JPH08286130A - Light path switching device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To reduce the size of the light path switching device by switching and connecting a master optical fiber and a light path. CONSTITUTION: Plural multicore optical connectors 10 are arrayed and arranged longitudinally and laterally in two dimensions. A stage 6 is provided with a light path switching head 16 and a fiber switching mechanism 17. A switching and conveying mechanism 15 controls the movement of the stage 16 in the lateral direction, longitudinal direction, and forward and backward directions to convey and move the light path switching head 16 toward a specified multicore optical connector 10. On the top surface of the light path switching head 16, V grooves 20 are formed as many as the light paths of the multicore optical connector 10. The stage 16 is moved in the forward and backward directions to fit the fitting pin 21 in fitting pin holes 14. The fiber switching mechanism 17 moves the master optical fiber 7 in the array direction of the V grooves 20 to the position of the groove 20 of a specified light path 12 to be inspected in order and inserts it into its groove 20, and then connects each light path 12 to the master optical fiber 7, thereby inspecting the light path 12 by an OTDR connected to the side of the master optical fiber 7.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical line switching device for switching and connecting multi-core optical fiber cores in units of one core.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When inspecting and inspecting an optical transmission abnormality of an optical communication line or a multi-core optical fiber (optical line) of an optical circuit,
The optical line of each core on the wiring or circuit side is switched and connected to the optical line (optical fiber) of the inspection device side to inspect or inspect each core. FIG. 5 shows a conventional device for switching and connecting optical lines for these inspections and inspections.

In FIG. 1, a common adapter 3 and a plurality of adapters 4 are arranged on a wall surface 2 of a housing 1, and the common adapter 3 detects an abnormality in an optical line.
An external single-core wire (not shown) on the OTDR (Optical Time Domain Reflectometer) side is connected to the plurality of adapters 4
For example, each core wire end of the multi-core tape fiber is connected in a one-to-one correspondence.

A transport moving means using a ball screw 5 is provided in the housing 1, and the stage 6 is reciprocally moved along the ball screw 5 by this transport moving means. A ferrule 8 on the master optical fiber 7 side is mounted on the stage 6, and the other end side of the master optical fiber 7 is connected to the common adapter 3 side. The computer (CPU) has a built-in control circuit of the transporting and moving means, and the control circuit of this CPU controls the rotation of the ball screw 5 to move the stage 6 to the designated adapter 4 of the optical line to be inspected. By driving the cam member 9 and connecting the ferrule 8 to the corresponding adapter 4, the optical line to be inspected is connected to the OTDR side, and the optical line to which the ferrule 8 is connected is inspected or inspected.

Next, the cam member 9 is driven to drive the ferrule 8
Is removed from the adapter 4, the stage 6 is conveyed and moved to the next designated adapter position of the optical line to be inspected, and the ferrule 8 is connected to the adapter of the optical line to be inspected in the same manner. Inspection and inspection of the optical line is performed. In this way, by designating the optical lines to be inspected, the ferrules 8 are coupled to the adapters of the optical lines to be inspected one after another according to a predetermined order, and the inspection and inspection of each optical line are automatically performed. It is a thing.

[0006]

However, since the conventional optical line switching device is a system in which one optical fiber core wire is connected to one adapter 4, when the number of core wires to be inspected increases, Since a large number of adapters 4 must be installed accordingly, there is a problem that the device becomes abnormally large.

