JP2003185879A - Backboard housing of optical connector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve operability, to make structure simple and to facilitate the installation of an optical shutter. <P>SOLUTION: The backboard housing comprises a housing body 20 which is formed in a near square cylinder as a whole; which has an extension 22 on one end of a side plate 21, with a side groove 23 prepared on the outer face of the side plate 21 and the extension 22, and with an engaging projection 24 projectingly provided in the side groove 23; and which has a package housing 2 fittingly inserted into the tip end and provided with a jack 6 connected to the tip end of an optical cable. The backboard housing also comprises an optical shutter 30 which is provided, at the tip end, with a contact piece 32 that is in contact with the package housing 2 and that is bent slightly inward from the right angle relative to the inserting direction A of the package housing 2; which is also provided, successively at the tip end, with a shutter piece 33 nearly orthogonally crossing the inserting direction of the package housing 2; and which is made of a belt-like elastic metallic plate formed with an engaging hole 31 that is freely attachably/detachably engaged with the engaging projection 24. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a backboard housing for an optical connector.

[0002]

Optical connectors are used to transmit laser beams used in optical communications. This optical connector is formed by a package housing in which a jack connected to the tip of an optical cable is mounted and a backboard housing in which a plug corresponding to the jack is mounted. Then, by inserting and fitting the package housing into the tip portion of the backboard housing, the corresponding optical cable and plug are located on the same axis, and the laser beam from the plug can be transmitted to the optical cable.

In such an optical connector, when the laser beam is focused on the human body, particularly the retina of the eye, it causes a trouble. For this reason, an optical shutter that blocks the laser light is arranged on the emission side (backboard housing) of the optical connector that is continuous with the laser light source.

The conventional optical shutter has a structure of being manually opened and closed, or a structure in which a mounting bracket is mounted on a backboard housing and the optical shutter is mounted on the mounting bracket via a spring. In the latter structure, the optical shutter is biased by the spring so as to close the optical path of the laser beam, and when connecting the package housing, the optical shutter is opened against the spring force to enable optical communication. .

[0005]

However, the structure for manually opening and closing is complicated because it requires an operation for opening and closing. In particular, when the number of optical cables to be connected is large, opening and closing operations for the number of optical cables are required, which causes a problem of increasing complexity.

On the other hand, in the structure in which the optical shutter is biased by the spring, the operability is improved, but on the other hand, a member for mounting the optical shutter such as a spring or a mounting bracket is required, and the number of parts is large and the structure is large. It is complicated. Further, there is also a problem that mounting of the optical shutter is troublesome.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above conventional problems, and not only improves operability but also has a simple structure and an optical shutter backboard in which an optical shutter can be easily attached. The purpose is to provide a housing.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1 is a backboard housing in which a package housing having a jack connected to the tip of an optical cable is inserted and fitted from the tip. And a housing body to which the package housing fits,
An optical shutter that has a shutter piece that extends into the insertion path of the package housing and that retracts from the insertion path in conjunction with the insertion of the package housing, and that is made of a band-shaped elastic metal plate that is directly and detachably attached to the housing body. It is characterized by having.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the optical shutter is directly attached to the housing body, so that the shutter piece of the optical shutter penetrates into the insertion path of the package housing to shield the laser beam. Further, the optical shutter is made of a band-shaped elastic metal plate and retracts from the insertion path in association with the insertion of the package housing of the housing body, so that the optical path of the laser beam is opened and the laser beam can be transmitted.
On the other hand, when the package housing is removed, the elastic force causes the optical shutter to enter the entrance path of the package housing and shield the laser beam.

In such an invention, the operability is improved because the optical shutter is opened and closed in conjunction with the attachment and detachment of the package housing. Further, since the optical shutter has elastic force, it opens and closes in conjunction with the attachment and detachment of the package housing, so a spring for opening and closing the optical shutter is unnecessary, and since the optical shutter is directly attached to the backboard housing, It is easy to install, has a small number of parts, and has a simple structure.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the backboard housing for an optical connector according to the first aspect, wherein an engaging portion that can be engaged and disengaged is formed at a predetermined portion of the outer surface of the housing body and a corresponding portion of the optical shutter. The optical shutter side engaging portion is provided with a contact piece that is bent from the tip of the housing body into the insertion path and comes into contact with the package housing.
The shutter piece is connected to the contact piece so as to be substantially orthogonal to the insertion direction of the package housing.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the optical shutter is attached and detached via the engaging portion formed on the housing body and the optical shutter, so that the attachment can be easily performed.

