WO2005001533A1

WO2005001533A1 - Method of assembling optical fiber conector

Info

Publication number: WO2005001533A1
Application number: PCT/JP2004/009219
Authority: WO
Inventors: Takashi Tsukamoto; Yuji Watanabe; Yoshinobu Takano
Original assignee: Asahi Glass Company, Limited
Priority date: 2003-06-27
Filing date: 2004-06-23
Publication date: 2005-01-06
Also published as: JP2006267130A

Abstract

A method of assembling an optical fiber connector, where the method simplifies work of fixing a steel wire to an optical fiber connector to increase efficiency of the fixing work and facilitating installation. In a method of assembling an optical fiber connector for connecting an optical fiber (3) and an optical cable (1) having a steel wire (4), the connector is assembled as follows. The steel wire (4) is exposed from a fore-end portion of the optical cable (1), the steel wire (4) is folded back to the rear-end side of the optical cable (1), and the steel wire (4) is held at a side portion of the optical cable (1). The optical fiber (3) is inserted through a connector unit (10), constituted of a ferrule (14), a housing, (13), etc., with the connector unit (10) temporarily set and held by a protector (20).

Description

Optical fiber connector assembly method

The present invention relates to a method of assembling an optical fiber connector capable of connecting and holding an optical fiber, and more particularly to an assembling method of an optical fiber connector for mutually connecting optical fibers of an optical cable having an optical fiber and a tension member. Is

Background art

In recent years, in the communication field, optical cables using optical fibers capable of communicating a large amount of information have been widely used. Optical fiber connectors are designed to allow easy attachment and detachment when connecting optical fiber cords to optical transceivers and various optical devices.Generally, they have a structure in which precision ferrules are butt-connected via an adapter. Become.

As the optical cable, for example, a pair of resin optical fibers, a resin covering member for protecting these optical fibers, and a pair of resin covering members disposed on both outer sides of the optical fiber in the covering member. There is a two-core flat optical cable consisting of a steel tension member (hereinafter referred to as a steel wire).

The steel wire is designed to prevent the transmission loss of the optical fiber from being affected by the force acting when the optical cable is laid at the construction site or the excessive tension generated after laying, or the optical fiber due to excessive pulling force. Those with high tensile stiffness are used so that they are not damaged.

The optical fiber connector is composed of a housing terminating the end of the optical cable, a tubular body, a spring member terminating the end of the optical fiber and a ferrule for elastic connection, and the like. Are assembled at the construction site. At that time, one pair The steel wire is directly fixed by caulking while protruding forward from the end of the optical cable. Such a conventional example is disclosed, for example, in International Publication No. 0 192 937 pamphlet and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-24925.

However, the method of fixing the steel wire requires special tools for caulking, and it is difficult to start over after caulking once. There is a situation that it becomes complicated.

Also, when assembling an optical fiber connector at a construction site, it is necessary to assemble a relatively large number of relatively small parts such as a housing, a spring member, and a ferrule, so that work efficiency is not improved and parts are lost during the work. There is a risk of doing so. DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The object of the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to simplify the work of fixing a steel wire to an optical fiber connector, and to improve the efficiency of the fixing work An object of the present invention is to provide a method of assembling an optical fiber connector that is easy to perform. The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a method for assembling an optical fiber connector for connecting an optical cable having an optical fiber and a tension member, comprising the steps of: exposing the tension member from a tip end of the optical cable; Folding the exposed tension member toward the rear end of the optical cable, and holding the folded tension member at the side of the optical cable. It provides a method.

Further, when holding the tension member on a side portion of the optical cable, the folded portion of the tension member is passed through a hole of a spacer attached to the optical cable, and then the spacer is booted. It is preferable to cover and fix.

