JP2005257788A - Optical connector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a site assembly type optical connector which can be quickly assembled and easily at a connection site without requiring extra members such as adhesives and open members. <P>SOLUTION: The optical connector is provided with: a ferrule 10 having a holder part 12a provided with a guide groove 13 and formed with a retaining projection part 16, the guide groove 13 for packaging a 1st optical fiber 3 inside and guiding a 2nd optical fiber; a cover member 20 for covering the holder part 12; and a sleeve 30 having a hollow part and formed with an aperture part 36 into/with which the retaining projection part 16 is inserted and engaged. A projected shape part 23 is formed so that its end part is located in the vicinity of the distal end part of the sleeve 30, the 2nd optical fiber 5 is inserted from the rear side of the sleeve 30 along the guide groove 13 of the holder part 12 and abutted on the 1st optical fiber 3 and then the sleeve 30 is moved, so that the inside surface of the sleeve 30 depresses the projected shape part 23 and the 1st and 2nd optical fibers 3, 5 are aligned and fixed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical connector, and more particularly to an on-site assembly type optical connector that can be easily assembled in a short time in a connection site.

Conventionally, the connection work between the optical connector and the optical fiber is basically performed in a factory, and the connection work is performed in a state where the optical fiber is inserted into all connector housing parts such as rubber boots in advance. For example, after the tip of the optical fiber is connected to the ferrule, the tip of the connector is polished to assemble the entire connector.
However, in recent years, with the widespread use of FTTH (Fiber to the Home), the connection work between the optical connector and the optical fiber has been performed in the field. However, in order to perform operations such as polishing and fusion of optical fibers at the connection site, a large amount of processing equipment is required, and there has been a problem in terms of work cost and work efficiency.

Therefore, it is desired to develop a field assembly type optical connector in which the connection between the optical connector and the optical fiber is performed at a connection site other than the factory, and various field assembly type optical connectors have been provided accordingly.
For example, as a single-fiber field assembly type optical connector, the optical fiber core wire whose tip has been polished in advance is built in the middle of the ferrule, and the optical fiber to be connected from the other end side is inserted into the ferrule and aligned. Thereafter, an optical connector (such as JP-A-11-194230) for fixing the optical fiber by dropping an adhesive into the housing, or a biasing means for biasing the ferrule with the optical fiber internally fixed in the tip surface direction, There is an optical connector (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-206688) disposed behind a connection mechanism that connects a ferrule-side optical fiber and a separately inserted optical fiber on the rear end side facing the front end surface of the ferrule.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-194230 JP-A-10-206688

  However, an optical connector of the type that uses an adhesive when connecting an optical fiber as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-194230 or the like may cause the adhesive to adhere to the end face of the optical fiber. There is a problem that the connection characteristics deteriorate. In addition, once fixed with an adhesive, readjustment does not work, and if a connection failure is recognized, there is a problem that it is necessary to start again from the beginning.

  On the other hand, the optical connector disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-206688 is obtained by clamping the end faces of optical fibers butted in the ferrule by a connection mechanism constituted by a C-shaped spring disposed outside the ferrule. The connection state is maintained, but the release of the clamp is performed by a separate opening member. That is, by inserting an opening member, which is a separate member, so as to push open the C-type spring of the connection mechanism, the clamp is released and the optical fiber to be connected is inserted into the ferrule. When the member is removed, the ferrule is clamped by the elastic force of the C-shaped spring. Therefore, when connecting the optical fiber, a special member called an open member is required, which causes a problem in terms of work efficiency. In addition, optical connectors tend to be miniaturized year by year, and the connecting mechanism for inserting the opening member is also made smaller accordingly, so the insertion work of the opening member can easily be a very fine work. Imagine.

