JP4980271B2 - Mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber and optical communication method using the same - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical fiber and an optical communication method using the optical fiber. More specifically, the present invention relates to an integrated optical signal transmission medium having a plurality of signal transmission paths simultaneously in a narrow space.

  The multi-core plastic optical fiber includes a multi-core plastic optical fiber in which a plurality of core fibers made of a transparent core resin having a high refractive index are surrounded by a sheath resin, and each core fiber is sheathed. There is a multi-core plastic optical fiber that is surrounded by a resin to form a sheath layer, which is surrounded by a third resin and grouped together.

  The above multicore plastic optical fiber has been mainly used for image data transmission at the beginning. That is, it has been used in a method of communicating a plurality of analog signals corresponding to each pixel of image data using a multi-core plastic optical fiber having a plurality of cores corresponding to the pixels. In the case of this method of use, it is necessary to increase the area of the core in the cross section of the fiber because brightness and contrast uniformity between the pixels is required, but crosstalk between analog signals corresponding to each pixel is allowed to some extent. It was something.

  Further, the multi-core plastic optical fiber described above has less light loss with respect to bending compared to a single-core plastic optical fiber. Therefore, in order to use a multi-core plastic optical fiber for digital data signal transmission with the intention of transmitting high-quality signals, there is a method of sending the same signal to all the cores and using it as one transmission line. Proposed. In such a method of use, since the same signal is sent to all the cores, it is not necessary to consider the crosstalk of the signals between the cores. On the other hand, if an individual core is used as a transmission line and an attempt is made to send a signal to each core individually, light leaks to adjacent cores, resulting in noise, especially from the problem of crosstalk that occurs when an optical fiber is bent, The technique based on the above usage method has not been sufficiently practical. Therefore, when transmitting a plurality of signals simultaneously while maintaining a high quality state, it is necessary to use a number of independent optical fibers corresponding to the number of signals.

On the other hand, Patent Document 1 discloses a compact mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber that can simultaneously transmit a plurality of digital data signals using a single fiber. In the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber, it is possible to suppress crosstalk by arranging a colored core wire having light absorption.
JP 11-271578 A

  However, in the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber described in Document 1, a plurality of core wires are arranged to be rotated around a central axis perpendicular to the cross section of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber. Therefore, although the relative positional relationship between the individual cores of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber is maintained, the one-to-one correspondence between the one end and the other end cannot be visually distinguished, and the light emitting element and the light receiving element Is difficult to arrange visually and there is a possibility of troublesome work in the confirmation work at the time of connection, which may impair the workability.

  The present invention aims to solve the above-mentioned problems, and can transmit a plurality of signals well simultaneously with one plastic optical fiber, and can visually identify the one-to-one correspondence between one end and the other end. And an object of the present invention is to provide a mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber capable of improving workability at the time of connection and an optical communication method using the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber.

  As a result of intensive studies in order to solve the above problems, the present inventor has arranged the cross-sections of the transparent cores and the cores of the colored cores in the multi-core plastic optical fiber in a non-rotationally symmetrical manner. The inventors have found that the one-to-one correspondence at the other end can be visually identified, and have completed the present invention.

The present invention includes a transparent core resin that surrounds a core made of a transparent core resin with a transparent sheath resin having a refractive index lower than that of the core resin, and transmits light in the visible light region, and a transparent core resin. A mixture composed of a plurality of colored core wires surrounded by a colored resin having a light absorption property in at least a part of a light wavelength region capable of transmitting the sheath resin, and a sea made of the colored resin. A multi-core plastic optical fiber, in which the transparent core and the core of the colored core are arranged in an island shape in the sea made of colored resin in the cross section of the fiber to form a sea-island structure. The core of the line and the core of the colored core are arranged in a non-rotationally symmetrical manner in the cross section, and a plurality of the colored cores are arranged around the transparent core .

