JP4867898B2 - Optical module, optical block reinforcement and optical block - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention is mainly used in an optical module for transmitting and / or receiving an optical signal whose signal transmission speed is a Gigabit class Ethernet (registered trademark) signal, and an optical block for reinforcing an optical block connected to an optical connector. The present invention relates to a reinforcing material, an optical block for relieving pressure when an optical connector is connected, and an optical module using them.

  In recent years, the Internet has been steadily increasing its line capacity, and in particular, Ethernet (registered trademark) has become widespread as a core technology widely used in home LANs and WANs due to its low cost and simple operability. .

  At present, the standardization of 10 Giga Ethernet (registered trademark) has already been completed, and along with this, the upgrade of transmission speed from 1 Gbit / s to 10 Gbit / s has started in the optical module as well, mainly in the medium-distance network. In addition, development and research of a 40 to 100 Gbit / s class Ethernet (registered trademark) whose transmission speed exceeds 10 Gbit / s has started. As such an optical module, there are optical transceivers using a plurality of semiconductor lasers (LD) and a plurality of photodiodes (PD).

  As an example, the optical module 141 shown in FIG. 14 uses a circuit board 142 made of a rigid flexible board (flex rigid printed wiring board) (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  The circuit board 142 includes a sub board 142s, a main board 142m, and a flex portion 142f that connects them. An optical element 143 is mounted on the sub-substrate 142s, a flat lens 144 is provided so as to cover the optical element 143, and the flat lens 144 is fixed in contact with the inner front surface of an MSF (Metal Support Frame) 145. The main board 142m has a card edge connector 146 at the other end, and is fixed on the inner bottom surface of the MSF 145. The optical module 141 is used by inserting the cart edge connector 146 side of the circuit board 142 into a female connector of a host board provided in a network device such as a switching hub.

  If the flex portion 142f is provided between the flat lens 144 and the main board 142m as in the optical module 141, the MSF 145 and the circuit board 142 are slightly deformed when the circuit board 142 is inserted into the female connector of the host board. However, since it can be absorbed by the flex portion 142f, no stress is generated in the connecting and fixing portion between the flat lens 144 and the sub-substrate 142s.

  Similarly, when the optical connector 148 to which the optical fiber 147 is connected is connected to the flat lens 144 in the optical module 141, the pressing force F is applied to the flat lens 144, but is absorbed by the flex portion 142f. No stress is generated at the connecting and fixing portion between the flat lens 144 and the sub-substrate 142s. However, in Patent Document 1, it is an essential condition to have a flexible portion such as the flex portion 142f.

  In addition, Patent Document 2 discloses an optical module using a rigid flexible substrate.

US Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0153506 JP 2000-249883 A

  However, the circuit board 142 used in the optical module 141 is a rigid-flexible board and is more expensive than a normal rigid board.

  For this reason, there is a problem that the cost of the optical module 141 is increased and the low price, which is one of the features of Ethernet (registered trademark), cannot be maintained.

  At present, an optical module with high reliability has not been developed without using stress at the connecting and fixing portion between the lens and the circuit board while using an inexpensive rigid board as the circuit board.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an optical module, an optical block reinforcing material, and an optical block that can reduce a stress generated in a connecting and fixing portion between the optical block and the circuit board by using a circuit board made of a rigid board. There is to do.

The present invention has been devised to achieve the above object, and the invention of claim 1 is directed to a circuit board, an optical element mounted on the circuit board, and the light mounted on the circuit board. An electronic component for driving the element, an optical block for optically coupling with the optical element and connecting to the optical connector, an optical block reinforcing member mounted on the optical block and provided on the circuit board , A case for housing the circuit board, the optical element, the electronic component, the optical block, and the optical block reinforcing material, and the optical block is arranged on the surface side that receives a pressing force when the optical connector is connected. mirror for changing the propagation direction of the engaging portion and the optical signal for engaging the block reinforcing member is formed, the optical block reinforcing member has a width direction of the optical connector and an upper lid for covering the optical block It consists of a both side walls covering the sides perpendicular the optical block relative to the optical block reinforcing member, when the optical block is mounted, the locking in the direction opposite to the connection direction of the optical connector An optical module in which the upper cover of the optical block reinforcing material covers the mirror .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the locking portion includes an upper locking portion formed on the upper surface of the optical block and a lateral locking portion formed on both side surfaces of the optical block, and the upper locking portion. 2. The optical module according to claim 1, wherein the upper lid of the optical block reinforcing material is locked and the lateral locking portion and the both side walls of the optical block reinforcing material are locked.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the optical block has a substantially columnar receiver having a guide pin for connecting to the optical connector and a receiving surface that is formed at a base end portion of the guide pin and serves as an abutting surface for the optical connector. And a fiber coupling member that is optically coupled to the optical fiber disposed on the optical connector formed on the connection surface side of the optical block connected to the optical connector. The optical module according to claim 2, wherein the receiving portion has a protruding amount equal to a focal length of the fiber coupling member.

