JP2013109172A - Optical fiber unit and optical cable - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical fiber unit which can be easily stored in an optical cable while securing excellent separability, discriminability, and batch fusion connectivity in the case of improving integration by unitizing a plurality of optical fibers.SOLUTION: An optical unit 1 including a plurality of optical fibers (illustrated as four optical fibers 11a to 11d) is constituted by arranging the optical fibers 11a to 11d in two lines and multiple rows (two lines and two rows in the case), and intermittently connecting the optical fibers 11a to 11d in a longitudinal direction. Then, a connection part 21 is constituted by fixing the optical fibers 11a to 11d in a batch. It is desired that the connection part 21 has a fixed length in the longitudinal direction.

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical fiber unit in which a plurality of optical fibers are connected, and an optical cable having the optical fiber unit.

  FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration example of an optical fiber ribbon in which a plurality of optical fibers are unitized. Each of the optical fiber ribbons 7a and 7b illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B is an optical fiber unit configured by integrally arranging a plurality of optical fibers 11 in parallel in a row.

  The optical fiber ribbon 7a is of a four-fiber type in which four optical fibers 11 are arranged in parallel and the periphery thereof is covered with a tape material 12 and integrated. The optical fiber 11 is provided as an optical fiber or an optical fiber core obtained by applying an ultraviolet curable resin (hereinafter, UV resin) to a glass fiber drawn by a heating furnace. Further, UV resin is generally used for the tape material 12. The optical fiber ribbon 7b is an 8-fiber ribbon in which two optical fiber ribbons 7a are arranged and the periphery is further covered with a connecting coating material (protective tape) 13 made of UV resin. belongs to. The number of cores of the optical fiber ribbon is not limited to 4 or 8 cores.

  As an optical cable using the optical fiber ribbon as illustrated in FIG. 7, a plurality of optical fiber ribbons are accommodated in the groove of the spacer, a presser winding is wound around the outer periphery, and the outermost periphery is covered with a jacket. The thing of the structure which twisted several units in one direction and gathered together, and the thing of the structure which gave the outer periphery to the outer periphery is used. Here, a plurality of optical fibers 11 constituting one optical fiber ribbon 7a or 7b are colored with different colors so that each optical fiber 11 can be identified. In addition, the optical fiber ribbons 7a and 7b are easy to handle even when cabled, and a plurality of optical fibers 11 are integrated. Incoming connection is possible and it has good connection characteristics.

By the way, in recent years, a demand for an optical cable having a small diameter and a high density is increasing, and an optical fiber ribbon that can be stored at a high density in an optical cable having a small diameter and has high separability when laying the optical cable is required. .
However, as shown in FIG. 7, the optical fiber ribbons bonded to the optical fibers in parallel in the longitudinal direction as shown in FIG. 7 have poor separability. Since it is restrained, bending distortion is likely to occur.

  In order to solve such a problem, Patent Document 1 discloses an optical fiber ribbon in which a plurality of optical fibers are arranged in parallel, and a connecting portion for connecting only two adjacent optical fibers is intermittently provided in the longitudinal direction. Is disclosed.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a manufacturing method for manufacturing an optical fiber ribbon by intermittently forming an adhesive portion and a separating portion on adjacent optical fibers. In this manufacturing method, an optical fiber is passed through a plurality of optical fiber insertion holes provided in a UV resin coating die, UV resin is applied to each optical fiber, and UV light is intermittently irradiated to each optical fiber. Hardened and uncured parts are made. In this manufacturing method, subsequently, the bonded portion and the separated portion are formed by concentrating the plurality of optical fibers and irradiating the uncured portion with ultraviolet rays in a state where the uncured portion is in contact.

