WO2023173286A1 - Ensembles connecteurs optiques - Google Patents

Ensembles connecteurs optiques Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2023173286A1
WO2023173286A1 PCT/CN2022/080929 CN2022080929W WO2023173286A1 WO 2023173286 A1 WO2023173286 A1 WO 2023173286A1 CN 2022080929 W CN2022080929 W CN 2022080929W WO 2023173286 A1 WO2023173286 A1 WO 2023173286A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
optical
mating
housing
fiber
recess
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/CN2022/080929
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Changbao Ma
Shiwen Chen
Kevin T. CHALOUPKA
Stephen P. Leblanc
Original Assignee
3M Innovative Properties Company
Shiwen Chen
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by 3M Innovative Properties Company, Shiwen Chen filed Critical 3M Innovative Properties Company
Priority to PCT/CN2022/080929 priority Critical patent/WO2023173286A1/fr
Publication of WO2023173286A1 publication Critical patent/WO2023173286A1/fr

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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G02—OPTICS
    • G02B—OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS
    • G02B6/00—Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings
    • G02B6/24—Coupling light guides
    • G02B6/36—Mechanical coupling means
    • G02B6/38—Mechanical coupling means having fibre to fibre mating means
    • G02B6/3807—Dismountable connectors, i.e. comprising plugs
    • G02B6/3873—Connectors using guide surfaces for aligning ferrule ends, e.g. tubes, sleeves, V-grooves, rods, pins, balls
    • G02B6/3885—Multicore or multichannel optical connectors, i.e. one single ferrule containing more than one fibre, e.g. ribbon type
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G02—OPTICS
    • G02B—OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS
    • G02B6/00—Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings
    • G02B6/24—Coupling light guides
    • G02B6/26—Optical coupling means
    • G02B6/264—Optical coupling means with optical elements between opposed fibre ends which perform a function other than beam splitting
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G02—OPTICS
    • G02B—OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS
    • G02B6/00—Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings
    • G02B6/24—Coupling light guides
    • G02B6/36—Mechanical coupling means
    • G02B6/38—Mechanical coupling means having fibre to fibre mating means
    • G02B6/3807—Dismountable connectors, i.e. comprising plugs
    • G02B6/3869—Mounting ferrules to connector body, i.e. plugs
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G02—OPTICS
    • G02B—OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS
    • G02B6/00—Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings
    • G02B6/24—Coupling light guides
    • G02B6/36—Mechanical coupling means
    • G02B6/40—Mechanical coupling means having fibre bundle mating means
    • G02B6/403—Mechanical coupling means having fibre bundle mating means of the ferrule type, connecting a pair of ferrules

