JP4808199B2 - Optical fiber ferrule holding device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention, for example, uses a microscopic interferometer device (also referred to as an “interference microscope device”) to analyze the shape of the tip of the optical fiber ferrule constituting the optical connector. The present invention relates to an optical fiber ferrule holding device used for holding at a predetermined position in front of an objective lens.

  An optical fiber used for optical communication is composed of, for example, a core having an outer diameter of about 10 μm and a clad layer having an outer diameter of, for example, about 125 μm, and an optical connector is provided at the connection end for connecting the optical fibers. Installed.

  The optical connector includes an optical fiber ferrule (hereinafter simply referred to as a ferrule) that holds and fixes the end of the optical fiber. This ferrule is composed of a cylindrical part that holds and fixes the end of the optical fiber. After the end of the optical fiber is inserted into the through hole in the center and fixed with an adhesive, the tip surface is mirror-like. To be polished. The two ferrules are configured to optically connect the two optical fibers held in the two ferrules by abutting the tip surfaces of the two ferrules with an optical connector.

  The tip surface of this ferrule is known to have been polished to a plane orthogonal to the optical axis, or polished to a plane that is oblique to the optical axis. Attention has been paid to those with PC (physical contact) polishing that makes the tip surfaces spherical so that the tip surfaces can be elastically deformed by the pressing force at the time of butting and the adhesion between the ferrule tip surfaces can be improved. Yes.

  By the way, in order to reduce the optical loss due to the optical fiber connection by the optical connector, various high-precision standards are defined by JIS for the ferrule. Standards in the order of 6 μm are defined, such as a dimensional error in the radius of curvature of the optical fiber, and a positional deviation error between the apex of the spherical tip surface of the ferrule and the center of the optical fiber core (fiber outer shape center).

  In order to check whether the manufactured ferrule conforms to the above-mentioned standard, the above-described microscopic interferometer apparatus may be used. The microscopic interferometer device observes the interference fringes obtained by interfering the object light carrying phase information such as the surface shape and refractive index distribution of a minute subject with the reference light, and the shape and change of the interference fringes. The phase information of the subject is obtained by measuring and analyzing.

  When inspecting the manufactured ferrule using such a microscopic interferometer device, a ferrule for holding the ferrule to be inspected with high positional accuracy at a predetermined position in front of the objective lens of the microscopic interferometer device. A holding device is required. Conventionally, what is described in the following patent document 1 is known as such a ferrule holding device.

JP 2005-69697 A

  The conventional ferrule holding device described in Patent Document 1 has a structure as illustrated in FIG. FIG. 5 shows only the main body portion of the ferrule holding device 500, and is for holding the ferrule 10 at a predetermined position in front of the objective lens unit of the microscopic interferometer device located on the left side in FIG.

  The ferrule 10 constitutes an optical connector and is usually housed in a plug of the optical connector. The ferrule 10 holds one end of a single mode type optical fiber (not shown) at the center of the outer diameter of the ferrule body 11, and the ferrule body 11 accommodates the ferrule 10 in a plug of an optical connector. A holding tool 12 is attached. The ferrule body 11 is made of zirconia ceramic, and its tip surface is PC-polished in a convex shape so as to be in close contact with the tip surface of a not-shown counterpart ferrule.

  The conventional ferrule holding device 500 includes a base portion 510 made of a circular plate-like member, and the base portion 510 has a notch portion 550 extending in the vertical direction, and two portions facing each other across the notch portion 550, that is, The support portion 560 and the displacement portion 570 are partially divided. The support portion 560 includes a ferrule insertion hole 561 that is a through-hole extending in the axial direction at the center portion of the base portion 510. The ferrule insertion hole 561 has an inner diameter substantially the same as the outer diameter of the ferrule 10, and the support portion 560 allows the ferrule 10 inserted into the ferrule insertion hole 561 to pass through the ferrule insertion hole 561. It is configured to be supported by the inner surface.

