JP2001201662A - Optical connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To develop a technology capable of reducing the number of parts and cost by solving problems that an inner housing for positioning is necessitated to be housed into an optical connector adaptor by allowing the floating of the housing, a great number of parts are required and the handling time is spent for manufacturing because of complicated structure, with respect to a conventional optical connector having structure in which a pair of optical connector plugs are positioned to be connected through the optical connector adaptor. SOLUTION: The optical connector 10 is constituted so that the tip end of a male type optical connector plug 20 is connected to the tip end of a female type optical connector 30 in the connected state by engaging the engaging part 28 at the tip end of the plug 20 with the engaging part 37 at the tip end of the engaging housing 32 of the plug 30.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical connector, and more particularly, to an optical connector which can be constituted by a small number of parts.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, an MPO type optical connector (MPO: Multifiber Push O
n) and the like, optical connector plugs inserted from both sides opposite to the optical connector adapter are positioned and connected within the optical connector adapter, and as shown in FIG. Housing 2 of each optical connector plug 2, 3 inserted into adapter 1 from both sides
a, 3a are inserted into an inner housing 4 housed in the sleeve-shaped adapter housing 1a of the optical connector adapter 1 while allowing a slight floating thereof, and are positioned by the inner housing 4, whereby the housing A configuration in which the optical connector ferrules 5 held at the distal ends 2a and 3a are butt-connected is often used. In the adapter housing 1a of the optical connector adapter 1, the optical connector plugs 2 and 3 are accommodated while allowing a slight displacement (floating). Since the positioning state is maintained by the inner housing 4, the floating of the optical connector plugs 2, 3 with respect to the adapter housing 1a does not affect the connection state of the optical connector ferrules 5.

[0003]

However, in the optical connector having the above-described structure, the number of parts is large because the optical connector adapter 1 requires the internal housing 4, and the adapter housing 1a is provided with the internal housing 4. Need to be formed in a complicated shape that can be stored in a floating manner, and it takes time and effort to form, so that it is difficult to reduce the cost. In addition, the optical connector adapter 1
Has a structure in which it can be assembled from two adapter housings 1a in order to house the internal housing 4. In this respect as well, the number of parts is increased, and there is a problem that the assembly of the optical connector adapter 1 is troublesome. .

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has as its object to provide an optical connector having a small number of components and capable of reducing costs.

[0005]

