Patent ID: 8778238

Claim:
A method of providing a conduit with a functional element, wherein the conduit is adapted for conducting a medium and comprises at least one of a group consisting of a capillary, a glass capillary, a fused silica capillary, a light guide, a single mode glass fiber, a mono mode glass fiber, a single polymer fiber, a mono mode polymer fiber, a fiber bundle, a liquid light guide, a refraction index modified capillary, and a photonic bandgap fiber, and wherein the functional element is adapted for at least one of: coupling, connecting, sealing, fixing, adjusting, aligning, receiving, protecting, and positioning the conduit, the method comprising: loading a forming tool with at least one of: said conduit, a part of said conduit, an end of said conduit, and with a pre-formed part comprising a plastic material or compound, changing a shape of the pre-formed part into the form of the functional element, by moving the forming tool coaxially along the conduit to directly contact and exert pressure on at least an end face of the pre-formed part, the end face extending along a plane perpendicular to a coaxial direction of the conduit, plastifying and molding said pre-formed part within said forming tool for attaching the functional element to the conduit, and for coupling the conduit to another conduit, by heating said plastic material beyond a softening temperature of the plastic material for bringing it in its softening range and making it soft or beyond the softening temperature and at least partly above the melting temperature for melting said plastic material, and opening the forming tool, by separating tool parts of the forming tool, after forming the functional element.