JP2005099178A - Optical device, optical wiring system, and optical transmission line switching method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical device, an optical wiring system, and an optical transmission line switching method, which can easily change the optical path of an optical signal. <P>SOLUTION: The optical device 4 includes: a main line side optical connector 7 having optical fibers 6A and 6B forming a part of the optical transmission path main line 3; and an auxiliary optical connector 9 attachably/detachably connected to the main line side optical connector 7 and having a main line connection optical fiber 8 connected in a loop back form so that the main line optical fibers 6A and 6B are connected each other. Normally, the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are connected. When the optical signal through the optical transmission path main line 3 is led out to an optical transmission path branch line 5, the auxiliary optical connector 9 is removed from the main line side optical connector 7. A branch line side optical connector 22 having a branch line optical fiber forming at least a part of the optical transmission path branch line 5 is connected to the main line side optical connector 7. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical device applied to an optical path change of an optical signal, an optical wiring system using the optical device, and an optical transmission path switching method.

As an optical device applied to an optical path change of an optical signal, for example, one described in Patent Document 1 is known. The optical device described in this document is provided with a mirror that advances and retreats in the optical path between two pairs of optical fibers, and in a state where the mirror is not positioned in the optical path between the optical fibers, the light emitted from the optical fiber is In a state where the light is incident on the opposite optical fiber and the mirror is positioned in the optical path between the optical fibers, the light emitted from the optical fiber is reflected and incident on the same optical fiber.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-222215

  However, in the above-described conventional technology, a drive source for moving the mirror back and forth is required, and the structure becomes extremely complicated.

  In recent years, optical communication using a communication terminal such as a personal computer has become widespread, and an optical signal passing through an optical transmission line main line laid under the floor or the like is taken out to an optical transmission line branch line connected to the communication terminal. There is a need for effective technology for this purpose.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an optical device, an optical wiring system, and an optical transmission path switching method capable of easily changing an optical path of an optical signal.

  The present invention provides an optical device that is provided in the middle of an optical transmission line main line and connects an optical transmission line branch line to the optical transmission line main line, and has at least two main optical fibers forming part of the optical transmission line main line. A side optical connector and an auxiliary optical connector having a main line connection optical fiber that is detachably connected to the main line side optical connector and is connected in a loopback shape so as to connect the main line optical fibers to each other. It is.

  In such an optical device, in a state where the main line side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector are connected, at least two main line optical fibers forming a part of the main line of the optical transmission line are connected in a loopback shape. It is connected via a main line connecting optical fiber. In this state, for example, when an optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line is taken out to the optical transmission line branch line, the auxiliary optical connector is first removed from the main line side optical connector. Then, another optical connector (referred to as a branch line side optical connector) having a branch line optical fiber forming at least a part of the optical transmission line branch line is connected to the main line side optical connector. As a result, the main optical fiber is connected to the branch optical fiber, and as a result, the optical transmission line main line and the optical transmission line branch line are connected. Thus, the optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line can be easily taken out to the optical transmission line branch line simply by changing the auxiliary optical connector to the branch line side optical connector.

  Preferably, the apparatus further includes a housing for storing the main line side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector and an openable / closable lid, and the main line side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector are connected when the lid is closed, and the main line is opened when the lid is opened. The side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector are configured to be separated. Thereby, the main line side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector can be protected. Further, in this case, since it is not necessary to separately open and close the lid and connect / disconnect both optical connectors, the labor of the operator can be saved.

  At this time, preferably, the main line side optical connector is attached to the casing, and the auxiliary optical connector is attached to the lid. In this case, there is no need to perform optical wiring between the housing and the lid. Further, since the main optical fiber of the main optical connector is taken out only from the housing, the optical fiber is never taken out from the lid. Therefore, the optical wiring structure of the optical device is simplified.

  Preferably, the lid is rotatably supported by the housing. Thereby, opening and closing of a lid can be performed easily. Moreover, since the housing and the lid are integrated, it is possible to avoid problems such as losing the lid inadvertently by the operator.

