JP2016075820A - Optical coupling member, optical connector and electric connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical coupling member capable of precisely maintaining a positional relationship between a lens held by a holding member and an optical fiber, which requires no complicated work.SOLUTION: The optical coupling member includes: a holder which has a storage part 11c for storing a ball lens 12, which is formed on one end thereof, and on the other end thereof, an insertion hole 11a formed into which an optical fiber 13 is inserted; and a magnet 14 which is disposed at the outer side in a direction crossing a storage direction of the ball lens 12 at one end of the holder. The magnet generates an attraction force for aligning the center of the ball lens 12 to the center of an optical element as an object to be coupled.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical coupling member used when condensing light from a light emitting element and entering the optical fiber, or condensing light emitted from the optical fiber onto a light receiving element, and the same. The present invention relates to an optical connector and an electrical connector.

  The optical coupling member is used when light emitted from the light source is propagated in the optical fiber and is emitted into the air as necessary, or when light propagating in the air is incident into the optical fiber. As one aspect of such an optical coupling member, for example, a socket body in which an optical lens and a cylindrical magnet are fitted to a socket body in which an end portion of an optical fiber is fitted, and a plug body in which the end portion of the optical fiber is fitted In addition, there has been proposed an optical connector including a plug for mounting a cylindrical magnet (see, for example, Patent Document 1). According to this optical connector, the end face of the optical fiber is not completely flat by always bringing the end face of the optical fiber into contact with the spherical surface of the optical lens and coupling the socket and the plug with the attractive force of the magnet. High transmission efficiency can be ensured.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 61-70817

  However, in the conventional optical connector described above, the magnet to be attached to the socket is arranged inside the hole formed on the plug side, while the magnet to be attached to the plug is around the insertion shaft provided on the socket side. Is arranged. When the plug is connected to the socket, the plug-side magnet is inserted into the cylindrical wall portion defining the hole formed in the socket, and the insertion shaft protruding from the magnet to the socket side is inserted into the socket-side magnet. Work to insert inside the magnet is required. For this reason, it is necessary to insert a plug into the socket, and there is a problem that the optical connector coupling operation becomes complicated.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an optical coupling member, an optical connector, and an optical coupling member that can improve the propagation efficiency of light in an optical fiber without requiring a complicated coupling operation. An object is to provide an electrical connector.

  The optical coupling member of the present invention includes a holding member in which a receiving portion for receiving a lens is formed at one end and an insertion hole into which an optical fiber is inserted at the other end, and a receiving direction of the lens at one end of the holding member A suction member provided on the outside in a direction intersecting with the suction member, wherein the suction member generates a suction force for aligning the center of the lens with the center of the optical element provided on the coupling target. To do.

  According to the optical coupling member, the center of the lens is aligned with the center of the optical element provided on the coupling target by the adsorption force of the adsorption member provided on the holding member, so that the holding member approaches the coupling target. Only the lens and the optical element can be easily aligned. Thereby, it becomes possible to improve the propagation efficiency of the light in an optical fiber, without requiring a complicated coupling operation.

  For example, in the optical coupling member, the attraction member is configured with a magnet. In this case, since the center of the lens and the center of the optical element provided on the coupling target are aligned by the attractive force from the magnet, it can be easily attached to and detached from the coupling target, and for a long time. It becomes possible to detach repeatedly.

  In the above-described optical coupling member, it is preferable that the magnet has a cross-sectional shape in a direction intersecting with the accommodation direction of the lens, and a cross-sectional shape of a coupling target side magnet disposed around the optical element. In this case, since the cross-sectional shape of the magnet is configured to be the same as the cross-sectional shape of the coupling target side magnet, the cross-sections can be brought into close contact by the attractive force of these magnets. Thereby, it becomes possible to couple | bond an optical coupling member stably with respect to a coupling | bonding object.

  For example, in the above-described optical coupling member, the outer shape of a cross section of the magnet in a direction intersecting with the accommodation direction of the lens is a perfect circle having the center of the lens as a center point. In this case, the magnet does not rotate when attracted to the coupling target side magnet. For this reason, since the rotation of the holding member provided with the magnet can be prevented, it is possible to prevent the optical fiber held by the holding member from being twisted.

  In the optical coupling member, it is preferable that a cross section on the coupling target side of the adsorption member is disposed at the same position as an end portion of the lens on the coupling target side. In this case, since the distance between the lens and the optical element to be coupled can be shortened, the propagation efficiency of the light in the optical fiber decreases as the gap between the optical element and the lens increases. Can be avoided.

