Abstract: The present invention providesa process for the dehydrating and purifying treatment by heating a porous glass preform for an optical fiber comprising passing the porous glass preform through a muffle tube having a SiC layer at least on its inner surface at a high temperature under an atmosphere comprising an inert gas and a silicon halogenide gas;a process for the fluorine-doping treatment by heating a porous glass preform for an optical fiber comprising passing a porous glass preform through a muffle tube having a SiC layer at least on its inner surface at a high temperature under an atmosphere comprising a fluorine compound gas and an inert gas; anda process for the vitrifying treatment by heating a porous glass preform for an optical fiber comprising passing the preform, which has been previously dehydrated and purified, through a muffle tube having a SiC layer at least on its inner surface at a high temperature under an atmosphere gas.

Abstract: The invention provides an optical-coupler reinforcing member for fixing and reinforcing a fiber-coupler body and a method of performing the reinforcing. The reinforcing member includes heat-shrinkage tubes which are shrunk by heating, and a hollow protection pipe provided in the heat-shrinkage tubes. Cylindrical heat-fusible adhesive members are provided on opposite ends of the protection pipe, and heating is made such that a fusing portion of an optical-fiber coupler body is inserted through the reinforcing member so that the heat-fusible adhesive members and the heat-shrinkage tubes are shrunk by heating to thereby fix and reinforce the optical coupler body.

Abstract: A heating furnace for heating a porous preform made of fine particles of quartz base glass for an optical fiber which comprises a heater and a muffle tube positioned inside the heater to separate a heating atmosphere from the heater, wherein the muffle tube body consists of highly pure carbon and an inner wall and an outer wall of the body is coated with a carbon material selected from the group consisting of pyrolytic graphite and solid-phase carbonized glassy carbon.

Abstract: A growable interconnect fabric cell switch module including a plurality of first cell switches for interconnecting cells; a plurality of second cell switches for interconnecting the cells outputted from the first cell switches; a plurality of third cell switches for interconnecting the cells outputted from the second cell switches; and a path arbitrating device for making a decision on cell transfer permission and on which second cell switch ought to be used in a cell transfer, based on a demanded cell number, which indicates a number of the cells which demand to be transferred from each first cell switch to each third cell switch.

Abstract: The invention is a method for producing a porous preform for use in the fabrication of an optical fiber at least two burners synthesize glass soot particles, one of which generates a double-layer flame and one of which is used for forming a core part of the preform. The method comprises the steps of supplying SiCl.sub.4 and optionally GeCl.sub.4 to the inner flame of the double-layer flame, and only SiCl.sub.4 to an outer flame of the double-layer flame to flame hydrolyze the supplied compounds and synthesize glass soot particles. Compounds SiCl.sub.4 and GeCl.sub.4 as glass-forming raw materials are supplied to the burner for forming the core part of the preform by depositing the generated glass soot particles on the lower end of a rotating starting member. The generated porous preform comprises a core part containing at least partly GeO.sub.2, and a surface having a low concentration of GeO.sub.2 which reduces cracking or peeling.

Abstract: A spectrometric method for determining a physical or a chemical target quantity by performing the photometric measurement at plural wavelengths predetermined which includes the steps of measuring variation vectors by varying error variation factors by predetermined units which are defined in a space having a dimension equal to the number of the plural wavelengths, seeking for a subspace of the space which is orthogonal to all variation vectors, performing the photometric measurement for samples having known values of the target quantity, projecting vectors obtained from the photometric measurement for samples on the subspace and calculating a calibration curve using data obtained by the projection on the subspace.

Abstract: A glass article is produced at a high production rate and a high yield by jetting a glass-forming raw material from a multi-port burner, synthesizing glass soot through hydrolysis of the glass-forming raw material, depositing the glass soot to form a soot preform and heating and vitrifying the soot preform to produce a transparent glass article, wherein the glass-forming raw material is vaporized by heating it at a temperature higher than its boiling point and directly supplied to the burner, the vaporized glass-forming raw material and a fuel gas for synthesizing glass soot are supplied to an inner port of the multi-port burner and a fuel gas for heating a formed preform is supplied to an outer port of the multi-port burner, and a molar ratio of water generated by a reaction of the fuel gas for synthesizing glass soot to the glass-foring raw material is from to 2 to 3.

Abstract: In a method of producing an optical fiber coupler, in which glass portions of a plurality of optical fibers are heated so as to be fusion bonded to each other and then, are heated so as to be stretched, the improvement comprising: a gas burner which acts as a heat source and has a plurality of gas nozzles arranged in an axial direction of the optical fibers so as to be fixed in position during heating of the glass portions.

Abstract: A rare earth element-doped glass in which the rare earth element is homogeneously doped is produced by a method coprises hydrolyzing a metal alkoxide of the formula:M(OR).sub.4wherein M is a metal and R is an alkyl group in a liquid medium selected from the group consisting of alcohols and water in the presence of a compound of a rare earth element and condensing the hydrolyzed material to form a rare earth element-doped glass.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for producing an optical-fiber coupler with a preset branching ratio. The present invention relates to a method in which part of a plurality of optical fibers are made to closely contact with each other so as to form a coupler. The coupler is heated to thereby obtain a predetermined branching ratio; the flow rate of a gas to be supplied to a heat source is increased/decreased by a quantity proportional to a difference between the drawing speed and a preset drawing speed while predetermined tension is applied to the optical fibers.

