US 12,298,580 B2
Techniques for azimuthally aligning a cross-section of an anti-resonant hollow core fiber when winding such fiber into a coil
Austin Acker Taranta, Southampton (GB); Leonard George Budd, Southampton (GB); Francesco Poletti, Southampton (GB); Eric Numkam Fokoua, Southampton (GB); and Seyed Mohammad Abokhamis Mousavi, Portsmouth (GB)
Assigned to Honeywell International Inc., Charlotte, NC (US)
Filed by Honeywell International Inc., Charlotte, NC (US)
Filed on Jun. 23, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/340,713.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/447,209, filed on Feb. 21, 2023.
Prior Publication US 2024/0280776 A1, Aug. 22, 2024
Int. Cl. G02B 6/44 (2006.01); G01M 11/00 (2006.01); G02B 6/02 (2006.01)
CPC G02B 6/444 (2013.01) [G01M 11/37 (2013.01); G02B 6/02361 (2013.01); G02B 6/02328 (2013.01); G02B 6/02357 (2013.01); G02B 6/4457 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of operating a system for azimuthally aligning a hollow core optical fiber being wound around a winding axis into a coil, the method comprising:
projecting an optical signal on an outer surface of a jacket of an unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber;
measuring, at each of two optical detectors, power or energy levels of portions, of the optical signal, reflected from and/or traversing around a circumference of at least one capillary of the unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber, wherein the two optical detectors are separated from one another by an azimuthal offset angle with respect to a cross-section of the unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber;
receiving, from each optical detector, data about the measured power or energy levels;
using (a) the data about the measured power or energy levels received from each optical detector and (b) at least one of (i) a desired azimuthal orientation of the cross-section with respect to a bend plane of the unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber and (ii) a desired rate of azimuthal rotation with respect to a length of the unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber, (x) identifying, for each of such data received from an optical detector, a maximum intensity with respect to optical path delay or a time delay at which the maximum intensity occurs with respect to the optical path delay and then using each maximum intensity or time delay, (y) determining azimuthal correction data, wherein the cross-section is perpendicular to a length of the unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber, wherein the bend plane is orthogonal both to the winding axis and to the cross-section of the unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber;
using the azimuthal correction data, adjusting an azimuthal alignment of the cross-section or another cross-section of the unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber with respect to the bend plane; and
winding the coil of the optical fiber using the unwound anti-resonant hollow core fiber whose azimuthal alignment has been adjusted.