  The displacement portion 570 swings and displaces with the thin portion on the lower side as a pivot point so that the gap at the opening end portion (upper end portion in the drawing) of the notch portion 550 is expanded and contracted, and the extension of the ferrule insertion hole 561 On the line, a pressing portion 571 for holding the ferrule 10 by pressing the tip portion of the ferrule 10 with the displacement is provided. Although a mechanism for adjusting the displacement of the displacement portion 570 is not shown, a screw hole 572 formed in the distal end portion of the displacement portion 570 is screwed with a distal screw portion of a displacement adjustment portion (not shown) installed in the base 510. Thus, when the displacement portion 570 is pulled toward the support portion 560 by the rotation operation of the displacement adjustment portion, the pressing portion 571 presses and holds the peripheral surface of the ferrule 10.

  However, the ferrule holding device having such a configuration has the following problems. That is, in the above-described conventional ferrule holding device 500, the displacement portion 570 swings and displaces with the lower thin portion as a pivot, and the tip portion of the ferrule 10 is pressed and held by the pressing portion 571. As a result, the holding accuracy is lowered due to the optical axis of the tip portion 10 being tilted, and the measurement accuracy error increases, which has a problem of affecting the analysis result.

  That is, the pressing portion 571 is not displaced in parallel with the center line of the ferrule insertion hole in accordance with the deformation of the displacement portion 570, but is displaced so that the pressing surface is inclined with respect to the center line. Due to the influence, the optical axis of the ferrule tip surface is displaced so as to fall down. As a result, the orientation of the tip face changes, and the fiber located at the center of the ferrule 10 is displaced from the center position of the ferrule tip face to be measured, which affects the measurement error.

  Further, with the repeated holding operation of the ferrule 10, wear occurs in the ferrule insertion hole 561 and the pressing portion 571, and there is a problem that the holding accuracy of the ferrule 10 is lowered. That is, when the ferrule 10 is inserted into the ferrule insertion hole 561, wear may occur due to rubbing, and wear may occur in the pressing portion 571 due to pressing when the ferrule 10 is held.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and provides an optical fiber ferrule holding device that presses and holds a ferrule that constitutes an optical connector with high accuracy without causing a tilting displacement of the optical axis of the tip portion. For the purpose.

  In order to solve the above problems, an optical fiber ferrule holding device according to the present invention holds a ferrule fixed to an end portion of an optical fiber in a state in which it is inserted into a ferrule insertion hole for fixing a ferrule in an axial direction thereof. A holding device, comprising: a device main body having the ferrule insertion hole; and a plate-like clamp member that is attached to the device main body and holds a tip end portion of the ferrule protruding from the device main body. A holding hole that opens on the extension of the ferrule insertion hole, and a notch groove that extends in the two radial directions from the holding hole, has one end opened to the open end of one side of the clamp member, and the other end closed at the closed end And a fixed portion that is separated by the notch groove and is fixed to the apparatus body, and is displaced about the closed end portion of the notch groove so as to face the fixed portion. A displacement adjustment portion that adjusts a displacement amount of the displacement portion, and the displacement portion is fixed to the inner peripheral portion of the holding hole by the operation of the displacement adjustment portion. A ferrule pressing portion that moves so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the inner peripheral portion of the holding hole of the unit and presses the tip of the ferrule inserted into the ferrule insertion hole of the apparatus main body from a direction orthogonal to the ferrule axial direction. It is characterized by comprising.

  Moreover, the said clamp member can be comprised as another part which can replace | exchange the part which contact | connects the said ferrule.

  In this case, the separate part is a split sleeve having an axially split groove in a part of the cylindrical body, and the split sleeve is configured to be extended and attached to the ferrule insertion hole portion of the apparatus main body. can do.

  Further, the position where the pressing force applied to the displacement part by the displacement adjustment part is a position that is biased toward the open end of the notch groove from the center position of the holding hole.

  Further, in the clamp member, the displacement portion and the fixed portion are connected via a thin portion near the closed end of the notch groove, and the displacement portion is displaced about the thin portion with respect to the fixed portion. It can be configured to be possible.

