Low Power, Low Cost, Lightweight, Multichannel Optical Fiber Interrogation Unit for Structural Health Management of Rotor Blades

Redondo Optics Inc. (ROI), proposes to design, build, and demonstrate to the Navy an no-moving-parts, ultra-low power, light weight, and miniature size, multi-channel optical fiber interrogation (MOFIS) structural health monitor system suitable for the in-situ non-intrusive integration to a helicopter composite blade to enable the in-flight distributed multi-point measurement of true-strain, temperature, vibration, and impacts associated with excessive loads, fatigue, and structural damage within the composite blades structure. In Phase II, ROI will design, produce, and assemble a field deployable engineering prototype of stand-alone multi-channel MOFIS transceiver interrogation system and use it to interrogate an array (15-channels) of FBG sensor transducers deployed over a single sensor fiber with a spectral dynamic range of 10,000-microstrains and a resolution of 0.1 microstrains suitable for the real time structural health monitoring of rotorcraft blades. In the Phase II Option, ROI with the support of strategic partner will test and demonstrate the performance of the MOFIS SHM system for operation under the environment conditions of a helicopter rotor blade. In Phase III, with the support of a strategic partner, the MOFIS technology will be transitioned to Navy operations.