Japanese Patent No. 4143651 JP 2010-2743 A

However, in the optical fiber ribbons described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, there are two bonded optical fibers, and the positions of the bonded portions in the longitudinal direction are different from the bonded portions of the other optical fibers. Therefore, in order to identify each optical fiber, it is necessary to examine in the longitudinal direction so that the non-bonded portion can be visually recognized for all the optical fibers. Absent.
Further, in this optical fiber ribbon, since there are two bonded optical fibers, the optical fibers are not bundled and difficult to store when storing a plurality of optical fibers in an optical cable.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a good separation property, distinguishability, and collective fusion connection property when a plurality of optical fibers are unitized to improve integration. An object of the present invention is to provide an optical fiber unit that can be easily accommodated in an optical cable while securing the optical fiber unit, and an optical cable having the optical fiber unit.

  An optical fiber unit according to the present invention is a unit comprising a plurality of optical fibers, wherein the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in two rows and multiple columns, and the plurality of optical fibers are intermittently connected in the longitudinal direction. The connecting portion is formed by fixing the plurality of optical fibers together.

Here, the connecting portion is preferably formed by fixing the plurality of optical fibers with UV resin (ultraviolet curable resin).
Moreover, it is preferable that the said connection part has a fixed length in a longitudinal direction, the length of the said connection part is 30-150 mm, and the length of the non-connection part other than the said connection part is 50-150 mm.
An optical cable according to the present invention accommodates the above optical fiber unit.

  According to the present invention, when a plurality of optical fibers are unitized to improve integration, it is possible to provide a connection portion intermittently in the longitudinal direction and fix the plurality of optical fibers together at the connection portion. Thus, it is possible to facilitate storage in an optical cable while ensuring good separation, discrimination and collective fusion connection.

It is a figure which shows the example of 1 structure of the optical fiber unit which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which shows the other structural example of the optical fiber unit which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which shows the other structural example of the optical fiber unit which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which shows the other structural example of the optical fiber unit which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows one structural example of the optical cable using the optical fiber unit which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the other structural example of the optical cable using the optical fiber unit which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the structural example of the optical fiber tape core wire which unitized the some optical fiber.

The optical fiber unit according to the present invention is a unit including a plurality of optical fibers, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in two rows and multiple columns, and the plurality of optical fibers are intermittently connected in the longitudinal direction. It becomes. The optical fiber unit according to the present invention has two or more columns. However, when the number of columns is three or more, the optical fiber unit can be said to be an optical fiber tape unit because it is arranged in two rows of tapes.
Hereinafter, an optical fiber unit according to the present invention and an optical cable including the optical fiber unit will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an optical fiber unit according to the present invention. FIG. 1 (A) is a perspective view showing a part of the length direction of the optical fiber unit, and FIG. 1 (B) is FIG. FIG. 1C is a diagram showing a cross section taken along the line C-C in FIG. 1A.
An optical fiber unit 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a unit including four optical fibers 11a to 11d. Each of the optical fibers 11a to 11d is a single-core optical fiber or an optical fiber core having a cladding formed around the core and covered with UV resin or the like, and the diameter thereof is, for example, 0. It is about .25 mm. The same applies to optical fibers in other configuration examples described later.

The optical fiber unit 1 includes four optical fibers arranged in two rows and two columns, and the four optical fibers 11a to 11d are intermittently connected in the longitudinal direction. Furthermore, each connection part 21 fixes the four optical fibers 11a-11d collectively (that is, collectively). The connecting portion 21 preferably has a fixed length in the longitudinal direction. In this example and other examples described below, the connecting portion will be described on the assumption that the connecting portion has a fixed length in the longitudinal direction.
Here, the connecting portion 21 is formed by fixing four optical fibers 11 a to 11 d with the UV resin 20. Hereinafter, although the example fixed with the UV resin 20 is given, an adhesive resin material other than the UV resin 20 may be used.

  Moreover, the connection part 21 points out the part by which the optical fibers were adhere | attached with UV resin 20 as shown in FIG.1 (B), and if all the optical fibers 11a-11d are connected by the outer peripheral side at least, It is only necessary that adjacent optical fibers are connected along the outer periphery. By such connection, all the optical fibers 11a to 11d can be fixed together.

