OWL F7BMS MM User manual

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OWL
Optical Wavelength Laboratories
Revision 1.0b
Optical Wavelength Laboratories (OWL)
N9623 Old Hwy 12
Whitewater, WI 53190
Phone: [phone]
Internet: http://OWL-inc.com
OPERATIONS GUIDE
FIBER OWL 7 SERIES BI-DIRECTIONAL CERTIFIERS
MODEL #s:
F7BMS (MM / SM)
F7BMX (MM only)
F7BMV (MM / VFL)
F7BSX (SM only)
F7BSV (SM / VFL)

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
BEFORE YOU BEGIN 4
ABOUT THIS MANUAL 4
DESCRIPTION 5
APPLICATIONS
PAIR MODE 6
BIDI MODE 7
CERT MODE 8
LOSS MODE 9
OPTICAL POWER MEASUREMENT 10
OPTICAL LENGTH MEASUREMENT 11
TEST PATCH CORDS 12
GENERAL FEATURES
PRECAUTIONS 13
LABEL 13
GENERAL FEATURES 14
SPECIFICATIONS 15
WARRANTY INFORMATION 16
SUPPORTED CABLING STANDARDS 16
CONTACT INFORMATION 16
ROLES 17
TEST PROCEDURES
BEFORE YOU BEGIN 18
STEP 1: GATHER LINK SETUP INFORMATION 19
LINK PLANNING WORKSHEET 20
KEY TEST PARAMETERS 21
FIBER STANDARD 21
TEST MODE 21
FIBER TYPE 21
FIBER TYPE - LINK TYPES 22
TEST CORD TYPE 23
SPLICES 23
ENCIRCLED FLUX 24
FIBER PAIR GEOMETRY 25
REFERENCE METHOD 26
STEP 2: GATHER ACCESSORIES 27
REFERENCE CABLES AND MANDRELS 28
ADDITIONAL TEST CABLES 29
MATING SLEEVES 30
LINK WIZARD 31-40
ALPHA-NUMERIC / SPECIAL CHARACTER ENTRY 32
ENCIRCLED FLUX DIAGRAM 33
SET REFERENCE DIAGRAM 34
SETTING THE OPTICAL REFERENCE 35-37
CHECKING ADDITIONAL TEST CABLES 38-40
TEST PROCEDURE (BI-DIRECTIONAL) 41-50
TEST RESULTS SCREEN 46
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
OPERATIONS/MAINTENANCE
MAIN MENU 51
OPERATIONS MENU
CONFIGURE SOURCE PORT 52
SYSTEM INFORMATION 52
ENTER OPM (OPTICAL POWER METER) MODE 52
SETUP MENU
SET OPERATING PARAMETERS 53
SET USER INFORMATION 53
SET DISPLAY OPTIONS 53
SET POWER OPTIONS 54
CONFIGURE CUSTOM STANDARD 54
UTILITIES MENU
SET SYSTEM CLOCK 55
RE-SET TO FACTORY DEFAULTS 55
WORKING WITH STORED DATA 56
UNIVERSAL DETECTOR PORT 57
CLEANING THE LIGHT SOURCE PORT 58
CLEANING THE OPM PORT 59
UPDATING FIRMWARE 60
RE-CHARGING THE DEVICE BATTERIES 60
3

INTRODUCTION
BEFORE YOU BEGIN
All personnel testing optical bers should be adequately trained in the eld of ber optics before using any ber optic test
equipment.
If the user is not completely familiar with testing ber optics, they should seek competent training. Such training can be acquired
from a variety of sources, such as local hands-on training classes.
Valuable information about ber optic testing can also be gathered from reading printed literature carefully or by thoroughly reading
supplied operations manuals.
Fiber optic testers vary from other types of test equipment due to issues such as:
1) standards-based testing
2) proper ber optic test procedures (FOTPs)
3) “zeroing” or referencing of power levels
4) determining the correct link budget to pass or fail by
Complete understanding of each of these issues is critical for performing proper ber optic tests.
ABOUT THIS MANUAL
Throughout this manual you will nd various symbols that assist with understanding the procedures outlined in this manual. Below
is a list of these symbols and a short description of their purpose:
Shows a helpful tip that will make a procedure go more smoothly
Tells the user some useful information about the successful completion of a procedure
Warns the operator of a potentially dangerous condition
4

