JP2513590B2 - Optical connector - Google Patents

Description

Description: (a) Technical Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical connector for abutting and aligning a ferrule having a plurality of optical fibers arranged and fixed, and in particular, an end face of the ferrule from a longitudinal direction with respect to an optical axis. The present invention relates to an optical connector in which a contact is made on an inclined surface both when viewed and when viewed in the lateral direction.

(B) Conventional technology and problems In the conventional optical connector used for coupling optical fibers, a plurality of optical fibers are arrayed and fixed, and a pair of ferrules that are end faces perpendicular to the optical axis are brought into contact and aligned. A conventional optical connector is shown in FIG. 1, where (a) is a plan view showing a cross section of a main part, (b) is a side view showing a cross section of the main part, 1 is an optical fiber cable, and 2 is a composite in which an optical fiber is fixed. A ferrule 3 made of resin or the like and having a protrusion 21 formed thereon, 3 is an adapter made of a synthetic resin molded product and having a groove 31 formed at the center of the outer periphery, 4
Is a fastener made of an elastic material and having a protrusion 41 formed at its tip, and 5 is a holding spring.

After inserting the fastener 4 into the optical fiber cable 1 in advance, the jacket at the end of the optical fiber cable 1 is slightly removed to separate it into a plurality of optical fibers, and the optical fibers are arranged at a predetermined interval. , The ferrule 2 in which the optical fibers are arrayed by molding the arrayed ferrule 2 having a rectangular cross section.
Polish the end face of. And the ferrule 2 to the adapter 3
In a state in which they are inserted from both sides and abutted against each other, the fastener 4 fitted in the optical fiber cable 1 is hooked on the projecting portion 21 of the ferrule 2, and the projection 41 at the tip is fitted in the groove 31 of the adapter 3. When the ferrule 2 is attached, the end face of the ferrule 2 is in pressure contact, but since the ferrule 2 is smaller than the hole of the adapter 3, the ferrule 2 may not be aligned in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction. Therefore, since a plurality of pressing springs 5 are provided in the holes of the adapter 3 to position the ferrule 2 that abuts, the positioning work efficiency is poor, and the abutting end surface of the ferrule 2 is vertical. There was a problem.

(C) Object of the Invention In view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, the present invention forms an end face of a ferrule so as to make contact with an inclined surface when viewed from the longitudinal direction or the lateral direction with respect to the optical axis. It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical connector in which reflection is improved at the same time as positioning.

(D) Structure of the Invention In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention has at least one
A pair of ferrules whose end faces, to which at least two optical fibers are fixed, are inclined when viewed in the vertical and horizontal directions with respect to the optical axis, and an insertion hole for inserting the pair of ferrules and guiding the inclined faces into contact alignment And a jack with
Further, one ferrule is fixed to the insertion hole of the jack while being biased laterally with its inclined surface facing, and the other ferrule is fixed by bringing the inclined surfaces into contact with each other.

(E) Embodiments of the Invention Hereinafter, embodiments of the optical connector according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 (a) for explaining one embodiment of the present invention.
Is a plan view showing the cross section of the main part, (b) is a side view showing the cross section of the main part, and the same reference numerals are given to the same parts as in the previous figure, 6 is the plug-side ferrule made of a synthetic resin molded product, 7
Is a jack side ferrule made of a synthetic resin molded product, 8 is a fastener made of an elastic material and provided with a projection 81 at its tip, and 9 is a jack made of a synthetic resin molded product and having a groove 91 formed therein.