Invention of Claim 4 is an optical block reinforcing material used for the optical module of Claim 3, Comprising: The said upper cover which covers the said optical block, and the both sides | surfaces of the said optical block perpendicular | vertical with respect to the width direction of the said optical connector It is an optical block reinforcing material which consists of the both side walls which cover.

The invention according to claim 5 is an optical block used in the optical module according to claim 3, wherein the locking for locking the optical block reinforcing material on the surface side that receives the pressing force when the optical connector is connected. The guide pin for connecting to the optical connector and the substantially columnar receiving portion having the receiving surface which is formed at the base end portion of the guide pin and serves as an abutting surface for the optical connector. The convex protrusion and the fiber coupling member that is optically coupled to an optical fiber that is formed on the connection surface side of the optical block that is connected to the optical connector and disposed in the optical connector, The receiving portion is an optical block having a protruding amount equal to the focal length of the fiber coupling member.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a protrusion is formed at a lower portion of the side wall of the optical block reinforcing member, and a through hole into which the protrusion is inserted is formed in the circuit board. The optical module according to claim 1, wherein a projection is inserted into the through hole of the circuit board, an adhesive is filled in a gap between the projection and the through hole, and the optical block reinforcing material is bonded and fixed to the circuit board. is there.

  According to the present invention, the optical block can be pressed against the circuit board side and fixed by the optical block reinforcing material formed in a substantially U-shape. Therefore, even if a pressing pressure is applied to the optical block when connecting the optical connector, it is possible to reduce the stress generated at the connecting portion between the optical block and the circuit board. Thereby, an inexpensive and highly reliable optical module can also be realized.

  Currently, network devices (such as switching hubs and routers) and servers perform distributed processing by cluster connection in order to improve processing capability. In other words, recently, rather than improving the performance of a single device, processing performance is improved by distributing tasks to a plurality of devices for processing. Connection between the distributed devices is parallel optical communication performed by the optical module according to the present embodiment.

  Conventionally, since distributed devices are connected by metal wiring, wiring between network devices and servers is complicated, and a large installation space is required. However, with the demand for higher circuit capacity, the amount and weight of metal wiring has reached the limit, and parallel optical transmission modules have begun to be used in some high-end models.

  The present invention was devised in view of such circumstances, and is mainly used for parallel optical communication over a relatively short distance, thereby connecting between racks of distributed apparatuses. Devices distributed by tying behave like a single device.

  First, an example of an optical module using the optical block reinforcing material according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of a main part of an optical module according to the first embodiment using an optical block reinforcing material and an optical block according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. In the module, a perspective view in which an optical block and an optical block reinforcing material are mounted (mounted) on a circuit board, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view in which an adapter of an optical connector is attached to FIG.

  As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, the optical module 11 according to the first embodiment is a multi-channel pluggable optical transceiver that is attached to and detached from a network device (information system device) such as a switching hub or a media converter.

  In the following description, an example of a 12-channel type used in the SNAP12 (12-channel parallel transmission optical module) standard and an optical transceiver for transmission (optical transmitter) that transmits a signal of 3 Gbit / s per channel will be described. The optical module 11 converts a plurality of electrical signals from the network device into optical signals and transmits them in parallel to a plurality of transmission optical fibers as transmission paths.

  The optical module 11 includes a strip-shaped circuit board 12 made of one rigid board, and an optical transmission unit (TOSA) 13 mounted on the circuit board 12. In the present embodiment, as the circuit board 12, a heat resistant glass base epoxy resin laminate (FR4) is used.

  An electrical connector (in this embodiment, a 100-pin electrical connector) 14 for connection to the host board is provided on the lower surface of the other end portion on the network device side of the circuit board 12, and the electrical connector 14 is a host. The optical module 11 is electrically connected to the host substrate by fitting into the female connector on the substrate. A plurality of (four in FIG. 1) through-holes 5 for positioning the optical block 1 described later are formed at one end of the circuit board 12 on the fiber side.