  The ferrule insertion hole has a cross-sectional shape that can be the same circular shape as the ferrule cross-sectional shape, but is not limited to a circular shape as long as the ferrule can be positioned. You may form in a polygonal shape. In this case, the inner diameter of the ferrule insertion hole means the distance between the surfaces that are in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the ferrule and that face each other with the ferrule interposed therebetween.

  As described above, the optical fiber ferrule holding device of the present invention holds the ferrule in a mode in which the ferrule is inserted into the ferrule insertion hole for fixing the ferrule in the axial direction, and the ferrule protrudes from the device body having the ferrule insertion hole. A clamp member for holding the tip of the clamp member, the clamp member extending in a radial direction from a holding hole opened on the extension of the ferrule insertion hole, one end opened to the open end of one side of the clamp member, and the other end Is provided with a notch groove that is closed at the closed end and separates the fixed portion and the displacement portion that are opposed to each other, the apparatus main body is provided with a displacement adjustment portion that adjusts the amount of displacement of the displacement portion, The ferrule pressing part that moves to the part so that it can come into contact with and separate from the inner peripheral part of the holding hole of the fixing part by the operation of the displacement adjusting part, and presses the tip of the ferrule from the direction orthogonal to the ferrule axial direction It is configured to be provided with.

  In the ferrule holding device of the present invention configured as described above, the displacement operation of the displacement portion is configured so that the displacement of the ferrule pressing portion of the displacement portion is pressed from the direction orthogonal to the ferrule axial direction, thereby suppressing the pressing operation. Accordingly, since the optical axis at the tip of the ferrule is not displaced so as to fall down, the orientation of the ferrule tip surface is held without being displaced. Thereby, the holding accuracy is improved without changing the center position of the measurement front end surface, and the measurement can be performed satisfactorily.

  In addition, when another part that comes into contact with the ferrule is replaceable, the ferrule holding device is caused by wear at the insertion end portion due to insertion of the ferrule in the ferrule insertion hole and wear due to pressing of the pressing portion holding the ferrule. With respect to the decrease in the ferrule holding accuracy due to the above, it is possible to replace only the portion of the clamp member that constitutes the ferrule insertion hole, leaving the apparatus main body having a displacement adjusting portion, etc., and to reduce the cost required for the replacement, Stable holding accuracy can be maintained over a long period of time.

  If the separate sleeve is a split sleeve and the split sleeve in contact with this ferrule is replaced, all parts that come into contact with the ferrule can be replaced by replacing the split sleeve. When wear occurs, the replacement cost can be reduced, and long-term measurement accuracy can be maintained by periodic replacement.

  In addition, if the position where the pressing force is applied to the displacement part by the displacement adjusting part is deviated from the center of the holding hole, the pressing force can be reduced, the displacement adjusting part can be reduced in size and simplified, and the pressing amount can be easily adjusted. Thus, the occurrence of ferrule damage due to the action of excessive pressing force can be prevented.

  Further, when the fixed portion and the displacement portion are connected via the thin portion, the displacement portion is easily displaced, the pressing force required for the displacement adjustment portion is reduced, and similarly, the size and simplification can be realized.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the ferrule holding device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an optical fiber ferrule holding device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front view thereof, FIG. 3 is a rear view thereof, and FIG. In FIG. 1, only a part of the split sleeve is a cross-sectional view.

  The ferrule holding device 100 shown in the figure is for holding the ferrule 10 fixed to the end of the optical fiber shown in FIG. 1 at a predetermined position in front of the objective lens unit of the microinterferometer device (not shown). The left side of FIG. 1, that is, the front surface shown in FIG. 2 is the surface to be attached to the microscopic interferometer device, and the ferrule 10 is inserted from the right side of FIG. An example of the structure of the microscopic interferometer apparatus is described in detail in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, so please refer to the description.

