JP4560302B2 - Manufacturing method of optical connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical connector for connecting an optical fiber attached to an optical fiber cable, and an optical connector manufacturing method including an optical fiber cable and a caulking member that holds a tensile wire housed in the optical fiber cable.

  In the optical cable, a tensile strength line is disposed outside the optical fiber, and the outer side of the tensile strength line is covered with an outer skin made of a synthetic resin. A conventional optical connector to which this optical fiber cable is attached includes a holder that holds a ferrule to fix the optical fiber of the optical fiber cable, a spring that biases the holder forward, and a stop that supports the rear end of the spring. The ring includes a plug frame on which the stop ring is fixed in an inserted state, and a caulking member that is inserted into the stop ring and that fixes the optical fiber cable and the tensile strength line in the cable by caulking. The caulking member is formed by a metal caulking ring for fixing the outer sheath of the optical fiber cable and a caulking seat that is positioned in the caulking ring and fixes the optical fiber (see Patent Document 1).

In this conventional optical connector, the present applicant himself / herself has a caulking seat in which a thick tensile-strength line holding cylinder portion having a common inner diameter and a thin outer skin holding cylinder portion are arranged in series at a front and rear position through a step. An optical connector (Japanese Patent Application No. 2003-106453) formed by integral molding so as to have the above-described shape has been proposed.
JP 2001-141960 A

  However, the caulking seat is made of a single material so that the thick tensile strength holding tube portion and the thin outer skin holding tube portion having a common inner diameter are connected to each other at the front and rear positions via a step. Therefore, the caulking seat itself is difficult to process, and the manufacturing cost increases.

  Therefore, the present invention was created in view of the conventional circumstances as described above, and a thick tensile-strength line holding cylinder portion having a common inner diameter and a thin outer skin holding cylinder portion are provided through a step. A method of manufacturing an optical connector that makes it easy to process the caulking seat itself and lowers the manufacturing cost as much as possible in the caulking seat manufacturing process that is integrally formed so as to form a shape that is continuously provided at the front and rear positions. The purpose is to provide.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention supports a holder that holds a ferrule to which an optical fiber of an optical fiber cable is inserted and fixed at the tip, and a rear end of a spring that biases the holder forward. A stop ring to be fixed, a plug frame to which the stop ring is fixed in an inserted state, and a caulking ring that holds the outer sheath of the optical fiber cable and the tensile strength line in the cable while being held inside the stop ring, A caulking member formed by each of the caulking seats for holding the outer sheath of the optical fiber cable and the tensile strength wire from the inside between the caulking and inserting the optical fiber therein, and the caulking seat is common The thick tensile-strength wire holding cylinder part and the thin outer skin holding cylinder part with the inner diameter of Provided continuously, by caulking the caulking ring, tensile strength wire is fixed by the caulking ring and the tensile strength wire holding tubular portion, the outer skin is a method of manufacturing the optical connector is fixed by the caulking ring and the outer skin holding tubular portion And
The caulking seat is formed by inserting and fixing an inner tube longer than the outer tube to an inner diameter portion of the outer tube, thereby fixing a thick tensile strength wire holding cylinder portion and a thin outer skin holding tube portion having a common inner diameter. Or form a step with
Alternatively, an inner tube having the same length as the outer tube is inserted into and fixed to the inner diameter portion of the outer tube, and a part of the end portion of the outer tube is cut and removed to expose a part of the inner tube. Thus, a step is formed between the thick tensile-strength line holding cylinder part having a common inner diameter and the thin outer skin holding cylinder part .

  In the method of manufacturing an optical connector according to the present invention configured as described above, the caulking seat itself can be shared by combining two cylindrical bodies having different inner diameters with fixing means such as adhesion, welding, and press-fitting. A thick tensile-strength line holding cylinder portion and a thin outer skin holding cylinder portion having the inner diameter are formed through a step.

  Also, if the outer sheath of the optical fiber cable is held by a thin outer tube holding cylinder formed on the crimping seat, and the caulking ring is caulked from the outside in this holding state, the thick tensile strength wire connected via a step is provided. In order to smoothly caulk the outer skin holding cylinder portion which is thinner than the holding cylinder portion, the caulking force is applied to the outer skin evenly through the thin outer skin holding cylinder portion.

