A reinforcing sleeve is a member for collectively reinforcing spliced portions of a plurality of optical fiber core wires disposed side by side. The reinforcing member includes a heat-shrinkable tube, a heat-meltable member, a tension member, and so on. The heat shrinkable tube is a cylindrical member having an approximately circular cross section. The heat-meltable member, which is a first heat-meltable member, is in a cylindrical shape having an approximately circular or elliptical cross section. The tension member is a rod-shaped member. The tension member and the heat-meltable member are inserted into the heat-shrinkable member. A thick portion is provided at a substantially center portion of a width direction of the heat-meltable member. Thus, on a cross section perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the heat-meltable member, an amount of the heat-meltable member at proximity of the center portion of the width direction of the heat-meltable member is greater than an amount of the heat-meltable member at proximity of the end portions of the width direction of the heat-meltable member. This forms a flow of the heat-meltable member from the center portion toward the end portions in the width direction at the time of melting the heat-meltable member.

A reinforcing sleeve is a member for collectively reinforcing spliced portions of a plurality of optical fiber core wires disposed side by side. The reinforcing sleeve includes a heat-shrinkable tube, a heat-meltable member, a tension member, and so on. The heat shrinkable tube is a cylindrical member having an approximately circular cross section. The tension member and the heat-meltable member are inserted into the heat-shrinkable tube. The heat-meltable member is disposed on an upper part of the tension member. Also, an optical fiber dispersion portion is formed on a surface of the tension member on a side of the heat-meltable member in a cross section perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the reinforcing sleeve. The optical fiber dispersion portion includes an inclined portion that is formed so as to separate away from the heat-meltable member as being closer to an end portion of a width direction in a cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the tension member.

A connector includes a first connector body and a second connector body configured to be coupled to one another. The first connector body has a through hole and a cavity. The through hole and the cavity are configured to receive a shield of a hardline coaxial cable. A first washer is disposed in the first connector body and is configured to permit the shield to be pushed in a first direction through the through hole and into the cavity while resisting movement of the shield in a second direction opposite to the first direction. The second connector body has a through hole and a cavity. The through hole and the cavity of the second connector body are configured to receive a tubular member. A second washer is disposed in the second connector body and is configured to permit the tubular member to be pushed in the second direction through the through hole of the second connector body and into the cavity of the second connector body while resisting movement of the tubular member in the first direction. The second connector body is rotatable relative to the second washer and the tubular member until the second connector body and the first connector body are coupled together to a predetermined degree of tightness.

A fiber optic fanout assembly includes: a fiber optic trunk cable comprising a plurality of optical fibers within a surrounding jacket; a fanout housing with an internal bore and rear and front end portions, the fanout housing receiving the optical fibers from the trunk cable within the internal bore though the rear end portion; a plurality of furcation tubes, each containing one or more of the optical fibers; a first sealing structure that creates a first seal between the fanout housing and the jacket of the fiber optic cable; a first disk having a plurality.sup., of holes, the first disk mounted to the front end portion of the fanout housing, wherein the furcation tubes and optical fibers residing therein are inserted into the holes in the first disk; and a plurality of second sealing structures, each of which provides a second seal between the furcation tubes and the first disk.

Beam combining optical systems include a fiber beam combiner having multiple inputs to which output fibers of laser diode sources are spliced. Cladding light stripping regions are situated at the splices and include exposed portions of fiber claddings that are at least partially encapsulated with an optical adhesive or a polymer. A beam combiner fiber that is optically downstream of a laser source has an exposed cladding secured to a thermally conductive support with a polymer or other material that is index matched to the exposed cladding. This construction permits attenuation of cladding light propagating toward a beam combiner from a splice.

A fiber optic cable assembly includes a fiber optic cable and a fiber optic connector. The cable includes a jacket having an elongated transverse cross-sectional profile that defines a major axis and a minor axis. Strength components of the cable are anchored to the connector. The fiber optic connector includes a multi-fiber ferrule defining a major axis that is generally perpendicular to the major axis of the jacket and a minor axis that is generally perpendicular to the minor axis of the jacket. Certain types of connectors include a connector body defining a side opening that extends along a length of the connector body; a multi-fiber ferrule configured for lateral insertion into the connector body through the side opening; and a cover that mounts over the side opening after the multi-fiber ferrule has been inserted into the connector body through the side opening.

A method for manufacturing an optical fiber includes: exposing a glass fiber by stripping a fiber coating layer at an end portion, on a splicing side, of each of a pair of optical fibers; fusion-splicing the glass fibers; and recoating a protective resin on a periphery of exposed portions of the glass fibers. The fiber coating layer includes a primary resin layer on an inner peripheral side and having a Young's modulus of 0.5 MPa or less and a secondary resin layer on an outer peripheral side and having a Young's modulus of 800 MPa or greater, the exposing includes forming a shape of a coating edge of the fiber coating layer which includes the primary resin layer and the secondary resin layer into a tapered shape which becomes narrower toward the end portion side, and the recoating includes coating the protective resin to include the coating edge.

The present disclosure relates to a splice arrangement. The splice arrangement may include an elongate splice protection housing that defines a channel that extends lengthwise through the elongate splice protection housing from a first end of the splice protection housing to an opposite second end of the splice protection housing. The splice arrangement may also include a first fiber optic cable and a second fiber optic cable. First optical fibers of the first fiber optic cable and second optical fibers of the second fiber optic cable may be coupled together at a splice location positioned within the channel of the elongate splice protection housing.

A fiber optic cable assembly includes first and second cable sections each having a jacket, at least one optical fiber, and multiple strength members. An intermediate cable section includes at least one splice joint as well as bundled sections of strength members of the cable sections formed into bundled sections that overlap and are adhered together. As adhered, the bundled strength members are shorter than the at least one spliced optical fiber in the intermediate section to ensure that the strength members bear tensile loads. A fabrication method includes binding unjacketed segments of strength members of two cable sections into bundled sections of strength members, fusion splicing ends of optical fibers, polymerically overcoating at least one splice joint, and adhering the bundled sections of strength members in an overlapping arrangement. An apparatus for thermoplastically coating cable assembly portions includes a trough for molten thermoplastic material, and a lateral insertion slot defined therein.

A multi-fiber splice protector includes a strength member having at least one wall arranged in a tubular shape with a longitudinal opening extending through the wall to permit passage of a coated optical fiber into an inner cavity, with a thermoplastic hotmelt material arranged in the inner cavity. The longitudinal opening has a first width between 1 and 2 times the diameter of one coated optical fiber, while the inner cavity has a second width that is significantly greater than the first width to permit fusion spliced optical fibers to be not exclusively arranged in a 1-D array in the inner cavity. A fiber optic cable assembly including a multi-fiber splice protector with thermoplastic hotmelt material encapsulating fusion splice joints is further provided. Additionally provided is a method for forming a fiber optic cable assembly.