JP2005202199A - Optical fiber splicing tool - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To remove deflection by generating a time difference at the time of the drawing of a wedge, and to simplify the structure as well as making cost reduction possible. <P>SOLUTION: The optical fiber splicing tool 1 is used for an operation of splicing optical fibers 5, 6 to each other. The tool is provided with a holder 11 for holding an optical connector 14, a wedge 12 for keeping an attachable/detachable state of the optical fiber 6 between elements, and a wedge holding mechanism 13 for holding, in a drawable manner, the wedge 12 inserted between the elements of a clamp section 10. The wedge 12 is composed of, in connection with the clamp section 10, a first inserting piece 26 inserted between the elements constituting a first clamp section 23 in which the optical fibers 5, 6 are butted and connected to each other and a second inserting piece 27 inserted between the elements constituting a second clamp section 24 in which the covering section 6b of the optical fiber 6 is clamped. The first inserting piece 26 is formed shorter compared with the second inserting piece 27. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an operation of connecting optical fibers in the clamp portion of an optical component having a clamp portion that clamps and fixes a pair of optical fibers that are butt-connected to each other by a spring structure attached to the device. Or it is related with the optical fiber connection tool utilized for the operation | work of connection cancellation | release.

  In recent years, as an optical connector that can be assembled to the tip of an optical fiber at a connection site other than a factory, the rear portion of the ferrule (tip end) in which the optical fiber is fixed internally and the tip surface (connection end surface) is polished. A field-mounted optical connector in which a clamp part of a mechanical splice structure is assembled at a position facing the surface) is known. This on-site connector (hereinafter also simply referred to as an optical connector) is inserted into the clamp portion from the rear end side of the optical connector, which is fixed in-house in the clamp portion, and abuts against the built-in optical fiber. The optical connector can be assembled in a short time by maintaining a butt connection state by clamping another optical fiber to the half of the element of the clamp portion with a spring. Here, since the clamp part is small in size, a dedicated optical fiber connecting tool for opening and closing between the elements is provided.

  An example of the on-site optical connector will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 and 15, an on-site optical connector 14 (hereinafter also simply referred to as an optical connector) is obtained by assembling the clamp portion 10 at the rear portion on the opposite side of the connection end surface 3 at the tip of the ferrule 2. is there. The clamp portion 10 includes a portion protruding from the rear end of the ferrule 2 (hereinafter referred to as a protruding portion 5a) of an optical fiber (hereinafter also referred to as a built-in optical fiber) 5 that is internally fixed to the ferrule 2, and the protruding portion 5a. Another optical fiber 6 (hereinafter also simply referred to as an optical fiber) 6 that is butt-connected is sandwiched between two elements 7 and 8 (hereinafter, the element 7 is also referred to as a base side element and the element 8 is also referred to as a lid side element). The clamp is fixed by the elasticity of the spring 9 attached to the elements 7 and 8. The optical fiber 6 is, for example, a single-core or multi-core optical fiber, but is not limited to this, and an optical fiber or the like can also be used.

  The clamp portion 10 is configured such that a plurality of members are assembled to the extending portion 2b extending from the flange portion 2a of the ferrule 2 toward the rear end side of the optical connector 14. The clamp part 10 is composed of split elements 7 and 8 and U-shaped springs 9 which are attached to the outside of the elements 7 and 8 and clamp the elements 7 and 8 therebetween. Here, the base side element 7 is comprised by the said extension part 2b. However, the base-side element 7 only needs to be integrated with the ferrule 2 or the flange portion 2a, and various configurations can be adopted. For example, an MT type optical connector (MT: Mechanically Transferable) as the ferrule 2 can be used. An extension portion or the like protruding from the rear end side (the side opposite to the connection end face) may be used. The lid side element 8 is divided into two elements (first lid side element 21 and second lid side element 22) arranged in series in the axial direction. The first lid side element 21 and the second lid side element 22 are arranged so that the first lid side element 21 is between the ferrule 2 and the second lid side element 22. Between the base-side element 7 and the first lid-side element 21, a connecting portion between the built-in optical fiber 5 and the distal end portion (bare optical fiber) 6 a of the optical fiber 6 is sandwiched, and the base-side element 7 and the second lid-side element 21 are sandwiched. A covering portion 6b of the optical fiber 6 is sandwiched between the side elements 22.

The clamp portion 10 includes a first clamp portion 23 that sandwiches a connection portion between the built-in optical fiber 5 and the bare optical fiber 6 a of the optical fiber 6 between the base-side element 7 and the first lid-side element 21, and the base-side element 7. And a second clamp portion 24 that sandwiches the covering portion 6b of the optical fiber 6 between the second lid side element 22 and the second lid side element 22. The first clamp portion 23 includes a first lid side element 21 and a base side element 7, a portion where the first lid side element 21 is overlapped (first base portion 28), the spring 9, A portion (first spring portion 9a) that clamps the first lid side element 21 and the first base portion 28 in a sandwiched manner is formed. The second clamp portion 24 includes the second lid side element 22 and the base side element 7, the portion where the second lid side element 22 is overlapped (second base portion 29), the spring 9, A portion (second spring portion 9b) that clamps the second lid side element 22 and the second base portion 29 so as to sandwich the second lid side element 22 and the second base portion 29 is formed.
The spring 9 is elastically formed by a slit 9c formed in the spring 9 near the boundary between the two lid-side elements 21 and 22 (between the first spring portion 9a and the second spring portion 9b). Are made to act separately on the two clamp parts (the first clamp part 23 and the second clamp part 24).

