25.07.2014 Views

FIBEROPTIC SENSOR TECHNOLOGY HANDBOOK

FIBEROPTIC SENSOR TECHNOLOGY HANDBOOK

FIBEROPTIC SENSOR TECHNOLOGY HANDBOOK

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

A simplified design of the cladding light<br />

monitor is indicated in Fig. 5.33. The pick-up fiber<br />

STRIPPER<br />

I o-<br />

SOURCE FIBER<br />

DEFORMER<br />

transducer outputs could also be accomplished prior to<br />

photodetection. The optical outputs may be combined<br />

with appropriate time delays determined by the transducer<br />

spacings and coupler fiber lengths. On the other<br />

hand, by employing a pulse modulated optical source, it<br />

is possible to employ a single return bus fiber into<br />

which the optical output pulses from the various transducers<br />

could be fed. Time domain multiplexing schemes<br />

could then be used to identify and process the signal<br />

from the individual sensors. These and other various<br />

types of fiberoptic sensor arrays and the telemetering<br />

of their outputs are discussed in detail in Chapter 6.<br />

Fig. 5.33<br />

FIBER-FIBER<br />

COUPLER<br />

DETECTOR FIBER<br />

kAI<br />

A darkfield microbend intensity-type fiberoptic<br />

sensor with a fiber-fiber coupler<br />

following the deformer (microbender) developed<br />

by the Catholic University.<br />

is directly coupled to the outer surface of the cladding<br />

of the through-put fiber. Recent studies of this<br />

technique have ha~ p~omising results.<br />

darkfield<br />

The design and operation of a linear array of<br />

microbend sensors is shown in Fig. 5.34. Each<br />

This brief description of various intensity<br />

type sensors is not exhaustive. The discussion is aimed<br />

at introducing some basic concepts regarding their overall<br />

design and behavior. Many other fiberoptic intensity<br />

transducers are currently under investigation such<br />

as sensors employing fibers with temperature sensitive<br />

absorptive dopants, and several displacement and pressure<br />

transducers employing strain-induced birefringence<br />

as an intensity transduction mechanism. All of these<br />

have the advantage of being much simpler in design and<br />

operation, but they are less sensitive than interferometric<br />

fiberoptic sensors. Further improvements, including<br />

increases in sensitivity, are expected for the<br />

intensity-type fiberoptic sensors.<br />

5.2.6<br />

1.<br />

2.<br />

3.<br />

s.<br />

R.<br />

w.<br />

References<br />

Sheem and J. Cole, Opt. Lett. ~, 322 (1979).<br />

Phillips, Opt. Lett. ~, 318 (1980).<br />

Spillman, Appl. Opt. ~, 465 (1981).<br />

STR!-R<br />

DEFORMER<br />

SOURCE FIBER<br />

STRIPPER<br />

,~fi \.- .<br />

----<br />

\<br />

---<br />

-<br />

DEFORMER<br />

K /’<br />

FIBER-FIBER<br />

COUPLERS<br />

%T<br />

)<br />

Fig. 5.34<br />

A series of deformers used to control the<br />

intensity of light tapped from an optical<br />

fiber bus.<br />

sensor is an assembly consisting of a cladding-mode<br />

stripper, a microbend deformer (transducer), and a fiber-to-fiber<br />

coupler. Many of these assemblies may be<br />

mounted in series on a single optical fiber bus. The<br />

cladding-mode stripper removes any residual light in<br />

the cladding just prior to the microbend deformer. The<br />

deformer causes light from the core to enter the cladding<br />

according to the baseband (information-bearing<br />

force, pressure, or sound) signal. Following the deformer,<br />

the coupler removes the light (baseband signal)<br />

from the claddlng and dispatches it to a photodetector.<br />

A number of different multiplexing schemes<br />

could be used in the detection portion of the array.<br />

The moat direct, would be to feed each cladding light<br />

pick-up fiber to a separate photodetector. Temporal<br />

and spatial averaging of a number of closely spaced<br />

5-12<br />

4.<br />

5.<br />

6.<br />

5.3<br />

J.<br />

J.<br />

J.<br />

N.<br />

R.<br />

Fields, C. Asawa, O. Ramer, and M. Barnoski,<br />

Acoust. SOC. Am. Z, 816 (1980).<br />

Fields and J. Cole, Appl. Opt. ~, 3265 (1980).<br />

Lagakos, T. Litovitz, P. Macedo, R. Mohr, and<br />

Meister, Appl. Opt. ~, 167 (1981).<br />

<strong>FIBEROPTIC</strong> LINRAR ACCELEROMETERS<br />

The operation of interferometric fiberoptic<br />

sensors described in Section 5.1 depends primarily on<br />

phase changes associated with force-field-induced mechanical<br />

strains. Similarly the two-fiber optical accelerometer<br />

described in this section makes use of the<br />

change in fiber length due to a force resulting from<br />

the acceleration of a mass suspended between two fibers.<br />

The effect is to increase the tensile stress in the fiber<br />

in one arm of an interferometer and decrease the<br />

tensile stresa in the fiber in the other arm. The device<br />

for accomplishing this is shown in Fig. 5.35. A<br />

section of the fiber in one arm of the interferometer<br />

is attached both to the upper end of the case and to<br />

the mass. A similar section of fiber in the other arm<br />

of the interferometer is attached to the mass and to<br />

the lower end of the case. Thus, the mass, m, is suspended<br />

between the two fiber sections which effectively<br />

serve as springs. If the accelerometer case is given<br />

an acceleration, a, vertically upward, the upper fiber<br />

elongates by AL and the lower fiber shortens by the<br />

same amount in providing the force F required to accelerate<br />

the mass. This may be written as<br />

F=2AAT=ma (5.19)

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!