JP4270359B2 - Optical connector cleaning device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an optical connector cleaning device for cleaning an end face of a fiber in an optical connector connection operation, and more particularly, an optical connector cleaning device that can easily perform an optical connector cleaning operation with various shapes. Relates to the device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, construction of communication networks using optical fibers has been promoted as high-speed and large-capacity communication means. Various types of optical connectors are used for laying optical fibers or connecting optical fibers at the manufacturing site of optical fiber communication equipment. In general, the optical connector is a system in which the end faces of the optical fibers are directly abutted with each other. Therefore, if the fiber end faces are dirty, the signal transmission characteristics are deteriorated. Therefore, it is necessary to clean the fiber end face before connecting the optical connector.
[0003]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an optical connector cleaning device, for example, as disclosed in JP-A-6-242347, a window portion that can be opened and closed is provided in an exterior case, and a cleaning for cleaning the fiber end surface of the optical connector in the window portion. Proposals have been made to supply tapes sequentially from reels. This cleaning device includes a guide plate for guiding the fiber end face of the optical connector and a rubber pad serving as a base for the cleaning tape at a position corresponding to the window portion of the outer case.
[0004]
However, in the above-described cleaning device, the guide plate and the rubber pad are integrally fixed to the exterior case, and it is difficult to replace them, so that only the optical connector having a specific shape can be cleaned. There was a problem. In particular, recently, the shape of an optical connector has been complicated in order to obtain a more reliable and strong joint. For example, an optical connector provided with guide pins around a fiber end surface has been put into practical use. It was virtually impossible to perform the cleaning operation with the above-described cleaning apparatus.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
An object of the present invention is to provide an optical connector cleaning device that can easily perform cleaning operations of optical connectors having different shapes.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, an optical connector cleaning device of the present invention is provided with an openable / closable window in an exterior case, and sequentially supplies a cleaning tape for cleaning the fiber end surface of the optical connector to the window. In the optical connector cleaning apparatus, an exchange unit including a guide plate for guiding the fiber end surface of the optical connector and a rubber pad serving as a base of the cleaning tape at a position corresponding to the window portion of the exterior case , The guide plate is detachably attached to the outer case, and the guide plate is fixed to a holder that is engaged with the outer case and forms a part of the replacement unit .
[0007]
As described above, the replacement unit including the guide plate for guiding the fiber end surface of the optical connector and the rubber pad serving as the base of the cleaning tape is detachably disposed at a position corresponding to the window portion of the outer case, thereby The shape of the plate or the rubber pad can be changed according to the type of the optical connector, and the cleaning operation of the optical connectors having different shapes can be easily performed. As the replacement unit, a plurality of types of replacement units are prepared, and any one of these replacement units may be selected according to the type of the optical connector.
[0008]
In the present invention, in order to sufficiently exhibit the cleaning effect of the optical connector by the cleaning tape, the hardness of the rubber pad is preferably in the range of 55 to 80 in terms of JIS-A hardness.
[0009]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the configuration of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0010]
1 to 11 show an optical connector cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The cleaning apparatus of this embodiment is comprised from the exterior case 1 shown in FIGS. 1-3, and the cassette 41 shown in FIGS. 4-5.
[0011]
The exterior case 1 has a configuration in which a lid 3 is swingably connected to a case body 2 that accommodates a cassette 41. The lid 3 is provided with a slider 5 slidable along the rail 4, and the slider 5 is urged in one direction by a spring 6. The slider 5 has an engagement hole 5a. The engagement hole 5 a is engaged with the tip of a pole 7 standing inside the case body 2 by the elastic force of the spring 6. Therefore, the exterior case 1 can be opened and closed by sliding the slider 5 from the outside of the case. The lid 3 is provided with an observation port 8 for confirming the remaining amount of the cleaning tape.
