JPH0511138A - Optical connector connection part - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide the optical connector connection part which enables ferrule tip surfaces in respective plugs to easily be cleaned when a couples of plug are separated at need. CONSTITUTION:When the couple of plugs 23a and 23b are separated, the tip surfaces of the ferrules 22a and 22b are exposed to the abutting surface sides of flanges 25a and 25b. Consequently, when the plugs 23a and 23b are mutually assembled after being separated from each other at need, the tip surfaces of the ferrules 22a and 22b in those plugs can easily be cleaned prior to the assembly. Therefore, an increase in the connection loss between optical fibers 21a and 21b due to the contamination of the ferrule tip surfaces is evaded.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement in an optical connector connecting portion including a pair of optical fiber ends and their connecting parts.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known, an optical connector is used when reproducibly connecting optical fibers to each other in fields such as communication and optics.

The optical connector connecting the optical fibers to each other, that is, the optical connector connecting portion has a different mode depending on the equipment, part and the like equipped with the optical connector. For example, the optical connector connecting portion extends inside and outside the box body. When assembled, the configuration shown in FIG. 5 is widely adopted.

In FIG. 5, 1a and 1b are a pair of optical fibers, 2a and 2b are a pair of ferrules, 3 is a sleeve,
4a and 4b are a pair of plugs, 6 is an adapter, and 11 is a box. Female screws 5a and 5b are formed on the inner periphery of the tips of the pair of plugs 4a and 4b. The adapter 6 is composed of a tubular body 8 having a through hole 7 in the axis and a flange 9 formed on the outer circumference of the tubular body 8, and male threads corresponding to the female screws 5a and 5b on the outer circumferences of both ends of the tubular body 8. 10a, 1
0b is formed. The box 11 has a side wall 12
An opening 13 is formed in the.

In FIG. 5, a pair of optical fibers 1a, 1
In b, the end portions of these ferrules 2a and 2b are attached to the respective end portions, and the ferrules 2a and 2b are attached to the respective end portions.
Plugs 4a and 4b are attached to the ends of b, and the ferrules 2a and 2b are held at the axial center of the plugs 4a and 4b. The optical connector connection part by these parts is
As illustrated in FIG. 5, it is assembled in the following procedure.
The sleeve 3 is fitted into the through hole 7 of the adapter 6 in advance, and is held in the through hole 7 through the crimped portions at both ends of the through hole. Therefore, first, when one plug 4a in the box 11 is coupled to one end of the adapter cylinder 8 via the female screw 5a and the male screw 10a, the tip of the ferrule 2a in the plug 4a is The cylindrical body 8 is fitted into the sleeve 3 of the adapter 6 from one end side. Next, the flange 9 of the adapter 6 is applied to the side wall 12 so as to close the opening 13 of the box body 11, and the side wall 1 is attached via the screw 14.
The adapter 6 carrying the plug 4a is fixed to the plug 2a.
Is attached to the box 11. After that, the plug 4b outside the box body 11 is coupled to the other end of the adapter cylinder body 8 via the female screw 5b and the male screw 10b. At this time, the tip of the ferrule 2b in the plug 4b fits into the sleeve 3 of the adapter 6 from one end of the tubular body 8. Thus, when the front end surfaces of both ferrules 2a and 2b are abutted in the sleeve 3, the pair of optical fibers 1a and 1b are optically connected to each other.

In the case of the optical connector connecting portion thus constructed, the plug 4a is inside the box 11 and
Since b is outside the box body 11, the plug 4 is easy to handle when the optical fibers 1a and 1b are separated and connected.
b is attached to and detached from the adapter 6.

[0007]

When the plug 4b is removed from the adapter 6 in the optical connector connecting portion illustrated in FIG. 5, both ferrules 2a and 2 including the end face of the optical fiber are formed.
Since dust or the like inevitably adheres to the tip surface of b, if the plug 4b is rejoined to the adapter 6 as it is,
Due to such contaminants, the connection loss between the optical fibers 1a and 1b becomes large. Therefore, before connecting the plug 4b to the adapter 6, the contaminants adhering to the tip surfaces of the ferrules 2a and 2b are blown off by a spray means of clean air, and / or wiped with a clean paper impregnated with alcohol. , Must be properly cleaned. In this case, the plug 4b side, which is free from the box 11, can easily remove the contaminants attached to the tip surface of the ferrule 2b.
On the side of the plug 4a that is fixed to, the tip surface of the ferrule 2a is recessed inside the sleeve 3, so it is possible to cleanly remove contaminants from the tip surface of the ferrule by any of the above means. Have difficulty. As a countermeasure, it is possible to disassemble the optical connector connection part, but this is
It will take a considerable amount of work for disassembly and subsequent assembly.

In view of the above technical problems, the present invention makes it possible to easily clean the tip surfaces of the ferrules in the plugs when the paired plugs are separated as needed. Is to provide.

