User Guide FTB-7000 Series OTDR for FTB-200 v2
Copyright © 2006–2011 EXFO Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form, be it electronically, mechanically, or by any other means such as photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of EXFO Inc. (EXFO). Information provided by EXFO is believed to be accurate and reliable.
Contents Contents Certification Information ..................................................................................................... viii 1 Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer ................................ 1 Main Features .........................................................................................................................3 Trace Acquisition Modes .........................................................................................................
Contents 7 Testing Fibers in Template Mode ...............................................................61 Template Principle .................................................................................................................61 Restrictions of Template Mode ..............................................................................................62 Acquiring the Reference Trace ..............................................................................................
Contents 10 Analyzing Traces and Events ................................................................... 105 Graph View .........................................................................................................................106 Linear View .........................................................................................................................108 Summary Table ................................................................................................................
Contents 13 Creating Reports .......................................................................................181 Adding Information to the Test Results ...............................................................................181 Generating a Report ...........................................................................................................183 14 Using the OTDR as a Light Source or VFL ................................................
Contents 18 Warranty ................................................................................................... 287 General Information ...........................................................................................................287 Liability ...............................................................................................................................288 Exclusions .......................................................................................................
Certification Information Certification Information FCC Information Electronic test equipment is exempt from Part 15 compliance (FCC) in the United States. However, compliance verification tests are systematically performed on most EXFO equipment. Information Electronic test equipment is subject to the EMC Directive in the European Union. The EN61326 standard prescribes both emission and immunity requirements for laboratory, measurement, and control equipment.
Certification Information DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY Application of Council Directive(s): Manufacturer’s Name: Manufacturer’s Address: Equipment Type/Environment: Trade Name/Model No.: 2006/95/EC - The Low Voltage Directive 2004/108/EC - The EMC Directive 2006/66/EC - The Battery Directive 93/68/EEC - CE Marking And their amendments EXFO Inc.
Certification Information DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY Application of Council Directive(s): Manufacturer’s Name: Manufacturer’s Address: Equipment Type/Environment: Trade Name/Model No.: 2006/95/EC - The Low Voltage Directive 2004/108/EC - The EMC Directive 2006/66/EC - The Battery Directive 93/68/EEC - CE Marking And their amendments EXFO Inc.
Certification Information DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY Application of Council Directive(s): Manufacturer’s Name: Manufacturer’s Address: Equipment Type/Environment: Trade Name/Model No.: 2006/95/EC - The Low Voltage Directive 2004/108/EC - The EMC Directive 2006/66/EC - The Battery Directive 93/68/EEC - CE Marking And their amendments EXFO Inc.
Certification Information DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY Application of Council Directive(s): Manufacturer’s Name: Manufacturer’s Address: Equipment Type/Environment: Trade Name/Model No.: 2006/95/EC - The Low Voltage Directive 2004/108/EC - The EMC Directive 2006/66/EC - The Battery Directive 93/68/EEC - CE Marking And their amendments EXFO Inc.
Certification Information DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY Application of Council Directive(s): Manufacturer’s Name: Manufacturer’s Address: Equipment Type/Environment: Trade Name/Model No.: 2006/95/EC - The Low Voltage Directive 2004/108/EC - The EMC Directive 2006/66/EC - The Battery Directive 93/68/EEC - CE Marking And their amendments EXFO Inc.
1 Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer The Optical Time Domain Reflectometer allows you to characterize a fiber-optic span, usually optical fiber sections joined by splices and connectors. The optical time domain reflectometer (OTDR) provides an inside view of the fiber, and can calculate fiber length, attenuation, breaks, total return loss, and splice, connector and total losses.
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer OTDR Visual fault locator (VFL) port (optional) Handle OTDR port (singlemode or multimode) Other models 2 FTB-7000 Series
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer Main Features Main Features The OTDR: OTDR ³ Offers impressive dynamic range with short dead zones. ³ Performs quick acquisitions with low noise levels to enable accurate low-loss splice location. ³ Acquires OTDR traces made of up to 256 000 points that provide a sampling resolution as fine as 4 cm. ³ Includes a light source and can include an optional visual fault locator.
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer Trace Acquisition Modes Trace Acquisition Modes The OTDR application provides the following trace acquisition modes: ³ Auto: Automatically calculates fiber length, sets acquisition parameters, acquires traces, and displays event tables and acquired traces. ³ Advanced: Offers all the tools needed to perform integral OTDR tests and measurements and gives you control over all test parameters.
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer Bidirectional Analysis Application ³ batch printing ³ conversion of traces to many formats such as Telcordia or ASCII Bidirectional Analysis Application You can improve the accuracy of your loss measurements with the bidirectional analysis application. This utility uses OTDR acquisitions from both ends of a fiber span (singlemode traces only) to average loss results for each event.
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer Available OTDR Models OTDR Models Singlemode and multimode FTB-7200D-12CD-23B Description ³ Four wavelengths: two multimode (850 nm and 1300 nm) and two singlemode (1310 nm and 1550 nm) in a single module. ³ 26 dB (850 nm)/25 dB (1300 nm)/35 dB (1310 nm)/34 dB (1550 nm) dynamic range and 1 m event dead zone, particularly useful to locate closely spaced events. ³ 4.5 m of attenuation dead zone for both singlemode and multimode.
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer Available OTDR Models OTDR Models Singlemode FTB-7500E-XXXXB Description ³ Event dead zone of 0.8 m and attenuation dead zone of 4 m for pinpoint event location ³ Up to 45 dB dynamic range (on NZDSF with a 20 μs pulse) ³ High-launch power level minimizes noise effects on signal. ³ Acquires up to 256 000 data points while sampling a single trace. ³ Suitable for long-range applications and recommended when measuring time is a key factor.
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer OTDR Basic Principles OTDR Basic Principles An OTDR sends short pulses of light into a fiber. Light scattering occurs in the fiber due to discontinuities such as connectors, splices, bends, and faults. An OTDR then detects and analyzes the backscattered signals. The signal strength is measured for specific intervals of time and is used to characterize events.
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer OTDR Basic Principles An OTDR uses the effects of Rayleigh scattering and Fresnel reflection to measure the fiber’s condition, but the Fresnel reflection is tens of thousands of times greater in power level than the backscatter. ³ Rayleigh scattering occurs when a pulse travels down the fiber and small variations in the material, such as variations and discontinuities in the index of refraction, cause light to be scattered in all directions.
Introducing the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer Conventions Conventions Before using the product described in this manual, you should understand the following conventions: WARNING Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, could result in death or serious injury. Do not proceed unless you understand and meet the required conditions. CAUTION Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, may result in minor or moderate injury.
2 Safety Information WARNING Do not install or terminate fibers while a light source is active. Never look directly into a live fiber and ensure that your eyes are protected at all times. WARNING Use of controls, adjustments and procedures for operation and maintenance other than those specified herein may result in hazardous radiation exposure or impair the protection provided by this unit.
Safety Information Laser Safety Information (Models with VFL) Laser Safety Information (Models with VFL) Your instrument is a Class 3R laser product in compliance with standards IEC 60825-1 and 21 CFR 1040.10. It is potentially harmful in direct intrabeam viewing.
3 Getting Started with Your OTDR Inserting and Removing Test Modules CAUTION Never insert or remove a module while the FTB-200 v2 Compact Modular Platform is turned on. This will result in immediate and irreparable damage to both the module and unit. WARNING When the laser safety LED is flashing, at least one of your modules is emitting an optical signal. Please check all modules, as it might not be the one you are currently using.
Getting Started with Your OTDR Inserting and Removing Test Modules To insert a module into the FTB-200 v2 Compact Modular Platform: 1. Turn off your unit. 2. Position the unit so that its front panel is facing you.
Getting Started with Your OTDR Inserting and Removing Test Modules 3. Take the module and place it vertically so that the retaining screw hole is at the left of the connector pins. 4. Insert the protruding edges of the module into the grooves of the unit’s module slot. 5. Push the module all the way to the bottom of the slot, until the retaining screw makes contact with the unit casing. 6. Place the unit so that its bottom panel is facing you.
Getting Started with Your OTDR Inserting and Removing Test Modules 7. While applying slight pressure to the module, lift the mobile part of the retaining screw and use it to turn the retaining screw clockwise until it is tightened. This will secure the module into its “seated” position. Turn retaining screws clockwise Bottom panel When you turn on the unit, the startup sequence will automatically detect the module.
Getting Started with Your OTDR Inserting and Removing Test Modules To remove a module from the FTB-200 v2 Compact Modular Platform: 1. Turn off your unit. 2. Position the unit so that the bottom panel is facing you. 3. Lift the mobile part of the retaining screw and use it to turn the retaining screw counterclockwise until it stops. The module will be slowly released from the slot. Turn retaining screws counterclockwise Bottom panel 4.
Getting Started with Your OTDR Inserting and Removing Test Modules 5. Hold the module by its sides or by the handle (NOT by the connector) and pull it out. CAUTION Pulling out a module by a connector could seriously damage both the module and connector. Always pull out a module by its casing. 6. Cover empty slots with the supplied protective covers.
Starting Module Applications Starting Module Applications Your modules can be configured and controlled from their dedicated applications in Compact ToolBox. To start a module application: 1. From Compact ToolBox, select the module to use. It will turn blue to indicate that it is highlighted. 2. Under Applications, select an application, then press Start. To start the Power Meter or Probe application: From Main Menu, press Power Meter or Probe.
Timer The main window (shown below) contains all the commands required to control the OTDR: Data display Button bar Function tabs Timer Once the acquisition has begun, a timer is displayed on the right-hand side of the screen, indicating the remaining time until the next acquisition.
4 Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Installing the EXFO Universal Interface (EUI) The EUI fixed baseplate is available for connectors with angled (APC) or non-angled (UPC) polishing. A green border around the baseplate indicates that it is for APC-type connectors. Green border indicates APC option Bare metal (or blue border) indicates UPC option To install an EUI connector adapter onto the EUI baseplate: 1. Hold the EUI connector adapter so the dust cap opens downwards. 2 3 4 2.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Cleaning and Connecting Optical Fibers Cleaning and Connecting Optical Fibers IMPORTANT To ensure maximum power and to avoid erroneous readings: ³ Always inspect fiber ends and make sure that they are clean as explained below before inserting them into the port. EXFO is not responsible for damage or errors caused by bad fiber cleaning or handling. ³ Ensure that your patchcord has appropriate connectors. Joining mismatched connectors will damage the ferrules.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Cleaning and Connecting Optical Fibers 3. Carefully align the connector and port to prevent the fiber end from touching the outside of the port or rubbing against other surfaces. If your connector features a key, ensure that it is fully fitted into the port’s corresponding notch. 4. Push the connector in so that the fiber-optic cable is firmly in place, thus ensuring adequate contact.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Naming Trace Files Automatically Naming Trace Files Automatically Each time you start an acquisition, the application suggests a file name based on autonaming settings. This file name appears on the upper part of the graph and the linear view. The file name is made of a static part (alphanumeric) and a variable part (numeric) that will be incremented or decremented, according to your selection, as follows: If you choose incrementation... If you choose decrementation...
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Naming Trace Files Automatically Note: If you select the Bellcore (.sor) format, the unit will create one file per wavelength (for example, TRACE001_1310.sor and TRACE001_1550.sor, if you included both 1310 nm and 1550 nm in your test). The native format contains all wavelengths in a single file. To configure the automatic file naming: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup. 2. Select the Acquisition tab. 3. Press Default Trace Information.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Naming Trace Files Automatically 4. Fill out the required information in the corresponding boxes and select the direction for your trace files. 5. Press the button appearing next to the Fiber ID box to change the contents of the fiber identification. 6. Change the criteria as needed, then press OK to confirm your new settings and return to the Default Trace Information window.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Naming Trace Files Automatically 7. Press File Autonaming to set up the trace file name options. 8. In the File Name window, select the desired components to include in the file name. You can change the order of apparition with the up and down arrow buttons.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Enabling or Disabling the First Connector Check Enabling or Disabling the First Connector Check Note: This function is available in all OTDR modes. However, the first connector check parameter used in Fault Finder mode is independent from the one used in the other OTDR modes (Auto, Advanced and Template). The first connector check feature is used to verify that the fibers are properly connected to the OTDR.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Setting Macrobend Parameters Setting Macrobend Parameters Note: This function is available both in Advanced and Auto modes. Your unit can locate macrobends by comparing the loss values measured at a certain location, for a certain wavelength (for example, 1310 nm) with the loss values measured at the corresponding location, but for a greater wavelength (for example, 1550 nm).
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Setting Macrobend Parameters To set macrobend parameters: 1. From the Main Menu, press OTDR Setup then select the General tab. 2. To enable the macrobend detection, select the Show macrobend check box. OR To disable it, clear the check box. 3. If necessary, set the delta value as follows: 3a. From the Wavelengths list, select the pair of wavelengths for which you want to define the delta value. Only the combinations of wavelengths your module can support will be available.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Launch Conditions for Multimode Measurements Launch Conditions for Multimode Measurements In a multimode fiber network, the attenuation of a signal is highly dependent on the mode distribution (or launch condition) of the source that emits this signal. In the same way, the attenuation reading performed by any test instrument will also depend on the mode distribution of its light source. A single light source cannot be conditioned for both 50 μm (50 MMF) and 62.5 μm (62.