  Here, an example in which the UV resin 20 is provided on all the outer peripheries of the optical fibers 11a to 11d as shown in FIG. 1B is given, but the optical fibers to be connected to each other are part of the outer peripheries. It is sufficient that the UV resin 20 is provided so as to straddle. In addition, the inside of the four optical fibers 11a to 11d is not connected (forms a space) as shown in FIG. 1B in order to simplify the amount of UV resin 20 used and the connecting direction. Although it is preferable, it may be connected similarly to the outer peripheral side.

  Moreover, since the connection part 21 is provided intermittently in the longitudinal direction, the optical fiber unit 1 also has a part other than the connection part 21, that is, a non-connection part 22. The unconnected portion 22 is a portion between the connected portion 21 and the next connected portion 21 and is a portion where the optical fibers 11a to 11d are separated from each other, and there is an adhesive portion as shown in FIG. do not do.

As described above, in the optical fiber unit 1, a plurality of (four in this example) optical fibers are connected and unitized, so that the integration can be improved as compared with the case where the optical fiber unit 1 is not unitized.
Moreover, in the optical fiber unit 1, since the connection part 21 is intermittently provided in the longitudinal direction and a plurality of (four in this example) optical fibers are fixed together at the connection part 21, (1) separation (2) Discriminability and (3) Collective fusion splicability can be secured satisfactorily, and (4) storage efficiency can be improved.

  Regarding (1), by providing not only the connecting portion but also the non-connecting portion, each optical fiber can move individually in the non-connecting portion, so that the movement of the optical fiber after being accommodated in the optical cable becomes free. . For this reason, bending distortion hardly occurs, and the optical fiber unit 1 can be made a unit that is easy to bend in any direction without anisotropy. Furthermore, by providing not only the connecting portion but also the non-connecting portion, it becomes easy to separate the optical fiber into a single core when laying the optical cable.

Regarding (2) above, even if the entire outer periphery of the connecting portion 21 is covered with the UV resin 20, all the bonded optical fibers are only color-coded, and only one unconnected portion is provided. Can be identified by confirmation. Further, if the connecting portion 21 is colored and color-coded, it becomes easy to identify between the units, and it is easy to determine which unit each optical fiber belongs to.
With regard to (3) above, since the plurality of optical fibers are integrated at the connecting portion, it is possible to perform a collective fusion connection in which the terminal portions of the plurality of optical fibers are aligned.
With regard to (4) above, when storing a plurality of optical fibers, if only the part where the optical fibers are separated, it will be scattered and the storage efficiency will be poor. It is possible to improve and facilitate storage in the optical cable.

  Further, when the inner sides of the four optical fibers 11a to 11d are not connected, the connecting portion 21 between the two specific optical fibers among the connecting portions 21 connecting the optical fibers 11a to 11d. By cutting, a conventional tape-like optical fiber unit can be obtained. In other words, in the optical fiber unit 1 having a configuration in which the inner sides are not connected, when the end portions of the optical fibers 11a to 11d are aligned and batch fusion connection is performed, the connecting portion 21 between the predetermined optical fibers is cut. The optical fibers 11a to 11d can be formed into a tape shape arranged in a line.

Next, the length (interval) of the connection part 21 and the non-connection part 22 is demonstrated.
The length of the connecting portion 21 is preferably 30 to 150 mm, and the length of the non-connecting portion 22 is preferably 50 to 150 mm.

More specifically, if the connecting portion 21 is too short, it is easily separated by the lateral pressure of the adjacent optical fiber unit when housed in the optical cable, and therefore it is preferably 30 mm or more. Moreover, it is preferable that the connection part 21 is 150 mm or less in consideration of the separation workability of the optical fiber unit 1. The unconnected portion 22 is preferably of a length that allows human fingers to be inserted when the optical fiber unit 1 is separated, and is therefore preferably 50 mm or more. Further, the non-connecting portion 22 is preferably 150 mm or less in consideration of distinguishability from the connecting portion 21.
In fact, by configuring the connecting portion 21 and the non-connecting portion 22 so as to fall within these ranges, good non-separability, separation workability, ease of finger insertion, and discrimination were obtained.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing another configuration example of the optical fiber unit according to the present invention. FIG. 2 (A) is a perspective view showing a part of the length direction of the optical fiber unit, and FIG. 2 (B) is FIG. FIG. 2A is a view showing a cross section taken along line BB in FIG. 2A, and FIG. 2C is a view showing a cross section taken along line CC in FIG.

