An inspection system includes a detection device arranged between a connector that couples a plurality of optical fibers to a port and the port; and a determination device that determines whether there is dart between the connector and the port, based on an output from the detection device, wherein the detection device includes a plurality of diodes that convert light that is output from each of the plurality of optical fibers to an electrical signal indicating intensity and distribution of the light, and the determination device includes a processor configured to determine whether there is dart between the connector and the port, based on the intensity and distribution of the light, which are indicated by the electrical signal.

A method for determining an index-of-refraction profile of an optical object, which has a cylindrical surface and a cylinder longitudinal axis, said method comprising the following method steps: (a) scanning the cylindrical surface of the object at a plurality of scanning locations by means of optical beams; (b) capturing, by means of an optical detector, a location-dependent intensity distribution of the optical beams deflected in the optical object; (c) determining the angles of deflection of the zero-order beams for each scanning location from the captured intensity distribution, comprising eliminating beam intensities, and (d) calculating the index-of-refraction profile of the object on the basis of the angle-of-deflection distribution, wherein method steps (a) and (b) are carried out with light beams having at least two different wavelengths.

According to some embodiments a method of measuring the refractive index profile of a consolidated glass body having a cylindrical surface comprises the steps of: (a) forming an image of a slit behind the glass body; (b) optionally pre-scanning the cylindrical surface of the test glass body or a reference glass body and analyzing the data within a fixed window to determine the likely location of the zero-order, un-diffracted beam while ignoring other diffracted beams; (c) optionally adjusting the optical power to improve the intensity of the data within the fixed window in order to improve the analysis; (d) predicting the trajectory of the zero-order beam through the preform based on the sampling location x.sub.i (incidence position) of the light impinging on the cylindrical surface and the location at which the zero-order beam impinges on the detector; (e) measuring the cylindrical surface of a glass body while using the estimated location of the zero-order beam and adjusted optical power to set the center of a floating window and the beam power at each measurement point; (e) determining deflection angles of the exiting zero-order beam within the floating window at each sampling location; (e) calculating the refractive index profile of glass body by utilizing a transformation function which determines refractive index at each location based upon the measured deflection angle function of the beam.

A method for determining the refractive index profile of a preform is provided. The method involves: preparing the measured deflection angle distribution, including an extreme value determination of the deflection angle distribution, to obtain a prepared deflection angle distribution; transforming the prepared deflection angle distribution into a prepared refractive-index profile; evaluating the prepared refractive-index profile for the fixation of orientation values for the layer radius and for the layer refractive index of a hypothetical refractive index profile; generating a simulated deflection angle distribution on the basis of the hypothetical refractive-index profile with the orientation values, and transforming the deflection angle distribution into a simulated refractive-index profile; fitting the simulated refractive index profile to the prepared refractive-index profile by iterative adaptation of parameters to obtain a fitted, simulated refractive-index profile which is defined by adapted parameters, and obtaining the refractive index profile as the hypothetical refractive-index profile with the adapted parameters.

A process of in-situ detection of hollow fiber formation includes immersing a plurality of individual glass fibers in an index-matching material. The index-matching material has a first refractive index that substantially matches a second refractive index of the glass fibers. The process also includes exposing the individual glass fibers to a light source during immersion in the index-matching material. The process further includes utilizing one or more optical components to collect optical data for the individual glass fibers during immersion in the index-matching material. The process also includes determining, based on the optical data, that a particular glass fiber of the plurality of individual glass fibers includes a hollow fiber.

A process of in-situ detection of hollow fiber formation includes immersing a plurality of individual glass fibers in an index-matching material. The index-matching material has a first refractive index that substantially matches a second refractive index of the glass fibers. The process also includes exposing the individual glass fibers to a light source during immersion in the index-matching material. The process further includes utilizing one or more optical components to collect optical data for the individual glass fibers during immersion in the index-matching material. The process also includes determining, based on the optical data, that a particular glass fiber of the plurality of individual glass fibers includes a hollow fiber.

An inspection system includes a detection device arranged between a connector that couples a plurality of optical fibers to a port and the port; and a determination device that determines whether there is dart between the connector and the port, based on an output from the detection device, wherein the detection device includes a plurality of diodes that convert light that is output from each of the plurality of optical fibers to an electrical signal indicating intensity and distribution of the light, and the determination device includes a processor configured to determine whether there is dart between the connector and the port, based on the intensity and distribution of the light, which are indicated by the electrical signal.

A method for inspecting defects inside a rod-shaped transparent object by using a scanning beam of parallel light rays directed onto a rod-shaped transparent object orthogonally to the longitudinal axis of the object so that an inspection plane comprises an object's cross-section. The scanning beam is detected at an opposite side of the rod-shaped object that is interposed to intercept the parallel rays of the scanning beam. The electric output signal from the detector is processed to produce a first light intensity profile in a first scan direction, the light intensity profile comprising a shadow region delimited by first and second shadow edges, which is indicative of the outside diameter of the object across the inspection plane. The method comprises analyzing the first light intensity profile to determine the presence or absence of a peak of positive intensity within the shadow region and, if an intensity peak is determined to be present, to determine the presence or absence of a region of depressed intensity within the intensity peak. If, as a result of analyzing, an intensity peak within the shadow region is determined to be absent or a region of depressed intensity is determined to be present within the intensity peak, the presence of at least one structural defect within the object's cross-section is identified. In the preferred embodiments, the rod-shaped transparent object is a glass core rod for the production of a transmission optical fiber.

Systems, methods and device provided for combining or splitting laser beams, including a plurality of optical fibers for providing laser beams, an image relay lens for each of the plurality of optical fibers, positioning a prism beam combiner or splitter after the image relay lenses for combining or splitting the laser beams. According to another aspect, the a prism beam combiner or splitter may include a flattened tip to transmit a portion of an input laser beam, a position sensitive detector to receive the transmitted portion of the input laser beam to track a beam axis motion and provide feedback alignment error signals based on the beam axis motion, and a driver to receive the feedback alignment error signals and to drive a motor or piezo actuated beam steering minor based on the feedback alignment error signals, wherein a laser bond inspection method implements the described systems and methods.

A method for determining a refractive index profile of an optical object having a cylindrical surface includes: (a) scanning the surface at a first plurality of scanning locations with a pinhole aperture in a path of one or more optical beams; (b) measuring a first deflection function based detecting the optical beams after deflection by the optical object for each of the first plurality of scanning locations; (c) scanning the surface at a second plurality of scanning locations where the path of the optical beams is free of the pinhole aperture; (d) measuring a second deflection function based on detecting the optical beams after deflection by the optical object for each of the second plurality of scanning locations; (e) merging at least portions of the first and second deflection functions to obtain a composite deflection function; and (f) calculating the refractive index profile using the composite deflection function.