Case Study: Shipboard Application - Pre-formed Backplane Assembly

The Challenge:  In a shipboard application with harsh shock and vibration, the customer had planned a complex multi-point clamping solution to avoid problems of optical loss.  The optical backplane assembly needed to route connections from four MT ribbon connections to a single MIL-C-28876 connector. 

The Solution: An easily-installed pre-formed optical backplane assembly

Unlike copper interconnects, exceeding the minimum bend radius of optical fibers can result in excessive loss and reduction of margin in the optical power budget.  This application called for unusually tight routing with 0.5” radius bends.  If, as in this application, installers are not specifically trained in fiber optics, improper installation could have a direct impact on reliability. 

The customer supplied Gore with a 3-D CAD model that depicted 3-D routing paths for the optical interconnect.  Working directly from this CAD file, Gore created a drop-in solution based on a pre-formed optical backplane assembly.   Gore’s crush-resistant cabling materials further simplified the clamping solution.

Gore’s unique technology:

• Removed the burden and risk of fiber optic installation
• Tremendously simplified customer's clamping and strain-relieving challenges