JP5319729B2 - Adapter outer gripping connector with shutter - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an adapter-sheath grip connector with a shutter that is used to optically connect two optical fibers in an on-site assembly operation of an optical connector.

  Conventionally, in the field assembly type optical connector, cable sheath gripping that employs a mechanical splice system that allows easy assembly without the use of a dedicated tool by directly gripping the cable jacket onto the connector. Type SC connectors are in widespread use.

  That is, this type of cable sheath gripping SC connector has a cable clamp unit on the rear end side of the holding member 103 in which the knob 101 is mounted on the rear end side of the plug frame 102 as shown in FIG. The fitting part main body 131 which has the lid | cover body 132 which can be opened and closed for confirming the bending state of the optical fiber P after 121 mounting | wearing is provided. In addition, the code | symbol 105 in Fig.7 (a) is a ferrule cap for protecting the front-end | tip of the ferrule 104 when not using a cable-skin grip type SC connector.

  On the other hand, the cable clamp unit 121 includes a body part 125 having a guide groove for the optical fiber P and a lid part 126 that can be opened and closed. When connecting the cable clamp unit 121 to the optical connector 1, the lid 132 is opened from the fitting portion main body 131, and the bending state of the optical fiber P inserted into the fiber hole of the ferrule 104 is confirmed. After correcting and adjusting this, the lid 132 is closed and fixed.

  In addition, as this type of conventional optical connector, for example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1 and FIG. 7B, one of the pair of left and right joining end wall members 113d disposed in the central portion of the connector housing 112 is used. One cylinder 115a protrudes toward the fitting end 113e of the connector housing 112, and the other cylinder 115b faces the connection end 113f of the connector housing 112 on the other joining end wall member 113d. The sleeve holder 115 is formed by engaging and fixing the joining end wall members 113d via the fitting claws 114 with the two cylinders 115a and 115b being aligned with the central axis on the optical axis. . At this time, the cylindrical split sleeve 116 is mounted and held inside the sleeve holder 115, and the latch pieces 117 and 118 with respect to the optical connector are located at the left and right symmetrical positions of the joint end wall members 113d, respectively, and the respective cylinders 115a and 115b and the connector. It is formed between the side walls 113 c of the housing 112.

  Further, a shutter plate 111 for closing the fitting end 113e in the same oblique arrangement as the fitting end 113e is provided at the fitting end 113e that is an oblique opening in one fitting portion A of the connector housing 112. The shutter plate 111 is provided so that it can be opened and closed inside, and the shutter plate 111 has one end (upper end side) pressed against the bottom wall 113b and the other end (lower end side) pressed against the inner surface of the shutter plate 111. Via 118, it is always urged in the closing direction. In addition, the code | symbol 119 in FIG.7 (b) is an adapter cap for plugging up the connection end 113f of the connector housing 112 at the time of non-use.

JP 2008-225133 A

  However, as is clear from the description in the background art above, in the conventional cable skin gripping SC connector and the like, since the adapter and the plug frame are independent structures, the number of parts is small. As a result, the processing steps and the assembly steps become complicated and the cost increases.

  Therefore, the present invention has been devised in view of the existing circumstances as described above, and can reduce the number of parts, simplify the machining process and the assembly process, and reduce the cost. An object of the present invention is to provide a connector with an outer shell gripping type.

In order to solve the above-described problems, in the present invention, one end of the optical connector plug and the other of the optical connector plug and other optical components are arranged so that the optical axes coincide with both ends of the connector housing. Each of the fitting portions is biased in a direction to close the fitting portion in an oblique arrangement, and the biasing force is resisted by fitting the optical connector plug to the fitting portion. In the adapter for an optical connector having a shutter plate that is opened, the front end of the connector housing projects forward and backward toward the one fitting portion and the other fitting portion from the central joining end wall member disposed inside the connector housing. One sleeve holder is formed by mounting and holding a split sleeve inside the formed cylinder, and the one fitting portion is integrally formed by the housing sleeve, and the housing sleeve The holding member provided with the fitting portion main body having an openable / closable lid body to which the bull clamp unit is attached is fitted and integrated, so that the ferrule provided on the holding member side is interposed through the sleeve holder, The optical fiber inserted into the ferrule on the holding member side and the optical fiber inserted into the ferrule on the other side of the optical fiber adapter that is abutted against the counterpart ferrule inserted into the connector housing of the optical connector adapter having the shutter plate. The connection is made .