  Therefore, the present invention solves these problems and does not require an extra member such as an adhesive or an opening member, and an on-site assembly type optical connector that can be easily assembled in a short time at a connection site. The purpose is to provide.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 is characterized in that the first optical fiber whose end face is polished is positioned so as to be abutted with the second optical fiber which is the other side to be connected and is preliminarily installed. A guide groove that guides the second optical fiber so as to be abutted against the end face of the first optical fiber, and a ferrule having a holder portion with a retaining projection formed on the outer surface, and a convex on the outer surface. A cover member formed with a shape-like part, having a cover member that covers the holder part, and a hollow part that accommodates the cover part in a state in which the cover member covers the holder part, and a retaining projection part is fitted And a sleeve formed with an opening formed therein, and the holder portion covered with the cover member is accommodated in the hollow portion of the sleeve and the retaining projection is fitted into the opening. Then, the sleeve is mounted on the ferrule, and in this state, the convex portion is formed so that the end portion is positioned in the vicinity of the distal end portion of the sleeve, and the second light is formed along the guide groove from the rear portion side of the sleeve. After the fiber is inserted and butted against the first optical fiber, the sleeve is moved in the insertion direction of the second optical fiber so that the inner surface of the sleeve presses the convex portion, and the cover member and the holder portion Is provided so that the first and second optical fibers are aligned and fixed.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 2 is the optical connector according to claim 1, wherein the cover member is formed of a first cover member and a second cover member, A first convex portion is provided on the outer surface, and a second convex portion formed slightly lower than the height of the first convex portion is provided on the outer surface of the second cover member. The guide groove of the holder portion of the portion where the first cover member is arranged is formed so as to be able to receive the optical fiber element portion, while the guide groove of the holder portion of the portion where the second cover member is arranged is The sleeve is formed so as to be able to receive the optical fiber jacket portion, and the sleeve is formed so that the inner diameter of the portion in contact with the second convex portion at the position where the tip end portion contacts the first convex portion is slightly narrow. The sleeve without pressing the first convex part and the second convex part The sleeve can be attached to the ferrule, and after the second optical fiber is inserted from the rear side of the sleeve to make contact with the first optical fiber, the sleeve is moved in the insertion direction of the second optical fiber. The inner surface of the sleeve presses the first convex portion, and the inner surface of the sleeve formed slightly narrow presses the second convex portion, thereby aligning the first and second optical fibers. It is made to let it be made to do.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 3 is the optical connector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the sleeve is formed with a visual window when the second optical fiber is introduced into the guide groove. It is characterized by being.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 4 is the optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a plug frame to which the ferrule is attached, a spring member for biasing the ferrule, The spring member is further provided with a stopper that engages with the plug frame, and the ferrule is provided with a stop ring portion that prevents the spring material from moving, with the spring member interposed therebetween. The ferrule is attached to the plug frame, and the ferrule is biased by a spring member by engaging the stopper with the plug frame.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 5 is the optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the end face of the first optical fiber is provided with a filter film or an attenuation film. It is characterized by being.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 6 is the optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the sleeve is provided with a pulling knob. .

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 7 is the optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the retaining protrusion is provided on the cover member.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 8 is the optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the convex portion is provided in the holder portion.

  According to the optical connector of the present invention, the ferrule in which the first optical fiber whose end face is polished is preliminarily installed, the cover member covering the ferrule, and the first optical fiber by sliding are abutted against the end face. Since the sleeve for pressing and aligning the second optical fiber is pre-assayed, there is an effect that the optical fiber can be connected in the field by a simple operation of simply sliding the sleeve.

  In addition, since at least the ferrule, the cover member, and the sleeve are assembled and pre-assayed, and the optical fiber can be connected in the field by a simple operation of simply sliding the sleeve, it is possible to connect at the connection site. There is an effect that it is possible to improve the work cost and work efficiency because a jig for joining is not required and the assembly work can be easily performed in a very short time.

  Furthermore, there is an effect that it is possible to accurately press down each of the optical fiber strand portion and the optical fiber jacket portion having different diameter sizes by forming the cover member with two members. This has the effect that the optical fiber can be fixed more reliably.

