JP2009229504A - Ferrule for optical connector and method of manufacturing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a ferrule for an optical connector which is made low-cost by lowering the manufacturing cost for the ferrule for the optical connector, and a method of manufacturing the same. <P>SOLUTION: The ferrule 1 for the optical connector is for positioning and holding an optical fiber ribbon having a plurality of optical fibers exposed by removing a coating. The ferrule 1 for the optical connector has a housing portion 11, and a plurality of optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D in a long groove shape for inserting, positioning, and holding the plurality of optical fibers 3 to 6 are formed on a connection end surface 13 of the housing portion 11. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a ferrule for an optical connector and a method for manufacturing the same, and particularly to a ferrule for an optical connector used for a connection between optical fibers in optical communication, a connection for an optical module such as an optical semiconductor, and the like.

  With the development of information networks including optical fiber networks, the capacity of optical transmission is rapidly increasing. As the capacity of optical transmission increases, ferrules for optical connectors used for connecting parts between optical fibers in optical communications and connecting parts of optical modules such as optical semiconductors are multi-fiber optical fibers. Is required to be arranged in a two-dimensional matrix with high accuracy and high density.

This type of optical connector ferrule is a plastic molded part, and a plurality of fine insertion holes corresponding to the number of multi-core optical fibers are formed on the connection end face of the housing portion of the optical connector ferrule. ing. By passing optical fibers through the respective insertion holes, the optical fibers are positioned and held at predetermined intervals on the connection end face of the housing portion (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 11-248970 A

  However, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, a plurality of fine insertion holes are formed using a molding die having a complicated structure when molding the ferrule for optical connectors. That is, the conventional molding die is provided with a plurality of thin round bar-shaped core pins for forming each fine insertion hole. For this reason, this molding die is expensive, and the manufacturing cost when manufacturing the ferrule for optical connectors cannot be reduced. Therefore, the cost of the optical connector ferrule cannot be reduced.

Also, multiple thin core pins of the molding die may be bent for some reason during molding or may be damaged at once.If multiple thin core pins are bent or damaged, this molding die is used. You will not be able to.
Accordingly, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an optical connector ferrule capable of reducing the manufacturing cost when manufacturing the optical connector ferrule and reducing the cost of the optical connector ferrule, and a method for manufacturing the same. The purpose is to do.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an optical connector ferrule according to the present invention is for an optical connector for positioning and holding the optical fiber ribbon with the optical fiber exposed by removing the coating of the optical fiber ribbon. A ferrule,
Having a housing part,
A plurality of long-groove optical fiber insertion holes for inserting, positioning, and holding the plurality of optical fibers are formed in the connection end surface of the housing portion.

In the optical connector ferrule of the present invention, preferably, the plurality of optical fiber insertion holes are arranged in a matrix at intervals between the first direction and the second direction orthogonal to the first direction at the connection end face. It is characterized by being arranged in a shape.
In the ferrule for an optical connector according to the present invention, preferably, the optical fiber insertion hole is formed in a square hole shape when viewed in cross section, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in series in the optical fiber insertion hole. It is characterized by being.

In the ferrule for an optical connector of the present invention, preferably, the optical fiber insertion hole has a corrugated portion matched to the outer peripheral surface of each optical fiber, and the plurality of optical fibers includes the optical fiber insertion hole. It is characterized by being arranged in series.
The optical connector ferrule of the present invention is preferably characterized in that one or more optical fiber ribbons are held in a housing portion of the optical connector ferrule.

The optical connector ferrule manufacturing method of the present invention is an optical connector ferrule manufacturing method for positioning and holding the optical fiber tape core wire from which the optical fiber is exposed by removing the coating of the optical fiber tape core wire. There,
On the connection end surface of the housing portion of the optical connector ferrule, a plurality of optical fiber insertion holes are formed,
A plurality of the optical fibers are inserted into the optical fiber insertion holes, and are positioned and held.

In the method for manufacturing an optical connector ferrule according to the present invention, preferably, the optical fiber insertion holes are arranged in a matrix at the connection end surface at a distance from each other along a first direction and a second direction orthogonal to the first direction. It is arranged in a shape.
In the method for manufacturing an optical connector ferrule of the present invention, preferably, the optical fiber insertion hole is formed in a square hole shape when viewed in cross section, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in series in the optical fiber insertion hole. It is characterized by arranging.

