JP2004038023A - Optical connector assembling tool and optical fiber splicing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate operation of inserting optical fibers to an optical fiber hole of an optical connector and to butt and splice optical fibers with each other in the optical fiber hole of the optical connector by a proper contact pressure. <P>SOLUTION: An optical connector 10 incorporating an optical fiber (incorporated optical fiber 18) is held on a tool main body 2, and an insertion-side optical fiber 11 is fixed by a fixing part 7 on an optical fiber holding jig 4 and then has a front end-side part inserted to a guide part 8 and is held in a bending state by a spacer (bend holding means) 9. The optical fiber holding jig 4 is slid forward on a slide part 3 to insert the insertion-side optical fiber 11 to an optical fiber hole 10a of the optical connector 10. Next, when bend of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 is removed, the front end face of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 goes forward to strike the end face of the incorporated optical fiber 18. In this case, optical fibers are butted and spliced with a proper contact pressure by a restoring force of bend of the optical fiber when optical fibers are butted while keeping the insertion-side optical fiber 11 bent. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, an optical fiber is inserted from the outside into the optical fiber hole of a so-called optical connector having a built-in optical fiber in the optical fiber hole in advance, and the built-in optical fiber and the insertion-side optical fiber are inserted into the optical fiber hole. TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an optical connector assembling tool for butt-connecting by an optical fiber and an optical fiber connecting method at the time of assembling an optical fiber.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Various types of on-site optical connectors for assembling optical connectors at connection sites other than factories have been proposed. An on-site optical connector is a connector in which a short optical fiber is built partway into the optical connector, and the connection end face is usually polished in advance. In some cases, polishing is omitted by forming the surface into a smooth surface. In the latter case, the end face of the optical fiber remains a smooth cut surface, and connection using a matching agent is performed. At the site, the optical connector is assembled by abutting and fixing the built-in optical fiber and the insertion-side optical fiber inserted from outside the optical connector in the optical fiber hole of the optical connector.
[0003]
In this type of on-site optical connector, a pair of upper and lower elements forming an optical fiber hole is clamped with, for example, a U-shaped spring at the rear end of a ferrule having an optical fiber fixed and the end face polished. There is a mechanism in which a mechanism, that is, a mechanical splice is integrally provided (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-206688).
When assembling the on-site optical connector with a built-in connection mechanism, a pair of upper and lower elements of the connection mechanism are pushed open by an opening member to slightly widen the optical fiber hole formed by the upper and lower elements, and to expand the optical fiber hole. The insertion-side optical fiber is inserted and butted against the built-in optical fiber, then the release member is removed and the upper and lower elements are clamped by a spring, thereby fixing the built-in optical fiber and the inserted-side optical fiber in a butted connection state.
[0004]
Conventionally, when assembling the above-described optical connector, usually, the work of inserting the insertion-side optical fiber into the optical fiber hole of the connection mechanism has been manually performed. Therefore, the butting pressure when the end face of the insertion-side optical fiber is butted against the end face of the built-in optical fiber depends only on the sense of the hand.
In some cases, a simple optical connector assembly tool is used.In this case, the insertion side optical fiber is inserted into the optical fiber hole of the optical connector using the assembly tool, and then the insertion side optical fiber is urged by a spring. Against the built-in optical fiber.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the method of manually inserting an optical fiber as described above, since the optical fiber hole is small and difficult to insert, the working efficiency is extremely poor.
In addition, in order to perform optical fiber connection with a small connection loss, it is necessary that the end face of the insertion-side optical fiber and the end face of the built-in optical fiber abut against each other with an appropriate pressure. It is difficult to obtain a desired and always constant abutting pressure if the abutting pressure of the optical fiber relies solely on the hand feeling.
In the case of assembling using an assembling tool, the abutment pressure is obtained by the force of a spring.However, the spring elasticity is apt to change over time, and the optical fiber is extremely thin. Because of the small size, it was difficult to maintain an appropriate contact pressure, and the contact pressure was too strong.