Hereinafter, the optical connector according to the present invention will be described in more detail based on the illustrated preferred embodiment. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an embodiment of an optical connector according to the present invention.
The illustrated optical connector 1 is generally configured to include a ferrule 10, a cover member 20, a sleeve 30, a plug frame 40, a stopper 50, a coil spring 60, a knob 70, and a hood 80. It is an optical connector corresponding to a so-called SC type connector, and is fitted to an optical connector adapter corresponding to the SC type optical connector.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the ferrule 10 constituting the optical connector 1 is roughly formed by adding a cylinder to a substantially cylindrical ferrule main body 11 in which a first optical fiber 3 whose end face is polished is internally provided. The holder portion 12 having a substantially semi-cylindrical shape that is half-divided in the diameter direction is formed to be continuously provided.

  A connection portion between the ferrule body 11 and the holder portion 12 is provided with a disk-like stop ring portion 14 extending outwardly. The holder portion 12 adjacent to the stop ring portion 14 has a holder portion. A semi-cylindrical semi-cylindrical portion 18 having a width size larger than 12 width sizes is provided. And between the ferrule main-body part 11 and the stop ring part 14, the positioning ring 15 in which the unevenness | corrugation was formed in the outer peripheral part is provided. A not-shown uneven portion corresponding to the unevenness of the positioning ring 15 is formed in the plug frame 40, which will be described later, to which the ferrule main body portion 11 is mounted, so that the ferrule 10 is positioned inside the plug frame 40 while being aligned. It has come to be.

  The ferrule body 11 in the present embodiment is formed of zirconia, and the holder 12 is formed of a resin material. However, the material is particularly limited as long as sufficient strength and accuracy can be secured. Absent. For example, the ferrule body 11 may be formed of zirconia and resin / metal, and the holder 12 may of course be formed of resin and metal.

As shown in FIG. 3A, a guide groove 13 is formed on the surface of the holder portion 12 formed in a planar shape along the central axis, and the first optical fiber 3 has the guide groove. The interior part is fixed so that the end part is positioned at the part 13, and a refractive index matching agent (matching oil) is applied to the end face. Here, the refractive index matching agent is a substance having substantially the same refractive index as that of the glass forming the optical fiber, and plays a role of suppressing reflected light generated at the joint surface between the optical fibers. The shape of the end face of the optical fiber is designed to suppress the generation of reflected light by processing it into a spherical surface or a slanted plane. However, in the field work, the end face shape of the optical fiber is the optical axis for the performance of the cutting tool. On the other hand, it must be a vertical plane. For this reason, on-site optical fiber bonding is performed between two planes perpendicular to the optical axis, but it has an end face shape that is most likely to generate reflected light. Therefore, it is important to make the refractive index uniform by filling the optical fiber joint surface with a refractive index matching agent to suppress the generation of reflected light on the joint surface.
As shown in FIG. 3B, the guide groove 13 is a V-shaped groove, and the first optical fiber 3 disposed in the guide groove 13 is pressed and aligned by a cover member 20 described later. It has become. The shape of the guide groove 13 is not limited to the V shape, and may be other shapes such as a U shape.

Positioning protrusions 17 and 17 are formed on the surface of the holder portion 12 so as to extend in the axial direction on both sides of the guide groove 13, and a positioning groove portion 27 provided on the surface of the cover member 20 to be described later. 27 (see FIG. 5B).
The holder part 12 in which the guide groove 13 is formed has a curved outer surface opposite to the flat surface side, and is fitted into an opening 36 provided in a sleeve 30 to be described later, thereby preventing the ferrule 10 from dropping off. A retaining projection 16 is provided. As shown in FIG. 4, when the sleeve 30 is inserted from the rear side (from the right side to the left side in the figure), the leading end of the sleeve 30 is slightly elastically deformed so that it can be ridden. Tapered. When the retaining projection 16 is fitted in the opening 36, the inside of the opening 36 is caught by the retaining projection 16 even if the sleeve 30 is pulled in the direction opposite to the insertion direction (from the left side to the right side in the figure). It is designed to be locked so that it does not fall out easily. Thereby, the ferrule 10 and the sleeve 30 to which the cover member 20 is attached are pre-assayed.

