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Early detection of potentially unreliable areas in optical fibers makes it possible to detect degradation of optical fibers of fiber-optic communication lines at an early stage. Early diagnostics of the physical state of optical fibers located in the laid optical cables of telecommunication systems is an important topical task. The paper presents adaptive algorithms that allow one to determine the maximum of the Mandelstam–Brillouin scattering spectrum (Brillouin frequency shift), and then the degree of tension of optical fibers. The process of determining the Brillouin frequency shift, whose values at wavelengths of laser radiation used in telecommunication systems belong to the microwave range, can be significantly accelerated if adaptive algorithms for obtaining and processing data are implemented due to a special choice of the step for the scanning frequency and the time of accumulation of measurement results. The adaptive algorithms considered in this paper make it possible to speed up the process of obtaining output results in Brillouin reflectometers by ignoring readings that do not significantly affect the final characteristics. The construction of approximate graphs of the distribution of the spectrum and tension along the length of the fiber allows the trained user of the Brillouin reflectometer to stop the analysis process in order to make corrections to the measuring process (selection of the scanning range in frequency, change in the scanning step in frequency, choice of the accuracy of the presentation of output results, change in spatial resolution, etc.), which also speeds up the testing of the selected fiber. The measurement process can also be accelerated by adaptively changing the number of averages. With a database of measured Mandelstam–Brillouin scattering characteristics of optical fibers of various types and manufacturers, the speed of obtaining tension plots can also be increased. Since the approximate value of the Brillouin frequency shift is calculated already at the initial steps of the measurement process, preliminary dependences of the tension distribution along the length of the fiber will be constructed rather quickly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces the use of a fiber-optic communication system for interrogation and transmission of data from fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors. Signal coding and dispersion compensation methods, usually used in communication systems, are used to improve the sensing system’s performance. Moreover, communication system parameters are used to assess the improvement in the FBG sensing performance. This is done through the determination of the profiles of Q-factor and eye diagrams. The sensors considered in the simulations are strain sensors subjected to a wide range of strains. The results obtained show a clear improvement of the sensing system with symmetrical compensation. The proposed method is suitable for applications where fiber-optic links are available near both the sensing location and information-collection and-processing unit, even if these two are hundreds of kilometers apart. A good example of where such a system can be applied is the oil industry. The rigs are usually very far from headquarters, but both might be close to a fiber node. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]