[0006]
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, to facilitate the operation of inserting an optical fiber into the optical fiber hole of the optical connector, and when performing butt connection of optical fibers in the optical fiber hole of the optical connector, It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical connector assembling tool and an optical fiber connecting method which enable optical fibers to be butted with a desired and always constant abutting pressure.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, an optical fiber is inserted into an optical fiber hole of an optical connector in which an optical fiber is previously embedded in an optical fiber hole, and an internal optical fiber and an insertion-side optical fiber are inserted into the optical fiber hole. An optical connector assembly tool for butt-connecting in the optical fiber hole,
A tool body for holding the optical connector, a slide table integral with the tool body, and an optical fiber holding jig slidably provided on the slide table back and forth in the optical fiber connection direction; The holding jig is provided with a fiber fixing portion for fixing the insertion-side optical fiber, and a bending holding means for holding a middle portion between the fixed portion position and the end of the insertion-side optical fiber in a bent state. And
[0008]
The invention according to claim 2 is such that an optical fiber is inserted from the outside into the optical fiber hole of the optical connector in which the optical fiber is previously embedded in the optical fiber hole, and the built-in optical fiber and the insertion-side optical fiber are inserted into the optical fiber hole. An optical fiber connection method for butt connection,
The insertion-side optical fiber is fixed on an optical fiber holding jig with the end thereof facing the optical fiber hole of the optical connector, and the intermediate portion between the fixed position and the end of the insertion-side optical fiber is held in a bent state. Then, in the bent state, the optical fiber holding jig is advanced toward the optical connector to insert the insertion side optical fiber into the optical fiber hole, and then the bending of the insertion side optical fiber is released, and the insertion side optical fiber is released. It is characterized in that it is butt-connected to a built-in optical fiber.
[0009]
The invention according to claim 3 is a ferrule in which an optical fiber is inserted and fixed in a ferrule optical fiber hole, and a part of the optical fiber is extended from a rear end of the ferrule. An optical fiber for butt-connecting the built-in optical fiber and the insertion-side optical fiber when assembling an optical connector having a connection mechanism for butt-connecting the extended built-in optical fiber and an insertion-side optical fiber inserted from the outside; Connection method,
While fixing the insertion-side optical fiber on the optical fiber holding jig, the intermediate portion between the fixed position and the tip of the insertion-side optical fiber is held in a bent state, and the optical fiber holding jig is held in the bent state. The insertion-side optical fiber is inserted into the optical fiber hole of the connection mechanism by advancing toward the connection mechanism of the optical connector, then the bending of the insertion-side optical fiber is released, and the insertion-side optical fiber is incorporated in the connection mechanism. Butt-connected.
[0010]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pair of upper and lower elements forming an optical fiber hole having at least one aligning groove, a spring for elastically clamping the two elements, and a spring against the elastic gripping force of the spring. A light for butt-connecting a built-in optical fiber previously housed in an optical fiber hole of the connection mechanism and an insertion-side optical fiber inserted from the outside in a connection mechanism provided with an opening means for pushing and opening between the pair of elements. A fiber connection method,
The insertion-side optical fiber is fixed on an optical fiber holding jig, and an intermediate portion between the fixed position and the end of the insertion-side optical fiber is held in a bent state, and the optical fiber holding jig is kept in the bent state. To the connection mechanism, insert the insertion-side optical fiber into the optical fiber hole of the connection mechanism, release the bending of the insertion-side optical fiber, and butt the insertion-side optical fiber to the built-in optical fiber in the connection mechanism It is characterized by connecting.
[0011]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows a state in which an optical connector 10 and an optical fiber (hereinafter referred to as an insertion-side optical fiber) 11 to be inserted into and connected to the optical connector 10 are held in an optical connector assembling tool 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view, and FIG. 2 is a front view of FIG. The bare fiber from which the coating of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 has been removed is denoted by 11a, and the coated portion is denoted by 11b. In the following description, the portion of the bare fiber 11a or the portion of the covering portion 11b is sometimes simply referred to as the insertion-side optical fiber 11 in some cases.
[0012]
The optical connector assembling tool 1 includes a tool main body 2 for holding an optical connector 10, a slide table 3 integrated with the tool main body 2, and an optical fiber connection direction along a guide 3a of the slide base 3 (see FIGS. (Figure 2 left and right directions) and an optical fiber holding jig 4 slidably provided. The optical fiber holding jig 4 includes a fixing portion 7 for fixing the insertion side optical fiber 11 toward the optical fiber hole 10 a of the optical connector 10 on the tool body 2, and a vicinity of the tip of the coating portion 11 b of the insertion side optical fiber 11. And a spacer for holding the intermediate portion between the position of the fixing portion 7 and the position of the guide portion 8 of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 in a bent state. (Flexure holding means) 9. In addition, a stopper 5 is provided on the slide table 3 for defining a forward end position of the optical fiber holding jig 4.