  Next, as shown in FIGS. 2, 4, and 5 (b), the cover member 20 is disposed on the flat surface of the holder portion 12, thereby forming a substantially half shape that forms a substantially cylindrical shape as a whole. The cover body portion 21 is provided with a cylindrical shape, and the front end side of the cover body portion 21 is a semicircular portion 28 having a larger diameter than that of the cover body portion 21, and is integrated with the semicircle portion 18 provided in the holder portion 12. By being combined, a substantially cylindrical shape is formed. A coil spring 60 (to be described later) is arranged on a cylindrical portion formed by the semicircular portion 18 and the semicircular portion 28.

A convex portion 23 is formed on the substantially cylindrical outer peripheral surface of the holder portion 12 so as to extend from the semicircular portion 28 to the vicinity of the center portion of the holder portion 12 (see FIGS. 2 and 4). As shown in FIG. 4, the convex portion 23 is formed in the vicinity of the distal end portion of the ferrule 10 in a state where the sleeve 30 is attached to the ferrule 10 by fitting the retaining projection 16 into the opening 36. The end is located.
Positioning groove portions 27 and 27 (FIG. 5B) in which the positioning projections 17 and 17 of the holder portion 12 are fitted on the planar surface of the cover member 20 arranged to face the flat portion of the holder portion 12. )) Is formed.
The cover member 20 is also formed of a material such as zirconia, for example, like the ferrule 10, but the material is not particularly limited as long as sufficient strength and accuracy can be ensured. It can also be formed of a material such as metal.

  The sleeve 30 is a substantially cylindrical member including a hollow portion 32 that accommodates the cover member 20 in the state where the cover member 20 is attached to the holder portion 12. The sleeve 30 is formed of a metal material having elasticity, and as shown in FIG. 4, an opening 36 opened to receive the retaining protrusion 16 formed on the holder portion 12 is provided on the side surface of the sleeve 30. It has been. The material of the sleeve 30 is not particularly limited as long as sufficient strength, accuracy, and the like can be secured. The sleeve 30 can be formed of a resin material in addition to a metal.

On the other hand, when the ferrule 10 to which the cover member 20 is attached and the sleeve 30 are pre-assayed, the distal end portion of the sleeve 30 is positioned close to the convex portion 23 of the cover member 20. In this state, as shown in FIG. 4, since there is a slight gap between the inner surface of the sleeve 30 and the cover member 20, the cover member 20 and the ferrule 10 are not yet firmly fixed. The optical fiber 5 can be inserted. In this state, the second optical fiber 5 is introduced into the guide groove 13 from the rear side of the sleeve 30 and is abutted against the end face of the first optical fiber 3. Then, when the sleeve 30 is slid in a state where the end faces of the first and second optical fibers 3 and 5 are in contact with each other (from the left side to the right side in the figure), the tip of the sleeve 30 rides on the convex portion 23 of the cover member 20, Then, the inner surface of the sleeve 30 moves while pressing the convex portion 23. As a result, the holder portion 12 and the cover member 20 are firmly fixed and fixed, and aligned and fixed so that the optical axes of the first and second optical fibers 3 and 5 coincide.
The opening 36 guides the retaining projection 16 until the tip of the sleeve 30 comes into contact with the cylindrical portion formed by the semi-cylindrical portions 18 and 28, and does not hinder the sliding of the sleeve 30 as described above. It is formed over such a length.

  Further, the sleeve 30 is formed with a window portion 33 that serves as a visual window when the second optical fiber to be connected in the field on the side opposite to the opening portion 36 is introduced into the guide groove 13. Has been. As a result, the second optical fiber 5 inserted from the rear side of the sleeve 30 can be visually recognized, so that the second optical fiber 5 can be reliably introduced into the guide groove 13.

  Further, on the rear portion side of the sleeve 30, pulling knobs 37 and 37 for pulling out the sleeve 30 from the ferrule 10 and the cover member 20 inserted into the sleeve 30 are provided. Thereby, it is possible to separate again by pulling out the sleeve 30 which has been pre-assayed once.

