Patent ID: 6926793

Claim:
A method of fabricating a multi-fiber polarization-maintaining fiber assembly, comprising: (1) a cover removal step for removing covers a few centimeters at one end from a plurality of polarization-maintaining fiber cables with a difference of a few millimeters therebetween to form exposed fiber portions of different lengths from one another; (2) an assembly step for inserting the polarization-maintaining fiber cables into an insertion hole of a holder tube, holding said polarization-maintaining fiber cables integrally with said exposed fiber portions thereof arranged abreast at a proximal end such that a leading end of a one of the polarization-maintaining fiber cables having a one of the exposed fiber portions which is greater in length than an other of said polarization-maintaining fiber cables extends forward of a corresponding leading end of said other of said polarization-maintaining fiber cables, and sealing the insertion holes of the holder tube with a thermoset resin which is relatively high in viscosity; (3) an adhesive filling step for filling an inner space of a multi-fiber ferrule with a thermoset resin which is relatively low in viscosity; (4) fiber cable insertion step for inserting the polarization-maintaining fiber cables assembled integral with the holder tube into the inner space of the multi-fiber ferrule, and inserting exposed fiber portions thereof into corresponding fiber holes of the multi-fiber ferrule; (5) an orientation adjustment step for, while clamping the multi-fiber ferrule with a clamping jig so as not to be turned, rotating each of the polarization-maintaining fiber cables to determine orientation thereof; and (6) an adhesive curing step for heating the multi-fiber ferrule while remaining clamped by the clamping jig to cure the thermoset resins.