Further, according to the present invention, the optical fiber is penetrated and approaches the tip of the optical fiber. An outer peripheral portion of a chuck member having an outer peripheral portion having an enlarged diameter according to the following is provided on an outer peripheral portion of a chuck member for fixing the optical fiber, and an annular member that relatively moves in a tip direction of the optical fiber to tighten the optical fiber is provided. The chuck member, the annular member and the elastic member are held by a hollow body holding member, and the hollow body holding member and the ferrule are held by eight housings. A method of assembling an optical fiber connector in which a hollow body holding member and the housing are assembled by engaging a protrusion formed on the hollow body holding member with a cutout formed on the housing and engaging with a notch. In the above, the chuck member, the annular member and the elastic member are incorporated in the hollow body holding member, and the hollow body holding member is provided. A step of inserting an optical fiber through the chuck member and the ferrule while holding a connector unit, in which the material, the ferrule and the housing are temporarily set in a predetermined position, with a holder. An object of the present invention is to provide a method for assembling a fiber connector.

Further, it is preferable that the holding tool has a projection, and the projection is engaged with the hollow body holding member at a position where the engagement between the hollow body holding member and the housing is avoided.

Further, it is preferable that the end face treatment of the optical fiber is performed while the connector unit is held by a holder. Brief Description of Drawings

1 to 6 are explanatory views showing steps of a method for fixing a steel wire in a method for assembling an optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 7A to 7D are process perspective views showing a method for fixing a steel wire in the method for assembling an optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a process perspective view of the method for assembling the optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a process perspective view of an optical fiber connector assembling method according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is.

FIG. 10 is a process perspective view of the method for assembling the optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a process chart of an optical fiber connector assembling method according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a process chart of a method for assembling an optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a process perspective view of the method for assembling the optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a process diagram of an optical fiber connector assembling method according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a process perspective view of the method for assembling the optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 16A and 16B are process cross-sectional views of an optical fiber connector assembling method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a process perspective view of the method of assembling the optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

(A) and (b) of FIG. 18 are process cross-sectional views of an optical fiber connector assembling method according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a process perspective view of the method for assembling the optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a process perspective view of the method for assembling the optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a process perspective view of an optical fiber connector assembling method according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a process perspective view of the method for assembling the optical fiber connector according to one embodiment of the present invention. (Explanation of code)

1: optical cable, 2: jacket, 3: optical fiber, 4: rope,

5: Cover, 5a: Groove, 5b: Concave, 5c: Steel wire through hole,

6: support, 6a: convex, 6b: hole, 7: boot,

8, 50: Upper case, 8a, 9a: Take-out part, 8b, 9b: Locking piece,

9, 51: Lower case, 10: Connector unit,

11: hollow body holding member, 11a, 13b: protrusion,

13: Housing, 13a: Notch, 14: Ferrule,

15: chuck member, 16: annular member, 17: spring member,

20: Holder, 21: Projection piece, 30: Cutting tool. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 to 22 show one embodiment of a method of assembling an optical fiber connector according to the present invention. In particular, FIGS. 1 to 7 illustrate a method of fixing a steel wire.

In FIG. 1, a flat two-core optical cable 1 has a pair of optical fibers 3 extending in its axial direction inside a long resinous jacket 2, and a pair of steel wires outside these optical fins 3. With 4. After exposing the optical fiber 3 and the steel wire 4 by peeling off the jacket 2 at the end of the optical cable 1, as shown in FIG. 2, the cover 2, the spacer 6, and the Here, the cover 5 and the spacer 6 will be specifically described so that the boots 7 are arranged in this order from the tip. As shown in FIGS. 7 (a) and 7 (b), the cover 5 is formed in a substantially elliptical cylindrical shape, and a groove 5a extending in the axial direction is formed on the outer portion on the front end side, and the rear end is a jacket. The tip of the knob 2 can be inserted. Also, on both sides of the rear end of the cover 5, concave portions 5b into which convex portions of the spacer 6 described later are fitted are formed, and the steel wire 4 and the optical fiber 3 are inserted therein. A pair of steel wire through-holes 5c is formed.