The adapter 4 is, for example, 10 mm wide and 22 m high.
Since it has a size and shape of m and 23 mm in depth, it is possible to switch 10 mm × 22 mm × 23 mm by switching only 200 optical fibers.
It requires an adapter mounting volume × 200 = 1012000m ^3. Recently, with the spread of optical communication lines and circuits,
The switching connection of optical lines of 2000 cores has been required, and as shown in FIG. 5, such an optical line switching device having a large number of optical fibers has one adapter for each optical line. The method of providing 4 has a problem that the device becomes too large.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object thereof is to provide an optical line switching device capable of accurately switching a large number of optical lines with a small device. To do.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is constructed as follows. That is, the first invention is a multi-fiber optical connector in which a plurality of multi-fiber optical connectors arranged in a two-dimensional array in a vertical and horizontal direction and a large number of V grooves corresponding to the number of cores of at least one multi-fiber optical connector are provided. An optical line switching head provided at the same pitch as the optical fiber array pitch, a position fitting / removing means for aligning the optical line switching head with each multi-fiber optical connector, and a multi-fiber designated with an optical line switching head. The master optical fiber is sequentially arranged in the V-groove arrangement direction of the optical line switching head with the switching transport mechanism moving to the fitting / removing position of the optical connector and the optical line switching head aligned and fitted to the designated multi-fiber optical connector. And a fiber switching mechanism for switching the connection between the optical line of each core of the multi-fiber optical connector and the master optical fiber by moving the optical fiber into a designated V groove. It has been made.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the structure of the first aspect of the invention, the same number of optical line switching heads as the number of horizontal optical fibers arranged in a row are arranged in the same horizontal row, and the head moving mechanism is used. One feature is that the horizontal optical line switching heads are collectively moved in the vertical direction in units of columns.

In a third aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the first aspect of the invention, the width of one optical line switching head is formed to be substantially the same as the arrangement width of the entire horizontal row of a plurality of multi-fiber optical connectors. Each optical line switching head is provided with a V-groove corresponding to the number of cores of each multi-core optical connector in a horizontal row, and this optical line switching head is vertically moved row by row by a head moving mechanism. It is characterized by

Further, a fourth invention is provided with a multi-fiber optical connector arranged in a plurality of two-dimensionally in a vertical and horizontal direction, and the connection end face side of each multi-fiber optical connector corresponds to the number of cores of the multi-fiber optical connector. A plurality of V grooves are aligned and arranged at the same pitch as the optical fiber array pitch of the multi-fiber optical connector, and the optical line switching heads are integrally coupled, and the master optical fibers are sequentially switched to the optical line. A fiber switching mechanism that moves in the V-groove arrangement direction of the head and inserts it into the designated V-groove to switch the connection between the optical line of each core of the multi-fiber optical connector and the master optical fiber, and this fiber switching mechanism are designated. And a switching / conveying mechanism for moving the optical fiber switching head of the multi-fiber optical connector.

[0013]

In the first to third inventions having the above-mentioned structure, the switching / transporting mechanism is driven so that the optical line switching head is set to the fitting / removing position of the multi-fiber optical connector designated for the inspection or inspection of the optical line. The head is moved and the optical line switching head is fitted and connected to the multi-core optical connector side by the fitting / removing means.

By fitting and mounting the multi-core optical connector and the optical line switching head, each optical line on the multi-fiber optical connector side and the V groove on the optical line switching head side are automatically aligned. In this state, the fiber switching mechanism is driven to move the master optical fiber in the V-groove arrangement direction of the optical line switching head, insert it into the specified V-groove, and press it down, thereby inspecting the multi-fiber optical connector. The optical fiber line to be inspected is inspected using an inspection / inspection device such as an OTDR connected to the master optical fiber. After completion of this inspection and inspection, the master optical fiber is pulled out from the V groove, moved to the next specified V groove, and inserted, so that the connection between the next optical fiber to be inspected and inspected and the master optical fiber is achieved. It In this way, by sequentially moving the master optical fiber to the V groove of the optical line to be inspected and inserting it into the V groove, the connection between the optical line of each core on the multi-fiber optical connector side and the master optical fiber is switched. Is achieved.

Further, in the fourth invention, the fiber switching mechanism is moved to the optical line switching head side of the designated multi-fiber optical connector by the switching transport mechanism, and the fiber is moved in the same manner as in the first to third inventions. Drive the switching mechanism,
By sequentially moving the master optical fiber in the V-groove arrangement direction of the optical line switching head and inserting it into the V-groove, the connection between the optical line on the side of each multi-fiber optical connector to be inspected or inspected and the master optical fiber is switched. Is achieved.

[0016]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the description of the present embodiment, the same names as those in the conventional example are designated by the same reference numerals, and the duplicate description thereof will be omitted. 1 to 4 show one embodiment of the present invention.
The optical line switching device of the present embodiment has a housing 1 as in the conventional example, and on a wall surface 2 of this housing 1, as shown in FIG. Direction) and the horizontal direction are arranged two-dimensionally.

