KR20160136733A

KR20160136733A - manufacturing method of optical connector for multi-core fiber

Info

Publication number: KR20160136733A
Application number: KR1020150070668A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 이정훈; 이필중; 주신영; 김태성
Original assignee: 신한네트웍스 주식회사
Priority date: 2015-05-20
Filing date: 2015-05-20
Publication date: 2016-11-30

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing an optical connector for a multi-core fiber, to manufacture a ferrule inserted by a multi-core fiber to support the multi-core fiber, a flange combined with the ferrule, and a socket combined with the flange to align the multi-core fiber. According to the present invention, the method comprises: a ferrule and flange combination step of combining a ferrule and a flange to support the ferrule; an epoxy injection step of injection epoxy into a multi-core fiber support part formed through the flange and the ferrule; a multi-core fiber insertion step of inserting the multi-core fiber into the support part having the injected epoxy; an epoxy hardening step of hardening the epoxy while the multi-core fiber is inserted therein; a ferrule polishing step of polishing an end part of the ferrule while the epoxy is hardened to have the multi-core fiber inserted into the ferrule; an aligning step of checking a position of the cross section of the multi-core fiber of the polished surface of the ferrule while being combined with the flange; and a position fixing holder fixing step of combining the flange supporting the aligned ferrule with a position fixing holder having a key groove on an outer circumferential surface.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to a manufacturing method of an optical connector for a multi-core fiber,

The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing an optical connector of a multi-core fiber, and more particularly, to a method of manufacturing an optical connector of a multi-core fiber, which can prevent misalignment of the multi- And a manufacturing method thereof.

2. Description of the Related Art In order to provide an FTTH (Fiber To The Home) service that enables optical communication between a transmitting station and a plurality of subscribers, a so-called PON (Passive Optical Network) system has been realized.

However, the PON system has a problem of increasing the transmission capacity in the future, such as securing the congestion control and the reception dynamic range.

Considering this point, transition to SS (single star network) system is considered. SS system, since the number of fibers is increased with respect to the PON system in the inside of the transmitting station, ultrafine curing and ultra-high density are essential in the inside optical cable of the transmitting station. It is preferable to use a multicore fiber having a plurality of cores in the same clad as the optical fiber for extremely small diameter and super high density.

As a multi-core fiber, an optical fiber disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 1993-341147 has seven or more cores arranged in two dimensions on its cross section. Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 1998-104443 discloses an optical fiber in which a plurality of cores are aligned in a straight line, and a connection with the optical waveguide semiconductor optical integrated element is facilitated.

Korean Patent Publication No. 2014-0016982 discloses an optical connection member.

In order to manufacture such an optical connector for a multi-core fiber, the ferrule and the flange are combined, the epoxy is injected, the optical fiber is inserted, and the optical connector is cured. In this conventional method of assembling an optical connector, cross-sectional measurement is required for the alignment of the rotating shaft. However, it is not easy to confirm the position of the core on the cut surface due to adhesion or breakage of foreign matter on the cut surface during cutting of the optical fiber. The position of the front end face is confirmed, and even if the epoxy resin is cured using the epoxy after the alignment, the viscosity of the curing agent is lowered and the optical fiber is finely rotated due to the stress of the optical fiber. Therefore, the reliability of the alignment is relatively reduced, and it is difficult to improve the uniformity and the productivity of the product.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1993-341147 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1998-104443 Korean Patent Publication No. 2014-0016982

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a method of manufacturing an optical connector for a multi-core fiber, which can reduce misalignment of multi-core fibers during manufacture of the multi-core fiber optical connector and improve productivity.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing an optical connector for a multi-core fiber, the method comprising: forming a ferrule to which a multi-core fiber is inserted and supported; a flange coupled with the ferrule; To make a position fixing socket,

An epoxy injection step of injecting epoxy into the multi-core fiber support formed through the flange and the ferrule; and a step of injecting the multi-core fiber into the support to which the epoxy is injected, An epoxy curing step of curing the epoxy while the multi-core fiber is inserted;

A ferro-polishing step of polishing the end of the ferroel with the epoxy cured to insert the multi-core fiber into the ferrole;

A step of aligning the perforated multi-core fibers polished in a state where the flanges are coupled, and aligning the positions of the flanges; And a holder fixing step.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The method of manufacturing an optical connector of a multi-core fiber according to the present invention can reduce the number of workings required for aligning multi-core fibers supported on a ferrule, and further improve the reliability and productivity of the multi- .

