Abstract: The present invention provides an armband designed for wearing by a person who uses a hand prosthesis or a person with impaired hand function. The armband both stabilizes the attachment of the prosthesis thereby allowing pulling exercises that would otherwise be impossible and provides connection to exercise machines allowing the wearer to carry out exercises that would otherwise require the wearer to grasp an operational portion of the exercise machine. The armband is constructed from a sheet of flexible material that is sized to be wrapped around a wearer's arm enclosing substantially all of the arm and the wrist or base portion of any hand prosthesis. The wrapped armband is tightened by attached cinching straps and D-rings are provided attached to the surface of the armband for attachment of portions of exercise machines. An optional shoulder harness can be attached to the armband for additional stability.

Abstract: The present invention provides an armband designed for wearing by a person who uses a hand prosthesis or a person with impaired hand function. The armband both stabilizes the attachment of the prosthesis thereby allowing pulling exercises that would otherwise be impossible and provides connection to exercise machines allowing the wearer to carry out exercises that would otherwise require the wearer to grasp an operational portion of the exercise machine. The armband is constructed from a sheet of flexible material that is sized to be wrapped around a wearer's arm enclosing substantially all of the arm and the wrist or base portion of any hand prosthesis. The wrapped armband is tightened by attached cinching straps and D-rings are provided attached to the surface of the armband for attachment of portions of exercise machines. An optional shoulder harness can be attached to the armband for additional stability.

Abstract: An optical link is operative for transmitting a microwave signal in modulated optical form over an optical fiber. The optical link has a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter splits and converts the microwave signal into two separate optical signals, each of which represents either the positive varying part of the microwave signal or the negative varying part of the microwave signal. The receiver combines the two separate optical signals and converts them back into the microwave signal.

Abstract: A photonic integrated device includes a waveguide of semiconductor material and a detector for measuring optical power of light traveling along the waveguide. The detector which is monolithically integrated into the device measures a photocurrent on an electrode which has been generated in the waveguide by two photon absorption.

Abstract: A laser source for pumping an optical device which requires for its operation a significant amount of light power, the source comprising a semiconductor array (11) for providing a plurality of spaced apart light beams at different wavelengths, an optical assembly (14, 15, 16) for focussing the light beams into an optical waveguide (19), the optical waveguide (19) being coupled to the optical device.

Abstract: A semiconductor diode laser array device 1 capable of emitting a high optical power in a narrow beam, the device 1 comprising a surface emission multiridge waveguide structure in which emission can take place from a surface 4 occupying both a longitudinal and a lateral dimension of the device, the dimension in each case being much greater than the emitted light wavelength. Stability in one of said dimensions may be maintained by an array design having a spaced arrangement of laser elements positioned such that the optical field in one element partly overlaps that of a neighboring element. Preferably, the sum of the propagation constant and the coupling parameters to the neighboring elements equals the same value for all the elements in the array.

Abstract: Apparatus of the type comprising an optical assembly and reflection grating--for collimating light emitted by a laser and for refocussing the same onto an output waveguide. The waveguide is modified to enhance reflection of the refocussed light, which in turn dominates the resonant response of the laser. Laser resonance thus depends on geometrical factors--the relative positions of laser and waveguide and the dispersion properties of the assembly. Wavelength selectivity is improved by confining reflection to the core of the waveguide e.g. by using an embedded reflector, or further still by using an etalon pair. The laser may be used in conjunction with other lasers and/or detectors, or with retroreflectors. A multi-laser input multiplexer and single channel drop-and-add devices are described.

Abstract: An optical connecting arrangement is provided between an optical device and an optical fibre in which the optical device is mounted with positional precision on a substrate which is fabricated for locating one end of a so-called grin rod lens in precise optical alignment with the active surface of the optical device and in which the other end of the same grin rod lens or the corresponding end of a further grin rod lens coupled to it has the optical fibre optically coupled thereto in optical alignment.

Abstract: A method of aligning an optical fibre with a light source, such as a solid state laser, comprises substantially aligning the axis of optical fibre with the light source and locating two lenses between the fibre and the source. One of the lenses is fixed and the other is movable in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the fibre. The lens is moved until the image of the light source is focussed on to the end of the fibre, the fibre also being axially movable. The method can be termed an "optical lever", movement of the lens causing a smaller movement of the image. The requirement for fixing the fibre or the lens extremely accurately is therefore reduced.

Abstract: A connector for monomode optical fibres comprises two connectable housings in each of which is secured the end of an optical fibre which is substantially coaxially aligned with at least two light displacement means which produce a light beam with a predetermined form from light transmitted along the optical fibre. The light beams from the two housings are complementary so that a light beam from either housing is focussed onto the end of the optical fibre in the other housing when the two housings are connected. The light displacement means may be convex or concave lenses, SELFOC (Registered Trade Mark) lenses, prisms or combinations of these. The light beam from each housing is preferably parallel but one can be divergent and the other convergent. They may also both be divergent with an additional lens between the housings.

Abstract: A system for multiplexed transmission of different wavelengths of light comprises an array of at least two light sources whose images are formed on the end of an optical fibre. The images have displaced spectra so that a different part of the spectrum of each light source is imaged on to the end of the optical fibre and each part is transmitted by the optical fibre. The images themselves may be displaced by displacing the light sources. A number of such arrays having light sources with emission spectra centered on different wavelengths may be used to increase the number of multiplexed transmission channels.

Abstract: A method for accurately aligning an optical fibre with a light source comprises firstly approximately aligning the axis of the fibre with the source (e.g. a laser) and locating two prismatic elements between the end of the fibre and the source. On or both of the prismatic elements is then moved to focus the image of the light source on to the end of the fibre and secured in position. The method can be described as an "Optical lever" as the movement of one of the prismatic elements causes a much smaller movement of the image and the method is thus very accurate. The prismatic elements can be any transparent members which produce an output beam which is angularly displaced from the input beam such as conventional prisms, gratings, diffused lenses or weak decentered lenses. Preferably they are cylindrical transparent rods with one end of each arranged at an acute angle to its axis.

Abstract: The invention relates to a monolithic light detector or generator integratd with an amplifier. The amplifier includes an F.E.T. comprising a substrate on which are formed source and drain contact layers separated by a groove. The gate layer is formed in the groove bridging the source and drain layers, and the optical system comprises additional layers formed on the substrate or formed on top of the gate layer with suitable conductive connections between the two.

Abstract: An optical fibre is sealed into a light emitting diode package by initially positioning the optical fibre above the L.E.D. and then melting a low melting point substance round the fibre and an upper support member, maneuvering the fibre until a maximum output is obtained and then allowing the low melting point substance to solidify while still holding the fibre in the optimum position.