Luna Technologies' Distributed Temperature and Strain Sensing Software, when combined with the Optical Backscatter Reflectometer™ (OBR), transforms your standard telecom-grade fiber into a high spatial-resolution strain and temperature sensor.

The OBR uses swept wavelength interferometry (SWI) to measure the Rayleigh backscatter as a function of length in optical fiber with high spatial resolution. An external stimulus (like a strain or temperature change) causes temporal and spectral shifts in the local Rayleigh backscatter pattern. The OBR measures these shifts and scales them to give a distributed temperature or strain measurement. The SWI approach enables robust and practical distributed temperature and strain measurements in standard fiber with centimeter-scale spatial resolution up to 70 meters of fiber with strain and temperature resolution as fine as 1 µstrain and 0.1 °C.

Advantages:

• Use standard telecom-grade fiber. No more expensive specialty fibers needed for measurements.
• Highly distributed fiber sensing for strain and temperature
• Very high spatial resolution: down to 2 mm
• Centimeter resolution up to 70 meters
• +/- 0.1°C , +/- 1µ strain resolution at 1 cm
• High speed – five second acquisition times at high resolution

Applications:

Short range communications networks (local intranet, fiber to the home, shipboard and aircraft data bus):

• Find high operational temperatures that degrade lifetime or performance of components
• Determine if strain induced during installation exceeds safe threshold
• Look for long-term strain concentrations that threaten fiber integrity

Structural monitoring for naval, aerospace and civil structures:

• Conformal deformation and shape sensing
• Composite damage assessment
• Bonded joint integrity monitoring

Temperature profile monitoring:

• Fuel cells
• Concrete cure temperature monitoring in large structures
• Industrial chemical process monitoring

Pipeline shift and leak detection

Electrical power line sag and temperature monitoring

For more information, see the data sheet.

 

Learn more about our distributed temperature and strain sensing by reading our publications.