  Since the present invention is a mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber, a single signal can transmit a plurality of signals satisfactorily at the same time. Furthermore, since the core of the transparent core and the core of the colored core forming the island of the sea-island structure in the cross section of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber are non-rotation symmetric in the cross section, the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber The one-to-one correspondence of each heart at one end and the other end can be visually identified. As a result, the connection can be easily and definitely made at the time of connection, and workability is improved.

  Furthermore, the transparent core wire of the present invention may be an embodiment in which the outer side of the sheath resin surrounding the periphery of the core is further surrounded by a colored resin. Also in this aspect, the one-to-one correspondence of each core at one end and the other end of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber can be visually identified, and can be easily and definitely connected at the time of connection. improves.

Further, it is preferable that the core of the transparent core and the core of the colored core are made of the same core resin. Further, the colored resin is preferably a black resin containing 1 to 50000 ppm of carbon black .

  Further, the communication method according to the present invention is an optical communication method using the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber described above, for each transparent core included in the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber, or adjacent to each other. A different signal is transmitted for each set of two or more transparent cores.

  In the above communication method, it is preferable to transmit a signal in combination with an integrated laser array.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to transmit a plurality of signals satisfactorily at the same time and to visually identify the one-to-one correspondence between one end and the other end. For example, the light emitting element and the light receiving element can be visually distinguished. It can be placed accurately and workability during connection can be improved.

  Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an example of a cross-sectional structure of a transparent core and a colored core constituting the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to the first embodiment of the present invention, (a) showing a transparent core, (b) Indicates a colored core. FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional structure of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to the present embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, a mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7A in a form in which a coating layer 6 (see FIG. 2) made of resin is formed on the outside to form a cable will be described as an example. This mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7A is formed by composite spinning a plurality of transparent cores 1 and colored cores 2 so that the whole becomes one fiber structure.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the transparent core wire 1 can transmit light like a normal plastic optical fiber. The transparent core wire 1 includes a core 3a made of a transparent core resin, and a layer (hereinafter also referred to as “sheath layer”) 4 surrounding the core 3a with a transparent sheath resin having a refractive index lower than that of the core resin.

  The colored core 2 has a core 3b made of a transparent core resin and a colored resin having light absorption characteristics in at least a part of a wavelength region where the sheath resin constituting the sheath layer 4 of the transparent core 1 can transmit light. It is made of a two-layer structure fiber that surrounds the core 3b with a layer 5 (hereinafter also referred to as a “colored resin layer”), and therefore does not transmit light at all, or does not transmit light having a wavelength in a colored region. is there. In the present invention, the “coloring” of the colored core wire is not limited to having light absorption in the visible range, but has light absorption in a wavelength range where light can be transmitted through the sheath resin even outside the visible range. It means having.

  The core 3a of the transparent core wire 1 and the core 3b of the colored core wire 2 may be formed of the same core resin or different core resins. Furthermore, the core 3b of the colored core wire 2 may be formed of a resin obtained by coloring a transparent core resin with a dye or pigment. Considering production efficiency, the core 3a and the core 3b are preferably formed of the same core resin unless there is a particular reason.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7A is formed by compound spinning so that a plurality of transparent cores 1 and colored cores 2 are formed into one fiber structure. The colored resin forming the colored resin layer 5 of the colored core 2 fills the space between the transparent core 1 and the core 3b of the colored core 2 to form the sea, and the core 3b of the colored core 2 and the transparent core 1 And becomes an island, forming a sea-island structure. As a result, the transparent core wire 1 is isolated by a plurality of colored core wires 2 surrounding it, and the cores 3a and 3b are arranged at equal intervals in the optical fiber cross section.

  Further, in the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7A, the transparent core wire 1 can be arranged at a desired position using the colored core wire 2, but the core wire (hereinafter, the transparent core wire and the colored core wire are collectively referred to). Is also arranged so as not to be rotationally symmetric with respect to the central axis C1 of the cross section of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7A, that is, to be non-rotational symmetric. The one-to-one correspondence between one end and the other end of the plastic optical fiber 7A can be visually identified. As a result, the light emitting element and the light receiving element can be visually arranged accurately, and workability at the time of connection is improved.