  In the optical coupling member, a cross section on the coupling target side of the adsorption member may be arranged closer to the coupling target side than an end portion of the lens on the coupling target side. In this case, since the cross section of the adsorption member is disposed on the coupling target side with respect to the lens, it is possible to prevent a situation where the surface of the lens is damaged due to unintended contact or the like.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the optical coupling member further includes a guide member that guides the coupling target on a cross-sectional side of the adsorption member in a direction intersecting with the lens housing direction. In this case, since the coupling target is guided to the cross section of the adsorption member by the guide member, the coupling target can be adsorbed by the adsorption member along the guide member. Thereby, it becomes possible to couple | bond a coupling | bonding object and an optical coupling member easily.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the optical coupling member further includes a fixing member that fixes the adsorption member in a state of being coupled to the coupling target. In this case, since the adsorbing member coupled with the coupling target is fixed by the fixing member, it is possible to prevent the positions of the coupling target and the optical coupling member from being shifted. As a result, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the propagation efficiency of light in the optical fiber is reduced due to the positional deviation.

  An optical connector according to the present invention includes any one of the optical coupling members described above. According to this configuration, it is possible to enjoy the effects obtained with the above-described optical coupling member with the optical connector.

  An electrical connector of the present invention comprises any one of the optical coupling members described above and a contact terminal for transmitting an electrical signal. According to this configuration, it is possible to transmit the electrical signal together with the optical signal propagated by the optical fiber to and from the connection target simply by connecting the electrical connector, so that it is possible to simplify the user's connection work. It becomes.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the propagation efficiency of light in an optical fiber without requiring a complicated coupling operation.

It is explanatory drawing of the optical coupling member which concerns on this Embodiment. It is AA arrow sectional drawing shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view within a two-dot chain line B shown in FIG. 2. It is explanatory drawing of the coupling | bonding operation | work of the optical coupling member which concerns on this Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the optical coupling member which concerns on the modification of this Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the optical coupling member which concerns on the modification of this Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the example of application of the optical coupling member which concerns on this Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the example of application of the optical coupling member which concerns on this Embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the case where the optical fiber held by the optical coupling member according to the present invention is formed of a plastic optical fiber will be described as an example. However, the optical fiber held by the optical coupling member according to the present invention is not limited to this, and may be formed of a glass fiber.

  FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the optical coupling member according to the present embodiment. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA shown in FIG. In the optical coupling member 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, for the sake of convenience of explanation, the left side shown in the figure is called the front side, and the right side shown in the figure is called the rear side. Moreover, in FIG.1 and FIG.2, the optical fiber 13 hold | maintained at the holder 11 which the optical coupling member 10 has is shown for convenience of explanation. Further, in FIG. 1, for convenience of explanation, a part of the holder 11 arranged inside the magnet 14 is indicated by a broken line.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment includes a holder 11 as a holding member having a generally cylindrical shape, a ball lens 12 held at one end of the holder 11, And a magnet 14 as an attracting member provided on the outer periphery of one end of the holder 11. For example, in the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment, a plastic optical fiber is preferably inserted as the optical fiber 13.

  The holder 11 is made of a metal material such as stainless steel, for example. In particular, from the viewpoint of workability, the holder 11 is preferably formed of austenitic stainless steel. As shown in FIG. 2, an insertion hole 11 a into which the optical fiber 13 is inserted is provided at the rear end portion of the holder 11. On the other hand, an opening 11b is provided at the front end of the holder 11 (end on the ball lens 12 side). A housing portion 11c that houses the ball lens 12 is provided inside the opening portion 11b. The accommodating portion 11c is provided with a size that allows the entire ball lens 12 to be accommodated therein in order to prevent damage to the surface of the ball lens 12, and is configured such that the ball lens 12 can be press-fitted.

  Inside the holder 11, a through hole 11 d having a diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the optical fiber 13 is provided. The through hole 11d communicates with the insertion hole 11a and is also communicated with the accommodating portion 11c. Furthermore, the holder 11 is provided with a plurality of depressions 11e formed by pressing from the outer peripheral portion with a tool or the like. These depressed portions 11e are provided between the accommodating portion 11c and the through hole 11d, and are used for positioning the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 as will be described in detail later.

  The ball lens 12 is made of, for example, a glass material and has a spherical shape. As shown in FIG. 2, the ball lens 12 is accommodated in the accommodating portion 11 c so that the front end portion thereof is disposed at the same position as the front end portion of the holder 11. Further, the ball lens 12 is disposed so as to face the distal end portion of the optical fiber 13 inserted into the through hole 11d in the state of being accommodated in the accommodating portion 11c. That is, in a state where the holder 11 is positioned on the inner wall surface formed by providing the depressed portion 11e, the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 are positioned at a position having a certain positional relationship. At this time, the ball lens 12 is in a state of being disposed to face the front end surface (front end surface) of the optical fiber 13. The ball lens 12 can be formed of a collimating lens that adjusts light incident from the optical fiber 13 to a parallel state.