[0013]
The details of the optical connector 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5. The optical connector 10 is a two-core connector, and has a generally square optical ferrule 12 and a rear end side of the optical ferrule 12. And a connection mechanism 13 provided.
The ferrule 12 has an optical fiber 18 inserted and fixed in each of two optical fiber holes 12a to be built therein, a part of which extends from a rear end of the ferrule, and an end face 12b is obliquely polished. The ferrule 12 has substantially the same configuration as a ferrule for an optical connector (F12 type multi-core optical fiber connector of JIS C5981) of a fitting pin alignment method generally called an MT connector. The ferrule 12 can be formed of a hard resin such as an epoxy resin, for example. The optical ferrule 12 and the connection mechanism 13 integrated therewith are accommodated in a housing 21 (see FIGS. 1 and 2).
The connection mechanism 13 has a structure in which a pair of upper and lower elements, that is, a main body 14 and a lid 15 are clamped by a U-shaped leaf spring 16. The main body 14 includes a base portion 14a and a ferrule fitting portion 14b at a front end portion (left side in FIG. 4), and a rear end portion of the ferrule 12 (in a fitting hollow portion 14c provided in the ferrule fitting portion 14b). 4 (right side in FIG. 4) is fitted and fixed with an adhesive, and the ferrule 12 and the main body 14 are integrated.
In addition, an alignment groove 14d formed by, for example, a V-groove is formed on the front side of the upper surface of the main body 14, so that the optical fiber hole 10a is formed by the alignment groove 14d and the flat surface or the groove on the lid 15 side. ing. Further, optical fiber coating portion receiving grooves 14e and 15e are formed on the rear side of the main body 14 and the lid 15, so that an optical fiber coating portion receiving hole 19 having the same axis as the optical fiber hole 10a is formed. Further, a tapered optical fiber introduction port 19a for facilitating insertion of the optical fiber is formed at the rear end of the optical fiber coating portion accommodation hole 19.
Further, an insertion port 17 into which a wedge-shaped opening member 20 for pushing and opening between the main body 14 and the lid 15 against the elastic gripping force of the spring 16 is formed on a side surface of the connection mechanism 13. . The insertion port 17 is formed by recesses 14 f and 15 f provided on both edges of the main body 14 and the lid 15. The materials of the main body 14 and the lid 15 are not particularly limited, but may be formed of a hard resin or metal.
The main body 14 of the connection mechanism 13 may be formed integrally with the ferrule 12 by resin.
[0014]
When assembling the optical connector 10 using the optical connector assembling tool 1, the optical connector 10 is fixed on the tool main body 2, the opening member 20 is inserted into the insertion port 17, and the main body 14 of the main body 14 and the lid 15 and push open. Thereby, the optical fiber hole 10a formed between the main body 14 and the lid 15 of the connection mechanism 13 is in a state of being slightly widened. The portion of the built-in optical fiber 18 of the optical connector 10 that extends from the rear end of the ferrule extends to an intermediate position in the optical fiber hole 10a of the connection mechanism 13.
Next, the insertion-side optical fiber 11 is inserted into the guide portion 8 through the fixing portion 7 of the optical fiber holding jig 4 at a position where the optical fiber holding jig 4 is retracted (for example, a position where the optical fiber holding jig 4 is brought into contact with the rear side stopper 6). The fixing portion 7 fixes the insertion-side optical fiber 11. At this time, the protruding length L of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 from the position of the fixing portion 7 to the distal end (see a two-dot chain line in FIG. 6) is set to a predetermined length obtained in advance.
Then, the spacer 9 is interposed between the left and right insertion-side optical fibers 11 so that the left and right insertion-side optical fibers 11 are bent and their tips are aligned and held (state in FIG. 1). In this case, the two insertion-side optical fibers 11 are closed by the fixing portion 7 and the guide portion 8 and the middle portions are bent so as to expand outward.