  In addition, the lid is separable from the housing, and one of the housing and the lid is provided with a positioning projection for positioning the lid with respect to the housing, and the other of the housing and the lid is provided. A configuration in which a positioning hole into which the positioning projection is inserted may be provided. Accordingly, when an optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line is taken out to the optical transmission line branch line, the lid is separated and removed, so that the size of the optical device is reduced.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an optical device that is provided in the middle of an optical transmission line main line and connects an optical transmission line branch line to the optical transmission line main line, and includes at least two main optical fibers forming a part of the optical transmission line main line. A main line side optical connector, and a branch line side optical connector that is detachably connected to the main line side optical connector and has a branch line optical fiber that forms at least a part of the optical transmission line branch line and is connected to the main line optical fiber. It is a feature.

  In such an optical device, when changing the optical path of the optical signal, the branch line side optical connector that is currently attached is first removed from the main line side optical connector. Then, another optical connector having a different connection form of the branch line optical fiber is connected to the main line side optical connector. Thus, the optical path of the optical signal can be changed simply by changing the optical connector.

  Preferably, the main line side optical connector has at least three main line optical fibers, and the branch line side optical connector further has a main line connecting optical fiber connected in a loopback shape so as to connect the main line optical fibers. As a result, in a state where the branch line side optical connector is connected to the main line side optical connector, some main line optical fibers are connected via the main line connection optical fibers connected in a loopback shape, and some main lines are connected. The optical fiber is connected to the branch line optical fiber. Therefore, for example, when an optical signal that passes only through one of the plurality of main optical fibers only needs to be taken out to the branch optical fiber, one branch side optical connector can sufficiently cope with it.

  Preferably, the branch line side optical connector has at least two branch line optical fibers. In this case, if an optical device connected to at least two branch optical fibers has a function of passing an optical signal, the branch optical fibers are connected to each other in a state where the branch optical connector is connected to the main optical connector. Are connected via an optical device, whereby main optical fibers connected to the branch optical fibers are connected to each other. Accordingly, it is possible to maintain the optical wiring state when the main line side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector having the main line connecting optical fiber connected in a loopback shape so as to connect the main line optical fibers are connected. Become.

  An optical wiring system according to the present invention includes the optical transmission line main line, and the optical device that is provided in the middle of the optical transmission line main line and connects the optical transmission line branch line to the optical transmission line main line. is there. By providing the optical device in this way, as described above, for example, an optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line can be easily taken out to the optical transmission line branch line.

  The present invention relates to an optical transmission line switching method for extracting an optical signal passing through an optical transmission line main line to an optical transmission line branch line, and a main line side optical connector having at least two main optical fibers forming part of the optical transmission line main line; , Removably connected to the main line side optical connector, and connected to the main line side optical connector, and an auxiliary optical connector having a main line connection optical fiber connected in a loopback shape so as to connect the main line optical fibers. Prepare a branch side optical connector having a branch optical fiber that forms at least a part of the optical transmission line branch line and is connected to the main optical fiber, connect the main side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector in advance, and transmit light When taking out the optical signal passing through the main line to the optical transmission line branch line, remove the auxiliary optical connector from the main line side optical connector and connect the branch side optical connector to the main line side optical connector. It is an. Thereby, the optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line can be easily taken out to the optical transmission line branch line.

  According to the present invention, the optical path of an optical signal can be easily changed by changing the optical connector connected to the main line side optical connector.

  Preferred embodiments of an optical device, an optical wiring system, and an optical transmission line switching method according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an optical wiring system including an embodiment of an optical device according to the present invention. In the figure, an optical wiring system 1 includes an optical transmission line main line 3 connected to an optical communication network 2, a plurality of optical devices 4 provided in the middle of the optical transmission line main line 3, and the optical devices 4. The optical transmission line main line 3 and the optical transmission line branch line 5 branched and connected are provided.

  A communication terminal 24 is connected to the optical transmission line branch line 5. In addition to the communication terminal 24, an optical device that transmits and receives an optical signal and performs some processing may be connected to the optical transmission line branch line 5. Examples of such an optical device include an optical communication terminal, a moving image display, a data storage device (hard disk, DVD, CD-ROM, etc.), a CCD camera, a wireless LAN repeater, a router, and an ADD-DROP module.