  In each through hole 5, a projection 6 of an optical block reinforcing member 16 to be described later is inserted, and then an adhesive is injected. By solidifying the adhesive, the circuit board 12 and the optical block 1 are fixed.

  The optical transmitter 13 is optically coupled to the LD array element 15 as a light emitting element that converts a plurality of electrical signals from the circuit board 12 into optical signals, and is upwardly connected to the LD array element 15. 1 is mainly composed of an optical block (right angle optical path lens) 1 for bending the optical signal propagating forward (in the obliquely downward left direction in FIGS. 1 to 3) and connecting it to the optical connector.

  As the LD array element 15, a VCSEL (surface emitting laser) array in which twelve light emitting portions are arranged in an array in the left and right rows is used. The LD array element 15 is mounted on the circuit board 12 so that the light signal is emitted upward. On the circuit board 12, in addition to the LD array element 15, transmission electronic components such as a driver IC 17 and a capacitor 18 that drive the LD array element 15 are also mounted.

  As shown in FIG. 8, an MT (Mechanically Transferable) ferrule 82 to which an optical fiber 81 is connected is connected to the front surface of the optical block 1. As the optical fiber 81, a 12-core tape fiber is used.

  The tape fiber is formed by arranging a plurality of single-core optical fibers (12 in the figure) in parallel on the left and right sides, and arranging the arranged single-core optical fibers in a tape shape. In the present embodiment, a multimode fiber (MMF) that is suitable for transmitting an optical signal over a short distance of several tens of meters and that is easy to connect is used as the single-core optical fiber.

  An adapter 19 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 is provided on the outer periphery of the MT ferrule 82. The adapter 19 and the MT ferrule 82 (see FIG. 8) constitute an MPO (multi-core collective connection using an MT type optical connector ferrule) optical connector.

  Here, the optical block 1 according to the first embodiment will be described in detail.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the optical block 1 is a fiber that is optically coupled to each single-core optical fiber of an optical connector at the center of a front surface (optical block surface) 71f of a block body 71 formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The first lens group 72 is formed by arranging twelve lenses (microlenses) as coupling members in a left and right row.

  The front surface 71f of the block body 71 is fitted to guide holes of the MT ferrule 82 (see FIG. 8) on both sides of the first lens group 72, and is an abbreviation for optically coupling the MT ferrule 82 and the optical block 1. Guide pins 73 and 73 formed in a cylindrical shape are formed, respectively. Each guide pin 73, 73 is formed by projecting (standing) from the front surface 71f of the block body 71 toward the optical connector. In this embodiment, the diameter φ of each guide pin 73 is 0.7 mm.

  By fitting these guide pins 73 into the guide holes of the MT ferrule 82 (see FIG. 8) provided in the optical connector, the MT ferrule 82 and the optical block 1 are optically coupled.

  A concave portion 75 is formed below the block body 71 to cover the LD array element 15 and the transmission electronic component and to be hermetically sealed easily. The depth of the recess 75 is adjusted so that the LD array element 15 is positioned at the focal length of the second lens group 76. On the inner upper surface of the recess 75, a second lens group 76 is formed, in which twelve lenses that are optically coupled to the respective light emitting portions of the LD array element 15 are arranged in a left and right row.

  Also, as shown in FIG. 1, a 45 ° mirror 51 is formed inside the block body 71 as a total reflection surface that changes the propagation direction of the optical signal.

  As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 5 to 7, the optical block 1 is connected to the MT ferrule 82 (see FIG. 8) when the optical connector is connected, and is a receiver for determining the focal length of the first lens group 72. It has surface R. The receiving surface R is provided integrally with the block body 71. When the optical block 1 and the MT ferrule 82 are fitted and an optical connector is connected to the optical block 1, the receiving surface R and the joint surface of the MT ferrule 82 come into contact with each other.

  Furthermore, the optical block 1 has a locking portion 2 for locking to the optical block reinforcing material 16 in accordance with the shape of the optical block reinforcing material 16 for reinforcing the optical block 1 included in the optical module 11.