According to the present invention, there is provided a male optical connector plug inserted into the optical connector adapter from one side, and a female optical connector plug inserted into the optical connector adapter from the other side, The female optical connector plug has a housing distal end inserted into the optical connector adapter of the housing and an insertion distal end of the male optical connector plug which is inserted into the optical connector adapter. The engaging portions are detachably engaged with each other, so that abutting states of the optical connector ferrules respectively held at the housing distal end portion and the insertion distal end portion are maintained. The above-mentioned optical connector is a means for solving the above problem. According to the present invention, the two optical connectors are engaged with each other by removably engaging engagement portions provided at the insertion end of the male optical connector plug and the housing end of the female optical connector plug. By connecting the plugs, it is possible to position between the optical connector ferrules at the tip of each optical connector plug. In other words, the positioning between the optical connector ferrules at the tip of each optical connector plug is performed by the engagement between the engaging portions of both optical connector plugs. Therefore, the optical connector adapter is provided with a positioning component such as an internal housing separately. No need.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the optical connector according to the first aspect, the engaging portion provided at the distal end of the housing of the female optical connector plug includes the optical connector of the female optical connector plug. An elastic claw that can be pulled out forward in the insertion direction with respect to the adapter, and the optical connector adapter is brought into contact with the engaging portion pulled out from the distal end of the housing of the female optical connector plug, whereby An engagement release portion is provided, which is configured to elastically deform the mating portion to separate from the engagement position with the engagement portion on the male optical connector plug side. According to the invention,
For example, if the male optical connector plug connected to the female optical connector plug is pulled out from the optical connector adapter in the optical connector adapter, the engaging portions of the male and female optical connector plugs are engaged with each other. The engaging portion is pulled out from the female optical connector plug together with the male optical connector plug. Then, the disengagement portion is interrupted between the engagement portions in the engaged state, or the engagement portion on the female optical connector plug side is separated from the engagement portion on the mating side by contact with the engagement disengagement portion. Due to the deformation, the engagement with the engagement portion on the male optical connector plug side is released. Thus, the male optical connector plug can be pulled out of the optical connector adapter by only a simple pulling-out operation.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the optical connector according to the first aspect, the engaging portion provided at the distal end of the housing of the female optical connector plug includes the optical connector of the female optical connector plug. An elastic claw that can be pulled out to the front in the insertion direction with respect to the adapter; and a front end portion of the female optical connector plug which is provided on the front end portion of the housing from a front side in the insertion direction with respect to the optical connector adapter. It is characterized in that an engagement releasing piece is provided which elastically deforms the engaging portion by abutting and separates from the engaging position with the engaging portion on the male optical connector plug side. According to the present invention, for example, when the female optical connector plug connected to the male optical connector plug is pulled out from the optical connector adapter in the optical connector adapter, first, the female optical connector plug The engaging portion does not move due to engagement with the engaging portion on the male optical connector plug side, and the housing of the female optical connector plug is pulled out from the optical connector adapter with respect to the engaging portion at the housing tip. Moving. Then, further movement of the housing causes the engagement release piece at the distal end of the housing to come into contact with the engaging portion, which is an elastic claw at the distal end of the housing, so as to move away from the engaging portion on the male optical connector plug side. , The engagement with the engaging portion on the male optical connector plug side is released. Thus, the female optical connector plug can be pulled out of the optical connector adapter by only a simple pulling-out operation.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an optical connector 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described. 1A and 1B are views showing a male optical connector plug 20, in which FIG. 1A is a front view, FIG. 1B is a side view as viewed from the front end side in the connection direction, and FIG. FIG. 2 is a view showing the female optical connector plug 30.
(A) is a front view, (b) is a plan view, (c) is a side view as viewed from the front end side in the connection direction, and (d) is a cross-sectional view. FIG.
3A and 3B are diagrams showing a housing 31 constituting the female optical connector plug 30 of FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 3A is a plan view, FIG. 3B is a front view, and FIG. 4A and 4B are diagrams showing an engagement housing 31a constituting the female optical connector plug 30 of FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 4A is a plan view, FIG.
(C) is a plan sectional view. 5A and 5B are views showing the optical connector adapter 40, wherein FIG. 5A is a perspective view, and FIG. 5B is a male plug storage part 4 into which the male optical connector plug 20 is inserted.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view seen from one side, and FIG. FIG.
FIG. 3 is a view showing the optical connector 10, and is a cross-sectional view showing a state where a male optical connector plug 20 and a female optical connector plug 30 are inserted into an optical connector adapter 40 and connected.

In FIG. 6, an optical connector 10 has a sleeve-shaped optical connector adapter 40, a male optical connector plug 20 inserted into the optical connector adapter 40 from one side in the axial direction, and an optical connector adapter 40. And a female optical connector plug 30 inserted from the other side in the axial direction. The male optical connector plug 20 and the female optical connector plug 30 are positioned and connected in the optical connector adapter 40. It is supposed to be.

As shown in FIGS. 1 (a) to 1 (c), a male optical connector plug 20 is
And the optical connector adapter 40 of the housing 21
And a resiliently deformable latch 23 protruding toward the insertion distal end portion 22 so as to rise from a rear end facing the insertion distal end portion 22. The housing 21 and the latch 23 may be integrally formed of, for example, synthetic resin such as plastic.
It is preferable in reducing the labor required for molding. An optical connector ferrule 1 is provided at the insertion tip 22 of the housing 21.
1 is stored and held. The optical connector ferrule 1
As 1, various configurations can be adopted, but here,
An MT type optical connector (MT: Mechanically Transferable) defined in JIS C5981 is employed.
The optical connector ferrule 11 is housed movably in the center axis direction of the housing 21 (left and right in FIGS. 1A and 1C), and is urged forward in the connection direction by a spring 24 built in the housing 21. ing. The optical connector ferrule 11 comes out of the insertion distal end portion 22 by the flange portion 11b protruding from the rear end portion facing the joining end surface 11a abutting against a stopper portion 25 provided on the inner surface side of the insertion distal end portion 22. Is prevented.