The spacer 6 is formed in an oval ring shape of each B, and a convex portion 6a protruding toward a concave portion 5b of the cover 5 is formed at a tip end surface of the spacer 6, and a steel wire 4 is formed on the convex portion 6a. There is a hole 6b through which the hole passes. As shown in FIGS. 7 (c) and 7 (d), the convex portion 6 a of the spacer 6 fits into the concave portion 5 b of the cover 5. The boot 7 has a jacket 2 for the optical cable 1 penetrated therein, and a tip end portion of the boot 7 has a shape capable of covering the cover 5 and the spacer 6. ing.

As shown in FIG. 3, the steel wire 4 is folded back to the rear side of the jacket 2 and passes through the hole 6 b of the spacer 6. At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, the steel wire 4 fits into the groove 5a of the cover 5, and in this state, the convex portion 6a of the spacer 6 is fitted into the concave portion 5b of the cover 5 ( See Figure 5). Then, after cutting the excess length of the steel wire 4, the boot 6 is put on the spacer 6 and the cover 5, and the spacer 6 and the force par 5 are fixed (see FIG. 6).

Next, the optical fiber 3 is protected by upper and lower cases 8, 9 as shown in FIG. In this case, the upper and lower cases 8 and 9 are formed with take-out portions 8a and 9a for the optical fiber 3 and locking pieces 8b and 9b for locking the upper and lower cases 8 and 9 with each other. The take-out portions 8a and 9a are formed in a semicircular shape, and the take-out portions 8a and 9a are vertically overlapped to form a circle, and the outer shape of a hollow body holding member described later matches this.

Next, in FIGS. 9 to 16, the connector unit 10 includes a hollow body holding member 11, a housing 13, a ferrule 14, a chuck member 15, an annular member 16, and a spring member 1. And these members are temporarily set at predetermined positions, and are held by a holder 20 to hold this state.

Here, each member constituting the connector unit 10 will be specifically described with reference to FIG.

That is, the ferrule 14 is formed in a cylindrical shape, the tip of which is used for connection of the optical fiber 3, the large-diameter base 14 a is formed at the rear end, and the light is emitted in the axial direction. The fiber 3 is made to pass through. Base 14a is the inner circumference of housing 13 The protruding portion 13 b provided on the surface restricts forward projection, and the rear end surface of the base 14 a of the ferrule 14 abuts on the front end surface of the chuck member 15.

In such a ferrule 14, the position of the optical fiber 3 is accurately determined on the distal end face of the ferrule 14 by passing the optical fiber 3 from the rear, and the distal end face of the ferrule 14 is formed. The end face is treated (cut, polished) so that it is flush with the end face of the optical fiber, and is connected to the end face of another optical fiber via an adapter. The inner diameter of the ferrule 14 is slightly larger on the base 14a side so that the optical fiber 3 can be easily inserted from behind.

The housing 13 is a member for holding the ferrule 14 at a predetermined position and fixing the hollow body holding member 11 at a predetermined position.

The hollow body holding member 11 is a cylindrical hollow body member disposed at a predetermined position in the axial direction of the optical fiber 3 on the inner peripheral surface of the housing 13, and includes a chuck member 15 and an annular member 16. And a spring member 17 are arranged. That is, the hollow body holding member 11 has a protrusion 1 provided on the outer periphery of the hollow body holding member 11 with the chuck member 15, the annular member 16 and the spring member 17 disposed inside thereof. The housing 13 is fixed at a predetermined position in the housing 13 by fitting the housing 1 a to the cutout 13 a provided in the housing 13. Here, the position of the notch 13a in the housing 13 where the projection 11a is fitted to join the hollow body holding member 11 is such that the panel member 17 obtains the desired urging force, It is positioned to bias member 16 forward.

The chuck member 15 is a member for fixing and holding the optical fiber 3 inserted therein, and is formed of a resin material. Since the chuck member 15 is made of a resin material, it has the same compression characteristics as, for example, plastic fins, and does not cause any damage or dents in the holding portion of the optical fiber 3.