After inserting the fastening tool 8 into the optical fiber cable 1 in advance, the jacket at the end of the optical fiber cable 1 is slightly removed to separate into a plurality of optical fibers, and the optical fibers are arranged at predetermined intervals. Then, the plug-side ferrule 6 having a rectangular cross section is arrayed and molded, and its end face is inclined by polishing it both vertically and laterally with respect to the optical axis. Further, the jack-side ferrule 7 corresponding to the plug-side ferrule 6 is also slightly stripped of the jacket of the end portion of the optical fiber cable 1 to separate it into a plurality of optical fibers, which are array-molded into a ferrule 7 having a rectangular cross section to form a ferrule. After the end surface of 7 is ground to a smooth inclined surface corresponding to the plug-side ferrule 6, the jack 9 is fitted into the jack-side ferrule 7 and fixed to a predetermined position, that is, substantially the center of the jack 9 with an adhesive (not shown). At that time, the jack-side ferrule 7 is in a state in which the inclined surface thereof is orientated toward the side of the rectangular insertion hole of the jack 9 in advance, that is, the angle (diagonal direction) between the adjacent B and C planes, and in that direction. Stick with. Then, while inserting the slanted surface of the plug-side ferrule 6 into the insertion hole of the jack 9 so as to face the mating slanted surface, both protrusions 81 of the fastener 8 are expanded outward and engage with the groove 91 of the jack 9. Fit in. At this time, the dimensional relationship of the mutual parts is designed in advance so that there is no gap in the engaging portion so that the inclined surfaces of the pair of ferrules 6 and 7 are in pressure contact with each other. The fastener 8 is engaged by the elasticity of the resin material, and the plug-side ferrule 6 is attracted toward the jack-side ferrule 7 so that the inclined surfaces are brought into pressure contact with each other and the plug-side force is exerted on the inclined surface. The ferrule 6 is biased and biased toward the same side of the insertion hole of the jack 9. At this time, the plug-side ferrule 6 is guided by the side hole surface, that is, the B and C surfaces, and the inclined surfaces are brought into close contact with each other, and the structure is such that accurate positioning is performed with reference to the B and C surfaces. .

3 (a) is a plan view and FIG. 3 (b) is a perspective view for explaining another embodiment of the optical connector according to the present invention. Third
In the figure, the optical connector of the present invention is provided with an optical fiber cable, a ferrule, a plug and a fastener as in FIG. 2, but is characterized in that the plug and the fastener are improved. Therefore the plug 11 and the fastener
Except for 12, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 2 are attached, and the description of these parts will be omitted here.

A groove 111 is formed in the plug 11, a fastener 12 is attached to the opposite surface of the groove 111, and a protrusion 121 is formed on the inner surface of the tip thereof, except that the optical connector to be connected is left-right completely symmetrical. It is similar to FIG.

Although the external cross-sectional shape of the ferrule has been described as a rectangular shape in the present embodiment, even if the polygonal shape is not limited to a rectangular shape, one corner of the insertion hole can be formed by adjusting the cross-sectional shape of the insertion hole of the jack to those shapes. It does not matter, because the two side surfaces sandwiching between the two sides act in the same manner as the rectangle described above.

(F) Effects of the Invention As is apparent from the above description, the optical connector according to the present invention facilitates the positioning of the ferrule as compared with the conventional optical connector, reduces the influence of reflected light, and improves the optical transmission characteristics. It greatly contributes to.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1A is a plan view showing a cross section of a main part, and FIG. 1B is a side view showing a cross section of the main part for explaining a conventional optical connector.
2 (a) is a plan view showing a cross section of a main part, FIG. 2 (b) is a side view showing a cross section of the main part, and FIG. 3 is another embodiment for explaining an embodiment of an optical connector according to the present invention. (A) is a plan view and (b) is a perspective view for explaining an example. In the figure, 1 is an optical fiber cable, 2 is a ferrule, 3
Is an adapter, 4, 8 and 12 are fasteners, 5 is a presser spring, 6 is a ferrule on the plug side, 7 is a ferrule on the jack side, 9 and 11 are jacks, 21 is a protrusion, 31, 91 and 111 are grooves, 41 , 81 and
121 shows a protrusion, respectively.

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A pair of ferrules, each of which has at least one or more optical fibers fixed thereto and whose end faces are inclined faces as viewed in the vertical and horizontal directions with respect to the optical axis, and a pair of ferrules are inserted to bring the inclined faces into contact alignment. And a jack having an insertion hole for guiding so that one ferrule is fixed to the insertion hole of the jack in a lateral direction with its inclined surface facing, and the other ferrule contacts the inclined surface with each other. An optical connector characterized by being brought into contact and fixed.