As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, a female optical connector plug 30 is provided with a sleeve-shaped housing 31.
And an engagement housing 32 housed inside the housing 31 so as to be slidable along the center axis direction of the housing 31. FIG.
As shown in (a) to (c), an elastically deformable latch that is inserted into the optical connector adapter 40 and is removably engaged from the rear end of the housing 31 facing the engagement housing 32. 33 protrudes forward in the insertion direction of the housing 31 with respect to the optical connector adapter 40. It is preferable that the housing 31 and the latch 33 are integrally formed of, for example, a synthetic resin such as plastic in order to reduce the time required for the molding.

As shown in FIGS. 4 (a) to 4 (c), the engagement housing 32 is formed in a sleeve shape, and inside thereof is butt-connected to the optical connector ferrule 11 on the male optical connector plug 20 side. The optical connector ferrule 11 is stored and held. In addition, a pair of engaging portions 37 made of elastic claws project from the distal end of the engagement housing 32 in the insertion direction with respect to the optical connector adapter 40 toward the front in the insertion direction with respect to the optical connector adapter 40. The engaging portion 37 can be pulled out forward by inserting and sliding the engaging housing 32 with respect to the housing 31 in the insertion direction of the female optical connector plug 30 into the optical connector adapter 40 (FIG. 2).
(D) The middle virtual line 37 is drawn.

As shown in FIG. 2B and the like, the engaging portion 37, which is an elastic claw, is inserted into a slit 31c formed in a housing distal end portion 31a of the housing 31. Further, pressure receiving pieces 37c protruding from both sides perpendicular to the direction in which the engagement portion 37 protrudes from the engagement housing 32.
Is a recess 3 having a shape obtained by expanding a part of the slit 31c.
1d. The housing tip 31a
The disengagement piece 31b provided on the front side in the insertion direction of the female optical connector plug 30 with respect to the optical connector adapter 40 (the right side in FIGS. 2A to 2C) with respect to the pressure receiving piece 37c, The engaging portion 37 is brought into contact with the engaging portion 37 by a relative sliding movement of the housing 31 to the rear end of the engaging housing 32 (left side in FIGS. 2A to 2C) with respect to the engaging housing 32. 37 is pressed to be elastically deformed outward. In the state shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, when the housing distal end 31a is moved to the rear end of the engaging housing 32, the disengagement piece 31b is connected to the optical connector adapter of the female optical connector plug 30. 40
9 (a) and 9 (b), it comes into contact with and presses the pressure receiving piece 37c from the front side (the right side in FIGS. 9A and 9B).
c is deformed so as to be pushed out of the housing distal end portion 31a. Specifically, the disengagement piece 31b is a slope 31 parallel to the slope 37d formed on the pressure receiving piece 37c.
e, the engagement portion 37 by the engagement release piece 31b
The pressing deformation of the (pressure receiving piece 37c) is caused by the two inclined surfaces 37d and 31.
This is realized by converting the pressing force from the disengagement piece 31b into a displacement force of the engagement portion 37 (elastic claw) in a direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the disengagement piece 31b by abutting and sliding of e. You.

The optical connector ferrule 11 held at the tip of the female optical connector plug 30 can employ various configurations.
The same MT type optical connector as the optical connector ferrule 11 on the side is adopted. This optical connector ferrule 11 is arranged in the direction of the center axis of the sleeve-shaped housing 31 (FIG. 2).
(A), (d), left and right in the middle), and is urged forward by a spring 35 built in the housing 31 in the connection direction. Housing tip 31a
The stopper portion 36 provided on the optical connector ferrule 1 is brought into contact with a flange portion 11b projecting from a rear end portion facing the joining end surface 11a of the optical connector ferrule 11.
1 is prevented from falling out of the housing 31.

