JP4747073B2 - Optical communication device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical communication device that functions as an optical communication line for transmitting a signal between two points sandwiching a light transmitting member made of a light transmitting medium.

  The optical communication line lays an optical fiber cable from the telephone station to the user's house, and is wired to an ONU (Optical Network Unit) device in the user's house. Normally, a communication cable is introduced into the user's house from the ONU, but it is necessary to construct a hole in the house and pass the communication cable, which causes problems in terms of time and cost.

  There is also a method of transmitting a radio signal by radio waves, but there are problems such as a limitation of available frequencies, a decrease in throughput due to interference, and a security problem.

  A glass extender (for example, refer to Patent Document 1) is a technique for performing communication using a laser beam that passes through a glass by attaching a pair of devices to the inner and outer surfaces of the window glass. Each device includes an LED and a photodiode, and performs two-way communication by connecting an outdoor communication device (ONU) and an indoor communication device (HUB, etc.). The electrical signal from the ONU is E / O (electrical / optical) converted by the LED of the window glass outer surface device, and the generated laser light passes through the glass. This is received by the photodiode of the inner surface device, converted to O / E (light / electricity), and then sent as an electrical signal to the indoor communication device. The same applies to the reverse direction. By using the glass extender, simple communication wiring is possible without making a hole in the house. Driving power needs to be supplied to the LEDs and photodiodes of the window glass outer surface device, and this is realized by electromagnetic induction with a built-in coil.

JP 2004-80595 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. A light beam emitted from an optical fiber is focused on a light transmitting member of an optical communication line using an optical system, and received laser light is collected using an optical system. An optical communication device that realizes an optical communication line without using an optical / electrical conversion device that requires a power source in the middle of the communication line, and only needs to arrange optical components that shine and concentrate on the optical fiber core. The purpose is to provide.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is an optical communication device for optical transmission between two points separated by a light transmitting member, and an optical signal propagating through an optical fiber is directed toward an aperture light transmitting member by an optical system. and one of the signal transmission unit having a transmission portion that transmits the light transmitting member have a receiving portion for taking the optical fiber and condensed by the optical system of the optical signal transmitted through, the receiving part is said one of the signal transmission unit The other signal transmission unit disposed so as to oppose the transmitting part with a light transmission member interposed therebetween, an optical system adjustment device for adjusting the position and inclination of the optical system of the signal transmission unit, and the signal transmission unit And a fixing mechanism that fixes the optical system after adjustment. And the optical system adjusting device is attached to the fixing mechanism near one end of the optical system of the signal transmission unit via a rotary joint, and is driven by a motor near the other end of the optical system of the signal transmission unit. It is characterized by comprising so that it may attach .

Further, the present invention is an optical communication device for bidirectional optical transmission between two points separated by a light transmitting member, wherein the optical signal transmitted through the optical fiber is transmitted by the optical system in the direction of the aperture light transmitting member. And an optical system that collects the optical signal transmitted through the light transmitting member and collects the optical signal into the optical fiber as an integrated optical system, and the optical signal transmitted through the light transmitting member as the optical system. The receiving part that collects light into the optical fiber and the transmission part that transmits the optical signal propagating through the optical fiber in the direction of the aperture light transmitting member by the optical system is used as an integrated optical system. And the other signal transmission unit disposed so as to face the optical system also serving as a transmission part and a reception part of the one signal transmission unit with a light transmission member interposed therebetween, and the signal Transmission unit An optical system adjusting device for adjusting the position and inclination of the optical system, comprising a fixing mechanism for fixing after adjusting the optical system of the signal transmission unit. And the optical system adjusting device is attached to the fixing mechanism near one end of the optical system of the signal transmission unit via a rotary joint, and is driven by a motor near the other end of the optical system of the signal transmission unit. It is characterized by comprising so that it may attach .

  According to the present invention, in the optical communication device, a collimator lens is used as an optical system of each signal transmission unit.