  The optical fiber unit 2 shown in FIG. 2 has a configuration in which a plurality of optical fibers are connected by a connecting portion 21 provided intermittently, similarly to the optical fiber unit 1 of FIG. 1 is different from the configuration of FIG. 1 in that the number of optical fibers is eight. Hereinafter, the optical fiber unit 2 will be described with a focus on differences from the configuration of FIG.

  The optical fiber unit 2 includes eight optical fibers 11a to 11h arranged in two rows and four columns, and these eight optical fibers 11a to 11h are intermittently connected in the longitudinal direction. Each connecting portion 21 has a certain length in the longitudinal direction, and is formed by fixing eight optical fibers 11a to 11h together.

  The connection portion 21 in the optical fiber unit 2 indicates a portion where the optical fibers are bonded with the UV resin 20 as shown in FIG. 2B, and all the optical fibers 11a to 11h are connected at least on the outer peripheral side, that is, on the outer periphery. The optical fibers adjacent to each other need only be connected to each other. By such connection, all the optical fibers 11a to 11h can be fixed together.

Here, an example in which the UV resin 20 is provided on all the outer circumferences of the optical fibers 11a to 11h as shown in FIG. 2B is given. It is sufficient that the UV resin 20 is provided so as to straddle. The inner sides of the eight optical fibers 11a to 11h are preferably not connected as shown in FIG. 2B, but may be connected similarly to the outer peripheral side.
The optical fiber unit 2 also has a non-connecting portion 22. The unconnected portion 22 is a portion between the connected portion 21 and the next connected portion 21, and is a portion where the optical fibers 11a to 11h are separated from each other, and there is an adhesive portion as shown in FIG. do not do.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing another configuration example of the optical fiber unit according to the present invention. FIG. 3A is a perspective view showing a part of the length direction of the optical fiber unit, and FIG. FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B in FIG. 3A, and FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C in FIG.

  The optical fiber unit 3 shown in FIG. 3 has a configuration in which a plurality of optical fibers are connected by a connecting portion 21 provided intermittently similarly to the optical fiber unit 1 of FIG. 1 except that the upper optical fibers 11a and 11c and the lower optical fibers 11b and 11d are alternately arranged. Therefore, in the optical fiber unit 3, since it can arrange | position with a gap | interval compared with the structure of FIG. 1, integration can be improved more. Hereinafter, the optical fiber unit 3 will be described with a focus on differences from the configuration of FIG.

  In the optical fiber unit 3, four optical fibers 11a to 11d are arranged in two rows and four columns, but the arrangement is staggered. In other words, the optical fiber unit 3 is arranged so that the lines connecting the centers of the optical fibers 11a to 11d do not form a right-angled lattice as shown in FIG. Similarly to the configuration of FIG. 1, the optical fiber unit 3 is also formed by intermittently connecting four optical fibers 11 a to 11 d in the longitudinal direction, and each connecting portion 21 has a certain length in the longitudinal direction. The optical fibers 11a to 11d are fixed together.

  The connecting portion 21 in the optical fiber unit 3 indicates a portion where the optical fibers are bonded with the UV resin 20 as shown in FIG. 3B, and all the optical fibers 11a to 11d are connected at least on the outer peripheral side. That is, it is only necessary that adjacent optical fibers are connected along the outer periphery. By such connection, all the optical fibers 11a to 11d can be fixed together.