As shown in FIGS. 5A to 5C, the optical connector adapter 40 has a male plug storage portion 41 into which the male optical connector plug 20 is inserted, and the male plug storage portion 41 is opposed to the male plug storage portion 41. And a female plug storage section 42 provided on the opposite side to insert the female optical connector plug 30. Each of the plug housing portions 41 and 42 has a sleeve shape, and is communicated inside the sleeve-shaped optical connector adapter 40. As shown in FIG. 5 (b), the male plug storage section 41 has a plug storage hole 41a having a rectangular cross section into which the male optical connector plug 20 is inserted, as shown in FIG. 5 (a). The female plug housing portion 42 is formed with a pair of engaging portions 37 (elastic claws) formed so as to protrude from opposite sides of the housing distal end portion 31a at the distal end of the engaging housing 32 of the female optical connector plug 30. Is provided with a plug insertion hole 42a having a shape formed on both sides facing the engagement portion insertion groove 42b into which the plug insertion hole 42a is inserted.

As shown in FIGS. 5A, 5C and 6, the optical connector 10 has an optical connector adapter 40.
The optical connector ferrule 11 at the tip of the male optical connector plug 20 inserted into the male plug housing 41 and the optical connector ferrule 11 at the tip of the female optical connector plug 30 inserted into the female plug housing 42 Connection region 4 at the center in the central axis direction of sleeve-shaped optical connector adapter 40
The optical fibers 13 and 14 terminated by the respective optical connector ferrules 11 so that the connectors can be connected are optically connected to each other by the butt connection at 3.

The male optical connector plug 20 includes a latch 23
Is inserted into the male plug housing 41 so as to be housed in the plug housing hole 41a, and the engaging claw 2 provided at the tip of the latch 23 in the protruding direction from the housing 21 is provided.
6 is stably housed in the male plug storage part 41 by removably engaging the latch engagement hole 41b opened in the side wall part of the male plug storage part 41. On the other hand, the female optical connector plug 30 is inserted into the female plug storage portion 42 by inserting it into the plug storage hole 42 a including the latch 33, and the leading end of the latch 33 in the projecting direction from the housing 31. The engaging claw 38 provided on the
The female plug storage portion 42 is stably stored in the female plug storage portion 42 by removably engaging with a latch engagement hole 42c opened in a side wall portion of the female plug storage portion 42. When the optical connector plugs 20 and 30 are inserted into the plug storage portions 41 and 42, the latching claws 26 and 38 at the tips of the latches 23 and 33 that slide on the inner surfaces of the side walls of the plug storage portions 41 and 42 are engaged with the latches. By observing the engagement sound, impact, etc. generated when entering the engagement holes 41b, 42c, it is grasped that the engagement claws 26, 38 at the tips of the latches 23, 33 have engaged with the latch engagement holes 41b, 42c. can do.

The engaging claws 2 at the tips of the latches 23, 33
When 6, 38 engage with the latch engagement holes 41b, 42c,
The release levers 27 and 39 formed at the protruding tips of the latches 23 and 33 from the housings 21 and 31 are located near the ends 41c and 42d of the plug storages 41 and 42, respectively. , 42 will not be able to be pushed further if it collides with the ends 41c, 42d.
Forcibly pushing the optical connector plugs 20, 30
The housings 21 and 31 and the latches 23 and 33 are not damaged.

The optical connector ferrules 11 are connected to the spring 2 of one or both optical connector plugs 20 and 30.
4 and 35 are butt-connected by compressively deforming them. The engaging portion 37 at the tip of the female optical connector plug 30 inserted into the female plug housing portion 42 is inserted into the male plug housing portion 41. By engaging with engaging portions 28 formed on both sides of the insertion end portion 22 of the optical connector plug 20 opposite to each other,
Housings 21, 31 of both optical connector plugs 20, 30
Since the optical connector ferrules 11 are stopped so as not to be separated from each other, the butt connection state of the optical connector ferrules 11 (joint end face 1
1a) is maintained, and the biasing force of the compressed and deformed springs 24, 35 can be reliably applied as the butting force between the optical connector ferrules 11, so that the optical fibers 13, 14 can be connected to each other. Optical connection can be performed with a desired low connection loss. In addition, between the optical connector plugs 20 and 30 connected and connected by the engagement of the engagement portions 28 and 37 engaged with each other, the engagement portion 28 which is an elastic claw can be disengaged from the engagement portion 37. Although the connected state is maintained by the proper engagement and the positioning accuracy is also ensured, slight floating of each optical connector plug 20, 30 with respect to the optical connector adapter 40 is allowed,
As a result, dimensional tolerances between the optical connector plugs 20 and 30 and the optical connector adapter 40 can be absorbed. As a result, the connected optical connector ferrule 11
There is an advantage that stress such as bending due to the dimensional tolerance can be prevented from being applied therebetween.