  According to the present invention, the optical communication device further includes a fixing mechanism that fixes the optical system of the signal transmission unit after adjustment.

  According to the present invention, in the optical communication device, as an optical system adjusting device, the optical system tilt adjusting mechanism can be removed after adjusting and fixing the optical system of the signal transmission unit.

  According to the present invention, in the optical communication device, the coarse adjustment device is provided with a sight mark in the optical system light receiving portion of one signal transmission unit and a visible light source that emits visible light from the optical system of the other signal transmission unit. It is characterized by having.

  According to the present invention, in the optical communication device, a light source for communication for emitting laser light from the optical system of one signal transmission unit and a light intensity of the laser light received by the optical system of the other signal transmission unit are measured. The optical power meter, a motor for driving the tilt of the optical system of the signal transmission unit, the communication light source and the motor are controlled, the light intensity measured by the optical power meter is evaluated, and the two optical systems face each other And a computer for discriminating the position.

  In the optical communication apparatus, the present invention is characterized in that glass, plastic, or window glass is used as the light transmitting member.

  An optical communication apparatus according to the present invention includes an optical fiber core that condenses a light beam emitted from an optical fiber on an optical transmission line of an optical communication line using an optical system, and collects the received laser light using an optical system. The optical communication line is realized without using any optical / electrical conversion device that requires a power source in the middle of the communication line. For example, an ONU is placed in the user's house, and in the optical communication line from the telephone office to the ONU, the optical signal and the electric signal are not converted between the window glasses, and the signal light is propagated as it is by arranging only the optical components. Thus, an optical communication device constituting a communication path can be provided.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a configuration showing an example of use of an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, a window glass 2 is provided in the user's house 3 so as to partition the outdoors and the indoors. An indoor side signal transmission unit 1 a is attached to the indoor side surface of the window glass 2, and an outdoor side signal transmission unit 1 b is attached to the outdoor side surface of the window glass 2. The indoor-side signal transmission unit 1a and the outdoor-side signal transmission unit 1b are attached to face each other with the window glass 2 in between to constitute an optical communication device. An ONU (Optical Network Unit) 4 is installed in the user's home 3, and the ONU 4 is connected to the user terminal 3a by a conductive wire and to the indoor signal transmission unit 1a by an optical fiber cable. The outdoor transmission unit 1b is connected to the telephone station 5 through an optical fiber cable 6 to perform wired optical communication. Between the indoor side signal transmission unit 1a and the outdoor side signal transmission unit 1b, an optical signal propagates in a space using the window glass 2 as a medium.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the optical communication apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. An example of the configuration inside the optical communication apparatus when bidirectional communication is performed with one optical fiber is perpendicular to the window glass surface. The cross section is shown. As shown in FIG. 2, the indoor transmission unit 1a includes an optical lens (collimator lens) 7 and an optical fiber 6a for transmission / reception as an optical component that restricts transmission light and collects reception light, and includes a connector 8a. . On the indoor side of the user's house, the collimator lens 7 and the connector 8a are connected by the transmission / reception optical fiber 6a, and the optical fiber cable 6 for indoor wiring and the transmission / reception optical fiber 6a are connected via the connector 8a to transmit signals.