JP2003149513A - O/e conversion connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an O/E (optical and electric signals) conversion connector which can be supplied with electric power not through an independent power source connector and made small-sized. SOLUTION: The connector is characterized in that guide pins 27 and 27a which guide and position a light receiving element 2 and an optical transmission medium 10 in contact by being inserted into guide holes 15a provided to a housing 15 holding the optical transmission medium 10 are arranged nearby both the ends of a connector case 20 which contains the light receiving and emitting element 2; and the guide holes 15a serve as a power source connector part which is supplied with the electric power and the guide pins 27 and 27a function as a power supply part which supplies the electric power to the guide holes 15a as the power source connector part.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an O / E conversion connector for mutually converting an electric signal and an optical signal, and more specifically, it reflects / diffuses an optical signal incident from an entrance / exit portion provided on an end face. The present invention relates to an O / E conversion connector for mutually converting an electric signal and an optical signal, which are connected to an optical transmission medium which is transmitted to another input / output unit via a light emitting / receiving element.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the rapid spread of the Internet and multimedia, the amount of information to be processed by various processing devices has increased remarkably today. In various processing devices as network terminals, in order to improve information processing capability, speeding up and multi-processoring of processors and increasing capacity of internal memory of the system have been attempted. However, since the connection between the high-performance devices that make up such a processing device has been conventionally performed by electrical wiring made of metal, problems such as signal delay and power consumption due to wiring capacitance and resistance occur and bottleneck of data processing capability. It becomes a bottleneck and the processing speed is limited. Further, in the electric wiring, there are problems that the driving frequency and fan-out are restricted by the wiring length, and the wiring area and power consumption increase.

As a technique for solving these problems, an optical interconnection technique for transmitting signals at an extremely high speed using an optical sheet bus, which is a sheet-like optical transmission medium different from the conventional optical fiber transmission, is drawing attention. . Here, the principle of the optical sheet bath will be briefly described. FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view showing the principle of the optical sheet bath. As best shown in FIG. 1, a light sheet bus 10 has a light transmitted therethrough to form a light guide path.
A flat plate-shaped core layer 100 made of a material such as MA (Polymethylmethacrylate), and a clad layer 1 which is a fluororesin coating applied so as to cover the upper and lower surfaces of the core layer 100.
It is composed of 01. Then, a diffusion film (not shown) for optimally diffusing and distributing the light is adhered to both end surfaces 100a and 100b of the core layer 100 through which the light enters and exits, and a plurality of the light emitting and receiving sections for entering and emitting the light. Are arranged at predetermined intervals.

The optical signal L1 converted from the electric signal E1 by O / E conversion is converted into the end surface 10 of the optical sheet bus 10 described above.
When entering from the entrance / exit section A of 0a (only one place is shown for explanation), the optical signal is opposed to the end surface 100b by the diffusion film.
In addition to being diffusely transmitted to the core layer 100, the total reflection on the upper and lower surfaces of the core layer 100 is repeated to reach the entire surface of the end surface 100b facing the optical signal directly reaching the surface almost evenly. Therefore,
The arrived optical signal L2 can be taken out from any part of the end surface 100b as an electric signal E2. Unlike the optical fiber based on the one-way communication, the M: N multicast transmission is possible. In addition, both end surfaces 100a, 1
By providing a plurality of entrance / exit portions in each of the 00b, it is possible to perform bidirectional transmission for transmitting / receiving an optical signal from any of the end faces. Further, as shown in FIG.
It is also possible to increase the number of bits of the optical signal transmission line by stacking the black PMMA 11 with the black PMMA 11 interposed therebetween. It should be noted that it is possible to realize the transmission of signals at a speed higher than that of the electric signals performed by the electric wiring. In addition, 13 shows a diffusion film. Here, Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 are excerpted from "Outline of optical sheet bus technology" shown as related material in the introduction page of optical sheet bus technology provided by Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. on the Internet. Is.

