A gift from God

Following multi-mode, Fujikura's Optcal Fiber cable will be fully adopted for single-mode as well. Fujikura will play a leading role in the practical application plan.

With the various industry-leading research and development results from Fujikura, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Public Corporation finally got its Optcal Fiber practical application plan underway. The first comprehensive in-house experiment at Yokosuka Communication Research Laboratories was held in October 1976, followed by the first field test of medium-distance GI Optcal Fiber cable in Tokyo in March 1978. Initially, each company proposed its own fiber and cable structure, but Fujikura's proposals all produced favorable results in the tests, so in July 1979, all were unified into the Fujikura type. The second field test in January 1980 was conducted for each company to create Fujikura-type cables and verify their functionality. After the final commercial test in December 1980, the Fujikura-based GI Optcal Fiber cable (multi-mode, medium-capacity transmission method) was finally fully adopted in November 1982.

Meanwhile, field tests of SM (single mode) Optcal Fiber for long-distance, large-capacity transmission were also conducted in October 1980, following the GI type. SM type optical fiber requires particularly advanced technology for connection. Fujikura therefore continued development of the axial alignment of the core, and completed a prototype fusion splicer. After further improvements, the company developed an automatic aligning fusion splicer and a direct-viewing core splicer, establishing an unrivaled position in this field as well, and securing the number one share of the global market. It also played a leading role in the nationwide optical Optcal Fiber cable network project as part of the INS (Advanced Information and Telecommunications System) plan, which began in 1985.