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Table Top Tensile Tester - T4
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Fiber Tensile Strength Measurement |
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Component Proof Testing and Pull Testing |
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Coating Strip Or Pull-Out Force Measurement |
| Compliant with Telcordia GR-20, FOTP-28C, FOTP-178 etc. |
(Click the picture for a bigger version)
Features
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A rotating capstan is used to apply load to the fiber. A non-rotating
capstan on a translation stage is available as an option.
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Manual control of the capstan motor makes loading fiber onto the rotating
capstan easier.
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The fiber/test specimen is attached to the load cell by wrapping around a
rubber-coated capstan.
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The fully enclosed precision load cell is protected from flying debris.
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The rotating capstan and load cell are mounted on plates which can be
moved to provide any test length up to 0.5 meters (1 meter available as an
option). A flexible bellows protects internal electronic and mechanical
components from debris.
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Strong fiber shatters when it breaks generating flying debris which can be
a danger to eyesight. A transparent door protects the operator from flying
debris. A failsafe interlock system warns the operator when the door is open
during a test.
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A fan in the door ensures that the environment around the fiber is the
same as the surrounding air.
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The System Controller contains a dedicated high-performance microprocessor
which provides real-time control of the capstan motor. It also contains the
high speed data acquisition system used to measure the load cell signal.
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Versatile and easy-to-use Windows software controls the instrument. For
example, TENSION for Windows is used for
strength measurement and STRIP for Windows
for coating strip force measurement. The instrument connects to the computer
by either a serial or USB port.
- The instrument is compact with ~ 150 x 150 mm footprint.
The Table Top Tensile Tester is functionally similar to the
Standard Tensile
Tester but has the following differences:
Long Gauge Length Option
An option for The Table Top Tensile Tester permits long gauge length testing.
For this option, the body of the tester can be separated into two sections, one
containing the load cell with capstan, and the other containing the rotating
motorized capstan. By mounting these two sections separately, fiber test lengths
of up to 20 meters and beyond can be achieved. The option includes a pulley so
that, if needed, the fiber can be folded back on itself thus making the system
more compact (as permitted by FOTP-28C).
Fixtures
A variety of mounting fixtures can be used with the Table Top Tensile Tester:
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The standard instrument is supplied with a rubber-coated capstan
(left-hand picture) to which the fiber is attached by wrapping around two or
three times. |
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The Coating Strip Force option
replaces the capstan with a holder for a stripping tool (the blue tool is
shown in the right-hand picture). |
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The Coating Strip Force option
includes a clamping system used to make coating pullout force measurements. |
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An optional pneumatic grip makes attaching the fiber to the load cell very
simple. However, it can only grip a fiber up to loads of ~20 newtons or so,
beyond which slipping occurs. The pneumatic grip is useful for pull tests or
measuring the strength of weak fiber. If the rotating capstan is replaced by a
translating capstan, a second pneumatic grip can be attached to the other end
of the test specimen for even greater ease of use. |
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Custom fixtures can easily be designed to attach to the load cell. The
customer can then attach a variety of fixtures for pull testing components,
connectors, strain reliefs, etc. |
The Table Top Tensile Tester is designed principally for use with standard
telecommunications fiber (125 µm glass diameter)
with failure loads in the range of 5 to 100 newtons. A more robust capstan motor
and load cell can be used for stronger or thicker fiber. Very weak fiber might
break while wrapping around the 50 mm diameter capstans - pneumatic grips used
with the Standard Tensile Tester might
be a better option in this case. Please contact us to discuss your specific
needs so that we can specify a system that best suits your application.
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