  According to the present invention, the number of parts can be reduced, the processing process and the assembly process can be simplified, and the cost can be reduced.

That is, in the present invention, one fitting portion is integrally formed by a housing sleeve, and a holding member having a fitting portion main body having an openable / closable lid body to which the cable clamp unit is attached is fitted to the housing sleeve. in Rukoto the case integrally, via a ferrule said sleeve holder provided on the holding member side, are butted to the inserted other ferrule inside the connector housing the optical connector adapter with the shutter plate, Since the optical fiber inserted into the ferrule on the holding member side and the optical fiber inserted into the counterpart ferrule are connected, the part corresponding to the plug frame is integrated with the conventional SC adapter with shutter. As a result, the plug frame, knob, ferrule cap, and pair of sleeve holders One of the, can be reduced respectively adapter cap, thus can simplify the working process and assembly process, it is possible to reduce the cost.

  The connector housing is formed by mounting and holding a split sleeve on the inside of a cylinder projecting forward and backward from a central joining end wall member disposed inside to one fitting portion and the other fitting portion. Since the sleeve holders are arranged, one of the pair of sleeve holders and the adapter cap can be reduced, thereby simplifying the processing process and the assembly process on the connector housing side of the optical connector adapter. can do.

It is a perspective view of the decomposition | disassembly state of the adapter outer skin holding | grip type connector with a shutter which shows one form for implementing this invention. It is a perspective view at the time of an assembly same as the above. 1 shows a schematic configuration of an adapter for an optical connector, in which (a) is a plan view, (b) is a side view, (c) is a bottom view, (d) is a front view, and (e) is a rear view. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which opened the cover body of the fitting part main body of the adapter outer shell holding | grip type | mold connector with a shutter. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which connected the cable clamp unit to the fitting part main body same as the above. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which connected the plug for optical connectors of the other party same as the above. FIG. 2 shows a conventional example, in which (a) is an exploded perspective view of the entire optical connector, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of an optical connector adapter with a shutter.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of an adapter-sheathed gripping connector with a shutter according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the adapter-sheathed gripping connector 1 with a shutter according to the present invention is connected to an optical fiber P inserted into a ferrule 2 by being abutted against a counterpart ferrule (see FIG. 6). Connector body 12 made of a synthetic resin molding, body part 25 having guide groove 22A for optical fiber P, and guide groove 22B formed opposite to guide groove 22A of body part 25. The cable clamp unit 21 is formed of a lid portion 26 that can be opened and closed, and is fitted to a housing sleeve 13f (a portion corresponding to a conventional plug frame) that is integrally formed in a rectangular tube shape from the rear portion of the connector housing 12. The lid 32 is openable and closable for confirming the bending state of the optical fiber P after the cable clamp unit 21 is mounted on the rear end side. It is generally composed of a substantially rectangular holding member 4 which consists includes a case body 31.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3A to 3E, the connector housing 12 is formed by integrally forming an upper side wall 13a and left and right side walls 13c, and the bottom wall 13b faces the upper side wall 13a. It is attached between the left and right side walls 13c. In the center, a later-described sleeve holder 19 having a substantially U-shaped frame shape is disposed, and the opening end of the housing sleeve 13f forming one fitting portion B of the connector housing 12 opens in the horizontal direction. Yes. Further, the fitting end 13e in the other fitting portion A of the connector housing 12 is opened obliquely upward.

  A shutter plate 11 for closing the fitting end 13e in the same oblique arrangement as the fitting end 13e is provided on the inner side of the fitting end 13e which is an oblique opening in the other fitting portion A of the connector housing 12. It is provided so that it can be opened and closed. That is, the shutter plate 11 has a support shaft 15 integrally projecting at the lower left and right symmetrical positions of the shutter plate 11, and the protrusions 15 a provided at both ends of the support shaft 15 are opposed to the left and right of the lower portion of the fitting end 13 e of the connector housing 12. The shaft hole 16 formed so as to straddle the bottom wall 13b and the left and right side walls 13c at the position is rotatably supported.