[0005]

The electric board to which the O / E conversion connector and the optical transmission medium coupled with the O / E conversion connector are connected is supplied with power to operate. Therefore, it was necessary to receive the power supply via the power connector or the like. Further, since it is necessary to dispose the power supply connector on the O / E conversion connector and the electric board, there is a restriction in miniaturization.

Therefore, in the present invention, it is possible to supply the power supply to the electric board to which the O / E conversion connector and the optical transmission medium are connected without using an independent power supply connector, and it is possible to reduce the size. It is an object to provide an O / E conversion connector.

[0007]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention according to claim 1 is to reflect / diffuse light incident from an entrance / exit portion provided on an end face to another entrance / exit portion. An O / E conversion connector, which is connected to an optical transmission medium for transmission via a light emitting / receiving element, for mutually converting an electric signal and an optical signal, and is inserted into a guide hole provided in a housing holding the optical transmission medium. Guide pins for positioning and guiding the light emitting / receiving element and the optical transmission medium so as to be in close contact with each other are arranged near both ends of the connector case accommodating the light receiving / emitting element, and the guide holes are provided with the power supply connector portion for receiving power supply. In addition, the guide pin serves as a power supply unit that supplies power to the power supply connector unit that is a guide hole, to provide an O / E conversion connector.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention according to claim 2 provides the O / E conversion connector according to claim 1, wherein the power supply unit is provided with a power supply terminal and a ground terminal. It is characterized by

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention according to claim 3 provides the O / E conversion connector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the power supply portion is arranged in the central portion and formed in a columnar shape. The power supply terminal for supplying the power, the insulating portion arranged to cover the periphery of the power supply terminal, and the ground terminal provided around the insulating portion.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention according to claim 4 provides an optical transmission medium for transmitting the light incident from an entrance / exit portion provided on an end face to another entrance / exit portion while reflecting / diffusing the light. An O / E conversion connector for mutually converting an electrical signal and an optical signal connected via a light emitting / receiving element, the light receiving / emitting element by inserting a guide pin provided in a housing holding an optical transmission medium. Guide holes for guiding the optical transmission medium and the optical transmission medium while closely contacting each other are arranged in the vicinity of both ends of the connector case accommodating the light receiving and emitting elements, and the guide holes serve as power supply connector portions for receiving power supply and guides. The pin is a power supply unit that supplies power to the power connector unit that is a guide hole.
Provide an E conversion connector.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention according to claim 5 provides the O / E conversion connector according to claim 4, wherein the power supply connector section includes a power supply terminal having a power supply terminal and a ground terminal. It is characterized by having a shape for receiving a part.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention according to claim 6 provides the O / E conversion connector according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the power supply connector portion is arranged in the central portion and is formed in a cylindrical shape. A power input terminal that contacts the power supply terminal to receive power, and a ground input terminal that contacts the ground terminal provided around the insulating portion arranged to cover the power supply terminal. It is characterized by being configured.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of an O / E conversion connector according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. 3 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the O / E conversion connector according to the present invention, FIG. 4 is a plan view of the O / E conversion connector shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 5 is a front view thereof, and FIG. 6 is a side view thereof. Figure,
FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of the O / E conversion connector shown in FIG.

First, O in the embodiment shown in FIG.
The / E conversion connector 1 is roughly a connector case 2
0, a package 21 incorporating the light emitting and receiving element 2, and an FPC (flexible pri
nting circuit) 23 and a guide pin 27 that is inserted into a guide hole 15a formed in the housing 15 that holds the corresponding optical sheet bus 10.
On the other hand, in the housing 15, the optical sheet bus 10 and a board 16 on which various electronic components are mounted are arranged.

The connector case 20 is made of an insulating material made of synthetic resin and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape with a space for accommodating various members inside. Mounting holes for projecting the packages 21 are arranged in a row on the front surface of the connector case 20 in a row at six locations according to the number of the packages 21 arranged at a predetermined interval along the longitudinal direction, and a total of 12 locations over two rows. Has been drilled. Needless to say, the number of packages 21 provided is an example, and the number is not limited to this.