  The optical fiber 13 includes a core 13a provided through the center thereof, a clad 13b that covers the core 13a, and a reinforcing layer 13c that covers and reinforces the clad 13b. On the end face of the optical fiber 13 facing the ball lens 12, the core 13a, the clad 13b and the reinforcing layer 13c are arranged on the same plane. That is, the core 13a, the clad 13b, and the reinforcing layer 13c are arranged on the end surface facing the ball lens 12.

  The optical fiber 13 is inserted into the through-hole 11d through the insertion hole 11a, and is fixed in a state where the tip portion thereof is disposed in the vicinity of the ball lens 12 so as to face the spherical surface. For example, the optical fiber 13 is fixed by an adhesive applied to the inner peripheral surface of the holder 11. The optical fiber 13 may be fixed by deforming a part of the holder 11.

  In the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment, the optical fiber 13 is composed of, for example, a graded index (GI) optical fiber, and the refractive index continuously changes in a cross section perpendicular to the fiber axis. Has been. The core 13a and the clad 13b are made of, for example, an all-fluorine-substituted optical resin in which H of C—H bond is substituted with F. Thus, high-speed and large-capacity communication can be realized by configuring the optical fiber 13 with a perfluorinated optical resin and a GI-type optical fiber.

  In the optical coupling member 10, a depressed portion 11 e provided in the holder 11 is used to easily position the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 while suppressing an increase in cost. Specifically, the ball lens 12 and a part of the optical fiber 13 are brought into contact with a contact surface (inclined surface) formed by providing the depressed portion 11e in the holder 11 to perform positioning. A configuration such as a positioning spacer is not required, and positioning of the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 can be easily performed while suppressing an increase in cost.

  Here, a method of positioning the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 in the holder 11 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view in a two-dot chain line B shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, of the inclined surface formed by providing the depression 11 e, a portion facing the ball lens 12 is in contact with a portion facing the ball lens 12, while a portion facing the optical fiber 13. The clad 13b or the reinforcing layer 13c other than the core 13a constituting the optical fiber 13 or a part of the clad 13b and the reinforcing layer 13c abuts. The ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 are each positioned at a predetermined position of the holder 11 in such a contact state.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the depressed portion 11e is a plane perpendicular to the insertion direction of the optical fiber 13 (for example, a plane C that is arranged in parallel with the end surface of the optical fiber 13 shown in FIG. 3 and passes through the center of the depressed portion 11e. ), The angle of the portion facing the ball lens 12 and the angle of the portion facing the optical fiber 13 are different from each other. Such a depressed portion 11e is provided by, for example, pressing using a tapered tool having a different tip shape. By pressing with such a tool, the depressed portion 11e has a difference between the angle of the portion facing the ball lens 12 and the angle of the portion facing the optical fiber 13 with reference to the central axis at the time of the pressing. By setting the angle, it is possible to effectively position the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 having different shapes.

  In the holder 11, a plurality (three in the present embodiment) of such depressed portions 11 e are provided on the same circumference of the holder 11. The formation of the depressed portion 11e on the same circumference can be considered, for example, by simultaneously pressing the outer circumference of the holder 11 with the tool having the different tip shape described above. By providing the plurality of depressions 11e on the same circumference in this way, the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 can be brought into contact with each other at a plurality of positions, so that the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 can be more accurately arranged. Positioning can be performed.

Portion facing the ball lens 12 in the recess 11e constitutes an inclined surface 11e _1. The inclined surface 11e ₁ is a plane orthogonal to the insertion direction of the optical fiber 13 indicated by an arrow in FIG. 3 (for example, disposed parallel to the end surface of the optical fiber 13 shown in FIG. 3, and passes through the proximal end portion of the depressed portion 11e. angle theta ₁ with respect to the plane D) which is provided so as to be 0 ° to 45 °. Thus, by setting the angle θ ₁ of the inclined surface 11e ₁ on the ball lens 12 side to 0 ° or more and 45 ° or less with respect to the plane D orthogonal to the insertion direction of the optical fiber 13, the optical fiber 13 in the ball lens 12 is set. Since it can position in the state which supported a part of side, the positional accuracy of the ball lens 12 can be improved.

Meanwhile, the portion facing the optical fiber 13 in the recess 11e constitutes an inclined surface 11e _2. The inclined surface 11e ₂ is provided so that an angle θ ₂ with respect to a plane orthogonal to the insertion direction of the optical fiber 13 (for example, a plane E arranged parallel to the end face of the optical fiber 13 shown in FIG. 3) is 20 ° or less. It has been. Thus, by providing the angle of the inclined surface 11e ₂ to 20 ° or less with respect to the plane E, the optical fiber 13 is arranged with the core 13a, the clad 13b, and the reinforcing layer 13c on the same plane as described above. In the case of an optical fiber, it is possible to easily ensure the positional accuracy of the optical fiber 13 by bringing the end face of the optical fiber 13 into contact with the depressed portion 11e.

