Author: Fiber-MART.COM

At the speed of light, it carries huge quantities of data at the speed of light – optical fibre is everywhere. Flexible and thin, around the thickness of human hair, glass or plastic fibre is super-fast.

Overtaking copper wire as the medium of choice, fibre carries data as pulses of light. Because of its lower cost, its faster speed and the fact it’s less bulky is the reasoning behind the shift. Optical fibre is also harder to hack than copper, making it more secure and safer because it doesn’t generate heat in the same way copper does.

It does, however, come with its own challenges. Installation and management must be carefully managed because of the delicate nature of optical fibre. Any amount of grease, dirt or moisture can affect the transmission of light, even the tiniest of specks. Although the actual fibres themselves are protected by and acrylic layer, the connectors joining each fibre can be vulnerable in harsh environments.

This is true in outdoor applications such as FTTx, data and telecommunications, civil engineering, broadcasting and marine. It is imperative that the optical fibres are robust enough to cope with being run between communications masts for telecoms links, across freezing ground for television outside broadcasts, and alongside roads to carry video from traffic cameras.

Freezing temperatures causing damage

The way that fibres and connectors deal with sub-zero temperatures is a significant problem. Water can end up making its way into the duct carrying the fibre or the conduit. This is usually the case if there are any gaps or more commonly, imperfect joins at the connectors. In fact, standard interface connectors are not simply not robust enough to avoid water ingress in harsh environments.

When the temperature drops sub-zero and water freezes, and ice forms around the fibre – this causes the fibre to deform and bend. This then degrades the signal passing through the fibre, at the very least reducing the bandwidth, but quite possibly stopping data transmission altogether.

To mitigate this problem, one approach is to only install fibre cables buried below the frost line, so there is no threat of ice. But this solution can be extremely expensive and is difficult to follow when cables need to be routed along a bridge or other structure. Another solution can be to add antifreeze liquids or gels to the fibre conduit, but again this can have a high cost.

Rugged connectors

To cost-effectively protect an optical fibre against extreme temperatures, it is essential to protect not only the connections but the end points from any water that can get into the conduit, and go on to freeze.

A connector that is specifically designed for harsh environments can ensure that the fibre conduit is sealed, therefore, keeping the fibre itself safe from the risk of ice formation.

There are three common types of fibre connectors: SC, ST (bayonet-twist) and LC (push-pull locking). The LC connector is most commonly chosen, because it is much smaller than the other two, and also provides a secure clip connection.

Unfortunately, a standard LC connector does not give the same type of protection that a rugged connector does and does not provide sufficient protection against water ingress. Although it is possible to build a custom enclosure that will protect the connector, it can prove to be very bulky and is not cost-effective.

Instead, a much better approach is to specify a rugged LC connector that is specifically designed for harsh environments. For example, Bulgin’s 4000 Series Fiber connector is the smallest sealed standard interface connector on the market. The fibre connection is UV resistant, salt spray resistant and sealed to IP166, IP68 and IP69K, while still providing an industry-standard LC interface as specified by IEC 61754-20.

The connector and its housing can be completely immersed in water up to a depth of 10 meters, for a period of up to two weeks (based on IP68 rating tests), without allowing water to gain access to the conduit and hence potentially to freeze and damage the fibre. The connector can also handle temperatures from -25 to +70c and protects the fibre against dirt and dust.

For duplex fibre connections, the 6000 Series Fiber would be more fitting. Like the 4000 Series Fiber, the 6000 Series Fiber connector is suited for outdoor broadcasting, FTTx, server room engineering, civil engineering and aviation & rail applications.

The 6000 series harsh environment optical connector is designed for years of service in areas where unprotected physical contact fibre, isn’t an option. Featuring a secure, yet easy to operate 30 degree locking mechanism, this series has field proven IP68 and IP69K performance.

In comparison to the simplex 4000 Series Fiber connector, the additional glass fibre on this duplex cable can double the data transmission capabilities where required.

With a suitable rugged connector, engineers can now plan their fibre deployments in harsh environments without fear of damage from ice – and without the cost of antifreeze, or the inconvenience of bulky enclosures.