Preparing Your OTDR for a Test Launch Conditions for Multimode Measurements The table below gives information about tests with the 50 μm and 62.5 μm fibers. Fiber type 50 μm Recommended mode filter Perform a five-turn mandrel-wrap (wrapping the patchcord a minimum of five turns around the mandrel tool) on the patchcord connecting the OTDR to the fiber under test. As per FOTP-34: Remarks Nominal launch conditions are overfilled.
5 Testing Fibers in Auto Mode Auto mode automatically evaluates fiber length, sets acquisition parameters, acquires traces, and displays event tables and acquired traces.
Testing Fibers in Auto Mode Once the acquisition is complete or interrupted, the analysis starts for acquisitions of 5 seconds or more. After analysis, the trace is displayed and events appear in the events table. Trace display Event pane The application will also display status messages if you have selected to display pass/fail messages (see Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds on page 53). You can save the trace after analysis.
Testing Fibers in Auto Mode To acquire traces in Auto mode: 1. Clean the connectors properly. 2. Connect a fiber to the OTDR port. If your unit is equipped with two OTDR ports, ensure that you connect the fiber to the appropriate port (singlemode, singlemode live, or multimode), depending on the wavelength you intend to use. CAUTION Never connect a live fiber to the OTDR port without a proper setup. Any incoming optical power ranging from –65 dBm to –40 dBm will affect the OTDR acquisition.
Testing Fibers in Auto Mode 6. Select the boxes corresponding to the desired test wavelengths. You must select at least one wavelength. 7. If you want to clear the settings the OTDR has determined to start with a new set of OTDR settings, press Reset. 8. Press Start or from the keypad. If the first connector check feature is enabled, a message will appear if there is a problem with the injection level (see Enabling or Disabling the First Connector Check on page 28). 9.
6 Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Advanced mode offers all the tools you need to perform complete OTDR tests and measurements manually and gives you control over all test parameters. Note: Most parameters can only be set if you select Advanced mode first. Once you have finished selecting your settings, you can simply return to the test mode you prefer. By default, in Advanced mode, all available test wavelengths are selected.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Although the application sets the acquisition parameters, you can modify these values as needed, even while the acquisition is in progress. The OTDR simply restarts the averaging each time a modification is made. Note: You can interrupt the acquisition at any time. The application will display the information acquired to that point. Once the acquisition is complete or interrupted, the analysis starts for acquisitions of 5 seconds or more.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode To acquire traces: 1. Clean the connectors properly (see Cleaning and Connecting Optical Fibers on page 22). 2. Connect a fiber to the OTDR port. If your unit is equipped with two OTDR ports, ensure that you connect the fiber to the appropriate port (singlemode, singlemode live, or multimode), depending on the wavelength you intend to use. CAUTION Never connect a live fiber to the OTDR port without a proper setup.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode 7. If your OTDR supports singlemode, singlemode live, or multimode wavelengths, under Wavelengths, from the list, select the desired fiber type (for live-fiber testing, select SM Live; for C fiber, select 50 μm and for D fiber, select 62.5 μm). 8. Select the boxes corresponding to the desired test wavelengths. You must select at least one wavelength. 9. Select the desired distance, pulse, and time values.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Note: The application will only display the Save File dialog box if you have activated the feature to always be prompted when you save a file. From this dialog box, you can change the location, the file name and the file format. 11a.If necessary, change the folder to which the file will be saved by pressing the Location button. 11b.If necessary, specify a file name. IMPORTANT If you enter the name of an existing trace, the original file will be replaced with the new file.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting the Autorange Acquisition Time Setting the Autorange Acquisition Time Note: This function is available both in Advanced and Auto modes. When performing automatic acquisitions in Advanced mode (see Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode on page 37) or before activating Auto mode (see Testing Fibers in Auto Mode on page 33), you can set an autorange acquisition time for the OTDR to average acquisitions over a set time period.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting the IOR, RBS Coefficient, and Helix Factor Setting the IOR, RBS Coefficient, and Helix Factor Note: This function is available both in Advanced and Auto modes. You should set the IOR (group index), RBS coefficient and helix factor before performing tests in order to apply them to all newly acquired traces. However, if you are in Advanced mode, you can also set them at a later time in the Trace Info. tab to reanalyze a specific trace.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting the IOR, RBS Coefficient, and Helix Factor 2. From the OTDR Setup window, go to the Acquisition tab. 3. Use the up or down arrow located on the side of the wavelength box to select the desired wavelength. Index of refraction Rayleigh backscatter coefficient Wavelength for which RBS and IOR will be defined IMPORTANT Change the default RBS coefficient only if you have values provided by the fiber manufacturer.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Distance Range, Pulse Width, and Acquisition Time Setting Distance Range, Pulse Width, and Acquisition Time The distance range, pulse width and acquisition time are set with the controls in the Advanced main window. ³ Distance: corresponds to the distance range of the fiber span to be tested according to the selected measurement units (see Selecting the Distance Units on page 96).
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Distance Range, Pulse Width, and Acquisition Time ³ Time: corresponds to the acquisition duration (period during which results will be averaged). Generally, longer acquisition times generate cleaner traces (this is especially true with long-distance traces) because as the acquisition time increases, more of the noise is averaged out. This averaging increases the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and the OTDR’s ability to detect small events.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Distance Range, Pulse Width, and Acquisition Time To set the parameters: From the OTDR tab: ³ Press the dial corresponding to the parameter you wish to set (the selection marker will move clockwise) or use the selection dial located on the front of the unit. OR ³ Press directly the value to select it. The selection marker will go to that value immediately.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Distance Range, Pulse Width, and Acquisition Time To use the same pulse and acquisition time for all wavelengths: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup, then go to the Acquisition tab. 2. Select the Apply settings to all wavelengths box. The modifications you make to pulse, time, and range settings will now be applied to all wavelengths.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Enabling the High-Resolution Feature Enabling the High-Resolution Feature If your OTDR model is FTB-7000D or later, You can select the high-resolution feature to obtain more data points per acquisition. This way, the data points will be closer to each other, which will result in a greater distance resolution for the trace.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Enabling the High-Resolution Feature To enable the high-resolution feature: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup. 2. Go to the Acquisition tab. 3. Select the High-resolution acquisition box. Note: If your OTDR supports singlemode, singlemode live, or multimode wavelengths, the high-resolution feature will be activated either for the singlemode, singlemode live, or multimode wavelengths, depending on the selected fiber type. 4.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Enabling or Disabling Analysis After Acquisition Enabling or Disabling Analysis After Acquisition The OTDR trace acquisition procedure will be completed by the analysis. You can either choose to automatically analyze each trace immediately after the acquisition, or perform the analysis whenever it suits you best. When the analysis process is disabled, the Event table of a newly acquired trace will be empty.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Enabling or Disabling Analysis After Acquisition To enable or disable the analysis after trace acquisition: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup. 2. Go to the Analysis tab. 3. If you want the OTDR to automatically analyze an acquired trace, select the Automatically analyze data after acquisition box. If you clear the check box, the trace will be acquired without being analyzed. Note: By default, traces are automatically analyzed as they are acquired. 4.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds You can activate and set Pass/Fail threshold parameters for your tests. You can set thresholds for splice loss, connector loss, reflectance, fiber section attenuation, span loss, span length, and span ORL. You can apply the same pass/fail thresholds to all test wavelengths or apply them separately to each one. You can set different pass/fail thresholds for each available test wavelength.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds The following table provides the default, minimum and maximum thresholds. Test Default Minimum Maximum Splice loss (dB) 1.000 0.015 5.000 Connector loss (dB) 1.000 0.015 5.000 Reflectance (dB) –40.00 –80.0 0.0 Fiber section attenuation (dB/km) 0.400 0.000 5.000 Span loss (dB) 45.000 0.000 45.000 Span length (km) 0.00 0.0000 300.0000 Span ORL (dB) 15.00 15.00 40.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds To set pass/fail thresholds: 1. From the button bar, select OTDR Setup, then select the Event Table tab. 2. From the Wavelength list, select the wavelength for which you want to set thresholds. Threshold to set Value associated with the threshold to set 3. Select the boxes corresponding to the thresholds that you want to use, and enter the desired values in the appropriate fields.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds 5. If you want to apply the thresholds you have just defined to one or several other wavelengths, proceed as follows: 5a. Press the Copy to Other Wavelengths button. 5b. Select the boxes corresponding to the wavelengths for which you want to use the same thresholds. Note: You can use the Select All button to quickly select all boxes at the same time. 5c. Press OK to confirm you selection. 6. Press Exit OTDR Setup to return to the main window.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds To revert to default threshold values and to delete custom wavelengths: 1. From the button bar, select OTDR Setup, then select the Event Table tab. 2. Press the Revert to Factory Settings button. 3. When the application prompts you, confirm the modification with Yes. All threshold values of all wavelengths are returned to their default values, except for thresholds that are associated with custom wavelengths.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting a Default Span Start and Span End Setting a Default Span Start and Span End By default, the span start and span end of a fiber are assigned, respectively, to the first event (the launch level event) and the last event (often a non-reflective or reflective end event) of a trace. You can change the default fiber span that will be applied during the initial trace analysis.
Testing Fibers in Advanced Mode Setting a Default Span Start and Span End To change the default span start and span end for traces: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup. 2. From the OTDR Setup window, go to the Analysis tab. 3. If you want to set the span start and end with a distance value, under Span start and Span end, select Set by distance. Go to the Position box and enter the desired value, using the distance units displayed to the right of the field.
7 Testing Fibers in Template Mode Template mode allows you to test fibers and compare them to a reference trace that was previously acquired and analyzed. Template Principle Cables contain numerous fibers. Theoretically, on all these fibers, you will find the same events at the same location (due to connectors, splices, etc.). Template mode allows you to test these fibers one after the other quickly and efficiently and ensures that no event remains undetected.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Restrictions of Template Mode You can save the trace after analysis. If former results have not been saved yet, the application prompts you to save them before starting a new acquisition. Template mode can be used on an unlimited number of traces, as long as you have at least one reference trace. Thus, you can use Template mode to automate trace acquisition. Restrictions of Template Mode To speed up trace acquisition in Template mode, certain restrictions apply.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Restrictions of Template Mode Item Pulse width To be valid...
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring the Reference Trace Acquiring the Reference Trace You must acquire a reference trace before you start the Template mode. The acquisition parameters you define for this reference trace will be used to acquire subsequent traces. To acquire the reference trace: 1. Clean the connectors properly (see Cleaning and Connecting Optical Fibers on page 22). 2. Connect a fiber to the OTDR port.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring the Reference Trace The application will use a file name based on the autonaming parameters you defined (see Naming Trace Files Automatically on page 24). This file name appears at the top of the graph and at the top of the linear view table. Note: The application will only display the Save File dialog box if you have activated the feature to always be prompted when you save a file.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode To acquire traces in Template mode, you must first open your reference trace in the application. If you want your reference trace to be more accurate, you can update it with the new events that might be found. The application will automatically switch to Template mode once the reference update is complete, that is, after 15 acquisitions or after you stop the update manually.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode 3. Set test parameters. 3a. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup. 3b. Select the Create Ref./Template tab. If necessary, select Create reference trace to update your reference trace for the next acquisitions. This mode will use the first 15 traces (or less, if you stop the process manually) to continue compiling events. Note: You can disable the mode by clearing the Create reference trace box between two acquisitions.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode IMPORTANT Once the first 15 acquisitions have been performed, or if you stop the reference update manually, the only way to reactivate it will be to close the application and start a new acquisition in Template mode. 3c. Set the Template mode option you want to use on the current trace acquisition: ³ Consider only the events already indicated on the reference trace and ignore any other event occurring on the current trace.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode 4. If applicable, the application will display the number of new events detected for each wavelength. 4a. Press OK to close the dialog box. Note: You can only add events to the reference trace during reference update. Note: If you chose the Keep all events feature for the acquisitions that will be performed after the update, you may find it useful to add newly detected events to obtain a more accurate reference trace.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode 5. Question marks will appear in the Event table to identify new events not found on the reference trace. If you want to add these marked events to the reference trace, press Add to Ref. You can also delete unwanted events with the Delete button. ³ Asterisks (“*”) identify events that were not found on the main trace, but that were added because they exist on the reference trace.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode 5a. Once the analysis is complete, save the trace by pressing Quick Save in the button bar or from the keypad. The application will use a file name based on the autonaming parameters you defined (see Naming Trace Files Automatically on page 24). This file name appears at the top of the graph and at the top of the linear view table.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode 6. Once the reference update is complete (or if you did not select the reference update), the application automatically switches to Template mode. New events will be managed according to the option you selected at step 3c. Perform acquisitions in Template mode as follows: 6a. Press Start or from the keypad.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Acquiring Traces in Template Mode 6c. Once the analysis is complete, save the trace by pressing Quick Save in the button bar or from the keypad. The application will use a file name based on the autonaming parameters you defined (see Naming Trace Files Automatically on page 24). This file name appears at the top of the graph and at the top of the linear view table.
Testing Fibers in Template Mode Selecting a Reference Trace Selecting a Reference Trace In Template OTDR mode, you can only select a file as a reference trace. This operation is closely related to opening a trace file. All the traces, will be displayed using the zoom and markers settings saved along with the reference trace file (see Opening Trace Files on page 159).
8 Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode The application offers you a special testing feature to rapidly locate fiber ends. It also displays the length of the fiber under test. This could be useful if you want to perform a quick test without having to set all the acquisition parameters. Acquiring Traces in Fault Finder Mode The unit will determine the more appropriate wavelength (singlemode or multimode, depending on your test configuration).
