Patent ID: 9733133
Date: 2017-08-15
CPC Classifications: G01K,G01R

Claim:
1. A current sensor based on optical sensing, comprising: a sensor base station including a light source that produces probe light and an optical detection unit; an output fiber line having a first fiber line terminal coupled to the sensor base station to receive the probe light from the light source and to direct the received probe light to a second fiber line terminal of the output fiber line away from the sensor base station; an optical current sensor head coupled to the second fiber line terminal of the output fiber line to receive the probe light and configured to include an input optical polarizer to filter the probe light to produce a polarized input beam, a Faraday material located to receive and transmit the polarized input beam as a modified optical beam, and an optical polarization separation device that receives the modified optical beam from the Faraday material and splits the modified optical beam into first and second beams in two different polarizations along first and second optical paths, respectively; a first return fiber line having a first fiber line terminal coupled to the optical current sensor head to receive the first beam and a second fiber line terminal coupled to the optical detection unit of the sensor base station to deliver the first beam from the optical current sensor to the optical detection unit; and a second return fiber line having a first fiber line terminal coupled to the optical current sensor head to receive the second beam and a second fiber line terminal coupled to the optical detection unit of the sensor base station to deliver the second beam from the optical current sensor to the optical detection unit, wherein the optical current sensor head is located near or at a current-carrying conductor so that a magnetic field associated with the current is present at the Faraday material and the optical detection unit detects the two optical beams to determine a magnitude of the current.