  The optical transmission line main line 3 and the optical transmission line branch line 5 are configured by a single-core or multiple-core GI type or SM type optical fiber. Here, the number of optical fibers used in the optical transmission line main line 3 and the optical transmission line branch line 5 varies depending on the employed system.

  For example, in the case of an isolated system of single-fiber bidirectional transmission, the optical transmission line main line 3 and the optical transmission line branch line 5 both use one optical fiber. In the case of an isolated system of two-fiber bidirectional transmission, both the optical transmission line main line 3 and the optical transmission line branch line 5 use two optical fibers. In addition, in the case of a two-core bidirectional daisy chain (a method that allows information to be exchanged between distant devices even when devices are sequentially connected), such as optical device wiring based on the IEEE1394 standard, the optical transmission line main line Two optical fibers are used in 3 and four optical fibers are used in the optical transmission line branch line 5.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of the optical device 4. The optical device 4 connects an optical transmission line branch line 5 to the optical transmission line main line 3 and takes out an optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line 3 to the optical transmission line branch line 5.

  In FIG. 2, an optical device 4 is detachably connected to a main line side optical connector 7 having optical fibers 6A and 6B (see FIG. 4) forming part of the optical transmission line main line 3, and to the main line side optical connector 7. Auxiliary optical connector 9 having main line connecting optical fiber 8 (see FIG. 5) connected in a loopback manner so as to connect main optical fibers 6A and 6B, and these main line side optical connectors 7 and auxiliary optical connectors. 9 has a rectangular parallelepiped housing 10 and a semi-cylindrical lid 11.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the lid 11 is rotatably supported via a shaft 12 provided at one end of the housing 10 and can be opened and closed with respect to the housing 10. Although not shown, some means for locking the lid 11 to the housing 10 when the lid 11 is closed may be provided.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of the main line side optical connector 7 when the optical transmission line main line 3 is composed of two optical fibers. In this figure, the main line side optical connector 7 is a multi-core (here, 4-core) MT connector. The main line side optical connector 7 has an MT ferrule 13, and a pair of guide holes 14 and four fiber holes 15 are formed in the MT ferrule 13. The fiber holes 15 are arranged at equal intervals. A guide pin 16 is inserted into each guide hole 14 so as to protrude from the front end face (connection end face) of the MT ferrule 13.

  Two optical fibers 6A forming the transmission line main line 3A and two optical fibers 6B forming the transmission line main line 3B are inserted into the four fiber holes 15 from the rear of the MT ferrule 13. The optical fiber 6A is inserted into the left fiber hole 15 when viewed from the front end face side of the MT ferrule 13, and the optical fiber 6B is inserted into the right fiber hole 15 when viewed from the front end face side of the MT ferrule 13. The connection form of the optical fibers 6A and 6B is not particularly limited to this.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of the auxiliary optical connector 9 paired with the main line side optical connector 7. In the figure, an auxiliary optical connector 9 is an MT connector having the same number of cores as the main line side optical connector 7. The auxiliary optical connector 9 has an MT ferrule 17, and a pair of guide holes 18 and four fiber holes 19 are formed in the MT ferrule 17. The fiber holes 19 are arranged at equal intervals. As shown in FIG. 6, a chamfered portion 18 a is formed at the front end portion of the MT ferrule 17 by chamfering the opening edge portion of each guide hole 18.

  One connecting optical fiber 8 is inserted from the rear of the MT ferrule 17 into the outer fiber holes 19 of the four fiber holes 19 so as to form a loopback. Another main connection optical fiber 8 is inserted from the rear of the MT ferrule 17 so as to form a loopback.

  In FIG. 5, a part of the two main connection optical fibers 8 derived from the MT ferrule 17 are integrated as a ribbon fiber 20, but each main connection optical fiber 8 is connected as long as it is properly connected. It may be exposed as a whole. Further, the entire main line connection optical fiber 8 derived from the MT ferrule 17 may be configured as a ribbon fiber.

  In addition, even at the front end portion of the MT ferrule 13 in the main line side optical connector 7 shown in FIG. good.

