JP2001116928A - Optical fiber cutting device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To precisely machine an end surface of an optical fiber with a ferrule without any variance among operators. SOLUTION: A guide groove is formed in the tip part of an optical connector 50 held by a connector hold part 20 entirely in the circumferential direction. A connector positioning part 10 has a cylindrical fixed-side positioning member 12 and a movable-side positioning member 13 arranged axially in parallel to each other so as to clamp the grooved part of the optical connector 50, and the movable-side positioning member 13 is provided movably in the direction opposite to the fixed-side positioning member 13. To the fixed-side positioning member 12, a cutting blade 11 is fixed which is arranged penetrating the movable-side positioning member 13.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical fiber cutting device for cutting an optical fiber fixed to a ferrule.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, optical fibers are used for optical communication. In this case, an optical connector is used for optical coupling between optical fibers or between a light emitting element or a light receiving element and an optical fiber. .

Conventionally, as an optical connector, an optical connector in which an optical fiber is fixed to a resin ferrule is known. In this type of optical connector, it is indispensable to process the end face so that the end face of the optical fiber and the end face of the ferrule are the same.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Sho 62-255096 discloses that a guide groove is formed in the outer peripheral surface of a ferrule in a circumferential direction in advance, and the guide groove is formed. A method of cutting an optical fiber with a ferrule at a location is disclosed.

[0005]

However, in the method disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-255096, the position of the cutting blade at the time of cutting is determined by visual observation, and the operator himself or herself also needs to cut the cutting blade. Since the pressure is applied to the guide groove, there is a problem that the quality of the end face processing is liable to occur due to the variation of the applied force and the variation in the direction, the individual difference in the alignment, and the like.

[0006] In advanced information communication in recent years, the quality of the cut end face is required to be close to a mirror surface, and the variation in the quality of the end face processing of the optical fiber affects the communication characteristics.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical fiber cutting apparatus capable of processing an end face of an optical fiber with a ferrule with little variation by an operator and with high accuracy.

[0008]

To achieve the above object, an optical fiber cutting device according to the present invention comprises a ferrule with a ferrule, wherein a groove is formed on an outer peripheral surface of a ferrule covering an optical fiber along the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface. An optical fiber cutting device for cutting a fiber at the position of the groove, comprising two pillar-shaped positioning members that are arranged so that their axial directions are parallel to each other and are provided so as to be relatively movable in opposite directions. And a positioning mechanism for holding the ferrule-equipped optical fiber movably in the axial direction on the peripheral surface of the two positioning members, and a cutting blade, and a cutting blade, The cutting blade is maintained between the two positioning members such that a plane including the cutting edge of the cutting blade and the cutting direction of the cutting blade is parallel to the axial direction of the two positioning members. Those which are.

In the optical fiber cutting apparatus of the present invention configured as described above, the two positioning members are columnar members, and when the peripheral surface of these positioning members sandwiches the portion where the ferrule groove is formed, the positioning is performed. Since the member presses both edges of the groove, the optical fiber with a ferrule is clamped so as not to move in a direction other than the axial direction of the positioning member. On the other hand, since the cutting blade has a plane including the cutting edge and the cutting direction of the cutting blade held in parallel with the axial direction of the positioning member, the optical fiber with the ferrule is held in a state where the guide groove portion of the ferrule is sandwiched by the positioning member. By moving toward the cutting blade, the optical fiber with a ferrule is cut at a stable cutting position and cutting angle. In addition, the cutting blade cuts the ferrule and the optical fiber at the same time, and a sharp force is not applied to the optical fiber at the time of cutting, so that the cut end face of the cut optical fiber is flat without any chipping. Becomes

[0010] Further, the configuration in which the cutting blade is slidably penetrated through one positioning member and is fixed to the other positioning member facilitates movement of the positioning member and stably cuts. Can be.

