JP2007156292A - Optical fiber branching cord and manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical fiber branching ribbon which has enhanced compactness and softness by using two-layered coated optical fibers, and also to provide a manufacturing method for the ribbon. <P>SOLUTION: One side of each coated optical fiber 16 is arrayed, and these fibers are integrally coated with a coating joining body 18 to form a coated optical fiber ribbon 11. Meantime, a branching coated fiber part 12 is formed on the other side of each coated optical fiber 16. Also, the intermediate part between the coated optical fiber ribbon 11 and the branching coated fiber part 12 is covered with a heat-shrinkable tube 21 straddling over them. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical fiber branch cord for branching and converting a multi-core optical fiber ribbon to a single-core optical fiber, such as a pull-down from an optical fiber cable or wiring in an apparatus, and a manufacturing method thereof.

Conventionally, it is necessary to branch and convert a multi-core optical fiber ribbon into a single-core optical fiber in the pull-down from an optical fiber cable or in-apparatus wiring in optical communication or the like. In order to facilitate wiring, an optical fiber branch cord in which a tape core portion in which a plurality of optical fibers are arranged in parallel and a branch core portion in which the plurality of optical fibers branch is integrally provided is used. is there.
As a manufacturing method of the optical fiber branch cord, for example, a method in which one side of a previously formed tape core wire is cut and branched into a plurality of single core wires (for example, see Patent Document 1), or a plurality of single core wires. There is known a method of removing a coating on one side and aligning and covering the coating removal portion to form a tape core (see, for example, Patent Document 2).
JP-A-9-203831 JP-A-9-145971

In the above prior art, the former one needs to cover each cut single core wire with a protective tube, so that the branch core portion becomes bulky. On the other hand, the latter is advantageous in that the branch core portion can be made compact because the protective coating formed in advance on the single core wire can be used effectively.
By the way, the latter technique is premised on the optical fiber core wire in which the outer periphery of the clad is coated with three layers, and the outer two layers on one side of each optical fiber core wire are removed to cure the ultraviolet ray around the outer periphery of the clad. The resin layer is exposed and a tape core is formed using the same ultraviolet curable resin.

However, in recent years, optical fiber cores are mainly used in which two layers of a buffer coating layer and a protective coating layer are formed on the outer periphery of the cladding. There is a demand for a configuration that can be made compact and flexible.
Accordingly, the present invention provides an optical fiber branching tape capable of improving compactness and flexibility by using a two-layer coated optical fiber core in which a buffer coating layer and a protective coating layer are sequentially formed on the outer periphery of a clad, and a method for manufacturing the same. I will provide a.