Further, since the shutter piece is substantially orthogonal to the insertion direction of the package housing, the laser beam can be surely shielded and the safety is improved. Further, since the shutter piece is connected to the contact piece, when the package housing comes into contact with the contact piece, the shutter piece retreats from the entry path via the contact piece. Therefore, the optical path of the laser beam can be reliably opened.

A third aspect of the present invention is the backboard housing for an optical connector according to the second aspect, wherein one of the engaging portions is an engaging protrusion and the other is an engaging hole.

By thus forming the engaging portion with the engaging projection and the engaging hole, the optical shutter can be easily attached and detached.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the whole is formed in a substantially rectangular tube shape, an extension portion is provided on one of the side plate portions, and a lateral groove is provided on an outer surface of the side plate portion and the extension portion, and the lateral groove is engaged with the lateral groove. A housing main body that is provided with protrusions and has a jack connected to the tip of the optical cable is inserted into the tip of the housing, and is fitted into the housing body. A contact piece with the bent package housing and a shutter piece that is substantially orthogonal to the insertion direction of the package housing are continuously provided on the front end side, and an engagement hole that engages with the engagement protrusion in a disengageable manner is formed. And an optical shutter made of a strip-shaped elastic metal plate.

According to the invention of claim 4, the optical shutter is attached to the housing body by engaging the engaging hole of the optical shutter with the engaging projection of the housing body. Therefore, the optical shutter can be easily attached and detached.

Further, since the shutter piece is substantially orthogonal to the entering direction of the package housing, the laser beam can be surely shielded and the safety is improved.

Further, the optical shutter is made of a band-shaped elastic metal plate, the shutter piece is retracted by inserting the package housing into the housing body and contacting the contact piece, and the shutter piece is restored by removing the package housing. It is possible to open and close in conjunction with attachment and detachment of the housing, which improves operability, and has a small number of parts, which allows a simple structure.

[0020]

1 to 9 show an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a backboard housing,
2 is a sectional view from the plane, FIG. 3 is a sectional view from the plane showing the operation of the optical shutter, FIGS. 4 to 6 are perspective views showing the operation of connecting the optical connector, and FIGS. 7 to 10 are the optical connectors. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view from the plane showing the operation of the connection of FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 10, the optical connector includes a backboard housing 1 and a package housing 2 mounted on brackets 3 and 4, respectively, and the package housing 2 is inserted into the backboard housing 1. Then, the laser beams are connected by fitting them. That is, the package housing 2
Is inserted into the backboard housing 1, the optical cable 5 of the backboard housing 1 and the optical cable 6 of the package housing 2 corresponding to the optical cable 5 are positioned on the coaxial line, and the laser beam is connected. In this embodiment, two optical cables 5 and 6 are arranged above and below, but the corresponding optical cables 5 and 6 are
6 may be a singular number or may be 3 or more.

The backboard housing 1 is provided with a housing body 20 formed in a substantially rectangular tube shape, and the plug 7 is attached to the rear portion of the housing body 20. The plug 7 is connected to the tip of the optical cable 5, and a ferrule 5a for emitting a laser beam from the optical cable 5 projects from the tip side.

The housing body 20 of the backboard housing 1 has a mounting hole 8 into which each plug 7 is inserted and fitted.
Are formed in the upper and lower two stages at the rear. An engaging piece 10 with which the plug 7 is engaged is provided on the front side of each mounting hole 8.
Are formed.

On the other hand, the package housing 2 is mounted with a jack 9 connected to the tip of the optical cable 6. The jacks 9 are mounted on the package housing 2 by being inserted into and fitted into the respective mounting holes 11 formed in the upper and lower two stages on the back surface of the package housing 2. An engagement piece 12 that engages with the jack 9 is formed in each of the mounting holes 11.

A cylindrical sleeve holder 13 surrounding the ferrule 6a of the optical cable 6 is attached to the tip of each jack 3. This sleeve holder 1
3 includes a ferrule 5a on the plug 7 side when the package housing 2 is fitted to the backboard housing 1.
Is inserted, whereby the optical cables 5 and 6 are connected.

The optical cables 5 and 6 are connected by inserting and fitting the package housing 2 into the opening of the front end of the housing body 20 of the backboard housing 1. To guide the insertion, a rectangular guide hole 14 is formed in the upper and lower surfaces of the housing body 20, and a guide piece 15 that slides in the guide hole 14 is formed in the upper and lower surfaces of the package housing 2. Has been done. A lock mechanism 14 for locking the fitted state of the backboard housing 1 and the package housing 2 is provided on the left and right inner surfaces of the guide hole 14 and on the left and right outer surfaces of the guide piece 15.
a and 15a are formed.