  As described above, in the optical coupling member 10, a part of the ball lens 12 and a part of the optical fiber 13 are brought into contact with the depressed part 11 e provided in the holder 11 and positioned, so that the depressed part 11 e is used as a reference. Since the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber 13 can be positioned, the working efficiency can be improved as compared with the case where another part is inserted into the holder 11, and the ball lens 12 and the optical fiber can be easily connected to the light while suppressing an increase in cost. Positioning with the fiber 13 can be performed.

  The magnet 14 is provided on the outer periphery of the front end portion (end portion on the ball lens 12 side) of the holder 11. For example, the magnet 14 has a generally cylindrical shape. The magnet 14 is fixed to the holder 11 with a part of the holder 11 accommodated therein. For example, the magnet 14 is fixed by an adhesive applied to the outer peripheral surface of the holder 11. The magnet 14 may be fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the holder 11 by welding or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the magnet 14 has a planar shape in a cross section 14 s at its front end. A cross section 14 s of the front end portion of the magnet 14 is fixed to the holder 11 so as to be disposed at the same position as the front end portion of the holder 11. As described above, the front end portion of the ball lens 12 housed in the housing portion 11 c is disposed at the same position as the front end portion of the holder 11. Therefore, the cross section 14 s of the front end portion of the magnet 14 is disposed at the same position as the position of the front end portion of the ball lens 12.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the magnet 14 is magnetized in the N pole near the front end and magnetized in the S pole near the rear end. As will be described in detail later, the magnet 14 is attached to the magnet 24 of the optical coupling member 20 to be coupled, and serves to align the center of the ball lens 12 with the center of the lens 22 of the optical coupling member 20. (See FIG. 4).

  Hereinafter, the coupling | bonding operation | work of the optical coupling member 10 which concerns on this Embodiment is demonstrated. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the coupling work of the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 4, the case where it couple | bonds with the optical coupling member 20 which has the structure similar to the optical coupling member 10 as a coupling | bonding object of the optical coupling member 10 which concerns on this Embodiment is demonstrated. In FIG. 4, for convenience of explanation, an optical fiber 23 held by a holder 21 included in the optical coupling member 20 is shown.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the optical coupling member 20 includes a holder 21, a ball lens 22, and a magnet 24 in the same manner as the optical coupling member 10. The optical coupling member 20 differs from the optical coupling member 10 only in the magnetized form of the magnet 24. In the optical coupling member 20, unlike the magnet 14, the magnet 24 is magnetized in the S pole near the tip of the ball lens 22 and magnetized in the N pole near the opposite end. The positioning of the ball lens 22 and the optical fiber 23 and the positional relationship between the ball lens 22 and the holder 21 or magnet 24 are the same as those of the optical coupling member 10.

  Here, the case where the position of the optical coupling member 20 is fixed to a device or the like and the optical coupling member 10 is coupled to the optical coupling member 20 will be described. When the optical coupling member 10 is coupled to the optical coupling member 20, an operator or the like brings the magnet 14 close to the vicinity of the magnet 24 as illustrated in FIG. 4A. When the magnet 14 is brought close to the magnet 24 up to a certain distance, the magnet 14 is attracted to the magnet 24 side by these attractive forces. Thereby, the magnet 24 and the magnet 14 are brought into contact with each other (see FIG. 4B).

  Then, from the state shown in FIG. 4B, the cross section 24s on the optical coupling member 10 side of the magnet 24 and the cross section 14s on the optical coupling member 14 side of the magnet 14 are opposed to each other by the attractive force of the magnet 24 and the magnet 14. The magnet 14 moves to do so. Here, the magnet 14 moves downward. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4C, the cross section 24 s of the magnet 24 on the optical coupling member 10 side and the cross section 14 s of the magnet 14 on the optical coupling member 20 side are in close contact with each other.

  The optical coupling member 10 and the optical coupling member 20 have the same positional relationship between the components. For this reason, when the cross section 24s of the magnet 24 on the optical coupling member 10 side and the cross section 14s of the magnet 14 on the optical coupling member 20 side are in close contact with each other, the center of the ball lens 12 and the center of the ball lens 22 are Are matched.

  Thus, in the optical coupling member 10, the center of the ball lens 12 is aligned with the center of the ball lens 22 of the optical coupling member 20 by the attractive force of the magnet 14 provided in the holder 11. The ball lens 12 and the ball lens 22 can be easily aligned simply by being brought close to the optical coupling member 20. Thereby, it becomes possible to improve the propagation efficiency of the light in the optical fiber 13 without requiring a complicated coupling operation.

  In particular, in the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment, the center of the ball lens 12 and the center of the ball lens 22 of the optical coupling member 20 are aligned by the attractive force from the magnet 14. For this reason, it can be easily attached to and detached from the optical coupling member 20 and can be repeatedly attached and detached over a long period of time.

