1. An optical fiber securing device comprising:
a passage having an entrance and an exit, the passage configured to receive therein an optical fiber inserted through the entrance;
an epoxy well configured to receive therein an epoxy;
an epoxy path that provides a pathway for epoxy between the epoxy well and the passage;
an optical fiber seat configured to receive at least a portion of the optical fiber, the optical fiber seat configured to position an end of the optical fiber in optical alignment with a lens; and
a protrusion defining an upper boundary of the passage at the exit of the passage, the protrusion configured to restrain epoxy received within the passage such that the epoxy does not become interposed between the end of the optical fiber and the lens.
2. The optical fiber securing device of claim 1, wherein the passage is configured to receive at least a portion of the epoxy via capillary action through the epoxy path.
3. The optical fiber securing device of claim 1, wherein the protrusion is configured to restrain the epoxy at least in part by generating surface tension in the epoxy.
4. The optical fiber securing device of claim 1, wherein the optical fiber seat is located at least partially within the passage.
5. The optical fiber securing device of claim 1, wherein the optical fiber seat includes a curved receiving surface configured to position the end of the optical fiber into optical alignment with the lens.
6. The optical fiber securing device of claim 5, wherein the curved receiving surface has a substantially arc-shaped cross-sectional shape.
7. The optical fiber securing device of claim 1, further comprising an alignment guide configured to facilitate positioning the end of the optical fiber at a target distance from the lens.
8. The optical fiber securing device of claim 7, wherein the alignment guide is located substantially in-plane with the target distance from the lens such that the end of the optical fiber is at the target distance from the lens when the end of the optical fiber is in-plane with the alignment guide.
9. The optical fiber securing device of claim 8, wherein the alignment guide is configured to be recognized by an alignment device configured to control positioning of the optical fiber.
10. The optical fiber securing device of claim 1, wherein the optical fiber securing device is a lens block included in an optoelectronic plug.
11. An active cable device, comprising:
an optical cable having opposing first and second ends and including an optical fiber extending from the first end to the second end; and
an optoelectronic plug coupled to the first end of the optical cable, the optoelectronic plug including a lens block, wherein the lens block comprises:
a lens;
a passage configured to receive therein a portion of the optical fiber;
an optical fiber seat defining a lower boundary of the passage and configured to optically align an end of the optical fiber with the lens;
an epoxy well configured to receive therein epoxy;
an epoxy path that provides a pathway for epoxy to travel from the epoxy well to the passage; and
a protrusion defining an upper boundary of the passage at an exit of the passage, the protrusion configured to restrain epoxy received within the passage through the epoxy path from the epoxy well such that the epoxy does not become interposed between the end of the optical fiber and the lens.
12. The active cable device of claim 11, wherein the lens block further comprises an alignment guide located substantially in-plane with a target distance from the lens and configured to facilitate positioning the end of the optical fiber at the target distance from the lens.
13. The active cable device of claim 11, wherein the lens block further comprises:
a second epoxy well configured to receive therein epoxy; and
a second epoxy path that provides a pathway for epoxy to travel from the second epoxy well to the passage, wherein the epoxy well and the second epoxy well are positioned on opposite sides of the passage such that epoxy can enter the passage from the opposite sides of the passage.
14. A method of assembling an active cable device including an optical cable with an optical fiber and an optoelectronic plug coupled to one end of the optical cable, the method comprising:
inserting the optical fiber of the optical cable into a passage of a lens block of the optoelectronic plug such that a portion of the optical fiber is positioned within the passage and an end of the optical fiber is positioned outside the passage;
optically aligning the end of the optical fiber with a lens of the lens block;
adding epoxy to an epoxy well of the lens block, wherein an epoxy path of the lens block provides a pathway for epoxy to travel from the epoxy well to a protrusion defining an upper boundary of the passage;
restraining the epoxy received within the passage through the epoxy path from the epoxy well such that the epoxy does not become interposed between the end of the optical fiber and the lens; and
securing the optical fiber to the lens block using the epoxy.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein optically aligning an end of the optical fiber with a lens of the lens block comprises positioning the optical fiber in an optical fiber seat of the lens block that defines a lower boundary of the passage.
16. The method of claim 14, wherein securing the optical fiber to the lens block using the epoxy includes curing the epoxy after the epoxy travels from the epoxy well through the epoxy path into the passage and into simultaneous contact with the optical fiber and the passage.