  As a means for solving the above problem, the invention described in claim 1 is provided by integrally providing a tape core portion in which a plurality of optical fibers are arranged in parallel and a branch core portion in which the plurality of optical fibers are branched. In the optical fiber branch cord, a plurality of two-layer coated optical fiber cores in which a buffer coating layer and a protective coating layer are sequentially formed on the outer periphery of the cladding are provided, and one side of each optical fiber core wire is aligned and The tape core portion is formed by integrally covering with a coated joined body, while the branch core portion is formed on the other side of each optical fiber core, and the tape core portion and the branch core portion It is characterized by being covered with a heat-shrinkable tube straddling them.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the optical fiber branch cord according to the first aspect, the protective coating layer is removed from one side of each of the optical fiber cores to form a coating removal unit, and each coating removal unit Are aligned and coated with the coated assembly.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the optical fiber branch cord according to the first or second aspect, the coated joined body covers only one side of the aligned optical fiber core wires.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the optical fiber branch cord according to any one of the first to third aspects, the coated joined body is made of silicone rubber.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an optical fiber branch cord in which a tape core portion in which a plurality of optical fibers are arranged in parallel and a branch core portion in which the plurality of optical fibers are branched are integrally provided. In the method, a plurality of two-layer coated optical fiber cores in which a buffer coating layer and a protective coating layer are sequentially formed on the outer periphery of the clad are provided, and one side of each of the optical fiber core wires is aligned, and these are coated with a coated assembly. The tape core portion is formed by covering integrally, while the branch core portion is configured on the other side of each optical fiber core, and between the tape core portion and the branch core portion. It is characterized by being covered with a heat-shrinkable tube straddling these.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the method for manufacturing an optical fiber branch cord according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, one side of each of the optical fiber cores is removed from the protective coating layer to form a coating removal portion. The covering removal portions are aligned and covered with the covering joined body.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the use of the two-layer coated optical fiber core wire can eliminate the ultraviolet curable resin layer from the conventional three-layer coated one. Compact and flexible.
Moreover, since the protective coating on the other side of each optical fiber core can be effectively used as a protective coating for each branch core in the branch core, it is necessary to cover each branch core with a protective tube in the branch core. Therefore, the branch core portion can be made more compact and flexible.
Furthermore, by covering the gap between the tape core portion and the branch core portion with a heat-shrinkable tube straddling them, the stress concentration at the branch portion of each branch core wire can be alleviated, and the coated assembly of the tape core portion And the protective covering of each branch core of the branch core can be satisfactorily joined, so that the product strength can be increased.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the tape core portion can be made more compact and flexible by removing the protective coating on one side of each of the optical fiber cores and then coating them with the coated assembly.

  According to the invention described in claim 3, by covering only one side of each of the aligned optical fiber cores, the tape core portion can be made more compact and flexible than those coated on both sides.

  According to the invention described in claim 4, the flexibility of the tape core portion can be further increased by using the silicone rubber as the covering bonded body.

According to the invention described in claim 5, by using a two-layer coated optical fiber core wire, an ultraviolet curable resin layer can be eliminated as compared with a conventional three-layer coated one. Compact and flexible.
Moreover, since the protective coating on the other side of each optical fiber core can be effectively used as a protective coating for each branch core in the branch core, it is necessary to cover each branch core with a protective tube in the branch core. Therefore, the branch core portion can be made more compact and flexible.
Furthermore, by covering the gap between the tape core portion and the branch core portion with a heat-shrinkable tube straddling them, the stress concentration at the branch portion of each branch core wire can be alleviated, and the coated assembly of the tape core portion And the protective covering of each branch core of the branch core can be satisfactorily joined, so that the product strength can be increased.

  According to the invention described in claim 6, the tape core portion can be made more compact and flexible by removing the protective coating on one side of each of the optical fiber cores and then covering them with the covering joined body.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
The optical fiber branch cord 10 shown in FIG. 1 includes a plurality of optical fibers 15 (see FIG. 2C) arranged in parallel only with the buffer coating layer 16a or with both the layer 16a and the protective coating layer 16b. The tape core portion 11 and the branch core portion 12 branched from the optical fiber 15 with both the buffer coating layer 16a and the protective coating layer 16b are integrally provided.
The light guide portion of the optical fiber 15 is an existing one made of a material such as quartz or plastic, and in this embodiment, four optical fibers 15 are used. The optical fiber 15 may be a holey fiber having an air layer in its cross section, and the number, outer diameter, and the like are not particularly limited.

  Referring also to FIG. 2 (c), each optical fiber 15 has a buffer coating layer 16a made of, for example, a thermosetting silicone resin formed on the outer periphery of the clad 15b covering the core 15a, and the buffer coating layer. A protective coating layer 16b made of, for example, a polyamide resin is formed on the outer periphery of 16a, so that it can be handled as a two-layer coated optical fiber core wire 16 having an outer diameter of about 900 μm. In this example, an optical fiber core having a length of 2000 mm (for example, Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd., silica-based single mode optical fiber core, outer diameter: 0.9 mm) was used.