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Acquiring Traces in Fault Finder Mode 3. From the Port list, specify to which port you connected your fiber (for C fiber, select 50 μm and for D fiber, select 62.5 μm). 4. Press Start or from the keypad. If the first connector check feature is enabled, a message will appear if there is a problem with the injection level (see Enabling or Disabling the First Connector Check for Fault Finder on page 85).
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Acquiring Traces in Fault Finder Mode 5. Once the analysis is complete, save the trace by pressing Quick Save in the button bar or from the keypad. The application will use a file name based on the autonaming parameters you defined (see Naming Fault Finder Files Automatically on page 78). This file name appears at the top of the graph.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Naming Fault Finder Files Automatically Naming Fault Finder Files Automatically Each time you start an acquisition, the Fault Finder application suggests a file name based on autonaming settings. This file name appears on the upper part of the graph. Note: The autonaming settings used in Fault Finder mode are independent from those used in Auto, Advanced or Template modes.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Naming Fault Finder Files Automatically To configure the automatic file naming: 1. From the button bar, press Setup. 2. From the Setup window, select the General tab then press the File Autonaming button. 3. From the Autonaming Setup dialog box, set the parameters. Static part Variable part (incremented) The value appearing in this box will be used in the next file name.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Selecting the Default File Format for the Fault Finder Traces Selecting the Default File Format for the Fault Finder Traces You can define the default file format the Fault Finder application will use when you save your traces. Note: The default file format used in Fault Finder mode are independent from the file format used in Auto, Advanced or Template modes. There is one default file format for Fault Finder and one default file format for the other OTDR modes.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Selecting the Default File Format for the Fault Finder Traces To select the default file format: 1. From the button bar, press Quick Save. 2. From the Save File dialog box, select the desired format. 3. Press OK to save your file in the new format. The next files will be saved in the new format.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Enabling or Disabling the Confirmation of Fault Finder File Name Enabling or Disabling the Confirmation of Fault Finder File Name By default, each time you save a file, the application prompts you to confirm the file name. Note: The file name confirmation parameter used in Fault Finder mode is independent from the one used in the other OTDR modes (Auto, Advanced and Template).
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Enabling or Disabling the Confirmation of Fault Finder File Name To enable or disable file name confirmation: 1. From the button bar, press Setup, then go to the General tab. 2. If you want to confirm file name each time you press Quick Save, select the Always show confirmation window on save check box. OR If you never want to be prompted, clear the check box.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Enabling or Disabling the Storage Feature Enabling or Disabling the Storage Feature By default, the Quick Save button is displayed in the button bar. However, if you only want to perform quick tests without having to save the results, you may prefer to hide the Quick Save button. To enable or disable the storage feature: 1. From the button bar, press Setup, then go to the General tab. 2.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Enabling or Disabling the First Connector Check for Fault Finder Enabling or Disabling the First Connector Check for Fault Finder The first connector check feature is used to verify that the fibers are properly connected to the OTDR. It verifies the injection level and displays a message when a unusually high loss occurs at the first connection, which could indicate that no fiber is connected to the OTDR port. By default, this feature is not enabled.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Enabling or Disabling the First Connector Check for Fault Finder To enable or disable the first connector check: 1. From the button bar, press Setup then select the General tab. 2. To enable the first connector check, select the First connector check check box. OR To disable it, clear the check box. 3. Press Exit Setup to return to the main window. The changes are applied automatically.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Enabling or Disabling the Touchscreen Keyboard Enabling or Disabling the Touchscreen Keyboard With the touchscreen keyboard, you can enter data without having to use an external keyboard. By default, this feature is enabled. When you select a text or number box, the touchscreen keyboard or keypad appears automatically. However, you can disable it if you prefer using an external keyboard.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Setting Trace Display Parameters Setting Trace Display Parameters You can change several trace display parameters: ³ the grid: You can display or hide the grid appearing on the graph’s background. By default, the grid is displayed. ³ the file name in the trace display: The file name appears at the top of the trace display. By default, the file name is displayed.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Setting Trace Display Parameters To set the trace display parameters: 1. From the button bar, press the Setup button, then select the General tab. 2. Select the check boxes corresponding to the item you want to display on the graph. OR To hide them, clear the check boxes. 3. Press Exit Setup to return to the main window. The changes are applied automatically.
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Selecting the Distance Units Selecting the Distance Units You can select the distance units that will be used in the application. The default distance units are the kilometers. Units used Note: The distance units used in Fault Finder mode are independent from the ones used in the other OTDR modes (Auto, Advanced and Template).
Testing Fibers in Fault Finder Mode Selecting the Distance Units To select the distance units for your display: 1. From the button bar, select Setup. 2. From the Setup window, select the General tab. 3. From the Distance units list, select the item corresponding to the desired units. 4. Press Exit Setup. You return to the main window and the newly selected measurement unit appears everywhere these units are used.
9 Customizing Your OTDR You can customize the appearance and behavior of your OTDR application. Selecting the Default File Format You can define the default file format the application will use when you save your traces. By default, traces are saved in native (.trc) format, but you can configure your unit to save them in Bellcore (.sor) format. If you select the Bellcore (.sor) format, the unit will create one file per wavelength (for example, TRACE001_1310.sor and TRACE001_1550.
Customizing Your OTDR Enabling or Disabling File Name Confirmation To select the default file format: 1. From the Main Menu window, press Quick Save. 2. From the Save File dialog box, select the desired format. 3. Press OK to save your file in the new format. The next files will be saved in the new format. Enabling or Disabling File Name Confirmation By default, each time you save a file, the application prompts you to confirm the file name.
Customizing Your OTDR Enabling or Disabling File Name Confirmation To enable or disable file name confirmation: 1. From the Main Menu window, press OTDR Setup, then select the General tab. 2. If you want to confirm file name each time you press Quick Save, select the Always show confirmation window on save check box. OR If you never want to be prompted, clear the check box.
Customizing Your OTDR Selecting the Distance Units Selecting the Distance Units You can select the measurement units that will be used throughout the application, except for certain values such as the pulse and the wavelength. Pulse values are expressed in seconds and wavelength in meters (nanometers). Distance units The default distance units are the kilometers. Note: If you select Kilometers (km) or Kilofeet (kft), m and ft may appear instead to display more precise measurements.
Customizing Your OTDR Selecting the Distance Units To select the distance units for your display: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup. 2. From the OTDR Setup window, select the General tab. 3. From the Distance units list, select the item corresponding to the desired distance units. 4. Press Exit OTDR Setup. You return to the main window and the newly selected distance unit appears everywhere units are used.
Customizing Your OTDR Customizing the Acquisition Distance Range Values Customizing the Acquisition Distance Range Values Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. If your OTDR model is FTB-7000D or later, youYou can customize the values associated with the Distance dial. Once the customization is complete, you are ready to set the distance range value for your test. For more information, see Setting Distance Range, Pulse Width, and Acquisition Time on page 45.
Customizing Your OTDR Customizing the Acquisition Distance Range Values To customize the distance range values: 1. From the button bar, select OTDR Setup, then the Acquisition tab. 2. Press the Custom Acquisition Parameters button. 3. If your OTDR supports singlemode, multimode or filtered wavelengths, specify the desired fiber type. 4. From the Distance list, select the value you want to modify (the value will become highlighted), then press the Edit button.
Customizing Your OTDR Customizing the Acquisition Time Values Customizing the Acquisition Time Values Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. You can customize the values associated with the Time dial. The acquisition time values represent the time during which the OTDR will average acquisitions. If your OTDR model is FTB-7000D or later, youYou can even define acquisition time as short as 5 seconds (10 seconds for older modules). Note: The Auto and Real values cannot be modified.
Customizing Your OTDR Customizing the Acquisition Time Values To customize the acquisition time values: 1. From the button bar, select OTDR Setup, then the Acquisition tab. 2. Press the Custom Acquisition Parameters button. 3. From the Time list, select the value you want to modify (the value will become highlighted), then press the Edit button. Note: You can revert to factory values by pressing the Default button. 4. In the displayed dialog box, enter the new value and confirm with OK.
Customizing Your OTDR Enabling or Disabling the Touchscreen Keyboard Enabling or Disabling the Touchscreen Keyboard With the touchscreen keyboard, you can enter data without having to use an external keyboard. By default, this feature is enabled. When you select a text or number box, the touchscreen keyboard or keypad appears automatically. However, you can disable it if you prefer using an external keyboard.
Customizing Your OTDR Displaying or Hiding the Optional Features Displaying or Hiding the Optional Features If you have not purchased the optional software package, since you cannot use the optional features, you may prefer to hide them (macrobend detection, linear view). Note: You cannot hide the optional features if you purchased the software package. To display or hide the optional features: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup. 2.
10 Analyzing Traces and Events Once the acquired trace is analyzed, it appears in the trace display and the events are displayed in the events table at the bottom of the screen.The trace display and events table are explained in the following sections. You can also reanalyze existing traces. For information on the various file formats you can open with the application, see Opening Trace Files on page 159.
Analyzing Traces and Events Graph View Graph View The events, that are detailed in the events table (see Events Tab on page 112), are marked by numbers along the displayed trace. Default injection level Event no. 4 Distance units Events table Some items in the trace display are always visible, while others will appear only if you choose to display them. The contents of the graph area changes according to the selected tab.
Analyzing Traces and Events Graph View You can change trace display parameters (such as the grid and zoom window display). For more information, see Setting Trace Display Parameters on page 126. You can view all of the traces, in turn, in both the Trace Info pane and the trace display with the navigation buttons. For more information, see Displaying or Hiding a Trace on page 130. Each wavelength is displayed in a different color. The colors are assigned dynamically.
Analyzing Traces and Events Linear View Linear View Note: This function is available with the optional software package only. In the linear view, the events are displayed sequentially, from left to right. Event Fiber section 108 ³ Each bubble represents an event. Each horizontal line that “links” two bubbles represents a fiber section.
Analyzing Traces and Events Linear View ³ You can view, in turn, the reference trace and the main trace using the Next Trace button. ³ If you press a bubble or an horizontal line and hold for a few seconds, the application will display a tooltip identifying the item (for example, Reflective fault). If the bubble corresponds to a merged event, you will also see details about the “sub-events”, including the event types. ³ The Measure tab is not available when the linear view is displayed.
Analyzing Traces and Events Summary Table Summary Table Note: This function is available both in Advanced and Auto modes. The summary table gives, for each wavelength, the global status of the results (pass: no results exceed the thresholds or fail: at least one result exceeds the thresholds), the span loss and span ORL values. The span length (distance between span start and span end) is also displayed, except if a continuous fiber is detected for all wavelengths.
Analyzing Traces and Events Summary Table OTDR ³ Since the summary table shows the information for all the wavelengths of the main trace only, the Next Trace button is not available. ³ The summary table cannot be displayed when the events table is empty or if the trace contains only a span start. Traces must have been analyzed before you can see them in the summary table.
Analyzing Traces and Events Events Tab To display the summary table: From the main window, press the button. Note: To display the summary table as the default view after the acquisitions are all performed (at all the selected wavelengths) and the analysis of the last wavelength is complete, see Selecting the Default View on page 119. Events Tab This tab is available when the graph view and the linear view (optional) are displayed.
Analyzing Traces and Events Events Tab The events table lists all the events detected on the fiber. An event can be defined as the point at which change in the transmission properties of light can be measured. Events can consist of losses due to transmission, splices, connectors or breaks. If the event is not within the established thresholds, its status will be set to “fail”. In Template mode, the events table shows the events of the main trace.
Analyzing Traces and Events Events Tab ³ Refl.: Reflectance measured at each reflective event along the fiber. ³ Att.: Attenuation (loss/distance) measured for each fiber section. Note: The attenuation value is always presented in dB per kilometers even if the distance units you selected are not the kilometers. This follows the standards of the fiber-optic industry that provides the attenuation values in dB per kilometers. ³ Cumul.
Analyzing Traces and Events Events Tab To quickly locate an event in the events table: 1. Ensure that the button is selected in the zoom button bar. 2. Select the event on the trace. The list scrolls automatically to the event you selected. Event no.
Analyzing Traces and Events Measure Tab Measure Tab The application shows two, three or four markers: a, A, B, and b, depending on the button you pressed under Results. These markers can be repositioned along the trace to calculate loss, attenuation, reflectance, and optical return loss (ORL). You can reposition all markers by using the controls in the Markers section. You can drag them directly from the trace display.
Analyzing Traces and Events Displaying the Graph in Full Screen Displaying the Graph in Full Screen You can display the graph in full screen at any time, even when an acquisition is underway. The graph will keep the same display options as in normal view (grid, file name, zoom window, inverted colors). You can start acquisitions directly (via the button located on the front of your unit) without having to go back to normal view first. You can switch from one wavelength to another.
Analyzing Traces and Events Displaying the Graph in Full Screen If you want to view a table of events once the acquisitions are complete, you must select the Events tab or activate the option to display the event table (from OTDR Setup) before switching to full-screen mode. Once all acquisitions are complete, the application will automatically switch to the defined default view (see Selecting the Default View on page 119).
Analyzing Traces and Events Selecting the Default View Selecting the Default View You can select which view will be displayed by default once all the acquisitions are performed (at all the selected wavelengths) and the analysis of the last wavelength is complete. The table below indicates in which OTDR modes (Auto, Advanced, Template) a particular view can be displayed. View Graph OTDR modes for which view is available ³ Auto Default view.