  The locking portion 2 hooks the optical block 1 on the optical block reinforcing material 16 when the optical block reinforcing material 16 is mounted on the circuit board 12, and is also referred to as a hooking portion. The front surface of the locking portion 2 is the front surface 71 f of the block body 71. The thickness t7 (see FIG. 7) of the locking portion 2 is slightly thicker (for example, 0.3 to 1 mm) than the thickness t5 (see FIG. 5) of the optical block reinforcing member 16 described later.

  More specifically, a substantially columnar receiving portion 3 is formed on the outer periphery of the base end portion of each guide pin 73, with a distal end surface protruding from the locking portion 2 toward the optical connector side as a receiving surface R. The receiving projection 3 and the guide pin 73 constitute the convex projection 4.

  The protrusion amount D of the receiving portion 3 is set to be the focal length of the first lens group 72 (= the distance from the front surface of the optical block 1 until the light emitted from the first lens group is combined). Thereby, the joint surface of the MT ferrule 82 (see FIG. 8) of the optical connector becomes the focal position of the first lens group 72, and good optical coupling is obtained.

  Now, the optical block reinforcing material 16 is locked to the locking portion 2 described later from the direction opposite to the connection direction of the optical connector (the direction opposite to the connection direction) and the optical block 1 provided on the circuit board 12. It is provided by being attached to. The optical block reinforcing member 16 includes side walls 16 s and 16 s that cover both side surfaces of the optical block 1 and an upper lid 16 u that covers the top surface of the optical block 1, and is substantially U-shaped so as to cover both side surfaces and the top surface of the optical block 1. It is formed in a shape.

  In other words, the optical block reinforcing material 16 covers the optical block 1 from a direction (upward in FIG. 1) orthogonal to the pressing direction at the time of optical connector connection (downward leftward to upward rightward in FIG. 1). The optical block 1 is fixed with an adhesive.

  A plurality of projections (leg portions) 6 respectively inserted into a plurality of (four in FIG. 1) through-holes 5 formed on the circuit board 12 are provided below the respective side walls 16s, 16s of the optical block reinforcing member 16. In this embodiment, two side walls 16s and 16s are formed in front of and behind each side wall 16s.

  The optical block reinforcing material 16 is made of metal such as SUS, spring steel, phosphor bronze, and is integrally formed (manufactured) by being bent by sheet metal or press molding.

  When the optical block reinforcing material 16 is formed by sheet metal or press molding, the thickness (plate thickness) t5 (see FIG. 5) of the optical block reinforcing material 16 is preferably set to 0.3 to 0.5 mm.

  The bending (curvature radius) r of the sheet metal product or the press-molded product is almost the same as the plate thickness. When the plate thickness is increased, the product becomes strong, but the bending r becomes large and the processing becomes difficult. For this reason, it is necessary to make a part (an optical block in this embodiment) that fits inside a sheet metal product or a press-molded product small by the bending r, which makes it difficult to manufacture.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, both the plate thickness t5 and the bending r1 (see FIG. 1) of the optical block reinforcing member 16 are set to 0.3 to 0.5 mm.

  The locking portion 2 includes an upper locking portion 2u formed on the upper surface of the front portion of the optical block 1 and a lateral locking portion 2s formed on both side surfaces of the front portion of the optical block 1 (see FIGS. 5 and 6). The height of the upper locking portion 2u is equal to or greater than the plate thickness of the upper lid 16u of the optical block reinforcing member 16, and the width of the lateral locking portion 2s is the side walls 16s, 16s of the optical block reinforcing member 16. Is equal to or greater than the plate thickness.

  That is, when the optical block reinforcing material 16 is attached to the optical block 1, the locking portion 2 is equal to the upper cover 16u of the optical block reinforcing material 16, or one step higher and equal to the surfaces of the side walls 16s and 16s. Or it is made to project sideways and the whole is formed in a flat plate shape. In other words, the height of the upper locking portion 2u and the width of the lateral locking portion 2s may be such that the optical block reinforcing material 16 is locked to the locking portion 2 of the optical block 1.

  In the optical block 1 described above, the first lens group 72, the second lens group 76, the guide pin 73, the receiving portion 3, and the 45 ° mirror 51 are formed in a lump with resin.

  Here, an assembly method (manufacturing method) of the optical module 11 will be briefly described.

  First, the electronic component is mounted on the circuit board 12 and the electrical connector 14 is fixed and mounted on the circuit board 12 with solder, and the LD array element 15 and the driver IC 17 are fixed on the circuit board 12 with a conductive adhesive. Mount.

