Using Basic (Optic), Accompanying (Mechanic) and Added Features of Optic Fibers in Development of new Devices

Basic (optic) features of optic fibers are:

1. aperture,
2. light losses,
3. spectral features.

Accompanying features of optic fibers can be of different nature, for example, the mechanical ones. They are:

1. elasticity,
2. flexibility,
3. strength, etc.

Special features can be added. For example, the magnet or electric conductivity can be added by using a corresponding magnet or conducting coatings.

The main author's idea is to develop novel devices based on the using of a total combination of these features so that the devices would not have competitors.

The author developed the principles of design of new optic deflectors (scanners), micro-manipulators and micro-robot line.

The optic fiber or the capillary is used as a mechanic device - a propped cantilever beam, i.e. the fiber is made fast on the one end. The features of a magnet or electric conductivity are added to the fiber, i.e. it is coated with a magnet-soft, magnet-hard or electro-conducting (aluminum, copper, silver) material near the free end. Then orthogonal - deflecting coils to produce a deflecting magnet field or orthogonal electrodes to produce a deflecting electric field are placed near that especially coated free end of the fiber.

Under the influence of these fields, the free end of the fiber will deflect simultaneously in two coordinates and return to the initial position due to the fiber's elasticity, after taking off control signals. Cylinder fibers have an infinite number of degrees of freedom and, if they are used in such device, they move by any trajectory: lines, rasters, circles, spirals, etc.

Let now use the basic (optic) fiber features. For example, if we enter the radiation into the fiber then we can obtain a movement of outgoing light beams along the mentioned trajectories by a simple movement of the fiber, thus receiving electro-mechanical deflectors (scanners).

The ends of the moved fibers can be equipped with classic elements of micro-optics: micro-lenses, diaphragms, tube collimators, etc.

These elements can provide focusing or collimating (for creating parallel beams). Two or more fibers can be merged to create deflectors (scanners) targeted both to expose the object to radiation and, simultaneously, to receive the radiation reflected from the object. Possible advantages are:

1. 0 variety of functions,
2. high speed of response,
3. simplicity due to the absence of conventional mechanics (engines, transmission mechanisms, etc.),
4. high sensitivity,
5. small density of control signal, high accuracy,
6. low cost.

The author believes that such combination of the features has no competitors.

Applications

Fiber deflectors (scanners) are products themselves because they can be used in any optic systems: laser radars, protection systems, systems of measurement object sizes, TV microscopes, advertisement systems, etc.

For example, the simplest protection systems can be developed based on the fiber scanners with the circular scanning.

A circular scanning laser radar with an effective range through 1 km can be built by using an engine with a longitudinal hole on its shaft so that two fibers are roved through the hole, 90 degrees bent at the outlet, integrated with collimators, the input of one fiber being connected to the laser and the input of another fiber being connected to the photo-receiver. Several parallel channels at different vertical levels (multilevel scanner) provide obtaining a full information per a revolution.

A giant ring screen of a radius to 10 - 100 m can be built based on the multi-level scanner with an engine. Object size measurement 3D systems for macro- and micro-objects can be built based on the fiber scanners...

Micro-manipulators and micro-robots (for example, targeted to micro-surgery, micro-biology, neuro-physiology, engineering genetics, etc.) based on using the quartz fiber or capillary elastic deformation can be built, the fibers being coated with the magnet or electro-conducting materials.

The laser beam radiated from the fiber can be used as a micro-instrument. Any micro-instrument inserted to the capillary free end may also be used.

The microscope with the 3D (stereoscopic) magnification based on two fiber optic scanners that are scanning the object under two different angles of vision (similar to two eyes) can be built.