  A rectangular opening 17 is formed at the approximate center where the lower end of the shutter plate 11 and the support shaft 15 are connected, and the opening 17 is bent into an approximately L shape. The plate spring 18 is externally fitted to the center of the support shaft 15, one end of the plate spring 18 is pressed against the bottom wall 13 b, and the other end is pressed against the inner surface of the shutter plate 11, thereby closing the shutter plate 11. Is energized. Thus, the opening 17 is always closed by the elastic force of the leaf spring 18, and the optical connector plug P1 is fitted into the other fitting portion A of the connector housing 12, whereby the shutter plate 11 is moved to the plate. The spring 18 is released against the pressing force of the spring 18. That is, dust or the like does not enter the connector housing 12 from the opening 17 of the shutter plate 11.

  When the shutter plate 11 is brought into pressure contact with the inside of the fitting end 13e of the other fitting portion A of the connector housing 12, one end of the plate spring 18 is arranged to extend to the optical axis. It is long enough.

  A key groove 12A, which is a straight groove along the optical axis direction, is provided in the center of the upper side wall 13a of the other fitting portion A of the connector housing 12 for guiding when the optical connector plug P1 is inserted. Is formed. Then, when the shutter plate 11 is disposed obliquely and the fitting end 13e of the fitting portion A is closed, a convex portion protruding from the center of the upper end of the shutter plate 11 to prevent entry of dust and the like from the outside. The key groove 12A is sealed from the inside by 11A. That is, in a state where the shutter plate 11 closes the fitting end 13e of the fitting portion A from the inside, the key groove 12A and the convex portion 11A, and the upper side wall 13a of the connector housing 12 and the upper end edge of the shutter plate 11 contact each other. As a result, the shutter plate 11 reliably locks the fitting end 13e.

Further, projections 11B having a large number of elongated protrusions are provided on the front surface of the shutter plate 11, and a contact surface when the mating optical connector plug P1 (plug frame) is abutted by the projections 11B of the multiple stripes. small comb, as long as dust as possible is prevented from entering the optical connector adapter 1 a.

  In the sleeve holder 19 disposed in the center of the connector housing 12, the cylinder 19 b projects toward the fitting end 13 e of the other fitting portion A of the connector housing 12 with respect to the joint end wall member 19 a in the center. And the rear end side of the cylinder 19b is formed toward the opening side of the housing sleeve 13f that forms one fitting portion B of the connector housing 12, and is centered on the optical axis by the cylinder 19b. The axes are matched. At this time, the cylindrical split sleeve 16 is mounted and held inside the cylinder 19b.

  As shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6, the ferrule 2 has a fiber hole 42A having both ends opened in the axial direction of the center, and the butted connection portion C of the optical fiber P to be inserted. A rectangular recess 48 reaching the fiber hole 42 </ b> A is provided on the rear side where is located. In the fiber hole 42A, the other optical fiber P 'is inserted in advance on the front side to the butting connection portion C of the optical fiber P, and the front end of the ferrule 2 is polished.

Then, a plate-like chuck 47 having a tapered surface 47A inclined forward from the front part toward the rear part on the upper surface side is covered with the concave part 48 of the ferrule 2 so that the abutting connection part C of the optical fiber P is obtained. Is pressed on the lower surface side so that the alignment of the optical fiber P with the other optical fiber P ′ previously inserted in the fiber hole 42A can be smoothly and reliably performed. The rear end of the ferrule 2 is formed with a diverging guide fiber hole 42B having a diameter larger than that of the fiber hole 42A.

  Further, the bush 3 is provided with a bush 3 formed with a guide fiber hole 43A having a diameter larger than that of the fiber hole 42A of the ferrule 2 and extending toward the opening end on the rear end side. A rectangular fitting hole 49 having a tapered inner surface 49A in part is formed at the front end portion so as to be in close contact with the tapered surface 47A from the outside, and communicates coaxially with the fiber hole 42A of the ferrule 2 after assembly. It is.

  The holding member 4 is formed with a tapered fiber hole 44A having a diameter larger than that of the fiber hole 42A and further widening toward the opening end on the rear end side, and further fitted into the bush 3 from the outside. A mating rectangular fitting hole 44C is formed in the front end portion, and is communicated coaxially with the guiding fiber hole 43A of the bush 3 after assembly. A cable clamp unit 21 to be described later can be attached to the rear end of the holding member 4.

  In the rectangular annular space S formed between the front end portion of the holding member 4 and the flange-like engaging portion 43B formed on the outer surface side of the front end portion of the bush 3, a coil spring is provided as an elastic member 10. However, the bush 3 is interposed and disposed.