  An adhesive is applied to the upper surface and both side surfaces of the optical block 1, and the optical block reinforcing material 16 is bonded and fixed so as to cover both side surfaces and the upper surface of the optical block 1. At this time, the upper part of the rear surface of the locking portion 2 of the optical block 1 is brought into contact with the substantially U-shaped front surface of the optical block reinforcing member 16.

  Thereafter, a UV (ultraviolet) curable adhesive was applied to the entire edge of the optical block reinforcing material 16 and the lower surface of the optical block 1, and the protrusion 6 of the optical block reinforcing material 16 was inserted into the through hole 5 of the circuit board 12. Thereafter, the optical block 1 is aligned by aligning the second lens group 76 and the aperture (opening or light emitting area) of the LD array element 15 by a known method using an alignment member.

  Then, UV is irradiated to the boundary part (applied part of the UV curable adhesive) between the optical block reinforcing material 16 and the optical block 1 and the circuit board 12, and the UV curable adhesive is cured and temporarily fixed. Position at this point. Thereafter, the temporary fixing portion is heated and fixed (cured). Further, the gap between the projection 6 of the optical block reinforcing material 16 and the through hole 5 of the circuit board 12 is filled with a hard adhesive (such as filler) that is hardened and hardened after curing. The block reinforcing material 16 and the optical block 1 are bonded and fixed (FIG. 2). At this time, if the through hole 5 is filled with a hard adhesive from the back surface of the circuit board 12, the operation is easy.

  Finally, after the adapter 19 is attached to a case (SNAP12 standard casing) formed of a material having high heat dissipation such as Zn or Al and having an open bottom surface (FIG. 4A), an optical block is placed in the case. When the circuit board 12 on which the components including the reinforcing material 16 are mounted is stored, the optical module 11 is completed.

  The operation of this embodiment will be described.

  First, the operation of the optical module 11 will be briefly described.

  When the optical module 11 is used, an MT ferrule 82 connected with an optical fiber 81 is optically coupled to the optical block 1 as shown in FIG. At this time, the receiving surface R of the receiving portion 3 of the optical block 1 and the joint surface of the MT ferrule 82 are in contact with each other.

  As shown in FIG. 4, twelve electrical signals for transmission from the network device are converted into twelve optical signals by the LD array element 15, and when these optical signals pass through the optical block 1, The direction is changed from the upper direction to the front direction (leftward in FIG. 4) by the formed 45 ° mirror 51 and is incident on the optical fiber 81.

  The pressing pressure F when the optical block 1 is connected to the optical connector is a strong pressure of 6.8 to 12.8 N on the front surface of the optical block 1.

  The pressing force F at the time of connection of the optical connector is determined by the receiving surface R provided on the front surface 71f of the optical block 1 (in particular, the back surface of the locking portion 2 and the substantially U-shaped contact surface 16a in FIG. 1). It can be distributed and loaded by the optical block reinforcement 16 locked to the locking portion 2 (by contact). While receiving the pressing pressure F at the receiving surface R that is an abutting surface of the optical connector (MT ferrule 82), the optical block reinforcing material 16 prevents the optical block 1 from being pushed toward the circuit board 12 and separated from the circuit board 12. Because it can. Therefore, since the optical block 1 can be prevented from being distorted or deformed, the focal position of the lens does not change and good optical coupling can be obtained.

  Therefore, according to the optical block reinforcing material 16, the optical module 11 having a structure capable of reducing the stress generated in the connecting and fixing portion of the optical block 1 and the circuit board 12 using the circuit board 12 made of a rigid board. Can be realized. In addition, the optical module 11 can be made inexpensive and highly reliable.

  The protruding amount of the receiving part 3 provided integrally with the optical block 1 is produced according to the focal length of the first lens group 72.

  In addition, since the upper surface of the optical block 1 is covered with the upper cover 16u of the optical block reinforcing material 16, the dustproof effect of the 45 ° mirror 51, which is a total reflection surface that changes the propagation direction of the optical signal, can be expected. You can get a bond.

  Since the optical block reinforcing material 16 is provided on the circuit board 12 independently of the optical block 1, it can be used for a conventional optical module with almost no design change.

  In particular, if the upper cover 16u that covers the upper surface of the optical block 1 and the side walls 2 and 2 that cover both side surfaces of the optical block 1 are configured like the optical block reinforcing material 16, the light and thin optical block reinforcing material 16 itself can be obtained. It has sufficient strength and can be easily attached to the optical block 1.