Analyzing Traces and Events Selecting the Default View View Summary table OTDR modes for which view is available ³ Auto ³ Advanced Remarks This table gives, for each wavelength, the pass/fail status of the results, the span loss and span ORL values. Span length is also displayed. If you purchased the option, information on macrobends will be displayed. For more information, see Summary Table on page 110. Note: In Fault Finder mode, only the graph is available. To select the default view: 1.
Analyzing Traces and Events Automatically Displaying the Event Table after Acquisitions Automatically Displaying the Event Table after Acquisitions You may want the application to automatically switch to the event table once all acquisitions are complete. This could be particularly useful when you work in full-screen mode (see Displaying the Graph in Full Screen on page 117) if you want to view the event table without having to go back in normal view mode. To display the event table after acquisitions: 1.
Analyzing Traces and Events Automatically Zooming in on the Fiber Span Automatically Zooming in on the Fiber Span Note: This function is available both in Advanced and Template modes. You can set the trace display to show only the span start to the span end of the trace in full-trace view. By default, this feature is not selected. To automatically zoom in on the fiber span: 1. From the button bar, select OTDR Setup. 2. From the OTDR Setup window, select the General tab. 3.
Analyzing Traces and Events Using Zoom Controls Using Zoom Controls Use the zoom controls to change the scale of the trace display. You can zoom in on or out of the graph using the corresponding buttons or let the application automatically adjust the zoom on the currently selected event from the events table (only available when the events window is displayed). You can quickly zoom in on or out of the selected event. You can also return to the original graph value.
Analyzing Traces and Events Using Zoom Controls ³ When you manually zoom in or out on a trace, the application will apply the new zoom factor and marker positions to the other traces (wavelengths) of a same file and on the reference file, if applicable. Both the zoom factor and marker positions will be saved along with the trace (same settings for all wavelengths).
Analyzing Traces and Events Using Zoom Controls according to the zooming type you have selected. All of the other zoom buttons (except for the zoom on selected event button) will reflect your selection and behave accordingly. ³ You can zoom in or out on the graph by first using, respectively, the or the button, and then by pressing the location where you want to zoom on the graph with the stylus or your finger. The application automatically adjusts the zoom by a factor 2 around the point that was pressed.
Analyzing Traces and Events Setting Trace Display Parameters Setting Trace Display Parameters Once you have launched the desired trace acquisition mode (Automatic, Advanced, or Template), you can change several trace display parameters: ³ the grid: You can display or hide the grid appearing on the graph’s background. By default, the grid is displayed. ³ the graph background: You can display the graph with a black (invert color feature) or a white background. By default, the background is white.
Analyzing Traces and Events Setting Trace Display Parameters To set the trace display parameters: 1. From the button bar, press the OTDR Setup button, then select the General tab. 2. Select the boxes corresponding to the item you want to display on the graph. OR To hide them, clear the boxes. To display a black background 3. Press Exit OTDR Setup to return to the main window. The changes are applied automatically.
Analyzing Traces and Events Customizing the Event Table Customizing the Event Table Note: This function is available both in Advanced and Auto modes. You can include or exclude items from the events table to better suit your needs. Note: Hiding the fiber sections will not delete these items. ³ Fiber sections: You can display or hide fiber sections in the events table and in the linear view, depending on the types of values you want to display.
Analyzing Traces and Events Customizing the Event Table To customize the events table appearance: 1. From the OTDR Setup window, select the Event Table tab. 2. Select the boxes corresponding to the item you want to display or include in the table. OR To hide them, clear the boxes. 3. Press Exit OTDR Setup.
Analyzing Traces and Events Displaying or Hiding a Trace Displaying or Hiding a Trace There are two ways of displaying or hiding traces in the OTDR test application. ³ You can view, in turn, all the trace files you have opened, including main and reference traces, as well as multiwavelength traces. ³ You can select the fibers and the wavelengths (for multiwavelength files) that will be available when using the navigation button. You can also specify which trace will be displayed (current trace).
Analyzing Traces and Events Displaying or Hiding a Trace To specify which traces to display or hide: 1. From the button bar, press Storage. 2. Select the boxes corresponding to the traces to display. OR Clear the boxes to hide them. Note: A hidden trace cannot be displayed with the navigation button. In multiwavelength trace files, you can show or hide traces independently. 3.
Analyzing Traces and Events Clearing Traces from the Display Clearing Traces from the Display Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. Note: Clearing traces from the display does not delete them from the disk. Although the test application automatically opens the last trace files used, you can clear the screen and launch new acquisitions. If a trace you acquired (main or reference) does not meet your requirements, you can clear that trace and start over. To clear traces from the display: 1.
Analyzing Traces and Events Viewing and Modifying Current Trace Settings Viewing and Modifying Current Trace Settings You can view the trace parameters and modify them at your convenience. Note: Parameter modification is only possible in Advanced mode. You can modify the index of refraction (IOR) also known as group index, Rayleigh backscatter (RBS) coefficient and helix factor for the displayed trace.
Analyzing Traces and Events Viewing and Modifying Current Trace Settings To view trace settings: Go to the Trace Info. tab. Note: Even if more than one trace is available, the Trace Info. tab only shows one at a time. To display the traces in turn, press Next Trace in the toolbar. The active trace appears in black in the trace display. These parameters are displayed: 134 ³ Wavelength: Test wavelength and type of fiber used: (singlemode) or (multimode).
Analyzing Traces and Events Viewing and Modifying Current Trace Settings OTDR ³ Max. splice loss: Maximum loss of all non-reflective events between span start and span end. ³ Span ORL: ORL calculated either between the span start and the span end, or on the total fiber span, depending on the option you have selected in the Setup window. ³ High resolution: High-resolution feature was selected to perform the acquisition. For more information, see Enabling the High-Resolution Feature on page 49.
Analyzing Traces and Events Viewing and Modifying Current Trace Settings To modify the IOR, RBS coefficient, and helix factor parameters: 1. From the main window, go to the Trace Info. tab. 2. Press the Fiber Settings button. 3. Enter the desired values for the current trace in the appropriate boxes. OR If you want to revert a particular item to its default value, press the Default button appearing next to this item.
Analyzing Traces and Events Viewing and Modifying Current Trace Settings ³ You can change the fiber type of a multimode trace. The application will adjust the fiber type of all multimode wavelengths (traces). ³ Unless you are absolutely sure of the different parameter values, revert to default values to avoid fiber setting mismatches. You should do the same for other multimode wavelengths. ³ If you already know the IOR value, you can enter it in the corresponding box.
Analyzing Traces and Events Modifying Events Modifying Events Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. You can change the loss and reflectance of almost any existing event except: ³ continuous fiber ³ end of analysis ³ launch level ³ merged events ³ span start ³ span end In the case of a reflective event, you can also specify whether the event corresponds to an echo, a possible echo, or no echo.
Analyzing Traces and Events Modifying Events To modify an event: 1. Select the event you want to modify. 2. Press the Change Event button. Markers a, A, B, and b appear on the graph. With these markers, you can define a new location for the selected event. You can reposition all markers directly by dragging them, or by pressing where you want to relocate them on the graph. Selecting marker A or B will move the a-A or B-b pair.
Analyzing Traces and Events Modifying Events 3. Position marker A on the event, and submarker a (to the left of marker A) as far as possible from marker A , without including the preceding event. The area between markers A and a must not include any significant variation. For more information on positioning markers, see Using Markers on page 165. 4.
Analyzing Traces and Events Modifying Events 5. If you selected a reflective event, you can modify the echo status using the up/down arrows of the Echo status list. Note: Select “- - -” if you want to indicate that the event is not an echo. 6. Press OK to accept the modifications you have made or Cancel to return to the events table without saving the changes. The modified events are identified with “*” (appearing beside the event symbol) in the events table as shown below.
Analyzing Traces and Events Inserting Events Inserting Events You can insert events in the event table manually. This could be useful, for example, if you know that there is a splice at a given location, but the analysis does not detect it because it is hidden in the noise or because the splice loss is lower than the minimum detection threshold (see Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds on page 53). You can add this event to the events table manually.
Analyzing Traces and Events Inserting Events 2. Select the location where you want to insert an event. Four markers are available to measure the inserted event, but only marker A identifies where the event will be inserted. Use the marker arrows to move marker A on the trace display. 3. Once you have determined the location, under Event, use the up/down arrows next to the box to select the desired event type. 4.
Analyzing Traces and Events Deleting Events Deleting Events Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. Almost any event can be deleted from the events table, except: ³ end of analysis ³ fiber section ³ launch level ³ end of fiber ³ span start ³ span end Note: The “End-of-fiber” event indicates the span end that was set for the first analysis of the trace, not the span end assigned to another event or distance from the span end in the Analysis tab.
Analyzing Traces and Events Deleting Events To delete an event: 1. Select the event you want to delete. 2. Press Delete. 3. When the application prompts you, press Yes to confirm the deletion, or No to keep the event. 4. From the Edit Comments dialog box, enter a comment. To delete a comment: 1. Select the event on which you want to delete a comment. 2. From the Events tab, press Edit Comments. 3. From the Edit Comments dialog box, delete the text. 4. Press OK.
Analyzing Traces and Events Changing the Attenuation of Fiber Sections Changing the Attenuation of Fiber Sections Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. You can change the attenuation value of fiber sections. IMPORTANT If you reanalyze a trace, all of the modifications made to the fiber sections will be lost and the events table will be re-created. Note: If you want to modify events, see Modifying Events on page 138. To modify the attenuation of a fiber section: 1.
Analyzing Traces and Events Changing the Attenuation of Fiber Sections 3. Position markers as desired to modify the attenuation value. For more information on positioning markers, see Using Markers on page 165. Note: The markers serve only to set the new attenuation value. Their actual locations will not be modified. Fiber section loss and attenuation are displayed respectively in the Loss (LSA) and Att. (LSA) boxes. Loss and attenuation values 4.
Analyzing Traces and Events Setting the Analysis Detection Thresholds Setting the Analysis Detection Thresholds Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. To optimize event detection, you can set the following analysis detection thresholds: ³ Splice loss threshold: To display or hide small non-reflective events.
Analyzing Traces and Events Setting the Analysis Detection Thresholds The following examples show how different splice-loss threshold levels can affect the number of displayed events, especially small non-reflective events such as those caused by two splices. Three traces are shown, corresponding to three threshold level settings. Event location Threshold at 0.05 dB Threshold at 0.1 dB Threshold at 0.15 dB Not displayed Not displayed First splice ³ Second splice Threshold at 0.
Analyzing Traces and Events Setting the Analysis Detection Thresholds To set the analysis detection thresholds: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup. 2. From the OTDR Setup dialog box, select the Analysis tab. 3. Under Analysis parameters, set the parameters. ³ Enter the desired values in the appropriate boxes. OR ³ Select the default settings by pressing Default. 4. Press Exit OTDR Setup. The analysis detection thresholds you have just set are applied to all newly acquired traces.
Analyzing Traces and Events Analyzing or Reanalyzing a Trace Analyzing or Reanalyzing a Trace Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. You can analyze a displayed trace at any time. Analyzing or reanalyzing a trace will: ³ produce an events table for a trace, if there was none (for example, the Automatically Analyze Data after Acquisition feature was not selected; see Enabling or Disabling Analysis After Acquisition on page 51).
Analyzing Traces and Events Analyzing or Reanalyzing a Trace To analyze or reanalyze a trace: 1. From the main window, go to the Events tab. 2. Press the Analyze button. 3. From the Reanalyze Trace dialog box, select an item for setting the span start and end markers on the trace. On the first analysis, this dialog box is not displayed and the default span start and end are applied (See Setting a Default Span Start and Span End on page 58).
Analyzing Traces and Events Analyzing the Fiber on a Specific Fiber Span Analyzing the Fiber on a Specific Fiber Span Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. If you want to focus your fiber analysis on a specific fiber span, you can define events (new or existing) as a span start and/or span end. You can even define a fiber span for short fibers by placing the span start and the span end on the same event.
Analyzing Traces and Events Enabling or Disabling the Detection of Reflective Ends of Fiber Enabling or Disabling the Detection of Reflective Ends of Fiber By default, the application stops the analysis as soon as there is too much noise on a trace to ensure accurate measurements. However, you can configure the application to search the “noisy” portion of the trace to detect strong reflective events (such as those caused by UPC connectors) and set the span end at this point.
Analyzing Traces and Events Enabling or Disabling the Detection of Reflective Ends of Fiber The table below shows the differences you will notice in the event table depending on if you enable the detection of reflective ends of fiber or not.
Analyzing Traces and Events Enabling or Disabling the Detection of Reflective Ends of Fiber IMPORTANT The analysis will stop as soon as the loss of an event crosses the end-of-fiber (EoF) threshold. The application will mark the event as an end-of-fiber event. In this case, even if you selected the option, the application will not search the “noisy” portion of the trace for reflective ends of fiber.
Analyzing Traces and Events Enabling or Disabling the Detection of Reflective Ends of Fiber 3. If you want to enable the option, under End-of-Fiber parameters, select the Reflective end-of-fiber detection box. OR If you prefer to disable the option, clear the box. 4. Press Exit OTDR Setup.
Analyzing Traces and Events Swapping Traces Swapping Traces Note: This function is available in Advanced mode only. Since the events table and the trace information are based on the main trace, you may want to interchange main and reference traces. When you swap traces, the application will provide a new set of events corresponding to the new main trace. To swap traces: 1. From the button bar, press Storage. 2. From the Storage dialog box, select Swap Main/Reference.