  According to the present invention, the thick tensile-strength wire holding cylinder part having a common inner diameter and the thin outer skin holding cylinder part are integrally formed so as to be connected to the front and rear positions via a step. In the caulking seat manufacturing method, the caulking seat itself can be easily processed, and the manufacturing price can be reduced as much as possible.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Reference numeral 1 shown in the drawing denotes an optical fiber cable and a caulking member for holding a tensile wire housed in the cable. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the optical connector 1 includes a ferrule 2, a holder 3, a plug frame 4, and a spring 5 from the front end side (left end side) to the rear end side (right end side). The stop ring 6 is arranged in order, and the optical fiber cable 10 is inserted into each of these components. A knob 14 is slidably provided outside the plug frame 4 and the stop ring 6.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the optical fiber cable 10 is formed by an inner optical fiber 11, a tensile strength wire 12 that covers the outer side of the optical fiber 11, and a sheath 13 that is made of a synthetic resin and covers the outer side of the tensile strength wire 12. .

  The ferrule 2 fixes the optical fiber 11 by bonding the tip of the optical fiber 11 of the optical fiber cable 10 with an adhesive after insertion. As shown in FIG. 1, the ferrule 2 is held at the tip of the holder 3 so as to protrude from the tip of the optical connector 1. Further, the ferrule 2 is protected by being covered with a ferrule cap 15 shown in FIG.

  The spring 5 is formed of a coil spring and is disposed so as to be sandwiched between the holder 3 and the stop ring 6, so that the rear end thereof is supported by a protruding wall in the stop ring 6. In this manner, the rear end is supported by the protruding wall in the stop ring 6, so that the spring 5 acts to urge the holder 3 forward.

  The plug frame 4 has a holder 3, a spring 5 and a front portion of the stop ring 6 inserted therein. In this case, an engaging convex portion 6 a is formed on the outer surface of the front portion of the stop ring 6 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and this engaging convex portion 6 a is the engaging hole portion 4 a of the plug frame 4. Is engaged. By this engagement, the stop ring 6 is fixed with respect to the plug frame 4 to prevent them from coming off.

  A rear portion of the stop ring 6 bulges outward to form a re-appliance 16, and a boot 17 made of rubber or the like is attached to a rear end portion of the re-appliance 16.

  A caulking ring 7 and a caulking seat 8 that are both made of metal are arranged inside the stop ring 6. The caulking ring 7 and the caulking seat 8 constitute the caulking member 9 that holds the optical fiber cable 10 and the tensile strength wire 12 of the cable 10 and the optical fiber 11. That is, the caulking ring 7 of the caulking member 9 holds the outer sheath 13 of the optical fiber cable 10 and the tensile strength wire 12 in the cable 10 from the outside while being held inside the stop ring 6. Further, the caulking seat 8 constituting the caulking member 9 holds the outer skin 13 and the tensile strength wire 12 from the inside with the caulking ring 7, and inserts the optical fiber 11 therein (state before caulking).

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the caulking ring 7 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the outer fiber 13 of the optical fiber cable 10 is fixed by inserting the optical fiber cable 10 into the inside thereof. The outer skin 13 is fixed by caulking the caulking ring 7 from the outside. At the rear part of the caulking ring 7, thin concave portions 7a are formed at four locations on the circumference, and the optical fiber cable 10 is bitten by pressure when caulking the caulking ring 7 from the outside. It is intended to act so as to prevent 10 from falling out.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the caulking seat 8 has a common inner diameter by combining two cylinders having different inner diameters with appropriate fixing means such as bonding, welding, or press fitting. A thick tensile-strength line holding cylinder part 21 (holder 3 side) and a thin outer skin holding cylinder part 22 (boot 17 side) are coaxially connected to the front and rear positions via a step 24 so as to have a shape. It is configured. 9, the caulking seat 8 is inserted into the caulking ring 7, and the optical fiber 11 of the optical fiber cable 10 is inserted into the caulking seat 8, thereby fixing the optical fiber 11. To do. That is, the tensile strength wire 12 is fixed by the caulking ring 7 and the tensile strength holding tube portion 21, and the outer skin 13 is fixed by the caulking ring 7 and the outer skin holding tube portion 22. Fixing at this time is performed by caulking force when caulking ring 7 is caulked. It is also possible to combine a plurality of fixing means, for example, adhesion and press-fitting.