[0011] By adding an urging means for urging one of the two positioning members in a direction approaching the other to the positioning mechanism, the positioning member can easily clamp the ferrule groove. I can do it. Also, the cutting blade
By arranging the positioning member on a straight line connecting the centers of the two positioning members when viewed from the axial direction, the optical fiber with a ferrule is cut at the center in the width direction of the groove.
Furthermore, the optical fiber cutting device of the present invention has a holding mechanism that holds the optical fiber with a ferrule movably in the axial direction of the positioning member so that the optical fiber with a ferrule can be easily moved at the time of cutting. You may have.

[0012]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an optical fiber cutting apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The cutting apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is roughly divided into a connector positioning section 10 for positioning the tip of the optical connector 50, a connector holding section 20 for holding the optical connector 50, And a base part 5 supporting the connector holding part 20.

First, before describing the optical fiber cutting apparatus shown in FIG. 1, an optical connector 50 to be cut by this apparatus will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, an optical connector 50 has a resin ferrule 52 around a resin optical fiber 51.
Is arranged, and a housing 54 is integrally provided on the outer periphery of the ferrule 52 in a state where the tip of the ferrule 52 is exposed. In addition, a guide groove 53 having a V-shaped cross section is formed along the circumferential direction of the ferrule 52 on the outer peripheral surface of a portion of the ferrule 52 exposed from the housing 54. The end face processing of the optical connector 50 is performed by cutting the optical fiber 51 along with the ferrule 52 along the guide groove 53. Next, the connector positioning unit 10 and the connector holding unit 20 will be described in order with reference to FIG.

(1) Connector positioning section 10 The connector positioning section 10 is for positioning the optical connector 50 by holding the tip of the optical connector 50, and as a member for holding the tip of the optical connector 50, Each has a fixed positioning member 12 and a movable positioning member 13 which are cylindrical members.

The fixed positioning member 12 includes a fixed member 14
And is fixed to the base portion 5 via the. The movable-side positioning member 13 is fixed to a movable member 15 arranged in parallel with the fixed member 14 so that the axial direction is parallel to the fixed-side positioning member 12. Two guide shafts 16 arranged parallel to each other and slidably penetrating the movable member 15 are fixed to the fixed member 14. Thus, the movable member 15 is supported by the guide shaft 16 so as to be movable in the direction of the guide shaft 16 while being kept parallel to the fixed member 14. Further, the movable side positioning member 13 moves together with the movable member 15. The guide shaft 16 has a flange portion at the tip, and the movable member biasing spring 17 is inserted between the flange portion and the movable member 15 so that the movable member 15 is biased toward the fixed member 14. ing.

On the other hand, the fixed side positioning member 12 has a cutting blade fixing portion 12a at an intermediate portion in the axial direction. In the cutting blade fixing portion 12a, the cutting direction of the cutting blade 11 is parallel to the axial direction of the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13, that is, the direction in which the cutting edge of the cutting blade 11 extends is the movable member. It is supported in a cantilever shape so as to be parallel to the movement direction of the reference numeral 15. Note that the cutting direction of the cutting blade 11 is a direction toward the cutting edge side in a plane that bisects the angle formed between the two side surfaces of the cutting blade 11 including the cutting edge, and The direction perpendicular to the direction.

Here, the relationship between the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13 and the cutting blade 11 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a mounting structure of a cutting blade of the optical connector end face cutting device shown in FIG.
(A) is its perspective view, (b) is the figure seen from above. The arrows shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B indicate the moving direction of the movable-side positioning member 13.

As shown in FIG. 2 (a), the movable positioning member 13 is provided with a slit-shaped guide hole 13a through which the cutting blade 11 is slidably slidable. It is supported by the guide hole 13a. Guide hole 1
3a is designed so that the play of the cutting blade 11 in the guide hole 13a is as small as possible and does not hinder the movement of the movable side positioning member 13 accompanying the movement of the movable member 15 (see FIG. 1). Is done. The length of the cutting blade 11 is such that the cutting blade 11 does not fall out of the guide hole 13a even when the movable positioning member 13 is separated from the fixed positioning member 12 to hold the optical connector 50 (see FIG. 5). Preferably, it is a length. Further, as shown in FIG. 2B, the cutting blade 11 is provided with an axis O of the fixed side positioning member 12.
The movable side positioning member 13 is fixed to the fixed side positioning member 12 so as to be located on a straight line connecting the axis O ′ of the movable side positioning member 13.

