JPH05501313A - Optical element installation - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] Optical element installation TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an optical device and an apparatus for mounting the optical device. The present invention is used in optical communication technology. This is an important application in the mounting of small lenses in optical devices of this type.

Taking optical fiber communication systems as an example, the Many devices transmit light between their elements in the form of a light beam traveling through free space.

The distance that light travels as a beam is typically a few micrometers, but it can vary by a few millimeters. This is a necessary condition. The beam is constructed using lenses designed to alleviate inherent alignment limitations. pass frequently. In a transmitter, the lens is typically a light source such as a laser. The focal point of the light output from the optical fiber is connected, for example, to the end of an optical fiber. At the receiver, The light emerging from the bar end is incident on a photodetector, such as a PIN photodiode. so that it is focused by the lens.

Optical transmission in which the light emitted from a laser is focused by a spherical lens onto the end of an optical fiber. The signal device is disclosed in the published international patent application WO38/10018 (“Op. C1l De Manufacture of optical equipment for use in BT&D Corporation) This is one of the frequently occurring problems in Proper alignment requires that the parts themselves be small; High precision alignment required (typically less than a few micrometers), alignment for more than 25 years Difficult problems due to the need to ensure stable conditions over the lifetime of the equipment occurs.

The present invention provides a mounting for optical devices that provides good long-term alignment at relatively low manufacturing costs. is about providing structure.

According to a first aspect of the invention, the mounting for the optical element is such that the structure is attached to it on its main surface. It includes a support member that is plastically deformable in parallel, and the support member has one or more optical elements attached thereto. It is equipped with means for mounting on top of.

According to a second aspect of the invention, the mounting for a small optical lens has a structure on its main surface. and a support member that is plastically deformable parallel to the support member, and the support member includes one or more optical elements. means for attaching the child thereon.

Preferably, the support member can also be plastically deformed in a direction perpendicular to this main surface.

According to a third aspect of the invention, the lens mounting section for a small optical lens is provided on its main surface. and a support member that can be plastically deformed parallel to the support member. If out-of-plane motion is given may be given.

Preferably, the support member according to the invention includes a frame structure.

The frame structure allows the mounting of optical elements conveniently located within this space to Confining an essentially enclosed space. For example, frame structure The optical element mounting portion is provided with a portion that protrudes inside the space limited by the structure. desired If so, the mounting for the optical element can alternatively or additionally be located outside the frame structure. provided.

A frame structure is open towards its associated base, i.e. essentially enveloping. The enclosed space is limited only when the frame structure is attached to its base.

Such an open frame structure has a corresponding closed frame structure with attached optical elements. This often allows for closer access to the base than to the base.

The support member includes two or more relatively rigid members connected by a relatively deformable portion. Contains parts. However, as an alternative, the support members may be substantially the same throughout. It may also be deformable.

If the support member is a frame structure with corners, the corners are deformable areas. area.

The material forming the deformable part of the support member maintains the shape given by the adjustment. It needs to have a low elastic modulus so that it can be used.

The above structure according to the invention allows for adjustments such as re-alignment of the optical lenses after assembly. to be carried out.

The invention will now be further explained, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIG.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a lens mounting section according to the present invention, and FIG. 1a is a perspective view of a lens mounting section according to the present invention. indicates the adjustment ability of the part.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an optical device structure comprising a plurality of optical elements.

3A-3C and FIG. 4 are schematic diagrams of embodiments showing various modifications to FIG. It is a front view.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line v--■ in FIG. 3a.

Figure 6 shows that the lens mounting coupled to the feeder strip is practical for providing a section. It is a structure.

FIG. 7 shows another modified structure of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows a generally diamond-shaped frame portion 2 and The lens mounting, including the straight leg portion 3 integral with it, is shown in part 1. Lug 4 is leg part 3 and protrudes inside the frame from the opposite corner. Lug 4 has pressure on lens 6 It has an opening 5 for coupling.

As shown in FIGS. Any suitable shape is sufficient. Lens 6 may be, for example, a graded index rod lens (not shown). In the example, a spherical lens is used, although other forms of the lens may be used, such as be.

Figure 1a shows how the frame 1 of Figure 1 is adjusted to position the lens 6 of Figure 1 in the appropriate position. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating how the nodes can be linked; FIG. As indicated by the arrow, The lenses can be placed on top or bottom (U←→D), left and right (L←→R), and front and back ( F←→B). There are generally two most practical adjustments. , or if possible a combination of the three omnidirectional movements shown here. Ru. Vertical and horizontal movements are generally within a plane limited by the frame. , it should be noted that the forward and backward movement is arcuate in a direction approximately perpendicular to that plane. be.

To adjust the position of the lens 6, the frame 1 is fitted with a suitable tool (not shown). It is deformed by applying an external force. There are essentially two transformations of frame 1. One of the ways: the frame is distorted entirely or Distortion occurs either when the distortion is confined to a dedicated part of the frame, such as at a digital point.

Such a hinge point may be, for example, an area of low strength in the lower material, or a given It is an area of high stress concentration under load. Self-deformation under operating conditions is clearly desirable. The material strength of the frame should be selected such that deformation requires the application of tools. need to be selected.

FIG. 2 shows a lens mounted on block 12 with light source 13 and optical fiber 11. The mounting is shown in part 1. Frame 1 and block 12 are mounted on intermediate base lO I get kicked. The frame 1 is blocked by two spaced spot welds 7. It is fixed to the rack 12. Frame 1 to allow the formation of spot welds The leg portion 3 of the frame 1 extends beyond the corner of the frame 1 itself. blaze welding , soldering or organic adhesives may be used in place of spot welding in appropriate environments. may be used.