[0009]

In order to achieve an intended purpose, an optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention has a pair of ferrules attached to each optical fiber end to be connected, and these ferrules. It includes a pair of plugs for holding it inside and a sleeve for interposing between these plugs and the inner and outer peripheral surfaces of the ferrule, and the pair of plugs are respectively a cylinder and a tip of the cylinder. A flange integrally formed on the outer periphery is provided, and the respective ferrules are fitted from the rear end side thereof in the cylindrical body of the respective plugs, and the front end surface of each ferrule is at least the abutting surface of the respective flanges. In addition, a fitting space for the sleeve is left between the inner and outer peripheral surfaces of these plugs and ferrules, and the abutting surfaces of the flanges contact each other. In each of the inserted plugs, the sleeves are fitted in the respective fitting spaces, and the distal end surfaces of the pair of ferrules are butted against each other in the sleeves. A sleeve is built in, and the plugs with which the respective flange butting surfaces are in contact are tightly connected to each other.

[0010]

The optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention is, for example,
When the plug penetrates the side wall of the box and is attached thereto, one of the plugs that are directly coupled to each other with the flange as a main body is housed in the box, and the other is projected outside the box. The tip surface of each ferrule in these plugs is
As described above, the flanges reach the abutting surfaces and are abutted against each other in the sleeve. In such an optical connector connection part, when the plugs outside the box are separated from the plugs inside the box, if necessary, the flange abutting surfaces of these plugs are exposed, and after the separation, one of the plugs is connected to the other plug side. The remaining sleeve can be easily removed, and the tip end surface of each ferrule is exposed on the side of each flange abutting surface. Therefore, when the plugs are separated from each other as described above and then the plugs are reassembled, the tip surfaces of the ferrules in the plugs can be easily cleaned prior to the reassembly.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First, the embodiments of the optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described. Figure 1,
In FIG. 2, 21a and 21b are paired optical fibers,
22a and 22b are paired ferrules, 23a and 23b
Is a pair of plugs, 30 is a sleeve, and 3
1 shows a box.

The paired ferrules 22a and 22b are made of known or well-known ferrules, and holes are formed in the axial centers of the ferrules 22a and 22b for inserting the ends of the optical fibers 21a and 21b that have been terminated. There is.

The paired plugs 23a and 23b are cylindrical bodies 24a and 24b having a tapered shape on the rear end side and the respective cylindrical bodies 2 respectively.
Flange 25 integrally formed on the outer periphery of the tips of 4a and 24b
a, 25b, inside the cylindrical bodies 24a, 24b, small diameter portions 26a, 26b on the rear end side and large diameter portions 27a, 27b on the front end side are adjacent to each other along the axial direction. In the relative relationship between the two plugs 23a and 23b, the flange 25a has a larger outer diameter than the flange 25b, but the small diameter portion 26a and the small diameter portion 26b, and the large diameter portion 27a and the large diameter portion 27b have the same diameter. Equal and their lengths are also equal to each other.

The sleeve 30 is made of a known material. The inner diameter of the sleeve 30 is equal to that of each ferrule 22.
It corresponds precisely to the outer diameter of a and 22b, and the sleeve 30
The outer diameter of is large enough to fit in the large diameter portions 27a and 27b. By the way, sleeve 30
Where r is the outer diameter of R and R is the diameter of both large-diameter portions 27a and 27b, r is R, the length of the sleeve 30 is L, and the length of both large-diameter portions 27a and 27b is (axial dimension). ) Each S
, L ≦ 2 × S.

The box 31 is for communication equipment, optical equipment, or electronic equipment, and an opening 33 is formed in a side wall 32 thereof. Opening 33 of the box 31
Is smaller than the outer diameter of the flange 25a and larger than the outer diameter of the flange 25b.

As the material of the above-mentioned optical connector part, plastic, metal, ceramic, tempered glass or the like is arbitrarily adopted. As an example, ferrules 22a, 22
b is made of metal, the plugs 23a and 23b are made of plastic, and the sleeve 30 is made of metal.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the optical connector connecting portion is constructed, the above-mentioned parts are assembled in the box body 31 by way of example as follows.

When the parts are combined with each other, ferrules 22a and 22b are attached to the ends of the paired optical fibers 21a and 21b, respectively, and the optical fiber 2 with the ferrules 22a and 22b is attached.
Plugs 23a and 23b are attached to the end portions of 1a and 21b, respectively, and the ferrules 22a and 22b are held at the axial center portions of the plugs 23a and 23b. At this time, the tips of the ferrules 22a, 22b are connected to the plugs 23a, 2
3b reaches the abutting surface of the flanges 25a, 25b,
Alternatively, it slightly projects from these flange abutment surfaces. Thus, when each ferrule 22a, 22b and each plug 23a, 23b are combined, each plug 23
In a and 23b, between the inner peripheral surface of each large diameter portion 27a, 27b and the outer peripheral surface of each ferrule 22a, 22b,
It becomes a fitting space for the sleeve 30.

