EoW November 2012

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November 2012 30 EuroWire – January 2012
Whilst the commercial production
of optical fibre may be in decline for
telecoms applications, and copper cable
increasingly the preferred alternative,
considerable research effort is now being
focused on a new generation of fibre
optic products, leading to the prowess
of UK-based Engineering Services
Management (ESM) being in considerable
demand.
This specialist company has recently been
responsible for the design, build and
installation of a bespoke, dual-purpose
fibre optic tower to draw fibre and
canes for research. Whilst a comparable
commercial system is a large steel
fabricated structure, the ESM system
is modular and much more compact,
designed to suit the space and access
restrictions of a research environment.
An essential part of the fibre optic
production process for which this ESM
system has been designed is the smooth,
friction-free vertical feed of the glass
preform, a cylindrical glass blank, into an
in-line furnace. As it melts, a thin strand
of silica is produced that is ultimately
coated with resin for additional strength
and flexibility.
The basis of this vertical feed mechanism
is a reduced engineering package from
HepcoMotion®. This screw driven linear
actuator system, specified for clean room
conditions, comprises a heavy-duty
beam onto which is mounted a Profile
Screw Driven PSD120. This product is
particularly suited to Z-axis applications
and features HepcoMotion® Herculane
wheels which provide smooth, low
maintenance performance.
The PSD120 ball screw drive and linear
guide are housed in a strong aluminium
beam protected by a stainless steel
cover strip that runs the entire length
of the product to prevent ingress of
dirt and debris. It is therefore an ideal
alternative to a linear motion system with
integral bellows that could easily cause
particle contamination of a sensitive
environment.
The system was designed to be a simple
solution for the main tower construction
and for the purpose was supplied with
joining plates for easy on-site assembly.
The T-slots on the beam also provide
a simple method of attachment for
ancillary components.
The ball screw drive is required for small
slow adjustments of the glass furnace
position.
On the ESM ‘mini’ tower, the chuck that
holds the glass preform securely as it
enters the furnace is attached to an extra
large carriage plate on the PSD120. To
provide the stability required to ensure
high linearity of feed movement, the
PSD120 was also specified with additional
Utilitrak® rollers to increase moment
capacity and rigidity.
The first of the ESM compact fibre optic
towers is now installed and operating
well at the Max Planck Institute in
Germany, a leading centre of excellence
for photonics crystal fibre and soft glass
fibre development. It houses a research
group led by Belfast-born Professor Philip
St John Russell FRS, the eminent scientist
whose extensive work in this field
resulted in the realisation of photonic
crystal fibres in 1996.
The second tower was delivered to the
University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia in 2010 for research into flat
fibres. A third tower was shipped to Brazil
in February this year.
Engineering Services Management – UK
Website:
ESM leads the field in research
Technologynews
r 2012
▲ ▲ The expertise of ESM in global demand