Of the left and right side plates 20 and 21 forming the outer surface of the housing body 20 of the backboard housing 1, one side plate 21 is integrally provided with an extension 22 extending in the direction of the package housing 2. Has been done. The lateral grooves 23 are formed in the side plate portion 21 and the extension portion 22 in upper and lower two steps. Each lateral groove 23 corresponds to the plug 7 attached to the backboard housing 1. Further, each lateral groove 23 is formed with an engagement protrusion 24 protruding in a triangular shape. An optical shutter 30 is detachably attached to each lateral groove 23.

The optical shutter 30 is made of a band-shaped elastic metal plate formed by pressing. The optical shutter 30 made of a band-shaped elastic metal plate is detachably attached to the housing body 20 of the backboard housing so as to extend along the insertion direction A of the package housing 2. At the time of mounting, the optical shutter 30 is inserted into each lateral groove 23 formed on the outer surface of the housing body 20.
By being inserted into the lateral groove 23, the optical shutter 30 is stably attached to the housing body 20, and the laser beam can be reliably shielded by the shutter piece 33 described later.

The optical shutter 30 has an engaging hole 31 that engages with the engaging protrusion 24 of the housing body 20, and the optical shutter 30 is attached to the housing body 20 by engaging with the engaging protrusion 24. Therefore, the engagement protrusion 24 and the engagement hole 31 form an engagement portion for attaching the optical shutter 30 to the housing body 20.

The optical shutter 30 extends from the engagement hole 31 in the insertion direction A of the package housing 2, and a contact piece 32 and a shutter piece 33 are continuously provided at the tip end portion thereof.

The contact piece 32 is formed by bending the contact piece 32 slightly inward with respect to the insertion direction A of the package housing. That is, the contact piece 32 is bent at an acute angle with respect to the length direction of the optical shutter 30. The contact piece 32 is used as the extension 2 of the housing body 20.
2 enters the insertion path B of the package housing 2 from the front end surface of the package housing 2, and comes into contact with the package housing 2 when the package housing 2 is inserted into the housing body 20.

The shutter piece 33 is connected to the tip portion of the connection piece 32. The shutter piece 33 connects the connection piece 3 so as to be substantially orthogonal to the insertion direction A of the package housing 2.
It is bent from the tip of 2. By being bent in this way, the shutter piece 33 can move to the package housing 2
Extending into the insertion path B and acts so as to shield the insertion path B.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.
An optical shutter 30 is attached to the housing body 20 of the backboard housing 1 in advance. Therefore, in this state, the shutter piece 33 of the optical shutter 30 blocks the laser beam as shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, the backboard housing 1 in which the plug 7 is attached to the housing body 20 and the package housing 2 in which the jack 9 is attached are opposed to each other. In this state, the package housing 2 is brought relatively close to the backboard housing 1.

As a result, as shown in FIGS. 3, 5 and 9, the tip portion of the package housing 2 slides while contacting the extension portion 22 of the housing body 20. From the tip of the housing body 20, the contact portion 32 of the optical shutter 30 and the shutter piece 33 enter the insertion path B of the package housing 2, and the contact portion 32 contacts the package housing 2. Due to this contact, the optical shutter 30 is elastically bent from the tip portion of the extension portion 22 of the housing main body 20 along the inner surface of the extension portion 22 as shown in FIG. Thereby, the shutter piece 33 of the optical shutter 30
Can be retracted from the insertion path B in association with the insertion of the package housing 2.

Further, when the package housing 2 is fitted into the housing body 20 of the backboard housing 1 so as to be relatively close to the backboard housing 1 of the package housing 2, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. The lock mechanisms 14a and 15a formed on the board housing 1 and the package housing 2 are engaged with each other. At the same time, the ferrule 5a on the plug 7 side is inserted into the sleeve holder 13 on the jack 9 side, and the optical cables 5 and 6 are connected.

On the other hand, when the package housing 2 is removed from the backboard housing 1, the optical shutter 30 is elastically restored, and the shutter piece 33 enters the insertion path B. This shields the laser beam.

In such an embodiment, the shutter piece 33 of the optical shutter 30 is automatically retracted from the insertion path B in association with the insertion of the package housing 2 into the backboard housing 1, so that the optical shutter 30 can be inserted. The operation is not necessary and the operability is improved. Therefore, a spring for urging the optical shutter 30 in the direction of blocking the laser beam and a mounting bracket for mounting the optical shutter 30 on the housing body 20 are not necessary, and a simple structure with a small number of parts can be obtained. .

