  Imaging bundles provide a convenient way to translate a spatially coherent
image, yet conventional imaging bundles made from silica fibre optics typically
remain expensive with large losses due to poor filling factors (~40%). We
present the characterisation of a novel polymer imaging bundle made from
poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) that is considerably cheaper and a better
alternative to silica imaging bundles over short distances (~1 m; from the
middle to the edge of a telescope's focal plane). The large increase in filling
factor (92% for the polymer imaging bundle) outweighs the large increase in
optical attenuation from using PMMA (1 dB/m) instead of silica (10^{-3} dB/m).
We present and discuss current and possible future multi-object applications of
the polymer imaging bundle in the context of astronomical instrumentation
including: field acquisition, guiding, wavefront sensing, narrow-band imaging,
aperture masking, and speckle imaging. The use of PMMA limits its use in low
light applications (e.g. imaging of galaxies), however it is possible to
fabricate polymer imaging bundles from a range of polymers that are better
suited to the desired science.