  Here, an example in which the UV resin 20 is provided on all the outer peripheries of the optical fibers 11a to 11d as shown in FIG. 3B is given. It is sufficient that the UV resin 20 is provided so as to straddle. Moreover, although it is preferable that the inner side of the four optical fibers 11a-11d is not connected, you may connect similarly to the outer peripheral side.

  The optical fiber unit 3 also has a non-connecting portion 22. The unconnected portion 22 is a portion between the connected portion 21 and the next connected portion 21 and is a portion where the optical fibers 11a to 11d are separated from each other, and there is an adhesive portion as shown in FIG. do not do.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another configuration example of the optical fiber unit according to the present invention. FIG. 4 (A) is a perspective view showing a part of the length direction of the optical fiber unit, and FIG. 4 (B) is FIG. FIG. 4C is a diagram illustrating a cross section taken along line BB in FIG. 4A, and FIG. 4C is a diagram illustrating a cross section taken along line CC in FIG.

  The optical fiber unit 4 shown in FIG. 4 has a configuration in which a plurality of optical fibers are connected by a connecting portion 21 provided intermittently similarly to the optical fiber unit 2 of FIG. 2 except that the upper optical fibers 11a, 11c, 11e, and 11g and the lower optical fibers 11b, 11d, 11f, and 11h are alternately arranged. Therefore, in the optical fiber unit 4, since it can arrange | position with a gap | interval compared with the structure of FIG. 2, integration property can be improved more. Further, the optical fiber unit 4 is different from the optical fiber unit 3 of FIG. 3 in that the number of cores is eight instead of four. Hereinafter, the optical fiber unit 4 will be described focusing on the differences from the configuration of FIG.

  The optical fiber unit 4 includes eight optical fibers 11a to 11h arranged in two rows and four columns, and these four optical fibers 11a to 11d are intermittently connected in the longitudinal direction. Each connecting portion 21 has a certain length in the longitudinal direction, and is formed by fixing eight optical fibers 11a to 11h together.

  The connecting portion 21 in the optical fiber unit 4 indicates a portion where the optical fibers are bonded with the UV resin 20 as shown in FIG. 4B, and all the optical fibers 11a to 11h are connected at least on the outer peripheral side. That is, it is only necessary that adjacent optical fibers are connected along the outer periphery. By such connection, all the optical fibers 11a to 11h can be fixed together.

Here, as shown in FIG. 4B, an example in which the UV resin 20 is provided on all the outer circumferences of the optical fibers 11a to 11h is given. It is sufficient that the UV resin 20 is provided so as to straddle. Further, the inner sides of the eight optical fibers 11a to 11h are preferably not connected, but may be connected similarly to the outer peripheral side.
The optical fiber unit 4 also has a non-connecting portion 22. The unconnected portion 22 is a portion between the connected portion 21 and the next connected portion 21 and is a portion where the optical fibers 11a to 11h are separated from each other, and there is an adhesive portion as shown in FIG. do not do.

  The optical fiber unit according to the present invention has been described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. The number of single-core optical fibers accommodated in the optical fiber unit according to the present invention is as shown in FIGS. The number of hearts is not limited to the number exemplified in the above, and the number of hearts may be two rows and many columns, and the number of hearts in the upper and lower stages does not need to be the same, for example, the upper stage has three columns and the lower stage has two columns.

  Next, a method and an apparatus for forming the connecting portion 21 that can be applied to each configuration example described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4 will be described. The following example will be described with reference to the configuration example of FIG. 1 again, but the same applies to other configuration examples.

  As an example, a coating apparatus that applies a material such as a UV resin to be the connecting portion 21 between optical fibers can be used. As the coating device, a dispenser type device that intermittently applies UV resin around the traveling optical fibers 11a to 11d in the longitudinal direction can be used. In addition, if it does not apply | coat to the part corresponding to the said inner side, or if it does not apply | coat so much that a space is filled, a space can be formed, without connecting the said inner side. Moreover, you may spray the material used as the connection part 21 intermittently in the longitudinal direction around optical fiber 11a-11d like an inkjet head system.