  The main line side optical connector 7 is attached to the housing 10 as shown in FIG. The optical fibers 6A and 6B connected to the main line side optical connector 7 are taken out of the housing 10. The auxiliary optical connector 9 is attached to the lid 11.

  In such an optical device 4, when the lid 11 is closed as shown in FIG. 2, the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are connected. That is, each guide pin 16 of the main line side optical connector 7 enters each guide hole 18 of the auxiliary optical connector 9 so that the front end surfaces of the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are substantially in contact with each other. In this connected state, as shown in FIG. 7, the optical fiber 6 A of the optical transmission line main line 3 A and the optical fiber 6 B of the optical transmission line main line 3 B are connected via the main line connecting optical fiber 8. On the other hand, when the lid 11 is opened as shown in FIG. 3, the main optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are separated, and the front end surface of the main optical connector 7 is exposed.

  Since the opening / closing operation of the lid 11 and the connecting / branching operation of the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are interlocked in this way, the opening / closing operation of the lid 11 and the connection / disconnection of the optical connectors 7 and 9 are performed. It is not necessary to perform the branching work separately, and the burden on the worker can be reduced. Further, since the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are one each, a structure for interlocking the opening / closing of the lid 11 and the connection / branching of both optical connectors 7 and 9 can be easily designed. .

  Furthermore, since the wiring of the main connection optical fiber 8 of the auxiliary optical connector 9 is completely independent, it is not necessary to connect the housing 10 and the lid 11 with an optical fiber. Further, since the optical fibers 6A and 6B forming part of the optical transmission line main lines 3A and 3B are led out only from the housing 10, the optical fiber does not exit from the lid 11. Therefore, the optical wiring configuration of the optical device 4 is simplified.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the optical device 4 further includes a branch line side optical connector 22 having a branch line optical fiber 21 (see FIG. 8) that forms at least a part of the optical transmission line branch line 5. The branch line side optical connector 22 is an optical connector used to take out an optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line 3 to the optical transmission line branch line 5, and when the auxiliary optical connector 9 is removed from the main line side optical connector 7, It is connected to the main line side optical connector 7. The branch side optical connector 22 has an MT ferrule 23 having a guide hole and a fiber hole having the same structure as the auxiliary optical connector 9. The form of optical fiber connection in the branch line side optical connector 22 differs depending on the optical wiring system employed.

  FIG. 8 shows one form of the branch line side optical connector 22. In the figure, a branch line side optical connector 22 has a branch line optical fiber 21 connected to a communication terminal 24 and a main line connection optical fiber 25 connected in a loopback shape. In a state where the branch line side optical connector 22 is connected to the main line side optical connector 7, one main line optical fiber 6A and the branch line optical fiber 21 are connected, and the other optical fiber 6A and one optical fiber 6B are connected. Are connected via the main line connecting optical fiber 25.

  Thereby, the optical signal that has passed through one main optical fiber 6A, the main connection optical fiber 8 and the main optical fiber 6B when the main optical connector 7 and auxiliary optical connector 9 are connected as shown in FIG. It is taken out by the branch optical fiber 21 and sent to the communication terminal 24. In addition, when the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are connected, the optical signal that has passed through the other main line optical fiber 6A, main line connection optical fiber 8, and main line optical fiber 6B becomes the main line optical fiber 6A, main line connection. It goes through the optical fiber 25 and the main optical fiber 6B, and is maintained in the same optical wiring state as before.

  In this way, when a part of the optical fiber connection of the branch side optical connector 22 is formed in a loopback shape, an optical signal extracted to the optical transmission line branch line 5 and an optical signal not extracted to the optical transmission line branch line 5 are included. However, it is possible to use the optical signal without blocking it with only one connector connection.

  FIG. 9 shows another form of the branch line side optical connector 22. In the figure, the branch line side optical connector 22 has two branch line optical fibers 21A and 21B connected to a communication terminal 24, and a main line connection optical fiber 25 connected in a loopback shape. In a state where the branch line side optical connector 22 is connected to the main line side optical connector 7, one of the main line optical fibers 6A and 6B and the branch line optical fibers 21A and 21B are connected and the other main line optical fibers 6A and 6B are connected. They are connected to each other via a main line connecting optical fiber 25.

