Specialized Fiber Optic

Specialized fiber optics are devices with special purposes including use in design, manufacturing and support of fiber optic products. This includes items like test equipment, cleaning products, connectors, tools, patch cables, splicing products and termination equipment. In order to test optic fiber systems, special optical inspection scopes and microscopes are required. They can be purchased as a kit incorporating fiber cleaning accessories, and may also be able to be attached to a computer to view test images. Test probes are utilized to detect dirty or damaged connectors. An important aspect of testing is certification against different tiers of performance, and certification test kits are available to qualify equipment. These typically incorporate an optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR) to characterize the optic fiber by injecting light pulses and detecting the pattern of rayleigh backscatter returned from points along the fiber. Power meters are also available to assess power levels and signal margins. Fiber cleaning kits are a collection of gels, chemicals, swabs and sticks for cleaning the connectors and ensuring a smooth dust of dirt free interface. Fiber tools for connector crimping, cleaving, splitting and spicing are also available. In many cases, fibers have different terminations that require coupling adapters, and a variety of interconnection adapters are available. In installation and testing of fiber optic cabling systems, it is important to be able to assess the signal margins on connections. This can be achieved by using fiber optic attenuators that connect in line with the fiber cable. Epoxy resin sealants and potting mixes are also available for sealing and repair applications , along with special ovens for curing the resins.