A guide pin 15 protruding from one of the optical connector ferrules 11 is provided between the optical connector ferrules 11.
(See FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (c)) with the guide pin hole 1 opened in the joint end face 11a of the other optical connector ferrule 11.
1c (see FIG. 2 (c)). As shown in FIG. 6, when the distance between the optical connector plugs 20 and 30 gradually approaches within the optical connector adapter 40, a pair of female optical connector plugs 30 projecting from opposite sides of the front end of the engaging housing 32 of the female optical connector plug 30. The pair of engaging portions 28 at the distal end of the male optical connector plug 20 are in contact with the contact surface 37a, which is the inclined surface at the distal end of the engaging portion 37, and the engaging portions 28 are respectively guided to the contact surfaces 37a. In this way, it is inserted into the housing 32 for engagement. When the engaging portion 37 on the male optical connector plug 20 side is positioned between the pair of engaging portions 37 on the female optical connector plug 30 side, the two optical connector plugs 20, 3
The optical connector ferrule 11 is positioned, and the guide pins 15 of one optical connector ferrule 11 are inserted and fitted into the guide pin holes 11c of the other optical connector ferrule 11 as the two optical connector plugs 20 and 30 further approach. You. Further, at this time, the position of the guide pin 15 of the other optical connector ferrule 11 is appropriately adjusted with respect to the guide pin hole 11c of the other optical connector ferrule 11 by the elasticity of the engagement portion 37, and the positions of both are adjusted. The guide pin 15 is inserted so as to be guided into the guide pin hole 11c when the positions coincide with each other.
The guide pin 15 can be reliably and smoothly inserted into the guide pin hole 11c. Each of the engaging portions 28 having entered between the pair of engaging portions 37 is a housing 32 for the engaging portion 37.
When it engages with the engagement end 37b formed at the tip in the protruding direction from the optical connector ferrules 11, the urging forces of the springs 24 and 35 for pressing the two optical connector ferrules 11 effectively act as a butting force between the optical connector ferrules 11. In FIG. 6 and the like, a configuration in which the guide pin 15 and the pin clamp 16 are provided on the optical connector ferrule 11 on the male optical connector plug 20 side is illustrated. Guide pin 1 on connector ferrule 11
5 and a pin clamp 16 can also be provided.

(Pull Out of Male Optical Connector Plug) The male optical connector plug 2 is
In order to release the connection from the optical connector adapter 40 and pull it out of the optical connector adapter 40, first, the release lever 27 of the male optical connector plug 20 is pressed to operate the latch 23 and the housing 21.
The latch 23 is elastically deformed by using the gap 20a between the male plug storage portion 41 and the male plug storage portion 41. The engagement of the portion 41 with the side wall is released, and then the male optical connector plug 20 is moved in the pulling-out direction, that is, to the right in FIG.

