Patents by Inventor Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias

Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11987518
    Abstract: A cooling device system for cooling optical fiber includes a plurality of bodies (202), each body having a top surface (210) and an opposing bottom surface (212); an opening (204) within each of the plurality of bodies extending from the top surface through the body to the bottom surface, wherein the opening is configured to pass an optical fiber (10) through the body; and one or more air outlets (208) within the body configured to direct air to contact the optical fiber as it passes through the opening, wherein the air flowing out of the one or more openings has an average velocity of about 20 m/s to about 350 m/s.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2024
    Assignee: CORNING INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Chunfeng Zhou
  • Patent number: 11981596
    Abstract: A fiber draw furnace includes a heated section configured to contain and heat a glass source from which an optical fiber is drawn. A lower extended muffle having a first end and a second end. A gas screen is coupled to the second end of the lower extended muffle configured to allow a gas to flow into the lower extended muffle. A reclaim cylinder is coupled to the lower extended muffle including an outer housing defining a reclaim chamber. A plurality of reclaim ports are tangentially coupled to the outer housing and an inner housing is positioned within the outer housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2024
    Assignee: CORNING INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Yunfei Shao, Xiaoyong Wang, Chunfeng Zhou
  • Patent number: 11952305
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a method for processing an optical fiber includes: drawing an optical fiber through a draw furnace, conveying the optical fiber through a flame reheating device downstream from the draw furnace, wherein the flame reheating device comprises one or more burners each comprising: a body having a top surface and an opposing bottom surface, an opening within the body extending from the top surface through the body to the bottom surface, wherein the optical fiber passes through the opening, and one or more gas outlets within the body; and igniting a flammable gas provided by the one or more gas outlets to form a flame encircling the optical fiber passing through the opening, wherein the flame heats the optical fiber by at least 100 degrees Celsius at a heating rate exceeding 10,000 degrees Celsius/second.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2024
    Assignee: CORNING INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Ravindra Kumar Akarapu, Joel Patrick Carberry, David Alan Deneka, Steven Akin Dunwoody, Kenneth Edward Hrdina, John Michael Jewell, Yuanjie Jiang, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Ming-Jun Li, Barada Kanta Nayak, Dale Robert Powers, Chunfeng Zhou, Vincent Matteo Tagliamonti, Christopher Scott Thomas
  • Publication number: 20230406752
    Abstract: A method of heating an optical fiber, the method including flowing gas from a common gas channel into one or more gas outlets of a burner, the common gas channel encircling an aperture of the burner. The method further including igniting the gas to form a flame and heating the fiber with the flame as the fiber passes through the aperture. The one or more gas outlets opening into the aperture such that each gas outlet has a gas outlet bore terminating at an inward-facing wall of the burner that defines the aperture. And the gas outlet bore being oriented at an angle ?1 defined between the gas outlet bore and the inward-facing wall of the burner, downstream of the gas outlet bore, that is greater than or equal to 10 degrees and less than or equal to 70 degrees.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 17, 2023
    Publication date: December 21, 2023
    Inventors: Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Dale Robert Powers, Vincent Matteo Tagliamonti, Chunfeng Zhou
  • Patent number: 11827555
    Abstract: An optical fiber forming apparatus comprises: a draw furnace comprising: (i) a muffle with an inner surface, (ii) an axial opening below the muffle, the inner surface of the muffle defining a passageway extending through the axial opening, and (iii) an upper inlet into the passageway; and a tube that extends into the passageway of the draw furnace above the axial opening, the tube having (i) an outer surface and the inner surface of the muffle surrounds the outer surface of the tube with a space separating the outer surface of the tube from the inner surface of the muffle, (ii) an inner surface that defines a second passageway extending through the tube, (iii) an inlet into the second passageway of the tube, (iii) an outlet out of the second passageway of the tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2023
    Assignee: CORNING INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Erling Richard Anderson, Tammy Michelle Hoffmann, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Robert Clark Moore, Christopher Scott Thomas
  • Patent number: 11820696
    Abstract: An optical fiber draw system and method of operating thereof. The method includes positioning a downfeed handle for supporting an optical fiber preform within a furnace such that the downfeed handle is movable within the furnace. The method further includes operating one or more heating elements to thermally heat at least a portion of an upper muffle extension disposed within the furnace, the one or more heating elements being moveable with the downfeed handle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2023
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Tammy Michelle Hoffmann, John Michael Jewell, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias
  • Patent number: 11702356
    Abstract: Various embodiments disclosed relate to a method for bending a glass substrate. The method includes actuating at least one heat shield to a first position at least partially covering an edge portion of a first major surface of the glass substrate. The method further includes heating the glass substrate. The method further includes actuating the at least one heat shield to a second position at least partially uncovering the edge portion of the glass substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2023