In the method for manufacturing an optical connector ferrule according to the present invention, preferably, the optical fiber insertion hole has a corrugated portion matched to an outer peripheral surface of each optical fiber, and a plurality of the optical fibers includes the optical fiber. They are arranged in series in the fiber insertion hole.
In the optical connector ferrule manufacturing method of the present invention, preferably, one or more optical fiber ribbons are held in a housing portion of the optical connector ferrule.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the manufacturing cost at the time of manufacturing the ferrule for optical connectors can be lowered | hung, and the cost reduction of the ferrule for optical connectors can be aimed at.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of the ferrule for an optical connector of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of the optical connector ferrule shown in FIG. 1 and is a view showing a state before the optical fiber is inserted into the corresponding optical fiber insertion hole.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state after the optical fiber is inserted into the corresponding optical fiber insertion hole. FIG. 4 is a front view showing an example of the shape of the connection end face of the ferrule for optical connector.

  1 and 2 show an optical connector ferrule 1 and a plurality of optical fiber ribbons 2A to 2D that are inserted and held in the optical connector ferrule 1. FIG. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, four laminated optical fiber ribbons 2 </ b> A to 2 </ b> D are held by the optical connector ferrule 1 as an example.

The optical connector ferrule 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is used for a connection part between optical fibers in optical communication, a connection part of an optical module such as an optical semiconductor, or the like. The optical connector ferrule 1 positions and holds the optical fiber tape cores 2A to 2D with the optical fibers 3 to 6 exposed by removing the coating 60 of the optical fiber tape cores 2A to 2D.
The optical connector ferrule 1 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and is made, for example, by molding using a plastic material. The optical connector ferrule 1 has a housing part 11 and a flange part 12 formed on the housing part 11.

  The housing portion 11 is a substantially rectangular member having a connection end surface 13, an opening portion 14, and four side surfaces 15 to 18. On the connection end surface 13 of the housing portion 11, for example, eight rectangular hole-shaped optical fiber insertion holes 20 </ b> A to 20 </ b> D that are long groove-shaped optical fiber insertion holes and two guide pin holes 21 and 21 are formed. The eight rectangular hole-shaped optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D are arranged in a matrix at the connection end face 13 at intervals from each other along the X direction and the Y direction.

  The two optical fiber insertion holes 20A and 20A are arranged in series at intervals along the Y direction, and the two optical fiber insertion holes 20B and 20B are arranged in series at intervals along the Y direction. The two optical fiber insertion holes 20C and 20C are arranged in series along the Y direction at intervals, and the two optical fiber insertion holes 20D and 20D are arranged in series along the Y direction at intervals.

A set of two optical fiber insertion holes 20A, 20A, a set of two optical fiber insertion holes 20B, 20B, a set of two optical fiber insertion holes 20C, 20C, and two optical fiber insertion holes 20D, 20D. The sets are arranged in parallel at intervals along the X direction. The longitudinal direction of each of the optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D is parallel to the Y direction.
Guide pin holes 21 and 21 as guide holes are disposed on both sides of the optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D. The X direction is the first direction, and the Y direction is the second direction.

  In each of the optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, for example, a plurality of optical fibers 3 to 6 of the optical fiber tape cores 2A to 2D are respectively positioned and held by being inserted. It is like that.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the optical fiber ribbons 2 </ b> A to 2 </ b> D are held side by side by covering, for example, 12 optical fibers 3 to 6 with a covering material 60. The optical fibers 3 to 6 are exposed by a predetermined length from the optical fiber ribbons 2 </ b> A to 2 </ b> D by removing the end portions of the covering material 60. A total of 48 optical fibers 3 to 6 are arranged in 12 × 4 rows. Each of the optical fibers 3 to 6 is composed of a core and a clad covering the periphery of the core.

  As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the six optical fibers 3 of the optical fiber ribbon 2A are inserted into each optical fiber insertion hole 20A, and are positioned and held. The six optical fibers 4 of the optical fiber ribbon 2B are inserted, positioned and held. Six optical fibers 5 of the optical fiber ribbon 2C are inserted and positioned in each optical fiber insertion hole 20C, and are held in each optical fiber insertion hole 20D. The optical fiber 6 is inserted, positioned and held. As shown in FIG. 3, the exposed end portions 3R to 6R of the optical fibers 3 to 6 protrude from the connection end surface 13 by a predetermined length.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D are formed, for example, in a step shape along the L direction from the connection end face 13, and the length of the optical fiber insertion hole 20A in the L direction is the longest. The length is set shorter in the order of the optical fiber insertion holes 20B, 20C, and 20D.