As shown in FIG. 1, each multi-core optical connector 10 is connected to a multi-core tape fiber 11 of an optical communication line or an optical circuit, and the multi-core tape fiber 11 has an optical line (optical fiber) of each core. ) 12 is inserted and fixed in the optical fiber insertion hole of the multi-fiber optical connector 10, and is exposed on the connection end face 13 side of the multi-fiber optical connector 10.

The end faces of the optical line 12 of the connection end face 13 are arranged in a horizontal row at equal pitch intervals, and fitting pin holes 14 are formed on both sides of the array group of the optical line 12.

A stage 6 is disposed in the housing 1, and the stage 6 is linked to a switching / conveying mechanism 15 for moving the stage 6 in two-dimensional vertical and horizontal directions and in an advancing / retreating direction with respect to the multi-fiber optical connector 10. Has been done.

An optical line switching head 16 and a fiber switching mechanism 17 are mounted on the stage 6.
The optical line switching head 16 has a width substantially the same as the width of one multi-fiber optical connector 10, and a recess 18 is formed on the upper surface side thereof. A large number of V grooves 20 having the same pitch as the arrangement pitch of the optical lines 12 are formed in correspondence with the number of the optical lines 12 of the multi-fiber optical connector 10.

On the connection end face side of the optical line switching head 16 (the face side facing the connection end face 13 of the multi-fiber optical connector 10), V
Fitting pins 21 are projected on both sides of the array group of the grooves 20, and by fitting the fitting pins 21 into the fitting pin holes 14 of the multi-fiber optical connector 10, each of the multi-fiber optical connectors 10 is provided. The optical line 12 of the heart and the respective V grooves 20 of the optical line switching head 16 are aligned,
The optical axes of the master optical fiber 7 housed in the groove 20 and the optical line 12 of the multi-fiber optical connector 10 side facing the V groove 20 are aligned with each other, and are fitted with the fitting pin 21. The pin hole 14 functions as an alignment fitting / removing means for the optical line switching head 16 and the multi-fiber optical connector 10.

FIG. 3 shows the interrelationship between the stage 6, the optical line switching head 16 and the fiber switching mechanism 17 in FIG. 1 in more detail. The front end side of the stage 6 (the surface side facing the multi-fiber optical connector 10). A head mount 22 is fixed to the upper surface of () by screw fastening, and an optical line switching head 16 is mounted and fixed to the upper end of the head mount 22. On the upper surface of the second half of stage 6, a moving base 23
Is arranged.

An inverted U-shaped moving rail 24 is fixed to the bottom surface side of the moving base 23, and a concave portion 25 is formed on the surface on the stage 6 side facing the moving rail 24.
A U-shaped fixed rail 26 is fixed to the inside of the fixed rail 26, and the movable rail 24 is fitted inside the fixed rail 26 via a ball 27.
The movable base 23 is movable relative to the stage 6 along a fixed rail 26 in a direction orthogonal to the paper surface of FIG. 3 (V groove arrangement direction of the optical line switching head 16). This moving base
As a moving means of 23, a moving mechanism using a ball screw 5 as shown in FIG.
Attached to the base 23 by moving the conveyor belt.
A moving mechanism for the moving base 23 is configured in various forms such as a mechanism for moving the moving base, a mechanism for fixing one end side of the wire to the transport base 23, and moving the moving base 23 by winding the wire. Reference numeral 28 in FIG. 3 is a guide rod that guides the movement of the moving base 23, and the guide rods 28 are fixed to the stage 6 by being stretched over both ends of the stage 6.

A fiber pressing mechanism 30 is provided between the moving base 23 and the head mounting base 22. The fiber pressing mechanism 30 is configured to have a first block body 31 and a second block body 32. The first block body 31 and the second block body 32 are provided on a side plate 33 fixed to the moving base 23 side. A rod shaft 34 is fixed to the side plate 33, and a cam (not shown) is provided on the rod shaft 34, and the cam is locked to the driven surface of the first block body 31. The first block body 31 is rotatably fitted on the rod shaft 34, and the first block body 31 is tiltably rotated about the rod shaft 34 by the rotation of the cam.