Definitions

  • This disclosure relates generally to optical connector assemblies for coupling devices such as optical ferrules.
  • Optical connectors can be used for optical communications in a variety of applications including telecommunications networks, local area networks, data center links, and internal links in computer devices. Expanded optical beams may be used in connectors for these applications to provide an optical connection that is less sensitive to dust and other forms of contamination and so that alignment tolerances may be relaxed.
  • an expanded beam is a beam that is larger in diameter than the core of an associated optical waveguide (usually an optical fiber, e.g., a multi-mode fiber for a multi-mode communication system) .
  • the connector is generally considered an expanded beam connector if there is an expanded beam at a connection point.
  • the expanded beam is typically obtained by diverging a light beam from a source or optical fiber. In many cases, the diverging beam is processed by optical elements such as a lens or mirror into an expanded beam that is approximately collimated. The expanded beam is then received by focusing of the beam via another lens or mirror.
  • An aspect of the disclosure relates to an optical connector assembly including a housing having a mating end, an opposite fiber end, and one or more walls defining a housing chamber therebetween. One of the one or more walls defines a recess therein.
  • An optical ferrule is at least partially disposed in the housing chamber and includes a mating end, a fiber attachment area disposed between the mating end and an opposite fiber end of the optical ferrule, and a light redirecting surface disposed between the mating end and the fiber attachment area.
  • At least one optical fiber is disposed at the fiber ends of the housing and the optical ferrule.
  • the at least one optical fiber includes at least one corresponding fiber end fixedly attached to the attachment area of the optical ferrule.
  • the light redirecting surface is configured to receive a central light ray from the at least one optical fiber along a first direction and redirect the received light along a different second direction.
  • a mating optical connector assembly that includes a mating optical ferrule including a mating end and a fiber attachment area disposed between the mating end and an opposite fiber end of the mating optical ferrule
  • the mating end of the optical ferrule slides against the mating optical ferrule causing the mating end of the mating optical ferrule to enter, and be at least partially disposed in, the recess of the one or more walls of the housing.
  • the connector housing for housing an optical ferrule.
  • the connector housing includes a mating end for mating with a mating housing of a mating optical ferrule of the optical ferrule along a mating direction and an opposite fiber end for receiving at least one optical fiber that is attached to the optical ferrule therethrough.
  • the connector housing includes a first connector housing portion removably assembled to a second connector housing portion along a thickness direction of the connector housing orthogonal to the mating direction.
  • the first and second connector housing portions define a housing chamber therebetween.
  • One of the first and second connector housing portions defines a recess therein open to the housing chamber. The recess is disposed closer to the mating end of the connector housing and farther from the fiber end of the connector housing.
  • the optical ferrule When the optical ferrule is housed in the connector housing and the connector housing is mated with the mating housing that houses the mating optical ferrule, a transfer of light between the optical ferrule and the mating optical ferule takes place along a transfer direction different from the mating and thickness directions, and a longitudinal end of the mating optical ferrule is disposed in the recess.
  • FIG. 1 schematically shows an optical connector assembly housing an optical ferrule according to some aspects of the disclosure
  • FIG. 2 schematically shows an optical ferrule assembly according to some aspects of the disclosure
  • FIGS. 3-4 schematically show exploded and partially assembled views of the optical connector assembly and the optical ferrule assembly
  • FIG. 5 schematically shows the cross sectional view of two optical connector assemblies each, having respective optical ferrules, mated with each other;
  • FIG. 6 schematically shows the cross-sectional view of the housing of an optical connector assembly and a mating optical ferrule disposed therein according to some aspects of the disclosure
  • FIG. 7 schematically shows a mated optical connector assembly according to some embodiments
  • FIG. 8 schematically shows a cross-sectional view of an optical connector housing according to some embodiments.
  • FIG. 9 schematically shows an assembled view of an optical connector housing according to some embodiments.
  • Embodiments described herein are directed to optical connectors and optical connector assemblies.
  • Optical connectors and assemblies described herein make optical connections between one or more optical ferrules including waveguides and one or more mating optical ferrules including mating waveguides.
  • the individual waveguides are typically made of glass with a protective buffer coating, and the parallel waveguides are enclosed by a jacket.
  • Optical connectors as discussed herein are useful for connecting optical waveguides to mating optical waveguides in backplane or midplane applications.
  • Expanded beam optical (EBO) ferrules include optical connectors where the optical waveguide of the fiber optic cable is mated with a light redirecting surface, such as lens.
  • a multi-fiber connector module (such as MPO) is used to interconnect multiple fiber pairs (12-pair, 16-pair, etc. ) , each with a pair of fiber endings.
  • the EBO ferrules may need to rotate in the pitch direction by a few degrees, thus forming an extension at one end with respect to the connector body.
  • the extension (nose) of the incoming ferrule physically contacts the side wall of its counterpart’s housing, due to the limited space, thereby causing repeatability and reliability issues.
  • the embodiments of the disclosure relate to constructions of optical connector assemblies and housings to avoid the contact of the optical ferrules with the connector housing of the mating optical ferrules, without changing the form factor of the existing connectors.
  • FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate an optical connector assembly (300) and an optical ferrule (30) housed in the optical connector assembly (300) according to some embodiments of the disclosure.
  • the optical connector assembly (300) includes a connector housing (10) having a mating end (11) and an opposite fiber end (12) .
  • the connector housing (10) may have a unitary construction. In some cases, the connector housing (10) may include glass fiber reinforced resin.
  • the connector housing (10) may be configured to house the optical ferrule (30) .
  • the connector housing (10) may function to prevent dirt from interfering with optical connections, for example.
  • the housing may provide, in some instances, retention force to maintain the ferrules in positive contact, as well as a latching and release mechanism for mating and de-mating an optical connector.
  • the housing can protect an optical ferrule from outputting stray light that can be a safety hazard to those nearby.
  • the housing may have a latching mechanism to prevent its accidental opening.
  • the housing may have a door mechanism that may be opened by the action of mating two connectors.
  • the housing can have any suitable configuration for holding and securing the optical ferrule and for mating the optical connector to the mating optical connector.
  • the connector housing (10) includes a housing chamber (20) defined, for instance, by one or more walls (13a-13d) , and the optical ferrule (30) may be at least partially disposed in the housing chamber (20) .