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Michael Timothy Brennan, Philippe Dardart, Anurag Jain, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Eric Lee Miller, Stephane Poissy, Larry Gene Smith, Chad Michael Wilcox
  • Patent number: 11673824
    Abstract: A process and system for forming a curved glass article from a sheet of glass material is provided. The process and system includes supporting a glass sheet on a shaping frame and then heating the sheet of glass material while supported by the shaping frame such that the central region of the sheet of glass material deforms into an open central cavity of the bending frame. The process and/or system are configured such that a steep, localized temperature differential is formed in the region adjacent the outer edge of the glass sheet during the heating stage of the shaping process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2023
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Anurag Jain, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Zheming Zheng
  • Publication number: 20230159372
    Abstract: An optical fiber forming apparatus comprises: a draw furnace; a tube that extends into the passageway of the draw furnace; and a cooling device at an outlet of the tube, the cooling device comprising: one or more bodies having a top surface and an opposing bottom surface, an opening within the body extending from the top surface through the body to the bottom surface, wherein the opening is configured to pass an optical fiber through the body, and one or more gas outlets within the body configured to direct gas to contact the optical fiber as it passes through the opening.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2022
    Publication date: May 25, 2023
    Inventors: Tammy Michelle Hoffmann, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Michael Thomas Prezioso
  • Patent number: 11649186
    Abstract: Vaporizers and systems for vaporizing liquid precursor for forming glass optical fiber preforms are provided. The vaporizer includes an expansion chamber at least partially enclosed by a side wall, the expansion chamber comprising an upper end and a lower end with the side wall disposed between the upper end and the lower end. The vaporizer further includes a closed-loop liquid delivery conduit positioned in the expansion chamber proximate to the upper end of the expansion chamber, wherein the closed-loop liquid delivery conduit comprises a plurality of nozzles oriented to direct a spray of liquid precursor onto an inner surface of the side wall. Further, the vaporizer includes at least one supply conduit positioned proximate the upper end of the expansion chamber and coupled to the closed-loop liquid delivery conduit, and a vapor delivery outlet coupled to the expansion chamber and configured to direct vaporized liquid precursor from the expansion chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Stephen Mitchell Carlton, Paul Andrew Chludzinski, Jonathan Robert Greveling, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Robert Walter Nason, Abhijit Rao
  • Publication number: 20230132984
    Abstract: Optical fiber draw production systems, pressure devices, and methods of fabrication of optical fiber are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method of forming an optical fiber includes heating a preform to draw the optical fiber through a draw furnace, and passing the optical fiber through a pressure device while the optical fiber is still forming, wherein a pressure within the pressure device is greater than an atmospheric pressure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 26, 2022
    Publication date: May 4, 2023
    Inventors: Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Ming-Jun Li, Bruce Warren Reding, Pushkar Tandon, Kevin Lee Wasson
  • Patent number: 11618709
    Abstract: A method of processing an optical fiber includes drawing the optical fiber from a heated glass source, reheating the optical fiber, and cooling the optical fiber under vacuum at a cooling rate less than the cooling rate of the optical fiber in air at 25° C. and 1 atm. Cooling the optical fiber under vacuum is conducted after reheating the optical fiber. Cooling the optical fiber under vacuum reduces the rate of heat transfer from the optical fiber, which may enable further relaxation of the glass and reduction in the fictive temperature of the optical fiber. A system for processing an optical fiber includes a furnace containing a fiber preform, a first positioner, a reheating device, and a treatment device downstream of the reheating device, the treatment device operable to cool the optical fiber under vacuum to reduce the rate of heat transfer from the optical fiber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Yacob Mesfin Argaw, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Robert Clark Moore, Bruce Warren Reding, Chunfeng Zhou
  • Publication number: 20230047162
    Abstract: An optical fiber draw system and method of operating thereof. The method includes positioning a downfeed handle for supporting an optical fiber preform within a furnace such that the downfeed handle is movable within the furnace. The method further includes operating one or more heating elements to thermally heat at least a portion of an upper muffle extension disposed within the furnace, the one or more heating elements being moveable with the downfeed handle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 1, 2022
    Publication date: February 16, 2023
    Inventors: Tammy Michelle Hoffmann, John Michael Jewell, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias
  • Patent number: 11554980
    Abstract: A furnace system includes a muffle defining a furnace cavity. A lower heater is coupled to the muffle and is configured to create a hot zone within the furnace cavity having a temperature of about 1900° C. or greater. An upper muffle extension is positioned above the muffle and defines a handle cavity. A downfeed handle is positioned within the handle cavity such that a gap is defined between an outer surface of the downfeed handle and an inner surface of the upper muffle extension. An upper heater is thermally coupled to the upper muffle extension and configured to heat the gap. A gas screen is positioned in the upper muffle extension and is configured to inject a process gas into the handle cavity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2023