The second block body 32 is rotatably attached to the side plate 33 and is urged in the counterclockwise direction by the spring 19, and in this urged state, the stopper on the side plate 33 side (see FIG. It is locked to a fixed position indicated by a solid line, and is normally locked to a fixed position.

A spring accommodating hole 35 is formed below the second block body 32, and the spring accommodating hole 35 is formed.
The compressed spring 36 is housed in the spring, the tip of the spring 36 projects from the spring housing hole 35, and is locked to the recess locking surface 37 of the first block body 31 so that the first block body is always supported.
Biasing 31 counterclockwise. A locking pin 38 is screwed and attached to the upper side of the rod shaft 34 in the first block body 31, and the tip end side of the locking pin 38 projects outward from the first block body 31 to form the second block. The first block body 31 is restricted from rotating counterclockwise by the biasing force of the spring 36 (the second block body 32 is It functions as a stopper for the counterclockwise rotation of the block body 31 of No. 1).

A holding plate 40 is provided on the upper end surface of the first block body 31.
The base end side of is fixed by a screw or the like, and the base end side of a fiber pressing spring 41 made of a leaf spring is similarly fixed by a screw or the like to the tip end side of the holding plate 40. Fiber presser spring
A bent portion 42 projecting downward is formed on the tip side of 41, and this bent portion 42 holds and holds the master optical fiber 7 accommodated in the V groove 20 of the optical line switching head 16 It functions as part 42. In this embodiment, the mechanical parts of the blocks 31 and 32 and the movable base 23 function as the fiber switching mechanism 17.

This embodiment is equipped with a computer (CPU) similar to that shown in FIG. 5 of the conventional example, and the control circuit in this computer moves the stage 6 and the moving base 23. Then, the rotation control of the cam that tilts and rotates the first block body 31 is performed. The tilt rotation of the cam may be manually performed by operating a lever or the like.

This embodiment is constructed as described above,
Next, the switching operation between the optical line 12 on the multi-fiber optical connector 10 side and the master optical fiber 7 will be described. First, when a multi-fiber optical connector to be inspected or inspected is designated from among the plurality of multi-fiber optical connectors 10, the switching / transporting mechanism 15 linked to the stage 6 is controlled and driven, and the stage 6 moves in the vertical and horizontal directions. Is controlled to be conveyed and moved to the designated multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected, and the optical line switching head 16 faces the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected.

In this state, the stage 6 is further moved in the advancing direction by driving the switching transport mechanism 15, so that the fitting pin 21 of the optical line switching head 16 is fitted into the fitting pin hole 14 of the multi-fiber optical connector 10. And the fitting alignment connection between the multi-fiber optical connector 10 and the optical line switching head 16 is achieved.

In this state, the optical line to be inspected and inspected in the multi-core optical line 12 of the multi-core optical connector 10 is connected to a computer (CP).
U) side, or by designating in advance, the movement base 23 moves the movement base 23 along the fixed rail 26 and the guide rod 28 at right angles to the plane of FIG. Move in the direction you want to. At the time of this movement, since the first block body 31 and the second block body 32 are connected to the moving base 23 via the side plates 33, the first block body 31 is interlocked with the movement of the moving base 23. The second block body 32 also moves in an interlocking manner along the V-groove arrangement direction of the optical line switching head 16.

By controlling the movement of the moving base 23, the master optical fiber 7 fed from the moving base 23 side to the optical line switching head 16 side via the second block 32 is also moved by the optical line switching head 16. The V-groove 20 of the optical line 12 of the multi-core optical connector 10 which is integrally moved in the arrangement direction of the V-groove 20 and designated
Stop on During the movement of the master optical fiber 7 in the V-groove arrangement direction, the cam attached to the rod shaft 34 is in the cam operation state with the first block body 31.

The cam operation is performed by rotating the cam provided on the rod shaft 34 in the clockwise direction. By this clockwise rotation of the cam, the cam operating surface is locked to the passive surface of the first block body 31, and the first block body 31 is rotated clockwise from the state shown by the solid line in FIG. Rotate. Since the gap 43 is provided between the first block body 31 and the second block body 32, at first, the second block body 32 does not rotate, and only the first block body 31 is a timepiece. Rotate around. Then, the operating end 44 of the first block body 31 rotates clockwise against the biasing force of the spring 36 to move to the second
When it is locked to the block body 32, the second block body 32 also rotates clockwise together with the first block body 31, and the first and second block bodies 31 and 32 are changed from the solid line state to the chain line. Tilt as shown.