The optical shutter 30 is mounted on the housing body 20 only by engaging the engaging hole 31 with the engaging protrusion 24 of the housing body 20, and the optical shutter 30 can be easily attached and detached. it can. Furthermore, since the contact piece 32 of the optical shutter 30 comes into contact with the package housing 2 and is pressed by fitting the package housing 2 into the backboard housing 1, the shutter piece 33 can be reliably retracted from the insertion path B. it can.

In addition, since the shutter piece 33 extends along the direction substantially orthogonal to the insertion direction of the package housing 2, the laser beam can be reliably shielded and the safety is improved.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but various modifications can be made. For example, an engaging groove and an engaging hole that are recessed may be formed on the outer surface of the housing body 20, and an engaging protrusion that engages with these may be formed on the optical shutter 30. Further, as the metal material for the optical shutter 30, any material having elasticity may be used, and phosphor bronze, stainless steel, shape memory alloy, or other materials may be used.

[0041]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the optical shutter is opened / closed in association with the attachment / detachment of the package housing, so that the operability is improved and the optical shutter has an elastic force. Since it opens and closes in conjunction with attachment and detachment, a spring for opening and closing the optical shutter is unnecessary, and since the optical shutter is directly attached to the backboard housing, installation is easy, the number of parts is small, and the structure is simple. Become.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the invention, the optical shutter can be easily attached, and the laser beam can be surely shielded. Further, the safety is improved, and furthermore, the shutter piece retracts from the entry path through the contact piece, so that the optical path of the laser beam can be reliably opened.

According to the invention of claim 3, in addition to the effect of the invention of claim 2, the optical shutter can be easily attached and detached.

According to the invention of claim 4, the optical shutter is attached to the housing body by engaging the engaging hole of the optical shutter with the engaging protrusion of the housing body.
The optical shutter can be easily attached and detached. Further, since the shutter piece is substantially orthogonal to the intrusion direction of the package housing, it is possible to reliably shield the laser beam,
Safety is improved. Further, since the optical shutter is made of a band-shaped elastic metal plate, it can be opened / closed in association with the attachment / detachment of the package housing, the operability is improved, the number of parts is small, and the structure can be simplified.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a backboard housing according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view from the plane of the backboard housing.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view from a plane showing the operation of assembling the package housing.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state before connection of the package housing.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the middle of connection of the package housing.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a connected state of a package housing.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view from the plane before inserting the plug and the jack.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view from a plane corresponding to FIG.

9 is a cross-sectional view from a plane corresponding to FIG.

10 is a cross-sectional view from a plane corresponding to FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 backboard housing 2 Package housing 5, 6 optical cable 9 Jack 20 housing body 21 Side plate 22 Extension 23 Yokomizo 24 Engagement protrusion 30 optical shutter 31 Engagement hole 32 contact pieces 33 Shutter piece A Package housing insertion direction B Package housing insertion path

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A backboard housing in which a package housing having a jack connected to a tip of an optical cable is inserted and fitted from a tip portion, wherein a housing body into which the package housing is fitted and a package housing insertion. The shutter has a shutter piece that extends into the path and retracts from the insertion path in conjunction with the insertion of the package housing, and includes an optical shutter made of a band-shaped elastic metal plate that is directly and detachably attached to the housing body. An optical connector backboard housing characterized by the following. 2. An engaging portion that can be engaged and disengaged is formed at a predetermined portion on the outer surface of the housing body and a corresponding portion of the optical shutter, and the engaging portion on the optical shutter side is inserted from the tip of the housing body to the insertion path. 2. A contact piece that is bent inward and contacts the package housing is continuously provided, and the shutter piece is continuously provided to the contact piece so as to be substantially orthogonal to the insertion direction of the package housing. Optical connector backboard housing. 3. The backboard housing for an optical connector according to claim 2, wherein one of the engaging portions is an engaging protrusion and the other is an engaging hole. 4. The whole is formed in a substantially rectangular tube shape, an extension portion is provided on one of the side plate portions, a lateral groove is formed in an outer surface of the side plate portion and the extension portion, and an engaging projection is projected in the lateral groove. A housing body into which a package housing having a jack connected to the end of the optical cable is inserted and fitted in the end portion; and a package housing bent slightly inward from the insertion direction of the package housing. From a strip-shaped elastic metal plate in which a contact piece for contacting with and a shutter piece that is substantially orthogonal to the insertion direction of the package housing are continuously provided on the front end side, and an engagement hole that engages with the engagement protrusion in a disengageable manner is formed. An optical connector backboard housing, comprising: