EP4630861A1

EP4630861A1 - Optical fiber cutting device and optical fiber cutting method

Info

Publication number: EP4630861A1
Application number: EP23832841.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Ryo Hasegawa
Original assignee: Fujikura Ltd
Current assignee: Fujikura Ltd
Priority date: 2022-12-09
Filing date: 2023-12-11
Publication date: 2025-10-15
Also published as: CN118169809A; KR20250086781A; WO2024122648A1; CN221827096U; JP2025533635A

Abstract

An optical fiber cutting device includes a first gripping mechanism and a second gripping mechanism that grip an optical fiber and apply tension to the optical fiber, a scratching blade that scratches the optical fiber between the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism, and a fiber holder holding portion on which a fiber holder that holds the optical fiber between the first gripping mechanism and the scratching blade is placed. At least one of at least a part of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion is movable in a length direction of the optical fiber.

Description

OPTICAL FIBER CUTTING DEVICE AND OPTICAL FIBER CUTTING METHOD

　　The present invention relates to an optical fiber cutting device and an optical fiber cutting method.
　　Priority is claimed on Japanese Patent Application No. 2022-197401, filed in Japan on December 9, 2022, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

　　In the related art, an optical fiber cutting device has been known that scratches an optical fiber and cuts the optical fiber by tensile stress. There is a case where the cut optical fiber is fusion-spliced in a next step, for example, by a fusion splicer. Therefore, the cutting may be performed in a state where the optical fiber is held by a fiber holder such that a transition to the next step is easy (for example, refer to PTL 1).

　　[PTL 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. S63-110401

　　In the optical fiber cutting device described in PTL 1, there is a case where a protruding length of the cut optical fiber from the fiber holder is not appropriate for processing in the next step.

　　An object of an aspect of the present invention is to provide an optical fiber cutting device and an optical fiber cutting method capable of appropriately adjusting a protruding length of a cut optical fiber from a fiber holder.

　　An optical fiber cutting device of a first aspect of the present invention includes a first gripping mechanism that grips an optical fiber; a second gripping mechanism that grips the optical fiber; a scratching blade that scratches the optical fiber between the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism; and a fiber holder holding portion on which a fiber holder that holds the optical fiber between the first gripping mechanism and the scratching blade is placed, in which at least one of at least a part of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion is movable in a length direction of the optical fiber.

　　In the optical fiber cutting device, a protruding length of the optical fiber from the fiber holder can be adjusted after cutting the optical fiber. Therefore, the protruding length of the optical fiber from the fiber holder can be optimized in accordance with the next step.

　　The first gripping mechanism is preferably movable in the length direction of the optical fiber.

　　The first gripping mechanism may be configured to include a first gripping portion that grips the optical fiber with the fiber holder placed on the fiber holder holding portion and a second gripping portion that is movable in the length direction of the optical fiber.
　　The fiber holder includes a holder base where the optical fiber is placed, the first gripping mechanism includes a pressing member, and the pressing member in the first gripping mechanism and the holder base may be capable of holding the optical fiber therebetween in a height direction.
　　The second gripping mechanism may be a fixed gripping portion or a movable gripping portion.

　　An optical fiber cutting method of a second aspect of the present invention includes a step of cutting an optical fiber by scratching the optical fiber using a scratching blade between a first gripping mechanism and a second gripping mechanism that grip the optical fiber and apply tension to the optical fiber; and a step of adjusting a protruding length of the optical fiber from a fiber holder placed on a fiber holder holding portion on which the fiber holder is placed, the fiber holder holding the optical fiber between the first gripping mechanism and the scratching blade, in which in the step of adjusting the protruding length of the optical fiber, at least one of at least a part of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion is moved in a length direction of the optical fiber.

　　In the optical fiber cutting method, the protruding length of the optical fiber from the fiber holder can be adjusted after cutting the optical fiber. Therefore, the protruding length of the optical fiber from the fiber holder can be optimized in accordance with the next step.