  The ferrule 10 to which the cover member 20 is attached is accommodated in the plug frame 40 so that the ferrule body 11 slightly protrudes, and a coil spring 60 is disposed from the rear side thereof, and thereafter The stopper 50 is mounted from the side. Further, a pre-assay is performed by attaching the sleeve 30 from the rear side. The plug frame 40 is covered with a knob 70 so as to function as an SC connector.

A slit-like fitting groove 43 is formed on both side surfaces of the plug frame 40, and a fitting projection 53 that fits the fitting groove 43 is formed on the distal end side of the stopper 50. The portion 53 is fitted into the fitting groove 43 so that both are attached.
Further, as described above, the coil spring 60 is disposed on the holder portion 12 side of the ferrule 10, and the movement of the coil spring 60 is prevented by the stop ring portion 14 of the ferrule 10. On the other hand, since the stopper 50 is engaged with the plug frame 40 in a state where the coil spring 60 is compressed from the opposite side, the ferrule 10 is biased by the coil spring 60 toward the front end side of the ferrule body 11. It has become a state.

  The stopper 50 is a substantially cylindrical member formed of a metal material like the sleeve 30. The stopper 50 includes a stopper main body 51 and a skirt portion 54, and the skirt portion 54 is formed with a recess 55 for the knobs 37 and 37 to enter when the sleeve 30 is pushed. If necessary, the pre-assayed sleeve 30 may be covered with a hood 80. Similarly to the sleeve 30, the stopper 50 is not particularly limited as long as sufficient strength, accuracy, and the like can be ensured, and can be formed of a resin material in addition to a metal.

Next, the assembly procedure of the optical connector 1 and the optical fiber butt joining work will be described.
First, the optical connector 1 is assembled by placing the cover member 20 on the holder part 12 of the ferrule 10 in which the first optical fiber 3 whose refractive index matching agent has been applied in advance on the end face is covered, and the holder part 12 is covered with the coil spring. 60 is inserted (FIG. 7A). Then, the ferrule body 11 side is attached to the plug frame 40 from the rear side (FIG. 7B). Next, the stopper 50 is put on the holder part 12 side, and the fitting protrusion 53 is fitted to the stopper 50 in the fitting groove 43 of the plug frame 40 (FIG. 7C). Then, after covering the plug frame 40 with the knob 70, the sleeve 30 is inserted from the rear side of the stopper 50 and pushed into the retaining projection 16 formed on the holder 12 so that the opening 36 of the sleeve 30 is fitted. The pre-assay state (state shown in FIG. 6A) is assumed. As a result, the members are united and prevented from falling off.

  The optical fiber butt joining operation of the second optical fiber 5 is performed as follows. The second optical fiber 5 to be joined is inserted into the sleeve 30 of the pre-assayed optical connector 1. At that time, the distal end portion of the second optical fiber 5 is introduced into the guide groove 13 while viewing the inside from the window portion 33 provided in the sleeve 30. When the end face of the second optical fiber 5 is brought into contact with the end face of the first optical fiber 3 to which the refractive index matching agent has been applied in advance, the sleeve 30 is slid so as to be pushed in. As a result, the sleeve 30 moves so that the tip of the sleeve 30 rides on the convex portion 23 of the cover member 20, the inner wall surface of the sleeve 30 presses the convex portion 23, and the holder portion 12 and the cover member 20 are firmly fixed. At the same time, the optical axes of the first and second optical fibers 3 and 5 are aligned and fixed so that they coincide (FIG. 6B).

