JPS632835A - Device for producing optical fiber - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the quality of the core wire of the title fiber, to prevent the damage, and to reduce the equipment cost by providing a vibration control roll on the upstream side of a resin coating means to prevent the vibration of the drawn fiber core wire. CONSTITUTION:An optical fiber base material 12 is heated by the heating furnace 16 of a wire drawing device 18, and the obtained optical fiber core wire 14 is passed through resin coating means 20, 20A, and 20B and cross-linking means 22, 22A, and 22B and coated with resin. The obtained optical fiber 14A is taken out by a takeout machine 24 and wound on the winding drum 26 of a winding means 28. The vibration control roll 36 for controlling the vibration of the optical fiber core wire 14 is provided on the upstream side of the resin coating means 20 in the optical fiber producing device 10. Consequently, the damage of the optical fiber core wire 14 by the coating die of the resin coating means 20 is prevented, the variance in the roundness of the optical fiber 14A and in the thickness of the coat is prevented, and the quality is improved. Moreover, the course of the optical fiber core wire 14 is changed by the roll 36, the height of the equipment is decreased, and the equipment coat can be reduced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to an improvement in an apparatus for manufacturing an optical fiber by drawing an optical fiber preform and coating it with resin.

(Prior Art) In general, this type of optical fiber manufacturing equipment includes a drawing means for drawing an optical fiber base material while heating it in a heating furnace to form an optical fiber core wire, and a drawing means for forming an optical fiber core wire by coating the optical fiber core wire with a resin. A resin application means such as a coating die, a crosslinking means for crosslinking the optical fiber core wire coated with resin by the resin application means, and a winder for taking up and winding the optical fiber fed out from the crosslinking means. equipped with the means. In this device, if the distance from the drawing means to the resin coating means is increased in order to cool the optical fiber core wire fed out from the drawing means, the optical fiber core wire is separated between the drawing means and the resin coating means. Vibration occurs, and as a result, the surface of the optical fiber core wire is damaged by the surface of the coating die, resulting in breakage or deterioration of strength, as well as variations in the circularity and coating thickness of the optical fiber. If the distance between the line drawing means and the resin application means is long, the height of the equipment will increase, which has the disadvantage of increasing the height of the building in which this equipment is housed, resulting in higher equipment costs. . In particular, this tendency becomes even more pronounced when the drawing and coating speeds are increased, resulting in higher installation costs and lower product quality.

(Object of the Invention) An object of the present invention is to manufacture an optical fiber that can improve product quality and reduce equipment costs by preventing vibration between the drawing means and the resin coating means. The goal is to provide equipment.

(Structure of the Invention) The optical fiber manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention includes a drawing means for heating and drawing an optical fiber preform to form an optical fiber core, and a resin coating for applying resin to the optical fiber core. a crosslinking means for crosslinking the optical fiber core coated with resin by the resin coating means, and a winding means for taking and winding the optical fiber core drawn out from the crosslinking means. However, it is characterized in that it further includes a vibration prevention roll installed upstream of the resin application means to prevent vibration of the optical fiber core wire.

In this way, even if the optical fiber core wire is cooled over a long distance between the drawing means and the resin coating means, vibration will not occur in the optical fiber core wire, and therefore the quality of the product will not deteriorate. By preventing this vibration, the running direction of the optical fiber core wire can be easily changed, the height of the equipment can be reduced, and the installation cost can therefore be reduced.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an optical fiber manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the present invention, and this optical fiber manufacturing apparatus 10 is vertically held by a holding means (not shown). The optical fiber preform 12 held in the heating furnace 16
and a wire drawing means 18 for forming a core wire 14 into an optical fiber by drawing the wire while heating it.

and a resin application means 20 for applying resin to the optical fiber core wire 14 drawn out from the drawing means 18.

A cross-linking means 22 cross-links the resin on the optical fiber core wire 14 coated with resin by the resin applying means 20, and a winding bobbin while the optical fiber 14A drawn out from the cross-linking means 22 is taken up by a take-up machine 24. Winding means 28 for winding around 26
In the illustrated embodiment, two stages of resin-coated child parts 20A, 20B and cross-linking means 22A, 22B are provided, resulting in a two-layer coating. It may be coated in one layer as a step.

