JPH0480367B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application This invention relates to an optical branching/coupling device that is highly suitable for mass production.

Prior Art Conventional optical branching/coupling devices include, for example, bundling multiple multi-port optical fiber cables at one end, and attaching the end face of the bundle to the end face of one single-port optical fiber cable using adhesive or the like. There is one in which a plurality of multi-port side optical fiber cables and one single-port side optical fiber cable are connected by bonding.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in such conventional optical branching/coupling devices, until the adhesive hardens, the multi-port side optical fiber cable and the single-port side optical fiber cable are not connected at any end. Since it is necessary to leave the product fixed on a jig with the butts in close contact with each other, it requires a large work space and has a poor work flow, making it unsuitable for mass production.

Also, it is difficult to align the optical fiber cable on the multi-port side and the optical fiber cable on the single-port side.
The fact that this work requires careful attention has also been a factor hindering improvements in production efficiency.

Purpose This invention was made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an optical branching/coupling device that is excellent in mass production.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve this object, the present invention provides either one single-port side optical fiber cable or a plurality of multi-port side optical fiber cables whose one end is bundled. positioning and connecting each of the above members with a light guide portion that outputs light received from an end surface from the other end surface and optically connects the multi-port side optical fiber cable and the single-port side optical fiber cable; a connecting member that makes a connecting side end face of the single-port side optical fiber cable face one end face of the light guiding part, and a connecting part end face of the multi-port side optical fiber cable faces the other end face of the light guiding part. In the optical branching/coupling device, the connecting member includes a single port holding member into which a connecting end of the single port side optical fiber cable is inserted and detachably holding the connecting end, and the guiding member. a holding member for a light guiding part that holds a light part; a holding member for a multiport into which an end of the bundled part of the multi-port side optical fiber cable is inserted and which detachably holds the connecting end; and each of the above-mentioned holders. The optical branching/coupling device includes a fixing means having a positioning portion for positioning and holding the member at a predetermined position.

Example The present invention will be explained below based on the drawings.

1 to 4 are diagrams showing an embodiment of the optical branching/coupling device according to the present invention. 1 in the figure is a single port side optical fiber cable, and its connection side end 1
A plug 2 is attached to the plug 2, and the connecting side end surface 1b is exposed at the tip of the plug 2. A receptacle 3 is a single port holding member, and has a plug holding portion 3a into which the plug 2 is inserted. The plug holding part 3a has a structure in which it has an annular locking spring 3b that can be expanded in the radial direction, and when the plug 2 is inserted, the locking spring 3b engages with the tip projection of the plug 2. The plug 2 is fitted into an annular groove 2b formed at the base end of the portion 2a to prevent the plug 2 from falling off. Reference numeral 4 denotes a light guide unit, which includes a light guide case 5 having a through hole and a flange 5a formed at one end, and a light guide 6 inserted into the through hole of the light guide case 5. Consisting of The light guide unit 6 receives light from one end face and emits the light from the other end face, and an optical fiber is used here. The end surface 6a of the light section 6 appears,
An end surface 6b of the light guide section 6 appears at the other end.
Note that in the light guiding section, the region through which light is transmitted will be referred to as a light transmission region. When the light guide is an optical fiber, the light transmission region is the core. A holder 7 has a through hole 7a. The through hole 7a is formed by a small diameter hole 7b and a large diameter hole 7c having a larger diameter than the small diameter hole 7b communicating with each other. This holder 7 serves both as a light guiding holding member and a multi-port holding member. Reference numeral 8 designates a plurality of multi-port side optical fiber cables, and reference numeral 9 represents a binding part in which one end of the cables is bundled.A sleeve 10 having a collar part 10a is attached to the binding part 9. An end surface 9a of the sleeve 9 appears at the tip of the sleeve 10.
The end face 9a of the bundle part is as shown in FIG. 3, and the end faces 8a, 8a, 8a of the multi-port side optical fiber cables 8, 8, 8 are fan-shaped end faces with equal central angles, and are mutually Closely attached with flat sides. 8b is the core, 8c is the cladding, and D ₀ is the diameter of the circle formed by connecting the arcs of the cores 8b, 8b, and 8b (hereinafter referred to as the outer diameter of the core gathering part).
It shows.

In this embodiment, the core diameter at the end surface 6a of the light guide section 6 is the same as that of the single port side optical fiber cable 1.
The core diameter at the end surface 6b of the light guide section 6 is set larger than the core diameter at the end surface 1b on the connection side of the multi-port side optical fiber cable 8.
The outer diameter D of the core gathering portion is set to be larger than the outer diameter D ₀ of the core gathering portion.