Next, an optical connector 1 according to a second embodiment different from the optical connector 1 described above will be described with reference to FIGS. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the component same as the 1st optical connector 1 mentioned above, and the description is abbreviate | omitted.
The optical connector 1 in the present embodiment has basically the same configuration as that of the optical connector 1 in the first embodiment. The difference is that the cover member 20a is provided and the shape of the sleeve 30 is slightly different.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 8, the holder portion 12 of the present embodiment is provided with two new positioning protrusions 17 a and 17 a on the holder portion 12 in the first embodiment, and a new rear side ( As shown in FIG. 9, the guide groove 13 sandwiched between the positioning protrusions 17a and 17a provided on the upper right side in FIG. 8 is sized and shaped to receive the optical fiber jacket 5a. The portion is covered with the second cover member 20a. The guide groove 13 portion on the ferrule body 11 side (left side in FIG. 8) is formed in a size and shape that can receive the optical fiber strand.

Although the convex part 23a is formed in the outer surface of the 2nd cover member 20a, it is formed slightly lower than the height of the 1st convex part 23 provided in the 1st cover member 20. . The sleeve 30 has a slight inner diameter on the rear side (right side in FIG. 9) from the portion in contact with the second convex portion 23a at the position where the front end portion contacts the end portion of the first convex portion 23. It is narrowly formed. As a result, when the sleeve 30 is slid and moved while the cover members 20 and 20a are attached to the holder portion 12, the tip of the sleeve 30 passes without interfering with the second convex portion 23a. It reaches the vicinity of the first convex portion 23. When the sleeve 30 is further moved from this state, the inner surface of the sleeve 30 presses the first convex portion 23, and the inner surface of the sleeve 30 formed slightly narrow presses the second convex portion 23a. It will be. As a result, the optical fiber can be fixed at two locations, and the optical fiber can be fixed more reliably.
In the present embodiment, the optical fiber strand portion is fixed by the first cover member 20 portion, and the optical fiber jacket portion 5a is fixed by the second cover member 20a portion. Alternatively, the optical fiber strand may be fixed at the second cover member 20a.

  Further, in the optical connector 1 in the first and second embodiments, the retaining protrusion 16 is provided on the holder 12, but it can also be provided with a cover member 20. Similarly, the convex portions 23 and 22 a are provided on the cover members 20 and 20 a, respectively, but they can also be provided on the holder portion 12.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 10, for example, a filter film that transmits or blocks only light of a specific wavelength or the intensity of light is adjusted on the end face of the first optical fiber 3 that is built in the ferrule 10 in advance. By disposing an attenuating film or the like, it can be easily used as a filter connector or an attenuator. The filter film and the attenuation film can be formed by adhesion or vapor deposition.

Next, the optical connector 1 shown in FIG. 11 as a third embodiment is formed by a minimum configuration of a ferrule 10, a cover member 20, and a sleeve 30 (see FIGS. 4 and 5). Here, FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the information outlet 100 for optical connection arranged so as to be embedded in the wall surface of a house or building. The information outlet 100 has an optical receptacle 8 disposed therein, and the optical connector 1 according to the third embodiment is connected to the optical receptacle 8. An optical connector 7 connected from the indoor side is fitted to the opposite side of the optical receptacle 8 to which the optical connector 1 is connected. In addition, when the optical receptacle 8 is not used, the cover part 101 which protects it is provided. Since the optical connector 1 in the present embodiment is not inserted / removed as appropriate, it can be sufficiently used even with such a minimum configuration.
The optical connector 1 of the information outlet configured as described above is connected to, for example, an optical fiber connected to a network such as the Internet, and can be connected to a network such as the Internet at high speed by FTTH.