  As described above, the ferrule 10 shown in FIG. 1 constitutes an optical connector that is joined to a counterpart plug (not shown) via a sleeve (not shown), and is normally accommodated in the plug of the optical connector. ing. The ferrule 10 holds one end of a single mode type optical fiber (not shown) at the center of the outer diameter of the ferrule body 11, and the ferrule body 11 accommodates the ferrule 10 in a plug of an optical connector. A holding tool 12 is attached. The ferrule body 11 is made of zirconia ceramic, and its tip surface 11a is PC-polished into a convex shape so as to be in close contact with the tip surface of a not-shown counterpart ferrule, and the shape accuracy of the tip surface 11a is reduced by the microscopic interference. It is to be analyzed with a measuring device.

  The ferrule holding device 100 according to the present embodiment includes a device main body 110 made of a circular plate-like member, and a clamp member 130 that is detachably attached to the device main body 110 from the front surface side. The ferrule insertion hole 120 (in the illustrated case, it is formed inside a split sleeve 133 described later), and the ferrule 10 is held in an axially inserted manner. In addition, the apparatus main body 110 includes a displacement adjustment unit 150 that performs a clamping operation.

  The apparatus main body 110 has a central disk part 111 with a part of the upper part thereof being cut off and a substantially annular (peripheral part of the upper part) edge 112 of the outer peripheral edge formed integrally, and the back side of the disk part 111. A disc-shaped rotation restricting plate (not shown) is attached to the center of the plate.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the edge portion 112 includes screw holes 113 (three in the figure) and a positioning recess 114. The screw hole 113 is for an attachment screw for attaching the ferrule holding device 100 to the microscopic interferometer device, and the concave portion 114 is formed for engagement with the positioning pin.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a clamp member 130 that is detachably attached to the front side of the apparatus main body 110 has a substantially disk shape (a part of the left part is missing in FIG. 2), and the ferrule is inserted in the center. A holding hole 131 is provided on the extension of the hole 120.

  One end of a split sleeve 133 is attached to the holding hole 131 of the clamp member 130. The split sleeve 133 is configured such that a portion that contacts the ferrule 10 inserted into the ferrule insertion hole 120 is formed as a separate member. This split sleeve 133 has a longitudinally split groove 133B in the axial direction in a part of the cylindrical body 133A.

  The other end of the split sleeve 133 is inserted into the through hole 115 at the center of the apparatus main body 110, and both ends are held in a step shape to form a retaining structure. That is, one end of the split sleeve 133 is locked to the step on the front side of the holding hole 131 of the clamp member 130 and the other end is locked to the step on the back side of the through hole 115 of the apparatus body 110. Yes.

  The inner diameter of the split sleeve 133 is smaller than the inner diameters of the holding hole 131 and the through hole 115, and the ferrule 10 is inserted so as to contact the inner peripheral surface of the split sleeve 133. Further, the inner diameter of the clamp member 130 in the released state of the split sleeve 133, that is, the ferrule insertion hole 120 has an inner diameter larger than the outer diameter of the ferrule 10, and the inserted ferrule 10 is divided into the inner surface of the split sleeve 133. It is comprised so that it may support.

  The clamp member 130 has a notch groove 132 that penetrates the clamp member 130 in the front and back direction and extends from the holding hole 131 in two radial directions (horizontal diametrical direction in the drawing). The notch groove 132 has a structure in which one end is opened by an open end 132A on one side of the clamp member 130 and the other end is closed by a circular closed end 132B opposite to the open end 132A across the holding hole 131. Is formed.

  The clamp member 130 is separated by the notch groove 132 into two members facing each other through the notch groove 132, that is, a lower fixing portion 134 in the drawing and an upper displacement portion 135 in the drawing. . The fixing part 134 is fixed to the apparatus main body 110 so as not to move with respect to the center position of the ferrule insertion hole 120. On the other hand, the displacement part 135 can be displaced so that the groove width of the notch groove 132 is expanded or contracted around the thin part 137 of the extension part of the closed end 132B of the notch groove 132. In order to facilitate the displacement of the displacement portion 135, the dimension of the thin portion 137, that is, the clamp member of the extended portion of the closed end 132B is reduced so that the distance from the closed end 132B to the end of the clamp member 130 is reduced. 130 is cut off from the outer periphery.

