Intermittent Bonded Ribbon Production Line Guide
An intermittent bonded ribbon production line connects fiber subunits at set intervals. This keeps fibers in an organized arrangement for mass-fusion splicing while letting the ribbon roll or fold into a compact cable shape. The design enables flexible ribbon cable production without compromising effective fiber handling.
Some processes deposit bonding material before the subunit coating cures. The materials can diffuse across their interface and cure together. One commercial example is Prysmian’s FlexRibbon technology, whose original design the company says dates to 2018. These methods illustrate how optical fiber ribbon manufacturing and fiber optic bonding work in combination.
Fiber Secondary Coating Line Compact Fiber Unit SZ Stranding Line
What Is An Intermittent Bonded Fiber Ribbon?
Optical fibers are arranged into small subunits in an intermittent bonded fiber ribbon. Although they remain organized for splicing, the subunits can change their shape to fit within a cable.
The Arrangement Of Fiber Subunits And Intermittent Bonds
Each neighboring pair or group of fibers is held together by a coating. Instead of joining along their entire length, these optical fiber subunits are connected to neighboring subunits at spaced bond points. A 12-fiber design may use six two-fiber subunits. Configurations can contain 4 to 36 fibers, with bonds spaced from 10 to 1,000 millimeters apart.
Intermittent Bonded Ribbon Production Line
Differences Between Rollable Ribbons And Conventional Flat Ribbons
In a conventional flat ribbon, the fibers remain 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 small bonding points used in Prysmian’s FlexRibbon.
Why Flexible Ribbons Support Compact, High-Density Cables
Ribbon flexibility limits the space it occupies inside a high-density fiber cable. This enables cable designers to fit more fibers into a compact structure while maintaining an organized fiber layout.
Intermittent Bonded Ribbon Production Line: Process And Equipment
Throughout an intermittent bonded ribbon production process, optical fibers are arranged 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 spaced points with a second material, leaving flexible sections between bonds.
Arrange Adjacent Optical Fibers Into Subunits
Fibers are positioned beside one another according to the planned ribbon layout. Each selected group becomes a subunit when the first coating material encases and holds its fibers together.
Deposit Subunit Coating And Intermittent Bonding Material
Fiber ribbon coating forms the subunits. A discrete coating applicator places bonding material between neighboring subunits at intervals rather than along their entire length.
Use Wet-On-Wet Application To Form Diffusion Zones
Wet-on-wet bonding involves applying the bonding material before the subunit coating has cured. The materials intermix across their shared interface to form a diffusion zone.
Set The Subunit Coating And Bonds In One Cure
Both the subunit coating and the intermittent bonds are cured in one curing step. Although optical fiber ribbon equipment is used for these operations, the complete equipment list, line speed, and production capacity remain unspecified.
| Process Stage | Material Or Action | Intended Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Optical fiber arrangement | Place fibers side by side | Set the ribbon layout |
| Formation of subunits | Apply the first coating material around fiber groups | Hold two or more fibers as subunits |
| Intermittent bonding | Apply the second material between adjacent subunits | Join subunits at spaced points |
| Wet-on-wet bonding interface | Deposit bonds while the subunit coating remains uncured | Allow materials to form a diffusion zone |
| Combined cure | Set the coating and bonds together in one step | Cure the assembled ribbon structure |
Key Production Line Stages And Process Controls
Fiber ribbon production stages take place in a specific 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. Optical fiber coating application and bond placement must correspond to the ribbon design.
Gaps of 5 to 100 micrometers between subunits are given in example designs. Example intermittent bond spacing ranges from 10 to 1,000 millimeters. Some bond deposits take a diamond-like shape, narrowing at the ends and widening in the center. These are disclosed examples, not fixed parameters for every production 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, avoid assuming any values for them.
Materials, Bond Design, And Ribbon Flexibility
Ribbon behavior during cable making and splicing depends on the chosen materials and bond layout. Each fiber is covered by coatings that still allow the subunits to flex as designed.
Choose Compatible Coating And Bonding Materials
Subunit coatings and ribbon bonding materials have different functions, so their formulas need not be identical. A gradual interface can be formed by resins that intermix or remain at least partly soluble. Lower coating viscosity may also promote 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. Disclosed thicknesses extend from 2 to 50 micrometers, with 5 to 15 micrometers representing a narrower range.
Control Bond Placement, Spacing, And Geometry
Where subunits remain joined or move freely is governed by bond spacing. An intermittent bond layout creates unconnected spans separating the 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 transform into a rolled, curled, or folded form. A flexible fiber ribbon design bends during cable installation while keeping fibers organized for splicing.
Quality Checks To Maintain Consistent Ribbon Production
Instead of using assumed pass limits, dependable fiber ribbon quality checks focus on defined features. 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.
Inspect Bond Continuity And Subunit Alignment
Check that intermittent bonds connect adjacent subunits at planned locations and leave unbonded lengths between connections. 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, compare bond spacing and flexibility. Treat these comparisons as design checks rather than general production tolerances.
Verify Fiber Identification And Ribbon Configuration
Use fiber color coding to confirm the position of each fiber. 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 repeat.
Applications, Cable Integration, And Splicing Benefits
Intermittently bonded ribbons can roll 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 more effective fiber duct utilization.
Enable High-Density Cable Designs And Better Duct Utilization
Prysmian offers FusionLink and MassLink with FlexRibbon in indoor, outdoor, and indoor/outdoor designs. 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 support up to two 12-fiber ribbons.
Enable Mass-Fusion Splicing And Faster Deployment
Multiple ribbon fibers, often 12 at a time, are spliced in one operation through mass-fusion splicing. On compatible ribbon routes, this method can shorten splice time. 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 brings together fiber layout, bond placement, curing, and inspection. The result is a flexible optical fiber ribbon that remains organized during handling yet can roll or fold into compact cable designs.
The process involves applying bonds while the subunit coating is still uncured. The materials create a diffusion zone before curing together. Careful control throughout the process helps maintain reliable fiber cable manufacturing.
Flexible ribbons also support mass-fusion ribbon splicing, allowing crews to join multiple fibers at once. 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. This balance may make cable packaging easier while ensuring ribbons remain prepared for efficient installation and splicing.