  • the one or more walls (13a-13d) may include a top wall (13a) , a bottom wall (13b) and side walls (13c, 13d) .
  • the fiber end (12) of the connector housing (10) may be configured to receive at least one optical waveguide (40) that is attached to the optical ferrule (30) therethrough.
  • the mating end (11) of the connector housing (10) may be configured for mating with a mating connector housing (10m) of a mating optical ferrule (30m) of the optical ferrule along a mating direction (x-axis) as will be explained later with reference to FIG. 5.
  • the optical ferrule (30) as illustrated in FIG. 2 includes a mating end (31) and a fiber attachment area (32) attached to optical waveguides (40) .
  • An optical waveguide may be, for example, a single or multi-mode waveguide, a single core optical fiber, a multi-core optical fiber, a polymeric waveguide, or planar waveguides disposed on a substrate.
  • the fiber attachment area (32) may be disposed between the mating end (31) and an opposite fiber end (33) of the optical ferrule (30) .
  • a light redirecting surface (34) of the optical ferrule (30) is disposed between the mating end (31) and the fiber attachment area (32) .
  • the light redirecting surface (34) may include one or more of a prism, a lens, and a reflecting surface, such as a mirror or the like, to collimate light.
  • One or more optical waveguides (40) may be disposed at the fiber ends (12, 33) of the housing (10) and the optical ferrule (30) .
  • the optical waveguide (40) may include at least one corresponding fiber end (41) fixedly attached to the attachment area (32) of the optical ferrule.
  • the light redirecting surface (34) redirects the central light ray (42) primarily by total internal reflection (TIR) .
  • the light redirecting surface (34) may be configured to receive a central light ray (42) from the at least one optical waveguide (40) along a first direction (43) and redirect the received light along a different second direction (44) .
  • the light redirecting surface (34) may be configured to change the direction of the central light ray (42) received from the optical waveguide (40) by at least 45 degrees, or at least 60 degrees, or, in some cases, about 90 degrees.
  • one of the one or more walls (13a-13d) may define a recess (21a, 21b) therein.
  • the recess (21a) in some cases, may be formed in the top wall (13a) .
  • the recess (21a) may be a through opening extending across an entire thickness of the top wall (13a) .
  • the recess (21b) may not be a through opening and may extend only partway across a thickness of the top wall (13a) .
  • the recess (21a, 21b) may face the housing chamber (20) .
  • the recess (21a, 21b) may open to the housing chamber (20) .
  • the connector housing (10) includes a first connector housing portion (10a) removably assembled to a second connector housing portion (10b) along a thickness direction (z-axis) of the connector housing (10) orthogonal to the mating direction (x-axis) .
  • the first (10a) and second (10b) connector housing portions define the housing chamber (20) therebetween with the optical ferrule (30) configured to be at least partially disposed in the housing chamber (20) .
  • the optical ferrule (30) is attached to the second connector housing portion (10b) and the second connector housing portion (10b) may be connected to the first connector housing portion (10a) , by snap fit latches or otherwise, to secure the optical ferrule (30) within the housing chamber (20) .
  • the bottom wall (13b) of the one or more walls (13a-13d) of the housing (10) shown in FIG. 1 may include a first wall portion (13b1) removably assembled to a second wall portion (13b2) as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4.
  • FIG. 9 shows the assembled view of the housing (10) with the first wall portion (13b1) and the second wall portion (13b2) of the bottom wall (13b) assembled to each other.
  • the first and second wall portions (13b1, 13b2) of the bottom wall (13b) may be assembled to each other using latches and corresponding engaging elements provided in the wall portions (13b1, 13b2) .
  • one of the first (10a) and second (10b) connector housing portions may define a recess (21a) .
  • the recess (21a) may be disposed closer to the mating end (11) and farther from the fiber end (12) of the connector housing (10) as best seen in FIG. 1.
  • the recess (21a) may be a through opening extending across an entire thickness of the first (10a) or second (10b) connector housing portions.
  • the recess (21b) may not be a through opening and may extend only partway across a thickness of the first (10a) or second (10b) connector housing portions.
  • the recess (21a, 21b) may face the housing chamber (20) .
  • the recess (21a, 21b) may open to the housing chamber (20) .
  • the housing (10) may include a pair of opposing longitudinal slots (14a, 14b) .
  • the slots (14a, 14b) may extend from the mating end (11) of the housing (10) partway toward the fiber end (12) of the housing (10) as can also be seen in FIG. 8.
  • the recess (21a, 21b) may be disposed between the pair of opposing longitudinal slots (14a, 14b) and the fiber end (12) of the housing (10) . As shown in FIG. 8, the recess (21a, 21b) may be disposed closer to the pair of longitudinal slots (14a, 14b) and farther from the fiber end (12) of the connector housing (10) .
  • FIG. 5 shows the cross sectional view of the optical connector assembly (300) including the optical ferrule (30) mated with a mating optical connector assembly (300m) including a mating optical ferrule (30m) .
  • the mating optical connector assembly (300m) includes a mating connector housing (10m) .
  • the mating optical ferrule (30m) includes a mating end (31m) , an optical fiber end (33m) and a fiber attachment area (32m) disposed between the mating end (31m) and the opposite fiber end (33m) .
  • the mating end (31) of the optical ferrule (30) slides against the mating optical ferrule (30m) causing a longitudinal end (31m) of the mating optical ferrule (30m) to enter and be disposed in the recess (21a, 21b) of the one or more walls (13a) of the housing (10) .
  • the mating end (31m) of the mating optical ferrule (30m) enters, and is at least partially disposed, in the recess (21a, 21b) of the one or more walls of the housing (10) when the optical connector assembly (300) mates with the mating optical connector assembly (300m) .
  • the recess (21a, 21b) provides space to accommodate at least the mating end (31m) of the mating optical ferrule (30m) and to avoid direct contact between the mating optical ferrule (30m) and at least the top wall (13a) of the connector housing (10) when the optical connector assembly (300) mates with the mating optical connector assembly (300m) .
  • the optical ferrule (30) when the optical ferrule (30) is housed in the connector housing (10) and the connector housing (10) is mated with the mating connector housing (10m) that houses the mating optical ferrule (30m) a transfer of light between the optical ferrule (30) and the mating optical ferule (30m) takes place along a transfer direction (44) different from the mating (x-axis) and thickness (z-axis) directions.
  • the transfer direction (44) makes an oblique angle ( ⁇ ) of at least 10 degrees with the thickness direction (z-axis) .
  • the transfer direction (44) makes an oblique angle ( ⁇ ) of at least 15 degrees, or 20 degrees, or 25 degrees, or 30 degrees with the thickness direction (z-axis) .
  • the transfer direction (44) is different from each of the mating (x-axis) and thickness (z-axis) directions by at least 5 degrees, or 10 degrees, or 15 degrees, or 20 degrees.
  • FIG. 7 shows a mated optical connector assembly (400) including the optical connector assembly (300) mated with the mating optical connector assembly (300m) in the mating direction (x-axis) .
  • the mated optical connector assembly may include an external frame (410) .
  • Each of the housing (10) of the optical connector assembly (300) and a housing (10m) of the mating optical connector assembly (300m) is at least partially disposed in the external frame (410) .