  In the magnet 14, the shape of the cross section 14 s on the optical coupling member 20 side is configured to be the same as the shape of the cross section 24 s of the magnet 24. For this reason, the cross sections 14 s and 24 s can be brought into close contact with each other by the attractive force of the magnets 14 and 24. Thereby, the optical coupling member 10 can be stably coupled to the optical coupling member 20.

  In particular, the magnet 14 is configured so that the outer shape of the cross section 14 s on the optical coupling member 20 side is a perfect circle with the center of the ball lens 12 as the center point. For this reason, the magnet 14 does not rotate when attracted to the magnet 24 of the optical coupling member 20. For this reason, since the rotation of the holder 11 provided with the magnet 14 can be prevented, it is possible to prevent the optical fiber 13 held by the holder 11 from being twisted.

  Further, the cross section 14 s on the optical coupling member 20 side of the magnet 14 is disposed at the same position as the front end portion (end portion on the optical coupling member 20 side) of the ball lens 12. Thereby, since the distance between the ball lens 12 and the ball lens 22 of the optical coupling member 20 can be shortened, the propagation efficiency of light in the optical fiber 13 as the gap between the Hall lenses 12 and 22 increases. Can be avoided.

  In the optical coupling member 10 according to the above embodiment, the cross-section 14s on the optical coupling member 20 side of the magnet 14 is disposed at the same position as the front end portion (end portion on the optical coupling member 20 side) of the ball lens 12. Explains when to be. However, the configuration of the magnet 14 is not limited to this, and can be changed as appropriate. Hereinafter, a different configuration of the magnet 14 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the optical coupling member 10 (10A, 10B) according to a modification of the present embodiment. 5A and 5B are different from the optical coupling member 10 according to the above-described embodiment only in that the magnets 14A and 14B have different configurations from the magnets 14, respectively. In FIG. 5, the same components as those in FIG. 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  For convenience of explanation, FIG. 5 shows a state in which the optical coupling members 10A and 10B are coupled to the optical coupling member 20 to be coupled. In this case, the optical coupling member 20 coupled to the optical coupling member 10A has the same configuration as the optical coupling member 10A. The optical coupling member 20 coupled to the optical coupling member 10B has the same configuration as that of the optical coupling member 20 described in the above embodiment.

  In the optical coupling member 10A shown in FIG. 5A, the magnet 14A has a cross section 14s on the optical coupling member 20 side at a position closer to the optical coupling member 20 than the front end portion (end portion on the optical coupling member 20 side) of the ball lens 12. It differs from the magnet 14 according to the above embodiment in that it is arranged. When the change is made in this way, the cross section 14s of the magnet 14A is disposed in the optical coupling member 20 rather than the ball lens 12, thereby preventing the surface of the ball lens 12 from being damaged due to unintended contact or the like. It becomes possible to do. Even when the cross section 14s of the magnet 14A is arranged in the optical coupling member 20 rather than the ball lens 12, the distance between the ball lens 12 and the ball lens 22 is preferably 1 mm or less. .

  In the optical coupling member 10B shown in FIG. 5B, the magnet 14B is different from the magnet 14 according to the above-described embodiment in that the front end portion on the optical coupling member 20 side has a concave portion 141 that can accommodate the distal end portion of the optical coupling member 20. To do. In such a change, since the tip of the optical coupling member 20 can be accommodated by the concave portion 141, the optical coupling member 20 is coupled to the optical coupling member 20 by an external force or the like after the optical coupling member 10B and the optical coupling member 20 are coupled. It becomes possible to suppress the situation of dropping off.

  In the optical coupling member 10 according to the above-described embodiment, the case where the optical coupling member 10 and the optical coupling member 20 are coupled by the attractive force generated by the magnets 14 and 24 is described. However, the configuration of the optical coupling member 10 is not limited to this. It is preferable as an embodiment to strengthen the coupling between the coupling member 10 and the optical coupling member 20 or to facilitate the coupling between the coupling member 10 and the optical coupling member 20.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the optical coupling member 10 (10C, 10D) according to a modification of the present embodiment. 6A and 6B, for convenience of explanation, a part of the optical coupling members 10C, 10D, and 20 and the optical fibers 13 and 23 disposed inside the fixing member 15 and the guide member 16 are indicated by broken lines. .

  The optical coupling member 10C shown in FIG. 6A is different from the optical coupling member 10 according to the above-described embodiment in that it has a fixing member 15 that fixes the magnets 14 and 24 in a state of being coupled to the optical coupling member 20. 6B is different from the optical coupling member 10 according to the above-described embodiment in that the optical coupling member 10D illustrated in FIG. 6B includes a guide member 16 that guides the optical coupling member 20 to the cross section 14s side of the magnet 14.

