Apparatus for simultaneously inspecting and cleaning fiber connector

摘要

The fiberscope for inspecting and cleaning a fiber connector simultaneously includes a housing with a front panel, a microscope system, a connector holder mounted at a distance from the front panel for receiving a connector ferrule of a fiber connector, and a translation stage for moving the microscope system transversely to align its optical axis with the connector ferrule. The fiberscope further includes a hand knob attached to a fine screw through the connector holder for adjusting the vertical position of the connector ferrule, a mirror pivotally mounted between the connector holder and the front panel, an LED lamp, air nozzles attached to the front panel, and a cleaning air tube for supplying compressed air to the air nozzles. The cleaning air from the air nozzles spray sideways onto the fiber endfaces so that the cleaning air bounces off sideways to avoid secondary contamination.

主权项

1. An apparatus for simultaneously inspecting and cleaning a fiber connector, comprising:
a housing having a base plate and a front panel, the front panel having a lower portion connected to the base plate; a microscope system embedded inside the housing, wherein the microscope system has an objective, an optical axis, and a camera, wherein a front window of the objective is exposed through an opening in the front panel; and a connector holder disposed at a certain distance in front of the front panel, defining an open access space between the connector holder and the front panel, the connector holder having a connector receptacle embedded therein for receiving and holding a connector ferrule of a fiber connector so that a ferrule endface of the connector ferrule and fiber endfaces in the ferrule endface are exposed in a rear window of the connector receptacle, facing the front panel, wherein the connector receptacle is substantially aligned with the optical axis of the microscope system so that the ferrule endface and the fiber endfaces of the fiber connector may be viewed and inspected through the microscope system and cleaned via the open access space; at least one air nozzle attached to the front panel of the housing at an off-center location; and a cleaning air tube extending from the at least one air nozzle, for connecting to an external clean and dry compressed air supply to supply cleaning air to the at least one air nozzle, wherein the at least one air nozzle is disposed to allow the cleaning air therefrom to spray sideways onto the ferrule endface of the fiber connector received in the connector holder and then bounce off the ferrule endface sideways out of the open access space between the connector holder and the front panel of the housing.