　　An aspect of the present invention provides an optical fiber cutting device and an optical fiber cutting method capable of appropriately adjusting a protruding length of a cut optical fiber from a fiber holder.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an optical fiber cutting device of a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the optical fiber cutting device of the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a front view showing the optical fiber cutting device of the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a part of the optical fiber cutting device of the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a part of the optical fiber cutting device of the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an optical fiber cutting device of a second embodiment. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a part of the optical fiber cutting device of the second embodiment. FIG. 8 is a plan view showing a part of the optical fiber cutting device of the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a part of the optical fiber cutting device of the second embodiment.

　　An optical fiber cutting device according to embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

　　Optical Fiber Cutting Device (First Embodiment)
　　FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an optical fiber cutting device of a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the optical fiber cutting device of the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a front view showing the optical fiber cutting device of the first embodiment. FIGS. 4 and 5 are plan views showing a part of the optical fiber cutting device of the first embodiment.

　　As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, an optical fiber cutting device 100 of the present embodiment is configured to include a base member 10, a movable gripping portion 20 (first gripping mechanism), a fixed gripping portion 50 (second gripping mechanism), a scratch formation portion 40, a scratch formation portion drive unit 30, a backstop portion 70, a fiber holder holding stand 110 (fiber holder holding portion), a pedestal portion 120, and a movable gripping portion drive unit 130 (refer to FIG. 3).

　　The optical fiber cutting device 100 is a cutting device that forms an initial scratch in a bare optical fiber 1A to which tension is applied and grows the initial scratch to cleave the bare optical fiber 1A, thereby cutting the optical fiber 1.
　　The optical fiber 1 is a coated optical fiber in which an outer peripheral surface of the bare optical fiber 1A made of glass is covered with a coating portion 1B made of resin. The optical fiber 1 is cut while being gripped by the optical fiber cutting device 100.

　　The optical fiber cutting device 100 is placed on a placement surface. Viewing from a direction along a normal line of the placement surface will be referred to as a plan view.
　　Hereinafter, directions may be referred to using an XYZ orthogonal coordinate system. Two orthogonal axes on the placement surface are defined as an X axis and a Y axis. A Z axis is orthogonal to the X axis and the Y axis. The Z axis is a normal line of the placement surface.
　　The Y axis is along a longitudinal direction of the optical fiber cutting device 100 in a plan view. The Y axis coincides with a central axis of the optical fiber 1 gripped by the optical fiber cutting device 100. The X axis is along a lateral direction of the optical fiber cutting device 100 in a plan view.

　　A positive direction in the Y-axis (Y-axis positive direction) is one side of a length direction of the optical fiber 1. A negative direction in the Y-axis (Y-axis negative direction) is a direction opposite to the Y-axis positive direction. A positive direction in the X-axis (X-axis positive direction) is a direction from left to right when facing the Y-axis positive direction. A positive direction of the Z-axis (Z-axis positive direction) is a direction facing upward. An X-axis negative direction is a direction opposite to the X-axis positive direction. A Z-axis negative direction is a direction opposite to the Z-axis positive direction. In particular, in a case of representing directions along the X-axis, the Y-axis, and the Z-axis without distinguishing the positive direction and the negative direction, the directions are referred to as an X-axis direction, a Y-axis direction, and a Z-axis direction. The Y-axis direction is the length direction of the optical fiber 1. The X-axis direction is an up-down direction (height direction) of the optical fiber cutting device.

　　The base member 10 has a rectangular shape of which a longitudinal direction is along the Y-axis direction in a plan view.

　　The fixed gripping portion 50 determines a position of the optical fiber 1 in the Y-axis direction by gripping the optical fiber 1. The fixed gripping portion 50 includes a gripping portion main body 51 and a pressing member 52. A guide groove for positioning the optical fiber 1 is formed on an upper surface of the gripping portion main body 51. The pressing member 52 grips the optical fiber 1 with the gripping portion main body 51.
　　The fixed gripping portion 50 may grip a portion where the bare optical fiber 1A of the optical fiber 1 is exposed or may grip a portion where the bare optical fiber 1A is covered with the coating portion 1B.