  One side in the longitudinal direction of each optical fiber core wire 16 is formed as a coating removal portion 17 by removing the protective coating layer 16b, and then is integrally covered with the coating joined body 18 in a state where they are aligned with each other. The tape core part 11 is configured. The covering joined body 18 can be handled as an optical fiber tape by covering the aligned covering removing portions 17 (see FIG. 2A). In addition, on the one side in the longitudinal direction of each optical fiber core wire 16, it may be removed while leaving the protective coating layer 16b. Further, as shown in FIG. 2 (d), the coated joined body 18 may cover only one side of each optical fiber core wire 16 on one side in the longitudinal direction.

  In this embodiment, by using a room temperature curable silicone rubber (for example, product name: SE9186L, manufactured by Toray Dow Corning Silicone Co., Ltd.) for the coated bonded body 18, the flexibility of the tape core wire portion 11 is ensured satisfactorily. The curing process is facilitated. In addition, as the covering joined body 18, silicone-based resin, butyl rubber, or the like is preferable in terms of easy molding, but other rubber-based resin materials can be applied, and further, heat or photo-curing resin, thermoplastic resin, And what has flexibility at the time of hardening in a heat melting type adhesive etc. is applicable.

  The thickness of the coated bonded body 18 in the tape core portion 11 is preferably 30 μm or more and 500 μm or less. This is a value in consideration of strength for joining the coating removal portions 17 to each other, maintaining the flexibility of the tape core portion 11 and preventing breakage against bending.

On the other hand, on the other side in the longitudinal direction of each optical fiber core wire 16, a plurality of branch core wires 19 (specifically, four single core wires) in the branch core wire portion 12 are left with the protective coating layer 16b remaining. Configure.
The covering joined body 18 does not reach the branch core portion 12, and therefore, a plurality of covering removal portions 17 that are not covered with the covering joint portion 18 are predetermined between the branch core portion 12 and the tape core portion 11. Only the length is exposed. The space between the tape core portion 11 and the branch core portion 12 is covered and protected by a heat shrinkable tube 21 extending over these portions.

  Referring also to FIG. 2B, the illustrated heat shrinkable tube 21 includes a cylindrical tube body 22, a rod-shaped reinforcing body 23 having a semicircular cross section made of glass or the like, and a rod-shaped thermoplastic adhesive. The heat shrinkable tube 21 is formed by inserting the agent 24, and the heat-shrinkable tube 21 is connected to the end of the coated core 18 on the side of the branched core 12 and the tape core of each branch core 19 of the branched core 12. It is mounted so as to straddle the portion 11 side end.

  The heat-shrinkable tube 21 is attached to a predetermined part by inserting each branch core wire 19 into the heat-shrinkable tube 21, and this is heated to shrink the tube main body 22 and melt and soften the thermoplastic adhesive 24. Then, these are cooled and hardened, so that the space between the coated joined body 18 of the tape core portion 11 and each branch core wire 19 of the branch core portion 12 is covered and bonded together. The

Next, a method for manufacturing the optical fiber branch cord 10 will be described.
First, as shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of the optical fiber cores 16 are prepared, the protective coating layer 16b on one side is removed, and the plurality of coating removal portions 17 are visually operated manually or by a wiring device. Use the to align on a plane. At this time, each coating removal portion 17 may be temporarily fixed with an adhesive material or the like, or may be temporarily fixed using an alignment member 26 having grooves 26a as shown in FIG.

  Next, a coating material (the coated joined body 18 before curing) is applied to one side of each of the aligned coating removal portions 17. This coating process can be performed using a coating apparatus 31 described later. Then, when the coated joined body 18 covers both surfaces of each optical fiber core wire 16, after the applied coating material is cured, each optical fiber core wire 16 is turned over and subjected to a coating process again, thereby aligning each of the optical fiber core wires 16. The covering removal portion 17 is integrally covered with the covering joined body 18 over the entire circumference including both surfaces thereof. In addition, when the covering joined body 18 is a heat | fever or photocurable resin etc., the predetermined hardening process using a heater, an ultraviolet irradiation device etc. is performed after the said application | coating process. Further, the coated joined body 18 may be manufactured by a process of providing only on one side of each optical fiber core wire 16.