1 is a perspective view showing an optical connector of a multi-core fiber according to the present invention,
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an optical connector to which a multi-
3 is a block diagram illustrating a method of fabricating an optical connector of a multi-core fiber of the present invention in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an optical connector of a multi-core fiber according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a method of manufacturing an optical connector of a multi-core fiber according to the present invention.

The method for manufacturing an optical connector of a multicore fiber according to the present invention includes a ferrule 20 to which a multi-core fiber 10 is inserted and supported, a flange 30 coupled with the ferrule 30, And a holder 40 coupled to the flange 30 and having a key groove 41 formed on an outer circumferential surface thereof in a state where the multiconductor core fibers are aligned.

As shown in FIG. 3, the method of manufacturing an optical connector of a multi-core fiber according to the present invention first carries out a ferrule-flange coupling step 110 for coupling the ferrule 20 and the flange 30 for supporting it. The coupling between the ferrule and the flange 30 can be achieved by coupling the ferrule 20 to the coupling groove formed in the flange 30 or by a separate coupling means,

An epoxy injection step 120 is performed in which the epoxy is injected into the supporting portions 21 and 31 formed at the center portion of the ferrule and the flange by the flange coupling step 110 with the ferrule as described above. The epoxy injection step 120 injects epoxy into the cavity formed in the longitudinal direction at the support portion, that is, the longitudinal center portion of the ferrule 20 and the flange 30.

After completion of the injection of the epoxy into the support portion, the multi-core fiber insertion step 130 is performed to insert the multi-core fiber 10 wound and stripped and assembled into the support portions 21 and 31. In this step, it is preferable that the ends of the multi-core fibers 10 can protrude from the end of the ferrule 20 in consideration of the polishing of the ferrule 20 to be described later.

When the insertion of the multi-core fiber 10 into the supporting portions 21 and 31 is completed, an epoxy curing step 140 for curing the epoxy is performed. And may vary depending on the curing characteristics of the epoxy that cures the epoxy.

When the epoxy hardening is completed, the cross-section of the ferrule 20 coupled with the flange 30 is polished so that the cross-section of the multi-core fiber coincides with the cross-section of the ferrule 20, Ferrous polishing step 150 is performed.

In the ferro polishing step 150, the ferrule 20 is vertically polished by using a separate grinding apparatus, and the ferrule 20 is polished by using a ground grinding wheel. In this ferrous polishing step, it is preferable that the end of the core of the multi-core fibers is not distorted by the edge of the ferrule 20 to be polished.

In the state where the panel is polished, a cross-section of the polished ferrule 20 is measured to confirm the position of the core, and an alignment step 160 is performed to align the flanges 30 and the associated paroles 40. The aligning step 160 confirms the position of the core fixed to the end of the callee 20 using a microscope or the like, and aligns the flanged ferrules according to the position of the core.

When the alignment of the panel is completed, a position fixing holder fixing step 170 is performed in which the position fixing holder 40 having the flanges with the aligned ferrules held thereon and the position fixing holder 40 having the key groove formed on the outer circumferential surface thereof is joined and fused.

The combination of the position fixing holder 40 and the flange 30 may be performed by heat fusion or may be fixed by a bond, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Therefore, the position fixing holder in which the core end of the multicore fiber is accurately detected is fixed.

In the method of manufacturing an optical connector of a multi-core fiber according to the present invention constructed as described above, epoxy is injected in a state in which a flange is not coupled, and since the multi-core fibers are inserted in an aligned state, It is possible to fundamentally prevent the state from being disturbed.

Particularly, since the ferrule and the flange are combined with each other, the multi-core fiber is inserted and cured, and then the end face is polished and the direction of the fiber is aligned properly. In addition, since the position fixing holder is coupled with the fiber alignment, reliability of aligning the holder, the ferrule and the cores of the fiber can be improved, and the productivity of the optical connector can be improved.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the true scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The method of manufacturing an optical connector of a multicore fiber of the present invention can be widely applied to the alignment of various optical connectors as well as optical connectors of multicore fibers.

Claims

A ferrule coupled with the ferrule, and a socket coupled to the flange to align the multi-core fiber,
An epoxy injection step of injecting epoxy into the multi-core fiber support formed through the flange and the ferrole; and a step of injecting the multi-core fiber into the support into which the epoxy is injected, An epoxy curing step of curing the epoxy with the multi-core fiber inserted therein;
A ferro-polishing step of polishing the end of the ferroel with the epoxy cured to insert the multi-core fiber into the ferrole;
A step of aligning the multi-core fibers of the perforated face polished in a state where the flanges are joined, and aligning the faces of the perforated multi-core fibers with the flanges; aligning the flanges supported with the aligned ferrules with the position fixing holders, And a holder fixing step.