  At the inner peripheral portion of the holding hole 131 of the displacement portion 135, the distal end portion of the ferrule 10 inserted into the distal end portion of the split sleeve 133 in accordance with the displacement approaching the fixing portion 134 due to the inner surface of the split sleeve 133. The ferrule pressing part 136 which clamps is comprised. That is, the split sleeve 133 is pressed and deformed so that the inner diameter of the split sleeve 133 is reduced between the displacement portion 135 and the fixed portion 134, and the ferrule pressing portion 136 by the inner surface thereof is moved along with the displacement. A surface parallel to the central axis from a direction perpendicular to the central axis without applying a pressing force that bends the central axis of the ferrule 10 (falling the optical axis). Thus, the pressing force is applied while maintaining the parallel state of the central axis.

  The clamp member 130 is assembled by inserting one end of the split sleeve 133 into the through hole 115 at the center of the apparatus main body 110, and the leading end of the split sleeve 133 protruding from the through hole 115 into the holding hole 131. The clamp member 130 is mounted on the front surface of the apparatus main body 110 so that it can be inserted, and the fixing section 134 is attached to the apparatus main body 110 by fastening fastening screws 140 (three in FIG. 2) from the front side. Is done by.

  On the other hand, the fixing portion 134 is detached from the apparatus main body 110 according to the inner surface of the ferrule insertion hole 120 accompanying the repeated holding of the ferrule 10, that is, the degree of wear of the split sleeve 133, and the split sleeve 133 of the clamp member 130 is removed. Detach and replace.

  Next, the apparatus main body 110 is provided with a displacement adjustment unit 150 that adjusts the displacement amount of the displacement portion 135, that is, the contact / separation displacement amount with respect to the fixed portion 134. The displacement part 135 of the clamp member 130 is formed with a locking piece 138 that is bent rearward in parallel with the notch groove 132 and extends upward of the apparatus main body 110 at the end away from the notch groove 132. The displacement adjusting unit 150 is locked to the locking piece 138. The displacement adjusting unit 150 also serves as a clamp operation member, and includes a screw shaft 152 at the tip of a knob unit 151 for rotation operation. The screw shaft 152 passes through the through hole 139 of the locking piece 138 and is screwed into the screw hole 117 of the apparatus main body 110.

  As the screw shaft 152 is screwed into the screw hole 117 of the apparatus main body 110 in accordance with the tightening rotation operation of the knob section 151, the displacement adjustment section 150 causes the locking piece 138 to move to the apparatus main body 110 side. That is, a pressing force is applied to the displacement portion 135 in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the ferrule insertion hole 120 in the direction in which the width of the notch groove 132 is narrowed. By displacing the displacement portion 135, an external force that displaces the ferrule pressing portion 136 of the clamp member 130 is applied.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the installation position of the displacement adjusting unit 150 is a position biased toward the open end 132 </ b> A side of the notch groove 132 from the extension of the center position of the holding hole 131 of the clamp member 130. If the position where the displacement adjusting unit 150 applies the pressing force to the displacement part 135 is a position deviated from the center of the holding hole 131, the pressing force can be reduced, the displacement adjusting unit 150 can be reduced in size and simplified, and the amount of pressing can be reduced. Adjustment is also easy, and the occurrence of ferrule damage due to the action of excessive pressing force can be prevented.

  The position where the pressing force of the displacement adjusting unit 150 is applied is not particularly defined as long as the displacement unit 135 is operated so that the groove width of the notch groove 132 is narrowed. In order to make this possible, a position near the open end 132A of the notch groove 132 and a position away from the thin portion 137 that is the center of deformation is suitable.

  In order to facilitate the operation of the displacement adjustment unit 150 or to define the operation amount, a lever is erected on the displacement adjustment unit 150, and the movement range of the lever is released from the clamp position by installing a pin or the like. You may comprise so that it may restrict | limit to a position. For the specific structure, see the description of Patent Document 1 described above.

  Further, the tip opening (left end in FIG. 1) of the ferrule insertion hole 120 serves as an observation hole for observing the tip surface 11a of the ferrule 10 inserted therein, and the ferrule holding device 100 serves as a microscopic interferometer device. When set, it is configured to be positioned in front of the objective lens unit.