Analyzing Traces and Events Opening Trace Files Opening Trace Files In Advanced mode, you can open a trace file as the main trace or the reference trace. You can open both the main and reference trace files at the same time. You can open two multiple wavelength trace files simultaneously, each containing several traces. In Automatic mode, you can open a trace file for viewing only. Consequently, you cannot select a trace as main or reference trace.
Analyzing Traces and Events Opening Trace Files The table below presents the possible behavior of the zoom and markers when you open traces (main or reference). If you open old OTDR traces, see the corresponding row for more information. Type of file Zoom Trace that has been saved with an Application automatic zoom on the selected automatically zooms in event ( button was pressed) on the event that was selected on the first trace (wavelength) of the file.
Analyzing Traces and Events Opening Trace Files If you want to keep the current zoom and markers, you must save your file before opening another one. As soon as a reference trace is open, the application will apply the zoom and marker settings of the reference file to all traces (main and reference). For detailed information on compatibility between EXFO’s file formats and software versions, see OTDR Trace File Compatibility on page 178.
Analyzing Traces and Events Opening Trace Files To open a trace file: 1. From the button bar, press Storage, then Open File. Available in Advanced mode 2. If necessary, change the location to retrieve the file that was stored. 3. Scroll through the list of files and select a trace file to open. 4. If you are in Advanced mode, press the Select as Main Trace or Select as Reference Trace button to indicate whether the selected trace will be used as the main or the reference trace.
11 Analyzing the Results Manually Once a trace has been acquired or opened, you can use markers and zoom in on or out of any event or trace segment to measure splice loss, fiber section attenuation, reflectance, and optical return loss. Selecting the Attenuation and Loss Values that Will Be Displayed By default, in the Measure tab, the application only displays the values obtained by using the same measurement methods as the analysis, that is the four-point event loss and the A-B LSA attenuation.
Analyzing the Results Manually Selecting the Attenuation and Loss Values that Will Be Displayed To select the attenuation and loss values that will be displayed: 1. From the button bar, press OTDR Setup then go to the General tab. 2. Press the Measurement Method button. 3. Select which values you want to see in the Measure tab. 4. Press OK to confirm your selection. 5. Press Exit OTDR Setup to return to the OTDR application.
Analyzing the Results Manually Using Markers Using Markers You can use markers to view the position and relative power of an event. Markers are available from the Events tab (when you modify or add an event) or the Measure tab in the main window. To move a marker: 1. Ensure that the button is selected in the zoom button bar. 2. From the Measure tab, press the markers button until it displays the desired marker. You can also use from the keypad.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Event Distances and Relative Powers Getting Event Distances and Relative Powers The OTDR test application automatically calculates the position of an event and displays this distance in the events table. You can retrieve the position of an event as well as the distance between events manually. You can also display various relative power readings. Distances and relative powers correspond to the X-axis and Y-axis, respectively.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Event Loss (Four-Point and Least-Square Approximation) Getting Event Loss (Four-Point and Least-Square Approximation) Event loss (expressed in dB) is calculated by measuring the signal level reduction in Rayleigh backscatter (RBS) caused by this event. Event loss can result from both reflective and non-reflective events. Two loss calculations are provided simultaneously: the four-point event loss and the A-B LSA loss.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Event Loss (Four-Point and Least-Square Approximation) ³ a Four-point event loss: the LSA method is used to fit a straight line to the backscatter data within the two regions defined by markers a, A and b, B, that is over the regions to the left and to the right of the event bordered by markers A and B, respectively.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Event Loss (Four-Point and Least-Square Approximation) ³ A-B LSA loss: the loss of the event bordered by the markers A and B is obtained by fitting a straight line to the backscatter data between these two markers. A-B LSA loss a b The event is then obtained by the reduction in power (dB) over the distance between the two markers, as calculated from the slope of the fitted line.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Event Loss (Four-Point and Least-Square Approximation) To get event loss: 1. From the main window, select the Measure tab. 2. In the Results section, press Loss. Markers a, A, B and b appear on the graph. 3. Zoom in and position marker A at the end of the linear area preceding the event to be measured. For more information, see Using Zoom Controls on page 123 and Using Markers on page 165. 4.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Event Loss (Four-Point and Least-Square Approximation) 5. Position marker B at the beginning of the linear area following the event to be measured. 6. Position submarker b at the end of the linear area following the event to be measured (must not include any significant events).
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Attenuation (Two-Point and Least-Square Approximation) Getting Attenuation (Two-Point and Least-Square Approximation) A two-point attenuation measurement gives the reduction in Rayleigh backscatter level as a function of distance (always expressed in dB/km to follow the standards of the fiber-optic industry) between two selected points. Only those two points are used to perform the calculation and there is no averaging.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Attenuation (Two-Point and Least-Square Approximation) To get attenuation: 1. From the main window, select the Measure tab. 2. In the Results section, press the Att. button. Markers A and B appear on the graph. 3. Place markers A and B at any two points on the trace. For more information, see Using Markers on page 165. 4. Zoom in on the trace and fine-tune the marker positioning if necessary. For more information, see Using Zoom Controls on page 123.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Reflectance Getting Reflectance Reflectance is the ratio of reflected light to input light. Note: If you are testing in Real time, the reflectance value you will get is not necessarily accurate. To get reflectance: 1. From the main window, select the Measure tab. 2. In the Results section, press the Refl. button. Markers a, A and B appear on the graph. 3. Zoom in and position marker A on the linear area preceding the event to be measured.
Analyzing the Results Manually Getting Optical Return Loss (ORL) Getting Optical Return Loss (ORL) Note: You must use a singlemode OTDR for ORL calculations. The ORL calculation will provide the following information: ³ the ORL between markers A and B ³ the total ORL is calculated either between the span start and the span end, or on the total fiber span, depending on the option you have selected in the Setup window.
12 Managing Trace Files from the OTDR Test Application Once you have acquired traces, or when you want to work with them after an acquisition, you will need to save, open, rename, and delete trace files. You can save and open trace files from the OTDR test application. To rename, copy, move, and delete trace files, you must use the File Manager utility. Saving a Trace in a Different Format With the OTDR application, you can save traces in native (.trc) and Bellcore (.sor) formats.
Managing Trace Files from the OTDR Test Application OTDR Trace File Compatibility OTDR Trace File Compatibility The table presented hereafter shows the compatibility between the format of a specific trace and the software that you may use to open that trace.
Managing Trace Files from the OTDR Test Application OTDR Trace File Compatibility Software used to open the file... File generated with... ToolBox ToolBox ToolBox ToolBox FTB-100 FTB-100 FTB-100 5.5 6.5 or 6.7 to 6.21 or 2.5 or 2.6 or 2.7 2.8 or earlier 6.20 later earlier later/ FTB-150 FTB-200 AXS-100 a. b. c. d. ToolBox 5.5 X X X X Conva Conva Conva ToolBox 6.5 or earlier Convb X X X Conva Conva Conva ToolBox 6.7 to 6.20 Convc Convc X X Conva,d Conva Conva ToolBox 6.
Managing Trace Files from the OTDR Test Application Copying, Moving, Renaming, or Deleting Trace Files e. f. Should be converted to ToolBox 6.7-6.20 format. Should be converted with ToolBox 6.21 or later. Copying, Moving, Renaming, or Deleting Trace Files If you want to copy, move, rename or delete trace files, you will have to process the files manually via File Manager available from Compact ToolBox. For more information, refer to your unit help.
13 Creating Reports For future reference, you can add notes on the location of the tested fiber, type of job performed and general comments related to a trace in trace reports. Adding Information to the Test Results After acquiring a trace, you might want to include or update information about the tested fiber and job or add comments. The information you enter is saved only for the currently open trace file. After entering the required data, you may save the contents as a template.
Creating Reports Adding Information to the Test Results To add information to the test results: 1. From the button bar, once a trace has been acquired or reopened, press Report. 2. Enter the desired information. Note: The information in the Date, Time, Unit and Serial no. boxes is provided by the application and cannot be edited. You can edit the Fiber ID only if the Use autonaming feature is not selected. Note: If you select the Use autonaming box, the Fiber ID box becomes unavailable.
Creating Reports Generating a Report To clear all the information from the Report window: Press the Clear All button. Note: The information appearing in the Date, Time, Unit, and Serial no. boxes cannot be deleted. The Fiber ID can only be deleted if the Use autonaming feature is not selected. Generating a Report You can print trace reports directly from your unit.
Creating Reports Generating a Report Item appearing on the report Macrobend table: a single table containing the location and the delta loss of all the detected macrobends. This table is followed by another table which contains the macrobend thresholds. Auto mode Advanced Template mode mode X X X X X X X X Note: This table is global to the fiber and will be printed if the application has detected macrobends (at any wavelength).
Creating Reports Generating a Report Item appearing on the report Test and Cable Setup for main and reference traces: file name, OTDR model, software version, wavelength, distance, IOR, RBS, acquisition time, pulse width, and helix factor. Auto mode Advanced Template mode mode X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X In Template mode, only the information of the current trace will be printed. By default, this item is selected. Comments By default, this item is selected.
Creating Reports Generating a Report Item appearing on the report Pass/Fail thresholds: loss, reflectance, fiber section attenuation thresholds as they are defined in OTDR setup, under Event table. Auto mode Advanced Template mode mode X X X X X X Note: Selecting this item will not highlight the failed results in the report. You must select the Mark faults in event table feature from the OTDR setup and include the Event table item in your report.
Creating Reports Generating a Report To print reports: 1. From the Print dialog box, select the report characteristics, including whether you want to include the graphs or not. Select the Print all traces item to print all traces (wavelengths) from the current file (available in Auto and Advanced modes only). 2. Press Print to start the process. You will automatically return to the main window.
14 Using the OTDR as a Light Source or VFL ³ If you want to perform measurements with a power meter and your OTDR as a source, the OTDR port can transmit a special tone. This port can be used only to transmit—not detect that tone. ³ The Visual Fault Locator (VFL) application is used to set the OTDR to send a red signal along the fiber, which can be used for visual fault location and fiber identification. Note: The VFL option will be available only if your OTDR is equipped with a VFL port.
Using the OTDR as a Light Source or VFL To use your OTDR as a source: 1. Clean the connectors properly (see Cleaning and Connecting Optical Fibers on page 22). 2. Connect one end of the fiber under test to the OTDR port. If your unit is equipped with two OTDR ports, ensure that you connect the fiber to the appropriate port (singlemode, singlemode live, or multimode), depending on the wavelength you intend to use. 3. From the main window, press the button. 4. Select the wavelength you want to use.
Using the OTDR as a Light Source or VFL 5. Select the desired modulation. Under Modulation, ³ For loss measurement, with a power meter at the other end, select Continuous. IMPORTANT Measurements using the Continuous setting must always be taken using a GeX detector. An OTDR source is very powerful and it will certainly saturate Ge and InGaAs detectors, which usually saturate at 6 dBm, while GeX detectors saturates at 26 dBm. ³ For fiber identification, select 1 kHz or 2 kHz.
To identify fiber faults visually: 1. Clean the connectors properly (see Cleaning and Connecting Optical Fibers on page 22). 2. Connect the fiber under test to the VFL port. 3. From the main window, press the button. 4. Select Continuous to use the VFL with continuous output or Blink to use the VFL with 1 Hz pulsed output. 5. Under VFL, press Turn ON to send the VFL signal. You can stop the VFL signal emission at any time by pressing Turn OFF.
15 Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Note: The OTDR Bidirectional application is available from the Test Tools tab in Compact ToolBox. ³ The OTDR Bidirectional application helps you to perform a bidirectional analysis on two unidirectional OTDR traces. For the application to be able to match events, the two OTDR traces must have been acquired in opposite directions and on the same fiber span.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application ³ Bidirectional analysis is the recommended method for splice loss measurements on singlemode fibers by the Telecommunications Industry Association (test procedure EIA/TIA FOTP-61 Measurement of Fiber or Cable Attenuation Using an OTDR). This method removes the so-called “gainers” (increase in the optical power) and exaggerated losses and provides accurate measurements.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Starting and Exiting the Bidirectional Analysis Application Starting and Exiting the Bidirectional Analysis Application The bidirectional analysis application is available from your unit. To start the Bidirectional Analysis application: 1. From Compact ToolBox, go to the Test Tools tab. 2. Double-tap OTDR Bidirectional. OR Select OTDR Bidirectional and press Start (located at the bottom of the Test Tools tab).
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Starting and Exiting the Bidirectional Analysis Application The main window is displayed. To create, open, or save bidirectional measurement files. To create reports in .html format, or to export A->B and B->A traces (in .trc format). To define display settings, thresholds and to configure options related to spans. To switch from one wavelength to another (available only when A->B and B->A traces contain multiple wavelengths).