  In FIG. 16, the element of the clamp unit 10 is exemplified by a square cross section (rectangular or square) when closed by the clamping force of the spring 9. The element can have various cross-sectional shapes such as a semicircular cross-sectional element. Further, the spring 9 is not limited to the U-shaped cross section illustrated in FIG. 16, and various types of structures such as a C-shaped cross section can be employed. One of the base side element 7 and the lid side element 8 (the base side element 7 in the present embodiment) is fixed (or integrally formed) to the ferrule 2.

  As shown in FIG. 16, a positioning groove 25 that positions and aligns the optical fiber 6 is formed on the mating surface 7 a of the base side element 7 with the lid side element 8. Here, the positioning groove 25 is formed in the base-side element 7, but is not limited to this, and the configuration in which the positioning groove 25 is formed in the mating surfaces 7 a and 8 a of both the elements 7 and 8, or the lid-side element A configuration formed only on the 8-side mating surface 8a can also be employed. Further, the cross-sectional shape of the positioning groove 25 is not limited to the above shape, and may be a V-groove, U-groove, round groove (groove with a semicircular cross section) or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the optical fiber connection tool 101 includes a holder portion 11 that holds the optical connector 14 in a detachable manner, and the elements 7 and 8 of the clamp portion 10 of the optical connector 14 held by the holder portion 11. A wedge drive mechanism 13 for inserting and removing the wedge 102 is provided. By inserting and removing the wedge 102 between the elements 7 and 8, the elements 7 and 8 can be opened and closed. In order to assemble the optical connector 14 at the tip of the optical fiber 6 using the optical fiber connection tool 101, first, the wedge 102 is inserted between the elements 7 and 8 to open the space between the elements 7 and 8, and the optical fiber 6 is connected. The optical fiber 6 is inserted between the elements 7 and 8 from the rear end side (the side opposite to the ferrule 2) of the clamp portion 10 so as to be inserted, and the built-in optical fiber 5 (specifically, the protruding portion 5a). The bare optical fiber 6a that has been exposed to the tip of the optical fiber 6 is butted and connected. Then, by pulling out the wedge 102 from between the elements 7 and 8, the elements 7 and 8 are closed, and the optical fibers 5 and 6 are clamped to maintain the connection state between the optical fibers 5 and 6. Examples of this type of optical fiber connection tool 101 include Patent Documents 1 and 2.

  By the way, in the operation of connecting the built-in optical fiber 5 on the ferrule 2 side and another optical fiber 6 using the optical fiber connection tool 101 as described above, after the optical fibers 5 and 6 are butted together, the elements 7, When the wedge 102 is pulled out from between 8 and the elements 7 and 8 are closed, the bare optical fiber 6a of the optical fiber 6 may be clamped between the elements 7 and 8 while being bent. As a result, an increase in loss due to bending of the optical fiber may occur, or damage to the tip portions of the optical fibers 5 and 6a may occur due to stress concentration, which may lead to poor connection.

In view of the above problems, the present applicant has already proposed an optical fiber connection tool 111 as shown in FIG. 17 (for example, Patent Document 3). The optical fiber connection tool 111 can individually insert and remove the first wedge 112 inserted into and removed from the first clamp portion 23 of the optical connector 14 and the second wedge 113 inserted into and removed from the second clamp portion 24. Is. If this optical fiber connection tool 111 is used, after the butting between the optical fibers 5 and 6 is completed in a state where the elements 7 and 8 are opened using the two wedges 112 and 113, the second clamp portion 24 is used. The first wedge 112 inserted between the elements 7 and 21 of the first clamp part 23 is maintained while the second clamp part 24 is kept open by the second wedge 113 inserted between the elements 7 and 22. The optical fibers 5 and 6 a are pulled out from between the elements 7 and 21 to clamp the optical fibers 5 and 6 a to maintain the butt connection state between the optical fibers 5 and 6, and then the second wedge 113 from the second clamp portion 24. , And the assembly operation of the optical connector 14 to the tip of the optical fiber 6 can be performed in the order in which the covering portion 6b of the optical fiber 6 is clamped to the second clamp portion 24. Here, since the bending of the bare optical fiber 6a can be released to the second clamp portion 24 side when the first clamp portion 23 is closed while the second clamp portion 24 is kept open, the first clamp The bending of the bare optical fiber 6a clamped to the portion 23 can be eliminated.
JP 2002-23006 A JP 2002-55259 A JP 2002-033055 A