  And after apply | coating UV resin intermittently, it is good to irradiate an ultraviolet-ray and to harden UV resin and to form the connection part 21. FIG. According to this method, the portion where the UV resin is not applied becomes the unconnected portion 22. In addition, as UV resin used for the connection part 21, a urethane acrylate resin can be used, for example.

  As another example, as described in Patent Document 2, between adjacent optical fibers (between optical fibers 11a and 11b, between optical fibers 11b and 11d, between optical fibers 11d and 11c, and between optical fibers 11c and 11a). A method of intermittently forming a cured portion and an uncured portion can be mentioned. Specifically, the optical fibers 11a to 11d are passed through a plurality of optical fiber insertion holes provided in the UV resin coating die, UV resin is applied to each of the optical fibers 11a to 11d, and intermittent UV irradiation is performed. A cured portion and an uncured portion are formed in the UV resin of each optical fiber. In this example as well, the space can be formed without connecting the inner sides unless the portion corresponding to the inner side is applied or not applied so much as to fill the space.

  Subsequently, the plurality of optical fibers 11a to 11d are concentrated, and the uncured portion is irradiated with UV in a state where the uncured portions are in contact with each other, thereby being coupled to the coupling portion 21 coupled to the optical fibers 11a to 11d by adhesion. A non-connected portion 22 can be formed.

  As yet another example, first, a common coating is formed by applying and curing a UV resin continuously in the longitudinal direction in a state where the optical fibers 11a to 11d are arranged in two rows and two columns. In this example as well, the inner side is not connected unless UV resin is applied to the portion corresponding to the inner side by arranging the optical fibers 11a to 11d in a nectar, or if the coating is not applied so much that the space is filled. A space can be formed.

  Thus, for the unit integrated by the common coating, between adjacent optical fibers (between optical fibers 11a and 11b, between optical fibers 11b and 11d, between optical fibers 11d and 11c, between optical fibers 11c and 11a), Make intermittent cuts in the longitudinal direction with a cutter blade. Here, as a cutting mechanism, for example, cutter blades (four cutter blades in this example) that swing along adjacent optical fibers are arranged, and the cutter blades are swung to be adjacent to each other. What is necessary is just to cut intermittently between optical fibers.

  Next, an optical cable according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. An optical cable according to the present invention accommodates the above optical fiber unit. In the optical cable according to the present invention, what kind of arrangement and how many optical fiber units are accommodated are not limited to the following examples, and may be arbitrarily designed. However, the optical cable according to the present invention only needs to include at least one optical fiber unit according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing an example of the configuration of an optical cable using the optical fiber unit according to the present invention.
The optical cable 5 shown in FIG. 5 accommodates optical fiber units 50a to 50e in which single-fiber coated optical fibers 11 are arranged in two rows and multiple columns. In this example, the optical fiber units 50a and 50e are 2 rows and 9 columns 18 cores, the optical fiber units 50b and 50d are 2 rows and 11 columns 22 cores, and the optical fiber units 50c are 2 rows and 13 columns 26 cores. ing. These optical fiber units 50a to 50e may be gathered together by being twisted in one direction or the SZ direction in a stacked state, but may be gathered in a straight without twisting.

  When two or more optical fiber units having the same number of cores are accommodated as in this example, the bonded portion is colored in a different color for each unit, or a separate identification thread is provided in a different color for each unit. Alternatively, it is sufficient to take measures such as making all the coated portions of the optical fiber 11 have different colors. Such a measure is useful even when only optical fiber units having different numbers of cores are accommodated in the optical cable.

  Moreover, in the optical cable 5, the protective tape 51 is wound as a pressing winding layer of the optical fiber units 50a to 50e, and a jacket 52 made of polyethylene or the like is provided around the protective tape 51. Furthermore, the optical cable 5 is provided with two tear strings 53 and two strength members 54.

  The two strength members 54 are embedded in the jacket 52 so as to be symmetrical with each other with respect to the center of the optical cable 5, whereby the jacket 52 forms a protrusion. The thickness of the outer cover 52 at this protrusion is thicker than the thickness of the outer cover 52 other than the protrusion. In this embodiment, the strength member 54 is made of, for example, a steel wire having a diameter of 0.95 mm.