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Creating Bidirectional Measurement Files Creating Bidirectional Measurement Files To work with the OTDR Bidirectional application, you must acquire and save the traces (in the OTDR application) before opening them with the bidirectional analysis application. You can open unidirectional trace files to combine them into a bidirectional measurement file. It is possible to use both single-wavelength and multiwavelength traces.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Creating Bidirectional Measurement Files The A->B and B->A traces must respect the following criteria: Item Trace To be valid... ³ Both must be unidirectional files (.trc or .sor files). ³ Only traces of native format or of Telcordia (Bellcore) EXFO version 200 format can be reanalyzed and be used to generate the bidirectional measurement.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Creating Bidirectional Measurement Files When two traces are opened in the bidirectional analysis application, the span end of the B->A trace is aligned with the span start of the A->B trace. If the application cannot match the traces perfectly, error or warning messages will appear. A message will be displayed if there are inconsistencies in the events table, wavelength, index of refraction, helix factor, or Rayleigh backscatter coefficient.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Creating Bidirectional Measurement Files To create a bidirectional measurement file: 1. From the Main Menu, select File > Create. 2. Select the files to open. 2a. Press the Browse button, on the right of the A ->B file path box. 2b. Select the first file (ensure that it is highlighted) and press Open. Note: The application will keep in memory the path to your A->B trace file.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Opening Existing Bidirectional Measurement Files Opening Existing Bidirectional Measurement Files You can open bidirectional measurement files to view results or to reanalyze them. When you open a bidirectional file, you will recover all the data of the unidirectional traces and the bidirectional measurement (one wavelength per bidirectional file). Note: The application will keep in memory the path to your bidirectional measurement file.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Displaying Traces and Bidirectional Measurement Displaying Traces and Bidirectional Measurement You can view, in turn, the bidirectional measurement as well as the unidirectional trace files. When you create a bidirectional measurement using multiwavelength files, you can also navigate through the different wavelengths. To switch from one direction to another: From the main window, under Direction, select the desired direction.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Displaying Traces and Bidirectional Measurement To switch from one wavelength to another: From the main window, use the buttons. To switch from one wavelength to another (available only when A->B and B->A traces contain multiple wavelengths). Note: You can also use OTDR from the keypad.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results Viewing Results The application shows the results of the A->B and B->A traces according to the thresholds defined in the Bidirectional OTDR application. You can view the corresponding graphs (see Graph View on page 205) and tables of events (see Events Tab on page 208), as well as obtain more information about the status of the bidirectional measurement and/or A->B and B->A traces (see Summary Table).
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results Graph View The application shows the results both on a graph and in a table. The events, that are detailed in the events table (see Events Tab on page 208), are marked by numbers along the displayed trace. Event no. 4 Distance units Events table Some items in the trace display are always visible, while others will appear only if you choose to display them.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results Summary Table The summary table gives, for each wavelength and at each direction, the status of the results (pass: no results exceed the thresholds, or fail: at least one result exceeds the thresholds) and the span loss values. A global status for the bidirectional measurement is also available. The span length (distance between span start and span end) is also displayed.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results ³ When you select an element from the summary table (or if you switch to another wavelength or direction), the graph, as well as the contents of the Events and Trace Info. tabs are updated accordingly.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results Events Tab You can view information about all detected events on a trace and fiber sections by scrolling through the events table. In graph view, when you select an event in the events table, marker A appears on the trace over the selected event. When the selected event is a fiber section, this fiber section is delimited by two markers (A and B). For more information on markers, see Using Markers to Edit Events on page 225.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results For each item listed in the events table, information is displayed. The information vary depending on the direction that is selected. Bidirectional measurement Event type detected (see Description of Event Types on page 297) Event number Position: distance between the OTDR and the measured event, or between the event and the beginning of the fiber span OR Length of a fiber section (distance between two events).
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results Event type detected (see Description of Event Types on page 297) Unidirectional traces Event number Position: distance between the OTDR and the measured event, or between the event and the beginning of the fiber span OR Length of a fiber section (distance between two events).
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results To quickly locate an event in the events table: 1. Ensure that the button is selected in the zoom button bar. 2. Select the event on the trace. The list scrolls automatically to the event you selected. Graph Event no.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results Trace Info. Tab You can view information about the bidirectional measurement as well as the A->B and B->A traces (see Displaying Traces and Bidirectional Measurement on page 202). However, you can only modify the analysis settings for the current A->B and B->A traces, not for the bidirectional measurement (see Modifying Trace Analysis Settings on page 252).
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results The following information is available: OTDR ³ Pulse: Pulse width used to perform the acquisition. ³ Span length: Measured length of the total fiber span (between span start and span end). ³ Span loss: Total measured loss of the fiber calculated either between the span start and the span end, or on the total fiber span, depending on the settings you have chosen in the setup window.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Viewing Results Information specific to the A->B or B->A trace is also displayed: 214 ³ Range: Acquisition range. ³ Duration: Duration of the acquisition. ³ Span ORL: ORL calculated either between the span start and the span end, or on the total fiber span, depending on the option you have selected in the Setup window. ³ High resolution: Indicates whether or not the acquisitions were performed using the high-resolution feature.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Reanalyzing Traces and Regenerating the Bidirectional Measurement Reanalyzing Traces and Regenerating the Bidirectional Measurement You can analyze the A->B and B->A traces and regenerate the bidirectional measurement at any time. Reanalyzing a trace will: ³ re-create the events table if it was modified.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Reanalyzing Traces and Regenerating the Bidirectional Measurement To reanalyze traces and regenerate bidirectional measurement: 1. From the main window, select the Edit tab. 2. Under Direction, select the desired option, depending on which trace you want to reanalyze. 3. If you are working with a multiwavelength file, select the desired wavelength using the buttons. 4. Press the Analyze button. 5.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying the Alignment of Unidirectional Traces Modifying the Alignment of Unidirectional Traces When two unidirectional traces are opened in the bidirectional analysis application, the span end of the B->A trace is aligned with the span start of the A->B trace. However, you may want to modify the way traces are aligned by redefining the span start and/or span end of one or both of the unidirectional traces.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying the Alignment of Unidirectional Traces You can even set the span end after the detected end of fiber. This could be useful if you suspect problems in this section of the trace or if the actual end of fiber seems to be located in the noise (peak detected at the end of the fiber span). The end of fiber will be moved accordingly.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying the Alignment of Unidirectional Traces To modify the alignment of A->B or B->A trace: 1. From the main window, select the Alignment tab. 2. Under Direction, select A->B or B->A. 3. Define the span event location by moving marker A along the trace using one of the following methods: ³ Drag marker A to the desired span event location. ³ Use the selection dial (located on the front of the unit) to move marker A.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying the Alignment of Unidirectional Traces 4. Press Set as Span Start or Set as Span End to set the span start or span end marker on the appropriate event in the trace display. IMPORTANT To keep a set fiber span during trace reanalysis, activate the corresponding option (see Saving the Span-Start and Span-End Information on page 246). Otherwise, the span start and span end markers are reset to zero in the process.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Using Zoom Controls Using Zoom Controls You can use the zoom controls to change the scale of the trace display. You can zoom in on or out of the graph using the corresponding buttons or let the application automatically adjust the zoom on the currently selected event from the events table. You can also return to the original graph value.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Using Zoom Controls 222 ³ When you zoom in or out on an event, the application keeps the zoom on this event until you select another event or change the zoom position. In the case of a multiwavelength file, you can select a different event for each wavelength (for example, event 2 at 1550 nm and event 5 at 1625 nm). Only the selected events of the bidirectional measurement will be saved along with the bidirectional file.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Using Zoom Controls To view specific portions of the graph: ³ You can define which portion of the graph will be visible by selecting the button and dragging the graph with the stylus or your finger. This could be useful, for example, if you want to zoom in on events located outside the defined fiber span. ³ The button is the zoom selector.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Using Zoom Controls To automatically zoom in on the selected event: 1. From the main window, select the Graph tab. 2. Select the Events tab. 3. Under Direction, select the desired option. 4. From the events table, select the desired event. 5. Press to automatically adjust the zoom factor. The button remains selected until you deselect it, or open another bidirectional file. To revert to the complete graph view: Press the 224 button.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Using Markers to Edit Events Using Markers to Edit Events You can use markers to define or modify the position of an event on the A->B or B->A trace. Markers are available when you modify or add an event. If two markers are located at the same place, both will move together. To move a marker: 1. If you intend to move the markers directly from the graph, ensure that the button is selected in the zoom button bar. 2.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Using Markers to Edit Events 3. Once the appropriate markers are selected, use one of the following methods to move them along the trace: ³ Drag markers to the desired location directly on the graph using the stylus or your finger. ³ Use the selection dial (located on the front of the unit). ³ Use the single-arrow buttons.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Inserting Events Inserting Events Note: You can only create events for the A->B or B->A trace (not for the bidirectional measurement). The application regenerates the bidirectional measurement automatically to take into account the modifications you have made. You can insert events in the events table manually.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Inserting Events To insert an event: 1. From the main window, select the Edit tab. 2. Under Direction, select either A->B or B->A. 3. If desired, you can select an item from the events table that is near the location where you want to insert an event. 4. Press the Insert button.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Inserting Events 5. Specify the exact location where you want to insert an event. Marker a Marker b Marker A Marker B Four markers are available to help you place the event, but only marker A identifies where the event will be inserted. Define the new event location by using one of the following methods: OTDR ³ Enter a distance value in the Position box, and press . ³ Move the markers on the trace display.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Inserting Events 6. Once you have determined the location, from the Type list, select the desired event type. Loss and reflectance values Loss and reflectance are calculated automatically, based on the position of the markers. Reflectance values are only displayed for reflective event types (reflective, echo, and possible echo). 7. Press Insert to create the event or Cancel to return to the events table without making any changes.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Events Modifying Events Note: You can only modify the events of the A->B or B->A trace (not those of the bidirectional measurement). The application regenerates the bidirectional measurement automatically to take into account the modifications you have made.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Events To modify an event: 1. From the main window, select the Edit tab. 2. Under Direction, select either A->B or B->A. 3. Select the event you want to modify. Position of marker A 4. Press the Modify button. Note: If the Modify button is not available, that means you cannot modify events of this type.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Events 5. If desired, specify a new location for the selected event. Note: You cannot select another event from the events table of the Edit tab in modification mode. If you want to modify another event instead, press Cancel, then change your selection. Marker a Marker b Marker A Marker B Four markers are available to help you place the event, but only marker A identifies where the event will be moved.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Events 6. If desired, from the Type list, select a new event type. Loss and reflectance values Loss and reflectance are calculated automatically, based on the position of the markers. Reflectance values are only displayed for reflective event types (reflective, echo, and possible echo). 7. Press Modify to accept the modifications you have made, or Cancel to return to the events table without saving the changes.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Deleting Events Deleting Events Note: You can only delete events from the A->B or B->A trace (not from the bidirectional measurement). The application regenerates the bidirectional measurement automatically to take into account the modifications you have made.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Deleting Events To delete an event: 1. From the main window, select the Edit tab. 2. Under Direction, select either A->B or B->A. 3. Select the event you want to delete. 4. Press Delete. Note: If the Delete button is not available, that means you cannot delete events of this type. 5. When the application prompts you, press Yes to confirm the deletion, or No to keep the event.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Changing the Attenuation of Fiber Sections Changing the Attenuation of Fiber Sections Note: You can only modify the sections of the A->B or B->A trace (not those of the bidirectional measurement). The application regenerates the bidirectional measurement automatically to take into account the modifications you have made. You can change the attenuation value of fiber sections.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Changing the Attenuation of Fiber Sections To modify the attenuation of a fiber section: 1. From the main window, select the Edit tab. 2. Under Direction, select either A->B or B->A. 3. Select the fiber section that you want to modify. 4. Press the Modify button. The A and B markers appear in the trace display.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Changing the Attenuation of Fiber Sections 5. Position markers as desired to modify the attenuation value. For more information on positioning markers, see Using Markers to Edit Events on page 225. Note: The markers serve only to set the new attenuation value. Their actual locations will not be modified. Fiber section loss and attenuation are displayed. Loss and attenuation values 6.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Setting General Parameters Setting General Parameters You can set preferences such as: ³ Distance unit: You can select the measurement units that will be used throughout the application, except for certain values such as the pulse and the wavelength. By convention, these values are always expressed in meters (nanometers for the wavelengths). The default distance units are the kilometers.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Setting General Parameters ³ the gridlines: You can display or hide the grid appearing on the graph’s background. By default, the gridlines are displayed. Gridlines displayed OTDR ³ the graph background: You can display the graph with a black (invert color feature) or a white background. By default, the background is white. ³ Trace display mode: You can choose the way the application will display traces on-screen and in reports.