  In the optical fiber connection tool 111 described in Patent Document 1 described above, by using two wedges 112 and 113, each wedge 112 and 113 has a positioning accuracy with respect to the elements of the first and second clamp portions 23 and 24. There is a need for a structure that can be inserted / removed while ensuring high accuracy, and the structure becomes complicated and the cost increases. Further, in the configuration in which the two wedges 112 and 113 are operated one by one and the pulling operation from the clamp unit 10 is performed separately, the pulling operation has to be performed twice with a time difference, and there is a dissatisfaction that the work is troublesome there were.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and its object is to create a time difference when pulling out the wedge to remove the flexure, simplify the structure, and reduce the cost. It is to provide an optical fiber connecting tool.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention proposes the following means.
The invention according to claim 1 is directed to the rear end side, which is the side opposite to the connection end face at the front end of the ferrule, with respect to the portion protruding from the rear end of the ferrule of the optical fiber internally fixed to the ferrule and the optical fiber. Used to connect optical fibers in the clamp part of an optical connector having a clamp part that clamps and clamps another optical fiber that has been butt-connected with a split-element element by the elasticity of a spring attached to the element An optical fiber connecting tool, a holder portion for holding the optical connector, a wedge for maintaining a state in which the other optical fiber can be inserted and removed between the elements by being inserted between the elements, and the holder The wedge inserted between the elements of the clamp part of the optical connector held by the part can be pulled out from between the elements. A wedge support mechanism for holding the wedge, wherein the wedge is inserted between elements constituting a first clamp portion in which the optical fiber and the other optical fiber are butt-connected in the clamp portion. And a second insertion piece inserted between elements constituting the second clamp portion in which the other optical fiber coating portion is sandwiched, and the first insertion piece is connected to the second insertion piece. It is an optical fiber connecting tool characterized in that it is formed shorter than that.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the rear end of the ferrule opposite to the connection end face at the front end of the ferrule has a portion protruding from the rear end of the ferrule of the optical fiber internally fixed to the ferrule and the optical fiber. Used to connect optical fibers in the clamp part of an optical connector having a clamp part that clamps and clamps another optical fiber that has been butt-connected with a split-element element by the elasticity of a spring attached to the element An optical fiber connecting tool, a holder portion for holding the optical connector, a wedge for maintaining a state in which the other optical fiber can be inserted and removed between the elements by being inserted between the elements, and the holder The wedge inserted between the elements of the clamp part of the optical connector held by the part can be pulled out from between the elements. A wedge support mechanism for holding the wedge, wherein the wedge is inserted between elements constituting a first clamp portion in which the optical fiber and the other optical fiber are butt-connected in the clamp portion. And a second insertion piece inserted between the elements constituting the second clamp portion in which the coating portion of the other optical fiber is sandwiched, and the second insertion piece is the first insertion piece. Compared with the optical fiber connecting tool, the pulling resistance when pulling out the wedge is large.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an optical fiber in the clamp portion of an optical component having a clamp portion that clamps and fixes a pair of optical fibers that are butt-connected to each other by a spring structure attached to the device. An optical fiber connection tool used for a connection operation or a connection release operation between each other, and a holder portion for holding the optical component, and insertion of the other optical fiber between the elements by being inserted between the elements A wedge that maintains a possible state, and a wedge support mechanism that supports the wedge inserted between the elements of the clamp part of the optical component held by the holder part so as to be able to be pulled out from between the elements. And the wedge comprises a first clamp part in which the optical fiber and the other optical fiber are butt-connected in the clamp part. A second insertion piece inserted between elements constituting the second clamp part in which the coating portion of the other optical fiber is sandwiched, and when the wedge is pulled out, The second insertion piece is an optical fiber connection tool characterized by having a larger pulling resistance than the first insertion piece.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the second insertion piece is larger than the first insertion piece by the concave portion or the convex portion formed in the second insertion piece and the element into which the second insertion piece is inserted. The optical fiber connecting tool is characterized in that a drawing resistance acts.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, when the wedge inserted between the elements of the clamp portion is pulled out from between the elements by the wedge drive mechanism, the wedge is butt-connected at the clamp portion. The optical fiber connecting tool is characterized in that it is tiltable with respect to the alignment axis, and the first insertion piece is pulled out from the element before the second insertion piece.
The invention according to claim 6 is the optical fiber connecting tool, wherein the wedge is made of resin.
The invention according to claim 7 is characterized in that the wedge support mechanism has a function of pulling out the wedge inserted between elements of the clamp part of the optical connector held by the holder part from between the elements. This is an optical fiber connecting tool.

  According to the present invention, when the optical fibers are butt-connected to each other, even if the tips of both optical fibers are bent, the first insertion piece is formed shorter than the second insertion piece. When pulled out from between, the first insertion piece is drawn out from between the elements constituting the first clamp portion before the second insertion piece. Thereby, since the 2nd insertion piece has been inserted between the elements of the 2nd clamp part, bending of a tip can be released to the covering part side of another optical fiber. Therefore, both optical fibers are clamped and fixed with both optical fibers bent, and it is possible to reduce an increase in loss due to bending of the optical fibers and damage due to stress concentration at the tips of both optical fibers. , Can increase the reliability. Moreover, since only the length of the 1st insertion piece and the 2nd insertion piece is changed, a structure is simple and reduction of cost can be implement | achieved.

Further, if the wedge inserted into the optical connector or the clamp part of the optical component has a configuration in which the second insertion piece has a larger pull-out resistance when pulling out the wedge than the first insertion piece. The first insertion piece is pulled out before the second insertion piece. That is, since the first insertion piece is pulled out from the first clamp portion while the second insertion piece is inserted between the elements of the second clamp portion of the clamp portion, the bending of the tip clamped by the first clamp portion is second. It can escape to the clamp side. Therefore, both optical fibers are clamped and fixed in a state where the bending of the optical fiber is caused, and it is possible to reduce an increase in loss due to bending of the optical fiber or a stress concentration breakage at the tip of both optical fibers, Reliability can be increased. Further, the structure is simple and the cost can be reduced.
In addition, since the processing of the wedge is facilitated by adopting the resin wedge, a structure in which a plurality of insertion pieces having different lengths (projection dimensions of the wedge from the plate-like main body) are provided, There is also an advantage that it is possible to easily realize the formation of a convex portion (or concave portion) fitted to the concave portion or convex portion on the element side in the insertion piece, etc. at low cost.

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 to 4 are views showing an optical fiber connecting tool according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a first embodiment of an optical fiber connecting tool according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the built-in optical fiber and the optical fiber are butted in the clamp portion of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the first insertion piece is pulled out from between the elements. FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the second insertion piece is pulled out from between the elements. In addition, about the structure same as FIGS. 14-16, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and description is abbreviate | omitted.