[0012]
Support shafts 9 and 10 are erected on the inner side surface of the outer case 1 at intervals. As shown in FIG. 3, a swing plate 12 provided with a pinion 11 and a drive shaft 14 provided with a gear 13 are rotatably held on the support shaft 10. The swing plate 12 includes a push plate 15 that engages with the gear 13 of the drive shaft 14 so that the drive shaft 14 is rotated in only one direction when the swing plate 12 repeats swinging around the shaft. It has become. However, since the drive shaft 14 is urged to the tip side by a spring member (not shown), the gear 13 is disengaged from the push plate 15 in a state where the cassette 41 is not attached to the outer case 1, and the drive shaft 14 can freely rotate. It is like that. A plurality of protrusions 14 a extending in the axial direction are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the drive shaft 14.
[0013]
On the other hand, a lever 16 is attached to the upper part of the outer case 1 so as to be swingable around a rotating shaft 17. A rack 18 that meshes with the pinion 11 is integrally attached to the lever 16. The rack 18 rotates the pinion 11 while being guided by the guide pins 19 by the operation of the lever 16. Since the rack 18 is urged in one direction by the spring 20, the lever 16 protrudes from the outer case 1 when it is in an unloaded state. The shape of the exposed portion of the lever 16 is designed to be substantially symmetrical with respect to the outer case 1 so that the operation is easy regardless of the dominant arm.
[0014]
The power transmission mechanism including the rack 18, the pinion 11, the swing plate 12, the push plate 15, and the gear 13 described above converts the swing of the lever 16 into intermittent one-way rotation of the drive shaft 14.
[0015]
A window portion 22 having a shutter 21 made of a thin metal plate is formed on the top of the outer case 1. A bracket 23 having an oval opening is provided at the rear end of the shutter 21, and the bracket 23 is connected to the locking portion 12 a of the swing plate 12. Therefore, when the lever 16 is pushed in and the swing plate 12 swings, the shutter 21 slides to the lower side of the lever 16 and the window portion 22 is opened.
[0016]
An exchange unit 31 including a guide plate 32 for guiding the fiber end face of the optical connector and a rubber pad 33 as a base of the cleaning tape is detachably attached to a position corresponding to the window portion 22 of the outer case 1. . As shown in FIG. 6, the replacement unit 31 has a configuration in which the rubber pad 33 is accommodated in the recess of the holder 34 and only one side of the guide plate 32 is fixed to the edge of the holder 34. The holder 34 has an engaging piece 34 a on a side portion, and is arranged at a position corresponding to the window portion 22 by engaging this with the support portion 2 a of the case body 2.
[0017]
A plurality of types of replacement units 31 are prepared, and one of them is selected according to the type of optical connector. For example, as shown in FIG. 7A, two slits 35 are provided in the guide plate 32, while two grooves 36 corresponding to the slits 35 are provided in the rubber pad 33, and a combination thereof is used. Can do. Further, as shown in FIG. 8 (a), one slit 35 is provided in the guide plate 32, while one protrusion 37 narrower than the slit 35 is provided in the rubber pad 33, and a combination thereof is used. Can do. This unit is effective for cleaning an optical connector provided with guide pins around the fiber end face. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 9A, the guide plate 32 is provided with three slits 35 having different widths, while the rubber pad 33 is flattened and a combination thereof can be used. This unit can clean optical connectors of different sizes.
[0018]
The material of the rubber pad 33 is not particularly limited, but the hardness is 55 to 80, more preferably 60 to 80 in terms of JIS-A hardness. If the rubber pad 33 that is the base of the cleaning tape is too soft, the optical connector is difficult to slide on the cleaning tape, and if it is too hard, the cleaning effect of the optical connector is insufficient.
[0019]
On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the cassette 41 has a configuration in which a reel 51 for supplying the unused cleaning tape S and a reel 61 for winding the used cleaning tape S are integrally held. Yes. In FIG. 4, since a part of the constituent members of the cassette 41 is formed from a transparent or translucent material, the outline is projected.