As a result, the front end of the master optical fiber 7 fed from the movable base 23 side to the optical line switching head 16 side via the second block body 32 is turned from the solid line state to the state shown by the broken line. And the master optical fiber 7 moves away from the optical line switching head 16 in the non-contact state in the array direction of the V-grooves 20, and the designated multi-fiber optical connector
It stops at the position of the V groove 20 facing the optical line 12 of 10. This state is schematically shown in FIG. 4 (a).

In this state, by rotating the cam in the opposite direction to cancel the cam operation, the first block body 31 rotates counterclockwise by the urging force of the spring 36 and returns to the original fixed position. , The second block body 32 is also rotated counterclockwise by the spring 19 and locked to a stopper (not shown) to return to the original fixed position, and the first and second block bodies 31,
The dotted line 32 changes from a chain line state to a solid line state, and the master optical fiber 7 is fitted in the predetermined V groove 20 in a horizontal state from the tilted state.

In this fitted state, the master optical fiber 7 is pressed and held by the fiber pressing spring 41 from the upper side and properly positioned and held in the V groove 20. This state is schematically shown in FIG. 4B. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4B, the tip of the master optical fiber 7 positioned in the V groove 20 and the multi-fiber optical connector 10 are positioned.
The movement of the stage 6 in the advancing direction is controlled so that a slight clearance 45 is formed between the optical path 12 and the optical path 12.
By forming the above, contact between the tip of the master optical fiber 7 and the multi-fiber optical connector 10 is avoided, and the master optical fiber 7 is prevented from being damaged by this contact.

In this way, the alignment connection between the master optical fiber 7 and the optical line 12 is achieved, so that the optical line 12 of the multi-core tape fiber 11 to be inspected passes through the master optical fiber 7 such as OTDR. Connected to the inspection and inspection device, O
By the inspection / inspection operation of the TDR, the inspection / inspection of the optical line 12 of the multi-core tape fiber 11 is performed.

After the inspection and inspection of the optical line 12 to be inspected is completed, the operation of the cam causes the first and second block bodies 31 and 32 to tilt from the solid line state to the chain line state, and the fiber pressing spring. Reference numeral 41 moves away from the V groove 20 to release the pressure holding of the master optical fiber 7. In this state, the moving base 23 is moved to the V groove position corresponding to the next optical line 12 to be inspected,
By releasing the cam operation, the master optical fiber 7
Is inserted and held in the next groove 20, and the next optical fiber 12 to be inspected is similarly inspected and inspected. In this way, by sequentially moving the moving base 23 and inserting the master optical fiber 7 into the designated groove, the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected
The inspection and inspection of the optical line 12 of each heart are sequentially performed.

When the inspection and inspection of one multi-fiber optical connector 10 is completed, the switching carrier mechanism 15 is driven to drive the stage 6
Moves to the next position of the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected, and similarly, the optical fibers 12 of the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected and the master optical fiber 7 are sequentially switched to connect to each other. The optical fiber 12 of the optical connector 10 is inspected and inspected.
In this way, the switching transport mechanism 15 is driven and the optical line switching head 16 is designated for the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected.
By sequentially transporting the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to the position, the inspection and inspection of the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected is automatically performed.

According to the present embodiment, the optical line switching head
A large number of V-grooves 20 are formed in 16 and the master optical fiber 7 is formed into
Since the connection is switched between the optical line 12 to be inspected and the master optical fiber 7 by moving in the array direction of 20 and inserting it in the designated V groove 20, one light beam is used as in the conventional example. Compared with the system in which one adapter is provided for the path 12, the size of the device can be significantly reduced and, for example, 1/100 of the size of the conventional device can be achieved.