As shown in FIG. 1, the optical fiber connecting tool 1 is assembled to the tip of the optical fiber 6 of the optical connector 14 described with reference to FIGS. 14 to 16, that is, in the clamp portion 10 of the optical connector 14. The internal optical fiber 5 and the optical fiber 6 are used for connection work. In addition, as an optical connector, even if it is the structure which assembled | attached the housing 41 and the stop ring 42 to the optical connector 14 (ferrule with a clamp part) like the optical connector 14A demonstrated in 2nd Embodiment mentioned later. good.
This optical fiber connection tool 1 includes a holder unit 11 for holding an optical connector 14 and a wedge drive mechanism 13 (wedge support mechanism) having a function of pulling out a wedge 12 inserted between the elements 7 and 8 from between the elements 7 and 8. It consists of and. In this embodiment, the wedge drive mechanism 13 has a function of pulling out the wedge 12 from between the elements 7 and 8. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and has a function of allowing the wedge to advance and retract. May be.

  The wedge 12 is integrally formed of a plastic resin or the like, and includes a first insertion piece 26 to be inserted between the elements 7 and 21 constituting the first clamp portion 23 in the clamp portion 10, and a second clamp portion. And a second insertion piece 27 to be inserted between the elements 7 and 22 constituting 24. The length of the first insertion piece 26 is shorter than the length of the second insertion piece 27. As a result, the optical fiber connecting tool 1 allows the second insertion piece 27 to be inserted between the elements 7 and 22 even when the wedge 12 is pulled out from the first insertion piece 26 when the wedge 12 is pulled out from between the elements 7 and 8. Thus, the space between the elements 7 and 22 of the second clamp part 24 is left open.

  To assemble the optical connector 14 at the tip of the optical fiber 6 using the optical fiber connection tool 1 having the above-described configuration, as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the optical fiber 6 is inserted into the positioning groove 25 from the rear end side of the clamp portion 10. Then, the bare optical fiber 6 a exposed in advance at the tip of the optical fiber 6 is inserted between the elements 7 and 21 in which the built-in optical fiber 5 is built in, and the tip of the bare optical fiber 6 a is connected to the built-in optical fiber 5. Make a butt connection. At this time, in order to generate a butt force, the optical fiber 6 is pressed toward the ferrule 2 to cause a slight bending of the bare optical fiber 6a of the optical fiber 6 (in FIG. 2, the bare optical fiber 6a). In order to emphasize the fact that there is a deflection, the actual deflection is very small.

  Next, with the butt force applied by pressing the optical fiber 6 toward the ferrule 2, the wedge 12 is moved in the pulling direction A by operating the wedge drive mechanism 13 as shown in FIG. , Pull out from between 8. At this time, as shown in FIG. 3, the first insertion piece 26 is formed shorter than the second insertion piece 27, so that the first insertion piece 26 is first before the second insertion piece 27. It is pulled out from between the elements 7 and 21 constituting the clamp part 23. The first clamp part 23 from which the first insertion piece 26 has been pulled out closes the elements 7 and 21 by the urging force of the spring 9 to clamp and fix the built-in optical fiber 5 and the bare optical fiber 6a. , 6 are held in contact with each other. Here, since the second insertion piece 27 remains inserted between the elements 7 and 22 constituting the second clamp portion 24, the open state is maintained between the elements 7 and 22. Therefore, even if the bare optical fiber 6 a inserted between the elements 7 and 21 is bent, the bending can be released in the direction of the covering portion 6 b of the optical fiber 6.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the entire wedge 12 is pulled out between the elements 7 and 8, the covering portion 6 b of the optical fiber 6 is clamped and fixed to the second clamp portion 24.
In this way, the built-in optical fiber 5 and the optical fiber 6 can be held in a state in which the tips are butted against each other by the optical fiber connection tool 1.

  According to the above configuration, when the wedge 12 is pulled out between the elements 7 and 8, after the first insertion piece 26 is pulled out from between the elements 7 and 21 constituting the first clamp portion 23, the second clamp portion Since the extraction of the second insertion piece 27 from 24 is realized with a time lag, the first clamp portion 23 clamps the bare optical fiber 6a in a state where the bending of the bare optical fiber 6a is eliminated (or the bending is very small). It is possible to prevent problems such as increased loss due to bending of the optical fibers 5 and 6 and damage due to local stress concentration, and the reliability can be improved. Moreover, since the length of the 1st insertion piece 26 and the 2nd insertion piece 27 is only changed, a structure is simple, manufacture becomes easy and cost reduction can be achieved.

(Second Embodiment)
An optical fiber connection tool 30 according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram schematically showing the configuration of the optical fiber connection tool 30, and FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the insertion of the optical fiber 6 into the clamp portion 10 of the optical fiber connection tool 30 of FIG. FIG. 7 is a right side view showing the shape of the concave portion 32 formed in the elements 7 and 8 of the clamp portion 10 and the second insertion piece 27 of the wedge 12, and FIG. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state which inserted the 2 insertion piece 27 between the elements 7 and 8. FIG. 11 and 12 show specific examples of the optical fiber connection tool 30. FIG.
In this embodiment, the configuration of the wedge 12 is partially changed in the configuration of FIGS. In FIGS. 5 to 12, the same components as those shown in FIGS. 14 to 16 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

An optical connector 14A shown in FIG. 5 has a configuration in which a housing 41 and a stop ring 42 are assembled to the optical connector 14 (ferrule with a clamp portion) shown in FIGS.
An optical fiber connection tool 60 (hereinafter referred to as a holder with a wedge) shown in FIG. 11 includes a holder portion 11 assembled to the outside of the optical connector 14A, a ring-shaped wedge drive mechanism 13 projecting outward from the holder portion 11, The wedge drive mechanism 13 includes a wedge 33 protruding from the movable plate 43, which is an end opposite to the holder portion 11, toward the holder portion 11. Here, the wedged holder 60 is an integrally molded product made of a synthetic resin (including the wedge 33). However, in the present invention, the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be formed by a plurality of parts.