  Thereby, the optical signal that has passed through one main optical fiber 6A, the main connection optical fiber 8 and the main optical fiber 6B when the main optical connector 7 and auxiliary optical connector 9 are connected as shown in FIG. The main optical fiber 6A, the main connection optical fiber 25, and the main optical fiber 6B are routed, and the same optical wiring state as before is maintained.

  Further, when the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are connected, the optical signal that has passed through the other main line optical fiber 6A, the main line connection optical fiber 8, and the main line optical fiber 6B is taken out to the branch line optical fiber 21A. To the communication terminal 24. At this time, if the communication terminal 24 has an optical signal passing function, the optical signal taken out to the branch optical fiber 21A passes through the communication terminal 24, the branch optical fiber 21B, and the main optical fiber 6B. The same optical wiring state is maintained. Therefore, when optical devices are interconnected by a daisy chain method, such as optical device wiring based on the IEEE1394 standard, it is possible to easily add communication terminals and optical devices halfway without blocking the optical signal. It becomes.

  In the optical device 4 configured as described above, the lid 11 is normally closed as shown in FIG. 2, and the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are connected.

  When an optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line 3 is taken out to the optical transmission line branch line 5, the auxiliary optical connector 9 is detached from the main line side optical connector 7 by opening the lid 11 as shown in FIG. At this time, the guide pins 16 of the main line side optical connector 7 are pulled out from the guide holes 18 of the auxiliary optical connector 9, but the guide holes 18 are provided with the chamfered portions 18a as described above, so that the guide holes 18 are formed. It is possible to prevent the inner wall of the MT ferrule 17 from being damaged by the guide pins 16. In addition, since the lid 11 is integrated with the housing 10, when the lid 11 is opened, the operator does not inadvertently lose the lid 11.

  Thereafter, a separately prepared branch side optical connector 22 is connected to the main line side optical connector 7. As a result, the optical transmission line main line 3 and the optical transmission line branch line 5 are connected, and an optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line 3 is extracted to the optical transmission line branch line 5.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when the optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line 3 is taken out to the optical transmission line branch line 5, it is only necessary to replace the auxiliary optical connector 9 with the branch side optical connector 22. A person can easily extract an optical signal without hesitation.

  At this time, by using an appropriate branch line side optical connector 22 according to the transmission direction of the optical signal in the optical transmission line main line 3, even if only one main line side optical connector 7 is used, both of the optical signals are used. It can deal with transmission in the direction.

  Further, when it is necessary to change the optical path of the optical signal passing through the optical transmission line branch line 5, it is only necessary to replace the branch line side optical connector 22, so that the optical path of the optical signal can be easily changed.

  In the above embodiment, the main-side optical connector 7 is provided with the guide pins 16 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 and the branch-side optical connector 22 are provided with the guide holes 18. However, the auxiliary optical connector 9 and the branch-side optical connector 22 are provided. Guide pins may be provided on the main line side optical connector 7.

  Further, when connecting the main line side optical connector 7, the auxiliary optical connector 9, and the branch line side optical connector 22, a fitting structure similar to the housing of the MPO connector or the MT-RJ connector is provided around the connector, thereby connecting the PC. Thus, a constant pressing force may be applied.

  FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing another embodiment of the optical device according to the present invention. In the drawing, the same reference numerals are given to the same or equivalent members as those of the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

  In the figure, the optical device 30 of this embodiment has a case 10 and a lid 11 separated from each other. The casing 10 is provided with two positioning pins 31 for positioning the lid 11 with respect to the casing 10 when the lid 11 is closed and the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9 are connected. ing. Each positioning pin 31 extends in parallel to the guide pin 16 of the main line side optical connector 7. The lid 11 is provided with two positioning holes 32 into which the positioning pins 31 are inserted.