　　The movable gripping portion 20 determines the position of the optical fiber 1 in the Y-axis direction by gripping the optical fiber 1. The movable gripping portion 20 includes a gripping portion main body 21 and a pressing member 22. A guide groove for positioning the optical fiber 1 is formed on an upper surface of the gripping portion main body 21. The pressing member 22 grips the optical fiber 1 with the gripping portion main body 21. The movable gripping portion 20 is located at a position separated from the fixed gripping portion 50 in the Y-axis negative direction. The movable gripping portion 20 is located at a position on a Y-axis negative direction side with respect to the fiber holder holding stand 110.
　　The movable gripping portion 20 may grip a portion where the bare optical fiber 1A of the optical fiber 1 is exposed or may grip a portion where the bare optical fiber 1A is covered with the coating portion 1B.

　　As shown in FIG. 3, the pedestal portion 120 supports the movable gripping portion 20. The pedestal portion 120 is movable in the Y-axis direction with respect to the base member 10.
　　The movable gripping portion drive unit 130 can move the pedestal portion 120 in the Y-axis direction and dispose the pedestal portion 120 at any position in the Y-axis direction. The movable gripping portion 20 applies tension to the optical fiber 1 by moving in a direction (Y-axis negative direction) away from the fixed gripping portion 50. The movable gripping portion drive unit 130 is, for example, an electric actuator.

　　The fiber holder holding stand 110 is located at a position separated from the fixed gripping portion 50 in the Y-axis negative direction. A fiber holder 60 can be placed on the fiber holder holding stand 110. The fiber holder holding stand 110 holds the placed fiber holder 60.

　　The fiber holder 60 grips the optical fiber 1 between the movable gripping portion 20 and the scratch formation portion 40. The fiber holder 60 has a holder base 61 and a pressing member 62. A guide groove for positioning the optical fiber 1 is formed on an upper surface of the holder base 61. The pressing member 62 grips the optical fiber 1 with the holder base 61. The pressing member 62 is rotatably connected to the holder base 61. The pressing member 62 can switch between a form of gripping the optical fiber 1 with the holder base 61 and a form of releasing the optical fiber 1. The fiber holder 60 can grip, for example, the optical fiber 1 in a portion where the coating portion 1B is formed.

　　As shown in FIG. 4, the scratch formation portion 40 forms an initial scratch on the bare optical fiber 1A of the optical fiber 1. The scratch formation portion 40 includes a scratching blade holder 41 and a scratching blade 42.
　　The scratching blade 42 is attached to the scratching blade holder 41 to protrude from a tip of the scratching blade holder 41. The scratching blade 42 takes a posture in which a thickness direction is directed toward the Y-axis direction. The scratching blade 42 scratches the bare optical fiber 1A (that is, forms an initial scratch). Alternatively, the scratching blade 42 scratches the bare optical fiber 1A through the coating portion 1B of the optical fiber 1 with respect to the bare optical fiber 1A covered with the coating portion 1B.

　　As shown in FIG. 2, the scratch formation portion 40 is located on the Y-axis negative direction side with respect to the fixed gripping portion 50. The scratch formation portion 40 is located on a Y-axis positive direction side with respect to the movable gripping portion 20. Therefore, the scratch formation portion 40 can scratch (that is, form an initial scratch on) the optical fiber 1 to which tension is applied by the fixed gripping portion 50 and the movable gripping portion 20 between the fixed gripping portion 50 and the movable gripping portion 20. The scratch formation portion 40 is located on the Y-axis positive direction side with respect to the fiber holder holding stand 110.

　　As shown in FIG. 4, the scratch formation portion drive unit 30 brings the scratching blade holder 41 and the scratching blade 42 closer to the optical fiber 1 by a drive source 31 such as a motor and an intermediate gear 32. As a result, the scratching blade 42 scratches the optical fiber 1.

　　The backstop portion 70 is provided on a side opposite to the scratch formation portion 40 with respect to the optical fiber 1. That is, in a plan view, the backstop portion 70 is provided on a side opposite to the scratching blade 42 with the optical fiber 1 interposed therebetween in the X-axis direction. The backstop portion 70 restricts bending of the optical fiber 1 when the scratching blade 42 scratches the optical fiber 1.