This means that the core portion of the end surface 6a of the light guide section 6, that is, the light transmission region, is located at the connecting side end surface of the single port side optical fiber cable 1 facing the end surface 6a.
The core portion at the end surface 6b of the light guide section 6, that is, the light transmission area is large enough to cover the entire core section at the end surface 6b of the light guide section 6, and the core section at the end surface 6b of the light guide section 6 is large enough to cover the entire core section at the end surface 9a of the multi-port side optical fiber cable 8 facing the end surface 6b. This means that it has a size that covers the entire core portions 8b, 8b, 8b.

Reference numeral 11 designates a lower case, which includes a component storage section 11a as a positioning section, a semicircular notch 11b, a stepped semicircular notch 11c, and a hole 1 into which a screw S is inserted.
1d is provided. 12 is the upper case;
In addition to the semicircular notch 12b, a similar parts storage section and stepped semicircular notch (not shown) are provided at positions corresponding to the component storage section 11a and the stepped semicircular notch 11c. It is being Also,
A threaded portion (not shown) that is screwed into the screw S is formed at a position corresponding to the hole 11d. These pair of upper case 12 and lower case 11 constitute a case as a fixing means for positioning the receptacle 3, holder 7, etc.

All the various parts other than the screw S mentioned above are made of resin.

Such parts are assembled in the following steps.

First, the light guide unit 4 is inserted into the through hole 7a of the holder 7 from the large diameter hole 7c side, and the sleeve 10 is inserted from the small diameter hole 7b side. At this time, the flange 5a of the light guide unit 4 is fitted into the large diameter hole 7c, and the end face 6b of the light guide unit 6 and the end face 9a of the binding part 9 are inserted into the large diameter hole 7c.
are in close contact with each other, and the proximal end portion of the sleeve 10 and the collar portion 10
a is protruding from the outside of the holder 7.

Next, the holder 7 and the receptacle 3 are combined and housed in the component storage section 11a of the lower case 11. At this time, the base end portion of the sleeve 10 and the collar portion 1
0a is fitted into the stepped semicircular notch 11c, and the proximal end of the plug holding part 3a is fitted into the semicircular notch 11b (see FIG. 2).

Then, cover the upper case 12, insert the screw S into the hole 11d from below the lower case 11, screw it into the threaded part (not shown) of the upper case 12, and attach the upper case 12 to the lower case 11. When the plug 2 of the single-port side optical fiber cable 1 is inserted into the plug holding portion 3a protruding from the side, the assembly of the optical branch/coupler is completed. At this time, the connecting side end surface 1b is in close contact with the end surface 6a of the light guide section 6.

The above assembly work can be performed as part of a series of assembly operations, and since each part is aligned by placing it in the lower case 11, difficult alignment work can be done. No longer needed.

The optical branch/coupler assembled in this manner branches the light guided to the single-port side optical fiber cable 1 to the multi-port side optical fiber cables 8, 8, 8 via the light guide section 6. The light guided to the multi-port optical fiber cables 8, 8, 8 is coupled to the single-port optical fiber cable 1 via the light guiding section 6 and transmitted.

Moreover, as mentioned earlier, the end surface 6a of the light guide section 6
The core diameter D ₃ is set larger than the core diameter D 1 at the connection side end surface 1b of the single-port side optical fiber cable 1, and the core diameter D ₂ at the end surface 6b of the light guide section 6 is set to be larger than the core diameter D ₁ at the connection side end surface 1b of the single-port side optical fiber cable 1. The outer diameter D ₀ of the core gathering part at the end face 9a of the bundle part is set larger than the core part on the end face 6a of the light guiding part 6, that is, the light transmission area covers the entire core part on the connecting side end face 1b facing the end face 6a. The core portion on the end surface 6b of the light guide portion 6, that is, the light transmission region is large enough to cover the core portions 8b, 8 on the binding portion end surface 9a facing the end surface 6b.
It has a size that covers the entire areas b and 8b.
Therefore, some misalignment in the joints between the light guide section 6 and the single-port and multi-port fiber cables 1, 8, 8, 8 is allowed, facilitating assembly and ensuring reliable optical transmission. Furthermore, if each part is manufactured within a predetermined part accuracy, simply storing each other part in the lower case 11 will bring the connecting end 1a, the light guide part 6, and the binding part 9 into the fourth state. As shown in the figure, the light guided to any of the multi-port side optical fiber cables 8, 8, 8 is equally transmitted to the single-port side optical fiber cable 1, and conversely, the light is guided to the single-port side optical fiber cable 1. Light is equally transmitted to any of the multi-port side optical fiber cables 8, 8, 8.