  In the ferrule holding device 100 of the present embodiment as described above, the ferrule 10 is held by the clamp member 130 as follows. First, the displacement adjustment unit 150 is operated to the release position. At this time, the displacement part 135 is maintained in a non-displaced state, that is, a state where the gap of the notch groove 132 is widened. Next, the ferrule 10 is set by being inserted into the ferrule insertion hole 120 of the split sleeve 133 of the ferrule holding device 100 from the tip end side.

  Next, the displacement adjustment unit 150 is operated to the clamp position. At this time, the displacement part 135 is pressed by the displacement adjustment part 150 and is displaced in a direction in which the groove width of the notch groove 132 becomes smaller by approaching the fixed part 134, and the inner diameter of the split sleeve 133 becomes smaller by this displacement. The ferrule pressing part 136 presses the tip of the ferrule 10 in a direction perpendicular to the insertion direction of the ferrule 10 so as not to be removed. The distal end surface 11a of the ferrule 10 is held at a predetermined position and with a predetermined posture with high accuracy.

  When releasing the holding of the ferrule 10, the displacement adjustment unit 150 is operated in the reverse direction. At this time, in accordance with the backward movement of the displacement adjustment unit 150, the displacement unit 135 is released from being pressed by the displacement adjustment unit 150, and is displaced in a direction in which the groove width of the notch groove 132 is widened. The ferrule 10 is removed from the ferrule insertion hole 120 by spreading and releasing the pressing on the tip of the ferrule 10 by the ferrule pressing portion 136.

  In the present embodiment, the tip of the ferrule 10 is pressed by pressing the tip of the ferrule 10 inserted into the ferrule insertion hole 120 over a predetermined range from the direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the ferrule 10. Is not subjected to a force in the direction in which it falls, and the analysis accuracy of the ferrule tip surface 11a is improved. That is, if the ferrule tip end face 11a is displaced so as to fall, the center position of the fiber at the tip end face 11a of the ferrule 10 is shifted, which affects the measurement error. On the other hand, the present invention is advantageous in that the ferrule tip 11a is not easily tilted due to pressing, the center position of the fiber is small, the holding accuracy is high, and the measurement error is small.

  Another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the above-described embodiment, the split sleeve 133 installed as a separate member is installed so that only the split sleeve 133 is in contact with the ferrule 10, that is, the part to be worn is replaced with a predetermined degree of wear. Although the holding accuracy is ensured corresponding to wear at low cost, an embodiment in which the split sleeve 133 is not installed is also included in the embodiment of the present invention.

  Although not specifically illustrated, when the split sleeve 133 is removed in FIGS. 1 to 4 described above, the through hole 115 at the center of the apparatus main body 110 is formed without a stepped portion, and its inner diameter Is provided with a dimension corresponding to the outer diameter of the ferrule 10 to form the ferrule insertion hole 120. Further, the holding hole 131 of the clamp member 130 also has a step structure for holding the split sleeve 133, and a ferrule pressing portion 136 that presses and fixes the tip of the ferrule 10 as a flat inner peripheral surface is formed. Become.

  The front end portion of the ferrule 10 inserted into the ferrule insertion hole 120 of the apparatus main body 110 protrudes from the front end surface of the apparatus main body 110 by a predetermined amount, and this portion is displaced by the ferrule pressing portion 136 displaced by the displacement of the displacement portion 135. It is formed by pressing and holding. Even in an embodiment that does not have such a split sleeve 133, the holding accuracy of the ferrule, that is, the tip of the ferrule 10 can be reliably held with high accuracy without causing the optical axis to tilt. It can be done.

  Even when the split sleeve is not provided, if the replacement and holding of the ferrule 10 is repeated, the portion of the ferrule insertion hole 120 that contacts the ferrule 10 and the inner peripheral surface of the holding hole 131 of the clamp member 130 Wear occurs in the (ferrule pressing portion 136), and the ferrule holding accuracy decreases. In this case, the clamp member 130 and / or the apparatus main body 110 may need to be replaced.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made.

