A modular optical tap device as described herein may include a coupler comprising an input configured to be connected to an upstream portion of a network and a first output configured to be connected to a downstream portion of the network. The optical tap device may also include a splitter with an input configured to be connected to a second output of the coupler and one or more outputs configured to be connected to one or more customer devices, wherein the coupler and splitter are modular components in the optical tap device and are configured to be replaced with a second coupler and a second splitter based on a number of customer devices associated with the optical tap device.

An object is to provide a highly versatile optical fiber local-light detection apparatus capable of supporting various types of coated optical fibers. An optical fiber local-light detection apparatus according to the present invention includes: a first jig 11 including a recess portion 22 curved along a longitudinal direction with respect to a coated optical fiber 100 and a light input/output unit 14 configured to emit light to the coated optical fiber 100 that is bent and to receive light leaking from the coated optical fiber 100; a second jig 12 including at least one protrusion portion 23 that is curved along the longitudinal direction with respect to the coated optical fiber 100, the second jig configured to clamp the coated optical fiber 100 with the recess portion 22 of the first jig 11, in accordance with a type of the coated optical fiber 100; a pressing portion configured to apply pressing force in a direction in which the recess portion 22 of the first jig 11 and the at least one protrusion portion 23 of the second jig 12 mutually approach, to bend the coated optical fiber 100; and a switching mechanism configured to switch the at least one protrusion portion 23 to a protrusion portion corresponding to the type of the coated optical fiber 100.

Embodiments include a sensor node, a method of forming the sensor node, and a vehicle with a communication system that includes sensor nodes. A sensor node includes an interconnect with an input connector, an output connector, and an opening on one or more sidewalls. The sensor node also includes a package with one or more sidewalls, a top surface, and a bottom surface, where at least one of the sidewalls of the package is disposed on the opening of interconnect. The sensor node may have a control circuit on the package, a first millimeter-wave launcher on the package, and a sensor coupled to the control circuit, where the sensor is coupled to the control circuit with an electrical cable. The sensor node may include that at least one of the sidewalls of the package is crimped by the opening and adjacent and co-planar to an inner wall of the interconnect.

Devices implementing light communications use waveguides to efficiently collect wavelength-specific light used for the light communications and propagate that collected light to a sensor. More particularly, light comprising a plurality of wavelengths and collected from one or more entrances propagates along a TIR waveguide until disrupted by a diffusive element, which effectively directs the propagating light to one or more sensors. Each sensor detects a subset of the plurality of wavelengths. In so doing, the solution presented herein increases the amount of light available for the light communications and/or reduces the number of sensors needed for the light communications, e.g., by providing light collected from multiple different locations to a single sensor. The waveguide solution presented herein may be implemented inside a device and/or along an exterior surface, e.g., housing or casing, of a device.

A method for fabricating an optical fiber coupler device includes a step of tangibly fusing a first outer cladding of a first optical fiber with a second outer cladding of a second optical fiber as a result of pulling and heating the first and second optical fibers at lengths not exceeding 3 mm to form a first region of structurally-integrated with one another first and second optical fibers, and a step of heating a second, neighboring region of these fibers to configure the device to transmit optical power of at least about a hundred Watts and up to at least a kWatt from the input end to the output end with a value of throughput loss not exceeding 0.2 dB.

Devices implementing light communications use waveguides to efficiently collect wavelength-specific light used for the light communications and propagate that collected light to a sensor. More particularly, light comprising a plurality of wavelengths and collected from one or more entrances propagates along a TIR waveguide until disrupted by a diffusive element, which effectively directs the propagating light to one or more sensors. Each sensor detects a subset of the plurality of wavelengths. In so doing, the solution presented herein increases the amount of light available for the light communications and/or reduces the number of sensors needed for the light communications, e.g., by providing light collected from multiple different locations to a single sensor. The waveguide solution presented herein may be implemented inside a device and/or along an exterior surface, e.g., housing or casing, of a device.

An optical waveguide includes a glass waveguide body and a waveguide core through which optical radiation propagates. The waveguide core includes: a body portion extending within the waveguide body, a coupling portion extending at the surface of the waveguide body, and an S-bent intermediate portion coupling the body portion and the coupling portion. An optical coupling arrangement (e.g., for coupling one or more optical fibers to a silicon photonics device) includes one such optical waveguide and a second optical waveguide including a respective waveguide body and one or more waveguide members. The second optical waveguide is coupled with the first optical waveguide with the waveguide member(s) facing the coupling portion of the first optical waveguide.

A cladding light stripper may include a double-clad optical fiber having a core for guiding signal light, an inner cladding surrounding the core, and an outer cladding surrounding the inner cladding. The optical fiber may include a stripped portion forming an exposed section. The exposed section may include a plurality of spirally-arranged transversal notches disposed along the optical fiber to enable light to escape the inner cladding upon impinging on the plurality of notches. A circumferential segment of the optical fiber may include a single notch of the plurality of notches. Each of the plurality of notches may have a depth of only a partial distance to the core.

An aim is to provide an optical coupler that contributes increasing pump-efficiency in an optical amplifier, and the optical amplifier. The optical amplifier includes: a main optical fiber that includes a core transmitting signal light, an inner cladding portion formed around an outer periphery of the core and having a refractive index lower than a refractive index of the core, and an outer cladding portion formed around an outer periphery of the inner cladding portion and having a refractive index lower than the refractive index of the inner cladding portion, a part of the outer cladding portion of which in a longitudinal direction being removed; and at least one pump-light input-output optical fiber that is fusion-spliced to the inner cladding portion of the main optical fiber at the portion where the outer cladding portion is removed, an average refractive index of which in a contact region where the pump-light input-output optical fiber is in contact with the inner cladding portion being larger than the refractive index of the inner cladding portion. Pump-light propagating in the pump-light input-output optical fiber is coupled to the inner cladding portion from the contact region and propagates in the inner cladding portion, or the pump-light propagating in the inner cladding portion is coupled to the pump-light input-output optical fiber from the contact region and propagates in the pump-light input-output optical fiber.

The present invention relates to an optical tap device. The optical tap device includes a cylinder having a rigid outer surface. A ferrule is configured to be located within the outer surface of the cylinder. The ferrule includes an inner chamber extending along a length of the ferrule. An emitter fiber and at least one tap fiber are located within the inner chamber. The emitter fiber is positioned within the inner chamber to be located at a central axis of a light source abutting the ferrule and the at least one tap fiber is positioned within the inner chamber to be located radial to the central axis of the light source abutting the ferrule. An optical feedback system and a method of providing optical feedback are also disclosed.