  Next, with reference to FIG.3 and FIG.4, the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention is demonstrated. FIG. 3 shows an example of a cross-sectional structure of the transparent core and the colored core according to the second embodiment, where (a) shows the transparent core and (b) shows the colored core. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional structure of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7B according to the second embodiment. In the present embodiment, the same members and elements as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. For convenience, the transparent core and the colored core are also described in the first embodiment. It attaches | subjects and demonstrates the same code | symbol.

  The transparent core wire 1 according to the present embodiment includes a core 3a made of a transparent core resin and a layer (hereinafter also referred to as “sheath layer”) 4 surrounding the core 3a with a transparent sheath resin having a refractive index lower than that of the core resin. Furthermore, a colored resin layer 5a made of the same colored resin as a colored resin layer 5b of the colored core wire 2 described later is also formed outside the sheath layer 4.

  The colored core 2 has a core 3b made of a transparent core resin and a colored resin having light absorption characteristics in at least a part of a wavelength region where the sheath resin constituting the sheath layer 4 of the transparent core 1 can transmit light. It is made of a two-layer structure fiber that surrounds the core 3b with a layer 5b (hereinafter also referred to as a "colored resin layer"), and therefore does not transmit light at all or is a core that does not transmit light of a wavelength in a colored region. is there.

  The mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7B is an example in which a plurality of transparent cores 1 are grouped and separated by a colored core 2 for each group, and the cores 1 and 2 are arranged so as not to be rotationally symmetric. As in the present embodiment, when a plurality of transparent cores 1 are directly adjacent to each other, or when the transparent cores 1 are arranged in the outermost layer of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7B, between the adjacent transparent cores 1 In addition, a colored resin layer 5a is formed in order to dispose a colored resin layer on the outermost layer of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7B.

  In the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7B, the colored resin layers 5a and 5b made of a colored resin become the sea, the core 3b of the colored core wire 2, the core 3a and the sheath layer 4 of the transparent core wire 1 become islands, and the sea island Form a structure. Further, the core 3b of the colored core wire 2 and the core 3a of the transparent core wire 1 are arranged so as to be non-rotationally symmetric with respect to the central axis C1 of the transverse section, and one end of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7B. The one-to-one correspondence between the other end and the other end can be visually identified. As a result, the light emitting element and the light receiving element can be visually arranged accurately, and workability at the time of connection is improved.

  As in each of the embodiments described above, the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to the present invention is manufactured by composite spinning so that a plurality of transparent cores and colored cores are formed into one fiber structure as a whole. Is preferred.

  In addition, since the number of cores of a multi-core plastic optical fiber is usually high when the hexagonal maximum density structure is used, the total number of cores including the colored cores and the transparent cores of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber is seven. As described above, it is preferable to arrange so that the entire core arrangement in the cross section is accommodated in the circular cross section. On the other hand, the number of core wires can be up to about 10000, but 500 or less is preferable in order to reduce the transmission loss value of the core wire and to communicate over a long distance.

  The arrangement of the transparent core and the colored core is set according to the purpose of use of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to the present invention. That is, as one of the applications, one (multiple structure shown in FIG. 2) or a plurality of adjacent transparent cores (structure shown in FIG. 4) is used as a transmission line for sending one signal. For the purpose of using as a transmission line to send multiple signals simultaneously with a core plastic optical fiber, the colored core is a black core, and the colored core is arranged so that it is effective as a light shielding wall. The cross section of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber can be divided as desired. Furthermore, the one-to-one correspondence between one end and the other end of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber can be visually identified by arranging the core wires in a non-rotationally symmetrical manner.