・ Transmit the received signal. The outdoor-side signal transmission unit 1b incorporates an optical lens (collimator lens) 7 as an optical component that restricts transmission light and condenses reception light, and includes a connector 8b. In this configuration example, the wiring inside the outdoor signal transmission unit 1b is not required by disposing the tip of the connector 8b at the focal position of the collimator lens 7 on the outdoor side of the user's house. An optical fiber cable 6 for outdoor wiring is connected to the connector 8b. For example, an optical signal traveling from a telephone office to a user's house is radiated from a connector 8b of an outdoor signal transmission unit 1b via an optical fiber cable 6 for outdoor wiring, and is narrowed by a collimator lens 7 and then incident on a window glass 2. To do. The optical signal that has passed through the window glass 2 is collected on the core of the transmission / reception fiber 6a by the collimator lens 7 of the indoor signal transmission unit 1a and passes through the connector 8a and the optical fiber cable 6 for indoor wiring. Transmitted to the ONU.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing the optical communication apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, and shows a state in which a pair of optical lenses (collimator lenses) face each other with the window glass 2 interposed therebetween. As shown in FIG. 3, each collimator lens 7 is fixed to a fixing jig 10 attached to a window frame 9 of the window glass 2. The optical signal propagated through the optical fiber cable 6 is emitted from the collimator lens 7, passes through the window glass 2 and reaches the opposing collimator lens 7. The fixing jig 10 can be adjusted in the vertical and horizontal directions by the position adjusting screw 11, and the collimator lens 7 fixed to the fixing jig 10 can be adjusted in the vertical and horizontal directions by the position adjusting screw 11. it can. Further, the collimator lens 7 is disposed in the fixing jig 10 via the rotary joint 18, and the angle of the optical axis can be freely adjusted. After the adjustment, the collimator lens 7 can be fixed by strongly tightening the fixing screw 16. An optical system tilt adjusting mechanism mounting hole 14b is provided in the fixing jig 10 and attaches / detaches the optical system tilt adjusting mechanism for adjusting the tilt of the optical system.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing the optical system tilt adjusting mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention. The optical system tilt adjusting mechanism 12 is attached to and detached from the optical system tilt adjusting mechanism mounting hole 14b of the fixing jig 10 by an optical system tilt adjusting mechanism mounting screw 14a. A motor 13 is attached to the upper part of the optical system tilt adjusting mechanism 12, and a frame-like drive arm 15 is driven vertically and horizontally by using the motor 13 as a drive source. The drive arm 15 includes a pin 17 for grasping the collimator lens 7 in the frame.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view for explaining the operation of the optical system adjusting apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, and is a view for explaining the adjustment of the inclination of the optical system. As shown in FIG. 5, the vicinity of one end of the collimator lens 7 is attached to the fixing jig 10 via the rotary joint 18, and the vicinity of the other end of the collimator lens 7 is attached to the drive arm 15 driven up and down and left and right by the motor. That is, the tilt angle of the collimator lens 7 is adjusted around the rotary joint 18 according to the vertical movement of the drive arm 15 in the vertical and horizontal directions.