Next, when the optical fiber holding jig 4 is slid in the direction of arrow A on the slide portion 3 and advanced until it hits the stopper 5, the insertion side optical fiber 11 tapers into the optical fiber hole 10 a of the connection mechanism 13 of the optical connector 10. It is inserted from the inlet 19a in the shape of a letter. FIG. 7 illustrates this stage. As described above, the insertion side optical fiber 11 can be correctly inserted into the optical fiber hole 10a only by sliding the optical fiber holding jig 4, so that the insertion of the optical fiber is easy and the work efficiency is remarkably improved.
[0015]
Next, when the bending of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 is released by removing the spacer 9, the optical fiber 11 advances in the optical fiber hole 10 a by the force of the bending of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 to return, that is, by its own rigidity. The end face of the insertion side optical fiber 11 and the end face of the built-in optical fiber 18 are in a state where the end face of the insertion side optical fiber 11 and the end face of the built-in optical fiber 18 are in a straight state in the optical fiber hole 10a. Butt connection is made with the butting pressure. Next, when the release member 20 is removed from the insertion port 17, the optical fiber 11 is clamped and held in the connection mechanism 13 by the clamping force of the spring 16, and the connection state is maintained.
[0016]
When the optical fibers 18 and 11 are butt-connected to each other, the end face of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 and the end face of the built-in optical fiber 18 are subjected to a force to return the bending of the optical fiber (fiber bending restoring force due to its own rigidity). In order to butt-connect with an appropriate abutting pressure according to (1), it is necessary that the insertion-side optical fiber 11 after abutting against the built-in optical fiber 18 has an appropriate amount of bending. For this purpose, as shown in FIG. 6, the fiber straight length L (length of the portion shown by the two-dot chain line) of the bent portion from the position of the fixed portion 7 of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 to the tip thereof is determined at the time of butt connection. Needs to be set longer than the distance L ′ from the position of the fixed portion 7 to the position P of the connection end face by an appropriate distance ΔL. The relationship between ΔL and the magnitude of the abutment pressure corresponding to ΔL is determined in advance by experiments or the like, and by setting this ΔL to the determined value, the end surface of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 is The end face can be butt-connected with a desired butt pressure.
In the embodiment, the stopper 5 for defining the forward limit position of the optical fiber holding jig 4 is provided, but a certain range is allowed for the amount of deflection of the optical fiber for obtaining an appropriate abutment pressure. In such a case, it is conceivable that the advance position of the optical fiber holding jig 4 is simply determined visually without providing a stopper. In this case, the advancing of the optical fiber holding jig 4 is stopped while the bending of the optical fiber remains.
[0017]
According to the above-described optical fiber connection method, since the abutment pressure is obtained by the flexibility of the optical fiber, the abutment pressure can be easily made constant as compared with the conventional work that relies on the sense of a human hand. It is possible, stable assembly with little variation is possible, and reproducibility is extremely high. Further, compared to the conventional optical fiber in which optical fibers are butt-connected by the force of a spring, there is less possibility that the abutting pressure between the optical fibers becomes unnecessarily high, and it is possible to prevent the connection characteristics from being impaired.
The above embodiment is a case of a two-core optical connector, and is preferably applied to a two-core optical connector. However, the present embodiment can also be applied to a single-core optical connector. The present invention can be applied to a multi-core optical connector having three or more cores. When the present invention is applied to a multi-core optical connector having three or more cores, all the insertion-side optical fibers may be bent in the same direction.
The two optical fibers butt-connected in the connection mechanism 13 are usually the same type of optical fiber, but different types of optical fibers may be connected, for example, a single mode optical fiber and a multimode optical fiber.
[0018]
The above embodiment is directed to an optical connector 10 having a structure in which a ferrule 2 and a connection mechanism 13 for clamping a pair of upper and lower elements forming an optical fiber hole with, for example, a U-shaped spring are integrated. The present invention is also applicable to the butt connection of optical fibers in an independent connection mechanism, that is, a connection mechanism (so-called mechanical splice itself) independent of the ferrule 12 with a structure similar to the connection mechanism 13 in the optical connector 10 of FIGS. Applicable. That is, when two optical fibers are connected by the independent connection mechanism, the optical connector assembling tool of the present invention or the optical fiber connecting method of the present invention can be adopted.