  After the covering bonded body 18 is cured, the heat shrinkable tube 21 is attached to a predetermined portion and heated to shrink the tube main body 22 and melt and soften the thermoplastic adhesive 24, so that the thermoplastic adhesive 24 is covered with the coated bonded body. 18 between each branch core 19 and between each branch core 19. Thereafter, the heat-shrinkable tube 21 is cooled and hardened, so that the space between the coated joined body 18 of the tape core portion 11 and each branch core wire 19 of the branch core portion 12 is covered and these are integrally bonded. Thus, the optical fiber branch cord 10 is completed.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the coating apparatus 31 used in the coating step includes a rectangular substrate 32 having a flat surface 32 a on which each optical fiber core wire 16 is disposed and a long side on one side of the substrate 32. A side wall 33 rising from the portion; a drive motor 34 and a bearing 35 fixed to the left and right sides of the side wall 33; a ball screw extending in the left-right direction with one end fixed to the drive motor 34 and the other end supported by the bearing 35 A shaft 36, a movable unit 38 having a coating material filling port 37 in the upper portion and driven in a uniaxial direction by a control system (not shown), a forming jig 39 attached to the lower end of the movable unit 38, and a coating (not shown) It consists of a material supply system.

  The forming jig 39 has a width of 40 mm, a length of 30 mm, and a height of 40 mm, and a lower surface thereof is a flat surface. The forming jig 39 is attached to the lower end of the movable unit 38 attached to the ball screw shaft 36. It can be moved vertically and horizontally. The covering material is injected from a covering material filling port 37 provided at the upper part of the movable unit 38, and a coating (not shown) provided on the lower surface of the forming jig 39 when the movable unit 38 moves in the left-right direction. It is discharged from the material discharge port. This coating material is smoothed on the lower surface of the forming jig 39 and laminated on the coating removal portion 17 of the optical fiber core wire 16 disposed on the substrate 32 along the left-right direction.

  As described above, the optical fiber branch cord 10 in the above embodiment includes the tape core portion 11 in which a plurality of optical fibers 15 are arranged in parallel, and the branch core portion 12 in which the plurality of optical fibers 15 are branched. A plurality of two-layer coated optical fiber cores 16 in which a buffer coating layer 16a and a protective coating layer 16b are sequentially formed on the outer periphery of the clad 15b, and each of the optical fiber core wires 16 is provided. The tape core part 11 is configured by aligning one side of the optical fiber and integrally covering them with the covering assembly 18, while the branch core part 12 is configured on the other side of the optical fiber cores 16. And between the said tape core part 11 and the branch core part 12 is coat | covered with the heat contraction tube 21 straddling these.

According to this configuration, the use of the two-layer coated optical fiber core wire 16 can eliminate the ultraviolet curable resin layer compared to the conventional three-layer coated one, so that the branch cord itself can be made compact and flexible. it can.
Further, since the protective coating on the other side of each optical fiber core 16 can be effectively used as a protective coating for each branch core 19 in the branch core 12, a protection tube is attached to each branch core 19 in the branch core 12. There is no need to cover it, and the branch core portion 12 can be made compact and flexible.
Further, by covering the space between the tape core portion 11 and the branch core portion 12 with the heat-shrinkable tube 21 straddling them, the stress concentration at the branch portion of each branch core wire 19 can be alleviated, and the tape core portion 11 and the protective covering of each branch core 19 of the branch core portion 12 can be satisfactorily bonded to each other, so that the product strength can be increased.

  Further, in the optical fiber branch cord 10, one side of each optical fiber core wire 16 is removed from the protective coating layer 16 b to form a coating removal portion 17, and the respective coating removal portions 17 are aligned to cover the coating. By covering with the joined body 18, the tape core portion 11 can be made more compact and flexible.

