JPH10170757A - Optical connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connector that is small in the number of parts, simplified in configuration, facilitated in assembling, and capable of performing work such as the connection of optical fibers easily, by providing a housing with an opening/closing part for inserting/ejecting a ferrule. SOLUTION: The housing 20 is provided with an opening/closing part 33 for inserting/ejecting the 2nd ferrule from the side of other terminal in the central direction of internal housing space. Namely, an upper member 30 of the housing 20 is provided with the opening/closing part 33 which can be opened/ closed by a hinge part 32 on the side of top end. When, connecting the optical fibers, the opening/closing part 33 is opened by utilizing the hinge part 32, and the 2nd ferrule is inserted into the internal housing space inside the housing 20. Then, a guide pin and a guide pin hole are aligned, and the 2nd ferrule is abutted to the 1st ferrule against the energizing force of the coil spring. In the state of butting the ferrules against each other, the opening/closing part 33 is closed while pressing arc-shaped pressing parts.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical connector for switchably connecting optical fibers.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an optical connector for switchably connecting optical fibers to each other, for example, a so-called MT (Mechanically Transparent) as defined in JISC5981 or the like is used.
Fer-able type optical connectors are provided.

FIG. 7 shows an example of an MT type optical connector.
In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an optical fiber (tape core), 2 denotes a ferrule (optical connector plug), 3 denotes a boot, 4 denotes a guide pin, 5 denotes a guide pin hole, and 6 denotes a clamp spring. This MT type optical connector has a structure in which a plurality of bare fibers 7 exposed at the end of the optical fiber 1 are inserted and fixed in an optical fiber insertion hole 9 formed in a resin ferrule 2 molded using a precision mold. Has become. The optical fiber insertion hole 9 is opened at the joint end face 8 to be abutted with the other ferrule 2, and the bare fiber 7 is precisely positioned flush with the joint end face 8. The guide pin hole 5 is extremely precise in the relative position and parallelism with respect to the optical fiber insertion hole 9, and the guide pins of the two joint end faces 8 in which the pair of ferrules 2 oppose the metal guide pins 4 having precise cylindrical side surfaces. The bare fibers 7 exposed on the joint end surfaces 8 of the two ferrules 2 are precisely positioned by being inserted so as to bridge between the holes 5. After the joining end surfaces 8 of the two ferrules 2 are brought into contact with each other, the clamp spring 6 is fitted between the rear end surfaces 10 of the two ferrules 2.
Thereby, by the spring force of the clamp spring 6,
The press-contact state between the joint end faces 8 is maintained, and a desired connection loss is stably secured between the butted bare fibers 7.

However, the MT type optical connector requires a special jig for attaching and detaching the clamp spring 6, and is therefore unsatisfactory in workability, and is an optical connector that can easily perform operations such as connection and connection switching. The development of a connector was required. Further, in order to prevent the ferrule 2 from being exposed, it is necessary to provide a protection means such as a cap,
There was dissatisfaction that handling was troublesome.

In view of the above problems, in recent years, so-called M
A PO connector (an optical connector in which an optical connector ferrule defined in JIS C5981 is provided in a housing) is provided. FIG. 8 and FIG.
1 shows a connector 11. In the figure, the MPO connector 11 has a ferrule 2 of an MT type optical connector and a pin clamp 12 for clamping a guide pin 4 protruding from the rear end (right side in FIG. 9) of the ferrule 2 inside a cylindrical housing 13. The rear end of the housing 13 is internally supported by a cylindrical coupling 14, and the coupling 14
A spring 15 for generating a butting force is accommodated therein. The ferrule 2 is movable in the front-rear direction (the left-right direction in FIG. 9) inside the housing 13, and the housing 13 includes a housing spring 16 installed separately.
If the ferrule 2 is not driven and is at the distal end position of the MPO connector 11, the entire ferrule 2 enters the inside of the housing 13 and is protected. As shown in FIG. 8, the coupling 14 is detachably engaged with the receiving housing such as the optical connector adapter 17 and the like, and maintains the inserted state of the MPO connector 11 inserted in the receiving housing.

According to the MPO connector 11, connection and switching between the optical fibers 1 can be easily performed simply by inserting and removing from the housing on the receiving side. In addition, since the ferrule 2 is structured to be housed and protected in the housing 13, it is not necessary to take additional measures for protecting the ferrule.

[0007]

However, the above-mentioned MPO connector 11 has many complaints, such as a large number of components and a complicated structure, which requires a lot of time and labor for assembling. Further, since it is considerably larger than the MT type optical connector shown in FIG. 7, it is not suitable for high-density mounting in an apparatus, and there is a limit in improving the mounting density. In addition, when the dedicated adapter 17 is mounted on the device, the adapter 17 becomes deeper, so that it takes time to clean the joint end surface 8 of the ferrule 2. Further, with the housing 13 and the optical connector adapter 17, the removal and re-storage of the incorporated ferrule 2 requires a large number of work steps. Therefore, this MPO connector 1
In No. 1, the problem of the MT optical connector was not fundamentally solved.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, has a small number of parts, has a simple configuration, and is easy to assemble.
In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a low-cost optical connector that can easily perform operations such as connection between optical fibers and connection switching.