　　Optical Fiber Cutting Method
　　Next, a method for cutting the optical fiber 1 using the optical fiber cutting device 100 will be described. Hereinafter, a method for cutting the optical fiber 1 in a state where the bare optical fiber 1A is exposed will be described.

　　(Preparation Step)
　　As shown in FIG. 2, the optical fiber 1 in which the bare optical fiber 1A is exposed in a portion including a tip is prepared. The fixed gripping portion 50 grips the bare optical fiber 1A of the optical fiber 1. The movable gripping portion 20 grips, for example, the optical fiber 1 in the portion where the coating portion 1B is formed.
　　As shown in FIG. 3, the movable gripping portion drive unit 130 is used to move the movable gripping portion 20 in a direction away from the fixed gripping portion 50 (Y-axis negative direction) to apply tension to the optical fiber 1.

　　Cutting Step
　　As shown in FIG. 4, the drive source 31 is operated to bring the scratching blade holder 41 and the scratching blade 42 closer to the bare optical fiber 1A. The scratching blade 42 scratches the bare optical fiber 1A (that is, forms an initial scratch). A direction in which the scratching blade 42 scratches the bare optical fiber 1A (scratching direction) is the X-axis direction. The initial scratch grows due to the tension applied to the bare optical fiber 1A, and the bare optical fiber 1A is cleaved and cut.

　　(Protruding Length Adjusting Step)
　　As shown in FIG. 5, a protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 is adjusted in order to facilitate the processing in the next step. Hereinafter, the adjustment of the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 will be described. The “next step” is, for example, a fusion step of fusion-splicing the optical fiber using a fusion splicer. Another possible case is to mount the cut optical fiber on a manufacturing jig used in manufacturing a device or equipment using the optical fiber.

　　The fiber holder 60 is in a form in which the pressing member 62 is opened (a form in which the optical fiber 1 is not gripped). The optical fiber 1 is moved in the Y-axis direction by moving the movable gripping portion 20 in the Y-axis direction using the movable gripping portion drive unit 130 (refer to FIG. 3). Thus, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 is adjusted. The protruding length of the optical fiber 1 can be determined according to specifications of a device (for example, a fusion splicer) used in the next step. Specifically, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 can be determined such that a tip of the optical fiber 1 is located in the vicinity of a discharge electrode of the fusion splicer when the fiber holder 60 is set in the fusion splicer of the next step. In the present embodiment, the optical fiber 1 is moved in the Y-axis negative direction by moving the movable gripping portion 20 in the Y-axis negative direction. In this way, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 is decreased. On the contrary, the optical fiber 1 may be moved in the Y-axis positive direction by moving the movable gripping portion 20 in the Y-axis positive direction. In this way, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 may be increased.

　　In this step, it is desirable that a control unit (not shown) determines a position of the movable gripping portion 20 in the Y-axis direction such that the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 becomes a predetermined set value by the movable gripping portion drive unit 130 (see FIG. 3). According to this method, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 can be easily determined by automatic adjustment.
　　After adjusting the protruding length of the optical fiber 1, the optical fiber 1 is gripped by closing the pressing member 62 of the fiber holder 60.

　　(Next Step)
　　The optical fiber 1 held by the fiber holder 60 is removed from the optical fiber cutting device 100 and subjected to the next step (for example, a fusion step of fusion-splicing the optical fiber using a fusion splicer).

　　Effects of Optical Fiber Cutting Device and Optical Fiber Cutting Method of Embodiment
　　In the optical fiber cutting device 100 of the present embodiment, since the movable gripping portion 20 can be moved in the Y-axis direction, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 can be adjusted after cutting the optical fiber 1. Therefore, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 can be optimized in accordance with the next step.