The holder portion 11 is formed in a U-shaped cross section, and the inside thereof is an accommodation recess 44 that accommodates the optical connector 14A in a removable manner.
The bottom wall 45 of the holder portion 11 is divided into two through a slit 46, and the two insertion pieces 34, 35 of the wedge 33 are projected into the receiving recess 44 through the slit 46. Yes.
In order to assemble the wedged holder 60 to the optical connector 14 </ b> A, the optical connector 14 </ b> A is pushed into the accommodation recess 44 of the holder portion 11. By this pushing, the two insertion pieces 34 and 35 of the wedge 33 are inserted between the elements 7 and 8 of the clamp part 10, the first and second clamp parts 23 and 24 are opened, and the positioning groove 25 is inserted into the positioning groove 25. The optical fiber 6 can be inserted and the bare optical fiber 6a at the tip of the optical fiber 6 can be brought into contact with the built-in optical fiber 5. The insertion pieces 34 and 35 can be inserted between the elements 7 and 8 through wedge insertion holes (not shown) formed in the stop ring 42.

The wedge drive mechanism 13 (wedge support mechanism) has the movable plate 43 and a pair of side portions 48 and 49 (hereinafter referred to as connecting wall portions) that connect the movable plate 43 and the holder portion 11. Configured. The connecting side portions 48 and 49 have a “<” shape, and the connecting side portions 48 and 49 have directions in which the inner corners of the “<” shaped bent portions face each other, that is, the holder portion 11 and the movable plate 43. Between, the holder part 11 and the movable plate 43 are connected in such a direction that the bent part projects to both sides. The pair of connecting side portions 48 and 49 protrude from the bottom wall 45 of the holder portion 11 in the opposite direction to the side walls 50 and 51, and the protruding tips are connected to the movable plate 43, respectively. The movable plate 43 has a plate shape, and the projecting tips of the coupling side portions 48 and 49 from the holder portion 11 are coupled to opposite sides of the movable plate 43, and the movable plate 43 includes a pair of coupling side portions 48 and 48. 49, the holder portion 11 is supported so as to be substantially parallel to the plate-like bottom wall 45.
The wedge drive mechanism 13 and the bottom wall 45 of the holder portion 11 constitute a sleeve having a substantially hexagonal cross section. As shown by an arrow P in FIG. By bringing the portions 48 and 49 closer to each other, the distance between the holder portion 11 and the movable plate 43 is increased (the phantom line 13a in FIG. 11), and the wedge 33 decreases the projecting dimension to the accommodation recess 44 ( Alternatively, it is driven in a direction to eliminate the protrusion). Thereby, the wedge 33 inserted between the elements 7 and 8 of the clamp part 10 (clamp part 10 of the optical connector 14) of the optical connector 14A held by the holder part 11 can be pulled out from between the elements 7 and 8. it can.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the wedge 33 inserted into the clamp portion 10 of the optical connector 14 (optical component) is the length of the first insertion piece 34 and the second insertion piece 35 (the plate-like shape of the wedge 33). The projecting dimensions from the main body 12a are the same. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the second insertion piece 35 has convex portions 31 formed on both sides (the upper surface 27a side and the lower surface 27b side) in the thickness direction of the plate-like wedge (symbol). The mating surfaces 7a and 22a of the elements 7 and 22 are formed with recesses 32 into which the above-described protrusions 31 are fitted. As shown in FIG. 8, the convex portion 31 and the concave portion 32 are fitted when the second insertion piece 35 is inserted between the elements 7 and 22 of the second clamp portion 24, and when the wedge 33 is pulled out. In addition, the second insertion piece 35 has a function of generating a larger pulling resistance than the first insertion piece 34. In addition, the first insertion piece 34 and the elements 7 and 21 of the first clamp portion 23 are not formed with recesses or projections that fit when the first insertion piece 34 is inserted between the elements 7 and 21. First, extraction of the first insertion piece 34 from between the elements 7 and 21 can be smoothly performed with a light force compared to extraction of the second insertion piece 35 from between the elements 7 and 22 of the second clamp portion 24.
Note that the lengths of the two insertion pieces 34 and 35 are not necessarily the same. For example, as described in the first embodiment, the insertion pieces (the insertion pieces on the side inserted into the second clamp portion ( In this embodiment, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the second insertion piece 35) has a larger protruding dimension of the wedge 33 from the plate-like main body 12a than the first insertion piece 34 inserted into the first clamp portion.

  In the present embodiment, the convex portion 31 is provided on the second insertion piece 35 and the concave portion 32 is provided between the elements 7 and 22 of the second clamp portion 24. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It may be a configuration. Moreover, although the convex part 31 was provided in the upper surface 27a and the lower surface 27b of the 2nd insertion piece 35, it is not restricted to this, You may provide in the side surface of the 2nd insertion piece 35. FIG.