  In such a configuration, when the lid 11 is opened, it is only necessary to move the lid 11 in the extending direction of the guide pins 16 of the main line side optical connector 7, so that the MT ferrule 18 of the auxiliary optical connector 9 It is possible to more reliably prevent the inner wall from being damaged by the guide pins 16. In addition, when the lid 11 is opened and the branch line side optical connector 22 (not shown) is connected to the main line side optical connector 7, the lid 11 is separated from the housing 10, so that the device itself becomes small. Therefore, it is advantageous when there is not enough room.

  In FIG. 10, the positioning pin 31 is provided in the housing 10 and the positioning hole 32 is provided in the lid 11. However, the positioning pin may be provided in the lid 11 and the positioning hole may be provided in the housing 10.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an optical wiring system provided with still another embodiment of the optical device according to the present invention. In the figure, an optical wiring system 40 is configured such that an optical transmission line main line 3 connected to an optical communication network 2 is composed of a number of optical fibers. The optical transmission line main line 3 is arranged in a star shape from the optical communication network 2 in each optical device 41 in the field, and the optical transmission line branch lines 5A, 5A, It is tied to 5B. Communication terminals 24A and 24B are connected to the optical transmission line branch lines 5A and 5B. Such an optical wiring system 40 is used, for example, when it is desired to secure a backup line when a part of the optical device 41 fails.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the optical device 42 includes a main line side optical connector 43 and an auxiliary optical connector 44 that is detachably connected to the main line side optical connector 43. Although not shown, the main line side optical connector 43 and the auxiliary optical connector 44 are housed in a housing 10 and a lid 11 as shown in FIG.

  The main line side optical connector 43 is a multi-core (here, 8-core) MT connector. The main line side optical connector 43 includes a plurality (four in this case) of main optical fibers 45A forming part of the optical transmission line main line 3A and a plurality of main optical fibers forming part of the optical transmission line main line 3B. 45B. The auxiliary optical connector 44 is a multi-fiber MT connector having the same number of cores as the main line side optical connector 43, and four connection optical fibers connected in a loopback shape so as to connect the main line optical fibers 45A and 45B. 46.

  FIG. 13 shows an embodiment of a branch line side optical connector that is connected to the main line side optical connector 43 when the auxiliary optical connector 44 is detached from the main line side optical connector 43.

  In the drawing, a branch line side optical connector 47 is a multi-fiber MT connector having the same number of cores as the main line side optical connector 43. The branch side optical connector 47 includes two branch optical fibers 48A forming at least a part of the optical transmission line branch line 5A, two branch optical fibers 48B forming at least a part of the optical transmission line branch line 5B, and a main line. It has two main line connecting optical fibers 49 connected in a loopback shape so as to connect the optical fibers 45A and 45B.

  In the state where the branch line side optical connector 47 is connected to the main line side optical connector 43, the main line optical fiber 45A and the branch line optical fiber 48A are connected, and the other main line optical fiber 45A and the branch line optical fiber 48B are connected. Is done. Further, the main optical fiber 45B and the branch optical fiber 48A are connected, and the other main optical fiber 45B and the branch optical fiber 48B are connected. Further, the other two main optical fibers 45 A and the other two main optical fibers 45 B are connected via a main connection optical fiber 49.

  At this time, if the communication terminals 24A and 24B connected to the branch line optical fibers 48A and 48B have an optical signal passing function, the same as the connection between the main line side optical connector 43 and the auxiliary optical connector 44 as shown in FIG. The optical wiring state is maintained.

  An example of the main line side optical connector 43 is shown in FIG. In the figure, the same or equivalent members as those of the main line side optical connector 7 shown in FIG.

  In the figure, the main-line side optical connector 43 has an MT ferrule 50, and the fiber holes 51 of the MT ferrule 50 are formed in four stages in two upper and lower stages. Each main optical fiber 45A of the optical transmission line main line 3A is inserted into each upper fiber hole 51, and each main optical fiber 45B of the optical transmission line main line 3B is inserted into each lower fiber hole 51. Yes.

  Thus, by using a two-stage connector as the main line side optical connector 43 and connecting the main line optical fibers 45A and 45B in units of steps, for example, as shown in FIG. 14, the optical transmission line main lines 3A and 3B are ribbon fibers. When configured, it is possible to connect in the same manner as a normal multi-fiber connector. Thereby, productivity improves.