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  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Optics & Photonics (AREA)
  • Mechanical Coupling Of Light Guides (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un ensemble connecteur optique (300) comprenant un boîtier (10) ayant une ou plusieurs parois (13a-13d) définissant une chambre de boîtier (20), l'une des parois (13a-13d) définissant un évidement (21a, 21b) à l'intérieur de celle-ci. Une ferrule optique (30) est au moins partiellement disposée dans la chambre de boîtier (20). Au moins une fibre optique (40) est disposée au niveau des extrémités de fibre (12, 33) du boîtier (10) et de la ferrule optique (30) et comprend au moins une extrémité de fibre (41) fixée à une zone de fixation de fibre (32) de la ferrule optique (30). Une surface de redirection de lumière (34) dans la ferrule optique (30) reçoit un rayon lumineux central (42) provenant de la fibre optique (40) le long d'une première direction (43) et redirige la lumière le long d'une seconde direction (44). Lorsque l'ensemble connecteur optique (300) s'accouple avec un ensemble connecteur optique d'accouplement (300m) ayant une ferrule optique d'accouplement (30m), une extrémité d'accouplement (31) de la ferrule optique (30) coulisse contre la ferrule optique d'accouplement (30m) amenant une extrémité d'accouplement (31m) de la ferrule optique d'accouplement (30m) à entrer et à être au moins partiellement disposée dans l'évidement (21a).
PCT/CN2022/080929 2022-03-15 2022-03-15 Ensembles connecteurs optiques WO2023173286A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/CN2022/080929 WO2023173286A1 (fr) 2022-03-15 2022-03-15 Ensembles connecteurs optiques