  Further, the structure for generating the pulling resistance when pulling out the wedge 33 from the elements 7 and 22 is not limited to the one having the function of giving the pulling resistance by the engagement by the fitting between the convex part 31 and the concave part 32. The frictional resistance is increased by roughening the surface of the second insertion piece 35 or the inner surface of the recess 32, coating with a resin material having a large friction coefficient, etc., so that the second insertion piece 35 has a larger pulling resistance than the first insertion piece 34. It may be configured to be generated.

The wedge 33 is inserted / removed between the elements 7 and 8 by movement along the mating surface 7a of the base side element 7 and its extended surface (wedge movement plane M; see FIG. 15). The wedge moving plane M coincides with the boundary surface when the elements 7 and 8 are joined to each other and the extension thereof.
When the wedge 33 inserted between the elements 7 and 8 is pulled out from between the elements 7 and 8, the wedge 33 is kept in the position along the wedge moving plane M by the deformation of the wedge drive mechanism 13, and the clamp portion Since the ten positioning grooves 25 align the optical fibers 5 and 6 with respect to the aligning axis B (the aligning axis B is parallel to the wedge moving plane M), the orientation of the alignment grooves 25 is variable (can be tilted). The first insertion piece 34 is moved from the elements 7 and 21 before the second insertion piece 35 by tilting with respect to the alignment axis B due to the difference in the pulling resistance between the elements 7 and 8 of the elements 34 and 35. It is designed to be pulled out.

  According to the optical fiber connecting tool 30 having the above configuration, as shown in FIG. 5, the elements 7 and 8 are opened by inserting the wedges 33 (specifically, the insertion pieces 34 and 35). 6, the optical fiber 6 is inserted into the positioning groove 25 from the rear end side of the clamp portion 10, and the bare optical fiber 6 a is inserted between the elements 7 and 21 in which the built-in optical fiber 5 is built in advance. The tip of the bare optical fiber 6a is butt-connected to the built-in optical fiber 5. At this time, the optical fiber 6 is pressed toward the ferrule 2 side to cause slight bending of the bare optical fiber 6a of the optical fiber 6 (in FIG. 6, the bare optical fiber 6a is bent). Although it has been greatly bent to emphasize this, the actual deflection is very small.

Next, in FIG. 6, the wedge driving mechanism 13 is driven while maintaining the butt force (in the example of FIG. 11, the user applies a side pressure indicated by the arrow P from both sides with a finger or the like), and the wedge 33 is moved to the element 7. , Pull out from between 8. As shown in FIG. 9, in the first insertion piece 34, the convex portion 31 formed on the second insertion piece 35 is fitted with the concave portion 32 between the elements 7 and 22 of the second clamp portion 24. As compared with the first insertion piece 34 inserted between the elements 7 and 21 of the first clamp portion 23, the extraction resistance acts largely against the pulling force. Here, due to the difference in the pull-out resistance between the two insertion pieces 34 and 35, the wedge insertion mechanism 13 is deformed so that the first insertion piece 34 side is stretched more than the second insertion piece 35 side (wedge drive mechanism). the second insertion piece 35 side of 13, but size d ₀ before deformation of the wedge drive mechanism 13 is substantially maintained, the first insertion piece 34 side, a larger size d ₁ than d _0. here, The dimensions d ₀ and d ₁ correspond to the distance between the bottom wall 45 and the movable plate 43 in the specific examples of FIGS. 11 and 12), and the orientation of the wedge 33 on the wedge moving plane M changes. Thus, the wedge 33 tilts with respect to the alignment axis B. Specifically, in the optical fiber connecting tool 30 in the illustrated example, the wedge 33 is tilted with respect to the wedge 31 having the convex portion 31 of the second insertion piece 35 fitted to the concave portion 32 of the second clamp portion 24 as a base point. 33 rotational displacements. Further, in this embodiment, the deformation of the wedge driving mechanism 13 is realized by the bending deformation of the resin constituting the wedge driving mechanism 13, but is not limited to this, for example, the wedge driving mechanism configured by a plurality of members. If so, a configuration in which the wedge drive mechanism can be deformed by deformation of the elastic member interposed between the members (deformation for allowing the wedge 33 to tilt with respect to the alignment axis B) can be employed. The wedge 33 can be pulled out from between the elements 7 and 8 by continuing the pulling-out operation of the wedge 33 from between the elements 7 and 8. At this time, as described above, the elements 7 and As the wedge 33 tilts due to the difference in the pulling resistance between the eight, the first insertion piece 34 is pulled out before the second insertion piece 35.

  As shown in FIG. 6, by pulling out the first insertion piece 34 from between the elements 7 and 21 of the first clamp part 23, the elements 7 and 21 of the first clamp part 23 are closed by the biasing force of the spring 9, and built-in. The optical fiber 5 and the bare optical fiber 6a are clamped and fixed, and the ends of the optical fibers 5 and 6 are held in contact with each other. At this time, since the second insertion piece 35 remains inserted between the elements 7 and 22 constituting the second clamp part 24, the element 7 and 22 of the second clamp part 24 is in an open state. It remains maintained. Therefore, even if the bare optical fiber 6 a inserted between the elements 7 and 21 of the first clamp portion 23 is bent, the deflection can be released in the direction of the covering portion 6 b of the optical fiber 6.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 9, the wedge drive mechanism 13 is further operated to forcibly disengage the convex portion 31 from the concave portion 32 by the pulling force to release the fitting, and the second insertion piece 35 is second clamped. The part 24 is extracted from between the elements 7 and 22, and the entire wedge 33 is extracted from the clamp part 10. As a result, the elements 7 and 22 are closed by the biasing force of the spring 9, and the covering portion 6b of the optical fiber 6 is clamped and fixed.
In this manner, the built-in optical fiber 5 and the optical fiber 6 can be held in a state in which the ends are butted together by the optical fiber connection tool 30.