  Further, since the optical block reinforcing member 16 has the protrusion 6 inserted into the through hole 5 of the circuit board 12 and fixed by the adhesive, the pressing force F when connecting the optical connector is also distributed to the protrusion 6 and the circuit board 12. Thus, the optical module 11 with higher reliability can be realized. In addition, the mounting of the optical block reinforcing material 16 and the optical block 1 on the circuit board 12 is also simplified.

  Since the optical block reinforcing material 16 is made of metal and is integrally formed by sheet metal or press molding, it is easy to manufacture.

  Next, an optical module according to the second embodiment using the optical block reinforcing material 16 and the optical block 1 will be described.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 to 12, the optical module 91 uses a sub-board 92 provided on the circuit board 12 in addition to the configuration of the optical module 11 of FIG. 1. In other words, in the optical module 91, the LD array element 15 and electronic components are mounted on the sub-board 92 and provided between the optical block reinforcing material 16 and the circuit board 12.

  The sub board 92 is formed of a material harder than the circuit board 12 (for example, ceramics such as alumina having a Young's modulus larger than that of the circuit board 12). If the sub-board 92 is formed of a material harder than the circuit board 12, even if a force acts on the sub-board 92, it is difficult to be deformed. Therefore, there is an effect of receiving the pressing force F when the optical block 1 and the optical connector are connected. Because it grows. The sub-board 92 is formed to be slightly larger so that the optical block 1, the optical component, and the electrical components to which the optical block reinforcing material 16 is attached can be mounted on the sub-board 92. A plurality of cutout grooves 93 (four in FIG. 10) having dimensions slightly larger than the through holes 5 of the circuit board 12 are formed on both side surfaces of the sub-board 92.

  The method of assembling the optical module 91 may be the same as described above, except that the sub-board 102 is preliminarily bonded and fixed on the circuit board 12 with a conductive adhesive.

  In the optical module 91, since the pressing force F at the time of connecting the optical connector can be applied to the sub-board 92, the distortion and deformation of the optical block 1 can be further suppressed.

  In addition to the configuration of the optical module 91 in FIG. 9 as in the optical module 131 according to the third embodiment shown in FIG. 13, the sub-board mounting of the circuit board 12 is performed using the optical block reinforcing material 16 and the optical block 1. An opening 132 may be formed at a position to be a part, and the sub-board 92 may be mounted so as to cover the opening 132.

  In the optical module 131, heat generated from the electrical components and optical components mounted on the sub-board 92 is radiated from the back surface of the sub-board 92 through the opening 132, so that an optical module with higher reliability can be realized.

  In the above embodiment, the substantially columnar receiving portion 3 is formed on the outer periphery of the base end portion of each guide pin 73, but the position where the receiving portion 3 is formed may be the front surface 71 f of the block body 71.

  Further, the distance L5 (see FIG. 5) between the apex of each guide pin 73 and the lens center of the first lens group 72 closest to each guide pin 73 is determined by the specifications of the SNAP 12 (in this embodiment, L5 = 0.925 mm). For this reason, for the purpose of making the area of the receiving surface as large as possible, a substantially elliptical columnar shape having a minor axis having the same length as the diameter of the receiving portion 3 or a semicylindrical receiving portion may be used.

  Moreover, although the circuit board 12 which has the electrical connector 14 was provided in the said embodiment and it demonstrated in the example of the optical module used by SNAP12 specification, it has a circuit board which has a card edge connector in the other end part, XENPAK (optical transceiver that operates according to the interface for 10 Gbps Ethernet (registered trademark) compliant with the IEEE 802.3 standard), X2 (small optical transceiver that follows XENPK), XFP (10 Gbps compatible serial) An optical module such as an optical transceiver using an interface may be used.

  In the above embodiment, the transmission optical transceiver is described as an example. However, if the LD array element 15 is replaced with a PD array and the driver IC 17 is replaced with a preamplifier IC that amplifies a signal from the PD array, what is a transmission optical transceiver? It can also be applied to a receiving optical transceiver (optical receiver) whose operation is reversed. Of course, the present invention can be similarly applied to an optical transceiver for transmission / reception (optical transceiver).

  In the above-described method of assembling the optical module 11, the optical block reinforcing material 16 and the optical block 1 can be mounted on the circuit board 12 with high accuracy and ease. Therefore, the optical block reinforcing material 16 is attached to the optical block 1 in advance. . As an assembling method of the optical module 11, the optical block reinforcing material 16 may be attached after the optical block 1 is first attached to the circuit board 12.

