Patent ID: 7088526

Claim:
An optical lens unit for an optical communications unit of an optical communications system to produce resulting optical communication signals with enhanced properties comprising: a plurality of lens elements arranged to direct incoming optical communication signals, received by said optical communications unit and into said optical lens unit via one of said lens elements, in a folded optical path through said lens elements in a first direction from a first end of said folded optical path to a second end of said folded optical path to produce a resulting communication reception beam, and to direct outgoing optical communication signals, for external transmission by said optical communications unit from said one lens element to another unit in said optical communications system, through said folded optical path in a second opposite direction from said second end to said first end to produce a resulting communication transmission beam, wherein said optical path includes a plurality of reflections and refractions of said optical communication signals from surfaces of said lens elements to reduce adverse properties of said resulting communication beams.