  In this way, the optical system adjustment device adjusts the inclination of the collimator lens 7 of the signal transmission unit by driving the drive arm 15 up and down and left and right. The optical system tilt adjusting mechanism 12 is removed by removing the optical system tilt adjusting mechanism mounting screw 14 a from the optical system tilt adjusting mechanism mounting hole 14 b of the fixing jig 10 after adjusting and fixing the collimator lens 7 of the signal transmission unit. Is possible.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the coarse adjustment device according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 6, the collimator lens 7 of the signal transmission unit on the light receiving side is provided with an aiming mark 19 having a reflection point 21 on the light receiving surface, and visible light is emitted to the collimator lens 7 of the other signal transmission unit. A visible light source 20 is connected by an optical fiber cable 6. That is, the visible light emitted from the visible light source 20 is irradiated on the surface of the aiming mark 19 via the optical fiber cable 6 and the collimator lens 7 and is visually observed as the reflection point 21 on the aiming mark 19. The optical axis of the collimator lens 7 can be confirmed.

  FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of an automatic optical axis adjustment system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 7, reference numeral 13 denotes a motor for driving the inclination of the collimator lens 7 of the other signal transmission unit held by the drive arm 15, and reference numeral 22 denotes a laser beam from the collimator lens 7 of one signal transmission unit connected by the optical fiber cable 6. A communication light source for emitting light, 23 is an optical power meter that measures the light intensity of the laser beam received by the collimator lens 7 of the other signal transmission unit connected by the optical fiber cable 6, and 24 is a communication light source 22. And a computer that controls the motor 13 and evaluates the light intensity measured by the optical power meter 23 to determine the position where the two collimator lenses 7 face each other. That is, the laser light transmitted from the communication light source 22 is measured by the optical power meter 23 via the optical fiber cable 6, the collimator lens 7, and the window glass 2, and stored in the computer 24. The motor 13 controls the position and orientation of the collimator lens 7 by operating the drive arm 15 of the optical system tilt adjustment mechanism according to the command value from the computer 24. The computer 24 evaluates the received light intensity with respect to the positions and orientations of various collimator lenses 7 and discriminates positions where the two collimator lenses 7 face each other.

  FIG. 8 is a characteristic diagram showing received light intensity measurement values when the position of the collimator lens of the optical communication apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention is changed, and FIG. 9 is a collimator lens of the optical communication apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a characteristic view which shows the received light intensity measurement value when changing the inclination of. In either case, the received light intensity decreases as the optical axis shifts with the two collimator lenses at the apex position. It was confirmed that in order to determine the directly facing positions of the two collimator lenses, the maximum value should be searched from the distribution of received light intensity. As a result of adjusting the optical axis of the experimental device in this way, a transmission characteristic of received light intensity of 11.2 dBm is obtained with respect to input light intensity of −5.97 dBm, and optical space communication through the window glass is performed with a loss of about 5 dB. I verified that I can do it.

  The embodiment of the present invention is a technology in which an ONU is placed in a user's house and the window glass portion is spatially communicated in an optical communication line from the telephone office to the ONU, and the signal light is directly converted without converting the optical signal into an electrical signal. To establish a communication path.

  Note that simply facing the optical fiber end faces on both sides of the window glass is not sufficient for spatial transmission of signal light. Since the signal light emitted from the end face of the optical fiber diverges, the signal intensity is lowered and is insufficient for controlling the emission direction. On the receiving side, simply by using the end face of the optical fiber as the light receiving surface, the light receiving area is extremely small (diameter of about 10 microns with a single mode fiber), so that sufficient light intensity cannot be captured, and signal light is concentrated. Even when irradiating, it is difficult to control as a target.

  In order to solve this, it is necessary to stop the light beam emitted from the optical fiber using an optical system, and collect the received laser light using the optical system and concentrate it on the optical fiber core. Even in such a case, fine adjustment is required for the position adjustment of the optical system, and it is required that the light beam optical axis be stable after the system is installed. Automation is effective for adjusting the optical system, but it is essential to link a measurement system that detects that the two optical systems are facing each other and a drive system that moves the optical system finely. From a practical standpoint, simplification of the mechanism and means for collecting installation tools such as a drive train are also important.

  In the above-described embodiment of the present invention, the window glass has been described as the light transmitting member made of a medium that transmits light. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be similarly applied to a light transmitting member such as glass or plastic.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Further, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, you may combine suitably the component covering different embodiment.

It is structure explanatory drawing which shows the usage example of embodiment of this invention. 1 is a configuration explanatory diagram illustrating an optical communication device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an optical communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the optical system inclination adjustment mechanism which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic perspective view for demonstrating operation | movement of the optical system adjustment apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is composition explanatory drawing which shows the rough adjustment apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 1 is a configuration explanatory view showing an automatic optical axis adjustment system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a characteristic view which shows the light reception intensity | strength measured value when the position of the collimator lens of the optical communication apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention is changed. It is a characteristic view which shows the light reception intensity measurement value when changing the inclination of the collimator lens of the optical communication apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1a ... Indoor side signal transmission unit, 1b ... Outdoor side signal transmission unit, 2 ... Window glass, 3 ... User house, 3a ... User terminal, 4 ... ONU, 5 ... Telephone office, 6 ... Optical fiber cable, 6a ... Optical fiber 7, optical lenses (collimator lenses), 8a, 8b, connectors, 9 ... window frame, 10 ... fixing jig, 11 ... position adjusting screw, 12 ... optical system tilt adjusting mechanism, 13 ... motor, 14a ... optical. System tilt adjusting mechanism mounting screw, 14b ... Optical system tilt adjusting mechanism mounting hole, 15 ... Drive arm, 16 ... Fixing screw, 17 ... Pin, 18 ... Rotary joint, 19 ... Aiming mark, 20 ... Visible light source, 21 ... Reflection Point, 22 ... Communication light source, 23 ... Optical power meter, 24 ... Computer.

