An optical monitoring device for monitoring curvature along a flexible medical instrument including optical fibers, a light source to inject light into the optical fibers, a light receiver configured to measure an optical characteristic of reflected light from the optical fibers, a processor to analyze the measured optical characteristic to determine a curvature of the optical fibers, compare the curvature with a threshold curvature, determine a location along the optical fibers of the determined curvature, store previous curvatures and their associated location along the fibers in a storage, analyze the stored curvatures by counting or summing curvatures determined at a given location over time to predict breakdown of the flexible medical instrument, and produce an indication when the stored curvatures determined at the given location over time predict breakdown of the flexible medical instrument at the given location.

An apparatus, system, and method for an eye-tracking optical verification tester are described herein. In some aspects, a heating element such as a Peltier or Thermoelectric Cooler “TEC” includes a see-through void and may be used to control a temperature of an eye-tracking optical element. An environmental enclosure that is configured to assist in simulation of an environmental condition may hold the eye-tracking optical element. The eye-tracking optical element is to receive reflected light from an eye-tracking target and direct the reflected light to an eye-tracking camera.

Distributed fiber optic sensors formed by covering the fibers with tubing are provided. The tubing including responsive materials formulated or configured to, responsive to exposure to one of a target chemical species and a target radiation particle, change a relative size and generate a localized effect on or in the optical fiber.

A method for testing optical fibers includes using an optical testing instrument to measure a characteristic, such as clad non-circularity, of an optical fiber at a multiple angles of rotation of an optical fiber around its optical axis. From the measurements data points indicative of measured values of the characteristic at the respective angles of rotation are generated. A model is created of the optical fiber having the characteristic as a variable parameter, and from the model a functional relationship between an expected measured value of the characteristic and the angle of rotation and the variable parameter is generated. By varying the parameter a fit of the functional relationship to the data points is made according to one or more predetermined criteria, such as least-squares fit. The value of the characteristic can be found based on the fit. Instrumental parameters, such as fiber misalignment and cleave angle, can also be ascertained by the method.

A system for transmission of optical data signals has first optical processing circuitry for receiving a plurality of digital signals and applying at least one of a Hermite-Gaussian function, a Laguerre-Gaussian function or an Ince-Gaussian function to each of the received plurality of digital signals. The first optical processing circuitry also combines each of the at least one of the Hermite-Gaussian function, the Laguerre-Gaussian function or the Ince-Gaussian function applied plurality of digital signals into a single carrier signal. An optical transmitter transmits the single carrier signal. An optical receiver receives the transmitted single carrier signal. Second optical processing circuitry separates the at least one of the Hermite-Gaussian function, the Laguerre-Gaussian function or the Ince-Gaussian function applied digital signals of the single carries signal into separate signals and removes the at least one of the Hermite-Gaussian function, the Laguerre-Gaussian function or the Ince-Gaussian function applied to each of the plurality of digital signals. An elliptical core fiber transmits the single carrier signal from the optical transmitter to the optical receiver. The elliptical core fiber includes an elliptical core have a major axis and a minor axis.

A device and a method for determining a microvibration effect on a millisecond-level space optical sensor are provided. The device includes: a light source, a star simulator, an air flotation vibration isolation platform, a suspension system/air flotation system, a zero stiffness system, a supporting system, a six-degree-of-freedom microvibration simulator, a signal driving apparatus, and a data acquisition and processing system. In the device for determining a microvibration effect on a space pointing measurement apparatus, a free boundary condition and a zero gravity environment are simulated by using a suspension system and a zero stiffness system. A light source and a star simulator simulate a star at infinity. A six-degree-of-freedom microvibration simulator simulates an on-orbit microvibration mechanical environment which is used as an input of a test. Extremely high-precision sensors collect system response data.

A device and a method for determining a microvibration effect on a millisecond-level space optical sensor are provided. The device includes: a light source, a star simulator, an air flotation vibration isolation platform, a suspension system/air flotation system, a zero stiffness system, a supporting system, a six-degree-of-freedom microvibration simulator, a signal driving apparatus, and a data acquisition and processing system. In the device for determining a microvibration effect on a space pointing measurement apparatus, a free boundary condition and a zero gravity environment are simulated by using a suspension system and a zero stiffness system. A light source and a star simulator simulate a star at infinity. A six-degree-of-freedom microvibration simulator simulates an on-orbit microvibration mechanical environment which is used as an input of a test. Extremely high-precision sensors collect system response data.

The present invention relates to a method for, and wearing parts to be used in a method for, condition based preventive maintenance (PM) or predictive maintenance (Pd M) based on detecting excessive wear of a wearing part which wearing part either consists primarily of, or is covered at least partially by a sliding layer consisting primarily of, a polymer material and which wearing part comprises one or more optical fibers which in the proximal end is connected to a proximal light detecting device and in the distal to a distal end light detecting device.

The present invention addresses the problem of making it possible to distinguish and detect cracking, peeling, internal cavities, and other defects through the remote observation of a structure. A status determination device according to the present invention is provided with a displacement calculation unit for calculating a two-dimensional spatial distribution of the displacement of a structure surface from time series images of the structure surface before and after load application and an abnormality determination unit for identifying flaws in the structure on the basis of a comparison of the two-dimensional spatial distribution and an already provided spatial distribution of displacement.

A load sensing system for sensing a load on a structure can include an optical load sensing element configured to change an optical state based on a force applied thereto, an optical source operatively connected to the optical load sensing element and configured to input an input optical signal to the optical load element, and an optical detector configured to receive a returned optical signal from the optical load sensing element. The optical detector can be configured to detect one or more frequency peaks of the returned optical signal and to use the one or more frequency peaks of the returned optical signal to correlate to a load value of the load and output the load value indicative of the load.