  The core resin used in the present invention is a transparent resin having a high refractive index, preferably a polymethyl methacrylate (hereinafter also referred to as “PMMA”) resin. Specifically, for example, a methyl methacrylate homopolymer or a copolymer containing 50% by weight or more of methyl methacrylate, and as a copolymerizable component, an acrylic ester such as methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, etc. Methacrylic acid esters such as ethyl methacrylate, propyl methacrylate, cyclohexyl methacrylate, maleimides such as isopropylmaleimide, acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, styrene, etc. It can be polymerized. As other preferred resins, styrene resins can be used. For example, styrene homopolymer and styrene-methyl methacrylate copolymer. As other preferred resins, polycarbonate resins can be used. Polycarbonate-based resins are characterized by high heat resistance and low hygroscopicity. In addition, CYTOP resin (registered trademark) manufactured by Asahi Glass Co., Ltd., TEFLON (registered trademark) -AF resin manufactured by Deyupon Co., Ltd., Arton resin (registered trademark) manufactured by JSR, etc., have been proposed as core resins for plastic optical fibers. Can also be used.

  The sheath resin used in the present invention is a transparent resin having a lower refractive index than that of the core resin. For example, when the core is a PMMA resin, a vinylidene fluoride resin such as a vinylidene fluoride / tetrafluoroethylene copolymer, a vinylidene fluoride / hexafluoropropene copolymer, or a vinylidene fluoride / tetrafluoroethylene / hexafluoropolymer is used. For example, a copolymer of propene. In addition, fluoroalkyl methacrylate resins are also preferable as the sheath resin. The fluoroalkyl methacrylate is a compound represented by the following general formula (1), one or more of the fluoroalkyl methacrylate monomers represented by the general formula, and other copolymerizable fluoroalkyl acrylates, alkyl methacrylates, alkyl acrylates, etc. And a copolymer.

  More specifically, examples of the fluoroalkyl methacrylate include trifluoroethyl methacrylate, tetrafluoropropyl methacrylate, pentafluoropropyl methacrylate, heptadecafluorodecyl methacrylate, and octafluoropropentyl methacrylate. As trifluoroethyl acrylate, tetrafluoropropyl acrylate, octafluoropentyl acrylate and the like. In addition to these fluorine monomers, various combinations of high refractive index components such as methacrylate monomers such as methyl methacrylate and ethyl methacrylate, acrylate monomers such as methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate and butyl acrylate, methacrylic acid and acrylic acid, etc. And a copolymer.

  Next, the colored resin used in the present invention will be described. There are several options for the colored resin depending on the function of the colored core. First, the colored core wire is used for the purpose of not transmitting light in the entire light wavelength region. For example, when using a colored core as a light shielding wall for preventing crosstalk with a transparent core, the resin does not transmit light regardless of the refractive index of the colored resin or the presence or absence of crystallinity. . On the other hand, when the colored core is not allowed to transmit only light of a specific wavelength, and other light is desired to be transmitted almost in the same manner as the transparent core, the colored resin has a wavelength of the target wavelength in the sheath resin. Resins containing pigments or dyes that absorb light can be used. Such target wavelengths range from 300 nm to 1400 nm. Among these wavelengths, wavelengths corresponding to R (red), G (green), and B (blue), and remote control in the near infrared region. The wavelength range corresponding to radio communication waves is particularly useful.

  As a requirement of the resin serving as the base of the colored resin according to the present invention, it is preferable that the resin has the same melt flow characteristics as the sheath resin in addition to being excellent in adhesion to the core resin. This is because the transparent core and the colored core can be manufactured without structural distortion when the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to the present invention is spun. Therefore, it is not always necessary to use the same resin as the sheath resin and the colored resin, but it is more preferable when the same resin can be used.

  The case where the colored core wire according to the present invention is a black core wire that does not transmit light in the entire wavelength region will be described in detail. Particularly preferred as the base resin of the black resin is a vinylidene fluoride resin that is in close contact with the core resin and is mechanically strong and does not easily deform by compression or the like. Of these, a vinylidene fluoride resin having a Shore D hardness of 55 or more is preferable. For example, a copolymer of vinylidene fluoride and tetrafluoroethylene, a copolymer of vinylidene fluoride and hexafluoropropene, a copolymer of vinylidene fluoride, tetrafluoroethylene and hexafluoropropene, or the like. Among them, a copolymer composed of 80 mol% of vinylidene fluoride and 20 mol% of tetrafluoroethylene is preferable, and it is particularly preferable to use 1 to 50000 ppm of carbon black in this vinylidene fluoride resin and use it as a black resin. In order to sufficiently obtain the light shielding effect, the content is preferably 1 ppm or more, and preferably 50000 ppm or less from the viewpoint of uniformly dispersing carbon. More preferably, it is 50-10000 ppm.

