JP2024044262A - optical connector - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide an optical connector capable of further improving optical transmission performance. [Solution] An optical connector 20 includes a stub 24 having a stub body 241 and a flange 242 formed on the stub body 241, and a lens 23 arranged so that an optical axis C2 is the same as an optical axis C3 of the stub 24. The optical connector 20 also includes a base 223 for holding the stub 24 and the lens 23, and a sleeve 26 attached to the stub body 241 and capable of holding a ferrule 15 included in a mating optical connector 10. Here, the base 223 includes a step portion 22311 for fixing the flange 242. The thickness T2 of the flange 242 is thinner than the depth T1 of the step portion 22311, and the diameter D2 of the flange 242 is smaller than the diameter D1 of the step portion 22311. [Selected Figure] FIG. 3

Description

The present invention relates to an optical connector.

As a conventional technology of this type, the one disclosed in Patent Document 1 has been proposed. Patent Document 1 discloses an optical connector that can be used in an optical connector set that enables optical communication between the optical connector and a mating optical connector by optically connecting the optical connector to the mating optical connector.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-040701

It is preferable that the optical connectors used in such optical connector sets have improved optical transmission performance.

The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the prior art. An object of the present invention is to provide an optical connector that can further improve optical transmission performance.

An optical connector according to one aspect of the present invention is a connector that is optically connected to a mating optical connector and can perform optical communication with the mating optical connector. This optical connector includes a stub body and a flange formed on the stub body, a stub capable of transmitting light, a lens arranged so that its optical axis is the same as that of the stub, a base that holds the stub and the lens, and a sleeve that is attached to the stub body and can hold the ferrule in a state where the optical axis of the ferrule included in the mating optical connector is aligned with the optical axis of the stub, and the base has a step portion that fixes the flange, the thickness of the flange is thinner than the depth of the step portion, and the diameter of the flange is smaller than the diameter of the step portion.

The present invention provides an optical connector that can further improve optical transmission performance.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of an optical connector set using an optical connector according to an embodiment. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of an optical connector set using an optical connector according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of an optical connection state between an optical element, a lens, and a stub included in an optical connector according to an embodiment and a ferrule included in a mating optical connector. FIG. 2 is a side view showing an example of a stub included in an optical connector according to an embodiment.

The optical connector according to this embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that the dimensional ratios in the drawings have been exaggerated for the convenience of explanation and may differ from the actual ratios.

Further, in the following description, a camera connector that can perform optical communication with an imaging device such as a vehicle-mounted camera will be exemplified as an optical connector.

The camera connector (optical connector) 20 according to this embodiment is used in the optical connector set 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and the like.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, this optical connector set 1 includes the above-mentioned camera connector 20 and a plug connector (mating optical connector) 10 into which the camera connector 20 fits. By fitting the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 together, the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 are optically connected, enabling optical communication between the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10.

The plug connector 10 includes a plug housing 11 into which the housing 21 of the camera connector 20 is fitted. This plug housing 11 can be formed using a material such as synthetic resin, for example. In this embodiment, an optical cable 13 is attached to this plug housing 11.

Specifically, the plug housing 11 includes a substantially cylindrical peripheral wall 111 into which the housing 21 of the camera connector 20 is fitted, and a cable attachment portion 112 held by the peripheral wall 111 and to which the optical cable 13 is attached. In this embodiment, the optical fiber 14 disposed within the optical cable 13 passes through the cable attachment portion 112 and is held by the cable attachment portion 112 with its tip positioned within the peripheral wall 111 . A ferrule 15 is attached to cover the outer periphery of the tip of the optical fiber 14.

The optical fiber 14 comprises an optical fiber core 141 consisting of a core and a cladding, and an outer jacket 142 that covers the outer circumference of the optical fiber core 141. Light can be transmitted by passing through the optical fiber core 141.

The ferrule 15 is used to suppress a decrease in optical loss when the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 are optically connected, and is made of, for example, ceramic, metal material, synthetic resin, or the like. can be formed.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the plug housing 11 includes a substantially cylindrical rib 113 formed inside the peripheral wall 111, and the portion of the optical fiber 14 exposed from the cable attachment portion 112 and the ferrule 15 are attached to the rib 113. It is placed inside the . Further, in this embodiment, a spring receiver 17 is attached to the end of the ferrule 15 on the cable attachment portion 112 side. A coil spring 16 as a biasing member is interposed between this spring receiver 17 and a spring receiver 1121 provided on the cable attachment portion 112. By doing so, when the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 are fitted together, the optical fiber 14 and the ferrule 15 are urged toward the camera connector 20 side.