　　The movable gripping portion 20 is movable in the Y-axis direction. The movable gripping portion 20 has a gripping force capable of applying tension to the optical fiber 1. In the present embodiment, since the movable gripping portion 20 is independent of other components, the movable gripping portion 20 can be configured to be robust and have a high gripping force.
　　In addition, the fixed gripping portion 50 may not be movable in the Y-axis direction. This is, the position of the fixed gripping portion 50 may be fixed. Because, in case where the position of the fixed gripping portion 50 is fixed, it is easy to adjust the length of the optical fiber 1 protruding from the fiber holder 60 when cutting the optical fiber 1 by the scratching blade 42. Accordingly, it is preferable that the position of the fixed gripping portion 50 is fixed.

　　The optical fiber cutting method of the present embodiment includes a step of cutting the optical fiber 1 (cutting step) and a step of adjusting the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 (protruding length adjusting step). Therefore, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 can be optimized in accordance with the next step.

　　Optical Fiber Cutting Device (Second Embodiment)
　　FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an optical fiber cutting device of a second embodiment. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a part of the optical fiber cutting device of the second embodiment. FIGS. 8 and 9 are plan views showing a part of the optical fiber cutting device of the second embodiment.

　　As shown in FIG. 6, an optical fiber cutting device 200 of the present embodiment is configured to include a base member 210, a first gripping mechanism 220, a movable gripping portion 250 (second gripping mechanism), a scratch formation portion 40, and a fiber holder holding stand 310 (fiber holder holding portion).

　　As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the first gripping mechanism 220 includes a first gripping portion 221 and a second gripping portion 222.
　　The first gripping portion 221 includes a support post portion 223 and a pressing member 224. The support post portion 223 protrudes upward from a device main surface. The pressing member 224 is rotatably connected to the support post portion 223. The pressing member 224 can grip the optical fiber 1 with the holder base 61 of the fiber holder 60 placed on the fiber holder holding stand 310. More specifically, as viewed from the Z direction, the pressing member 224 is disposed in a position overlapped with the guide groove formed on the holder base 61. In the Z direction (the height direction of the optical fiber cutting device 200), the optical fiber 1 is held between the pressing member 224 and the holder base 61. Note that, as viewed from the Z direction, the pressing member 224 is disposed in a position different from the pressing member 62 in a form in which the pressing member 62 is closed. The pressing member 224 can switch between a form of gripping the optical fiber 1 with the holder base 61 and a form of releasing the optical fiber 1.
　　The first gripping portion 221 has a gripping force capable of applying tension required for cutting the optical fiber 1 to the optical fiber 1.

　　The second gripping portion 222 includes a gripping portion main body 225 and a pressing member 226. A guide groove for positioning the optical fiber 1 is formed on an upper surface of the gripping portion main body 225. The pressing member 226 grips the optical fiber 1 with the gripping portion main body 225. The pressing member 226 is rotatably connected to the gripping portion main body 225. The pressing member 226 can switch between a form of gripping the optical fiber 1 with the gripping portion main body 225 and a form of releasing the optical fiber 1.

　　The second gripping portion 222 is located on the Y-axis negative direction side with respect to the fiber holder holding stand 310. The second gripping portion 222 is movable in the Y-axis direction. It can be said that the first gripping mechanism 220 is movable in the Y-axis direction only in part (second gripping portion 222) rather than in its entirety.

　　As shown in FIG. 7, the second gripping portion 222 is connected to the fiber holder holding stand 310 via one or a plurality of guide bars 227 along the Y-axis direction to be movable close to and away from the fiber holder holding stand 310.

　　As shown in FIG. 6, the movable gripping portion 250 is provided with a gripping portion main body and a pressing member. The movable gripping portion 250 can grip the optical fiber 1 (bare optical fiber 1A) between the gripping portion main body and the pressing member. The movable gripping portion 250 is movable in the Y-axis direction by a drive mechanism (not shown). The movable gripping portion 250 can apply tension to the optical fiber 1 by moving in a direction away from the first gripping mechanism 220 (Y-axis positive direction).

