Inherent image distortions of an optical fan-out device, the Kaleidoscope

An optical imaging device coined by its originator, E.E.E. Frietman of The Delft University of Technology, as the Kaleidoscope was first proposed in the early eighties as an optical backbone for interconnecting processing elements in a large parallel computer. The Kaleidoscope consists of three components of an imaging lens, faceted mirror, and optical fiber arrays, and possesses considerable data fan-out potential. In this paper we present simulation results, in the Gaussian domain, that reveal image distortions inherent in the Kaleidoscope.