JPH052115U - Optical fiber drive relay for laser processing - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide an optical fiber drive relay for laser processing, which can be arranged at a position distant from the laser processing machine, and has a quick switching time and can accurately position the optical fiber. [Structure] A movable block supporting the movable optical fiber, a movable body capable of moving the movable optical fiber to any position of the two fixed optical fibers, and supporting and fixing the two fixed optical fibers. The fixed block, the electromagnet device for moving the movable body, the connecting member for connecting the movable body and the electromagnet device, and the chamber for housing the movable body and the fixed block separately from the electromagnet device. A sleeve was attached to the switching portion between the movable side optical fiber and the fixed side optical fiber, and the sleeve was pressed and fixed by a fixing metal member having a convex portion protruding downward in a tapered shape with the sleeve. Further, a cutout is provided at the end of the sleeve attached to the switching portion between the movable side optical fiber and the fixed side optical fiber.

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

[Industrial applications]

  The present invention is a laser processing machine for performing welding, cutting, drilling, etc. using an optical fiber. A device for switching laser light with high energy density used for For optical fiber drive relay for laser processing that optically switches the light guide path of EVER Concerned.

[0002]

[Prior art]

  Conventionally, as a device that switches the laser light used in the laser processing machine Before entering the laser light into the optical fiber, set the mirror, shutter, etc. Or an electromagnetic solenoid to drive and switch between them There is known a device configured to be incident on a beam.

Further, as an optical fiber relay, there is a relay for communication adopted in an optical network system or the like using an optical fiber for information transmission. As shown in FIG. 23, this is a fixed light guide path portion A in which fixed side optical fibers B and B having end faces P ₁ and P ₂ are arranged by adhering to both surfaces of a support plate C, and end faces P ₃ and P ₃ . A movable light guide section having _four end faces ₄ and movable end optical fibers E which can face the end faces P ₁ and P ₂ of the fixed side optical fibers B and B, and which are arranged by adhering to both surfaces of the support plate C. D, a driving means F including a driving member G for driving the movable light guide path section D, these fixed light guide path section A, and a base H on which the movable light guide path section D and the driving means F are mounted. Therefore, both optical fibers B and E are optically connected or disconnected according to the operation of the driving means F.

[0004]

[Problems to be solved by the device]

  However, those that use mirrors and shutters, etc. The switching device is installed in the laser oscillator itself in order to switch before the light is incident. It has to be attached and the entire laser processing machine becomes large, If the object is located far from the laser machine, multiple optical fibers However, there was a problem that all of them had to be placed long up to the work piece.

[0005]   Also, if the optical fiber relay is adapted for laser processing, the laser for processing Light has a higher energy density by several orders of magnitude than that used for communication, and optical fibers When transmitting Iber laser light, the loss of light increases due to a slight deviation of the optical axis, Loss turns into heat and the optical fiber becomes hot, and it is a little small. If dust and dirt adhere to the end face of the optical fiber, not only will loss increase, but also optical fiber There are problems caused by high energy density, such as damage to the end surface of the bar itself. Yes, and in terms of safety, the laser light is output from which optical fiber on the output side. It is necessary to detect whether the optical fiber relay for communication is applied as it is. I couldn't.

[0006]   The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the purpose thereof is Can be placed away from the laser processing machine and the switching time is fast and The optical fiber can be positioned accurately, there is little loss of light, and high energy density laser Laser drive optical fiber relay that can withstand laser light To provide.