It is a disassembled perspective view of the optical connector which concerns on this invention. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows a ferrule and a cover member. (A) is a perspective view which shows the state of a holder part and a 1st optical fiber, (b) is sectional drawing which shows the alignment state of an optical fiber. It is sectional drawing of the optical connector of a pre-assay state. (A) is a perspective view of the optical connector of the pre-assay state which assembled the ferrule, the cover member, and the sleeve, (b) is AA 'sectional drawing. (A) is a perspective view of the optical connector of the pre-assay state which covered the knob, (b) is a perspective view of the state which connected the 2nd optical fiber to the optical connector of (a). (A) is a perspective view of a state where a coil spring is attached to a ferrule, (b) is a perspective view of a state where it is attached to a plug frame, and (c) is a perspective view of a state where a stopper is further attached. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the ferrule, cover member, and 2nd cover member in 2nd embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the optical connector of FIG. It is an expansion perspective view which shows the end surface state of a 1st optical fiber. It is sectional drawing of an information socket. It is a front view of an information outlet.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Optical connector 3 1st optical fiber 5 2nd optical fiber 10 Ferrule 11 Ferrule main-body part 12 Holder part 13 Guide groove 14 Stop ring part 15 Positioning ring 16 Stopping projection part 17 Positioning projection part 18 Semicircle part 20, 20a Cover member 21, 21a Cover body portion 23, 23a Convex portion 30 Sleeve 32 Hollow portion 33 Window portion 36 Opening portion 37 Knob portion 40 Plug frame 50 Stopper 60 Coil spring 70 Knob 80 Hood

Claims (8)

The first optical fiber whose end face has been polished is positioned in advance so as to be able to abut against the second optical fiber which is the other side to be connected, and the second optical fiber is attached to the first optical fiber. A ferrule having a holder portion provided with a guide groove that is guided so as to be able to abut against the end surface, and a retaining projection formed on the outer surface;
A cover member having a convex portion formed on an outer surface, the cover member covering the holder portion; and
A sleeve in which the cover member has a hollow portion that accommodates the holder portion in a state of covering the holder portion, and an opening portion into which the retaining protrusion portion is inserted, and
Configured with
The holder portion covered with the cover member is accommodated in the hollow portion of the sleeve, and the sleeve is attached to the ferrule by fitting the retaining protrusion into the opening, and in this state, the convex portion is The sleeve is formed so that its end is located near the tip of the sleeve, and a second optical fiber is inserted along the guide groove from the rear side of the sleeve to make a match with the first optical fiber. Then, the sleeve is moved in the insertion direction of the second optical fiber so that the inner surface of the sleeve presses the convex portion, thereby bringing the cover member and the holder portion into close contact with each other, thereby An optical connector, wherein the first and second optical fibers are formed so as to be aligned and fixed. The optical connector according to claim 1,
The cover member is formed of a first cover member and a second cover member,
A first convex portion is provided on the outer surface of the first cover member,
A second convex portion formed slightly lower than the height of the first convex portion is provided on the outer surface of the second cover member,
The guide groove of the holder portion of the portion where the first cover member is disposed is formed so as to be able to receive an optical fiber strand portion, while the holder portion of the portion where the second cover member is disposed The guide groove is formed to receive an optical fiber jacket portion,
The sleeve is formed such that an inner diameter of a portion in contact with the second convex portion at a position where a tip portion thereof is in contact with the first convex portion is slightly narrowed, whereby the first convex portion is formed. The sleeve can be attached to the ferrule without pressing the second convex portion, and a second optical fiber is inserted from the rear side of the sleeve to make a match with the first optical fiber. Then, by moving the sleeve in the insertion direction of the second optical fiber, the inner surface of the sleeve presses the first convex portion, and the inner surface of the sleeve formed slightly narrower An optical connector characterized in that each of the second convex portions is pressed to align the first and second optical fibers. The optical connector according to claim 1 or 2,
An optical connector, wherein the sleeve is formed with a window portion for visual recognition when the second optical fiber is introduced into the guide groove. The optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A plug frame on which the ferrule is mounted;
A spring member for biasing the ferrule; and
A stopper for supporting the spring member and engaging with the plug frame;
And further comprising
The ferrule is provided with a stop ring portion for preventing movement of the spring material, the ferrule is mounted on the plug frame with the spring member interposed, and the stopper is engaged with the plug frame. Accordingly, the optical connector is configured to bias the ferrule by the spring member. In the optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
An optical connector, wherein an end face of the first optical fiber is provided with a filter film or an attenuation film. In the optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
An optical connector according to claim 1, wherein a pulling knob is provided on the sleeve. The optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The optical connector according to claim 1, wherein the retaining protrusion is provided on a cover member. The optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The convex portion is provided in a holder portion.

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