Abstract: An optical fiber connecting device comprising a housing including a central two-fiber holder and four pressers slidably mounted in the housing. The holder has an alignment groove for receiving, aligning and joining endface-to-endface core end portions of two fibers, and two surfaces on either side of the groove for bearing cladding end portions of the two fibers. Two pressers are pulled by springs to press the core end portions into the alignment groove. Two other pressers are pulled by other springs to press the cladding end portions onto the bearing surfaces. The fiber connection is quickly accomplished without resorting to any disassembling of members constituting the housing.

Abstract: Each workpiece holder of a grinding machine is reciprocated relative to and turned about an axis parallel to that of a wheelhead spindle. Workpieces carried by the holder are brought from in front of and to the side of an abrasive wheel front working surface into contact with the working surface. To prevent the pieces ground by the abrasive wheel from being scratched, after the workpieces have been ground, the wheelhead spindle is translated from a region where the grinding is performed. Simultaneously the workpiece holder is turned from in front to the side of the abrasive wheel working surface. The grinding machine, for instance, comprises two workpiece holders that are diametrally opposed with respect to the abrasive wheel. The holders turn in opposite reciprocating directions. The workpiece holders carry two half-holders for optical fibers having ends to be connected together. The ends of the fibers are simultaneously and coplanarly ground by the machine.

Abstract: Ends of optical fibers spaced around an axially symmetrical structure are arrayed by a device including an integral thin dividing member substantially disposed transversely to the structure. The dividing member has openings and dead-end channels communicating with the openings. The channels are substantially perpendicular to the structure and have bottoms aligned along a fiber end alignment axis. The fiber ends freely pass through the openings and are pushed substantially perpendicularly to the structure from the openings to the bottoms of the respective channels to array the fiber ends along an alignment axis.

Abstract: An automaton comprising a fixed frame, a horizontal guiding member carried by the frame, a carrier movable along said guiding element, and a gripping member carried by the carriage and movable in a vertical direction relative to the carriage. There is provided a single motor fixed on the frame, transmission means for achieving from the motor either the horizontal movement of the carriage or the vertical movement of the gripping member, an electronic control device for the motor and transmission means, and means for measuring the angular displacement of the motor shaft connected to the electronic device.