  The tear string 53 is provided at a position symmetrical to each other with respect to the center of the optical cable at an intermediate portion between the strength members 54 in the jacket 52. The tear string 53 is provided to tear the outer sheath 52 and take out the optical fiber units 50a to 50e. Although not shown, it is preferable that the surface of the outer jacket 52 where the tear string 53 is disposed is provided with a protrusion or coloring to indicate the position of the tear string 53.

  In the optical cable 5, since the optical fiber 11 is integrated in a rectangular shape in the optical fiber units 50a to 50e, even when the optical fiber units 50a to 50e are integrated inside, high integration using space efficiently is achieved. can get. Further, when the optical fiber units 50 a to 50 e are units that do not connect the inside of the optical fiber 11, the optical fiber 11 becomes 1 by cutting the connecting portion 21 in the longitudinal direction only between the specific optical fibers 11. The unit can be a tape-like unit arranged in a row, and the workability of batch fusion splicing is not hindered by being a two-row optical fiber unit.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing another configuration example of an optical cable using the optical fiber unit according to the present invention.
The optical cable 6 shown in FIG. 6 includes a spacer 62 having a strength member 61 at the center. The spacer 62 is provided with a plurality of (in this example, five) slot grooves 63, and optical fiber units in which the single-core coated optical fibers 11 are arranged in two rows and multiple columns in each of the slot grooves 63. 60a-60d are stacked and stored. In this example, the optical fiber unit 60a is a 2-row 4-column 8-core unit, and the optical fiber units 60b-60d are 2-row 2-column 4-core units. The depth, shape, number, etc. of the slot grooves 63 formed in the spacer 62 are not limited to those shown in the figure.

  The spacer 62 is twisted in the SZ direction with the optical fiber units 60 a to 60 d being accommodated in the slot groove 63. A protective tape 64 as a presser winding is wound around the outer periphery of the spacer 62, and an outer cover 65 made of polyethylene or the like is covered on the outer periphery.

  In the optical cable 6, since the optical fiber 11 is integrated in a rectangular shape in the optical fiber units 60a to 60d, the space is efficiently used even when the optical fiber units 60a to 60d are integrated in the slot groove 63. High integration is obtained. When the optical fiber units 60 a to 60 d are units that do not connect the inside of the optical fiber 11, the optical fiber 11 becomes 1 by cutting the connecting portion 21 in the longitudinal direction only between the specific optical fibers 11. The unit can be a tape-like unit arranged in a row, and the workability of collective fusion splicing is not hindered by being a two-row optical fiber unit.

1, 2, 3, 4, 50a, 50b, 50c, 50d, 50e, 60a, 60b, 60c, 60d ... optical fiber unit, 5, 6 ... optical cable, 11, 11a, 11b, 11c, 11d, 11e, 11f, 11g, 11h ... optical fiber, 20 ... UV resin, 21 ... connected portion, 22 ... non-connected portion, 51, 64 ... protective tape, 52, 65 ... jacket, 53 ... tear string, 54, 61 ... strength member, 62 ... spacer, 63 ... slot groove.

Claims (4)

An optical fiber unit including a plurality of optical fibers,
The plurality of optical fibers are arranged in two rows and multiple columns, and the plurality of optical fibers are intermittently connected in the longitudinal direction,
The connecting portion is formed by fixing the plurality of optical fibers together, and an optical fiber unit.   The optical fiber unit according to claim 1, wherein the connecting portion is formed by fixing the plurality of optical fibers with an ultraviolet curable resin.   The connecting portion has a certain length in a longitudinal direction, the length of the connecting portion is 30 to 150 mm, and the length of a non-connecting portion other than the connecting portion is 50 to 150 mm. Item 3. The optical fiber unit according to Item 1 or 2.   An optical cable comprising the optical fiber unit according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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