Further, in this embodiment, when the assembly is completed, the end surface 6a of the light guide section 6 is in close contact with the connection side end surface 1b of the single port side optical fiber cable 1, and the light guide section 6
The end face 6b of the optical fiber cable 8 on the multi-port side is brought into close contact with the end face 9a of the bundle part of the multi-port side optical fiber cable 8 to prevent light loss as much as possible. In this case, it is sufficient that the end faces simply face each other,
Since they do not necessarily need to be in close contact, production can be made at a lower cost.

In this embodiment, the light guide section 6 was an optical fiber, but in addition, it may be made of a light transmitting core, with a cladding formed around the outer periphery of a core that transmits light to reflect light coming from the core side. A good acrylic resin whose outer periphery is coated with a substance with a lower refractive index, or a metal cylindrical tube whose inner periphery is a reflective surface (in this case, the cladding is the cylindrical tube, and the core is the air in the hollow). Furthermore, the light guiding portion may be a lens-like member.

In the embodiment shown above, the plug 2, the receptacle 3, the light guide case 5, the holder 7, the sleeve 10, the lower case 11, and the upper case 12 are used as connecting members, and one single port side optical fiber cable 1 The light guide section 6 and the plurality of multi-port side optical fiber cables 8 are connected as described above, but the connecting member for connecting these is by no means limited to such a thing. Instead, a connecting member having a mechanical connecting mechanism may be used. For example, it is also possible to assemble members for holding and fixing the receptacle 3, holder 7, and sleeve 10 together with the circuit components on the printed circuit board.

Effects of the Invention As explained above, the present invention provides one single-port side optical fiber cable, a plurality of multi-port side optical fiber cables whose one end is tied together, and a A light guide section that outputs light from the other end surface and optically connects the multi-port side optical fiber cable and the single-port side optical fiber cable, and a light guide section that positions and connects each of the above members, and An optical branching/coupling device comprising: a connecting member that makes a connecting side end face of the fiber cable face one end face of the light guiding part, and a connecting member that makes a binding part end face of the multi-port side optical fiber cable face the other end face of the light guiding part. The connection member includes a single-port holding member into which a connection-side end of the single-port side optical fiber cable is inserted and holds the connection-side end in a detachable manner, and a single-port holding member that holds the light guide portion. A holding member for a light guide portion, a holding member for a multi-port into which an end portion of a binding portion of the multi-port side optical fiber cable is inserted and detachably holding the end portion of the connection side; and a holding member for holding each of the above-mentioned holding members at a predetermined position. Since the optical splitter/coupler is equipped with a fixing means having a positioning part for positioning and holding, assembly work can be performed without stopping the flow in a series of assembly operations, and it is possible to avoid difficult positions between parts. This has the practical effect of eliminating the need for alignment work and increasing productivity.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 4 are views showing one embodiment of the optical branching/coupling device according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the optical branching/coupling device, and FIG. A plan view of the optical splitter/coupler in the middle of assembly with parts stored therein, Figure 3 is a diagram showing the state of the end face of the bundled part of the multi-port side optical fiber cable, and Figure 4 is a partial cross section of the main part of Figure 2. It is an enlarged view. 1...Single port side optical fiber cable, 1a...
...Connecting side end, 1b...Connecting side end surface, 6...Light guiding part, 6a, 6b...End face of light guiding part, 8...Multi-port side optical fiber cable, 9...Bundling part, 9a...
... Bundle end face, {2... Plug, 3... Receptacle, 5... Light guide case, 7... Holder, 10
...Sleeve, {11...Lower case, 12...Upper case,}Case,}Connection member.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. One single-port side optical fiber cable, a plurality of multi-port side optical fiber cables whose one end is bundled, and light received from one end face is emitted from the other end face. positioning and connecting each of the above members with a light guiding portion that optically connects the multi-port side optical fiber cable and the single-port side optical fiber cable, and connecting the connecting side end face of the single-port side optical fiber cable. An optical branching/coupling device, comprising: a connecting member that faces one end surface of the light guiding section and that causes an end surface of the binding section of the multi-port side optical fiber cable to oppose the other end surface of the light guiding section, the connecting member a single-port holding member into which a connection-side end of the single-port side optical fiber cable is inserted and detachably holding the connection-side end; and a light-guiding part holding member that holds the light-guiding part. , a multi-port holding member into which the bundle end of the multi-port side optical fiber cable is inserted and detachably holds the connection side end; and a positioning unit that positions and holds each of the holding members at predetermined positions. An optical branching/combining device comprising: a fixing means having a fixing means. 2. A patent claim characterized in that the light guide part has one end surface closely attached to the connection side end surface of the single-port side optical fiber cable, and the other end surface closely attached to the bundle section end surface of the multi-port side optical fiber cable. The optical branching/coupling device according to item 1. 3. The light branching unit according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the light guiding portion is formed by forming a clad around the outer periphery of a core that transmits light, which reflects light coming from the core side. combiner.