JPS6052256A - Method of cutting optical fiber - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To conduct the end face treatment of optical fibers with no deformation, simultaneously with the cutting of the fibers to enhance the working efficiency of the cutting of optical fibers, by exposing the fibers through a groove in a securing member for holding the fibers on both sides of the position to be cut, and by cutting the fibers along the groove with the use of a circular grindstone. CONSTITUTION:The position to be cut on optical fibers 2 whose seathes are removed off from a core wire, which fibers 2 are held by holding grooves 11b, 12b, 13b formed in lower and upper securing beds 11, 12, 13, is exposed through a groove A formed in a recessed section 11a in the securing bed 11. Further, a very thin circular grindstone 15 which is rotated at a high speed travels in the groove A relative to the latter to cut the optical fibers 2 at the position to be cut, which is disposed through the groove A. At this time coolant such as, for example, water is fed so that the cut end faces of the fibers are polished simultaneously with cutting by the side surfaces of the grindstone 15, thereby the cut end faces are smoothly finished, perpendicular to the axes of the fibers 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method for cutting an optical fiber/pulp and simultaneously finishing the end face thereof.

[Technical background]

In the field of information and communication technology, light has been put into practical use with great force. Materials for this optical fiber (core and gland) include glass, glass, etc., but recently plastic-based materials have been attracting attention. This plastic-based optical fiber has a slightly higher optical loss compared to fibers such as quartz-based glass, but
On the other hand, it has the advantage of being cheap and easy to handle.

In addition, when connecting optical fiber cores (core and cladding coated with coating material, buffer layer, etc.), there is a method of permanently connecting the end faces of the optical fibers (core and cladding) with the coating removed. There is a method of connecting these end faces with a removable connector, but in both methods, the end face of the optical fiber is finished so that it is flat and perpendicular to the axial direction, and the end face of the end face is finished so that it is flat and perpendicular to the axial direction. Optical loss must be minimized. When optical fibers made of quartz-based glass or multi-component glass are cut using the stress cutting method, the end faces are cut relatively smoothly due to the brittleness of the material. However, in the case of plastic-based optical fibers, cutting and end face treatment are more complicated than for glass-based optical fibers.

[Prior art]

1 to 3 show a conventional cutting method for plastic optical fibers. Reference numeral 1 shown in FIG. 1 is an optical fiber core. This optical fiber core wire 1 consists of a plastic optical fiber (core and cladding) 2 and a covering member 3 such as a buffer layer and a covering material covering the optical fiber. First, as shown in FIG. 1, after removing the covering member 3, the exposed optical fiber 2 is cut using a cutting tool 4 such as scissors or a razor. In such a cutting method, fine irregularities are generated on the surface of the cut end face 2a of the optical fiber. Therefore, in order to make this smooth, the end surface 2a is polished by a polishing member 5 as shown in FIG. 2, or the end surface 2a is polished as shown in FIG.
is finished by a heat treatment device 6.

[Problems with conventional technology]

However, in the conventional optical fiber cutting method described above, after the cutting operation, polishing and heat treatment of the cut end face are required as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, which makes the processing operation extremely complicated. In addition, when cutting the free end of the optical fiber with the cutting tool 4, the optical fiber must be held unstable during the work, making it difficult to obtain a sufficient perpendicularity of the cut end surface. The number of man-hours required for heat treatment increases and the working time becomes longer. Furthermore, since the optical fiber is bent during cutting, it may be necessary to straighten it, which increases the number of work steps.

[Object of the present invention]

The present invention has been made by focusing on the problems of the prior art.

We have developed an optical fiber cutting method that can cut plastic-based optical fibers in a stable state, and that can also cut the end face perpendicularly to the axis and smoothly at the same time as cutting. We aim to provide this on a 1-1 basis.

[Configuration of the present invention]

The method for cutting an optical fiber according to the present invention uses a fixing member having holding parts on both sides of a groove, and exposes the cutting part of the plastic optical fiber to the groove, and also attaches both sides of the cutting part to the holding parts. The cutting portion of the optical fiber exposed in the groove is cut by the peripheral part of the rotating disc-shaped grindstone, and the cut end surface is simultaneously polished by the side surface of the grindstone. This is what I did.

[Example of the present invention]

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings from FIG. 4 onwards.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the optical fiber holding structure, FIG. 5 is a front view of the cutting grindstone, and FIG. 6 is a front view showing the cutting process.

