Electrical wiring harnesses have been used to interconnect control and communication equipment in mobile platforms for over a century. Although they have served this function successfully, they have three problems that are inherent in their design: they are mechanically heavy and stiff, and they are prone to electrical faults, including arcing and Electro-Magnetic Interference (EMI), and they are difficult to maintain when faults occur. These properties are all aspects of the metallic conductors used to build the harnesses.
The Optical HarnessTM is a photonic replacement for the legacy electrical wiring harness. The Optical HarnessTM uses light-weight optical fiber to replace signal wires in an electrical harness. The original electrical connections to the equipment remain, making the Optical HarnessTM a direct replacement for the legacy wiring harness. In the backshell of each connector, the electrical signals are converted to optical, and transported on optical fiber, by a deterministic, redundant and fault-tolerant optical network. The Optical HarnessTM:
* Provides weight savings of 40-50% and unsurpassed flexibility, relative to legacy signal wiring harnesses;
* Carries its signals on optical fiber that is free from arcing, EMI, RFI and susceptibility to HPM weapons;
* Is self-monitoring during operation, providing non-intrusive predictive and diagnostic capabilities.
Access to the requested content is limited to institutions that have purchased or subscribe to SPIE eBooks.
You are receiving this notice because your organization may not have SPIE eBooks access.*
*Shibboleth/Open Athens users─please
sign in
to access your institution's subscriptions.
To obtain this item, you may purchase the complete book in print or electronic format on
SPIE.org.
INSTITUTIONAL Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.
PERSONAL Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.