  As a result, as shown in FIG. 4, each of the plurality of optical fibers 3 to 6 is accurately formed into a two-dimensional matrix shape in the X direction and the Y direction using the optical fiber insertion holes 20 </ b> A to 20 </ b> D on the connection end surface 13. Arranged at intervals. The optical fibers 3 to 6 are, for example, optical fibers having a diameter of 125 μm, the length F of each of the optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D is 125 μm × 6 = 0.75 mm, and the width G is 125 μm. The two guide pin holes 21 and 21 are through-holes having a circular cross section formed along the L direction orthogonal to the X direction and the Y direction so as to reach the flange portion 12 from the connection end surface 13 and are aligned. For this purpose, a guide pin (not shown) is inserted.

Next, with reference to FIG. 5, when manufacturing the ferrule 1 for optical connectors, the molding die 100 for molding the optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D will be described.
The molding die 100 is made of, for example, a metal such as stainless steel, and has a main body 101 and eight molding pins 102 that protrude from the main body 101 and are fixed in parallel. The two forming pins 102 and 102 are plate-like members and have a rectangular cross section corresponding to the shape of the optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D. These forming pins 102 are arranged in series at intervals along the Y direction. And four sets of two forming pins 102 and 102 are arranged in parallel at intervals along the X direction.

  When the optical connector ferrule 1 is manufactured by plastic molding, by using the molding die 100 having such a structure, the rectangular hole type optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D are formed as shown in FIG. 11 and the connection end surface 13. Thereby, 48 optical fibers 3-6 can be hold | maintained by grouping every 6 optical fibers by eight optical fiber penetration holes 20A-20D.

  When manufacturing the optical connector ferrule 1, a plurality of optical fiber insertion holes 20 </ b> A to 20 </ b> D are formed on the connection end surface 13 of the housing portion 11 of the optical connector ferrule 1 using the molding die 100 shown in FIG. 5. To do. After forming the plurality of optical fiber insertion holes 20 </ b> A to 20 </ b> D, the molding die 100 is removed from the housing portion 11.

Thereafter, a plurality of optical fibers 3 to 6 are inserted into the optical fiber insertion holes 20A to 20D, and are positioned and held.
As described above, the plurality of optical fiber insertion holes 20 </ b> A to 20 </ b> D can be formed using the molding die 100. The molding die 100 can be manufactured at a lower cost than a conventional molding die having a plurality of thin molding pins, and each molding pin 102 is durable and hard to bend as compared with a conventional thin molding pin. Thereby, the manufacturing cost at the time of manufacturing the ferrule for optical connectors can be reduced, and the cost reduction of the ferrule for optical connectors can be achieved.

  Then, the adhesive is injected into the housing part 11 from the opening 14 shown in FIG. 3, so that the optical fiber tape cores 2 </ b> A to 2 </ b> D and the optical fibers 3 to 6 are overlapped with each other. It is fixed with.

  If the molding die 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is not used, 48 thin insertion holes for inserting 48 optical fibers 3 to 6 into the housing portion as in the prior art are formed. Requires a normal molding die having 48 thin core pins. For this reason, the manufacturing cost of a normal molding die will become high compared with the molding die 100 in embodiment of this invention mentioned above.

  However, as in the embodiment of the present invention, the optical fiber insertion holes 20 </ b> A to 20 </ b> D having a square hole type that can insert and hold a plurality of optical fibers collectively are formed in the housing portion 11 and the connection end surface 13. For example, a plurality of optical fibers can be inserted, positioned and held while reducing the number of optical fiber insertion holes to be formed. Therefore, the shape of the molding die 100 can be simplified, and the manufacturing cost of the molding member 100 and the manufacturing cost of the optical connector ferrule 1 can be reduced.

  In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, each of the optical fiber insertion holes 20 </ b> A to 20 </ b> D having a square hole type cross section inserts six optical fibers into groups, positions them, and holds them. . However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 7 (A), two optical fibers may be inserted into the optical fiber insertion hole 20 whose section is a square hole type, and positioned and held. good. Further, as shown in FIG. 7B, six optical fibers may be inserted into the optical fiber insertion hole 20 whose section is a square hole type, and may be positioned and held. In the example of FIGS. 7A and 7B, these optical fiber insertion holes 20 are formed in, for example, eight rows along the X direction, and these optical fiber insertion holes 20 include, for example, 96 optical fibers. Can be inserted and held for positioning.

  However, the number of optical fiber insertion holes 20 shown in FIG. 7B can be reduced compared to the number of optical fiber insertion holes 20 shown in FIG. 7A, and the number of molding pins of the molding die is also reduced. Cost reduction.