Reference numeral 2 shown in these figures indicates a plastic optical fiber. This optical fiber 2 is obtained by removing the coating member 3 from the optical fiber core 1 shown in FIG. The optical fiber 2 has a dual structure consisting of a core made of different types of plastics having different refractive indexes and a ground.

f! As shown in Figure S4, a plurality of optical fibers 2 are held side by side by a lower fixing table 11 and upper fixing tables 12 and 13. Four parts 11a are formed on the lower fixing base 11, and a plurality of holding grooves 11b each having a semicircular cross section are formed on both sides of the four parts 11a. The holding grooves 11b are formed so that adjacent holding grooves 11b are arranged in parallel with a predetermined interval. Further, a holding groove +2a having a semicircular cross section is formed on the lower joint surface of the upper fixed base 12, and a holding groove 13a is similarly formed on the lower joint surface of the other upper fixed base 13. Each of the holding grooves +2a of the rain upper fixing bases 12 and 13,
13a is formed at a position facing the holding groove 11b on the lower fixing base 11. The optical fiber 2 from which the covering member 3 has been removed as described above is inserted into the holding groove 11bl of the lower fixing base 11.
The holding grooves 12a and 13a of the upper fixing bases 12 and 13 are placed on the second part. The upper fixing bases 12 and 13 are installed with an interval corresponding to the width of the four parts 11a of the lower fixing base. As a result, the cut portion of the optical fiber 2 is exposed in the groove A for immediate use, and both side portions thereof are held by the two holding portions B and C.

Note that the holding grooves 11b, +2a, and 13a formed in each of the fixing bases 11, 12, and 13 do not have a semicircular cross section, but a cross section of V.
It may also be formed into a letter shape.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, this optical fiber 2! il
The grindstone 15 for J-cutting is an extremely thin disk. This grindstone 15 is held between mounting plates lθ and can be rotated by a shaft 16 provided at its center. As an example of this extremely thin plate-shaped grindstone, a grindstone numbered #600 and a diameter of about 15011 mm is used.

Next, the process of cutting the optical fiber 2 will be explained.

First, the coating member 3 of the optical fiber core l is removed (first
(See figure) Expose the cut portion of the optical fiber 2. This optical fiber 2 is then held by a fixing base II, 12° 13. At this time, as described above, the cut portion of the optical fiber 2 is exposed within the groove A, and both sides thereof are held by the holding portions B and C. Then, while rotating the whetstone 15 at high speed by the shaft 17, the whetstone 15 is advanced relatively into the groove A of the fixed table, and the cutting portion of the optical fiber 2 exposed in the groove A is cut. Also, at this time, a cooling liquid such as wood is supplied to the cut portion of the optical fiber 2 exposed in the groove A. The optical fiber 82 is sequentially cut by the circumference of the grindstone 15, and at the same time, the optical fiber 2 is cut by the side surface of the grindstone 15.
The cut end surface is polished to a smooth finish.

Note that if a plurality of optical fibers 2 are installed at a predetermined interval, the load on the grindstone 15 will be smaller than when the optical fibers 2 are held closely together when they are cut one by one by the grindstone 15, and the plastic The amount of heat generated during cutting is reduced. Further, the cooling liquid sufficiently contacts the periphery of the optical fiber 2 and the space between them, and the cooling liquid accumulates in the groove A, so that the cooling effect is enhanced. In order to fully expect such effects, for example, if the diameter of the optical fiber 2 is 1 mm, the holding interval of the optical fiber 2 should be set to be equal to or more than the diameter of the optical fiber 2, and the cutting efficiency can be increased. Considering this, in this case, it is desirable that the holding interval and the diameter are approximately the same.

[Effects of the present invention]

As described above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be achieved.

(1) Since the optical fiber can be cut by the rotary grindstone and the cut end face can be polished at the same time, the end face treatment work can be completed in one step, improving the work efficiency.

(2) The cut part of the optical fiber is exposed in the groove of the fixing member, both ends of the cut part are held by the fixing member, and the part exposed from this groove is cut with a grindstone.
The optical fiber is cut in a stable state. Therefore, the optical fiber is not deformed during cutting, and the cut end face is finished completely perpendicular to the axis of the optical fiber, improving the processing accuracy of the cut end face.

(3) When a cooling liquid is supplied to the optical fiber, the cooling liquid accumulates in the groove of the fixing member, further enhancing the cooling effect. Therefore, the amount of heat generated during cutting of a plastic optical fiber is reduced, and thermal deformation of the end face of the optical fiber is minimized. In addition, the cutting debris caused by the grindstone is sufficiently washed away by the cooling liquid, so that the grindstone is less likely to become clogged.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a conventional cutting operation of a plastic optical fiber, FIGS. 2 and 3 are front views showing a conventional polishing operation of the cut end surface, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the state in which the optical fiber is held by a fixing member, FIG. 5 is a front view of the rotating grindstone,
FIG. 6 is a front view showing the cutting operation. 2... Optical fiber, 11, 12. 13... Fixing member, A... Groove of fixing member, B, C... Holding part, 15
...Whetstone,

Claims (1)

[Claims] Using a fixing member having holding parts on both sides with a groove in between, a cutting part of a plastic optical fiber l< is exposed to the groove, and both sides of this cutting part are held by the holding part, and a rotating disk. A method for cutting an optical fiber, characterized in that the cut portion of the optical fiber exposed in the groove is cut using a shaped grindstone, and the cut end surface of the cut portion is simultaneously polished.