  As an example of a specific manufacturing method of the caulking seat 8, as shown in FIG. 10, for example, an outer tube 31 having a length corresponding to the tensile strength holding cylinder portion 21 with a tube member made of the same material, and an outer tube The inner tube 32 has an outer diameter that can be fitted into the inner diameter portion 31 and is exposed to the length corresponding to the outer skin holding cylinder portion 22 while being fitted into the outer tube 31. . Then, the inner tube 32 is inserted into the inner diameter portion of the outer tube 31, and the entire outer periphery of the outer tube 31 is press-fitted in the inner diameter direction with an appropriate compression tool via the cored bar 33 inserted into the inner diameter portion of the inner tube 32. As a result, the outer tube 31 and the inner tube 32 are integrated to form the step 24.

  Further, as another specific manufacturing method of the caulking seat 8, as shown in FIG. 11, an inner tube 32 having the same length as the outer tube 31 is inserted into the inner diameter portion of the outer tube 31, The entire outer periphery of the outer tube 31 is press-fitted in the inner diameter direction through the cored bar 33 inserted into the tube 32, or one end opening side of both the tubes 31, 32 is fixed by bonding or welding or the like. Prepared in advance so as to have a double tube structure. And it cuts with the cutting tool 34 leaving the part corresponded to the tensile strength line holding cylinder part 21 of the outer tube 31, the end side part corresponding to the outer shell holding cylinder part 22 of the outer tube 31 is extracted and removed, and the outer skin The step 24 is formed by exposing a part of the inner tube 32 corresponding to the holding cylinder portion 22.

It is a fragmentary sectional view of the whole optical connector which shows the best form for implementing this invention. It is an exploded side view of an optical connector similarly. It is a partial sectional view of caulking. FIG. 5 is a right side view of FIG. 4. FIG. 5 is a left side view of FIG. 4. It is a side view of a caulking seat. FIG. 7 is a right side view of FIG. 6. It is sectional drawing of a caulking seat. It is the expanded sectional view which shows the connection structure of a crimping member and an optical fiber cable. It explains the manufacturing method of the crimping seat for optical connectors. (A) is a cross-sectional view of a state in which the inner tube is inserted into the inner diameter part of the outer tube, and (b) is press-fitted the entire outer periphery of the outer tube in the inner diameter direction. It is sectional drawing of the state to carry out. The other manufacturing method of the crimping seat for optical connectors is demonstrated, (a) is sectional drawing of the state which inserted the inner tube in the internal diameter part of the outer tube, (b) is the outer shell holding | maintenance cylinder part of an outer tube It is sectional drawing of the state which extracted and removed the part by the side of a corresponding end.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Optical connector 2 Ferrule 3 Holder 4 Plug frame 5 Spring 6 Stop ring 7 Caulking ring 8 Caulking seat 9 Caulking member 10 Optical fiber cable 11 Optical fiber 12 Tensile wire 13 Outer skin 21 Tensile wire holding cylinder part 22 Outer skin holding cylinder part 24 Step 31 Outer tube 32 Inner tube 33 Core

Claims (1)

A holder that holds the ferrule to which the optical fiber of the optical fiber cable is inserted and fixed at the tip, a stop ring that supports the rear end of a spring that biases the holder forward, and a plug that the stop ring is fixed in the inserted state The outer cover of the optical fiber cable and the outer strength of the optical fiber cable and the tensile strength wire held between the outer cover of the optical fiber cable and the tensile strength line in the same while being held inside the stop ring. And a crimping member formed by a caulking seat for inserting an optical fiber therein, and the caulking seat has a thin tensile strength wire holding cylinder portion having a common inner diameter and a thin wall. The outer shell holding cylinder part is connected to the front and rear positions via a step, and the caulking is caulked. Te, tensile strength wire is fixed by the caulking ring and the tensile strength wire holding tubular portion, the outer skin is a method of manufacturing an optical connector to be fixed by the caulking ring and the outer skin holding tubular portion,
The caulking seat is formed by inserting and fixing an inner tube longer than the outer tube to an inner diameter portion of the outer tube, thereby fixing a thick tensile strength wire holding cylinder portion and a thin outer skin holding tube portion having a common inner diameter. Or form a step with
Alternatively, an inner tube having the same length as the outer tube is inserted into and fixed to the inner diameter portion of the outer tube, and a part of the end portion of the outer tube is cut and removed to expose a part of the inner tube. A method of manufacturing an optical connector, comprising: forming a step between a thick tensile-strength line holding cylinder part having a common inner diameter and a thin outer skin holding cylinder part .

Images