  Furthermore, in the said optical fiber branch cord 10, the softness | flexibility of the tape core part 11 can further be improved because the coating | coated joined body 18 consists of silicone rubber.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, in the state in which the side of each optical fiber core wire 16 constituting the tape core wire portion 11 is aligned, as described above, the coated assembly is formed only on one surface thereof as described above. The tape core portion 11 may be configured by covering with 18. In this case, the compactness and flexibility of the tape core part 11 can be further increased, and the arrangement thereof can be performed more easily. At this time, if the coating is applied after removing the protective coating layer 16b at the site to be coated, the effect can be enhanced, and if the protective coating layer 16b at the site to be coated is left as it is, the tape The protection of the core part 11 can be enhanced.
Further, the covering core 18 may be coated to the end of the branch core portion 12 (boundary with the sheath removing portion 17), or may be covered to a position beyond the end, You may make it not expose the coating removal part 17 between the tape core wire parts 11.
Furthermore, each branch core 19 in the branch core 12 may be composed of a plurality of cores instead of a single core.
And the structure in the said Example is an example, and it cannot be overemphasized that a various change is possible in the range which does not deviate from the summary of invention.

It is a top view of the optical fiber branch cord in the said Example. (A) is AA sectional drawing of FIG. 1, (b) is BB sectional drawing of FIG. 1, (c) is CC sectional drawing of FIG. FIG. 5 is a plan view of a state in which a plurality of optical fiber core wires are aligned and arranged at the time of manufacturing the optical fiber branch cord. It is a perspective view of the alignment member at the time of arranging and arrange | positioning each said optical fiber core wire. It is a perspective view of the coating device which apply | coats a coating joining body to each said optical fiber core wire.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Optical fiber branch cord 11 Tape core part 12 Branch core part 15 Optical fiber 15a Core 15b Cladding 16a Buffer coating layer 16b Protective coating layer 17 Coating removal part 18 Coating | bonding joined body 21 Heat-shrinkable tube

Claims (6)

In an optical fiber branch cord in which a tape core portion in which a plurality of optical fibers are arranged in parallel and a branch core portion in which the plurality of optical fibers are branched are integrally provided,
A plurality of two-layer coated optical fiber cores in which a buffer coating layer and a protective coating layer are sequentially formed are provided on the outer periphery of the clad, and one side of each of the optical fiber core wires is aligned, and these are integrally joined with a coated assembly. While covering and constituting the tape core portion, the branch core portion is formed on the other side of each optical fiber core wire, and spans between the tape core portion and the branch core portion. An optical fiber branching cord covered with a heat shrinkable tube. 2. The one side of each of the optical fiber cores is formed as a coating removal portion by removing the protective coating layer, and the coating removal portions are aligned and covered with the coating assembly. The optical fiber branch cord described in 1. 3. The optical fiber branch cord according to claim 1, wherein the covering joined body covers only one side of each of the optical fiber cores that are aligned. 4. The optical fiber branch cord according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the covering joined body is made of silicone rubber. In the method of manufacturing an optical fiber branch cord, in which a tape core portion in which a plurality of optical fibers are arranged in parallel and a branch core portion in which the plurality of optical fibers are branched are integrally provided,
A plurality of two-layer coated optical fiber cores in which a buffer coating layer and a protective coating layer are sequentially formed are provided on the outer periphery of the clad, and one side of each of the optical fiber core wires is aligned, and these are integrally joined with a coated assembly. While covering and constituting the tape core portion, the branch core portion is formed on the other side of each optical fiber core wire, and spans between the tape core portion and the branch core portion. A method of manufacturing an optical fiber branch cord, wherein the optical fiber branch cord is covered with a heat shrinkable tube. 6. The optical fiber core wire according to claim 5, wherein the protective coating layer is removed to form a coating removal portion, and the coating removal portions are aligned and covered with the coating assembly. The manufacturing method of the optical fiber branch cord described in 2.

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