Guide pins 27, 27 are arranged in the vicinity of both ends of the front surface of the connector case 20 so as to project therefrom. As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, by inserting the guide pins 27 into the guide holes 15a formed in the housing 15 in which the six optical sheet buses 10 are arranged, a plurality of guide pins 27 are provided in front of the connector case 20. The package 21 is positioned and guided so as to be in close contact with each of the plurality of entrance / exit portions 10a (see FIG. 13) provided on the optical sheet bus 10 at the opposite position. Further, another guide pin 27a is arranged on the lower side of the left guide pin 27 in FIG. 3, and a guide hole (not shown) into which the guide pin 27a is inserted is also formed at a predetermined position of the housing 15. ing. Here, in FIG. 12, the entrance / exit portions 10a are provided at the locations (48 locations) where the respective packages 21 are located, but for ease of viewing the drawing, only one row is labeled. The number of the optical sheet buses 10 arranged is not limited to six.

Guide pin 2 bored in the housing 15
As shown in FIG. 7, the guide hole 15a in which the guide pin 27 on the left side in FIG. 3 is inserted and the guide hole in which the guide pin 27a is inserted are Power supply connector section 1
7, the guide pin 27 and the guide pin 27a serve as a power supply unit that supplies power to the power connector unit 17. The guide pin 27 is a power supply terminal and is electrically connected to a conductor wire for supplying a power source (not shown), and a predetermined voltage is applied to the guide pin 27, which is a power supply terminal, through this conductor wire. On the other hand, the guide pin 27a serves as a ground terminal and is electrically connected to a ground wire (not shown). The guide pin 27 and the guide pin 27a are each formed of a metallic material having conductivity by its nature.
Since the guide pin 27 on the right side in FIG. 3 is for positioning, it need not be formed of a conductive metal material.

On the other hand, in the power supply connector section 17, a power supply input terminal 17a which is in contact with the guide pin 27 which is a power supply terminal and receives power supply, and a ground input which is in contact with the guide pin 27a which is a ground terminal and is grounded. A terminal is provided. The power input terminal 17a is connected to the housing 1
The ground input terminal is electrically connected to the substrate 15 mounted with various electronic components disposed in the housing 5, and is also electrically connected to the housing 15 to be grounded. With this configuration, the power supplied from the O / E conversion connector 1 side is supplied via the guide pin 27 which is a power supply terminal.

The structure relating to the power supply is not limited to this, and the guide pin 27 may be provided on the housing 15 side and the guide hole 15a may be provided on the connector case 20 side. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, the guide pins 27, 27 are arranged in the housing 15 so as to project, and
Guide holes 15 are provided near both ends on the front of the connector case 20.
Drill a and 15b. And the guide pin 2 on one side
Another guide pin that serves as a ground terminal is arranged on the lower side of 7. Then, the guide pin 27 and the guide holes 15a, 1
5b is provided with a power supply terminal, a power input terminal, a ground terminal, and a ground input terminal, respectively, as described above. still,
Since the specific configuration is the same as the case described above, detailed description will be omitted.

On the other hand, as a second embodiment relating to power supply, the power supply terminal and the ground terminal may be formed as one guide pin. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, the guide pin 28, which is a power supply unit, has a cylindrical power supply terminal 28a for supplying power, which is arranged in the center of the guide pin 28 so as to cover the periphery of the power supply terminal 28a. The insulating portion 28c is arranged in this manner, and the earth terminal 28b is provided around the insulating portion 28c. The power supply terminal 28a is formed so as to project further forward than the ground terminal 28b and the insulating portion 28c. Of course, the power supply terminal 28a is electrically connected to a lead wire for supplying a power source (not shown), and a predetermined voltage is applied via this lead wire.
On the other hand, the ground terminal 28b is electrically connected to a ground wire (not shown).

