Guide To The Intermittent Bonded Ribbon Production Line
At defined intervals, an intermittent bonded ribbon production line joins fiber subunits. This keeps fibers in an organized arrangement for mass-fusion splicing while letting the ribbon roll or fold into a compact cable shape. Flexible ribbon cable production is supported by this design while preserving efficient fiber handling.
Some processes apply bonding material before the subunit coating cures. The materials can intermix across their interface and cure together. Prysmian’s FlexRibbon technology provides one commercial example, and the company dates its original design to 2018. These methods illustrate how optical fiber ribbon manufacturing and fiber optic bonding operate together.
Fiber Coloring Machine Fiber Draw Tower Compact Fiber Unit
What Is An Intermittent Bonded Fiber Ribbon?
An intermittent bonded fiber ribbon organizes optical fibers into small subunits. Although they remain organized for splicing, the subunits can adjust their shape to fit within a cable.
The Arrangement Of Fiber Subunits And Intermittent Bonds
Each adjacent pair or group of fibers is held together by a coating. These optical fiber subunits connect to neighboring subunits at spaced bond points rather than along their full length. A 12-fiber design may include six two-fiber subunits. The configurations range from 4 to 36 fibers, and bond spacing ranges from 10 to 1,000 millimeters.
Intermittent Bonded Ribbon Production Line
Differences Between Rollable Ribbons And Conventional Flat Ribbons
A conventional flat ribbon holds its fibers in a single fixed plane. Between bonds, a rollable fiber ribbon can fold without losing the fiber alignment needed for mass-fusion splicing. Bending and folding are supported by the discrete bonding points used in Prysmian’s FlexRibbon.
How Flexible Ribbons Enable Compact, High-Density Cables
Inside a high-density fiber cable, a flexible ribbon can take up less space. Cable designers can therefore fit more fibers in a compact structure without sacrificing an organized fiber layout.
Process And Equipment For An Intermittent Bonded Ribbon Production Line
Throughout an intermittent bonded ribbon production process, optical fibers are laid side by side along the ribbon’s length. Subunits are created when a first material coats groups containing two or more fibers. Neighboring subunits are joined at separate points with a second material, leaving flexible sections between bonds.
Organize Adjacent Optical Fibers Into Subunits
The planned ribbon layout determines how fibers are positioned next to one another. The first coating material surrounds each selected group and holds its fibers together as a subunit.
Apply Subunit Coating And Intermittent Bonding Material
The subunits are created by fiber ribbon coating. Bonding material is applied by a discrete coating applicator between neighboring subunits at spaced intervals, not continuously along their full length.
Create Diffusion Zones Through Wet-On-Wet Application
Wet-on-wet bonding involves applying the bonding material before the subunit coating has cured. The materials diffuse across their shared interface to form a diffusion zone.
Cure The Subunit Coating And Bonds Together
Both the subunit coating and the intermittent bonds are cured in one curing step. Optical fiber ribbon equipment supports these operations, although a complete equipment list, line speed, and production capacity are not specified.
| Process Stage | Material Or Action | Intended Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Fiber arrangement | Arrange fibers next to one another | Set the ribbon layout |
| Subunit formation | Coat fiber groups with the first coating material | Keep groups of two or more fibers together as subunits |
| Intermittent bonding | Deposit the second material between neighboring subunits | Connect subunits at separated bond points |
| Wet-on-wet bonding interface | Deposit bonds while the subunit coating remains uncured | Enable formation of a diffusion zone between the materials |
| Combined cure | Set the coating and bonds together in one step | Set the assembled ribbon structure |
Main Production Line Stages And Process Controls
Fiber ribbon production stages take place in a set sequence. The sequence involves arranging fibers into subunits, applying a subunit coating, placing intermittent bonds between adjacent subunits, and curing the coating and bonds together. The ribbon design must guide both optical fiber coating application and positioning of the bonds.
Example designs specify gaps of 5 to 100 micrometers between subunits. Example intermittent bond spacing ranges from 10 to 1,000 millimeters. Bond deposits may have a diamond-like outline with narrow ends and a broader center. The disclosed examples should not be treated as fixed settings that apply to every line.
Ribbon manufacturing process control depends on the chosen material selection, bond layout, and curing method. Because the source material provides no line speeds, curing temperatures, or inspection intervals, do not presume any values for them.