  A housing sleeve 13f (a portion corresponding to a conventional plug frame) forming one fitting portion B of the connector housing 12 is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape so that the rectangular holding member 4 can be inserted therein. A flange-like locking projection (not shown) is formed in front of the outer surface of the member 4, and the engagement holes 45 are formed on both side surfaces of the housing sleeve 13f so that the locking projection is engaged and held integrally. (See FIG. 1).

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, on the rear end side of the holding member 4 attached to the housing sleeve 13f, an openable / closable lid for confirming the bending state of the optical fiber P after the cable clamp unit 21 is attached. A fitting portion main body 31 having a body 32 is provided. That is, the fitting portion main body 31 has a shape obtained by substantially halving the rectangular tube body, and the protrusion formed on the front end opening side inner wall portion is formed on one side surface of the rear end portion of the holding member 4. When the support shaft 32A formed at the end of the lid 32 is fitted into the concave bearing portion 32B formed at the other side of the rear end of the holding member 4. At the same time, the locking protrusions 33A protruding from the center of the locking plate 33 formed on the rear end opening side of the fitting portion main body 31 are inserted into the locking holes 33B formed on both side surfaces of the lid 32. Engage. Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a locking protrusion 38 is projected on the center inner wall surface of each of the fitting portion main body 31 and the lid body 32, and the cable clamp unit 21 is mounted in the fitting portion main body 31. When the lid 32 is closed, the locking projection 38 is engaged with a locking hole 27B (described later) of the cable clamp unit 21.

  The locking projection 33A of the locking plate 33 and the locking hole 33B of the lid 32 are released from each other when the lid 32 is opened from the fitting body 31. ing. Then, the base 34 of the presser 36 having two pairs of locking claws 35 protruding from the opposite ends of the base 34 is attached to the holding member 4 so as to cover the support shaft 32A of the lid 32. The engaging holes 35 </ b> A formed in each of the pawl portions 35 are engaged with the engaging protrusions 37 formed on the outer wall portion on the front end opening side of the engaging portion main body 31, thereby fitting on the holding member 4 side. The body 31 is attached.

  On the other hand, the cable clamp unit 21 is opposed to the body portion 25 provided with the guide groove 22A of the optical fiber P and the guide groove 22A of the body portion 25 as shown in FIGS. Thus, it is configured with an openable / closable lid portion 26 formed with a guide groove 22B. The lid portion 26 is provided with a two-step claw-shaped pressing protrusion (not shown) for pressing the optical fiber cable, and the cable clamp unit 21 is provided at one end opening side of the body portion 25 having a substantially U-shaped frame shape. A lid portion 26 is rotatably attached to the upper portion via a support shaft 26A. And the latching protrusion 27A is formed in the right-and-left both sides of the cover part 26, and the said latching protrusion 27A is engaged with the latching hole 27B each formed in the left-right wall surface of the body part 25, and a closed state is maintained. I can do it.

  The central optical fiber through hole 22 is formed in the closed state by the guide grooves 22A and 22B between the body portion 25 and the lid portion 26 so as to allow the optical fiber P to pass therethrough, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. And a jacket insertion path 23 branched into left and right bifurcations on the inner bottom surface of the body portion 25 so as to be able to insert and hold the jacket Q that is torn into the left and right with respect to the optical fiber P. A two-step claw-shaped pressing projection (not shown) for pressing the optical fiber cable is formed on the support shaft 26A of the 26. In other words, a structure in which the two-core jacket Q is torn and restrained by the cable clamp unit 21 to absorb the bending of the optical fiber P, and the jacket Q divided into two branches is firmly held by the pressing protrusions. It has become.

Next, an example of use and assembly for the best mode configured as described above will be described.
First, the optical fiber P is attached to the cable clamp unit 21. That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the lid portion 26 is opened from the body portion 25 of the cable clamp unit 21 and the optical fiber P is inserted into the guide groove 22 </ b> A of the body portion 25, and at the same time, After the outer cover Q that is torn into the left and right sides of the optical fiber P is inserted into the insertion path 23, the lid part 26 is closed and fixed to the body part 25. At this time, the optical fiber P is allowed to pass through the central optical fiber through-hole 22 and at the same time, the outer jacket Q that is torn to the left and right with respect to the optical fiber P with respect to the outer jacket insertion path 23 branched into the left and right bifurcated. Are respectively inserted, and the outer jacket Q is fixed by pressing protrusions (not shown). In this way, since the bifurcated outer jacket Q is fixed by the left and right outer jacket insertion paths 23, a long degree of freedom is imparted to give the optical fiber P that has exited from the central optical fiber through hole 22 a deflection. It is.