Further, in the present embodiment, it is sufficient to prepare one optical line switching head 16 to inspect and inspect a large number of multi-fiber optical connectors 10, and the optical line switching head 16 can be easily manufactured. . When manufacturing the optical line switching head 16, a large number of V grooves 20 are formed in the optical lines 12 of the respective cores of the multi-fiber optical connector 10.
Although it is necessary to pay close attention in order to manufacture the optical fiber with the same pitch interval as the above, it is sufficient to prepare one optical line switching head 16 in the present embodiment as described above.
Since the formation work of 20 is required to be formed by the number of the optical lines 12 of the multi-fiber optical connector 10 for one, the production work of the optical line switching head 16 can be facilitated correspondingly, and the cost of the device can be reduced accordingly. It becomes possible.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and various embodiments can be adopted. For example, in the above embodiment, as described above, one optical line switching head 16 is used for a large number of multi-fiber optical connectors 10.
May be disposed on the head mount 22. in this case,
By moving the stage 6 in the advancing direction by the switching conveyance mechanism 15, the fitting pins 21 of the respective optical line switching heads 16 corresponding to the fitting pin holes 14 of the multi-fiber optical connectors 10 in a horizontal row are fitted. As a result, a plurality of optical line switching heads 16 corresponding to a plurality of optical fiber connectors 10 arranged in a row are aligned and fitted together in a row unit.

Therefore, in this case, the switching / transporting mechanism 15 does not have to move in the lateral direction, but may move in the advancing / retreating direction and the longitudinal direction (vertical direction). After inspection and inspection of each optical line 12,
The stages 6 are collectively moved in the vertical direction row by row, and the inspection and inspection of the optical line 12 of each multi-fiber optical connector in the next horizontal row is performed by switching the connection between the optical line 12 and the master optical fiber 7.

Further, in this case, the optical line switching head
The number of 16 is reduced, and one optical line switching head 16 having a width substantially the same as the array width of the entire horizontal single row of a plurality of multi-fiber optical connectors 10 is prepared, and this wide optical line switching head 16 is used as the head mount 22. You may equip it. In this case, on the bottom surface of the concave portion 18 of one optical line switching head 16,
The V grooves 20 are formed by the number of the optical lines 12 of the plurality of multi-fiber optical connectors 10 arranged in a row. In this case as well, the stage 6 is moved in the forward / backward direction and the vertical direction by the switching / transporting mechanism 15, and the optical line switching head 16 is vertically moved in units of columns.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the optical line switching head 16 is moved together with the stage 6 to the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected, but the optical line switching head 16 is not carried. In this way, only the fiber switching mechanism 17 may be conveyed and moved to the multi-fiber optical connector 10 to be inspected. In this case, the optical line switching head 16 is separated from the stage 6 and the multi-fiber optical connector is used.
10 optical fiber switching heads 16 are prepared, and the optical fiber switching head 16 is fitted to each multi-core optical connector 10 with a pin 21.
And the fitting pin hole 14 are fitted and connected to the multi-core optical connector 10 integrally, and the head mount 22 is omitted in the stage 6, and the first and second block bodies 31 and 32 and the moving base are moved. Stand 23
Only the fiber switching mechanism 17 for and will be installed.

Then, by means of the switching / transporting mechanism 15, the fiber switching mechanism 17 is moved together with the stage 6 to the optical line switching head 16 of the set of multi-fiber optical connectors 10 to be inspected and inspected, and the moving base is moved in the same manner as in the above embodiment. By controlling the movement of the table 23, the connection between the master optical fiber 7 and the optical line 12 is switched. Also in this case, the width of the optical line switching head 16 is formed to be almost the same as the arrangement width of the entire horizontal row of the multi-fiber optical connectors, and the optical line switching head 16
It is also possible to fabricate the same number of columns of the multi-fiber optical connector 10 and to connect one optical line switching head 16 to the multiple multi-fiber optical connectors in a row all together in a row unit. Is.

Further, in the above embodiment, the master optical fiber 7 is one, but the master optical fiber 7 may be plural. By using a plurality of master optical fibers 7, a plurality of optical lines 12 can be collectively switched and connected, and it is possible to efficiently inspect and inspect the optical lines 12 of the multi-fiber optical connector 10 in a short time. . Also,
When two optical lines 12 on the multi-fiber optical connector 10 side form a pair to form a loop, an even number (usually two) of master optical fibers 7 are provided.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the cam is used, and the tilting rotation of the first block body 31 and the second block body 32 is utilized to hold the spring of the master optical fiber 7 and release it. However, the fiber pressing mechanism 30 can take various configurations other than this embodiment.