  For example, in the above embodiment, the ferrule holding device holds a ferrule whose tip surface is PC-polished, but this ferrule holding device has its tip surface polished to a plane perpendicular to the optical axis. It is also possible to hold a ferrule or a ferrule polished on a plane whose front end surface is oblique to the optical axis.

  In the above embodiment, the notch groove is formed so as to extend straight from one end to the other end. The notch groove extends in a V shape with the holding hole as a vertex. It is also possible to form.

  Further, as the ferrule to be held by the ferrule holding device, when holding the ferrule (in the case of illustration) in a state of being taken out from the plug of the optical connector, and holding a part of the plug of the optical connector attached. Sometimes, it can be held by installing a recess relief structure that fits each case and avoids interference with a plug or the like.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the ferrule is made of zirconia ceramic, and a single mode type optical fiber is held in the axial center portion thereof, but the ferrule is made of other materials such as stainless steel and plastic. The optical fiber to be held may be of a multimode type.

  In addition, the ferrule holding device of the present invention is not limited to use in a microscopic interferometer device, but is used to hold the ferrule in an intended position in other equipment used for ferrule inspection or the like. Is possible.

Sectional drawing of the optical fiber ferrule holding device which concerns on one embodiment of this invention Front view of the ferrule holding device shown in FIG. Rear view of the ferrule holding device shown in FIG. 4-4 sectional view of FIG. Sectional drawing of the optical fiber ferrule holding device which concerns on a prior art example

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Ferrule 11 Ferrule main body 11a Front end surface 100 Ferrule holding device 110 Device main body 115 Through hole 117 Screw hole 120 Ferrule insertion hole 130 Clamp member 131 Holding hole 132 Notch groove 132A Open end 132B Closed end 133 Split sleeve 133A Cylindrical body 133B Vertically split Groove 134 Fixed part 135 Displacement part 136 Ferrule pressing part 137 Thin part 138 Locking piece 139 Through hole 140 Fastening screw 150 Displacement adjustment part 151 Knob part 152 Screw shaft

Claims (5)

An optical fiber ferrule holding device for holding a ferrule fixed to an end of an optical fiber in a state of being inserted in a ferrule insertion hole for fixing a ferrule in an axial direction thereof,
An apparatus main body having the ferrule insertion hole, and a plate-like clamp member that is attached to the apparatus main body and holds the tip of the ferrule protruding from the apparatus main body,
The clamp member has a holding hole that opens on an extension of the ferrule insertion hole, extends in the radial direction from the holding hole, one end opens to an open end on one side of the clamp member, and the other end is a closed end A notch groove that is closed by the notch groove, and a fixed part that is fixed to the apparatus main body, and a displacement part that is displaced from the fixed end of the notch groove so as to be centered on the closed end part. With
The apparatus main body includes a displacement adjustment unit that adjusts a displacement amount of the displacement unit,
The displacement portion moves to the inner peripheral portion of the holding hole so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the inner peripheral portion of the holding hole of the fixing portion by the operation of the displacement adjusting portion. An optical fiber ferrule holding device comprising a ferrule pressing portion that presses the tip of the ferrule inserted into the ferrule from a direction orthogonal to the ferrule axial direction.   The optical fiber ferrule holding device according to claim 1, wherein the clamp member is a separate replaceable part in contact with the ferrule.   The separate part is a split sleeve having an axially split groove in a part of a cylindrical body, and the split sleeve is extendedly attached to a portion of a ferrule insertion hole of the apparatus main body. Item 3. The optical fiber ferrule holding device according to Item 2.   The application position of the pressing force to the displacement part by the displacement adjustment part is a position biased toward the open end of the notch groove from the center position of the holding hole. The optical fiber ferrule holding device according to claim 1. In the clamp member, the displacement portion and the fixed portion are connected via a thin portion near the closed end of the notch groove, and the displacement portion can be displaced about the thin portion with respect to the fixed portion. The optical fiber ferrule holding device according to claim 1, wherein the optical fiber ferrule holding device is provided.

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