On the other hand, the camera connector 20 includes a housing 21 into which the plug housing 11 of the plug connector 10 is fitted. This housing 21 can also be formed using a material such as synthetic resin, for example.

In this embodiment, the housing 21 includes a base 211, a flange portion 212 formed to protrude outward from the outer periphery of the base 211, and a substantially cylindrical peripheral wall 213 extending from the base 211 toward the plug connector 10. Furthermore, the housing 21 includes a substantially cylindrical rib 214 that is inserted into a substantially cylindrical rib 113 formed on the inside of the peripheral wall 111.

In this embodiment, a bolt insertion hole is formed in the flange portion 212, and the camera connector 20 is fixed to the housing of the imaging device such as an in-vehicle camera by inserting a bolt 28 into the bolt insertion hole and attaching it to the housing of the imaging device.

The peripheral wall 213 is a wall portion that is inserted into the inner side of the peripheral wall 111 of the plug housing 11, and the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 are fitted together by inserting the peripheral wall 213 into the inner side of the peripheral wall 111 of the plug housing 11. At this time, the engagement protrusion 2131 formed on the peripheral wall 213 is engaged with the engagement hole 1111a of the lever 1111 formed on the peripheral wall 111. In this way, the engagement between the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 is maintained, and the camera connector 20 can be removed from the plug connector 10 by releasing the engagement between the engagement protrusion 2131 and the engagement hole 1111a. A sealing member 12 is provided on the outer periphery of the peripheral wall 111, and when the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 are fitted together, the gap between the peripheral wall 111 and the peripheral wall 213 is sealed by the sealing member 12.

In addition, in this embodiment, the camera connector 20 is equipped with an optical transceiver (FOT: Fiber Optic Transceiver) 22 that is optically connected to the optical fiber 14 of the plug connector 10 when the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 are mated.

In this embodiment, the optical transceiver 22 includes a circuit board 221, an optical element 222 mounted on the circuit board 221, and a base 223 arranged on the circuit board 221. The circuit board 221 may be, for example, a printed wiring board formed using glass epoxy resin or the like. The optical transceiver 22 can be formed by mounting the optical element 222 on the wiring pattern of this printed wiring board.

For example, a light-emitting element or a light-receiving element can be used as the optical element 222. In this case, when a light-emitting element is used as the optical element 222, a photoelectric element such as a vertical cavity surface-emitting semiconductor laser element (VCSEL: Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting LASER) can be used as the light-emitting element. It is also possible to use an LED (Light Emitting Diode) as the light-emitting element. On the other hand, when a light-receiving element is used as the optical element 222, a photoelectric element such as a photodiode (PD: Photo Diode) can be used as the light-receiving element.

The base 223 can be formed of transparent or semi-transparent glass having optical transparency, and light can be transmitted between the base 223 and the optical element 222. Note that, although the present embodiment illustrates an example in which the optical element 222 is embedded and fixed in the base 223, it is also possible to provide legs on the base 223 and position the base 223 above the optical element 222.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the camera connector 20 includes a lens 23 fixed to the base 223 and optically connected to the optical element 222, and a stub 24 fixed to the base 223 and optically connected to the lens 23.

In this embodiment, the stub 24 has a substantially cylindrical stub body 241, and an optical fiber 25 is disposed in the center of this stub body 241 as a light guide path. This optical fiber 25 also has an optical fiber core 251 consisting of a core and a cladding, and an outer jacket 252 that covers the outer periphery of the optical fiber core 251, and light can be transmitted by passing through the optical fiber core 251. In this way, the camera connector 20 according to this embodiment has a stub 24 that is capable of transmitting light.

Further, in this embodiment, the base 223 is formed with an insertion hole 2231 into which the stub 24 is inserted, and the lens 23 is embedded and fixed in the base 223 on the back side of the insertion hole 2231. At this time, the lens 23 is embedded and fixed in the base 223 with the optical axis C2 being the same as the optical axis C1 of the optical element 222. Further, when the stub 24 is inserted into the insertion hole 2231 and fixed to the base 223, the optical axis C3 of the stub 24 is made to be the same as the optical axis C2 of the lens 23.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, a split sleeve (sleeve) 26 is provided that is attached to the stub body 241.

