Abstract: A hermaphrodite optical fiber connector includes a housing containing a plurality of inner rods and a plurality of outer rods. The inner rods are held in tangential contact with each other forming an aperture for receiving a fiber. An end of the fiber held in the aperture and ends of the inner rods terminate in a planar surface perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the fiber. The outer rods are secured between the inner rods and the housing and extend past the planar surface, protecting the end of the fiber from damage.

Abstract: A bipolar electrical signal of the type transmitted in the T1 digital transmission system is converted into an optical binary signal having pulses and spaces by translating each positive digital "1" in the bipolar signal into two digital pulses, each negative digital 1 in the bipolar signal into two spaces, and the digital 0 in the binary signal into an optical pulse followed by a space. The nonpermitted code of a space followed by an optical pulse is utilized at the receiving location for instantaneous framing. As a result of this particular code conversion, the balanced property of the bipolar input signal is maintained in the optical signal thereby preventing an offset bias from developing at the receiving location in the photodetector. In addition, the bipolar information is maintained in transmission, thus making the optical system "transparent" to bipolar signals.