Case Study: Future Optical Network Distribution for Aerospace

The FONDA program was a partnership between leading aerospace suppliers to develop and demonstrate the next generation of fiber optic data communication networks to be integrated into future aerospace and defense products.

A portion of the FONDA program was dedicated to the demonstration of an avionic fiber optic cable with the following attributes:

• Low attenuation over operating temperatures of -55° C to 125° C
• High strength and flexibility
• Low weight and small outer diameter, compatible with commercial termini
• Compliance to smoke/toxicity requirements
• Easy to handle and terminate

Components were provided by W. L. Gore & Associates (fiber optic cable), Deutsch UK (fiber optic connectors), and D-Lightsys (optical transceivers). BAE Systems provided system integration.

An optical fiber with a recently developed high temperature acrylate primary buffer was selected. Gore contributed a cable design based on our proven ePTFE buffering for exceptional low-temperature performance. A thermoplastic sheath protected the fiber to provide robustness to airframe routing and minimization of CTE mismatch.

Extreme Routing Cable ties Decreasing radius of curvature wraps Slot weave Knotted bends Hard edge loading

According to system integrator BAE Systems, in head-to-head cable testing, the Gore aerospace cable construction has many advantages*:

• The fiber is isolated from temperature changes
• The Gore cable required the most force to produce attenuations up to 3 dB levels. Hard edge loading properties were good.
• The Gore 1.8 mm OD cables look promising

* “Evaluation of Next Generation Avionic Fibre Optic Cables”, G.M Proudley, H.J. White and N.B. Aldridge, BAE Systems Advanced Technology Centre presented at 2006 IEEE Avionics, Fiber-Optics and Photonics Technology Conference