  Next, the cable clamp unit 21 is connected to the fitting portion main body 31 of the holding member 4. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, after the lid 32 is opened from the fitting portion main body 31, the bending state of the optical fiber P inserted into the fiber hole 42 </ b> A of the ferrule 2 is confirmed, and this is corrected and adjusted. The lid 32 is closed (see FIG. 5). As a result, the locking protrusions 38 on the center inner wall surface of each of the fitting portion main body 31 and the lid body 32 are firmly fixed so that they are engaged with the locking holes 27B of the cable clamp unit 21 and are not pulled out.

  When the optical connector adapter 1 is used, first, before the mating optical connector plug P1 is fitted to the other fitting portion A of the connector housing 12, the shutter plate 11 is moved by the leaf spring 18 to the other fitting portion. The fitting end 13e in A is closed.

  The shutter plate 11 is pushed by the optical connector plug P1, and the shutter plate 11 tilts inside the fitting end 13e against the elastic force of the plate spring 18.

  When the optical connector plug P1 is further pushed in, the shutter plate 11 becomes horizontal and the optical connector plug P1 moves as it is.

  As shown in FIG. 6, when the optical connector plug P1 is completely pushed in, the optical connector plug P1 is interposed between the shutter plate 11 and the upper side wall 13a of the connector housing 12 by the elastic force of the leaf spring 18. Is firmly clamped and the connection is completed.

  The counterpart optical connector plug P1 is similar to the conventional SC connector plug in that the bush 3 into which the tip of the ferrule 2 is inserted and the plug inserted so that the bush 3 is slightly movable in the front-rear direction. The frame 102, a knob 101 that covers the outside of the plug frame 102, and other boots are configured.

  In addition, the outer-grip connector according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications such as a wedge-shaped connector can be made as necessary.

P Optical fiber P1 Optical connector plug Q Outer sheath S Space part A The other fitting part B One fitting part 1 Adapter outer sheath holding connector 2 with a shutter 2 Ferrule 3 Bush 4 Holding member 10 Elastic member 11 Shutter plate 11A Convex part 11B Projection 12 Connector housing 12A Key groove 13a Top wall 13b Bottom wall 13c Side wall 13e Fitting end 13f Housing sleeve 16 Split sleeve 18 Leaf spring 19 Sleeve holder 21 Cable clamp unit 22 Optical fiber through holes 22A and 22B Guide groove 23 Cover insertion Path 25 Body 26 Lid 27A Locking protrusion 27B Locking hole 31 Fitting part main body 32 Cover 32A Support shaft 32B Bearing part 33 Locking plate 33A Locking protrusion
33B Locking hole 34 Base 35 Locking claw 35A Locking hole 36 Presser 37 Locking protrusion 38 Locking protrusion 42A Fiber hole 43A Guide fiber hole 43B Locking part 44A Tapered fiber hole 47 Chuck 47A Tapered surface 48 Recess 49 Fitting hole 49A Taper inner surface

Claims (1)

Each end of the connector housing is provided with one fitting portion of the optical connector plug so that the optical axes coincide with each other, and the other fitting portion of the optical connector plug and other optical components, respectively, the other fitting portion, In the optical connector adapter comprising a shutter plate that is biased in a direction to close the fitting portion in an oblique arrangement and is opened against the biasing force by fitting the optical connector plug into the fitting portion. One piece in which a split sleeve is mounted and held inside a cylinder projecting forward and backward from a central joining end wall member disposed inside the connector housing toward one fitting portion and the other fitting portion. The sleeve holder is arranged, the one fitting portion is formed integrally with the housing sleeve, and the openable and closable cover body on which the cable clamp unit is attached to the housing sleeve When the holding member having the fitting portion main body is fitted and integrated, the ferrule provided on the holding member side is connected to the connector housing of the optical connector adapter provided with the shutter plate via the sleeve holder. With a shutter, characterized in that the optical fiber inserted in the ferrule on the holding member side is connected to the optical fiber inserted in the ferrule on the holding member side by being abutted with the counterpart ferrule inserted inside Adapter outer gripping connector.

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