How to align the light source 13, optical fiber 11 and lens 6 in section 1 is essentially a try and φ error method. Therefore, the lens installation is done in part 1. The fixing is carried out as follows: the light source 13 is switched on and the lens mounting is done in part 1. is adjusted in position to achieve the desired alignment between it, the light source 13 and the fiber 11. It will be done. In this position, the lens mounting part 1 is secured onto the block 12 in the manner described above. determined. The process of fixing the lens mounting part 1 on the block 12 is based on the previously obtained alignment. There is a tendency to disturb the rows, especially when spot welding. Then the process Such misalignment that occurs during Attach the lens with appropriate tools (not shown) until desired optical alignment is achieved. is corrected by deforming part 1. The precision required to obtain alignment, was The exact process for obtaining it is therefore highly dependent on the particular application. altitude For example, the alignment accuracy of required.

FIGS. 3a-3c show different embodiments of the generally diamond-shaped frame of FIG. show. The frame shown in FIG. It is substantially the same as that of FIG. 1 except for the addition.

The frame of Fig. 3b has mainly the central part of the leg section 3 removed, and the two It differs from that of FIG. 3a in that side parts 33 remain. This is the frame This allows the lug 4 hanging from the top to be longer than the one in Figure 1. The lens is therefore lower with respect to the leg portion 3 than is possible with the frame of Figure 3a. Allows to be mounted in any position.

The frame in Figure 3C is connected to the front of the base lO instead of the top of Figure 2. It has short leg portions 38 that are used when Furthermore, C in Figure 3 is rounded. A generally rectangular aperture with rounded corners, where the lens extends along the four straight lines of the aperture. It is held in place by the solid sides.

The individual characteristics of the three examples in FIGS. 3a to 3c are similar to those shown in FIG. It is clear that various methods for forming a system can be combined. .

Another embodiment of the invention is shown in FIG. The frame shown in Figure 4 is essentially An aperture 5 for mounting a lens is arranged at the far end of the T-shaped stem 42. , the leg portion 43 has an inverted T shape formed by a T-shaped horizontal bar. closest to the horizontal bar In this case, the stem 42 forms a bridge 44 which is a mechanically weak area. is weakened by two offset slots 47 and 48. easily understood As shown in FIG. Allows movement to the right. The vertical movement of the stem 42 causes shearing of the bridge 44. The movement in the anteroposterior direction causes torsional deformation of the bridge 44.

Additional areas of weakness can be achieved by e.g. additional slots ( (not shown).

5 is a cross section taken along line v-v in a of FIG. 3, and shows the position of the lens 6 in the frame 1. is shown in detail. As shown, the lens 6 is press fit into the side of the opening 35 in the lug 4. form a union.

To reduce unwanted reflections, the lens 6 is provided with an anti-reflection coating 67. Ru. The anti-reflection coating 67 is installed on the lens only after it has been inserted into the frame 1. It is preferable that the The fact is that frame 1 is in anti-reflection coating and of course It is also convenient to hold the lens 6 after use and can be used as a lamp This is one of the advantages of using a frame such as that provided by the present invention.

With particular reference to FIG. 6, the frame shown here with lens 66 inserted is Conveniently formed along strip 67 and joined to the strip along dashed line 68. It is.

In use, the lens is inserted into the opening in the frame 61 and then coated with an anti-reflection coating. It will be done. Each frame 61 is then broken off from the strip 67 along the dashed line 68. and is coupled to a base such as base block IO of FIG.

A further modified form of the invention is shown in FIG. the frame shown there For example, International Patent Application Publication W O89105467 (“Light 5our ces”, BT&D Technologies Lid) to allow you to install photodiodes and lens structures such as It has been corrected.

The frame 71 of FIG. The outer ends of the support arms have a central portion 76 on which the support arms are supported. Fixing frame 71 to a base (not shown) such as base 10 of FIG. It is an open frame providing leg portions 73.

The frame material must be made to closely match the coefficient of expansion of the base to which the frame is fixed. It is preferable that the The base is like a laser or light emitting diode It is preferable that the device be used as an active device. If the base is copper, for the frame The material may be nickel, but if silicon-based, Conocool 1M is a good match. It is a material with a certain expansion coefficient.

Depending on the required dimensions and frame material, the frame can be mechanically stamped The can be formed. The aperture for fitting the lens is formed in the same way. can be done.

In all the above cases, the material thickness, stiffness, deformation capacity and other The material parameters are such that the frame resists deformation during use even when subjected to moderate shock. The frame should be flexible enough to resist and be deformed with the help of a force adjustment tool. selected for a given design of the system. The frame has a clearly defined deformation zone. If the deformable zone is designed to have a selected.

international search report international search report GO9001583 SA 41214

Claims (10)

[Claims] (1) The support member includes a support member that can be plastically deformed in parallel to the main surface thereof, and mounting for optical elements, where the material is provided with means for mounting one or more optical elements thereon; structure. (2) The support member includes a support member that can be plastically deformed in parallel to the main surface thereof; The material is a small optical lens having means for mounting one or more optical lenses thereon. Mounting structure for lenses. (3) The supporting member is also plastically deformable in a direction perpendicular to the main surface. Structure described in 2. (4) The support member is composed of two or more relatively rigid parts connected by a relatively deformable portion. A structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising a rigid portion. (5) The support member according to any one of claims 1 to 5 is deformable in substantially the same manner throughout. The structure described in any one of the items. (6) The structure according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the supporting member is a frame structure. . (7) The support member is an optical element that protrudes into the space limited by the frame structure. Any one of claims 1 to 6, comprising a frame structure having a mounting portion. structure. (8) The frame structure is open on the side designed to face its associated base. 8. The structure according to claim 7. (9) Lens mounting for a small optical lens according to any one of claims 1 to 8. attachment structure. (10) A light including the mounting structure according to any one of claims 1 to 9. element.