Novel Automation Methods and Equipment for Fiber Optic End-face Polishing, Cleaving and Inspection

Polishing the end faces of fiber optic termini and connectors is extremely critical to the performance of the termination. Slight variations in the end face geometry or surface quality can have detrimental effects on insertion loss and back reflection. The critical nature of the end face quality is further amplified in the manufacture of Measurement Quality Jumpers (MQJ's), which are used to measure the performance of standard grade fiber optic cables. This proposal described an automated polishing process that can tightly control all aspects of termini end face finishing to the extent that routine fiber cable manufacture can realize the quality levels associated with MQJ's. The process is aimed at automatically controlling all parameters associated with polishing i.e. polishing pressure, debris containment, surface speed, media quality, etc. Similar issues exist for end face quality of bare optical fiber in fiber optic splicing applications. The geometry and surface quality of the fiber end face will govern the performance of the splice. This proposal also intends to apply a derivative of the automated polishing process for termini to the processing of bare fiber ends. This technique will also include a means of verifying acceptable fiber tip end face quality.