  An example of the auxiliary optical connector 44 is shown in FIG. In the drawing, the same or equivalent members as those of the auxiliary optical connector 9 shown in FIG.

  In the figure, the auxiliary optical connector 44 has an MT ferrule 52, and the fiber holes 53 of the MT ferrule 52 are formed in four stages in two upper and lower stages. Each main line connecting optical fiber 46 is inserted into each fiber hole 53 so as to be looped back in the vertical direction.

  In FIG. 15, each main line connecting optical fiber 46 is integrated as a ribbon fiber 54, and a part of each main line connecting optical fiber 46 is exposed. Good. In such a case, the ribbon fiber 54 can be connected by rotating it half a turn (half twist) without disturbing the arrangement of the main connection optical fibers 46.

  Note that the main line side optical connector 43 and the auxiliary optical connector 44 are not limited to the two-stage connectors described above, and a normal multi-fiber connector in which optical fibers are arranged in a line may be used. In this case, the optical fibers are arranged at equal intervals.

  FIG. 16 is an exploded perspective view showing still another embodiment of the optical device according to the present invention. In the figure, the same or equivalent members as those in the embodiment shown in FIG.

  In the figure, the optical device 60 of this embodiment has a plurality of sets (two sets here) of the main line side optical connector 7 and the auxiliary optical connector 9. Each main line side optical connector 7 is disposed vertically within the housing 10, and each auxiliary optical connector 9 is disposed vertically within the lid 11. In particular, in a wiring system in which the number of optical fibers constituting the optical transmission line main lines 3A and 3B is large, a high density can be achieved by incorporating a plurality of main line side optical connectors 7 in the housing 10.

  At this time, only the optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line 3 connected to any one of the two main line side optical connectors 7 among the two main line side optical connectors 7 arranged in the housing 10 is sent to the optical transmission line branch line 5. For example, as shown in FIG. 17, the lid 11 is provided with an opening 61 for exposing one of the two auxiliary optical connectors 9. In this case, the auxiliary optical connector 9 in the lid 11 can be connected to one main line side optical connector 7 and the branch line side optical connector 22 can be connected to the other main line side optical connector 7.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above embodiment, the MT connector is used as the main line side optical connector, the auxiliary optical connector, and the branch line side optical connector, but other than this, an MPO connector, an MT-RJ connector, or the like may be used.

  Various fibers can be used as the optical fiber used for the optical transmission line main line and the optical transmission line branch line. At this time, since the optical fiber connected to the auxiliary optical connector is desirably housed in the lid 11, it is desirable to use an optical fiber having excellent bending characteristics in order to reduce the size of the housing 10. For example, when the MPO connector is used, the adapter has a lateral width of about 25 to 30 mm including the mounting portion. Therefore, by using an optical fiber having an allowable bending diameter of about 30 mm or less, which is about the same as the lateral width of the adapter, The width of 10 can be suppressed to about 30 mm. In addition, when a smaller connector such as an MT-RJ connector is used, the size of the adapter is reduced to about 15 mm including the mounting portion, so that the allowable bending diameter is about 15 mm or less, which is about the same as the lateral width of the adapter. By using this optical fiber, the lateral width of the housing 10 can be suppressed to about 15 mm.