  In the present invention, the transparent core wire and the colored core wire are integrally formed to form a single fiber structure. For this purpose, it is preferable to produce the fiber core by a composite spinning method. That is, the core resin, the sheath resin, and the colored resin are respectively melted and supplied to the composite spinning die to form the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber of the present invention at once. As described above, the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber of the present invention has a structure in which a transparent core made of a core and a sheath layer and a colored core made of a core and a colored resin layer are integrally fused (first embodiment). And a transparent core made of a core, a sheath layer and a colored resin layer and a colored core made of a core and a colored resin layer are integrally fused (corresponding to the second embodiment). FIG. 5 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of a composite spinning die corresponding to the latter structure. As shown in FIG. 5, the composite spinning die 20 includes a core resin inlet 11, a sheath resin inlet 12, a colored resin inlet 13, a transparent core guide nozzle 14, and a colored core guide nozzle 15.

  The area ratio of the sea composed of all cores, sheath layers, and colored resins in the cross-sectional area of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber of the present invention depends on the volume ratio of the core resin, sheath resin, and colored resin supplied to the composite spinning die. Can be determined. The positional relationship between the cores is determined by the arrangement of the guide nozzles 14 and 15 of the composite spinning die. Therefore, the relative positional relationship between the individual core wires of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber of the present invention is kept constant.

  The diameter of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber of the present invention is usually about 0.5 to 5 mm. The ratio of the cross-sectional area of the entire core to the total cross-sectional area of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber is preferably 40% to 90%. The average diameter of the core is usually 15 μm to 500 μm, the thickness of the sheath layer is usually 1 μm to 50 μm, and the thickness of the colored resin layer (the distance between the adjacent core and core or the core and the sheath layer) is about 1 μm to 50 μm. It is. In consideration of these, the strands spun with a composite spinning die are preferably stretched to about 1.2 to 3 times for strength improvement, and heat-treated to produce a multi-core plastic optical fiber (bare wire) having a desired diameter. can get.

  Usually, the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber of the present invention is coated with a coating resin such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride, polyurethane resin, polyamide resin, polyester resin, vinylidene fluoride resin, silicone resin, crosslink as a bare wire. It is preferable to use it as a cable by coating with a polyolefin resin, a cross-linked polyvinyl chloride resin or the like.

(Communication method)
Next, a communication method using the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to the present invention will be described. A transparent multi-core wire 1 divided by a colored core wire 2 using the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to the present invention, for example, the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7A, 7B according to the first or second embodiment. Alternatively, depending on the set, signal transmission is performed as a signal transmission path for transmitting a different signal for each transparent core 1 or for each set of two or more. As a result, it is possible to provide a transmission line in which even a single mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7A, 7B is integrated. In particular, it can be used as an optical fiber suitable for transmission by transmitting a signal in combination with an integrated optical element such as a surface emitting laser two-dimensional array. In the case of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7B according to the second embodiment, the size of the set of a plurality of transparent cores 1 that transmit the same signal by setting the core wire diameter smaller than the laser spot diameter. Since (number of transparent cores) can be adjusted, it becomes possible to make a pattern of transparent cores and colored cores that match the number and arrangement of lasers constituting a laser array with one composite spinning die. . In the case of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber 7A according to the first embodiment, the diameter of the core wire may be smaller than, equal to, or larger than the spot diameter of the laser.

[Example 1]
EXAMPLES The present invention will be described below based on examples, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to these examples. In the following examples, the refractive index is a value measured at 20 ° C. with sodium D line, the melt flow index is a value measured at 230 ° C., a load of 3.8 kg, an orifice diameter of 2 mm, and a length of 8 mm. Say.