[0020]
The cassette 41 has a configuration in which outer peripheral walls 44 and 45 are attached around the side plates 42 and 43, respectively, and these outer peripheral walls 44 and 45 are connected to each other via a plurality of connecting portions 46. Of course, the side plate 42 and the outer peripheral wall 44 may be integrally formed, and the side plate 43 and the outer peripheral wall 45 may be integrally formed. Further, a tape exposing portion 41 a for exposing the cleaning tape S is formed on the upper portion of the cassette 41. The cleaning tape S unwound from the reel 51 passes through the tape exposed portion 41 a while being guided by a plurality of rollers 47 and reaches the reel 61.
[0021]
As the cleaning tape S, a cloth may be used. The fibers constituting this fabric are not particularly limited, but it is preferable to use ultrafine filament yarns having a single fiber fineness of 0.0001 to 1.0 dtex. A fabric composed of such extra fine filament yarns can exhibit an excellent cleaning effect on the fiber end face. The upper limit of the single fiber fineness is more preferably 0.5 dtex or less, still more preferably 0.1 dtex or less. The ultrafine filament yarn may be a non-twisted yarn or a twisted yarn. The weaving structure is preferably a plain weave.
[0022]
The polymer constituting the ultrafine filament yarn is not particularly limited as long as it is fiber-forming. For example, polyester and nylon can be mentioned. As the form of the filament, those having a normal round cross section are used, but among them, those having an irregular cross section and those having crimps are preferable, and a more excellent cleaning effect can be obtained.
[0023]
The reel 51 that supplies the unused cleaning tape S is provided with a body 53 around which the cleaning tape S is wound around the rotating cylinder 52, and a side plate 54 and a gear 55 are provided at one end of the body 53. The rotary cylinder 52 can be rotated by being inserted into the openings provided in the side plates 42 and 43. The side plate 43 is provided with an engagement claw 43a that engages with the gear 55, and the rotation direction of the reel 51 is restricted to one direction by the engagement claw 43a.
[0024]
Further, the side plate 42 of the cassette 41 is provided with a plurality of alcohol injection openings 48 at positions corresponding to the cleaning tape S wound around the reel 51. Through the opening 48, the cleaning tape S can be impregnated with alcohol as necessary. Further, the side plate 42 is provided with an observation exit window 49 for confirming the remaining amount of the cleaning tape S. The observation exit window 49 is configured to be accommodated in the observation port 8 of the outer case 1.
[0025]
The reel 61 for winding the used cleaning tape S is provided with a body 63 around which the cleaning tape S is wound around the rotating cylinder 62, and a side plate 64 and a gear 65 are provided at one end of the body 63. The rotating cylinder 62 can be rotated by being inserted into openings provided in the side plates 42 and 43. The side plate 42 is provided with an engaging claw 42a that engages with the gear 65, and the rotation direction of the reel 61 is restricted to one direction by the engaging claw 42a.
[0026]
The rotary cylinder 62 of the reel 61 is fitted into the drive shaft 14 of the outer case 1 and is rotationally driven. Therefore, a plurality of protrusions 62 a extending in the axial direction are formed on the inner peripheral surface of the rotating cylinder 62 of the reel 61. As shown in FIG. 10, the protrusion 14 a provided on the outer peripheral surface of the drive shaft 14 has a shape in which an end thereof is cut away obliquely with respect to the axial direction. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11, the protrusion 62 a provided on the inner peripheral surface of the rotary cylinder 62 has a shape in which an end thereof is notched obliquely with respect to the axial direction. Therefore, when the cassette 41 is mounted, the end surface of the protrusion 14 a of the drive shaft 14 and the end surface of the protrusion 62 a of the rotating cylinder 62 do not collide with each other, and the driving shaft 14 easily enters the rotating cylinder 62.
[0027]
Next, a method of using the above-described optical connector cleaning apparatus will be described. First, the outer case 1 is opened and the cassette 41 is inserted. At this time, the rotary cylinder 52 of the reel 51 for supplying the tape is fitted into the support shaft 9, while the rotary cylinder 62 of the reel 61 for collecting the tape is fitted into the drive shaft 14, and the tape exposed portion of the cassette 41. The cleaning tape S exposed at 41 a is inserted between the guide plate 32 and the rubber pad 33 of the replacement unit 31. After mounting the cassette 41 in this way, the outer case 1 is closed.