Abstract: A transmission system for packaging and transmission digital video data divides the data into a first group of components which would cause image quality to be drastically damaged if discarded, and a second group of components which would cause little damage if discarded. Data cells are composed for each group of components, and a priorty level is assigned giving a high priority to the first group of components and a low priority to the second group of components. The data is sent and received, and the received data is classified in accordance with the priority levels. If it is necessary to discard low priority components, a compensating device compensates for the discarded cells to ensure a constant image transmission across a congested channel.

Abstract: The present invention providesa process for the dehydrating and purifying treatment by heating a porous glass preform for an optical fiber by passing the porous glass preform through a muffle tube having a SiC layer at least on its inner surface at a high temperature under an atmosphere containing an inert gas and a silicon halogenide gas;a process for the fluorine-doping treatment by heating a porous glass preform for an optical fiber by passing a porous glass preform through a muffle tube having a SiC layer at least on its inner surface at a high temperature under an atmosphere containing a fluorine compound gas and an inert gas; anda process for the vitrifying treatment by heating a porous glass preform for an opticla fiber by passing the preform, which has been previously dehydrated and purified, through a muffle tube having a SiC layer at least on its inner surface at a high temperature under an atmosphere gas.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a quantitative determination method of a medicament for processing semiconductor by near-infrared spectrometry at 800-1400 .mu.m and an apparatus which is adapted to the practice of said method. According to the present invention, concentration of an aqueous solution of the medicament can be determined without drawbacks of the prior methods.

Abstract: A superconductive material including a substrate and a superconductive layer of a double oxide of metals provided on the substrate is produced by a method which comprises the steps of:(a) providing a solution containing a blend of metal compounds having a composition corresponding to that of the double oxide;(b) applying the solution on the substrate to form a liquid film;(c) drying the liquid film; and(d) calcining the dried film to convert the metal compounds into the superconductive double oxide of the metals.

Abstract: An acceleration accumulating conveyor chain includes connecting pins with outer link plates disposed at opposite ends thereof, bushings clearance fitted with the connecting pins, each having a larger diameter article carrying roller and a smaller diameter running roller coaxially positioned, and inner link plates clearance fitted with the bushings at both ends thereof. The pins contact the bushings along the whole length of the bushings, whereby the bearing pressure per unit area is low. The clearance fit between the bushings and the inner link plates provides "play" permitting the running rollers to positively roll along a supporting rail. A rotation preventing mechanism can be provided at the engaging structures between the bushings and the inner link plates. By preventing rotation of the bushings relative to the inner link plates, noise caused by rotation of the bushings is eliminated.

Abstract: A glass preform for use in the fabrication of an optical fiber having little bubbles is produced by a method comprising depositing glass soot on a periphery of a starting glass rod to form a porous glass preform, heating and sintering the porous glass preform in a helium atmosphere to consolidate the porous glass preform and then heating the sintered glass in an atmosphere containing an inert gas except helium having partial pressure of the inert gas of not lower than 0.8 atm. to obtain a transparent glass preform.

Abstract: A raw material supplying device having a gas tight tank for receiving a material to be gasified by heating; a heater for heating the raw material within the tank and a plurality of pipes for conveying a plurality of streams of gas in parallel to each other to a plurality of ports of a reaction apparatus, and a process for using the raw material supplying device. The raw material supplying device can be used in a system for manufacturing glass fibers in which the ends of the plurality of pipes are connected to the gas feed ports of at least one multi-layer burner.

Abstract: This disclosure relates to a method for measuring the concentrations of sugars in liquids by the use of near infrared as well as an apparatus for practicing said method.The method comprises a step wherein the absorption spectrum of the sugar under investigation existing at a first depth relatively close to the surface in a sample is computed by using relatively weak power of near infrared, a step wherein the absorption spectrum of the sugar under investigation existing at a relatively deep second depth in the sample is computed by using relatively strong power of infrared, and a step wherein the concentration of the sugar under investigation in the sample is determined by computing the absorption spectrum of the sugar at a different depth between said first and second depths on the basis of the results of measurement in said first and second steps. The wavelengths for the use for said absorption spectrum are selected from anyone of wavelength bands of 950-1,150 nm, 1,150-1,300 nm, and 1,300-1,450 nm.

Abstract: A process for the production of a glass by the vacuum melting method using silica as a raw material is disclosed, comprising filing a silica fine powder in a suitable vessel, heating it in the presence of an accelerator for phase conversion to obtain a porous formed body consisting of a cristobalite phase, and then heating and melting the formed body in vacuo. According to the present invention, a transparent and active glass having a high quality can be produced at an inexpensive cost.

Abstract: A method for producing a glass preform for use in the fabrication of an optical fiber which comprises inserting a core rod made of quartz glass in a cladding tube made of quartz glass added with fluorine, heating them from the outside of the cladding tube to fuse them together to form a primary glass preform comprising a core rod and a first cladding layer around the core rod, depositing SiO.sub.2 soot particles around the primary glass preform and thermally treating the soot deposited glass preform in the presence of a fluorine-containing compound to form a final glass preform from which an optical fiber is fabricated. From the glass preform produced by this method, an optical fiber having low attenuation of light transmission in a wide range of wave-length is fabricated.