[0009]

An optical connector according to the first aspect of the present invention is an optical connector for butt-connecting a pair of optical fibers in a central axis direction, wherein the internal storage space opened in the central axis direction. A housing having, in the internal storage space, first and second ferrules for butt-connecting the optical fibers in a butt-connected state, and one end of the internal storage space of the housing in the central axial direction. And a biasing means for biasing the first ferrule on the one end side toward the second ferrule on the other end side, wherein the housing is provided in the internal storage space. An opening / closing portion is provided on the other end side in the center axis direction so as to allow the second ferrule to be inserted / extracted from the other end side. In the optical connector according to claim 2, in the optical connector according to claim 1, the housing has a main body holding the first ferrule, and a tip connected to the other end side with respect to the main body. And the tip portion is divided into a plurality of parts, and these divided bodies expose the joint end face of the first ferrule housed in the housing from the internal housing space, It can be opened and closed freely.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the first ferrule of the optical fiber is urged toward the other end by the urging means at one end in the central axis direction of the internal storage space of the housing. Will be arranged. Then, the second ferrule is inserted into the internal storage space of the housing from the other end through the opening / closing portion. As a result, termination of the pair of optical fibers in a state where the ferrules are butted against each other is achieved. Conversely, by extracting the second ferrule through the opening / closing section, the second ferrule can be easily taken out. Therefore, connection switching of the optical fiber is easily achieved. According to the second aspect of the present invention, the distal end of the housing is divided into a plurality of parts, and these divided bodies are openable and closable, so that when these divided bodies are opened, they are housed in the housing. The joint end face of the first ferrule is exposed from the internal storage space. Therefore, the joint end face of the first ferrule is easily cleaned.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the optical connector according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the optical connector of the present invention. In the figure, the optical connector includes a housing 20.

The housing 20 is made of, for example, plastic, and mainly includes a main body 21 and a tip 22. The distal end portion 22 is constituted by an upper member 30 and a lower member 40 which are divided into vertical parts in the drawing.

The upper member 30 can be opened and closed with respect to the main body 21 by a hinge portion 31. Also, the upper member 30
Is provided with an opening / closing section 33 which can be opened / closed by a hinge section 32 on the distal end side.

The lower member 40 can be opened and closed with respect to the main body 21 by a hinge 41. Also, the lower member 40
Is a seating portion 4 for seating the opening / closing portion 33 on the distal end side.
Two.

Such an optical connector is mounted in a matrix at a high density on a terminal plate A (shown in FIG. 4) in which a plurality of mounting holes are formed. The optical connector includes a mounting portion 23 and a mounting wing 24 for mounting.
An attachment hole 23a is formed in the attachment portion 23. By using the attachment hole 23a, the optical connector can be fixed to the terminal plate A by, for example, screwing. The mounting wing 24 can be moved in the direction B (shown in FIG. 4), and the optical connector is moved in the direction C (shown in FIG. )), During the passage of the hole A1, it moves to be flush with the side surface 20a of the optical connector, thereby enabling the insertion of the optical connector. When locked, it spreads out as shown in the figure and is used for mounting on the terminal plate A of the optical connector.

FIGS. 2 to 4 show cross-sectional views of the optical connector of the present invention.

In the figures, reference numerals 50 and 51 denote a pair of optical fibers (tape ribbons) to be butt-connected in the direction of the central axis. Reference numerals 52 and 53 denote first and second ferrules (optical connector plugs),
5 is a boot, 56 is a guide pin, 57 is a guide pin hole,
Reference numeral 58 denotes a pin clamp.

As shown in the figure, the housing 20 has an internal storage space 25 opened in the center axis direction of the optical fibers 50 and 51, and is formed in the longitudinal direction over the main body 21 and the distal end 22. I have. And the main body 2
1 has a first ferrule 52 therein.
(Coil spring) 26 for urging the second ferrule 53 toward the second ferrule 53 is provided.

Next, a method of connecting an optical fiber by the optical connector of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

As shown in FIG. 2, a first ferrule 5 is provided in an internal storage space 25 of the housing 20 of the optical connector.
2 are provided. In this state, the first ferrule 52 is urged toward the second ferrule 53 by the coil spring 26.

In this state, the opening / closing portion 33 is opened by using the hinge portion 32, and the second ferrule 53 is inserted into the internal storage space 52 of the housing 20 from the right side in the drawing. Then, the guide pin 56 and the guide pin hole 57 are aligned, and the second ferrule 53 is abutted against the first ferrule 52 against the urging force of the coil spring 26.

With the ferrules abutting each other in this manner, the opening / closing section 33 is pressed while pressing the arc-shaped pressing section 34.
Close. In this case, since the slit 33a is formed in the opening / closing section 33, the opening / closing section 33 can be closed while the optical fiber 51 is inserted. Further, the closing of the opening / closing section 33 is performed by the protrusion 33a of the opening / closing section 33,
The recesses and protrusions between the holes 42a of the seating portion 42, more specifically, snap-fitting, make it surely possible.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, in a state where the first and second ferrules 52 and 53 are abutted, the coil spring 26 is more contracted than in the normal state, and the first and second ferrules 52 and 53 are in a contracted state. Two ferrules 52, 53
To the butting force.