On the other hand, the power connector portion 29, which is a guide hole provided in the housing 15, has an insert portion 29a for receiving the power supply terminal 28a therein, and the insert portion 29a.
A power supply input terminal 29c is provided around the power supply terminal 28a so as to be in contact with the power supply terminal 28a and receive power supply. further,
In front of the insertion portion 29a, there is provided an insertion portion 29b for receiving the ground terminal 28b arranged so as to cover the periphery of the power supply terminal 28a, and a ground input terminal 29d for contacting the ground terminal 28b. Power input terminal 29c
The ground input terminal 29d and the ground input terminal 29d are formed with locking portions protruding inward so as to firmly lock the inserted power supply terminal 28a and ground terminal 28b, respectively.

The guide pin 28 constructed in this manner is provided at a predetermined position of the connector case 20, for example, on one side near both ends of the front face of the connector case 20, and at a predetermined position of the housing 15 corresponding thereto. A power supply connector section 29 is provided. On the other hand, near the front end of the connector case 20 on the opposite side. A guide pin is simply provided for positioning, and a guide hole is provided at a predetermined position of the housing 15 corresponding to the guide pin.
With this configuration, the positioning can be performed by the two guide pins arranged near both ends of the connector case 20. Of course, the above-described guide pin 28 may be provided on the housing 15 and the power supply connector portion 29 may be provided on the connector case 20.

At both ends of the rear side of the connector case 20,
Clamping unit 20 that clamps a substrate 30 on which various electronic components are mounted
a, 20a. The board 30 sandwiched between the sandwiching portions 20a, 20a has a board surface on which the sandwiching portions 20a, 20a
Fixing screws 22 and 22 are inserted at right angles from the upper side of a and are fixed to the connector case 20 by nuts 22a and 22a.

The package 21 receives an optical signal transmitted through the optical sheet bus 10 while converting an electric signal into an optical signal to emit light inside a substantially cylindrical metal frame body. The light emitting element 2 is built in. From the rear side of the package 21, the electrodes extending from the light emitting / receiving element 2 are electrically connected to the electrical wiring laid on the FPC 23.

The FPC 23 is formed by laying electrical wiring on a flexible film, and the package 2
As shown in FIG. 11, a bent portion 23a narrowed and narrowed is provided near the end on the side where 1 is disposed, and the bent portion 23a is bent into the connector case 20 at a substantially right angle. Be worn. An amplifier 29 that amplifies an electric signal converted from an optical signal is arranged near the bent portion 23a. Play can be provided by forming the bent portion 23a into a corrugated shape or the like. Package 2
It becomes possible to move the surface of No. 1 in parallel with the surface of the optical sheet bath 10 with a margin. The O / E conversion connector 1 in this embodiment is built in so that two FPCs 23 in which six packages 21 are arranged face each other in the vertical direction.

An FPC connector (not shown) is attached to the end of the FPC 23 on the side opposite to the side where the package 21 is arranged. As shown in FIG. 3, a connector corresponding to this FPC connector 23c is provided. Electrically connected to the substrate 30. The substrate 30 is also electrically connected to various electronic devices and peripheral devices. In FIG. 12, the substrate 30 is connected to the hard disk unit 31.

Two FPCs 23 with package 21
Each package 21 is bent inward at a substantially right angle at the bent portion 23a, and each package 21 is attached to the connector case 2
It is built in in a loosely inserted state so as to project outward from the corresponding mounting hole 20c of 0.

Next, the operation of the above O / E conversion connector 1 will be described. First, as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the guide pins 27, 27 are inserted into the guide holes 15a formed in the housing 15 in which the six optical sheet buses 10 are arranged, and the guide pins 27a are inserted into the guide holes. .
As a result, the optical sheet bus 1 located at a position where the plurality of packages 21 arranged in front of the connector case 20 face each other.
The guide is performed while positioning so as to be in close contact with each of the plurality of entrance / exit portions 10a provided at 0. Then, the power input terminal 17a contacts the guide pin 27, which is a power supply terminal, to receive the power supply, and the power is supplied to the board 16 on which various electronic components connected to the power input terminal 17a are mounted. Further, the ground input terminal contacts the guide pin 27a, which is a ground terminal, and is grounded.