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Setting General Parameters To set the general parameters: 1. From the Main Menu, select Setup, then select the General tab. 2. Select the boxes corresponding to the item you want to display on the graph. OR To hide them, clear the boxes. To display a black background 3. Press Apply to confirm the changes, then OK to return to the main window. The changes are applied automatically. To revert to factory default settings: 1.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Customizing the Events Table Customizing the Events Table You can include or exclude items from the events table to better suit your needs. By default, all items are selected. ³ Include span start and span end loss: When applicable, the application will include the losses caused by the span start and span end events in the displayed values.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Customizing the Events Table ³ Injection level: In the events table, the injection level is represented by the icon. In the Att. column, the injection level value for that event is identified by the @ symbol. You can hide the injection level value and symbol from the Att. column, but not the icon. ³ Event: You can display or hide the comments relative to a specific event.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Customizing the Events Table To customize the events table appearance: 1. From the Main Menu, select Setup, then select the Events tab. 2. Select the boxes corresponding to the item you want to display or include in the table. OR To hide them, clear the boxes. 3. Press Apply to confirm the changes, then OK to return to the main window. To revert to factory default settings: 1. From the Main Menu, select Setup, then select the Events tab. 2.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Saving the Span-Start and Span-End Information Saving the Span-Start and Span-End Information Saving the modified span-start and span-end information allows you to reapply the current span start and span end to a unidirectional trace when your reanalyze this trace. To save the span-start and/or span-end information or to deactivate the feature: 1. From the Main Menu, select Setup, then select the Events tab. 2.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds You can activate and set Pass/Fail threshold parameters for your traces and measurements. These thresholds are part of the OTDR Bidirectional application (not of the bidirectional files). This means that once you have set them, you can reuse them as many times as you want with other files.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds The following table provides the default, minimum and maximum thresholds. Test Default Minimum Maximum Splice loss (dB) 1.000 0.015 5.000 Connector loss (dB) 1.000 0.015 5.000 Reflectance (dB) –40.00 –80.0 0.0 Fiber section attenuation (dB/km) 0.400 0.000 5.000 Span loss (dB) 45.000 0.000 45.000 Span length (km) 0.0000 0.0000 300.0000 Span ORL (dB) 15.00 15.00 40.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds To set pass/fail thresholds: 1. From the Main Menu, select Setup, then select the Thresholds tab. 2. From the Wavelength list, select the wavelength for which you want to set thresholds. Threshold to set Value associated with the threshold to set 3. Select the boxes corresponding to the thresholds that you want to use, and enter the desired values in the appropriate fields.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds 4. If you want to apply the thresholds you have just defined to one or several other wavelengths, proceed as follows: 4a. Press the Copy to Other Wavelengths button. 4b. Select the boxes corresponding to the wavelengths for which you want to use the same thresholds. Note: You can use the Select All button to quickly select all boxes at the same time. 4c. Press OK to confirm you selection. 5.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Setting Pass/Fail Thresholds To revert to default threshold values and to delete custom wavelengths: 1. From the Main Menu, select Setup, then select the Thresholds tab. 2. Press the Revert to Factory Settings button. 3. When the application prompts you, confirm the modification with Yes. All threshold values of all wavelengths are returned to their default values, except for thresholds that are associated with custom wavelengths.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Trace Analysis Settings Modifying Trace Analysis Settings You can view the current trace parameters for the bidirectional measurement as well as for the A->B and B->A traces (see Trace Info. Tab on page 212). However, you can only modify the analysis settings for the current A->B and B->A traces, not for the bidirectional measurement.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Trace Analysis Settings ³ The event detection thresholds: ³ Splice loss detection threshold: Splice loss threshold for detecting small non-reflective events during trace analysis. ³ Reflectance detection threshold: Reflectance threshold for detecting small reflective events during trace analysis.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Trace Analysis Settings You can always revert to factory settings. The fiber settings will be reset according to the current trace and the event detection thresholds will return to fixed default values. To modify the trace analysis settings of the selected trace: 1. From the main window, select the Trace Info. tab. 2. Under Direction, select either A->B or B->A. 3. Press the Trace Analysis Settings button.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Trace Analysis Settings 4. Enter values for the current trace in the appropriate boxes. If you already know the IOR value, select Fixed IOR, then enter the value in the corresponding box. However, if you prefer to let the application calculate the IOR value as function of the distance between span start and span end, select Fixed length instead, then enter the distance value. 5. Press Apply to confirm the changes. 6.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Modifying Trace Analysis Settings To revert to default settings: 1. From the main window, select the Trace Info. tab. 2. Under Direction, select either A->B or B->A. 3. Press the Trace Analysis Settings button. 4. Press the Revert to Default Settings button. 5. When the application prompts you, select Yes to complete the operation. 6. Press Apply to confirm the changes. 7.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Saving Traces Saving Traces After recalling, analyzing and displaying the two traces in the bidirectional table, these traces may be stored as a merged bidirectional file in order to facilitate file management. All information in the tables, comments and reports for A->B, B->A, as well as the bidirectional trace will be saved in the bidirectional file. IMPORTANT The application saves the bidirectional file only.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Saving Traces To save bidirectional files: 1. From the Main Menu, select File > Save. 2. From the Save As dialog box, select a folder or create one to save your file. 3. If desired, modify the file name. IMPORTANT If you specify the name of an existing trace, the original file will be overwritten and only the new file will be available. 4. Press Save to confirm.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Exporting Unidirectional Traces from Bidirectional Files Exporting Unidirectional Traces from Bidirectional Files You can export all data from the A->B and B->A traces that were used to generate a specific bidirectional measurement. The files that you export are in native .trc format that can be opened with the OTDR application. Note: Traces in Telcordia (Bellcore) EXFO version 200 format, will also be exported to a native .
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Exporting Unidirectional Traces from Bidirectional Files To export unidirectional traces from a bidirectional file: 1. Create a bidirectional measurement (see Creating Bidirectional Measurement Files on page 197). OR Open an already existing file (see Opening Existing Bidirectional Measurement Files on page 201). 2. From the Main Menu, select Export. 3. Select either Export A->B or Export B->A. 4.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Adding Information to the Test Results Adding Information to the Test Results You might want to include or update information about the tested fiber and job or add comments to the A->B or B->A traces. This information will be included in the reports that you will create (see Creating Reports on page 263). The information you enter is saved along with the bidirectional file only. The original A->B or B->A files will not be modified.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Adding Information to the Test Results 4. Enter the desired information. Note: The information in the Model and Serial number boxes is provided by the application and cannot be edited. 5. Press Apply to confirm your changes, then OK to return to the main window. The information entered is saved and can be viewed or changed at any time using the same process. To clear all the information from the Trace Identification window: 1.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Creating Reports Creating Reports You can create a report directly from the bidirectional application. This report will be saved in .html format. You can open it from your unit or from any computer equipped with a Web browser. It includes the following information: ³ general information such as the cable ID, fiber ID, operators, etc. as defined in the trace identification window (see Adding Information to the Test Results on page 261).
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Creating Reports To create a report: 1. Create a bidirectional measurement (see Creating Bidirectional Measurement Files on page 197). OR Open an already existing file (see Opening Existing Bidirectional Measurement Files on page 201). 2. From the Main Menu, select Export > Report. 3. From the Save As dialog box, select a folder or create one to save your file. 4. If desired, modify the file name.
Analyzing Traces with the Bidirectional Analysis Application Creating Reports To view a report from your unit: 1. Exit the OTDR Bidirectional application. 2. From Compact ToolBox, open File Manager. 3. Go to the folder in which you have saved your report. 4. Select the report you want to view and press the dial located on the front of your unit. OR Double-tap the report that you want to view. 5. When you have finished, simply close the report. 6. Close File Manager.
16 Maintenance To help ensure long, trouble-free operation: ³ Always inspect fiber-optic connectors before using them and clean them if necessary. ³ Keep the unit free of dust. ³ Clean the unit casing and front panel with a cloth slightly dampened with water. ³ Store unit at room temperature in a clean and dry area. Keep the unit out of direct sunlight. ³ Avoid high humidity or significant temperature fluctuations. ³ Avoid unnecessary shocks and vibrations.
Maintenance Cleaning EUI Connectors Cleaning EUI Connectors Regular cleaning of EUI connectors will help maintain optimum performance. There is no need to disassemble the unit. IMPORTANT If any damage occurs to internal connectors, the module casing will have to be opened and a new calibration will be required. To clean EUI connectors: 1. Remove the EUI from the instrument to expose the connector baseplate and ferrule. Turn Pull Push 2. Moisten a 2.
Maintenance Cleaning EUI Connectors 5. Repeat steps 3 to 4 with a dry cleaning tip. Note: Make sure you don’t touch the soft end of the cleaning tip. 6. Clean the ferrule in the connector port as follows: 6a. Deposit one drop of isopropyl alcohol on a lint-free wiping cloth. IMPORTANT Isopropyl alcohol may leave residues if used abundantly or left to evaporate (about 10 seconds). Avoid contact between the tip of the bottle and the wiping cloth, and dry the surface quickly. 6b.
Maintenance Verifying Your OTDR Verifying Your OTDR You can perform several tests to ensure your OTDR operates within specifications. Deviation is measured to determine if the OTDR needs recalibration. Setting your OTDR to zero can only be done at EXFO. However, you can test your OTDR to verify the accuracy of its measurement origin. To measure the deviation: 1. Connect at least 2 km of fiber to the OTDR output port. 2. Set the distance range at 2.5 km and acquisition time at 180 seconds. 3.
Maintenance Verifying Your OTDR To evaluate the launch level: 1. Connect at least 2 km of fiber to the OTDR port. ³ Ensure that the OTDR port and connectors are properly cleaned and that the fiber settings are accurate (IOR, Helix factor and RBS). ³ Do not use a test jumper between the OTDR and the fiber under test to limit the number of connectors. 2.
Maintenance Verifying Your OTDR To verify the OTDR’s zero: 1. Connect a patchcord, approximately 10 m long, to the OTDR port. The exact length of the jumper must have been measured mechanically. Ideally, you should use an unjacketed patchcord. ³ Ensure that the OTDR port and connectors are correctly cleaned. ³ Ensure that the fiber settings are accurate (IOR, Helix factor and RBS). 2. Set the distance range to less than 2 km, the pulse width to 10 ns and the acquisition time to 30 s. 3.
Maintenance Verifying Your OTDR To measure the event and attenuation dead zones: 1. Connect 2 km of fiber directly to the OTDR port. Use the shortest pulse width and distance range possible. ³ Ensure that the OTDR port and connectors are correctly cleaned. ³ Ensure that the fiber settings are accurate (IOR, Helix factor, and RBS). 2. Measure the length (E) of the first reflection at 1.5 dB from the maximum, as shown below. This is the event dead zone. 3.
Maintenance Verifying Your OTDR To measure the dynamic range: 1. Connect the OTDR as indicated below. Other configurations are possible, such as the one explained in the section on how to determine measurement range, if you use the shortest fiber length from that setup. In all cases, the fiber should have several sections longer than 2 km, with no loss greater than 8 dB and with an average attenuation not exceeding 1 dB/km.
Maintenance Verifying Your OTDR 2. Set the distance range to 160 km (singlemode fiber), the pulse width to the longest value available and the acquisition time to 180 seconds. 1 dB Dynamic range Dynamic range is the difference between the launch level and the position on the curve where the peak-to-peak noise level is 1 dB, plus a correction factor relative to the noise amplitude (which is 5.2 dB).
Maintenance Verifying Your OTDR To determine the measurement range (singlemode models only): 1. Connect the OTDR as indicated below. Other configurations are possible, but the fiber should have several sections longer than 2 km, with no loss greater than 8 dB and with the average attenuation not exceeding 1 dB/km. A variable attenuator will be used to adjust the loss in the span. One or several non-reflective events with a nominal loss of 0.5 dB should be present.
Maintenance Verifying Your OTDR 2. Set the distance range to 80 km (singlemode fiber), the pulse width to the longest value available and the acquisition time to 180 seconds. The measurement range using the non-reflective event method represents the amount of attenuation (dB) between the launch level and a 0.5 dB splice (which can be detected and measured to an accuracy of ± 0.1 dB). You can measure it by simply making an acquisition on a fiber with a known attenuation and a known 0.5 dB splice.
Maintenance Recalibrating the Unit Recalibrating the Unit Manufacturing and service center calibrations are based on the ISO/IEC 17025 Standard, which states that calibration documents must not contain a recommended calibration interval, unless this has been previously agreed upon with the customer. Validity of specifications depends on operating conditions.
Maintenance Recycling and Disposal (Applies to European Union Only) Recycling and Disposal (Applies to European Union Only) Recycle or dispose of your product (including electric and electronic accessories) properly, in accordance with local regulations. Do not dispose of it in ordinary garbage receptacles. This equipment was sold after August 13, 2005 (as identified by the black rectangle).
17 Troubleshooting Problem Cause Solution The application displays The fiber under test is Ensure that the fiber under test is too long. shorter than the maximum length the a message indicating OTDR can measure. that a “Non-resolved fiber end” event has been found. In multimode fiber testing, launch level remains out of the launch window (light green rectangle) even after cleaning and verifying connection. OTDR Wrong fiber type selected.
Troubleshooting Problem Cause The application displays a message indicating that a “live fiber error” occurred and the fiber was not connected to the SM Live port. Light has been detected on the OTDR port during the acquisition or while you were monitoring a fiber in real-time mode. Solution Disconnect the fiber from the OTDR port. Press OK to close the message. Start another acquisition without any fiber connected to the OTDR.
Troubleshooting Problem Cause The application displays a message indicating that a “live fiber error” occurred and the fiber was connected to the SM Live port. The level of integrated power in the filter bandwidth of the SM Live port is too high. A transmission wavelength from the network could be too close to the SM Live wavelength. Solution Disconnect the fiber from the OTDR port. Press OK to close the message. Start another acquisition without any fiber connected to the OTDR.
Troubleshooting Contacting the Technical Support Group Contacting the Technical Support Group To obtain after-sales service or technical support for this product, contact EXFO at one of the following numbers. The Technical Support Group is available to take your calls from Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. (Eastern Time in North America). For detailed information about technical support, visit the EXFO Web site at www.exfo.com.
Troubleshooting Transportation Transportation Maintain a temperature range within specifications when transporting the unit. Transportation damage can occur from improper handling. The following steps are recommended to minimize the possibility of damage: OTDR ³ Pack the unit in its original packing material when shipping. ³ Avoid high humidity or large temperature fluctuations. ³ Keep the unit out of direct sunlight. ³ Avoid unnecessary shocks and vibrations.
18 Warranty General Information EXFO Inc. (EXFO) warrants this equipment against defects in material and workmanship for a period of one year from the date of original shipment. EXFO also warrants that this equipment will meet applicable specifications under normal use.