　　The scratch formation portion 40 is located on the Y-axis negative direction side with respect to the movable gripping portion 250. The scratch formation portion 40 is located on the Y-axis positive direction side with respect to the first gripping mechanism 220. Therefore, the scratch formation portion 40 can scratch (that is, form an initial scratch on) the optical fiber 1 (specifically, the bare optical fiber 1A) to which the tension is applied by the movable gripping portion 250 and the first gripping mechanism 220 between the movable gripping portion 250 and the first gripping mechanism 220. The scratch formation portion 40 is located on the Y-axis positive direction side with respect to the fiber holder holding stand 310.

　　The fiber holder 60 placed on the fiber holder holding stand 310 can hold the optical fiber 1 between the first gripping mechanism 220 and the scratch formation portion 40.

　　Optical Fiber Cutting Method
　　Next, a method for cutting the optical fiber 1 using the optical fiber cutting device 200 will be described.

　　(Preparation Step)
　　The movable gripping portion 250 grips the bare optical fiber 1A of the optical fiber 1. The first gripping mechanism 220 grips, for example, the optical fiber 1 in the portion where the coating portion 1B is formed.
　　Tension is applied to the optical fiber 1 by moving the movable gripping portion 250 in a direction away from the first gripping mechanism 220 (Y-axis positive direction).

　　Cutting Step
　　The bare optical fiber 1A is scratched (that is, an initial scratch is formed) using the scratch formation portion 40. The initial scratch grows due to the tension applied to the bare optical fiber 1A, and the bare optical fiber 1A is cleaved and cut.

　　(Protruding Length Adjusting Step)
　　As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the fiber holder 60 in a form in which the pressing member 62 is opened (a form in which the optical fiber 1 is not gripped). The first gripping portion 221 is in a form in which the pressing member 224 is opened (a form in which the optical fiber 1 is not gripped).

　　The optical fiber 1 is moved in the Y-axis direction by moving the second gripping portion 222 in the Y-axis direction. Thus, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 is adjusted. The protruding length of the optical fiber 1 can be determined according to specifications of a device (for example, a fusion splicer) used in the next step. In the present embodiment, the optical fiber 1 is moved in the Y-axis negative direction by moving the second gripping portion 222 in the Y-axis negative direction. In this way, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 is decreased.
　　After adjusting the protruding length of the optical fiber 1, the optical fiber 1 is gripped by closing the pressing member 62 of the fiber holder 60.

　　(Next Step)
　　The optical fiber 1 held by the fiber holder 60 is removed from the optical fiber cutting device 200 and subjected to the next step (for example, a fusion step of fusion-splicing the optical fiber using a fusion splicer).

　　Effects of Optical Fiber Cutting Device and Optical Fiber Cutting Method of Embodiment
　　In the optical fiber cutting device 200 of the present embodiment, since the second gripping portion 222 can be moved in the Y-axis direction, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 can be adjusted after cutting the optical fiber 1. Therefore, the protruding length of the optical fiber 1 from the fiber holder 60 can be optimized in accordance with the next step.

　　The first gripping mechanism 220 includes the first gripping portion 221 that grips the optical fiber 1 with the holder base 61 of the fiber holder 60, and a second gripping portion 222 that is movable in the Y-axis direction. Since the first gripping portion 221 can grip the optical fiber 1 using the fiber holder 60, the structure can be simplified. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size and cost of the device.

　　In the optical fiber cutting device 100 (refer to FIG. 1) of the first embodiment, only the movable gripping portion 20 out of the movable gripping portion 20 and the fiber holder holding stand 110 is movable in the Y-axis direction. However, the configuration of the optical fiber cutting device is not limited thereto. In the optical fiber cutting device of the embodiment, at least one of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion may be movable in the length direction of the optical fiber.

　　Only the fiber holder holding portion out of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion may be movable in the length direction of the optical fiber. For example, in the optical fiber cutting device 100 (refer to FIG. 1), the fiber holder holding stand 110 may be movable in the Y-axis direction. Both the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion may be movable in the length direction of the optical fiber. For example, in the optical fiber cutting device 100 (refer to FIG. 1), both the movable gripping portion 20 and the fiber holder holding stand 110 may be movable in the Y-axis direction. In a case where the fiber holder holding portion is movable in the Y-axis direction, for example, an electric actuator may be used.