Claims (7)

An optical communication device that transmits light between two points separated by a light transmitting member,
One signal transmission unit having a transmission part that transmits an optical signal propagating through the optical fiber in the direction of the aperture light transmitting member in the optical system;
Have a receiving portion for taking the optical fiber to collect light signal transmitted through the light transmitting member in the optical system, to face each other across the light transmitting member with respect to the transmit portion of the received portion said one of the signal transmission unit The other signal transmission unit arranged as follows:
An optical system adjustment device for adjusting the position and inclination of the optical system of the signal transmission unit;
A fixing mechanism for fixing the optical system of the signal transmission unit after adjustment;
Comprising
The optical system adjustment device attaches a vicinity of one end of the optical system of the signal transmission unit to the fixing mechanism via a rotary joint, and attaches a drive unit driven by a motor near the other end of the optical system of the signal transmission unit. An optical communication device characterized by that. An optical communication device for bidirectional optical transmission between two points separated by a light transmitting member,
The optical part that transmits the optical signal propagated through the optical fiber in the direction of the aperture light transmitting member by the optical system and the receiving part that collects the optical signal that has passed through the optical transmitting member by the optical system and takes it into the optical fiber are integrated optics. One signal transmission unit that is also used in the system,
A receiving part that collects the optical signal that has passed through the light transmitting member with an optical system and takes it into the optical fiber, and a transmission part that transmits the optical signal that has propagated through the optical fiber in the direction of the aperture light transmitting member with the optical system are integrated optics. The optical system that is shared by the system and that is also used as the receiving part and the transmitting part is disposed so as to face the optical system that is also used as the transmitting part and the receiving part of the one signal transmission unit with a light transmission member interposed therebetween. The other signal transmission unit to be
An optical system adjustment device for adjusting the position and inclination of the optical system of the signal transmission unit;
A fixing mechanism for fixing the optical system of the signal transmission unit after adjustment;
Comprising
The optical system adjustment device attaches a vicinity of one end of the optical system of the signal transmission unit to the fixing mechanism via a rotary joint, and attaches a drive unit driven by a motor near the other end of the optical system of the signal transmission unit. An optical communication device characterized by that. The optical communication device according to claim 1 or 2,
An optical communication apparatus using a collimator lens as an optical system of each signal transmission unit. The optical communication device according to claim 1 or 2 ,
An optical communication device characterized in that an optical system tilt adjusting mechanism is removable as an optical system adjusting device after adjusting and fixing an optical system of a signal transmission unit. An optical communication apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
An optical communication apparatus comprising: a coarse adjustment device provided with an aiming mark in an optical system light receiving portion of one signal transmission unit and a visible light source that emits visible light from the optical system of the other signal transmission unit. The optical communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 ,
A communication light source for emitting laser light from the optical system of one signal transmission unit;
An optical power meter that measures the light intensity of the laser beam received by the optical system of the other signal transmission unit;
A motor that drives the tilt of the optical system of the signal transmission unit;
An optical communication apparatus comprising: a computer that controls the communication light source and the motor, and evaluates the light intensity measured by the optical power meter to determine a position where the two optical systems face each other. The optical communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 ,
An optical communication device using glass, plastic, or window glass as a light transmitting member.

Images