As shown in FIGS. 2(A) and 2(B), the resin application means 20 consists of a resin tank 30 through which the optical fiber core wire 14 passes,
The resin tank 30 has an entrance die (not shown) and a coating die (exit die) 32 at its entrance and exit, respectively, through which the optical fiber core wire 14 passes through in a liquid-tight manner. The entrance die has an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the optical fiber core wire 14, and has the function of preventing the resin in the resin tank 3o from flowing out and minimizing the entrainment of air. On the other hand, the coating die 32 has an inner diameter that sets the thickness of the resin to be coated on the optical fiber 14, and forms a coating on the optical fiber 14 with a predetermined thickness. Further, the resin tank 30 has a horizontal cross section larger than a vertical cross section, and the optical fiber core 1
It is now possible to rotate 90 degrees around the travel path No. 4. As can be seen from Fig. 2 (A), the resin tank 3
When the resin tank 30 is in the horizontal position, the resin liquid 34 is not in contact with the optical fiber core wire 14, but as shown in FIG. The liquid level 34a rises above the passage and the resin liquid 3
4 is attached to the optical fiber core wire 14. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 36 is a flexible resin liquid supply pipe for replenishing the resin tank 30 with resin liquid from a resin supply source (not shown). It is preferable that the resin to be adhered to the optical fiber core wire 14 is, for example, an ultraviolet curing resin, and when the resin to be adhered to the optical fiber core wire 14 is an ultraviolet curing resin, the crosslinking means 22 is an ultraviolet irradiation lamp. It consists of

In this device, when the optical fiber base material 12 is heated by the heating furnace 16 and taken off by the take-up machine 24 of the take-up means 28, it is pulled down in proportion to the amount of wire drawn and is drawn into the optical fiber core wire 14. Become. This optical fiber core wire 14 enters the first-stage resin application means 20A from the wire drawing means 18, and is coated with an ultraviolet curable resin, and then enters the first-stage crosslinking means 22A.
A first layer coating is formed by crosslinking, and a second layer coating is similarly formed by passing through the second stage resin application means 20B and crosslinking means 22B. Resin application means 20A, 2
0B is placed in the horizontal position as shown in Figure 2 (A) during the wire threading work, but before the coating work is rotated so that the resin tank 30 is in the vertical position as shown in Figure 2 (B). do. The optical fiber 14A thus formed is taken up by a take-up machine 24 and wound around a take-up pobbin 26.

The optical fiber manufacturing apparatus 10 of the present invention includes a resin coating means 20
It further includes a vibration prevention roll 36 installed on the upstream side of the optical fiber core 14 to prevent vibration of the optical fiber core wire 14. This anti-vibration roll 36 is preferably made of a material to which the optical fiber core 14 does not adhere, such as urethane resin. Even if the optical fiber core wire 14 is cooled over a long distance, the optical fiber core wire 14 does not generate vibration due to the anti-vibration roll 36, and therefore the optical fiber core wire 14 is damaged by the surface of the coating die 32, resulting in breakage or strength deterioration. Without 9 also optical fiber 14A
There is no variation in roundness and coating thickness, improving product quality.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of the invention, in which the optical fiber 14 is deflected by 90° with an anti-vibration roll 36. In this way, the resin application means 20 and the crosslinking means 22 are arranged horizontally, so the height of the equipment can be kept small.

Therefore, the height of the building in which it is housed can be small, and the equipment cost can be reduced, which is preferable.

(Effects of the Invention) According to the present invention, as described above, there is a practical benefit in that the generation of vibration between the wire drawing means and the resin application means can be prevented and the quality of the product can be improved.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic system diagram of an optical fiber manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, and FIGS. 2(A) and 2(B) are sectional views of different states of the resin coating means used in the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic system diagram of another embodiment of the present invention. 10---One optical fiber manufacturing device, 12---Optical fiber base material, 14---One optical fiber core wire, 14A
-----Optical fiber, 16---Heating furnace, 18-
----- Line drawing means. 20.2OA, 20B--Resin application means, 22
, 22A, 22B----1 crosslinking means. 24--1--Take-up machine, 26----- Winding drum, 2
8----One winding means, 30----Resin tank, 32-
1---Painting die, 34-1111 Resin liquid.

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) A drawing device that forms an optical fiber core wire by drawing the optical fiber base material while heating it, a resin application device that applies resin to the optical fiber core wire, and a resin application device that applies the resin. In an optical fiber manufacturing apparatus, the optical fiber manufacturing apparatus is provided with a crosslinking means for crosslinking the optical fiber core wire, and a winding means for taking up and winding the optical fiber fed out from the crosslinking means. An optical fiber manufacturing device further comprising a vibration prevention roll that prevents vibration of the optical fiber core. (2) Means below the resin coating means are arranged so that the optical fiber core wire is direction-changed by the anti-vibration roll and guided to the resin coating means. Optical fiber manufacturing equipment. (3) The optical fiber according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the resin coating means comprises a resin tank through which the optical fiber core wire passes and rotates around the travel path of the optical fiber core wire. Manufacturing equipment.