As will be described later, the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13 hold the optical connector 5 between them during the cutting operation of the distal end of the optical connector 50.
Since 0 slides, it is desirable to have a smooth surface without unevenness so that this sliding can be performed as smoothly as possible.

(2) Connector Holder 20 Referring again to FIG. 1, the connector holder 20 is fixed to the base 20 in a direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the base 5.
The movable plate 6 is slidably supported by the guide shaft 7 of the book. A movable plate supporting spring 8, which is a coil spring for supporting the weight of the movable plate 5 and the connector holding unit 20, is provided between the movable plate 6 and the base unit 5.
Are provided so as to penetrate through.

As a result, the movable plate 6 is located above the connector positioning unit 10 in the figure (at a position where the distance from the base unit 5 is large), but applies a force directed toward the base unit 5 to the movable plate 6. Thereby, the movable plate 6 can be moved toward the base portion 5 against the spring force of the movable plate support spring 8. What is important here is the direction in which the movable plate 6 moves,
That is, the axial direction of the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13 of the connector positioning portion 10 are equal to each other.

On the upper surface of the movable plate 6, an optical connector 50 is provided.
A connector side holding member 21 having a concave portion to be placed while holding both sides of the housing is fixed. In addition, on the upper surface of the connector side holding member 21,
A lid member 22 for holding the optical connector 50, both sides of which are held by the connector side holding member 21, from above in the figure, is detachably attached to the connector side holding member 21 with bolts. The width and depth of the concave portion of the connector side holding member 21 are set such that the optical connector 50 can be securely fixed when the optical connector 50 is held by the connector side holding member 21 and the lid member 22. .

Next, the optical connector 50 using the above-described device will be described.
Will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG.

First, as shown in FIG. 3A, the optical connector 50 is held by the connector holding section 20. In order to hold the optical connector 50 on the connector holding unit 20, first,
Loosen the bolts that fasten the connector side holding member 21 and the lid member 22, or remove the lid member 22,
The optical connector 50 is inserted into the recess of the connector side holding member 21.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 4A, the movable side positioning member 13 is moved against the fixed side positioning member 12 against the spring force of the movable member urging spring 17 (see FIG. 1). With the optical connector 50 open, the distal end of the optical connector 50 is positioned between the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13. At this time, rough positioning is performed so that the guide groove 53 is positioned between the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13.

After roughly positioning the optical connector 50, when the force applied to the movable-side positioning member 13 is released, as shown in FIG.
3 moves in the direction of arrow A by the spring force of the movable member urging spring 17, and the distal end of the optical connector 50 is held between the fixed side positioning member 12 and the movable side positioning member 13.

Since the fixed-side positioning member 12 and the movable-side positioning member 13 are cylindrical members, respectively, in this state, the fixed-side positioning member 12 and the movable-side positioning member 13 each have a part of the peripheral surface formed in a guide groove. The guide groove 53 is pressed into both edges 53 a of the guide groove 53. Thereby, the optical connector 50 is positioned such that the center in the width direction of the guide groove 53 is positioned on a straight line connecting the axis O of the fixed positioning member 12 and the axis O ′ of the movable positioning member 13. You.

Here, in the state shown in FIG.
Even if the center in the width direction of the guide groove 53 does not exactly coincide with the straight line, the guide groove 53 is located on the straight line, and at least one of both edge portions 53a of the guide groove 53 is fixed to the fixed side. Positioning member 12 and movable side positioning member 1
3, the axial force acts on the optical connector 50 due to the cylindrical shape of the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13. As a result, the optical connector 50 It is positioned at the position shown in FIG.