[0029]

As described above, the O / O according to the present invention
According to the E conversion connector, the guide pin and the guide hole for positioning the O / E conversion connector and the optical sheet bus arranged in the housing are used as the power supply terminal and the power supply connector section, respectively. There is an effect that power can be supplied without mounting a connector. Further, since the guide pin and the guide hole are used as the power supply terminal and the power connector portion, respectively, there is an effect that it is possible to provide an O / E conversion connector which is smaller than the conventional one.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view showing the principle of an optical sheet bath.

FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory view showing a transmission line in which an optical sheet bus is arranged.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an embodiment of an O / E conversion connector according to the present invention.

4 is a plan view of a housing of the O / E conversion connector shown in FIG.

5 is a front view of the O / E conversion connector shown in FIG.

6 is a side view of the O / E conversion connector shown in FIG.

7 is a partial plan cross-sectional view of the O / E conversion connector shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a partial plan cross-sectional view of an O / E conversion connector of another embodiment.

9 is a front view of the O / E conversion connector shown in FIG.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a power supply unit and a power connector unit.

FIG. 11 is a side view showing a state in which the FPC is bent at the bending portion.

FIG. 12 is a plan view showing a state in which an O / E conversion connector is mounted on a hard disk unit.

FIG. 13 is a plan view showing a state in which an O / E conversion connector is mounted on a housing.

[Explanation of symbols] 1 O / E conversion connector 20 connector case 20a clamping part 21 packages 22 fixing screw 23 FPC 27 Guide pin 27a Guide pin 30 substrates

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An electric signal and an optical signal, which are connected to an optical transmission medium that reflects and diffuses light incident from an entrance / exit portion provided on an end face and transmits it to another entrance / exit portion via a light emitting / receiving element. Is an O / E conversion connector for mutually converting the optical transmission medium, and the optical transmission medium is positioned in such a manner that the light emitting / receiving element and the optical transmission medium are brought into close contact with each other by being inserted into a guide hole provided in a housing holding the optical transmission medium. Guide pins for guiding are arranged in the vicinity of both ends of a connector case accommodating the light emitting / receiving element, the guide hole serves as a power connector portion for receiving power supply, and the guide pin is the power connector serving as the guide hole. An O / E conversion connector, which is a power supply unit that supplies power to the unit. 2. The O / E conversion connector according to claim 1, wherein the power supply section includes a power supply terminal and a ground terminal. 3. The O / E conversion connector according to claim 1, wherein the power supply unit has a cylindrical power supply terminal for supplying power, and the power supply terminal. An O / E conversion connector, comprising: an insulating portion arranged so as to cover the periphery of the above, and a ground terminal provided around the insulating portion. 4. An electric signal and an optical signal connected to an optical transmission medium for reflecting and diffusing light incident from an entrance / exit portion provided on an end face and transmitting it to another entrance / exit portion via a light emitting / receiving element. Is an O / E conversion connector that mutually converts the light receiving and emitting elements and the optical transmission medium in close contact with each other by inserting a guide pin provided in a housing holding the optical transmission medium. Guide holes for guiding are arranged in the vicinity of both ends of the connector case accommodating the light emitting / receiving element, the guide holes serve as power supply connector portions for receiving power supply, and the guide pins serve as the power supply connectors serving as the guide holes. An O / E conversion connector, which is a power supply unit that supplies power to the unit. 5. The O / E conversion connector according to claim 4, wherein the power supply connector portion has a shape for receiving the power supply portion including a power supply terminal and a ground terminal. O / E conversion connector. 6. The O / E conversion connector according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the power supply connector section is contacted with a power supply terminal formed in a cylindrical shape in the central portion to receive power supply. An O / E, comprising: an input terminal; and an earth input terminal that comes into contact with an earth terminal provided around an insulating portion arranged so as to cover the power supply terminal. Conversion connector.