When the extraction of the male optical connector plug 20 from the optical connector adapter 40 is started, the engaging portions 28,
The engagement housing 32 is moved together with the male optical connector plug 20 by sliding movement from the female optical connector plug 30 while the 37 are still engaged with each other, and the engaging housing 32 is moved from the housing distal end 31a of the female optical connector plug 30 to the engaging portion. 37 is withdrawn. Then, as shown in FIG. 7, both engagement portions 37 on the engagement housing 32 side are connected to the optical connector adapter 40.
When the male optical connector plug 20 is further moved in the pulling-out direction, the two disengagement portions are respectively moved on the tapered contact surfaces 44a of the pair of projecting disengagement portions 44 provided in the connection region 43. Each of the engaging portions 37 is disengaged from the engaging portion 28 of the male optical connector plug 20 by being deformed such that the space between the two engaging portions 37 is expanded by the tapered shape of the contact surface 44a of the 44. (Separation from the engagement position), the engagement is released. As a result, the male optical connector plug 2
0 is pulled out from the optical connector adapter 40 by continuing the movement in the pulling-out direction. At this time, as the engaging portion 37 of the female optical connector plug 30 is pulled out from the housing distal end 31a, the housing distal end 31
9a may be deformed so as to abut the engagement release piece 31b and ride on the engagement release piece 31b (see FIG. 9B). This contributes to the disengagement of the joint 37.

After pulling out the male optical connector plug 20 from the optical connector adapter 40, the optical connector adapter 40
The female optical connector plug 30 remaining in the latch 33 and the female plug housing 4 are pressed by the release lever 39.
2 is released from the side wall, and then pulled from the female plug accommodating portion 42 side to thereby remove the optical connector adapter 4.
It can be easily pulled out from zero. The disengagement between the latch 33 and the side wall of the female plug accommodating portion 42 is brought closer to the housing 31 by using the gap 30 a between the housing 31 and the latch 33 by pressing the release lever 39. By elastically deforming the latch 33 in this manner, the tip of the latch 33 may be disengaged from the latch engagement hole 42c of the female plug storage portion 42.

(Pull Out of Female Optical Connector Plug) In order to pull out the female optical connector plug 30 engaged with the male optical connector plug 20 in the optical connector adapter 40 from the optical connector adapter 40, first, By pressing the release lever portion 39, the engagement between the latch 33 and the side wall portion of the female plug storage portion 42 is released, and then the optical connector adapter is pulled from the female plug storage portion 42 side. 40 can be easily pulled out. Latch 33
And the side wall of the female plug accommodating portion 42 is released.
By pressing the release lever 39, the housing 31
When the latch 33 is elastically deformed so as to approach the housing 31 using the gap 30a between the latch 33 and the latch 33, the tip of the latch 33 is disengaged from the latch engagement hole 42c of the female plug storage portion 42. good.

When the female optical connector plug 30 is pulled out of the optical connector adapter 40, the portion of the housing 31 protruding from the optical connector adapter 40, that is, the release lever portion 39 for operating the release lever portion 39. Hold the housing 31 in the vicinity of 39 and release lever 3
9 is operated to release the engagement between the latch 33 and the side wall of the female plug storage portion 42, and the pull-out operation is performed as it is.
Here, in the female optical connector plug 30, first, the male optical connector plug 2
The housing 31 starts to slide in the pulling-out direction with respect to the engagement housing 32 retained with respect to 0, and the engagement housing 32 does not move until the engagement between the engagement portions 28 and 37 is released. . As shown in FIG. 9 (b), as the housing 31 moves, the engagement release piece 31b of the housing distal end portion 31a is engaged with the female optical connector plug 30 from the front in the insertion direction with respect to the optical connector adapter 40. When the engaging portion 37 comes into contact with the portion 37 and is elastically deformed outward from the housing distal end portion 31a (separation from the engaging position), the engagement between the engaging portions 28 and 37 is released. After the engagement between the engagement portions 28 and 37 is released, the engagement housing 32 is engaged with the housing 31 by an engagement portion (not shown) so that the engagement housing 32 is pulled by the housing 31. The housings 31 and 32 are pulled out of the optical connector adapter 40. After pulling out the female optical connector plug 30 from the optical connector adapter 40, if the engaging housing 32 is pushed into the housing 31, the engaging portion 37 is in the original state (the state where the engaging portion 37 is housed in the slit 31c of the housing distal end portion 31a). ), And can be used again for connection with the male optical connector plug 20. After the female optical connector plug 30 is pulled out from the optical connector adapter 40, the male optical connector plug 20 can be easily released from the optical connector adapter 40 only by releasing the engagement of the latch 23 with the optical connector adapter 40. Can be pulled out.