  According to the above configuration, the wedge driving mechanism 13 is deformed due to the difference in the pulling resistance acting on the first and second insertion pieces 34 and 35, and the wedge 33 is tilted by this deformation. The first insertion piece 34 is pulled out before the second insertion piece 35. As a result, the second insertion piece 35 remains inserted between the elements 7 and 22 of the second clamp part 24, and the gap between the elements 7 and 22 remains open. It is possible to escape in the 6b direction. Therefore, the reliability of the optical connection between the optical fibers 5 and 6 can be increased as in the case of the configuration described above. Further, the structure is simple, the manufacture is easy, and the cost can be reduced.

(Another aspect of the second embodiment)
An optical fiber connecting tool 60 shown in FIG. 13 connects the movable plate 43 and the wedge 33 of the wedge drive mechanism 13 via a deformed portion 61 formed of, for example, an elastic member, etc. The driving force is configured to be transmitted to the wedge 33 via the deforming portion 61. The optical fiber connection tool 60 can also employ a configuration in which the drive force of the wedge drive mechanism 13 that is inserted into and removed from the clamp portion 10 of the optical connector 14 supported by the holder portion 11 is transmitted to the wedge. is there. With the optical fiber connecting tool having this configuration, when the wedge 33 inserted between the elements 7 and 8 of the clamp portion 10 is pulled out between the elements 7 and 8, the insertion pieces 34 and 35 from the elements 7 and 8 are inserted. The wedge 33 tilts with respect to the alignment axis B of the clamp portion 10 due to the difference in the pull-out resistance of the clamp portion 10, so that the second insert piece 35 has a time difference after the first insert piece 34 is pulled out from the clamp portion 10. 10 is the same as that of the optical fiber connecting tool 30 described above, but the tilting of the wedge 33 with respect to the alignment axis B is caused by the deformation of the deformable portion 61 (in the deformed portion 61 in the figure, This is different from the optical fiber connecting tool 30 in that the second insertion piece 35 side of the wedge 33 is greatly extended compared to the first insertion piece 34 side. In this configuration, since it is not necessary to employ a deformable wedge drive mechanism, various configurations can be adopted as the wedge drive mechanism, and versatility is improved. Further, instead of the wedge drive mechanism 13, for example, a wedge support configured to support a wedge or an operation lever attached to the wedge so as to be movable forward and backward with respect to the clamp portion 10 of the optical connector 14 supported by the holder portion 11. It is also possible to adopt a part.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described optical connectors (for example, the above-described optical connectors 14 and 14A), and various optical components such as mechanical splices that connect coated optical fibers such as optical connector core wires and optical fiber strands. However, it can be widely applied to (having a clamp portion). Also by this, the same effect as the above effect can be obtained. In the optical connectors 14 and 14A described above, the ferrule 2 functions as an optical fiber fixing portion. However, as an optical component other than the field-attached optical connector, for example, an optical fiber is embedded and fixed in a resin instead of the ferrule described above. An optical fiber fixing portion having a structure or a configuration employing an optical fiber array can also be employed.
As a specific example of the optical fiber connecting tool 1 described in the first embodiment, for example, in the holder with a wedge described in the second embodiment, the first embodiment is used instead of the wedge denoted by reference numeral 33. The thing etc. of the structure which employ | adopted the wedge 12 of a form are applicable. In this case, the wedge 12 is formed so as to project from the movable plate 43 of the wedge drive mechanism of the wedge-attached holder toward the holder portion 11, as in the wedge 33 of the second embodiment. Various configurations such as a configuration integrally formed with the wedged holder and a configuration in which the holder is separately fixed to the movable plate 43 can be adopted.

The specific configuration of the optical fiber connecting tool according to the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described wedged holder 60, and for example, as disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the holder is mounted on the base plate. It is also possible to adopt a structure in which a portion and a wedge support mechanism are mounted. In this case, as a wedge support mechanism, a wedge with an operation lever is supported so as to be slidable, and the wedge can be inserted into and removed from the optical connector supported by the holder part or the clamp part of the optical component by operating the operation lever. By converting the operating force of the configuration and the rotating handle, etc., to a driving force in the forward / backward direction of the wedge with respect to the optical connector supported by the holder part or the clamp part of the optical component, the wedge between the elements of the clamp part It is also possible to adopt a structure that realizes the insertion / removal of. Also, an electric wedge drive mechanism that uses the driving force of the electric motor or the like can be employed.
In addition, even with a wedge having three or more insertion pieces, the wedge can be tilted by the difference in the extraction resistance from the element so that the removal from the prevention of the insertion piece can be performed so that the side closer to the ferrule precedes the far side. It is.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is the schematic block diagram which showed 1st Embodiment of the optical fiber connection tool which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state which inserted the optical fiber in the clamp part of FIG. 1, and faced the built-in optical fiber and the optical fiber. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state which extracted the 1st insertion piece from between elements. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state which pulled out the 2nd insertion piece from between elements. It is the schematic block diagram which showed 2nd Embodiment of the optical fiber connection tool which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state which inserted the optical fiber in the clamp part of FIG. 5, and faced the built-in optical fiber and the optical fiber. It is a right view which shows the shape of the 2nd insertion piece of the recessed part and wedge formed in the element of the clamp part of FIG. FIG. 6 is a right side view showing the clamp part and the second insertion piece of FIG. 5, and is an explanatory view showing a state in which the second insertion piece is inserted between the elements. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state which inserted the 2nd insertion piece between elements. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state which pulled out the 2nd insertion piece from between elements. It is a perspective view of the optical connector which shows the specific example of the optical fiber connection tool of FIG. Explanatory drawing which showed the state which extracted the 1st insertion piece of the optical fiber connection tool in FIG. 11 from between elements. It is explanatory drawing of the optical connector shown in FIG. It is the schematic block diagram which showed the conventional optical fiber connection tool. It is a front view of a clamp part. It is a right view of a clamp part. It is the schematic block diagram which showed another conventional optical fiber connection tool.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Optical fiber connection tool, 2 ... Ferrule, 3 ... Connection end surface, 5 ... Optical fiber (built-in optical fiber), 6 ... Another optical fiber (optical fiber), 7 ... Element (base side element), 8 ... Element ( Lid side element), 9 ... spring, 10 ... clamp part, 11 ... holder, 12 ... wedge, 13 ... wedge drive mechanism, 23 ... first clamp part, 24 ... second clamp part, 26 ... first insertion piece, 27 ... 2nd insertion piece, 30 ... Optical fiber connection tool, 31 ... Convex part, 32 ... Concave part, 33 ... Wedge, 34 ... 1st insertion piece, 35 ... 2nd insertion piece