[0007]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

  The first invention of the present invention is that the laser light passing through one movable side optical fiber is For optical fiber drive relay that switches to one of two fixed side optical fibers The movable block supporting the movable optical fiber and the movable optical fiber A movable body that can move the iber to either position of the two fixed-side optical fibers; A fixed block that supports and fixes the optical fiber on the fixed side of the book, and to move the movable body Electromagnet device, a connecting member for connecting the movable body and the electromagnet device, and the movable body and the fixed block. The movable side is composed of a chamber for separating the housing from the electromagnet device. Attach a sleeve to the switching part between the optical fiber on the fixed side and the optical fiber on the fixed side. The optical fiber on the fixed side of the book has a convex part protruding downward with a sleeve. The second aspect of the present invention is characterized in that it is fixed by being pressed by a fixing metal fitting. The idea is to use a sleeve at the switching part between the movable side optical fiber and the fixed side optical fiber. And has a notch formed at the end of the sleeve. The above problem is solved by this configuration.

[0008]

[Action]

  In the first invention, it is possible to reduce the positional deviation of the fixed block, 2 In the invention, the notch of the sleeve is used when aligning the optical fibers with each other. The optical fiber can be observed through the optical fiber, and the optical fiber can be accurately positioned. It can be performed.

[0009]

【Example】

  The movable optical fiber 1 is entirely covered with a nylon jacket, The jacket is peeled off near 1a and the metal sleeve 8 with good heat dissipation is attached. , And the sleeve 8 are optically polished. The inside of the sleeve 8 has an air layer 24 and a support. It is composed of a fire 25.

[0010]   The fixed optical fibers 2 and 3 are the same as the movable optical fiber 1 and are made of metal. And the end faces 2a and 3a are optically polished. Metal pickpocket The insides of the curves 9 and 10 are composed of an air layer and sapphire.   The movable block 4 has a concave groove 4 for positioning the optical fiber 1 on the movable side. a, 4e are provided, and the optical fiber 1 is provided with The taper surface 11b, the side surface 4b of the groove 4a, and the bottom surface 4c are supported and fixed at three points. It is fixed by the fixing metal fitting 12 at the bottom part. Also, the optical fibers 2 and 3 are jacketed. It is fixed by the fixing bracket 14 at the bottom portion.

[0011]   The fixed block 5 is used for positioning and fixing the fixed optical fibers 2 and 3. The concave groove 5a is formed, and the optical fiber 2 is fixed to the sleeve 9 at the fixing fitting 13 Is supported at three points: the tapered surface 13b of the convex portion 13a, the side surface 5b of the concave groove 5a, and the bottom surface 5c. The optical fiber 3 is held and fixed, and the optical fiber 3 is fixed to the sleeve 10 at the convex portion 13a of the fixing bracket 13. The taper surface 13c, the side surface 5d of the concave groove 5a, and the bottom surface 5c are supported and fixed at three points. It

[0012]   The chamber base 6 has a substantially U-shaped cross section with an opening at the top. The fixed block 5 is screwed near one end in 6 and the movable body 16 that is a shaft is It is slidably supported by being hung between the side walls via the bush 15. One end of the movable block 4 is fixed to the central portion of the movable body 16. In addition, the movable body 1 6, a support bar 21 is laid adjacent to the support 6, and a movable block is attached to the support bar 21. A fitting groove 4f at the other end of 4 is slidably fitted.

[0013]   As for the chamber lid 7, the fixed block 5 and the movable block 4 are attached to the chamber base 6. After that, the chamber is attached to the opening and forms a chamber with the chamber base 6 to form the inside and the outside. Is isolated. The movable optical fiber 1 and the fixed optical fibers 2 and 3 are It is formed by the grooves 6a and 6b of the chamber base 6 and the recess 7a of the chamber lid 7, respectively. It is led out from the lead-out hole.

[0014]   The stopper bases 17 and 18 have adjusting screws 19 and 20, respectively, It is being fixed to the flange part 6c extended outward from 6. Adjusting screws 19, 20 End portions 19a, 20a of the shaft abut the end surfaces 16a, 16b of the shaft 16 and The position of the end face 1a of the optical fiber 1 is adjusted.   In this embodiment, the electromagnet device 22 uses a permanent magnet to perform a bistable operation. electromagnet The device 22 has elasticity to transmit the movement of the electromagnet to the movable shaft 16. A connecting member 23 is attached.

