to be processed from being located in the heating tube from being oxidized upon heating.
The optical fiber taper device according to claim 1, further comprising a collimating module for preventing jitter of the optical fiber, wherein the collimating module is disposed on the bottom plate, and the collimating module is located in the rotating module Between the furnace and the heating furnace.
The fiber optic taper device according to claim 2, wherein a height of the collimating module and a height of the heating furnace are at least one adjustable; a distance between the collimating module and the rotating module At least one distance between the rotating module and the heating furnace, and a distance between the heating furnace and the collimating module can be adjusted.
The fiber optic taper device according to claim 2, wherein the collimating module comprises a bracket for supporting and a collimating plate for realizing collimation of the optical fiber, and a post connecting the bracket and the collimating plate .
The fiber optic taper device according to claim 4, wherein the collimating plate is provided with a plurality of grooves of different widths for accommodating the fiber to be processed.
The fiber optic taper device according to claim 1, wherein the rotation module includes a fiber winding module for fixing and winding one end of the fiber to be processed, and a rotating table for supplying power, the winding The fiber module is disposed on the rotating table.
The fiber optic taper device according to claim 6, wherein a groove is formed in a sidewall of the fiber winding module.
The fiber optic taper device according to claim 1, wherein the number of the rotating modules is two, located at two sides of the heating furnace, respectively for the after-passing through the heating pipe Handle the ends of the fiber.
The fiber optic taper device according to claim 1, wherein the heating pipe is provided with an air inlet hole, an air outlet hole, and an optical fiber inlet and outlet hole.
An optical fiber taper method based on a fiber optic taper device, the fiber optic taper device comprising: a bottom plate for providing support; and a rotation module disposed on the bottom plate for rotationally stretching and connecting to the rotating module The heating fiber is disposed on the bottom plate and disposed side by side with the rotating module, for heating a portion of the fiber to be processed to a molten state for stretching; the heating tube is disposed at The heating furnace is configured to pass the optical fiber to be processed to fix the optical fiber to be processed and prevent a portion of the optical fiber to be processed from being located in the heating tube from being oxidized upon heating; the collimating module is disposed in The bottom plate is configured to prevent shaking of the fiber to be processed during stretching, and the collimating module is located between the rotating module and the heating furnace;

The method includes the steps of:

Passing the fiber through the fiber entry and exit hole of the heating tube;

Passing the optical fiber passing through the heating tube through the collimating module;

Winding the optical fiber coming out of the collimating module on the rotating module to adjust the position of the rotating module;

Passing an inert gas to the heating pipe;

The optical fiber is heated by the heating furnace, and the optical fiber is stretched by the rotation module.