Projects
Case Study - Automated Optical Test System
Challenge
This project was for the software integration of an automated optical measuring system, which was able to calculate the insertion losses for a number of optical devices across a range of light wavelengths at a resolution of up to 0.001nm.
The system included the calibration of a polarisation controller, which allowed the filtering of the light into its separate planes and included a lightwave switch for the testing of optical splitters. The entire system was controlled using LabVIEW allowing for precision, speed of testing and automation.
The front user-panel was built for ease of use and allowed for a clear and logical initial set-up with the ability to save and reload any regularly used configurations. The set-up was put together on an air table to reduce any potential vibrations and an automated XYZ nano-positioning controller was used to position the waveguides, which were coupled using the “Butt” coupling technique.
Each of the instruments were connected through a GPIB bus and the results published straight to excel in a professional format. There was also the inclusion of a graphs tab so that the current positions and each of the switches could be monitored in a real-time mode.
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