A tabletop rotor kit as training platform for fiber optic-based sensing

Abstract

In order to make aware of the importance that fiber optic sensors have in the modern industry, students in the master´s degree in Telecommunications Engineering at the University of the Basque Country are faced with a practical case of interest that provides a convenient training platform for learning important aspects of fiberbased optical sensing, such as probe design, the calibration curve, data interpretation and management, etc. The hands-on experiment runs around a tabletop rotor kit that includes different rotating parts and custom-designed fiber-based displacement sensors for monitoring the dynamics of the rotation. Practical aspects such as data interpretation and processing are dealt thoroughly, but without neglecting more fundamental aspects involved in the design of the optical probe.