JPS6326803Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an optical connector in which a ferrule at the tip of an optical fiber can be easily and reliably attached to a housing.

[Prior Art] Generally, a plurality of optical fibers are routed through piping at the same time, with a ferrule fixed to the tip thereof. After completing the wiring, attach the plug to the ferrule. Therefore, when wiring the optical fiber, it is best to avoid attaching extra parts such as supporting members to the housing on or near the ferrule, and to attach the supporting members and assemble them into the plug housing after wiring is completed. desirable. Further, when assembling the optical fiber ferrule into the housing, it is extremely preferable if the ferrule of the optical fiber can be inserted in the length direction, since this improves assembly efficiency.

However, conventionally, in order to assemble a ferrule into a plug housing, a coil spring 2 is attached to a ferrule 1 having a flange 7, as shown in FIGS.
With the cord bush 12 fitted, the optical fiber 14 is attached, and the tip of the ferrule 1 is inserted into the insertion hole 4 at the center of the tip of the housing 3. Next, with the coil spring 2 compressed, the step of the housing 3 is inserted. The housing 3 was assembled by fitting a washer-like support member 10 so as to engage with the portion 9, and finally fixing the lid 11 to the upper surface of the housing 3.

In the second conventional example shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the optical fiber 14 is attached to the ferrule 1 with the spring 2 and the cord bush 12 fitted, and then, as shown in FIG. After fitting the support member 10 into the optical fiber 14 through the side notch 13, fitting the ferrule 1 into the central through hole 15, then inserting the tip of the ferrule 1 into the insertion hole 4 of the housing 3, and finally inserting the cord bush 1.
2 to the protrusion 1 on the outer periphery of the housing 3.
It was fixed by covering it with 7.

[Problems to be solved by the invention] In the first conventional example shown in FIGS. 10a and 10b, the washer 10 is fitted from a direction perpendicular to the length direction of the optical fiber 14, and the lid 11 is closed. However, there was a problem that assembly was troublesome.

Furthermore, in the second conventional example shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, since the cord bushing 12 is fixed by covering the outer periphery of the housing 3, not only the overall shape of the plug becomes extremely large, but also the cord bushing 1
There was a problem that 2 quickly came out of housing 3.

The present invention aims to solve the above problems.

[Means for solving the problem] A ferrule is fixed to the tip of an optical fiber, and the ferrule is attached to a hollow part of a housing and an insertion hole at the tip so as to be able to advance and retreat, and a support member engaged with the rear end of the housing. and a flange of the ferrule with a coil spring interposed between the optical plug and the flange of the ferrule,
The central hollow part of the housing communicates with the insertion hole and is formed of both side plates, a top plate and a bottom plate, the rear part of the housing is formed by extending the top plate and the bottom plate rearwardly, and the support member is It consists of an upper mold and a lower mold, and a semicircular recess is formed on the opposing surfaces of the upper mold and lower mold in order to arrange the ferrule and optical fiber so that they can move forward and backward.
Engaging protrusions and holes for locking the support member to the housing are provided on the outer surfaces of the upper and lower molds and on the upper and bottom plates at the rear of the housing.

[Operation] When assembling, first fit the cord bush and coil spring onto the optical fiber, and then attach the ferrule. In this state, perform wiring, piping, etc.
Next, the part between the cord bush and the coil spring is sandwiched between two support members, and this is
Press fit into the housing from the rear. Then, the support member elastically engages with the housing and pushes the tip of the ferrule forward via the coil spring.

Note that the support member may be completely separated into two parts, or may be connected to each other by using a thin hinge in the middle.

[Example] Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described based on the drawings. Note that the same parts as in the conventional example are given the same reference numerals.

1 to 4, reference numeral 14 denotes an optical fiber formed by covering a core, and this optical fiber 1
A ferrule 1 is fixed to the tip of the ferrule 4, and a collar 7 is provided approximately at the center of the ferrule 1.

3 is a housing constituting the optical plug, and a ferrule insertion hole 4 is provided at the center of the tip of the housing 3.
A stepped portion 5 is formed in the hollow portion 8 that communicates with the insertion hole 4.Although the side plates 18, 18 extend to the middle, the top plate 19 and the bottom plate 20 extend further to the rear. ing. Two locking holes 21 and 21 are bored in the middle of the top plate 19 and the bottom plate 20, respectively.

Reference numeral 22 denotes a support member, which supports the base end of the ferrule 1 and the flange 1 of the cord bush 12.
Upper mold 23 and lower mold 2 sandwich 6 from above and below.
It is formed by dividing 4 into two. Specifically, the upper and lower molds 23 and 24 of this support member 22 are integrally connected by a thin hinge 25 in the center, and each has a semicircular shape inside thereof into which the ferrule 1 is fitted. Recessed portion 26, cord bush 12
The upper and lower molds 23 and 24 have a groove 27 that locks the flange 16 and a recess 28 that holds the cord bush 12.
It has a hole 30 into which it is inserted. Also, upper and lower type 2
There are two engaging protrusions 3 on the top and bottom surfaces of 3 and 24.
1 and 31 are provided.

Next, the assembly sequence will be described.