17. The method of claim 14, wherein the epoxy added to the epoxy well comprises a solid epoxy or a semi-solid epoxy and wherein securing the optical fiber to the lens block using the epoxy includes heating the epoxy until the epoxy melts into a liquid state or is sufficiently viscous to travel from the epoxy well through the epoxy path into the passage and into simultaneous contact with the optical fiber and the passage.
18. The method of claim 14, wherein the epoxy added to the epoxy well comprises a powder epoxy.
19. The method of claim 14, further comprising, prior to securing the optical fiber to the lens block using the epoxy:
sensing a position of the end of the optical fiber relative to an alignment guide of the lens block; and
adjusting the position of the end of the optical fiber relative to the alignment guide until the sensed position of the end of the optical fiber is substantially at a target position determined by the alignment guide.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. An information processing server comprising:
an acquisition unit that acquires variable information from a client apparatus, and variable information from said information processing server;
a master table definition unit that registers, based on the variable information acquired from said client apparatus and said information processing server, a latent image character string, which is to be used a latent image in a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern, to a master table; and
a generation unit that accepts a designation of variable information via a copy-forgery- inhibited pattern setting screen, acquires a latent image character string corresponding to the designated variable information from the master table, and generates print data comprising a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern having the acquired latent image character string as a latent image,
wherein the master table definition unit registers the variable information acquired from said client apparatus with a higher priority than the variable information acquired from said information processing server to the master table, and registers, if the variable information is not acquired from said client apparatus, the variable information acquired from said information processing server to the master table.
2. The information processing server according to claim 1, wherein:
the variable information comprises hardware information including at least a computer name, and user information including at least a user name, and
the master table definition unit registers the hardware information acquired from said client apparatus with a higher priority than the hardware information acquired from said information processing server to the master table, and registers, if the user information is not acquired from said client apparatus, the user information acquired from said information processing server to the master table.
3. The information processing server according to claim 1, wherein the variable information is registered in the master table in accordance with an order of (i) priority is high, (ii) all information successfully acquired, and (iii) high amount of information successfully acquired.
4. An information processing method executable by an information processing server, the method comprising the steps of:
acquiring variable information from a client apparatus, and variable information from the information processing server;
registering, based on the variable information acquired from the client apparatus and the information processing server, a latent image character string, which is to be used a latent image in a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern, to a master table;
accepting a designation of variable information via a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern setting screen;
acquiring a latent image character string corresponding to the designated variable information from the master table; and
generating print data comprising a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern having the acquired latent image character string as a latent image,
wherein the registering step registers the variable information acquired from the client apparatus with a higher priority than the variable information acquired from the information processing server to the master table, and registers, if the variable information is not acquired from the client apparatus, the variable information acquired from the information processing server to the master table.
5. The method according to claim 4, wherein:
the variable information comprises hardware information including at least a computer name, and user information including at least a user name, and
the registering step registers the hardware information acquired from the client apparatus with a higher priority than the hardware information acquired from the information processing server to the master table, and registers, if the user information is not acquired from the client apparatus, the user information acquired from the information processing server to the master table.
6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the variable information is registered in the master table in accordance with an order of (i) priority is high, (ii) all information successfully acquired, and (iii) high amount of information successfully acquired.
7. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program executable by a processor of an information processing server to execute the information processing method comprising the steps of:
acquiring variable information from a client apparatus and variable information from the information processing server;
registering, based on the variable information acquired from the client apparatus and the information processing server, a latent image character string, which is to be used a latent image in a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern, to a master table;
accepting a designation of variable information via a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern setting screen;
acquiring a latent image character string corresponding to the designated variable information from the master table; and
generating print data comprising a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern having the acquired latent image character string as a latent image,
wherein the registering step registers the variable information acquired from the client apparatus with a higher priority than the variable information acquired from the information processing server to the master table, and registers, if the variable information is not acquired from the client apparatus, the variable information acquired from the information processing server to the master table.
8. The medium according to claim 7, wherein:
the variable information comprises hardware information including at least a computer name, and user information including at least a user name, and
the registering step registers the hardware information acquired from the client apparatus with a higher priority than the hardware information acquired from the information processing server to the master table, and registers, if the user information is not acquired from the client apparatus, the user information acquired from the information processing server to the master table.
9. The medium according to claim 7, wherein the variable information is registered in the master table in accordance with an order of (i) priority is high, (ii) all information successfully acquired, and (iii) high amount of information successfully acquired.