According to the optical connector 10, the elastically deformable engaging portions 28 at the tips of the optical connector plugs 20, 30 are provided.
The engagement between the 37 allows the optical connector plugs 20 and 30 to slightly float within the optical connector adapter 40 while maintaining the positioning state and the connection state between the distal ends of the optical connector plugs 20 and 30. Optical connector plug 20,
Since the connection state between the optical connector ferrules 11 can be secured without being affected by the floating of the optical connector 30, there is no need to provide a positioning component such as an internal housing in the optical connector adapter 40, and the optical connector adapter having the internal housing The number of parts constituting the optical connector adapter 40 can be extremely reduced as compared with the case of FIG. In addition, there is no need for a configuration for housing the inner housing and the like so as to be able to float in the intended floating range.
0 has a simple structure and can be easily formed.
It is possible to improve manufacturing efficiency and assembling efficiency and reduce costs. As a result, it is possible to easily improve the manufacturing efficiency and the assembly efficiency of the entire optical connector 10 and reduce the cost.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that various modifications are possible. For example, the specific shapes of the male optical connector plug, the female optical connector plug, and the optical connector adapter to which the present invention is applied can be appropriately changed. In the above embodiment, the so-called R
Although the male and female optical connector plugs having a shape similar to the J-type optical connector have been illustrated, the invention is not limited thereto. For example, a connector having no latch, specifically, an MPO optical connector,
It is needless to say that the present invention can be applied to an MU type optical connector and the like. In the above embodiment, as the engaging portion on the female optical connector plug side, an elastic claw projected from an engaging housing slidably movable with respect to the housing is exemplified, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which an elastic claw provided slidably and slidably is used as an engaging portion, with the housing tip itself of the housing as a guide portion. In this case, it is necessary to provide a guide mechanism for an elastic claw as an engaging portion at the tip of the housing (however, a guide mechanism capable of preventing the hook from being pulled out by pulling out). There is an advantage that downsizing can be realized.

[0028]

As described above, according to the optical connector of the present invention, the engagement portions provided at the insertion end portion of the male optical connector plug and the housing end portion of the female optical connector plug, respectively. The optical connector ferrule at the tip of each optical connector plug is positioned by engaging the two optical connector plugs with each other so as to be disengageably engaged. There is no need to provide a positioning mechanism such as an internal housing, and the number of components is reduced, and the structure is simplified, thereby achieving an excellent effect of realizing low cost.

According to the optical connector of the present invention, the optical connector adapter is provided with an engaging portion which is an elastic claw that is pulled out from a distal end of the female optical connector plug in the insertion direction with respect to the optical connector adapter. The male optical connector plug is elastically deformed by contacting the engagement release portion and is separated from the engagement position with the engagement portion on the male optical connector plug side. By pulling it out, moving the engaging portions of the male and female optical connector plugs in the engaged state, and bringing the disengaging portion into contact with the engaging portion on the female optical connector plug side to elastically deform the engaging portion. An excellent effect is obtained in that the engagement between the optical connector adapters can be easily released and the male optical connector plug can be pulled out from the optical connector adapter by a simple operation.

According to the optical connector of the third aspect, the engaging portion that can be pulled out from the distal end of the female optical connector plug in the insertion direction with respect to the optical connector adapter is a housing distal end of the housing distal end of the female optical connector plug. The optical connector adapter is elastically deformed by being brought into contact with the engagement release piece provided on the male optical connector plug and is separated from the engagement position with the engagement portion on the male optical connector plug side. By pulling out the housing of the female optical connector plug from, the housing is slid with respect to the engaging portion engaged with the engaging portion on the male optical connector plug side, and The engagement between the engagement portions can be easily released by elastically deforming the engagement portion on the female optical connector plug side by the engagement release piece,
An excellent effect is obtained in that the male optical connector plug can be pulled out from the optical connector adapter by a simple operation.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing a male optical connector plug of an optical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein (a) is a front view,
(B) is a side view seen from the front end side in the connection direction, and (c) is a cross-sectional view.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a female optical connector plug of the optical connector according to one embodiment of the present invention. (A) is a front view,
(B) is a plan view, (c) is a side view as viewed from the front end side in the connection direction, and (d) is a cross-sectional view.