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/CN2022/080929 WO2023173286A1 (fr) 2022-03-15 2022-03-15 Ensembles connecteurs optiques

Publications (1)

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WO2023173286A1 true WO2023173286A1 (fr) 2023-09-21

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Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN106104337A (zh) * 2014-03-19 2016-11-09 3M创新有限公司 光学连接器
CN108139542A (zh) * 2015-10-12 2018-06-08 3M创新有限公司 具有线缆保持器的光学组件
CN109863437A (zh) * 2016-08-17 2019-06-07 纳米精密产品股份有限公司 具有用于光束扩展的单反射表面的光纤连接器套圈组件和包括其的扩展光束连接器
CN111045157A (zh) * 2018-10-15 2020-04-21 康普技术有限责任公司 带套圈的光纤连接器以及用于将光纤定位在套圈中的方法
CN112368620A (zh) * 2018-06-29 2021-02-12 3M创新有限公司 具有复合止动件的光学套管
CN214097884U (zh) * 2018-01-17 2021-08-31 3M创新有限公司 光学子连接器

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN106104337A (zh) * 2014-03-19 2016-11-09 3M创新有限公司 光学连接器
CN108139542A (zh) * 2015-10-12 2018-06-08 3M创新有限公司 具有线缆保持器的光学组件
CN109863437A (zh) * 2016-08-17 2019-06-07 纳米精密产品股份有限公司 具有用于光束扩展的单反射表面的光纤连接器套圈组件和包括其的扩展光束连接器
CN214097884U (zh) * 2018-01-17 2021-08-31 3M创新有限公司 光学子连接器
CN112368620A (zh) * 2018-06-29 2021-02-12 3M创新有限公司 具有复合止动件的光学套管
CN111045157A (zh) * 2018-10-15 2020-04-21 康普技术有限责任公司 带套圈的光纤连接器以及用于将光纤定位在套圈中的方法

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