Yasuo Asano

Low-loss mass-fusion splicing technique for twelve-fiber ribbon

An economical splicing technique is very important when considering the installation of an optical fiber subscriber loop. The mass-fusion splicing technique is one of the most suitable solutions to this problem. However, a mechanical splicing technique has been adopted for mass splicing.1 Some results of mass-fusion splicing have been reported earlier.2

High-strength splicing with fabrication of a thin film

Arc fusion splicing with high strength is important not only for manufacturing ultralong cables but also for field splicing with high reliability, such as for submarine cables. The main causes of loss of fiber strength during the splicing process are believed to be mechanical removal of the fiber coating layer and direct contact with the fiber chucking mechanism of the splicer. Some results of attempts to maintain high-strength splicing have already been reported. However, these methods and equipment were not easy to use because of a special splicer1 or fiber etching with fluoride acid.2