Further, the second ferrule 53 can be easily extracted by the reverse procedure.

Next, a method for cleaning the end face of the ferrule will be described with reference to FIG.

First, as shown in FIG.
1, the upper member 30 and the lower member 40
To release. Then, since the first ferrule 52 is urged rightward in the figure by the coil spring 26, the joint end surface 52 a of the first ferrule 52 is exposed from the internal storage space 25 of the housing 20. By exposing the joint end face 52a in this manner, the ferrule end face can be easily cleaned.

FIG. 6 shows another embodiment of the optical connector of the present invention.

This embodiment is different from the above-described embodiment in that an engagement recess 60 is provided in the upper member 30 and the lower member 40
Is provided only with the engagement protrusion 65. The engagement recesses 60 are formed on both sides of the upper member 30. The engagement protrusion 65 is formed so as to be aligned with the engagement recess 60 and to be able to engage with the engagement recess 60. The engagement protrusion 65 can be elastically opened and closed by a hinge 66.

In this embodiment, when cleaning the end face of the ferrule, the opening / closing section 33 is first opened. Then, for example, the rod 70 is inserted from the direction D in the drawing,
The engaging projection 65 is elastically deformed in the direction E in the drawing,
5. Release the engagement between the engagement recesses 60. Subsequently, by lifting the rod 70 in the illustrated F direction, the upper member 30 and the lower member 40 can be easily opened.
In this case, as the rod 70, for example, a cotton swab used for cleaning can be used. Other functions and effects are the same as those of the above embodiment.

In the above embodiment, the divided body is
The present invention is not limited to being divided into the upper member 30 and the lower member 40, and may have an arbitrary division number and division form. Further, the housing may be configured to have an internal storage space corresponding to a plurality of pairs of ferrules so as to correspond to a butt connection of a plurality of pairs of ferrules.

[0032]

According to the optical connector of the present invention, the following effects can be obtained. According to the optical connector of the first aspect, (1) the ferrule can be inserted into and removed from the housing through the opening / closing portion, and connection and connection switching of the optical fiber can be easily performed. (2) It can be formed in a very small size, can be easily mounted as needed at appropriate places, and has high versatility. Also, when a large number of optical connectors are assembled, the mounting density can be improved as compared with conventional optical connectors. (3) The ferrule can be easily stored and taken out simply by putting the ferrule into and out of the housing, so that workability such as connection and connection switching between optical fibers terminated by the ferrule is improved, and work time is shortened. (4) The ferrule can be stored as it is without installing a separate fixing part. (5) Since the number of parts is small and the structure is simple, it is advantageous for manufacturing and cost can be reduced. (6) The urging means can provide a butting force between the ferrules, and a desired connection loss can be stably and reliably obtained between the optical fibers terminated by the ferrules. (7) It is easy to remove the ferrule from the housing and to store it again.

According to the optical connector of the present invention, the front end of the housing is divided into a plurality of parts, and these divided bodies are openable and closable. Can be exposed from the internal storage space, and cleaning can be performed easily and reliably.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of an optical connector of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view showing a method of using the optical connector of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the optical connector of FIG. 1, showing a state in which an optical fiber is accommodated.

FIG. 4 is a plan sectional view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the optical connector of FIG. 1, showing a state where one optical fiber is provided for cleaning.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the optical connector of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a view showing a conventional optical connector, and is an exploded perspective view showing an MT type optical connector.

FIG. 8 is a view showing a conventional optical connector, and
It is a perspective view which shows a connector.

FIG. 9 is a front sectional view of the MPO connector of FIG. 8;

[Explanation of symbols]

20 ... housing, 21 ... body part, 22 ... tip part, 25
... internal storage space, 26 ... urging means, 30 ... divided body (upper member), 33 ... opening / closing part, 40 ... divided body (lower member), 50,
51 ... optical fiber, 52, 53 ... ferrule, 52a ...
Joint end face.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An optical connector for butt-connecting a pair of optical fibers (50, 51) in a central axis direction, the optical connector having an internal storage space (25) opened in the central axis direction. A housing (20) for accommodating, in a space, first and second ferrules (52, 53) for butt-connecting the optical fibers in a butt-connected state; and the central axis of the internal storage space of the housing. Biasing means (26) disposed on one end side in the direction, and for urging the first ferrule on the one end side toward the second ferrule on the other end side; An optical connector, comprising: an opening / closing section (33) for allowing the second ferrule to be inserted and removed from the other end side on the other end side in the center axis direction of the internal storage space. 2. The optical connector according to claim 1, wherein the housing has a main body for holding the first ferrule, and a distal end connected to the other end of the main body. 22), wherein the distal end portion is divided into a plurality of parts, and these divided bodies (30, 40) are connected to the joint end face (52a) of the first ferrule housed in the housing. An optical connector, which is openable and closable so as to be exposed from the internal storage space.