　　In a case where only the fiber holder holding portion out of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion is movable in the length direction of the optical fiber, in the protruding length adjusting step, the protruding length of the optical fiber from the fiber holder is adjusted by moving the fiber holder holding portion in the length direction of the optical fiber.

　　In a case where both the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion are movable in the length direction of the optical fiber, in the protruding length adjusting step, the protruding length of the optical fiber from the fiber holder is adjusted by moving one or both of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion in the length direction of the optical fiber.
　　In these cases, in the protruding length adjusting step, the pressing member included in a movable part is closed (a form in which the optical fiber 1 is gripped), and the pressing member included in a fixed part is opened (a form in which the optical fiber 1 is not gripped), so as not to prevent the movement of the optical fiber 1.
　　Accordingly, it is possible to adjust the position of the end portion of the cut optical fiber 1 relative to the fiber holder 60. Thus, by the optical fiber cutting device 100, 200, it is possible to obtain the fiber holder 60 in which the optical fiber 1 with the end portion cut by the scratching blade 42 is set at an appropriate protruding length.

　　Furthermore, although the second gripping mechanism in the first embodiment is the fixed gripping portion 50 and the second gripping mechanism in the second embodiment is the movable gripping portion 250, the aspect of the second gripping mechanism is not limited thereto. For example, the optical fiber cutting device 100 in the first embodiment may include the movable gripping portion 250 instead of the fixed gripping portion 50, and the optical fiber cutting device 200 in the second embodiment may include the fixed gripping portion 50 instead of the movable gripping portion 250.　　Hereinbefore, the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, but the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. The addition, omission, substitution, and other modifications of the configuration can be made within a range not departing from the gist of the present invention.

Reference Signs List

　　1: Optical fiber
　　1A: Bare optical fiber
　　20: Movable gripping portion (first gripping mechanism)
　　42: Scratching blade
　　50: Fixed gripping portion (second gripping mechanism)
　　100, 200: Optical fiber cutting device
　　110: Fiber holder holding stand (fiber holder holding portion)
　　220: First gripping mechanism
　　221: First gripping portion
　　222: Second gripping portion
　　250: Movable gripping portion (second gripping mechanism)

Claims

An optical fiber cutting device comprising:
　　a first gripping mechanism that grips an optical fiber;
　　a second gripping mechanism that grips the optical fiber;
　　a scratching blade that scratches the optical fiber between the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism; and
　　a fiber holder holding portion on which a fiber holder that holds the optical fiber between the first gripping mechanism and the scratching blade is placed,
　　wherein at least one of at least a part of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion is movable in a length direction of the optical fiber.
The optical fiber cutting device according to Claim 1, wherein the first gripping mechanism is movable in the length direction of the optical fiber.
The optical fiber cutting device according to Claim 1, wherein the first gripping mechanism includes
　　a first gripping portion that grips the optical fiber with the fiber holder placed on the fiber holder holding portion, and
　　a second gripping portion that is movable in the length direction of the optical fiber.
The optical fiber cutting device according to Claim 3, wherein
　　the fiber holder includes a holder base where the optical fiber is placed,
　　the first gripping mechanism includes a pressing member, and
　　the pressing member in the first gripping mechanism and the holder base are capable of holding the optical fiber therebetween in a height direction.
The optical fiber cutting device according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein the second gripping mechanism is a fixed gripping portion.
The optical fiber cutting device according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein the second gripping mechanism is a movable gripping portion.
An optical fiber cutting method comprising:
　　a step of cutting an optical fiber by scratching the optical fiber using a scratching blade between a first gripping mechanism and a second gripping mechanism that grip the optical fiber and apply tension to the optical fiber; and
　　a step of adjusting a protruding length of the optical fiber from a fiber holder placed on a fiber holder holding portion on which the fiber holder is placed, the fiber holder holding the optical fiber between the first gripping mechanism and the scratching blade,
　　wherein in the step of adjusting the protruding length of the optical fiber, at least one of at least a part of the first gripping mechanism and the fiber holder holding portion is moved in a length direction of the optical fiber.