  A polymethyl methacrylate resin having a refractive index of 1.492 and a melt flow index of 1.5 g / 10 min is used as the core resin, and a refractive index of 1.402 and a melt flow index of 30 g / 10 min is used as the sheath resin. A copolymer comprising 80% by mole of vinylidene fluoride and 20% by mole of tetrafluoroethylene was used. As the colored resin, a resin obtained by adding 5000 ppm of carbon black to the sheath resin was used. As the composite spinning die, a 37-core die having the structure shown in FIG. 5 was used. This composite spinning die has a structure in which the transparent core wire has the colored resin layer shown in FIG. 3, and consists of 6 transparent core wires and 31 colored core wires.

  Supply the core resin, the sheath resin, and the colored resin to the composite spinning die so that the volume ratio of each resin is 72: 5: 23, converge the strand discharged from the die, and stretch it twice. A mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber bare wire having a diameter of 1.00 mm was manufactured. The average diameter of the core of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber was 120 μm, the thickness of the sheath layer was 10 μm, and the thickness of the colored resin layer was 10 μm. This bare wire was covered with black polyethylene to obtain a cable having a cross-sectional structure shown in FIG.

  When the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber cable was taken up to 50 m and the other end face was observed with a microscope while holding one end face over a halogen lamp of 100 W, only six transparent cores were shining. Since the sheath layers of these transparent cords are separated by one colored cord, a sufficient distance of 160 μm is secured. Since the core wires are arranged so as not to be rotationally symmetric, that is, non-rotary symmetric, the one-to-one correspondence between one end and the other end of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber cable could be visually identified.

  Next, the transmission loss value of this mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber was determined. A sample 52m was taken and measured for each transparent core using a single wavelength light source of 650 nm with an incident NA of 0.15. The transmission loss value was in the range of 160 dB / km to 180 dB / km for the six transparent core wires. The mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber was allowed to stand at 60 ° C. for 1000 hours, but the transmission loss of each transparent core was stable at 160 to 190 dB / km.

  The mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber of the present invention can be suitably used in the field of optical communication.

The transparent core wire and colored core wire which comprise the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention are shown, (a) is sectional drawing of a transparent core wire, (b) is sectional drawing of a colored core wire. is there. It is sectional drawing which shows the cross-sectional structure of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. The transparent core wire and colored core wire which comprise the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention are shown, (a) is sectional drawing of a transparent core wire, (b) is sectional drawing of a colored core wire. is there. It is sectional drawing which shows the cross-sectional structure of the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a cross-sectional conceptual diagram of a composite spinning die.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Transparent core wire, 3a ... Transparent core wire core, 2 ... Colored core wire, 3b ... Color core wire core, 5, 5a, 5b ... Colored resin layer, 7A, 7B ... Mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber.

Claims (6)

Surrounding a core made of a transparent core resin with a transparent sheath resin having a lower refractive index than that of the core resin, a plurality of transparent cores that transmit light in the visible light region, and a periphery of the core made of a transparent core resin A multi-core wire composed of a plurality of colored core wires surrounded by a colored resin having light absorption in at least a part of a light wavelength region capable of transmitting the sheath resin, and a sea made of the colored resin A plastic optical fiber,
In the cross section of the fiber, in the sea made of the colored resin, the core of the transparent core and the core of the colored core are arranged in an island shape to form a sea-island structure,
The core of the transparent core and the core of the colored core are arranged in a non-rotational symmetry in the cross section ;
A mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber , wherein a plurality of the colored core wires are arranged around the transparent core wire.   2. The mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to claim 1, wherein the transparent core wire further surrounds the outer side of the sheath resin surrounding the core with the colored resin.   3. The mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to claim 1, wherein the core of the transparent core and the core of the colored core are made of the same core resin.   The mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the colored resin is a black resin containing 1 to 50000 ppm of carbon black. An optical communication method using the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
An optical communication method, wherein a different signal is transmitted for each of the transparent cores contained in the mixed multi-core plastic optical fiber or for each set of two or more adjacent transparent cores. 6. The optical communication method according to claim 5 , wherein a signal is transmitted in combination with an integrated laser array.

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