The split sleeve 26 is attached to the stub body 241 with its tip protruding beyond the tip of the stub body 241 while covering the outer peripheral surface of the tip side of the stub body 241. In this embodiment, an expanded diameter portion 2411 is formed in the center of the stub body 241, and the split sleeve 26 is attached to the tip side of the stub body 241 by abutting the expanded diameter portion 2411. In this way, the split sleeve 26 is prevented from being misaligned with respect to the stub body 241. In this embodiment, the shape of the stub 24 is asymmetrical in side view. Specifically, the length L1 of the small diameter portion on one side of the stub body 241 is made shorter than the length L2 of the small diameter portion on the other side. When the stub 24 is fixed to the base 223, the small diameter portion on one side that is shorter in length is inserted into the insertion hole 2231 of the base 223. This prevents the tip of the stub body 241 from hitting the lens 23.

When the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 are fitted together, the ferrule 15 of the plug connector 10 is inserted into a portion of the split sleeve 26 that protrudes beyond the stub body 241. By doing this, the tip of the optical fiber 25 covered with the stub body 241 and the tip of the optical fiber 14 covered with the ferrule 15 are aligned within the split sleeve 26, and the optical axis C4 of the ferrule 15 is aligned with the optical axis C3 of the stub 24. I made it so that it was the same as the other two, so that it would match up. Then, by aligning the tip of the optical fiber 25 covered with the stub body 241 and the tip of the optical fiber 14 covered with the ferrule 15 in the split sleeve 26, the camera connector 20 and the plug connector 10 are connected. are optically connected. At this time, the diameter of the split sleeve 26 is made slightly smaller than the diameters of the stub body 241 and the ferrule 15. By doing so, the stub body 241 and the ferrule 15 are held by the elastic restoring force of the split sleeve 26. Note that it is also possible to use a cylindrical sleeve instead of the split sleeve 26.

Here, in this embodiment, the optical transmission performance of the camera connector (optical connector) 20 can be further improved.

Specifically, the stub 24 has a stub body 241 and a generally cylindrical flange 242 formed on the stub body 241, and the base 223 has a step portion 22311 to which the flange 242 of the stub 24 is fixed. The thickness T2 of the flange 242 is made thinner than the depth T1 of the step portion 22311, while the diameter D2 of the flange 242 is made smaller than the diameter D1 of the step portion 22311.

By doing so, when the stub 24 is inserted into the insertion hole 2231 and fixed to the base 223, the lower surface 2421 of the flange 242 comes into contact with the inner surface 22311a of the stepped portion 22311. By bringing the lower surface 2421 of the flange 242 into contact with the inner surface 22311a of the stepped portion 22311, the stub 24 and the base 223 (lens 23) are positioned. Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the lower surface 2421 of the flange 242 is brought into contact with the inner surface 22311a of the stepped portion 22311, a gap is formed between the stub 24 and the lens 23, and the stub 24 and the lens 23 are 23 is the optimum focal length. This allows light to be transmitted more efficiently.

In addition, in this embodiment, the adhesive 27 is filled into the step portion 22311 to fix the stub 24 and the base 223. At this time, as described above, in this embodiment, the thickness T2 of the flange 242 is made thinner than the depth T1 of the step portion 22311, while the diameter D2 of the flange 242 is made smaller than the diameter D1 of the step portion 22311. In this way, the adhesive surface can be made larger when fixing with the adhesive 27, and the adhesive strength can be made stronger. Furthermore, it is possible to more reliably prevent the adhesive 27 from leaking out of the step portion 22311.

In this embodiment, the difference between the depth T1 of the step portion 22311 and the thickness T2 of the flange 242 is set to 150 μm. This allows a space to be formed for introducing the adhesive 27 when the flange 242 is housed in the step portion 22311.

Further, the difference between the diameter D1 of the stepped portion 22311 and the diameter D2 of the flange 242 is set to 300 μm. By doing so, for example, the stub 24 can be moved in the horizontal direction. If there are large variations in the mounting position of the optical element 222, the stub 24 is moved horizontally to align with the optical element 222 while the flange 242 is housed in the stepped portion 22311, and then the adhesive is applied. It is also possible to fix it with 27. In this way, alignment with the optical element 222 can be performed while maintaining the optimum focal length.

Note that if there is no variation in the mounting position of the optical element 222, by reducing the diameter of the insertion hole 2231, it becomes possible to have a configuration in which the stub body 241 is press-fitted. In this case, it is possible to create a structure in which the adhesive 27 is not required depending on the strength of the press-fit.