  In the optical coupling member 10C shown in FIG. 6A, a pair of shaft portions 15a provided in the vicinity of the rear end portion (right side end portion shown in FIG. 6) of the holder 11 is used as a rotation axis and the front side (left shown in FIG. 6) This is different from the optical coupling member 10 in that it has a pair of upper and lower fixing members 15 (151, 152) configured to be rotatable. These fixing members 15 (151 and 152) are formed of, for example, an insulating resin material.

  Among these fixing members 15, a concave portion 153 whose lower side opens to W is formed on the lower surface of the fixing member 151 disposed on the upper side. On the other hand, a concave portion 154 opening upward is formed on the upper surface of the fixing member 152 disposed on the lower side. These recesses 153 and 154 have a shape that can accommodate the holders 11 and 21 and the magnets 14 and 24 of the coupled optical coupling members 10 and 20 when the fixing member 15 (151 and 152) is closed. doing.

  A hook 155 that is locked to the fixing member 152 is provided at the front end of the fixing member 151. The components of the optical coupling members 10C and 20 that are coupled to the recesses 153 and 154 in the fixing members 151 and 152 are accommodated, and the hooks 155 of the fixing member 151 are locked to the fixing member 152 so that they are attracted. Since the magnets 14 and 24 are fixed, it is possible to prevent the optical coupling members 10C and 20 from being displaced. As a result, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the light propagation efficiency in the optical fibers 13 and 23 is reduced due to the positional deviation.

  In FIG. 6A, the case where the holders 11 and 21 and the magnets 14 and 24 of the optical coupling members 10 and 20 in the coupled state are fixed by the fixing member 15 is described. However, the configuration of the fixing member 15 is not limited to this, and can be changed as appropriate. As the fixing member 15, any configuration can be adopted on the premise that the magnets 14 and 24 that are attracted to each other are fixed.

  An optical coupling member 10D shown in FIG. 6B is different from the optical coupling member 10 in that a guide member 16 is mounted on the outer peripheral portion in the vicinity of the front end portion (left side end portion shown in FIG. 6) of the magnet 14. The guide member 16 is formed of, for example, an insulating resin material. The guide member 16 has a generally cylindrical shape, and is fixed to the magnet 14 with a part of the magnet 14 accommodated therein. For example, the guide member 16 is fixed by an adhesive applied to the outer peripheral surface of the magnet 14.

  The guide member 16 has a shape protruding from the cross section 14s of the magnet 14 toward the coupling target (for example, the optical coupling member 20). A tapered surface 16a is provided inside the protruding portion. The tapered surface 16a forms an inclined surface in which the space in the guide member 16 becomes wider from the cross section 14s of the magnet 14 toward the front side. In other words, the tapered surface 16 a has an inclined surface that guides the object to be coupled, which is disposed inside or near the guide member 16, to the cross section 14 s of the magnet 14.

  When the optical coupling member 10D is brought close to the optical coupling member 20 to be coupled in the manner shown in FIG. 4A, the optical coupling member 10D approaches the optical coupling member 20 so as to accommodate the magnet 24 in the guide member 16. Go. At this time, in the optical coupling member 10D, the magnet 24 approaches while guiding the magnet 24 along the tapered surface 16a of the guide member 16, and the magnet 14 is attracted to the magnet 24 on the optical coupling member 20 side. After the magnets 14 and 24 are attracted, the cross-sections 14s and 24s are brought into close contact with each other so that the center of the ball lens 12 and the center of the ball lens 22 are aligned (see FIG. 4C).

  As described above, in the optical coupling member 10D shown in FIG. 6B, the coupling target (for example, the optical coupling member 20) is guided to the cross section 14s of the magnet 14 by the guide member 16, and therefore, the magnet 14 is moved along the guide member 16. The binding target can be adsorbed. Thereby, it becomes possible to couple | bond a coupling | bonding object and the optical coupling member 10 easily.

  The optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment described above can constitute an optical connector together with the optical coupling member 20 having the same configuration as shown in FIG. In this case, in the optical coupling member 10, the coupling work is performed in a state where the holder 11 or the like is held by an operator or the like. That is, the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment can constitute a part of the optical connector. In this case, the effect obtained by any of the optical coupling members 10, 10A to 10D described above can be enjoyed by the optical connector.

  Moreover, the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment is not configured independently, but can be incorporated into a part of another connector. Hereinafter, application examples of the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. 7 and 8 are explanatory diagrams of application examples of the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of an electrical connector corresponding to the USB (Universal Serial Bus) standard. 7A shows an A type male USB connector 30, and FIG. 7B shows an A type female USB connector 40. FIG. 8 shows a schematic view of the A type USB connectors 30 and 40 viewed from the side. In FIG. 8, the contact terminals 32 and 42 are omitted from the USB connectors 30 and 40 for convenience of explanation.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, the male USB connector 30 is provided with a pedestal portion 31 on the lower side portion, and four contact terminals 32 for transmitting electric signals are provided on the upper surface of the pedestal portion 31. . A space 33 is formed above the pedestal 31. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7B, the female USB connector 40 is provided with a pedestal portion 41 at the upper portion, and four contact terminals 42 are provided on the lower surface of the pedestal portion 41. A space 43 is formed below the pedestal portion 41.

