Patent ID: 6317443
Filing Date: 2001-11-13
Classification: H01S

Abstract:
An electrical supply system for a laser source having multiple light emitters and to prevent an electrical short of the system when a single emitter is electrically shorted comprising:a semiconductor laser source having a plurality of separately operated light emitters functioning as junction diodes, each of the light emitters being part of a common emitter array, each light emitter generating and emitting a separate light beam, wherein the light beams from all of the emitters in the array are combined into a single beam;an electrical power source coupled via an electrical lead to each of said light emitters so that each of said emitters is connected to said power source independently of one another via one of said electrical leads;said light emitters characterized in that when any one of them becomes inoperative due to an electrical short of its junction diode, the failed emitter provides an undesirable electrical short of the electrical supply system; andmeans to prevent said system electrical shorts comprising a fuse device in each of said electrical leads between said electrical power source and its respective light emitter so that an electrical short of any one said light emitters will cause its corresponding fuse device to provide a break in its corresponding electrical lead due to an increase in current via the emitter electrical short so that the other light emitters of the laser source will not become inoperative due to an electrical short system short.