In order to achieve such self-adjustable positioning, it is preferable that both side walls of the guide groove 53 are inclined with respect to the axial direction of the optical connector 50, and a balance of forces acting on both side walls is provided. In consideration of the above, it is more preferable that the inclination angle is symmetric with respect to the center line of the guide groove 53 in the width direction. Although the shape of the guide groove 53 is not particularly limited, in this regard, it can be said that the V-shaped cross section employed in the present embodiment is optimal as the shape of the guide groove 53.

Further, even when the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13 press the distal end of the optical connector 50 at a position where the guide groove 53 is not formed, the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13 are pressed. 13 is a force enough to move the optical connector 50 in its axial direction, the fixed-side positioning member 12
Also, the optical connector 50 can be positioned by moving the optical connector 50 so that the movable side positioning member 13 fits into the guide groove 53.

When the optical connector 50 is positioned as described above, the cover member 22 is fixed with bolts, and the optical connector 50 is held by the connector holding section 20.

When the optical connector 50 is held by the connector holding section 20, the movable plate 6 is pushed down as shown in FIG. Here, the moving direction of the movable plate 6 is parallel to the axial direction of the fixed side positioning member 12 and the movable side positioning member 13 (not shown in FIG. 3). The distal end moves along the axial direction of the positioning members 12 and 13 while being held by the fixed positioning member 12 and the movable positioning member 13. Also, as described above, the fixed side positioning member 12 and the movable side positioning member 13 do not completely fit into the guide groove 53 at the distal end of the optical connector 50, and the edge portion 53a of the guide groove 53 is locally It just presses. Therefore, the guide groove 53 and each positioning member 12, 1
Since the contact area with the optical connector 3 is extremely small and the frictional resistance between the two is small, the optical connector 50 can be smoothly moved.

When the movable plate 6 is further depressed,
As shown in FIG. 3C, the tip of the optical connector 50 is cut by the cutting blade 11. At this time, as shown in FIG. 2B, the cutting blade 11 is fixed so as to be located on a straight line connecting the axis O of the fixed positioning member 12 and the axis O ′ of the movable positioning member 13. Have been. Moreover, FIG.
As shown in (b), in the optical connector 50, the center in the width direction of the guide groove 53 is positioned on a straight line connecting the axis O of the fixed-side positioning member 12 and the axis O 'of the movable-side positioning member 13. Are positioned so that As a result, the tip of the optical connector 50 is accurately cut at the center of the guide groove 53 in the width direction.

As described above, with the fixed side positioning member 12 and the movable side positioning member 13 holding the portion where the guide groove 53 at the distal end of the optical connector 50 is formed, the optical connector 50 is moved to both the positioning members 12 and 12. 13 to move the distal end of the optical connector 50 to the fixed side positioning member 1.
By cutting with the cutting blade 11 fixed to 2, the end face processing of the optical connector 50 can be performed with high accuracy while suppressing variations in the cutting position and the cutting angle. In addition, since the ferrule 52 and the optical fiber 51 are cut at the same time, both end faces are formed on the same plane. Moreover, since the cutting by the cutting blade 11 is performed at a low speed due to the cutting resistance of the ferrule 52, no sharp force is applied to the optical fiber 51 at the time of cutting. As a result, the end face of the optical fiber 51 is not chipped by the cutting by the cutting blade 11, and the end face of the optical fiber 51 can be cut into a state having high flatness and close to a mirror surface.

The ferrule 5 is used as the cutting blade 11.
The material is not particularly limited as long as it can cut the optical fiber 2 and the optical fiber 51 at the same time. For example, a material having a composition such as steel, ceramics, or hard glass can be used. In addition, it is desirable that at least the surface of the cutting blade 11 on the side forming the end face of the optical connector 50 be a mirror-like flat surface with very few irregularities. Thereby, the end face of the optical connector 50 can be cut in a state closer to the mirror surface.

Although the present invention has been described based on one embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this.

For example, in the present embodiment, the mode in which the optical fiber is cut in the state of the optical connector in which the housing is arranged on the outer periphery of the ferrule has been described, but the holding for directly holding the ferrule instead of the connector holding portion 20 has been described. It is also possible to cut an optical fiber with a ferrule by using a part.