The front portion of the chuck member 15 has an outer peripheral portion whose diameter increases as approaching the distal end portion of the optical fiber 3, and has a cut along the axial direction of the optical fiber 3 from the distal end surface and goes rearward. The notch is configured to be smaller in accordance with the following. Above The annular member 16 is a member that slides on the front part of the chuck member 15 and fastens the chuck member 15. The spring member 17 is an elastic member disposed behind the annular member 16 in the gap between the spring member 17 and the chuck member 15 inside the hollow body holding member 11. The panel member 17 and the annular member 16 are arranged at predetermined positions in the hollow body holding member 11 together with the chuck member 15 in a state of being fitted into the front part of the chuck member 15.

Each of the above-described members is held by the holder 20 in a temporarily set state. At this time, as shown in FIG. 10, site A and site B of connector unit 10 are positioned at site A ₂ and site B ₂ of holder ₂₀ , respectively. As a result, the positional relationship between the members constituting the connector unit 10 is maintained in a stable state, and the protrusion 11 a of the hollow body holding member 11 and the cutout 13 a of the housing 13 are formed. Is avoided. Reference numeral 21 denotes a protruding piece that can be pushed upward, and is provided at a lower portion of the holder 20 (see FIGS. 9 to 12).

Next, FIGS. 13 to 15 show two mounting methods of the connector unit 10 in the upper and lower cases 8 and 9. In the connector unit 10 held by the holder 20, the optical fiber 3 is passed through from the rear of the chuck member 15, and the optical fiber 3 is further passed through the base 14 a of the ferrule 14, Pass the ferrule 14 through the tip of the ferrule 14. Thereafter, the rear part 20a of the holder 20 is cut off by a cutting tool such as a nipper (see FIG. 14).

As shown in FIGS. 16 (a) and (b), the hollow body holding member 11 in which the ferrule 14, the spring member 17, the annular member 16 and the chuck member 15 are assembled is provided in the housing 13. Is fixed from the front and fixed at a predetermined position in the housing 13. That is, the hollow body holding member 11 is fixed at a predetermined position by fitting the projection 11 a provided on the outer peripheral surface to the notch 13 a provided on the inner peripheral surface of the housing 13. The ferrule 14 has a base 14 a that abuts against a distal end surface of the chuck member 15, while a ferrule 14 abuts a protrusion 13 b provided on an inner peripheral surface of the housing 13, and projects forward. Is limited. At this time, the annular member 16 pushes the chuck member 15 forward by the urging force of the spring member 17 and presses the ferrule 14 forward by a predetermined urging force. Thus, when connecting optical fibers via an adapter or the like, the ferrules are brought into elastic contact with each other, so that the optical fibers can be connected elastically without damaging the optical fibers such as buckling. Can be.

Further, the chuck member 15 is pushed rearward by the ferrule 14, so that the annular member 16 relatively moves forward due to the urging force of the panel member 17. It is tightened and held and fixed. Since the chuck member 15 is made of a resin material, the holding portion of the optical fiber 3 is not damaged or dents are formed. After the housing 13 is mounted, the end face treatment of the optical fiber 3 is performed as shown in FIG. 17 and FIG. That is, the tip of the optical fiber 3 is cut by the cutting blade 31 of the cutting tool 30 and aligned with the end face of the ferrule 14.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 19, the holder 20 is removed from the connector unit 10. In this case, the holder 20 can be easily removed by pinching the lower part of the holder 20 and deforming the holder 20 or pushing up the protrusion 21.

Then, as shown in FIG. 20, the connector unit 10 is covered with a holder 40 for coupling with an adapter or a receptacle of an optical communication device, leaving a rear portion of the hollow body holding member 11. As shown in FIGS. 21 and 22, upper and lower cases 50 and 51 are attached while leaving the tip of the holder 40, and the end face of the optical fiber 3 is polished as necessary. Thus, the assembly of the optical fiber connector is completed. As described above, in the method of assembling the optical fiber connector according to the present embodiment, since the steel wire 4 is fixed to the rear side of the jacket 2 by the cover 5, the spacer 6, and the boot 7, the special tool for caulking is used. Without the use of, the work can be simplified and the work can be redone easily.