Warranty Liability Liability EXFO shall not be liable for damages resulting from the use of the product, nor shall be responsible for any failure in the performance of other items to which the product is connected or the operation of any system of which the product may be a part. EXFO shall not be liable for damages resulting from improper usage or unauthorized modification of the product, its accompanying accessories and software.
Warranty Service and Repairs Service and Repairs EXFO commits to providing product service and repair for five years following the date of purchase. To send any equipment for service or repair: 1. Call one of EXFO’s authorized service centers (see EXFO Service Centers Worldwide on page 290). Support personnel will determine if the equipment requires service, repair, or calibration. 2.
Warranty EXFO Service Centers Worldwide EXFO Service Centers Worldwide If your product requires servicing, contact your nearest authorized service center. EXFO Headquarters Service Center 400 Godin Avenue Quebec (Quebec) G1M 2K2 CANADA EXFO Europe Service Center Omega Enterprise Park, Electron Way Chandlers Ford, Hampshire S053 4SE ENGLAND EXFO Telecom Equipment (Shenzhen) Ltd. 3rd Floor, Building 10, Yu Sheng Industrial Park (Gu Shu Crossing), No.
A Technical Specifications IMPORTANT The following technical specifications can change without notice. The information presented in this section is provided as a reference only. To obtain this product’s most recent technical specifications, visit the EXFO Web site at www.exfo.com.
Technical Specifications All specifications valid at 23º C ± 2º C with an FC/PC connector for the FTB-7300E, with FC/APC for FTB-730, unless otherwise specified. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Model FTB-7300E a FTB-730 b Wavelength (nm) c 1310 ± 20/1490 ± 10/1550 ± 20/1625 ± 10/1650 ± 7 1310 ± 20/1490 ± 10/1550 ± 20/1625 ± 10 Dynamic range at 20 +s (dB) d 39/35/37/39 e/37 39/35/37/39 Event dead zone (m) f 0.8 0.8 Attenuation dead zone (m) f 4/4.5/4.5/4.5/4.5 4/4.5/4.5/4.5 Distance range (km) 1.
Technical Specifications All specifications valid at 23 °C ± 2 °C with an FC/PC connector, unless otherwise specified. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Model a FTB-7400E-XXXX FTB-7400E-CWS Wavelengths (nm) b 1310 ± 20/1383 ± 1/1550 ± 20/1625 ± 10 1470 ± 3/1490 ± 3/1510 ± 3/1530 ± 3 1550 ± 3/1570 ± 3/1590 ± 3/1610 ± 3 Dynamic range at 20 +s (dB) c 42/40/41/41 41/41/ 41/41 41/41/ 40/40 Event dead zone (m) d 0.8 0.8 0.8 Attenuation dead zone (m) d 4/4/4.5/4.5 4/4.5/4.5 4/4.5/4.
Technical Specifications All specifications valid at 23 °C ± 2 °C with an FC/PC connector, unless otherwise specified. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Model a FTB-7500E Wavelengths (nm) b 1310 ± 20/1550 ± 20/1625 ± 10 Dynamic range at 20 +s (dB) c 45/45/45 Event dead zone (m) d 0.8 Attenuation dead zone (m) d 4/4.5/4.5 Distance range (km) 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, 20, 40, 80, 160, 260, 400 Pulse width (ns) 5, 10, 30, 50, 100, 275, 500, 1000, 2500, 10 000, 20 000 Linearity (dB/dB) b ± 0.
Technical Specifications All specifications valid at 23 °C ± 2 °C with an FC/PC connector, unless otherwise specified. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Model a FTB-7600E Wavelengths (nm) b 1310 ± 20/1550 ± 20/1625 ± 10 Dynamic range at 20 +s (dB) c 50/50/48 g Event dead zone (m) d 1/1.5/1 Attenuation dead zone (m) d 5/5/5 Distance range (km) 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, 20, 40, 80, 160, 260, 400 Pulse width (ns) 5, 10, 30, 100, 275, 1000, 2500, 10 000, 20 000 Linearity (dB/dB) b ± 0.
B Description of Event Types This section describes all types of events that may appear in the events table generated by the application. Here is a guide to the descriptions: OTDR ³ Each type of event has its own symbol. ³ Each type of event is represented by a graph of a fiber trace, which illustrates the power reflected back toward the source as a function of distance. ³ An arrow points to the location of the event type in the trace.
Description of Event Types Span Start Span Start The Span Start of a trace is the event that marks the beginning of the fiber span. By default, the Span Start is placed on the first event of a tested fiber (typically the first connector of the OTDR itself). You can make another event the start of the span you want to focus your analysis on. This will set the beginning of the events table at a specific event along the trace.
Description of Event Types Continuous Fiber Continuous Fiber Reflected power (dB) Continuous fiber Distance (km) This event indicates that the selected acquisition range was shorter than the fiber length. OTDR ³ The fiber end was not detected because the analysis process ended before reaching the end of the fiber. ³ The acquisition distance range should therefore be increased to a value greater than the fiber length. ³ There is no loss or reflectance specified for continuous fiber events.
Description of Event Types End of Analysis End of Analysis Reflected power (dB) Distance (km) This event indicates that the pulse width used did not provide enough dynamic range to get to the end of the fiber. 300 ³ The analysis ended before reaching the end of the fiber because the signal-to-noise ratio was too low. ³ The pulse width should therefore be increased so the signal reaches the end of the fiber with a sufficient signal-to-noise ratio.
Description of Event Types Non-Reflective Event Non-Reflective Event Reflected power (dB) Non-reflective event Linear downward slope due to Rayleigh backscatter Distance (km) This event is characterized by a sudden decrease in the Rayleigh backscatter signal level. It appears as a discontinuity in the downward slope of the trace signal. OTDR ³ This event is often caused by splices, macrobends, or microbends in the fiber. ³ A loss value is specified for non-reflective events.
Description of Event Types Reflective Event Reflective Event Reflected power (dB) Clipped level Reflective events Distance (km) Reflective events appear as spikes in the fiber trace. They are caused by an abrupt discontinuity in the index of refraction. 302 ³ Reflective events cause a significant portion of the energy initially launched into the fiber to be reflected back toward the source.
Description of Event Types Positive Event Positive Event Reflected power (dB) Positive event Distance (km) This event indicates a splice with an apparent gain, due to the junction of two fiber sections having different fiber backscatter characteristics (backscatter and backscatter capture coefficients). OTDR ³ A loss value is specified for positive events. The loss specified does not indicate the true loss of the event.
Description of Event Types Launch Level Launch Level Reflected power (dB) Launch level event position Second event Launch level Linear area Distance (km) This event indicates the level of the signal launched into the fiber. ³ The figure above shows how the launch level is measured. A straight line is plotted using least-square approximation to fit all trace points in the linear area between the first and second detected events.
Description of Event Types Fiber Section Fiber Section Reflected power (dB) Fiber section Fiber section Distance (km) This symbol denotes a fiber section with no event. OTDR ³ The sum of all fiber sections contained in an entire fiber trace equals the total fiber length. Detected events are distinct even if they cover more than one point on the trace. ³ A loss value is specified for fiber section events. No reflectance is specified for this type of event.
Description of Event Types Merged Event Merged Event Reflected power (dB) Reflective events Point A Point B Total loss (Δ dB) Merged Reflective event position Distance (km) This symbol denotes an event combined with one or more other events. It also indicates the total loss produced by the merged events following it in the events table. 306 ³ A Merged Event is composed of subevents. Only the Merged Event is displayed in the events table, not the subevents composing it.
Description of Event Types Merged Event ³ OTDR The total loss (Δ dB) produced by the events is measured by plotting two straight lines. ³ The first line is plotted by fitting, through least-square approximation, trace points in the linear area preceding the first event. ³ The second line is plotted by fitting, through least-square approximation, trace points in the linear area following the second event.
Description of Event Types Merged Event Pass/Fail Tests As an example about pass/fail tests, let us consider the situation below: Merged event Merged sub-events: 2 reflective losses 1 non-reflective loss Thresholds: Event loss Reflective loss: 0.5 dB Non-reflective Loss: 0.2 dB For a merged event, it is possible to determine the global event loss, but not the contribution of each sub-event. This is why the pass/fail test may sometimes lead to “false positive” or “false negative” results.
Description of Event Types Merged Event All Event Types Are Tested In the first case, where all event types are tested, the pass/fail conditions are as follows: ³ If the event loss is less than or equal to the smallest threshold value, then the event status is Pass. ³ If the event loss is greater than the sum of the number of sub-events of a type, multiplied by the threshold value for this event type, then the event status is Fail.
Description of Event Types Merged Event Not All Event Types Are Tested In this situation, the only thing that we can clearly know is when the loss has a Pass status. If the global event loss is less than or equal to the smallest threshold value (a value that is tested, of course), we are sure that the merged event status is Pass. Otherwise, we cannot know, so the status of the event is Unknown.
Description of Event Types Merged Event Effect of Event Status in the Global Trace Status ³ A trace status is, by default, set to Unknown. ³ If a trace is set to Fail once, it remains with that status (it cannot be set back to Pass or Unknown). ³ Whenever an event status is Fail, so is the trace status. ³ If an event status is Pass, the trace status can change from Unknown to Pass. ³ If an event status is Unknown, the trace status remains the same.
Description of Event Types Echo Echo Reflected power (dB) OTDR connector Second connector End connector Echo Lightwave travel Distance (km) This symbol indicates that a reflective event has been detected after the end of the fiber. 312 ³ In the example above, the launched pulse travels up to the end connector and is reflected back toward the OTDR. Then, it reaches the second connector and is reflected again toward the end connector. It is then reflected back to the OTDR.
Description of Event Types Reflective Event (Possible Echo) Reflective Event (Possible Echo) Reflected power (dB) OTDR connector Second connector Third connector Reflective event (possible echo) Distance (km) This symbol indicates a reflective event that can be a real reflection or an echo produced by another stronger reflection located closer to the source. ³ In the example above, the launched pulse hits the third connector, is reflected back to the OTDR and reflected again into the fiber.
Index Index ***** indication ........................................ 174 A accessing source........................................ 189 accuracy, trace ............................................ 49 acquiring traces Advanced mode............................. 37, 100 Auto mode ............................................ 35 Fault finder mode .................................. 75 Template mode...................................... 66 acquisition automatic, in Advanced mode............... 37 Advanced mode.
Index bidirectional trace file content .......................................... 257 saving .................................................. 257 buttons, trace editing in events table........ 115 buttons, zoom. see controls, zoom C calibration certificate............................................. 278 interval ................................................ 278 caution of personal hazard................................. 10 of product hazard..................................
Index loss. see event loss name, displaying ......................... 113, 208 non-reflective, averaged loss ....... 134, 213 number................................ 113, 209, 210 position ....................................... 209, 210 reflectance ................................... 114, 210 threshold, pass/fail......................... 53, 247 thresholds, pass/fail message............... 248 unchangeable .............................. 138, 231 undeletable..................................
Index H helix factor admissible values ................................... 43 in Trace Info. tab ................. 135, 214, 252 modification ................................ 133, 252 setting ................................................... 43 hiding traces ............................................. 130 high-resolution feature ............................... 49 I identification label .................................... 284 identifying fiber under test .......................
Index N naming trace automatically................... 24, 78 native trace format.................................... 178 noise area, searching................................. 154 non-reflective event, averaged loss ... 134, 213 number in events table ..................... 113, 209, 210 of the event ......................... 113, 209, 210 O opening a single-wavelength trace file .............. 197 multiwavelength trace file ................... 197 opening trace file ......................................
Index reflective ends of fiber............................... 154 reflective events, detecting........................ 154 removing a module ..................................... 13 report content ................................................ 184 of trace ................................................ 181 printing ............................................... 183 resetting fiber parameters, Auto mode ....... 36 restrictions Ref. Creation/Template mode....
Index setting parameters................................. 62 test settings used................................... 62 testing ................................................... 61 Template OTDR. see Template mode test wavelength, forced selection.......... 36, 40 test, settings used in Template mode.......... 62 testing Advanced mode..................................... 37 Auto mode ............................................ 33 Fault Finder............................................ 75 Template mode...
Index pulse.................................................... 134 reflectance threshold ........... 135, 214, 253 span length ......................................... 134 splice loss threshold............. 135, 214, 253 time ............................................. 134, 213 total loss.............................................. 134 total/average loss................................. 213 wavelength.......................................... 134 trace report creating ................................
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MARKING REQUIREMENTS 㪖㽷尐㻑 Product Environmental protection use period (years) Logo ℶ❐ 䘾⬒≬㔳∎䞷㦮棟 ( ) 㪖㉦ This Exfo product 㦻 EXFO ℶ❐ Batterya 䟄㻯 a a. If applicable.
P/N: 1060559 www.EXFO.com · info@exfo.com CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS 400 Godin Avenue Quebec (Quebec) G1M 2K2 CANADA Tel.: 1 418 683-0211 · Fax: 1 418 683-2170 EXFO AMERICA 3701 Plano Parkway, Suite 160 Plano TX, 75075 USA Tel.: 1 972 907-1505 · Fax: 1 972 836-0164 EXFO EUROPE Omega Enterprise Park, Electron Way Chandlers Ford, Hampshire S053 4SE ENGLAND Tel.: +44 2380 246810 · Fax: +44 2380 246801 EXFO ASIA-PACIFIC 151 Chin Swee Road #03-29, Manhattan House SINGAPORE 169876 Tel.