[0015]   Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.   The end face 1a of the movable optical fiber 1 and the end faces 2a of the fixed optical fibers 2 and 3 The optical fiber 1 on the movable side is movable because it faces 3a with a slight gap. The block 4 and the movable body 16 move integrally with each other in accordance with the operation of the electromagnet device 22 and are electrically conductive. Elastic members 24 and 25 are deformed by the movable portion 22a of the electromagnet device 22, Of the end face 1a of the optical fiber 1 and the end faces 2a, 3a of the fixed side optical fibers 2, 3. The optical path is formed by facing either fixed optical fiber 2 or 3 without changing the gap. Be done. That is, when the bistable electromagnet device 22 is in the operating position X, the end surface of the movable body 16 is 16b contacts the end 20a of the adjusting screw 20 of the stopper base 18. Movable at this time The end face 1a of the side optical fiber 1 is exactly paired with the end face 2a of the fixed side optical fiber 2. The position of the movable body 16 is adjusted by the adjusting screw 20 so as to face. Electromagnet device 22 Is at the Y position, the end surface 16a of the movable body 16 is adjusted by the adjustment screw 1 of the stopper base 17. It comes into contact with the end portion 19a of the shaft 9. At this time, the end face 1a of the movable optical fiber 1 is bent. The shuffling is performed by the adjusting screw 19 so as to face the end face 3a of the optical fiber 3 on the fixed side. Adjust the position of the toe 16. In this way, pass through the optical fiber 1 on the movable side. The incoming laser light is switched to one of the two fixed-side optical fibers 2, 3. It

[0016]   In the embodiment shown in FIG. 10 to FIG. 22, the optical fiber 1 on the movable side is not attached. Notches 8a and 8b are formed at the end of the sleeve 8 which is formed on the fixed side. Notches 9 are provided at the ends of the sleeves 9 and 10 attached to the optical fiber. A structure similar to that of the above embodiment except that a, 9b and 10a, 10b are provided. Is.

[0017]   Also in this embodiment, the end face 1a of the movable optical fiber 1 and the fixed optical fiber 1 are fixed. It faces the end faces 2a, 3a of the bars 2, 3 with a slight gap, and The optical fiber 1 moves the electromagnet device 22 integrally with the movable block 4 and the movable body 16. The conductive elastic members 24, 25 move to the movable part 22a of the electromagnet device 22 according to the operation. More deformed, the end face 1a of the optical fiber 1 on the possible side and the optical fibers 2, 3 on the fixed side With either of the fixed-side optical fibers 2, 3 without changing the gap between the end faces 2a, 3a of the Opposite, an optical path is formed. At this time, as shown in FIG. 18, the movable side optical fiber 1 The end face 1a of the head and the end faces 2a and 3a of the fixed side optical fibers 2 and 3 are sleeves, respectively. Direct observation through the notches 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b of 8, 9, 10 Can be positioned accurately. In addition, the notches of the sleeves 8, 9 and 10 Then, as shown in FIG. 20, 8c, 8d, 9c, 9d, 10c and 10d are formed, If you form 4 parts in total, not only in one direction but also in two directions and optical fibers 1, 2 Alignment of the space between 3 in all directions is performed while observing the end faces 1a, 2a, 3a. I can.

[0018]   In addition, regarding the operation of this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. When the magnet device 22 is in the operating position X, the end surface 16b of the movable body 16 is stopped by the stopper base 18 It comes into contact with the end portion 20a of the adjusting screw 20. At this time, the end surface of the movable side optical fiber 1 Adjusting screw 2 so that 1a just faces end surface 2a of optical fiber 2 on the fixed side The position of the movable body 16 is adjusted by 0. When the electromagnet device 22 is in the Y position, The end surface 16a of the movable body 16 contacts the end portion 19a of the adjusting screw 19 of the stopper base 17. It At this time, the end surface 1a of the movable optical fiber 1 is just the fixed optical fiber 3 The position of the shaft 16 is adjusted by the adjusting screw 19 so as to face the end surface 3a of the . In this way, the laser light that has passed through the optical fiber 1 on the movable side is It can be switched to one of the fixed-side optical fibers 2 and 3.