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INTRODUCTION
DESCRIPTION
The Fiber OWL 7 BIDI is a high-accuracy, high-resolution, microprocessor-controlled optical loss test sets (OLTS) capable of
performing a wide variety of testing applications, from basic optical loss measurement up to simultaneous bi-directional, dual-
wavelength ber link certication. With a wide measurement range and NIST-traceable wavelengths, the Fiber OWL 7 BIDI is ideal
for both singlemode and multimode ber link certication.
Enclosed in an attractive hand-held case made from high impact plastic and protected by a protective rubber boot, test readings
and graphical help screens can be viewed on the color LCD, and an intuitive 10-key keypad allows for easy data entry.
Each Fiber OWL 7 BIDI is powered by re-chargeable lithium polymer batteries, typically allowing up to 50 hours of continuous use.
A built-in auto-shutdown feature further conserves battery life. Batteries are re-charged through the USB port via supplied battery
chargers.
The intuitive built-in Link Wizard prompts the user to enter key information used to calculate standards-based link budgets for ber
optic certication testing, and helpful diagrams guide the user through the setup and testing procedure.
Thousands of data points with descriptive link and ber run labels can be stored in internal memory. Stored information can be
selectively viewed, re-tested, or deleted from the device.
The data can also be downloaded to OWLView certication software to produce professional-looking formatted certication reports.
OWLView software includes a “tri-report” option that integrates power meter certication, OTDR traces, and endface analysis
results all on the same report (separate ber microscope and OWL OTDR required for tri-report).

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APPLICATIONS
PAIR MODE
Fiber Optic Link Pair Certication. PAIR mode is the fastest, easiest, and most innovative way to certify a ber pair at up to two
wavelengths simultaneously, including length measurement with each test, since bi-directional testing is not required by cabling
standards; i.e. test direction does not matter.
PAIR mode is twice as fast as bi-directional link certication and much less confusing.
Testing bi-directionally requires a two-step process: test in one direction, swap ber ports, then test in the other direction. PAIR
mode cuts testing time in half by eliminating the second (not required) direction, and keeps things simple by eliminating the often-
confusing and error-prone step of swapping ber ports.
PAIR mode is twice as fast as traditional link certication.
Traditional link certication certies one ber at a time. PAIR mode tests two bers at a time, signicantly speeding up the
certication process. In addition, PAIR mode allows length measurement with each test, something that traditional link certication
cannot do.
The Link Wizard in the Fiber OWL 7 uses attenuation parameters from popular cabling standards to certify ber links, and shows
complete PASS/FAIL test results for both bers at both wavelengths, all on the same screen, right in the eld.
12 ber pairs 24 bers
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Blue test direction Orange test direction

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APPLICATIONS
BIDI MODE
Bi-directional (BIDI) Fiber Optic Link Certication. Similar to PAIR mode, BIDI (bi-directional) mode allows users to quickly
and conveniently certify a ber pair in both directions at up to two wavelengths simultaneously, including length measurement with
each test. Keep in mind that while bi-directional testing is not a requirement of cabling standards, it may still be required by the
end user.
The Link Wizard in the Fiber OWL 7 uses attenuation parameters from popular cabling standards to certify ber links, and shows
complete PASS/FAIL test results for both bers at both wavelengths, all on the same screen, right in the eld.
12 ber pairs 24 bers
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Blue test direction Orange test direction
12 ber pairs 24 bers
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Blue test directionOrange test direction
Connect patch cables straight in to test in rst direction
Cross patch cables to test in second direction

8
APPLICATIONS
CERT MODE
Traditional Single-ber Link Certication. When the remote is set as a stand-alone light source (or a separate stand-alone source
is available), CERT (certication) mode allows users to certify individual optical bers at up to two wavelengths simultaneously.
The Link Wizard in the Fiber OWL 7 uses attenuation parameters from popular cabling standards to certify ber links, and shows
a link’s PASS/FAIL status right in the eld.
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Remote used as stand-alone light source

9
APPLICATIONS
LOSS MODE
Attenuation (Optical Loss) Measurements. After a ber cable has been installed and terminated, optical loss measurements can
be used to determine if the ber is installed according to standards and specications. A comparison between the actual power
measurement and the reference value determines how much optical power is lost through the link.
Loss mode requires the remote to operate as a stand-alone light source, or another stand-alone light source.
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Remote used as stand-alone light source

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APPLICATIONS
OPTICAL POWER MEASUREMENT
Optical Power Measurements. Optical power is an absolute measurement of the amount of light intensity; i.e. “brightness”, and
can be measured either at the output of a transmitter (transmit power), or at the input of a receiver (receiver sensitivity). When in
OPM mode, the Fiber OWL 7 can be directly attached to this equipment via a patch cord to check whether the transmitter is within
the manufacturer’s specied power range.
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Measure transmitter power directly from the equipment port...
...or measure the transmitter power through the link.