When the parts are assembled to the box body 31, first, the plug 23 is closed so as to close the opening 33 of the box body 31.
The flange 25a of a is applied to the inner surface of the side wall 32, and the flange 25a is fixed to the side wall 32 via the screw 34. Next, one end (half) of the sleeve 30 is fitted into the cylindrical body 24a of the plug 23a, that is, in the fitting space described above, and with this, the ferrule 2
The tip of 2a fits into the sleeve 30. At this stage, the other end (the remaining half) of the sleeve 30 projects outside the plug 23a. After that, the plug 23b is arranged from the outside of the box body 31 into the opening 33 of the side wall 32 thereof,
The flange 25b of the plug 23b is the same as the plug 23a.
Is abutted against the flange 25a. At this time, the other end (remaining half) of the sleeve 30 is the cylindrical body 24 of the plug 23b.
Each part is aligned so that it fits in b (in the fitting space) and the tip part of the ferrule 22b fits in the sleeve 30, and in this abutting state, the screws 35 tightened over the flanges 25a and 25b. Through, the pair of plugs 23a and 23b are tightly connected to each other. Thus, when the abutting surfaces of the ferrules 22a and 22b are abutted in the sleeve 30, the pair of optical fibers 21a and 21b are optically connected to each other. In this way, both ferrules 22a,
When the 22b are butted, these ferrules 22
Since the force in the abutting direction acts on a and 22b via the reaction force at the time of the abutting, both ferrules 2
The tip surfaces of 2a and 22b are not separated from each other.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, for example, the cylindrical body 24a of the plug 23a penetrates the opening 33 of the box body 31, and the rear surface of the flange 25a is applied to the outer surface of the side wall 32 of the box body 31. When the flange 25a is attached to the side wall 32, that is, when the flange 25a is exposed on the outer surface of the side wall 32, the other flange 25b assembled to the flange 25a has the outer diameter thereof set to the diameter of the opening 33. It can be set regardless.

The optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention can be provided in addition to the box body 31 in the above-mentioned constitution of each component.

Next, the optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention will be described with reference to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. In FIG. 3, the flange 25a on the plug 23a side is provided with a recess 28 at the center of the abutting surface of the flange 25a, which can be closely fitted to the flange 25b on the plug 23b side. Other technical matters in the embodiment of FIG. 3 are the same as those described in FIGS. 1 and 2.

In the case of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the plug 23
The flange 25b is fitted into the recess 28 of the flange 25a when the a and 23b are tightly connected to each other. With this fitting, the ferrules 22a and / or 22b and the sleeve 30 are aligned with each other, the ferrules 22a and 22b are aligned with each other without difficulty, and the flanges 25a and 25b are also prevented from being displaced from each other. Therefore, in the case of this embodiment, in addition to good operability, the ferrules 22a, 22
b, the sleeve 30 is hardly distorted, and the defect caused by this is not caused.

Next, the optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention will be described with reference to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. In FIG. 4, a female screw 29a is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the recess 28 of the flange 25a.
Is formed, and a male screw 29b is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the flange 25b corresponding to the female screw 29a.
Other technical matters in the embodiment of FIG. 4 are the same as those described in FIGS.

In the case of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, a female screw 29
The flange 25b is screwed into the concave portion 28 of the flange 25a via the male screw 29b, and the plugs 23a, 23
b Mutually bound. Even when such screw fitting is performed, the above-described position adjustment, centering, and the above-mentioned position shift prevention are performed, and in addition, the screws 23 also use the plugs 23a and 23b.
Mutual tightening work is omitted.

[0026]

In the optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention, when the plugs are separated from each other, the tip surfaces of the ferrules are exposed to the abutting surface side of the flanges, so that the plugs can be separated from each other as necessary. Then, when the plugs are reassembled, the tip surfaces of the ferrules in these plugs can be easily cleaned prior to the reassembly, so that the light caused by contamination of the ferrule tip surfaces can be removed. It is possible to avoid an increase in connection loss between fibers.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cutaway front view showing an embodiment of an optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing main parts in the embodiment of FIG. 1 in a disassembled and cut-away manner.

FIG. 3 is a front view schematically showing another embodiment of the optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a front view schematically showing still another embodiment of the optical connector connecting portion according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a cutaway front view of an optical connector connecting portion according to a conventional example, showing a state before plug connection.

[Explanation of symbols]

 21a Optical fiber 21b Optical fiber 22a Ferrule 22b Ferrule 23a Plug 23b Plug 24a Cylindrical body 24b Cylindrical body 25a Flange 25b Flange 27a Large diameter part (fitting space) 27b Large diameter part (fitting space) 30c sleeve

Claims (1)

Claim: What is claimed is: 1. A pair of ferrules attached to each end of an optical fiber to be connected, a pair of plugs for holding these ferrules inside, and inside and outside of these plugs and ferrules. A sleeve for interposing between the peripheral surfaces, and the pair of plugs each include a cylinder and a flange integrally formed on the outer circumference of the tip of the cylinder, and the cylinder of each plug. Each of the ferrules is fitted into the body from the rear end side thereof, and the front end surface of each ferrule reaches at least the abutting surface of each flange, and a sleeve is provided between the inner and outer peripheral surfaces of the plug and ferrule. In the plugs in which the abutting surfaces of the flanges are abutted against each other, Along with being fitted said sleeve over space, the distal end surface of the ferrule of the pair have been matched to one another within the sleeve, these ferrules,
An optical connector connecting part having a built-in sleeve, wherein the abutting plugs of the flange abutting faces are tightly connected to each other.