The wide application of the fiber to the home (FTTH) promotes the rise of the optic connector. This product has the characteristics of small size and fast connection, and caused small loss, high stability, it’s essential fiber connection devices for fiber system. Today will introduce the use instruction of fiber fast connector.

About fiber fast connector

Fiber fast connector is a kind of innovative field end connector, currently the fiber fast connector can be terminated with a diameter of 250μm, 900μm, 2.0mm and 3.0mm SM fiber and MM fiber on the market.

 Features and applications of fiber fast connector

Main features

Good stability

Small insertion loss

Low use cost

Installation speed is very fast

Installation and maintenance is very simple

Main applications

Optical fiber communication applications

Fiber to the home (FTTH) applications

Wire TV application

Use steps of fiber fast connectors

Although the use of fiber fast connector is very simple, we still have to follow the correct steps. Overall, the installation of the fiber fast connector is as follows:

Step 1: Prepare fiber fast connector, fiber stripping pliers, fiber cutting knife, fiber cleaning tools etc;

Step 2: Put connector tail sleeve on the optical cable;

Step 3: Using fiber stripping pliers stripping the outer sheath of the cable, clean optical fiber, and then cut the bare fiber with the fiber cutting knife, the length of the bare fiber is reserved according to the specific circumstances.

Step 4: Inserting the optical fiber into the fiber fast connector;

Step 5: Press down the cover to lock fiber;

Step 6: Put tail sleeve on the fiber fast connector.

The operation of fiber fast connector is convenient and fast, connection cost is low, access anytime and anywhere, will play an irreplaceable role in fiber to the home (FTTH) access network.

Due to the wide variety of fiber optic adapters and the similar appearance of fiber optic adapters from different vendors, you may not know how to choose. In general, you should consider the following two tips when choosing a fiber optic adapter.

Fiber Cable Type

If the fiber adapter needs to be connected to the same fiber cable type and connector, a fiber optic adapter with a square, rectangular or circular interface can be used. If the type of cable to be connected is different, a hybrid fiber adapter is required. This hybrid fiber adapter can connect any two types of fiber patch cords together. Due to the wide variety of hybrid fiber optic adapters, it is important to know what type of cable to connect before purchasing.

The Sleeve Material of fiber adapter

Alignment sleeve is the most important component of fiber optic adapters. Some manufacturers choose metal as the material for the alignment bushings, but ceramic-made fiber optic adapters have proven to work much better than using metal as the alignment bushing. The fiber optic adapter, because the crystal structure of the ceramic is very hard and does not deform over time like metal, so it can achieve fast alignment and high-precision fiber end-face connection.

How to Cleaning Fiber Optic Adapter?

Although the fiber optic adapter is relatively small and belongs to the small part of the fiber optic cabling, it does not affect its importance in the fiber optic cabling system. Like other fiber optic equipment, it needs to be cleaned. There are two main cleaning methods, namely contact and non-contact cleaning.

Contact cleaning method

• Dust-free wiping paper or dust-free cleaning cloth; use dust-free paper or dust-free cloth with sewage alcohol to wipe the end face of the fiber optic connector.

(2) Cassette type optical fiber cleaning box; a special role of wiping tape is installed in the rollable casing, and the principle is to use the strong adhesive on the wiping tape to stick the dirt on the end face of the fiber connector.

(3) Special fiber cleaning pen; fiber-optic cleaning pen is specially used to clean the inside of the fiber adapter or the ferrule end face. The method is very simple. The end of the refill is inserted into the ceramic sleeve of the adapter and can be cleaned by a single push. End face.

Non-contact cleaning method

• Ultrasonic cleaning method Nowadays, the ultrasonic cleaning instrument on the market adopts this cleaning method, and the cleaning liquid is turned into an ultrasonic “liquid column” to be sent out to the end face of the fiber connector.

(2) High-pressure air blowing method; the cleaning liquid is shown on the end face of the fiber connector, and then the high-pressure gas is used to align the end face of the connector to clean the end face.

Fiber optic adapters (also known as Fiber couplers, Fiber Adapter ) are designed to connect two optical cables together. They have a single fiber connector (simplex), dual fiber connector (duplex) or sometimes four fiber connector (quad) versions. The optical fiber adapter can be inserted into different types of optical connectors at both ends of the optical fiber adapter to realize the conversion between different interfaces such as FC, SC, ST, LC, MTRJ, MPO and E2000, and is widely used in optical fiber distribution frames (ODFs) Instruments, providing superior, stable and reliable performance.