3A and 3B are diagrams showing a housing constituting the female optical connector plug of FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 3A is a plan view, FIG. 3B is a front view, and FIG. 3C is a front sectional view.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are views showing an engagement housing constituting the female optical connector plug of FIG. 2, wherein FIG.
(B) is a front view, (c) is a front sectional view.

FIG. 5 is a view showing an optical connector adapter of the optical connector according to the embodiment of the present invention, wherein (a) is a perspective view,
(B) is a perspective view from the side of the male plug housing portion into which the male optical connector plug is inserted, and (c) is a sectional view.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the optical connector according to the embodiment of the present invention, in which a male optical connector plug and a female optical connector plug are inserted into an optical connector adapter and connected. .

FIG. 7 is a view showing a step of pulling out a male optical connector plug of the optical connector of FIG. 6 from the optical connector adapter, wherein an engaging portion of the female optical connector plug corresponds to a disengaging portion of the optical connector adapter. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which was brought into contact and the engagement with the male optical connector plug was released.

FIG. 8 is a view showing a step of pulling out the female optical connector plug of the optical connector of FIG. 6 from the optical connector adapter, wherein a pair of engaging portions on the female optical connector plug side is a housing of the female optical connector plug; FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the engagement with the male optical connector plug is released by being pressed and deformed by the engagement release piece.

9A and 9B are cross-sectional views illustrating a relationship between an engagement portion of an engagement housing and an engagement release piece of the housing in the female optical connector plug of FIG. 2, wherein FIG. (B) shows a state in which the engagement claw is pressed and deformed by the engagement release piece.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a conventional optical connector.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 optical connector, 11 optical connector ferrule, 20
... optical connector plug, 22 ... insertion tip, 28 ... engaging part (elastic claw), 30 ... female optical connector plug, 31 ... housing, 31a ... housing tip, 31b ... engaging piece, 37 ... engaging Parts (elastic claws), 40 ... optical connector adapter, 44 ... engagement release part.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Yasuhiro Tamaki 1440, Mukurosaki, Sakura City, Chiba Prefecture Inside Fujikura Sakura Office (72) Inventor Yoshikazu Nomura 1440, Musaki, Sakura City, Chiba Prefecture Inside Fujikura Sakura Office F Terms (reference) 2H036 NA05 QA03 QA47 QA49 QA57

Claims (3)

[Claims] A male optical connector plug (20) inserted into the optical connector adapter (40) from one side and a female optical connector plug (30) inserted into the optical connector adapter from the other side. A housing distal end (31a) of the female optical connector plug housing (31) inserted into the optical connector adapter; and an insertion distal end of the male optical connector plug inserted into the optical connector adapter. Tip (2
2), the engaging portions (28, 37) provided in the above are detachably engaged with each other, so that the optical connector ferrules (11) held at the housing distal end and the insertion distal end, respectively, are connected to each other. An optical connector (10) characterized in that a butt state is maintained. 2. The female optical connector plug, wherein the engaging portion provided at the distal end portion of the housing is an elastic claw that can be pulled out forward in a direction of insertion of the female optical connector plug into the optical connector adapter. The optical connector adapter is brought into contact with the engaging portion pulled out from the distal end portion of the housing of the female optical connector plug, thereby elastically deforming the engaging portion so that the male optical connector plug side 2. The optical connector according to claim 1, further comprising an engagement release portion for separating from an engagement position with the engagement portion. 3. The female optical connector plug, wherein the engaging portion provided at the distal end of the housing is an elastic claw that can be pulled out forward in the insertion direction of the female optical connector plug with respect to the optical connector adapter. At the front end of the housing, the female optical connector plug is brought into contact with the engaging portion provided at the front end of the housing from the front side in the insertion direction with respect to the optical connector adapter, thereby elastically deforming the engaging portion. An engagement release piece (31b) for separating from an engagement position with an engagement portion of the optical connector plug side is provided.
Optical connector as described.