Claims (7)

A portion protruding from the rear end of the ferrule of the optical fiber (5) internally fixed to the ferrule and the optical fiber are provided on the rear end side opposite to the connection end face (3) at the front end of the ferrule (2). A clamp portion (10) is provided which clamps another optical fiber (6) butt-connected to each other between elements (7, 8) having a split structure and is clamped by the elasticity of a spring (9) attached to the element. An optical fiber connection tool used for connection work between optical fibers in the clamp part of the optical connector,
A holder portion (11) for holding the optical connector;
A wedge (12) that maintains a state in which the other optical fiber can be inserted and removed between the elements by being inserted between the elements;
A wedge support mechanism (13) that supports the wedge inserted between the elements of the clamp part of the optical connector held by the holder part so as to be able to be pulled out from between the elements;
The wedge includes a first insertion piece (26) inserted between elements constituting a first clamp part (23) in which the optical fiber and the other optical fiber are butt-connected in the clamp part; A second insertion piece (27) to be inserted between the elements constituting the second clamp part (24) in which the coating part (6b) of another optical fiber is sandwiched,
The optical fiber connection tool (1), wherein the first insertion piece is formed shorter than the second insertion piece. A portion protruding from the rear end of the ferrule of the optical fiber (5) internally fixed to the ferrule and the optical fiber are provided on the rear end side opposite to the connection end face (3) at the front end of the ferrule (2). A clamp portion (10) is provided which clamps another optical fiber (6) butt-connected to each other between elements (7, 8) having a split structure and is clamped by the elasticity of a spring (9) attached to the element. An optical fiber connection tool used for connection work between optical fibers in the clamp part of the optical connector,
A holder portion (11) for holding the optical connector;
A wedge (33) that maintains a state in which the other optical fiber can be inserted and removed between the elements by being inserted between the elements;
A wedge support mechanism (13) that supports the wedge inserted between the elements of the clamp part of the optical connector held by the holder part so as to be able to be pulled out from between the elements;
The wedge includes a first insertion piece (34) inserted between elements constituting the first clamp part (23) to which the optical fiber and the other optical fiber are butt-connected in the clamp part, A second insertion piece (35) to be inserted between the elements constituting the second clamp part (24) in which the coating part (6b) of another optical fiber is sandwiched,
The optical fiber connection tool (30), wherein the second insertion piece has a higher pulling resistance when pulling out the wedge than the first insertion piece. Light having a clamp portion (10) that clamps and fixes the pair of optical fibers (5, 6) that are butt-connected between the elements (7, 8) having a split structure by the elasticity of a spring (9) that is attached to the element. An optical fiber connection tool used for work of connecting or releasing connection between optical fibers in the clamp part of the component (14),
A holder portion (11) for holding the optical component;
A wedge (33) that maintains a state in which the other optical fiber can be inserted and removed between the elements by being inserted between the elements;
A wedge support mechanism (13) for supporting the wedge inserted between the elements of the clamp part of the optical part held by the holder part so as to be able to be pulled out from between the elements;
The wedge includes a first insertion piece (34) inserted between elements constituting the first clamp portion (23) to which the optical fiber and the other optical fiber are butt-connected in the clamp portion; A second insertion piece (35) to be inserted between the elements constituting the second clamp portion (24) in which the coating portion of the optical fiber is sandwiched,
The optical fiber connection tool (30), wherein when the wedge is pulled out, the second insertion piece has a higher pulling resistance than the first insertion piece. Due to the recess (31) or the protrusion (32) formed in the second insertion piece and the element into which the second insertion piece is inserted, the second insertion piece has a larger pulling resistance than the first insertion piece. The optical fiber connecting tool according to claim 2 or 3, wherein When the wedge inserted between the elements of the clamp part is pulled out between the elements by the wedge drive mechanism, the wedge is tiltable with respect to the alignment axis of the optical fiber to be butt-connected at the clamp part. The optical fiber connection tool according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the first insertion piece is pulled out from the element prior to the second insertion piece. The optical fiber connection tool according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the wedge is made of resin. The wedge support mechanism is a wedge drive mechanism having a function of pulling out the wedge inserted between elements of the clamp part of the optical connector held by the holder part from between the elements. The optical fiber connection tool according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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