In this case, the tip of one fixed optical fiber is housed in an optical fiber hole of a mechanical splice (connection mechanism), and the other optical fiber is held in a bent state on an optical fiber holding jig, and the optical fiber is moved forward. Then, it is inserted into the optical fiber hole of the mechanical splice, and then the bending is released.
[0019]
The present invention is also applicable to an optical connector 28 that does not use a mechanical splice as shown in FIG. The optical connector 28 has a rear end of the built-in optical fiber 32 in an optical fiber hole 29 a of the ferrule 29, and connects the built-in optical fiber 32 and an optical fiber (insertion side optical fiber) 11 inserted from the outside to the ferrule 29. In this configuration, the butt connection is made in the optical fiber hole 29a. The ferrule 29 is substantially the same as a ferrule for an optical connector (F12 type multi-core optical fiber connector according to JIS C5981) called a MT connector, which has a polished tip surface 29b. Reference numeral 31 denotes a rubber boot for protecting the optical fiber.
[0020]
When the insertion-side optical fiber 11 is abutted and connected to the built-in optical fiber 32 of the optical connector 28, the connection can be made using an optical connector assembly tool similar to that shown in FIGS. That is, the insertion side optical fiber 11 is held in a deflected state on the optical fiber holding jig and then slid, and the insertion side optical fiber 11 (the bare fiber 11a) is turned into the light of the ferrule 29 as shown in FIG. The optical fiber 11 is inserted into the fiber hole 29a, and then the bending of the insertion-side optical fiber 11 is released. As a result, a butt connection with an appropriate abutting pressure can be performed as described above. After that, for example, an epoxy adhesive 32 is injected into the opening 30 to fix the insertion-side optical fiber 11.
[0021]
Although the present invention has been described only for the case where an optical fiber is inserted from the outside and connected to an article such as a ferrule in which the optical fiber is already built, the present invention utilizes the rigidity of the optical fiber itself. It is important to provide a forward force without applying excessive force to the optical fiber, and to secure a stable butting force simultaneously with or after the advance as necessary (however, the advance and the Is a general term including the case where the tip of the optical fiber moves, and the case where the tip of the optical fiber does not move but the portion other than the tip is displaced by the straightening of the optical fiber.) Therefore, the target object to which the device, mechanism, instrument, or optical fiber to be inserted or to which the optical fiber is advanced by the bending force is not limited to the built-in fiber of the ferrule. The method of giving a desired amount of bending to an optical fiber in advance and releasing the bending to advance the optical fiber mainly by its own force so that the tip of the optical fiber reaches a desired position or the like. It is applicable to various types of objects. For example, it is used as an optical connector to connect to a mating optical connector, to connect to a mating optical fiber but not to an optical connector type, to connect to an optical element, and to connect to an optical positioning member without the mating optical fiber. It can be suitably used for insertion and fixing of a fiber (for example, insertion and fixing of an optical fiber into an optical fiber array or an optical ferrule).
[0022]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, the optical connector is held on the tool body, the insertion-side optical fiber is held in a bent state on the optical fiber holding jig, and the optical fiber holding jig is slid on the slide portion. The insertion side optical fiber is inserted into the optical fiber hole of the optical connector by moving forward, and then the bending is released and the insertion side optical fiber is butt-connected to the built-in optical fiber, so that the following effects are obtained.
Since the insertion side optical fiber can be inserted into the optical fiber hole of the optical connector only by sliding the optical fiber holding jig on the slide portion, the insertion of the optical fiber is extremely easy and the work efficiency is remarkably improved.
In addition, because the force of the bending of the insertion-side optical fiber tends to return, the striking pressure between the optical fibers is obtained, so that the striking pressure is easily made constant as compared with the conventional work relying on the human hand. This makes possible stable assembly with little variation, and extremely high reproducibility. Also, compared to the conventional method of connecting optical fibers by butt connection with the force of a spring, there is little possibility that the contact pressure between optical fibers becomes unnecessarily strong or fluctuates, and it is possible to prevent the connection characteristics from being impaired. .
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of the present invention, and is a plan view of an optical connector assembling tool holding an optical connector and an insertion-side optical fiber.
FIG. 2 is a front view of FIG.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing details of an optical connector in FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a main body of the connection mechanism in FIG. 3;
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a method of abutting an end face of an optical fiber against an end face of a storage optical fiber with a desired force when the optical fibers are butt-connected to each other in the optical connector.