It is a block diagram which shows the optical wiring system provided with one Embodiment of the optical device concerning this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the state which the lid | cover of the optical device shown in FIG. 1 closed. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state where a lid of the optical device shown in FIG. 1 is opened. It is a perspective view of the main line side optical connector shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the auxiliary optical connector shown in FIG. 3. It is sectional drawing of the auxiliary | assistant optical connector shown in FIG. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the state by which the main line side optical connector and auxiliary optical connector shown in FIG. 3 were connected. It is a schematic block diagram which shows an example of the state in which the main line side optical connector and branch line side optical connector shown in FIG. 3 were connected. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the other example of the state in which the main line side optical connector and branch line side optical connector shown in FIG. 3 were connected. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows other embodiment of the optical device concerning this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the optical wiring system provided with further another embodiment of the optical device concerning this invention. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the state by which the main line side optical connector and auxiliary | assistant optical connector of the optical device shown in FIG. 11 were connected. It is a schematic block diagram which shows an example of the state by which the main line side optical connector and branch line side optical connector shown in FIG. 11 were connected. It is a perspective view of the main line side optical connector shown in FIG. FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the auxiliary optical connector shown in FIG. 12. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows other embodiment of the optical device concerning this invention. FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing a modified embodiment of the optical device shown in FIG. 16.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Optical wiring system 3, 3A, 3B ... Transmission line main line, 4 ... Optical device, 5, 5A, 5B ... Transmission line branch line, 6A, 6B ... Main line optical fiber, 7 ... Main line side optical connector, 8 ... Main line connection Optical fiber, 9 ... auxiliary optical connector, 10 ... housing, 11 ... lid, 21 ... branch optical fiber, 22 ... branch side optical connector, 30 ... optical device, 31 ... positioning pin (positioning protrusion), 32 ... positioning hole, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 40 ... Optical wiring system, 42 ... Optical device, 43 ... Main line side optical connector, 44 ... Auxiliary optical connector, 45A, 45B ... Main line optical fiber, 46 ... Main line connection optical fiber, 47 ... Branch line side optical connector, 48A, 48B ... Branch line optical fiber, 49 ... main line connection optical fiber, 60 ... optical device.

Claims (10)

In the optical device provided in the middle of the optical transmission line main line and connecting the optical transmission line branch line to the optical transmission line main line,
A main line side optical connector having at least two main line optical fibers forming part of the optical transmission line main line;
An optical device comprising: an auxiliary optical connector having a main line connecting optical fiber that is detachably connected to the main line side optical connector and is connected in a loopback shape so as to connect the main line optical fibers. A housing for housing the main line side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector and a lid that can be opened and closed;
The main line side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector are connected when the lid is closed, and the main line side optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector are separated when the lid is opened. The optical device according to claim 1.   The optical device according to claim 2, wherein the main line side optical connector is attached to the casing, and the auxiliary optical connector is attached to the lid.   The optical device according to claim 1, wherein the lid is rotatably supported by the housing. The lid is separable from the housing;
Either one of the casing and the lid is provided with a positioning projection for positioning the lid with respect to the casing, and the positioning projection is inserted into the other of the casing and the lid. The optical device according to claim 1, wherein a positioning hole is provided. In the optical device provided in the middle of the optical transmission line main line and connecting the optical transmission line branch line to the optical transmission line main line,
A main line side optical connector having at least two main line optical fibers forming part of the optical transmission line main line;
A branch line side optical connector that is detachably connected to the main line side optical connector and has a branch line optical fiber that forms at least a part of the optical transmission line branch line and is connected to the main line optical fiber. device. The main line side optical connector has at least three main line optical fibers,
The optical device according to claim 6, wherein the branch line side optical connector further includes a main line connection optical fiber connected in a loopback shape so as to connect the main line optical fibers.   8. The optical device according to claim 6, wherein the branch line side optical connector has at least two branch line optical fibers. Optical transmission line main line,
An optical wiring system comprising the optical device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, which is provided in the middle of the optical transmission line main line and connects an optical transmission line branch line to the optical transmission line main line. In an optical transmission line switching method for extracting an optical signal passing through an optical transmission line main line to an optical transmission line branch line,
A main line side optical connector having at least two main line optical fibers forming a part of the optical transmission line main line, and a loopback that is detachably connected to the main line side optical connector and connects the main line optical fibers to each other. Auxiliary optical connector having a main line connecting optical fiber connected in a shape, and a branch line light detachably connected to the main line side optical connector and forming at least a part of the optical transmission line branch line and connected to the main optical fiber Prepare a branch side optical connector with fiber,
When the main optical connector and the auxiliary optical connector are connected in advance, and the optical signal passing through the optical transmission line main line is taken out to the optical transmission line branch line, the auxiliary optical connector is removed from the main optical connector. An optical transmission line switching method comprising connecting the branch line side optical connector to the main line side optical connector.

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