Patent ID: 6868211

Claim:
Process for automatically forming an optical shuffle, comprising: providing a plurality of spools ( 3 . 1 . . . 3 . 12 ), each having at least one optical fiber ( 4 . 1 . . . 4 . 12 ); affixing free ends of the optical fibers to a winding device ( 8 ) so that the optical fibers can be wound onto the winding device in one winding direction and lying approximately parallel to one another; combining groups of optical fibers coming from the spools with one another to form ribbons; unwinding a first length section ( 1 1 ) of each optical fiber from the associated spool ( 3 . 1 - 3 . 12 ) and winding the first length ( 1 1 ) onto the winding device ( 8 ); after the first length section ( 1 1 ) has been unwound, reorganizing the spools ( 3 . 1 . . . 3 . 12 ) or fiber-guiding devices connected to the fibers downstream of the spools so that, in a direction extending transversely with respect to the unwinding direction, the outgoing optical fibers from the spools assume different positions relative to one another than before; unwinding a second length section ( 1 2 ) of the optical fibers from the spools ( 3 . 1 . . . 3 . 12 ) and winding the optical fibers onto the winding device ( 8 ), the optical fibers from at least one of the spools crossing the optical fibers from another one of the spool to form a shuffle section; and forming new optical fiber groups, which are combined into a third section (1 3 ) of ribbons.