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing details of how an optical fiber is connected in the optical connector.
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of another example of an optical connector that is an object of the optical fiber connection method of the present invention and that does not use a mechanical splice.
FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing a state after the optical connector shown in FIG. 8 is assembled.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Optical connector assembly tool 2 Tool main body 3 Slide stand 4 Optical fiber holding jig 5 Stopper 6 Rear side stopper 7 Fixed part 8 Guide part 9 Spacer (flexure holding mechanism)
10, 28 Optical connector 10a Optical fiber hole (of optical connector) 11 Insertion side optical fiber 12 Ferrule 12a Optical fiber hole 13 (of ferrule) Connection mechanism 14 Main body 14a Base portion 14b Ferrule fitting portion 14c Fitting hollow portion 14d Centering Grooves 14e, 15e Optical fiber coating portion accommodation grooves 14f, 15f Concave portion 15 Cover 16 Leaf spring 17 Insertion port 18, 32 Built-in optical fiber 19 Optical fiber coating portion accommodation hole 22 Opening member

Claims (4)

An optical connector for externally inserting an optical fiber into the optical fiber hole of an optical connector in which an optical fiber is previously embedded in the optical fiber hole, and butt-connecting the built-in optical fiber and the insertion-side optical fiber in the optical fiber hole. An assembly tool,
A tool body for holding the optical connector, a slide table integral with the tool body, and an optical fiber holding jig slidably provided on the slide table back and forth in the optical fiber connection direction; The holding jig is provided with a fiber fixing portion for fixing the insertion-side optical fiber, and a bending holding means for holding a middle portion between the fixed portion position and the end of the insertion-side optical fiber in a bent state. Optical connector assembly tool. An optical fiber connection method for inserting an optical fiber from the outside into the optical fiber hole of an optical connector in which an optical fiber is previously embedded in the optical fiber hole, and butt-connecting the built-in optical fiber and the insertion-side optical fiber in the optical fiber hole. And
The insertion-side optical fiber is fixed on an optical fiber holding jig with the end thereof facing the optical fiber hole of the optical connector, and the intermediate portion between the fixed position and the end of the insertion-side optical fiber is held in a bent state. The optical fiber holding jig is advanced toward the optical connector in the bent state, the insertion side optical fiber is inserted into the optical fiber hole, then the bending of the insertion side optical fiber is released, and the insertion side optical fiber is incorporated. An optical fiber connection method, wherein the optical fiber is butt-connected to an optical fiber. A ferrule in which an optical fiber is inserted and fixed inside the ferrule optical fiber hole and a part thereof is extended from the rear end of the ferrule, and a built-in optical fiber provided on the rear end side of the ferrule and extending from the ferrule. When assembling an optical connector having a connection mechanism for butt-connecting an insertion-side optical fiber inserted from the outside, an optical fiber connection method for butt-connecting the built-in optical fiber and the insertion-side optical fiber,
The insertion-side optical fiber is fixed on an optical fiber holding jig, and an intermediate portion between the fixed position and the end of the insertion-side optical fiber is held in a bent state, and the optical fiber holding jig is kept in the bent state. Is advanced toward the connection mechanism of the optical connector, and the insertion-side optical fiber is inserted into the optical fiber hole of the connection mechanism, then the bending of the insertion-side optical fiber is released, and the insertion-side optical fiber is embedded in the connection mechanism. An optical fiber connection method, wherein the optical fiber is butt-connected to a fiber. A pair of upper and lower elements forming an optical fiber hole having at least one alignment groove, a spring that elastically clamps both elements, and a pair of elements that oppose the elastic gripping force of the spring. An optical fiber connection method for butt-connecting a built-in optical fiber previously housed in an optical fiber hole of the connection mechanism and an insertion-side optical fiber inserted from the outside in a connection mechanism having an opening means for pushing and opening,
The insertion-side optical fiber is fixed on an optical fiber holding jig, and an intermediate portion between the fixed position and the end of the insertion-side optical fiber is held in a bent state, and the optical fiber holding jig is kept in the bent state. To the connection mechanism, insert the insertion-side optical fiber into the optical fiber hole of the connection mechanism, release the bending of the insertion-side optical fiber, and butt the insertion-side optical fiber to the built-in optical fiber in the connection mechanism An optical fiber connection method comprising connecting.

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