Further, the panel member 17, the annular member 16 and the chuck member 15 are previously incorporated into the hollow body holding member 11, and the hollow body holding member 11, the ferrule 14, and the housing 13 are temporarily set. Components are maintained without falling off Therefore, there is no risk of loss and the like, and the efficiency of the connector assembling work can be improved at the construction site, and the cost can be reduced.

As described above, the method of assembling the optical fiber connector according to the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail. Various changes can be made in the design without departing from the spirit of a certain invention.

For example, the above-described embodiment is an assembling method of an optical fiber connector provided with the ferrule 14, but may be used for assembling an optical fiber connector not provided with the ferrule. For example, an optical connector in which optical fibers are directly inserted into a sleeve provided in an adapter and the optical fibers are brought into contact with each other may be used. Such optical connectors include optical fibers made entirely of a plastic material, for example, connection of a perfluorinated plastic optical fiber, or optical fibers made of a plastic material for the outer layer, for example, a quartz optical fiber whose outer periphery is coated with a polymer material. It is preferably used for connecting a PCF (polymer clad fiber). Of course, it may be used for a conventional quartz optical fiber.

The method for assembling an optical fiber connector according to the present invention is used not only for SC type optical connectors and FC type optical connectors but also for LC type optical connectors, MU type optical connectors and MT-RJ type optical connectors. Is also good.

Further, the method for assembling an optical fiber connector of the present invention can also be used for an optical cable optical fiber connector having three or more optical fibers.

Industrial potential

As can be understood from the above description, according to the present invention, the work of assembling the optical fiber connector is simplified, and the work of connecting the optical fiber at the time of construction is facilitated. Can be connected in a short time, and the efficiency of optical fiber connection work at the construction site can be improved.

Claims

The scope of the claims

1. An assembling method of an optical fiber connector for connecting an optical cable having an optical fiber and a tension member,

Exposing the tension member from the distal end of the optical cable; folding the exposed tension member toward the rear end of the optical cable; and holding the folded tension member on the side of the optical cable. A method for assembling an optical fiber connector, comprising:

2. When holding the tension member on the side of the optical cable, the folded portion of the tension member is passed through a hole of a spacer attached to the optical cable, and then the spacer is removed. 2. The method for assembling an optical fiber connector according to claim 1, wherein the optical fiber connector is fixed by covering with a boot.

3. The optical fiber is passed through and has an outer peripheral portion whose diameter increases as approaching the distal end portion of the optical fiber. The outer peripheral portion of the chuck member for fixing the optical fiber is relatively positioned in the distal direction of the optical fiber. An annular member for moving and tightening the optical fiber is provided, the annular member is urged toward the distal end by an elastic member, and the chuck member, the annular member, and the elastic member are held by a hollow body holding member. The hollow body holding member and the ferrule are held by a housing, and the hollow body holding member and the housing are provided with a projection formed on the hollow body holding member in a notch formed on the housing. In the method of assembling an optical fiber connector to be assembled by locking,

The chuck member, the annular member, and the elastic member are incorporated in the hollow body holding member, and a connector unit in which the hollow body holding member, the ferrule, and the housing are temporarily set at predetermined positions is held. A method for assembling an optical fiber connector, comprising a step of passing an optical fiber through the chuck member and the ferrule while holding the optical fiber with a tool.

4. The holder has a projection, and the projection is provided with the hollow body holding member and the housing. 4. The method for assembling an optical fiber connector according to claim 3, wherein the optical fiber connector is engaged with the hollow body holding member at a position where the engagement with the jing is avoided.

5. The method for assembling an optical fiber connector according to claim 3, wherein the optical fiber end face is processed while the connector unit is held by a holder.

6. The method for assembling an optical fiber connector according to claim 3, 4, or 5, wherein the optical fiber is an optical cable optical fiber having a tension member fixed by the method according to claim 1 or 2.