[Action/Effect]
Below, the characteristic configuration of the optical connector shown in the above embodiment and the effects obtained thereby will be explained.

The camera connector (optical connector) 20 shown in the above embodiment is optically connected to the plug connector (optical connector on the other side) 10 to perform optical communication with the plug connector (optical connector on the other side) 10. This is a connector that allows

This camera connector (optical connector) 20 has a stub body 241 and a flange 242 formed on the stub body 241, and is equipped with a stub 24 capable of transmitting light, and a lens 23 arranged so that its optical axis C2 is the same as the optical axis C3 of the stub 24. Furthermore, the camera connector (optical connector) 20 is equipped with a base 223 that holds the stub 24 and the lens 23, and a split sleeve (sleeve) 26 that is attached to the stub body 241. This split sleeve (sleeve) 26 is a sleeve that can hold the ferrule 15 provided in the plug connector (mating optical connector) 10 in a state in which its optical axis C4 is aligned with the optical axis C3 of the stub 24.

Furthermore, in the camera connector (optical connector) 20 shown in the above embodiment, the base 223 includes a stepped portion 22311 to which the flange 242 is fixed. The thickness T2 of the flange 242 is thinner than the depth T1 of the stepped portion 22311, and the diameter D2 of the flange 242 is smaller than the diameter D1 of the stepped portion 22311.

In this way, by fixing the flange 242 formed on the stub body 241 to the step portion 22311 formed on the base 223, the stub 24 can be held on the base 223 with the distance from the lens 23 more reliably set to the optimal focal length. As a result, it becomes possible to further improve the positioning accuracy of the stub 24 and the lens 23, and further improve the optical transmission performance of the camera connector (optical connector) 20.

In addition, by making the depth T1 of the step portion 22311 deeper than the thickness T2 of the flange 242 while making the diameter D1 larger than the diameter D2 of the flange 242, the adhesive surface can be increased when fixing with adhesive 27, and the adhesive strength can be increased. Furthermore, it is possible to more reliably prevent the adhesive 27 from leaking out of the step portion 22311.

In this way, by using the camera connector (optical connector) 20 shown in the above embodiment, it becomes possible to further improve the optical transmission performance of the camera connector (optical connector) 20.

[others]
Although the present embodiment has been described above, the present embodiment is not limited to this, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist of the present embodiment.

For example, in the above embodiment, an optical connector used for optical transmission or optical reception is illustrated as the optical connector 20, but it is also possible to apply the present invention to an optical connector for optical transmission and reception. In this case, it is preferable that the optical transceiver includes a light emitting element and a light receiving element as optical elements, and that a lens, a stub with a flange, and a sleeve are provided on each of the light emitting element side and the light receiving element side.

Further, the lens 23 and the stub 24 do not need to be separate bodies, and it is also possible to use an elongated lens that has both the function of the lens 23 and the function of the stub 24.

Further, it is also possible to provide the flange 242 with a function as a spring holder so that the stub 24 is pressed by the spring.

In addition, by using a substantially cylindrical stub 24, it is possible to configure it so that it can be rotated relative to the base 223 when aligning the optical axis or when in use. In addition, by making the shape of the flange 242 non-circular, it is possible to configure it so that the stub 24 cannot be rotated relative to the base 223.

In addition, the specifications of the base, stubs, and other details (shape, size, layout, etc.) can also be changed as appropriate.

10 Plug connector (mating optical connector)
15 Ferrule 20 Camera connector (optical connector)
223 Base 22311 Step portion 23 Lens 24 Stub 241 Stub body 242 Flange 26 Split sleeve (sleeve)
D1 Diameter of the stepped part D2 Diameter of the flange T1 Depth of the stepped part T2 Thickness of the flange

Claims (1)

An optical connector that is optically connected to a counterpart optical connector and capable of optical communication with the counterpart optical connector,
A stub that has a stub body and a flange formed on the stub body and is capable of transmitting light;
a lens arranged such that its optical axis is the same as the optical axis of the stub;
a base that holds the stub and the lens;
a sleeve that is attached to the stub body and capable of holding the ferrule in a state where the optical axis of the ferrule of the mating optical connector is aligned with the optical axis of the stub;
It is equipped with
The base includes a step portion for fixing the flange,
The thickness of the flange is thinner than the depth of the stepped portion, and the diameter of the flange is smaller than the diameter of the stepped portion.
optical connector.

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