Features of Fiber Optic Adapter

The optical fibers are connected by an adapter through its internal open bushing to ensure the maximum connection between the optical connectors. In order to be fixed in a variety of panels, the industry also designed a variety of finely fixed flange.

Transformable optical adapters are available with fiber optic connectors of different interface types on both ends and provide a connection between APC faceplates. Duplex or multi-adapter adapts to increase installation density and save space.

Fiber Optic Adapter types

FC Fiber Optic Adapter

This fiber optic adapter was first developed by Japan NTT. FC is an acronym for FERRULE CONNECTOR, indicating that its external reinforcement is the use of the metal sleeve, fastening the way for the buckle. The earliest, FC type connector, the docking end of the ceramic pin. Such connectors are simple in structure, easy to operate and easy to manufacture. However, the fiber end face is more sensitive to dust, and it is easy to produce Fresnel reflection and it is difficult to improve the return loss performance. Later, this type of connector has been improved, the use of docking the spherical end of the pin (PC), while the external structure has not changed, making the insertion loss and return loss performance has been greatly improved.

SC Fiber Optic Adapter

This is a kind of optical fiber connector developed by Japan NTT Corporation. The shell is rectangular, the pin and the coupling sleeve used in the structure of the same size and FC type. One end of the pin to use more PC or APC grinding method; the casting method is the use of plug pin type, without rotation. Such connectors are inexpensive, easy to plug and unplug, low insertion loss variations, high compressive strength, and high installation density.

DIN47256 Fiber Optic Adapter

This is a connector developed by Germany. The pins and coupling sleeves used in this connector are the same size as the FC type and the PC process is used for the end face processing. Compared with the FC type connector, the structure is more complex, and the internal metal structure has a control pressure spring to prevent the end face from being damaged due to the excessive insertion pressure. In addition, this connector has higher mechanical accuracy and therefore smaller insertion loss values.

MT-RJ Fiber Optic Adapter

MT-RJ started with the MT connector developed by NTT with the same latching mechanism as the RJ-45 type LAN electrical connector. Alignment of the optical fiber with guide pins mounted on both sides of the small bushing made it easy to communicate with the optical transceiver Machine connected to the connector end of the optical fiber for the dual-core (0.75MM spacing) array design is mainly used for data transmission next generation high-density fiber optic connectors.

LC Fiber Optic Adapter

The lc-type connector is a well-known BELL (Bell) Institute of research and development, the use of convenient modular jack (RJ) latch mechanism made. The pins and sleeves used are half the sizes used for normal SC, FC, etc., at 1.25mm. This will increase the density of fiber optic connectors in fiber distribution frames. Currently, in the single-mode SFF, LC type of connector has actually occupied the dominant position, the application of multi-mode is also growing rapidly.

MU Fiber Optic Adapter

The MINIATURE UNIT COUPLING connector is the world’s smallest single-core fiber optic connector developed by NTT based on the currently used SC-type connector. The connector uses a 1.25MM diameter sleeve and self-holding mechanism, the advantage is that it can achieve high-density installation. NTT has developed the MU connector family with MU’s L.25MM diameter bushings. They have socket type connectors for optical cable connections; backplane connectors with the self-holding mechanism and simplified sockets for connecting LD / PD modules and plugs Wait. Demand for MU-type connectors will also grow rapidly as fiber-optic networks become more capable of larger bandwidths and DWDM technologies are widely used.

MTP/MPO Fiber Optic Adapters

Unlike the single-core SC fiber optic adapters, the SC fiber optic adapters are internally equipped with a ceramic ferrule that is precisely aligned through the ferrule when the SC connector ferrule is connected, while the MPO / MTP adapter is connected using an MPO / MTP Precise connection of two guide holes with a diameter of 0.7mm and a guide pin on the left and right ends of the ferrule. MPO / MTP adapters are widely used in communication system base stations, optical fiber distribution frames (ODFs) in building rooms, MPO / MTP cassette module, and various test instruments.