It is a disassembled perspective view which shows an example of the principal part of the optical module which concerns on 1st Embodiment using the optical block reinforcement material and optical block which are suitable embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view in which an optical block and an optical block reinforcing material are mounted on a circuit board in the optical module of FIG. 1. It is the perspective view which attached the adapter of the optical connector to FIG. FIG. 4A is a longitudinal sectional view of the center of the side of the optical module shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram showing how an optical signal propagates. It is an expansion perspective view of an optical block and an optical block reinforcing material. It is the perspective view which looked at FIG. 4 from the downward direction. It is a perspective view of an optical block. It is the perspective view which attached the ferrule of the optical connector which connected the optical fiber to FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the principal part of the optical module which concerns on 2nd Embodiment using the optical block reinforcement material and optical block which were shown in FIG. FIG. 10 is a perspective view in which an optical block and an optical block reinforcing material are mounted on a circuit board in the optical module of FIG. 9. It is the perspective view which attached the adapter of the optical connector to FIG. It is an expansion perspective view of an optical block, an optical block reinforcing material, and a sub board | substrate. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the principal part of the optical module which concerns on 3rd Embodiment using the optical block reinforcement material and optical block which were shown in FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows an example of the conventional optical module.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Optical block 2 Locking part 11 Optical module 12 Circuit board 16 Optical block reinforcement material 16s Side wall 16u Top cover

Claims (6)

A circuit board;
An optical element mounted on the circuit board;
An electronic component for driving the optical element mounted on the circuit board;
An optical block for optically coupling with the optical element and for connecting to an optical connector;
An optical block reinforcement member mounted on the optical block and provided on the circuit board ;
A case for housing the circuit board, the optical element, the electronic component, the optical block, and the optical block reinforcing material;
With
The optical block is formed with a locking part for locking with the optical block reinforcing material and a mirror that changes the propagation direction of the optical signal on the surface side that receives the pressing force when the optical connector is connected,
The optical block reinforcing material comprises an upper lid that covers the optical block and both side walls that cover both side surfaces of the optical block perpendicular to the width direction of the optical connector,
The optical block reinforcing member, said when the optical block is mounted, locked abuts against and the locking portion from a direction opposite to the connection direction of the optical connector,
The optical module of the optical block reinforcing material covers the mirror . The locking portion comprises an upper locking portion formed on the upper surface of the optical block and a lateral locking portion formed on both side surfaces of the optical block,
The optical module according to claim 1, wherein the upper locking portion and the upper lid of the optical block reinforcing material are locked, and the lateral locking portion and the both side walls of the optical block reinforcing material are locked.   The optical block is a convex protrusion comprising a guide pin for connecting to the optical connector and a substantially columnar receiving portion having a receiving surface which is formed at a base end portion of the guide pin and serves as an abutting surface against the optical connector. And a fiber coupling member optically coupled to an optical fiber disposed on the optical connector formed on the connection surface side of the optical block connected to the optical connector, and the receiving portion is the fiber The optical module according to claim 2, wherein the protruding amount is equal to the focal length of the coupling member. An optical block reinforcing material used in the optical module according to claim 3,
An optical block reinforcing material comprising the upper lid covering the optical block and the both side walls covering both side surfaces of the optical block perpendicular to the width direction of the optical connector. An optical block used in the optical module according to claim 3,
The locking portion for locking with the optical block reinforcing material is formed on the surface side that receives the pressing force when the optical connector is connected, and the guide pin for connecting with the optical connector and the proximal end portion of the guide pin Formed on the connection surface side of the optical block connected to the optical connector, and the convex projections formed of the substantially columnar receiving part having the receiving surface that is abutting surface with the optical connector. And an optical block that is optically coupled to an optical fiber disposed in the optical connector, wherein the receiving portion has a protruding amount equal to a focal length of the fiber coupling member. A protrusion is formed on the lower portion of the side wall of the optical block reinforcement,
The circuit board is formed with a through hole into which the protrusion is inserted,
The protrusion of the optical block reinforcing material is inserted into the through hole of the circuit board, an adhesive is filled in the gap between the protrusion and the through hole, and the optical block reinforcing material is bonded and fixed to the circuit board.
The optical module according to claim 1.

Images