In this embodiment, the two positioning members 12 and 13 have a cylindrical shape.
It is also possible to use a columnar body of another shape as appropriate according to the shape of the groove formed on the outer peripheral surface of the ferrule.

Further, in this embodiment, the cutting blade 1
1 is configured to be fixed to one positioning member and slidably penetrate the other, but the cutting blade may be held in the middle of the two positioning members. 2 in the state of being sandwiched by the positioning member
A cutting blade having a length equal to the distance between the two positioning members can be fixed to one of the positioning members.

In the present embodiment, the cutting blade 11
The cutting blade 11 is held so that the cutting direction is parallel to the axial direction of the positioning members 12 and 13, but the plane including the cutting edge of the cutting blade and the cutting direction is parallel to the axial direction of the positioning member. With such a configuration, the cutting blade can be held so that the cutting direction of the cutting blade and the axial direction of the positioning member form a predetermined angle.

Further, in the present embodiment, a groove is formed on the entire outer peripheral surface of the ferrule to be cut, but the groove is formed as long as it is held by at least two positioning members. Of course, it is not always necessary to form it all around.

[0045]

As described above, according to the optical fiber cutting device of the present invention, the portion where the groove of the ferrule is formed is sandwiched by the two columnar positioning members, and the cutting edge is provided between the two positioning members. And the cutting blade is held so that a plane including the cutting direction is parallel to the axial direction of the two positioning members, so that the grooved portion of the ferrule can be formed at a stable cutting position and cutting angle. It can be cut with high accuracy. Further, since the cutting blade cuts the ferrule and the optical fiber at the same time, a flat end surface can be formed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an optical fiber cutting device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams showing a mounting structure of a cutting blade of the optical fiber cutting device shown in FIG. 1, wherein FIG. 2A is a perspective view thereof and FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side view for explaining a cutting operation by the optical fiber cutting device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top view illustrating a positioning operation of the optical connector by a positioning unit of the optical fiber cutting device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an optical fiber connector with a guide groove.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 5 base portion 6 movable plate 7, 16 guide shaft 8 movable plate support spring 10 connector positioning portion 11 cutting blade 12 fixed-side positioning member 13 movable-side positioning member 14 fixed member 15 movable member 17 movable member biasing spring 20 connector holding portion 21 Connector side holding member 22 Lid member 50 Optical connector 51 Optical fiber 52 Ferrule 53 Guide groove 53a Edge 54 Housing

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2H036 QA13 QA21 2H038 CA12 CA21 3C021 AA06 BB02 BE01 CC02 EA08 FA02 GA04

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An optical fiber cutting device for cutting an optical fiber with a ferrule, in which a groove is formed along an outer peripheral surface of a ferrule covering an optical fiber along a circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface, at a position of the groove. And two columnar positioning members which are arranged so that their axial directions are parallel to each other and are provided so as to be relatively movable in opposite directions, and wherein the grooves of the ferrule are formed on the peripheral surfaces of the two positioning members. A positioning mechanism for movably holding the optical fiber with a ferrule in the axial direction, and a cutting blade, between the two positioning members, the cutting edge of the cutting blade and the cutting blade. An optical fiber cutting device, wherein the cutting blade is held such that a plane including a cutting direction is parallel to an axial direction of the two positioning members. 2. The optical fiber cutting device according to claim 1, wherein the cutting blade slidably penetrates one of the two positioning members and is fixed to the other. 3. The optical fiber cutting device according to claim 1, wherein the positioning mechanism includes a biasing unit that biases one of the two positioning members toward the other. 4. The cutting blade according to claim 1, wherein the cutting blades are arranged on a straight line connecting central axes of the two positioning members when the two positioning members are viewed from their axial ends. The optical fiber cutting device according to claim 1. 5. The optical fiber cutting device according to claim 1, wherein the two positioning members have a cylindrical shape. 6. The optical fiber with a ferrule is connected to the 2
The optical connector cutting device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a holding mechanism that holds the two positioning members so as to be movable in the axial direction.