  The optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment is incorporated into, for example, the male USB connector 30. As shown in FIG. 7A, the optical coupling member 10 is disposed at a position on the back side of the space 33. A plurality (two in this case) of optical coupling members 10 are arranged in the space 33. Each optical coupling member 10 is held in the space 33 so as to be slightly movable in the front-rear direction (the left-right direction shown in FIG. 8), the left-right direction (the depth direction in FIG. 8), and the up-down direction. For example, a coil spring 17 is attached to the optical coupling member 10 around the optical fiber 13. The coil spring 17 has a front end fixed to the rear end of the holder 11 and a rear end fixed to the front surface of the inner wall surface 18 of the USB connector 30. By being connected to the USB connector 30 via the coil spring 17, the optical coupling member 10 is held movably in the space 33. Then, the optical coupling member 10 is disposed in the initial position in the space 33 so as not to contact the surrounding members by the biasing force of the coil spring 17. The configuration for holding the optical coupling member 10 so as to be slightly movable in the space 33 is not limited to the coil spring 17 and can be changed as appropriate. For example, the optical coupling member 10 may be surrounded by a flexible elastomer material and held while allowing its movement.

  On the other hand, the optical coupling member 20 to be coupled is incorporated into the female USB connector 40, for example. The optical coupling member 20 is disposed at the position of the pedestal 41 corresponding to the optical coupling member 10 of the USB connector 30. When the male USB connector 30 has the configuration shown in FIG. 7A, a plurality of (here, two) optical coupling members 20 are embedded in the pedestal portion 41. For example, the optical coupling member 20 is disposed such that the cross section 24s of the magnet 24 is located on the same plane as the end surface 41s of the pedestal portion 41 (see FIG. 8B). Note that the position of the optical coupling member 20 may be slightly disposed inside the end surface 41 s of the pedestal portion 41. In this case, it is preferable to form a taper surface around the optical coupling member 20 in the pedestal portion 41.

  Having such a configuration, by inserting the male-side USB connector 30 into the female-side USB connector 40, the upper surface of the contact terminal 32 comes into contact with the lower surface of the contact terminal 42 to transmit an electrical signal. Is possible. Further, the cross section 14 s of the magnet 14 of the optical coupling member 10 is in close contact with the cross section 24 s of the magnet 24 of the optical coupling member 20. Thereby, the center of the ball lens 12 held by the holder 11 is aligned with the center of the ball lens 24 held by the holder 21. As a result, an optical signal propagated through the optical fiber 13 (23) can be transmitted to the optical fiber 23 (13) via the ball lenses 12, 22 (22, 12).

  As described above, the optical coupling member 10 is held so as to be slightly movable in the space 33. When the USB connector 30 is inserted into the USB connector 40, the optical coupling member 10 is coupled to the optical coupling member 20 while slightly adjusting the position by the attractive force of the magnets 14 and 24 (see FIG. 8B). Therefore, the user can couple the optical coupling members 10 and 20 simply by inserting the USB connector 30 without being aware of the position of the optical coupling members 10 and 20. In order to release the coupling of the optical coupling members 10 and 20, it is only necessary to remove the USB connector 30 from the USB connector 40. Therefore, even when the optical coupling members 10 and 20 are applied to such USB connectors 30 and 40, it is possible to transmit an optical signal to the optical fibers 13 and 23 without requiring a complicated coupling operation. Become.

  As described above, the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment can be incorporated in an electrical connector such as the USB connector 30. In this case, simply by connecting the USB connector 30 to the USB connector 40, an electrical signal is transmitted together with an optical signal propagated by the optical fiber 13 to a connection target such as a computer on which the USB connector 40 is mounted. Therefore, it is possible to simplify the user's connection work.

  As described above, in the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment, the accommodating portion 11c that accommodates the ball lens 12 is formed at the front end, and the insertion hole 11a into which the optical fiber 13 is inserted is formed at the rear end. And a magnet 14 provided on the outer side of the front end of the holder 11 in a direction intersecting with the housing direction of the ball lens 12 (the left-right direction shown in FIG. 1). The center is configured to generate a suction force that aligns the center with the center of the optical element provided in the coupling target. According to this configuration, the center of the ball lens 12 is aligned with the center of the optical element provided on the coupling target by the attractive force of the magnet 14 provided on the holder 11, so that the holder 11 approaches the coupling target. Only the ball lens 12 and the optical element can be easily aligned. Thereby, it becomes possible to improve the propagation efficiency of the light in the optical fiber 13 without requiring a complicated coupling operation.