First, the cord bush 12 is inserted into the optical fiber 14, and then the coil spring 3 is fitted. next,
The ferrule 1 is fixed to the tip of the optical fiber 14 by press-fitting or adhesive. In this state, wire the
When this is completed, the proximal end of the ferrule 1 and the cord bush 12 are placed against the lower die 24 of the support member 22, and further sandwiched with the upper die 23. This is inserted into the housing 3 from the rear. Then,
First, insert the tip of the ferrule 1 into the insertion hole 4,
The collar 7 contacts the stepped portion 5. When the support member 22 is pushed further against the coil spring 2, the housing 3
The top plate 19 and the bottom plate 20 open slightly upward and downward, and the engagement protrusions 31, 31 of the support member 22 engage with the locking holes 2.
1 and 21. After being incorporated as an optical plug in this manner, when the protruding portion at the tip of the ferrule 1 is pressed, it retracts into the interior against the coil spring 2, and when the pressure is released, the ferrule 1 protrudes again due to the coil spring 2.

Next, FIG. 5 shows an embodiment without the cord bush 12. Therefore, the supporting member 22 in this example includes the flange 1 of the cord bushing 12.
There is no groove 27 for locking 6. In addition, optical fiber 1
The exit part of No. 4 is spread out in a rasp-like shape.

Next, FIGS. 6 to 8 show an optical plug for incorporating two optical fibers 14, 14. The housing 3, support member 22, and cord bushing 12 in this example are the same as those in the previous example except that they have approximately twice the width as in the case of FIG. 1 because they incorporate two optical fibers 14, 14, respectively. . In addition, in FIGS. 7 and 8, the cord bush 12 has a square hole 32 approximately in the center, and the support member 22 is provided with a locking protrusion 33. In addition, in this example, the code bush 12
A structure without this can also be constructed in substantially the same manner as shown in FIG.

In the above embodiment, the upper and lower molds 23 and 24 of the support member 22 are connected together by the hinge 25, but as shown in FIG.
Two identically formed projections 24 may be combined, and in this case, it is desirable to form two or more protrusions 29, 29 and holes 30, 30.

In the above embodiment, both ferrules 1 and tsuba 7
Although the ferrule 1 is integrally constructed, a groove 6 may be formed in the ferrule 1, and a washer-shaped collar 7 may be fitted into the ferrule 1, as shown in the conventional example shown in FIG.

[Effects of the invention] Since the invention is configured as described above, it has the following effects.

(1) When connecting the ferrule and housing, the ferrule can be assembled by press-fitting it in the length direction.
Improves assembly efficiency.

(2) Since the support member can be made extremely small, the housing, cord bushing, etc. can also be made small.
The overall shape can be made smaller.

(3) The cord bushing is supported by a support member.
There is no need to worry about the cord bushing coming loose.

(4) With and without cord butts,
It is sufficient to slightly change the shape of the support member, and there is no need to change the housing or other parts, so it is easy to create a series of various plugs.

(5) Since the support member is composed of an upper mold and a lower mold, the mold for molding the support member can be separated in the vertical direction, and manufacturing costs can be reduced. Further, the support member and the housing are assembled without creating any gap that communicates with the inside of the housing, and dust does not enter.

(6) The support member has a semicircular recess on the inside for arranging the ferrule and the optical fiber, and an engagement protrusion on the outside, and the end face receives the coil spring, so it is a rigid body with no elasticity. It can be configured with
There will be no gap and the coil spring will not fit into the gap. Furthermore, since it is a rigid body, if it has a cord bushing for protecting the optical fiber, this cord bushing can be fitted and attached.

(7) The means for locking the support member to the housing includes engagement protrusions provided on the upper and lower sides of the support member, and fitting engagements on the upper and lower plates at the rear of the housing that can be opened upward and downward. Since it is formed of a stopper hole, even after the support member has been locked to the housing, this locking can be removed, allowing for assembly and disassembly.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 9 show embodiments of the optical connector according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the same as the whole, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a cord bushing. , Fig. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the support member, Fig. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view without the cord bushing, Fig. 6 is a partially cutaway plan view of the case with two optical fibers, and Fig. 7 is the same support as above. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the same cord bushing; FIG. 9 is a perspective view of another example of the support member; FIGS. 10a and 10b show the first conventional example; , b is a cross-sectional view, FIG. 11 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the second conventional example, and FIG.
The figure is a perspective view of the support member same as above. 1...Ferrule, 2...Coil spring, 3...
Housing, 4... Insertion hole, 7... Tsuba, 12...
Cord bushing, 14...Optical fiber, 16...
Tsuba, 19... Upper plate, 20... Bottom plate, 21... Locking hole, 22... Support member, 23... Upper mold, 24...
Lower mold, 25...hinge, 29...protrusion, 30...
Hole, 31...engaging protrusion.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] (1) A ferrule is fixed to the tip of an optical fiber, the ferrule is attached to a hollow part of a housing and an insertion hole at the tip so that it can move forward and backward, and the support is engaged with the rear end of the housing. In the optical plug in which a coil spring is interposed between the member and the flange of the ferrule, the rear part of the housing is formed by extending the top plate and the bottom plate rearwardly, and the support member is formed by extending the top plate and the bottom plate backward. The upper mold and the lower mold each have a semicircular shape on the opposing surfaces for arranging the ferrule and the optical fiber so that they can move forward and backward when the support member is fitted between the top plate and the bottom plate. A concave portion is formed, and locking portions for locking the support member to the housing are provided on the outer surfaces of the upper and lower molds and on the upper and bottom plates at the rear of the housing. optical connector. (2) The optical connector according to claim 1, wherein the upper mold and the lower mold forming the support member are connected by a thin integral hinge. (3) The upper and lower molds constituting the supporting member have protrusions and holes on opposing surfaces, and the protrusions of one are inserted into the holes of the other to connect them, as claimed in Paragraph 1 of the Utility Model Registration Claim. Optical connector listed. (4) The optical connector according to claim 1, 2, or 3, wherein the support member has a cord bushing mounting groove.