[0019]

[Effect of device]

  In the first aspect of the present invention, a movable side optical fiber and a fixed side optical fiber A sleeve is attached to the switching part of the cable, and the two fixed-side optical fibers are Since it is pressed and fixed by the fixing metal fittings that have convex parts protruding like a pad, In addition, it is possible to reduce the positional deviation of the fixed block. If so, slip the switching part between the movable side optical fiber and the fixed side optical fiber. Since the sleeve is attached and the sleeve has a notch at the end, Observe the optical fiber through the notch in the sleeve when aligning And the precise positioning of the optical fiber can be achieved and therefore the laser It can be placed away from the machine and the switching time is short and the optical fiber is accurate. Can be positioned, there is little light loss, and it is sufficient for high energy density laser light. It is something that can be endured.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the above.

3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG.

5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG.

6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line DD of FIG.

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of an essential part of the above.

FIG. 8 is a view for explaining the operation of the above.

FIG. 9 is a view for explaining the operation of the above.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a front view of the above.

FIG. 12 is a side view of the above.

13 is a sectional view taken along the line EE of FIG.

14 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line FF of FIG.

15 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line GG of FIG.

FIG. 16 is an exploded perspective view of an essential part of the above.

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing an end of an optical fiber in the above.

FIG. 18 is a plan view of an essential part of the above.

19 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line HH of FIG.

FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of the end portion of the optical fiber.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation of the above.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation of the above.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a main part showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Optical fiber on the movable side 2 Fixed side optical fiber 3 Fixed side optical fiber 4 movable blocks 5 fixed blocks 8 sleeves 8a cutout 8b cutout 9 sleeve 9a cutout 9b cutout 10 sleeve 10a cutout 10b cutout 13 Fixing bracket 13a convex part 16 movable body 22 Electromagnet device

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Creator Katsumi Yoshitani             1048, Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric Works Co., Ltd.             Inside the company (72) Creator Tsutomu Shimomura             1048, Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric Works Co., Ltd.             Inside the company

Claims (3)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. An optical fiber drive relay for switching a laser beam passing through one movable-side optical fiber to one of two fixed-side optical fibers, and a movable block supporting the movable-side optical fiber. A movable body for moving the movable side optical fiber to any position of the two fixed side optical fibers, a fixed block for supporting and fixing the two fixed side optical fibers, an electromagnet device for moving the movable body, and a movable body. And a chamber for storing the movable body and the fixed block separately from the electromagnet device.A sleeve is attached to the switching part between the movable side optical fiber and the fixed side optical fiber. However, the two fixed-side optical fibers are pressed by the fixing metal fittings that have the protrusions that taper downward with the sleeve. Laser processing optical fiber driving relay, characterized in that it is a constant. 2. The optical fiber drive relay for laser processing according to claim 1, wherein the two fixed-side optical fibers are fixed by being pressed into the concave groove of the fixed block by fixing metal fittings. 3. An optical fiber drive relay for switching laser light passing through one movable optical fiber to one of two fixed optical fibers, a movable block supporting the movable optical fiber, A movable body for moving the movable side optical fiber to any position of the two fixed side optical fibers, a fixed block for supporting and fixing the two fixed side optical fibers, an electromagnet device for moving the movable body, and a movable body. And a chamber for storing the movable body and the fixed block separately from the electromagnet device.A sleeve is attached to the switching part between the movable side optical fiber and the fixed side optical fiber. The optical fiber drive relay for laser processing is characterized in that a notch is formed at the end of the sleeve.