[0028]
When cleaning the optical connector, by pushing the lever 16, the shutter 21 of the window portion 22 is opened, and at the same time, the reel 61 is rotated at a predetermined rotation angle by the rotation of the drive shaft 14, and the cleaning tape S is attached to the reel 61. The unused cleaning tape S supplied from the reel 51 is moved to the window portion 22 while being wound. In this state, the cleaning operation is performed by rubbing the optical connector on the cleaning tape S along the slit 35 of the guide plate 32 with the rubber pad 33 as a base.
[0029]
In order to clean a specific optical connector, it is only necessary to repeat the above operation. However, in the case of cleaning a plurality of types of optical connectors having different shapes, the replacement plate 31 having the guide plate 32 and the rubber pad 33 is replaced with the optical connector. After the appropriate replacement according to the shape, the same operation as described above may be performed. As a result, not only a general optical connector with the fiber end face exposed at the tip of the plug, but also an optical connector having a plug with a pin and a duplex type optical connector can be cleaned.
[0030]
When the cleaning tape S in the cassette 41 is used up, after opening the outer case 1, the cassette 41 may be removed and a new cassette 41 may be mounted. In the optical connector cleaning apparatus described above, the cleaning tape S can be easily replaced in units of cassettes. Further, since the cleaning tape S is held in the cassette together with the reels 51 and 61, impurities are hardly mixed into the cleaning tape S.
[0031]
In addition, although the said embodiment demonstrated the type of cleaning apparatus which replaces | cleans a cleaning tape per cassette, this invention is applicable also to the type of cleaning apparatus which replaces a cleaning tape per reel.
[0032]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, an optical connector cleaning device is provided with an openable / closable window in the exterior case and sequentially supplies a cleaning tape for cleaning the fiber end surface of the optical connector to the window. In this case, an exchange unit provided with a guide plate for guiding the fiber end face of the optical connector and a rubber pad as a base of the cleaning tape is detachably disposed at a position corresponding to the window portion of the outer case. The shape of the rubber pad can be changed according to the type of the optical connector, and the cleaning operation of the optical connectors having different shapes can be easily performed.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an outer case of an optical connector cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a side view showing an exterior case in the optical connector cleaning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a side view showing the inside of an exterior case in the optical connector cleaning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a side view showing a cassette in the optical connector cleaning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a cross-sectional view taken along arrow XX in FIG. 4;
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a support structure for the replacement unit.
7A and 7B show an example of an exchange unit, in which FIG. 7A is a plan view of a guide plate, and FIG. 7B is a plan view of a rubber pad.
8A and 8B show another example of the replacement unit, in which FIG. 8A is a plan view of a guide plate, and FIG. 8B is a plan view of a rubber pad.
9A and 9B show still another example of the replacement unit, in which FIG. 9A is a plan view of a guide plate, and FIG. 9B is a plan view of a rubber pad.
FIG. 10 is a side view showing a drive shaft of the exterior case.
FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing an inner peripheral surface of a rotating cylinder of a reel into which a drive shaft is inserted.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Exterior case 22 Window part 31 Replacement unit 32 Guide plate 33 Rubber pad 41 Cassette S Cleaning tape

Claims (3)

In the optical connector cleaning device, in which an openable and closable window portion is provided in the exterior case, and a cleaning tape for sequentially cleaning the fiber end surface of the optical connector is supplied to the window portion, corresponding to the window portion of the exterior case An exchange unit including a guide plate for guiding the fiber end surface of the optical connector and a rubber pad serving as a base of the cleaning tape is detachably disposed at the position, and the guide plate is attached to the exterior case. An optical connector cleaning device engaged with a case and fixed to a holder constituting a part of the replacement unit . The optical connector cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the replacement unit includes a plurality of types of replacement units, and any one of the replacement units is selected according to the type of the optical connector. The optical connector cleaning device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the rubber pad has a JIS-A hardness of 55 to 80.

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