[0049]

According to the present invention, a plurality of multi-fiber optical connectors are arranged in a two-dimensional array and an optical line switching head having a V groove is moved to the multi-fiber optical connector side to be inspected, or the optical line is switched. The head is integrated with the multi-fiber optical connector, and the fiber switching mechanism is configured to move to the optical line switching head side of the multi-fiber optical connector to be inspected and inspected. The optical fiber switching head is sequentially moved in the V-groove arranging direction and inserted into the designated V-groove, and the master optical fiber and the optical line to be inspected and inspected by the multi-fiber optical connector are switched and connected. Therefore, as compared with the conventional method in which one adapter is provided for each optical line to be inspected, for example, the size of the device can be significantly reduced by 1/100. With the recent increase in the number of optical communication lines and optical circuits, for example, switching connection of a large number of optical lines such as 2000 lines can be achieved with a small device, and the device can be downsized, which reduces the device cost. Therefore, it is possible to provide an optical line switching device with a great utility value that can sufficiently meet the demand for switching connection of a large number of optical lines.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a main part configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory view showing a relationship between a two-dimensional array form of a multi-fiber optical connector and a switching conveyance movement of one optical line switching head in the apparatus of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a detailed configuration diagram of a fiber pressing mechanism portion in the apparatus of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a schematic operation explanatory diagram of the device of this embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional optical line switching device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 7 Master Optical Fiber 10 Multi-fiber Optical Connector 12 Optical Line 15 Switching Transport Mechanism 16 Optical Line Switching Head 17 Fiber Switching Mechanism 20 V Groove 23 Moving Base 30 Fiber Holding Mechanism 31 First Block Body 32 Second Block Body 41 Fiber Presser spring

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Kiyono Oomizu 2-6-1, Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Shinichi Furukawa 1-1-6, Uchisaiwaicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo No. Japan Telegraph and Telephone Corporation

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A multi-fiber optical connector having a plurality of two-dimensionally arranged longitudinally and horizontally, and a plurality of V-grooves corresponding to the number of cores of at least one multi-fiber optical connector are arranged in an optical fiber of the multi-fiber optical connector. An optical line switching head provided at the same pitch as the pitch, a position fitting / removing means for aligning the optical line switching head with each multi-core optical connector, and a multi-fiber optical connector for which the optical line switching head is designated. The master optical fiber is sequentially moved in the V-groove arrangement direction of the optical line switching head while the switching transport mechanism that moves to the fitting / removing position and the optical line switching head are aligned and fitted to the designated multi-fiber optical connector. An optical line switching device having a fiber switching mechanism which is inserted into a designated V groove to switch connection between an optical line of each core of a multi-fiber optical connector and a master optical fiber. 2. The same number of optical line switching heads as the number of horizontal single lines of the multi-fiber optical connector are arranged in a single horizontal line, and the head moving mechanism collectively bundles the horizontal single line optical line switching heads in the vertical direction. Claim 1 configured to move
The optical line switching device described. 3. A horizontal width of one optical line switching head is formed to be substantially the same as an array width of a whole horizontal row of a plurality of multi-fiber optical connectors, and one optical line switching head has a horizontal row of each multi-core light. 2. The optical line switching device according to claim 1, wherein a V-groove corresponding to the number of cores of the connector is provided, and the one optical line switching head is vertically moved row by row by a head moving mechanism. 4. A multi-fiber optical connector having a plurality of two-dimensionally arranged in a vertical and horizontal two-dimensional array, and a plurality of V-grooves corresponding to the number of cores of the multi-fiber optical connector are provided on the connection end face side of each multi-fiber optical connector. Is integrally combined with an optical line switching head which is aligned and arranged at the same pitch as the optical fiber array pitch of the multi-fiber optical connector, and the master optical fibers are sequentially arranged in a V groove array of the optical line switching head. A fiber switching mechanism that moves in the direction and inserts it into the designated V groove to switch the connection between the optical line of each core of the multi-fiber optical connector and the master optical fiber, and a multi-fiber optical connector with this fiber switching mechanism designated. Optical path switching device having a switching transport mechanism that moves to the optical path switching head position.