  In particular, the optical coupling member 10 according to the present embodiment includes the ball lens 12 having a collimating function, and can be coupled to the optical coupling member 20 including the ball lens 22 having the collimating function. According to this configuration, light propagating through the optical fiber 13 (23) can be coupled without requiring strict alignment between the ball lenses 12 and 22. For this reason, it is not necessary to perform a complicated coupling operation such that the ball lenses 12 and 22 are strictly positioned, and the optical coupling members 10 and 20 can be coupled by the magnets 14 and 24 only with an attractive force. .

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It can change and implement variously. In the above-described embodiment, the size, shape, and the like illustrated in the accompanying drawings are not limited to this, and can be appropriately changed within a range in which the effect of the present invention is exhibited. In addition, various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the object of the present invention.

  For example, in the above embodiment, the case where the lens included in the optical coupling member 10 is configured by the ball lens 12 is described. However, the lens applied to the optical coupling member 10 is not limited to the ball lens 12 and can be appropriately changed. For example, an arbitrary lens such as a convex lens or a concave lens can be applied on the premise that light appropriately propagated between the objects to be combined can be combined.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, the case where the optical coupling member 10 is provided with the magnet 14 as an adsorption | suction member is demonstrated. However, the adsorption member included in the optical coupling member 10 is not limited to this, and can be changed as appropriate. For example, as the attracting member, the optical coupling member 10 may be provided with a magnetic body that is attracted to a magnet provided on the coupling target. Even in such a change, the propagation efficiency of light in the optical fiber 13 can be improved without requiring a complicated coupling operation, as in the above-described embodiment.

  Furthermore, in the said embodiment, the case where the magnet 14 with which the optical coupling member 10 is provided has a cylindrical shape is demonstrated. However, the shape of the magnet 14 included in the optical coupling member 10 is not limited to this, and can be changed as appropriate. For example, in the relationship with the magnet provided on the object to be combined, the ball lens 12 can have any shape on the premise that the center of the ball lens 12 can be aligned with the center of the optical element on the object to be combined. For example, the magnet 14 may be configured by a cylindrical body having a polygonal cross-sectional shape. Further, the magnet 14 may have a shape arranged in a part of the holder 11 instead of the shape surrounding the entire front end portion of the holder 11. Further, the magnet 14 may have an uneven shape in cross section at the front end instead of a planar shape.

  Furthermore, in the said embodiment, the case where it couple | bonds with the optical coupling member 20 which has the same structure as a coupling | bonding object of the optical coupling member 10 is demonstrated to the example. However, the coupling target of the optical coupling member 10 is not limited to this and can be changed as appropriate. For example, the optical coupling member 10 can be coupled to a coupling target that does not include a lens as an optical element, a coupling target that includes a magnet 24 having a different cross-sectional shape, or a coupling target that includes a magnetic material instead of the magnet 24. .

10, 10A to 10D, 20 Optical coupling member 11, 21 Holder 11a Insertion hole 11b Opening part 11c Housing part 11d Through hole 11e Depressed part 12, 22 Ball lens 13, 23 Optical fiber 13a Core 13b Clad 13c Reinforcement layer 14, 24 Magnet 14 s, 24 s Section 15, 151, 152 Fixing member 16 Guide member 17 Coil spring 30, 40 USB connector

Claims (10)

A holding member having a receiving portion for receiving a lens at one end and an insertion hole into which an optical fiber is inserted at the other end, and an outer side in a direction intersecting the lens receiving direction at one end of the holding member An adsorbing member,
The adsorbing member generates an adsorbing force that aligns the center of the lens with the center of an optical element provided in a coupling target.   The optical coupling member according to claim 1, wherein the attraction member is made of a magnet.   3. The magnet according to claim 2, wherein a shape of a cross section in a direction intersecting a housing direction of the lens has the same shape as a cross section of a coupling target side magnet disposed around the optical element. Optical coupling member.   4. The optical coupling member according to claim 3, wherein the outer shape of a cross section of the magnet in a direction intersecting with the accommodation direction of the lens is a perfect circle having the center of the lens as a center point.   5. The optical coupling member according to claim 1, wherein a cross section on the coupling target side of the suction member is disposed at the same position as an end of the lens on the coupling target side. .   5. The optical coupling according to claim 1, wherein a cross section on the coupling target side of the adsorption member is disposed closer to a coupling target side than an end portion on the coupling target side of the lens. Element.   7. The optical coupling member according to claim 1, further comprising a guide member that guides the coupling target on a cross-sectional side of the suction member in a direction intersecting with the lens housing direction. .   The optical coupling member according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a fixing member that fixes the adsorption member in a state of being coupled to the coupling target.   An optical connector comprising the optical coupling member according to claim 1.   An electrical connector comprising: the optical coupling member according to claim 1; and a contact terminal for transmitting an electrical signal.

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