Patent ID: 8906178

Claim:
A method of installing an optical fiber or cable at a customer premises, comprising: applying a coating on an optical fiber or cable to be installed at the premises, wherein the coating is formulated so that when activated by a certain substance, the coating acquires adhesive properties sufficient to bond the fiber to a surface at the premises; activating the coating on the fiber or cable by applying the activating substance to the coating; placing the fiber or cable with the activated coating on the exposed surface at the premises; allowing the activated coating to harden or cure, thereby bonding the fiber or cable to the exposed surface at the premises; performing the applying step by using a hand tool, and providing the hand tool with a chamber for containing a sufficient quantity of the activating substance for a given installation of the fiber or cable; performing the activating step by passing the fiber or cable through the chamber on the hand tool, thereby applying the activating substance contained in the chamber to the coating on the fiber or cable; and constructing and arranging the hand tool and the activating chamber so that the chamber with any remaining activating substance is removable from the hand tool once the installation of the fiber or cable is finished.