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Erling Richard Anderson, Tammy Michelle Hoffmann, John Michael Jewell, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Robert Clark Moore
  • Patent number: 11554979
    Abstract: A system for processing optical fiber includes a draw furnace, a fiber conveyance pathway extending between an upstream end positioned at the draw furnace and a downstream end positioned opposite the upstream end, where optical fiber is conveyed along the fiber conveyance pathway from the upstream end to the downstream end in a fiber conveyance direction, a muffle in communication with the draw furnace and positioned downstream of the draw furnace, a second cooling device annularly surrounding the fiber conveyance pathway downstream from the draw furnace, the second cooling device including one or more second cooling device heating elements and a first cooling device positioned between the draw furnace and the second cooling device, wherein the first cooling device directs a fluid to contact the optical fiber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2023
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Steven Akin Dunwoody, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Robert Clark Moore, Jason Roy Pace, Christopher Scott Thomas, Bryan William Wakefield, Chunfeng Zhou
  • Patent number: 11498862
    Abstract: An optical fiber draw system and method of operating thereof. The method includes positioning a downfeed handle for supporting an optical fiber preform within a furnace such that the downfeed handle is movable within the furnace. The method further includes operating one or more heating elements to thermally heat at least a portion of an upper muffle extension disposed within the furnace, the one or more heating elements being moveable with the downfeed handle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Tammy Michelle Hoffmann, John Michael Jewell, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias
  • Publication number: 20220315473
    Abstract: An optical fiber draw furnace system including a muffle, a downfeed handle, and a downfeed handle extension portion. The downfeed handle is moveably disposed within an inner cavity of the muffle. The downfeed handle extension portion is connected to the downfeed handle and moveably disposed within the inner cavity of the muffle. Furthermore, the downfeed handle extension portion forms a first gap between an outer surface of the downfeed handle extension portion and an inner surface of the muffle, the first gap having a length in a range of about 0.001 m to about 0.2 m.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 29, 2022
    Publication date: October 6, 2022
    Inventors: Erling Richard Anderson, Tammy Michelle Hoffmann, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Kenneth William Roberts, Eric Wade Thornton, Chunfeng Zhou
  • Patent number: 11390555
    Abstract: A system and method for processing an optical fiber includes a treatment device disposed downstream of a furnace and including a treating zone. The treating zone includes a fiber inlet and fiber outlet and is configured to cool the optical fiber at a reduced pressure below ambient pressure and at a slow cooling rate less than an ambient cooling rate. A nozzle assembly is disposed at one or more of the fiber inlet, the fiber outlet, upstream of the treating zone, and downstream of the treating zone. The nozzle assembly includes multiple baffle plates defining a number of nozzle chambers, each nozzle chamber having a nozzle chamber pressure, wherein each baffle plate includes an orifice having a predetermined effective orifice diameter through which the optical fiber passes. Each nozzle chamber is configured to sequentially change a nozzle chamber pressure between the reduced pressure and ambient pressure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Yacob Mesfin Argaw, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Robert Clark Moore, Bruce Warren Reding, Chunfeng Zhou
  • Publication number: 20220112117
    Abstract: A fiber draw furnace includes a heated section configured to contain and heat a glass source from which an optical fiber is drawn. A lower extended muffle having a first end and a second end. A gas screen is coupled to the second end of the lower extended muffle configured to allow a gas to flow into the lower extended muffle. A reclaim cylinder is coupled to the lower extended muffle including an outer housing defining a reclaim chamber. A plurality of reclaim ports are tangentially coupled to the outer housing and an inner housing is positioned within the outer housing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 20, 2021
    Publication date: April 14, 2022
    Inventors: Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Yunfei Shao, Xiaoyong Wang, Chunfeng Zhou
  • Publication number: 20220098085
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a method for processing an optical fiber includes: drawing an optical fiber through a draw furnace, conveying the optical fiber through a flame reheating device downstream from the draw furnace, wherein the flame reheating device comprises one or more burners each comprising: a body having a top surface and an opposing bottom surface, an opening within the body extending from the top surface through the body to the bottom surface, wherein the optical fiber passes through the opening, and one or more gas outlets within the body; and igniting a flammable gas provided by the one or more gas outlets to form a flame encircling the optical fiber passing through the opening, wherein the flame heats the optical fiber by at least 100 degrees Celsius at a heating rate exceeding 10,000 degrees Celsius/second.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2021
    Publication date: March 31, 2022
    Inventors: Ravindra Kumar Akarapu, Joel Patrick Carberry, David Alan Deneka, Steven Akin Dunwoody, Kenneth Edward Hrdina, John Michael Jewell, Yuanjie Jiang, Nikolaos Pantelis Kladias, Ming-Jun Li, Barada Kanta Nayak, Dale Robert Powers, Chunfeng Zhou, Vincent Matteo Tagliamonti, Christopher Scott Thomas