Shanghai Gengyun Industrial Co., Ltd
Special Optical Fiber Draw Tower: Specialized Equipment for Preform Diameter 16-60mm
Special Optical Fiber Draw Towers are specialized thermal processing equipment for manufacturing optical fiber preforms with diameters ranging from 16-60mm, employing vertical continuous drawing processes to achieve precise formation from preforms to optical fibers. This category of fiber manufacturing equipment integrates critical systems including high-temperature heating, precision feeding, and online monitoring, capable of producing various specialty optical fibers including rare-earth-doped fibers, photonic crystal fibers, and radiation-hardened fibers, making it the core equipment for high-end optical materials production.
Technologically, this equipment demonstrates four innovative advantages: First, it utilizes zoned graphite resistance furnaces with maximum operating temperatures reaching 2200°C and temperature control precision of ±1°C, ensuring fiber diameter fluctuation is controlled within ±0.5μm. Second, equipped with laser diameter gauges and online tension monitoring systems, it enables real-time closed-loop control for fibers with diameters from 20-500μm, with production speeds reaching 30m/min. Third, it integrates UV curing and dual-layer coating systems, supporting simultaneous application of various coating materials including acrylate and polyimide. Fourth, compliant with ISO 9001:2015 quality management systems, the equipment’s comprehensive energy efficiency is improved by 25% compared to traditional draw towers.
This type of specialty optical fiber production line is primarily used in high-end manufacturing fields such as defense and military, medical sensing, and laser devices. Actual operational data shows that the erbium-doped fibers it produces exhibit losses below 2.5dB/km in the 1530-1565nm band, with structural period accuracy of photonic crystal fibers reaching ±0.1μm. Compared to standard telecommunications fiber draw towers, the specialty models show significant improvements in temperature uniformity, atmosphere control, and tension stability, becoming key equipment for breaking through technical bottlenecks in specialty optical fiber fabrication.
With the development of quantum communication and biosensing technologies, new-generation intelligent draw towers are beginning to integrate AI visual inspection and process adaptive control functions. Through deep integration of deep learning algorithms with Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), intelligent optimization of process parameters and real-time defect prediction are achieved. Driven by national strategies for new materials, this equipment is supporting China’s specialty optical fiber industry’s advancement towards high-end and self-reliance.
Keywords：
Special Optical Fiber Draw Tower