Ribbon Flexibility, Bond Design, And Materials
Material selection and bond layout determine how the ribbon behaves during cable making and splicing. Coatings protect each fiber while permitting the subunits to flex as intended.
Choose Compatible Coating And Bonding Materials
Subunit coatings and ribbon bonding materials have distinct functions, so their formulas need not be identical. Resins that mix or remain at least partly soluble can produce a gradual interface. Lower coating viscosity may also encourage intermixing.
This interface creates a diffusion zone in which properties change gradually. The zone may differ in color, stiffness, surface friction, tear strength, or stretch. The disclosed thickness range is 2 to 50 micrometers, while 5 to 15 micrometers is given as a narrower range.
Control Bond Placement, Spacing, And Geometry
Where subunits remain linked or move freely is governed by bond spacing. Intermittent bond geometry provides unbonded spans between bond points. Intersecting convex and concave curves create the saddle shape used on some bond surfaces.
Balance Ribbon Flexibility With Fiber Organization
Between bonds, unbonded spans let a flat ribbon move into a rolled, curled, or folded form. During cable installation, a flexible fiber ribbon can bend without disrupting the fiber organization needed for splicing.
Quality Checks For Consistent Ribbon Production
Reliable fiber ribbon quality checks measure defined features rather than relying on assumed pass limits. The patent identifies design factors such as bond spacing, subunit gaps, diffusion-zone thickness, and bond shape. However, it does not establish inspection methods or acceptance limits.
Check Bond Continuity And Subunit Alignment
Verify that intermittent bonds join adjacent subunits at the intended positions, with unbonded lengths between them. Review subunit alignment and gaps because shifts can affect ribbon shape and bond geometry.
Evaluate Ribbon Flexibility And Rollability
Assess ribbon rollability by observing how the ribbon bends and gathers without changing fiber order. Throughout the ribbon design, evaluate bond spacing and flexibility. These comparisons are design checks, not universal production tolerances.
Confirm Fiber Identification And Ribbon Configuration
Confirm each fiber’s position using fiber color coding. Blue, orange, green, brown, slate, white, red, black, yellow, violet, rose, and aqua make up a widely used 12-color sequence. For ribbons containing more than 12 fibers, this sequence may be repeated.
Cable Applications, Integration, And Splicing Benefits
Intermittently bonded ribbons can fold inside a cable, enabling more fibers to fit into a compact design. According to Prysmian, FlexRibbon enables high-density ribbon cable designs with smaller diameters and better fiber duct utilization.
Support High-Density Cable Designs And Duct Utilization
For indoor, outdoor, and indoor/outdoor applications, Prysmian offers FusionLink and MassLink with FlexRibbon. Dry water blocking is used in FusionLink, which comes with either 250 μm or 200 μm ribbon. EcoSpan aerial cable supports spans of up to 300 feet under NESC Heavy loading conditions. As a small-diameter outdoor option, FlexDrop can hold up to two 12-fiber ribbons.
Support Mass-Fusion Splicing And Quicker Deployment
Mass-fusion splicing joins several ribbon fibers in a single operation, often 12 at once. This approach may shorten splice time where ribbon routes are compatible. For loose-tube cable connections, technicians separate the ribbon fibers and splice them one by one using a single-fiber splicer.
Review Indoor, Outdoor, Access, And Broadband Applications
Applications for ribbon cable include point-to-point networks, indoor FTTH systems, MTP wiring-box links, and urban trunk routes. Selecting indoor and outdoor fiber cable for each route helps align cable construction with the needs of buildings, aerial runs, and underground installations.
Final Conclusions
An intermittent bonded ribbon line guide covers fiber layout, bond placement, curing, and inspection. The process produces a flexible optical fiber ribbon that stays organized for handling while rolling or folding into compact cable designs.
In this process, bonds are applied before the subunit coating cures. Before they cure together, the materials form a diffusion zone. Reliable fiber cable manufacturing is encouraged by careful control at every stage.
Mass-fusion ribbon splicing is also enabled by flexible ribbons, helping crews splice many fibers in one operation. Prysmian describes FlexRibbon in various cable designs, including compact configurations containing up to 6,912 fibers.
Manufacturers and network planners need to manage fiber alignment, bond strength, and rollability. Achieving that balance can ease cable packaging while keeping ribbons ready for efficient installation and splicing.