  The number of optical fibers that can be held by one optical fiber insertion hole is not particularly limited as long as it is two or more, and the number of optical fiber insertion holes is not particularly limited. In any case, the number of optical fiber insertion holes and the number of optical fibers that can be held by one optical fiber insertion hole can be set in accordance with the required number of optical fibers.

FIG. 8 (A) further shows another embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 8 (A), the optical fiber insertion hole 20G is not a square hole when viewed in cross section, but the outer periphery of each optical fiber 3. Has waveform-shaped portions 70 and 70 corresponding to the above. Thereby, each optical fiber 3 can be more accurately positioned and held with respect to the X direction and the Y direction by the corrugated portions 70 and 70 of the optical fiber insertion hole 20G.
A molding die 111 having corrugated portions 112 and 112 as shown in FIG. 8B can be used for the optical fiber insertion hole 20G having such a shape.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, the insertion hole has a shape capable of inserting, positioning, and holding a plurality of optical fibers at a time. Unlike the conventional molding member, the molding die for forming such an insertion hole does not include a plurality of thin round bar-shaped core pins for forming each fine insertion hole. Have.

  The flat plate-shaped forming pin is stronger than the round bar-shaped core pin. The number of molding pins of the molding die according to the embodiment of the present invention can be reduced as compared with the number of molding pins of the conventional molding die, the structure can be simplified, and it can be manufactured at low cost. For this reason, the manufacturing cost including the mold cost when manufacturing the ferrule for optical connectors can be reduced, and the cost of the ferrule for optical connectors can be reduced.

  In addition, since the flat molding pins of the molding die according to the embodiment of the present invention are stronger than the plurality of thin core pins of the conventional molding die, they are bent for some reason during molding or are all damaged at once. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the production of the optical connector ferrule 1 from being interrupted or impossible to be produced.

  Further, even if the number of optical fibers is increased, the increase in the number of insertion holes of the optical connector ferrule 1 can be suppressed as compared with the increase in the number of insertion holes of the conventional optical connector ferrule 1. The structure of the ferrule 1 can be simplified.

  The ferrule for an optical connector according to the embodiment of the present invention is an optical connector ferrule for positioning and holding an optical fiber tape core wire from which a plurality of optical fibers are exposed by removing the coating. The ferrule for optical connectors has a housing portion, and a plurality of long-groove optical fiber insertion holes for inserting, positioning, and holding a plurality of optical fibers are formed on the connection end surface of the housing portion. . As a result, each of the long-groove optical fiber insertion holes can insert, position, and hold a plurality of optical fibers collectively, reducing the manufacturing cost when manufacturing the optical connector ferrule, and reducing the cost of the optical connector ferrule. Can be achieved.

  The plurality of optical fiber insertion holes are arranged in a matrix at intervals on the connection end surface along the first direction and the second direction orthogonal to the first direction. Thus, the optical fibers of the optical fiber ribbon can be grouped and fixed in a matrix.

  The optical fiber insertion hole is formed in a square hole shape when viewed in cross section, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in series in the optical fiber insertion hole. Accordingly, the plurality of optical fibers can be reliably positioned and held by the optical fiber insertion hole having a simple shape.

  The optical fiber insertion hole has a corrugated portion matched to the outer peripheral surface of each optical fiber, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in series in the optical fiber insertion hole. As a result, the plurality of optical fibers can be more reliably positioned and held by the optical fiber insertion hole.

  One or more optical fiber ribbons are held in the housing portion of the optical connector ferrule. Thereby, the position shift of the optical fiber ribbon can be prevented by the housing portion.

By the way, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various modified example is employable.
For example, the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in combination. In the illustrated example, the optical fiber insertion hole has a square hole shape or a shape having a corrugated portion when viewed in cross section, but is not limited thereto, and may have another shape.

In each optical fiber insertion hole, a row of optical fibers is inserted and positioned and held, but in each optical fiber insertion hole, two or more rows of optical fibers can be inserted and positioned and held. good.
Three or more optical fiber insertion holes may be arranged in series at intervals along the Y direction.

It is a perspective view which shows preferable embodiment of the ferrule for optical connectors of this invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the optical connector ferrule shown in FIG. 1 taken along line B-B, showing a state before the optical fiber is inserted into a corresponding optical fiber insertion hole. It is a figure which shows the state after an optical fiber is inserted in the corresponding optical fiber penetration hole. It is a front view which shows the example of a shape of the connection end surface of the ferrule for optical connectors. It is a figure which shows the example of a shape of the shaping die for forming an optical fiber penetration hole. It is a front view which expands and shows one optical fiber penetration hole. It is a figure which shows another embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows another embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ferrule for optical connectors 2A-2D Optical fiber tape core wire 3-6 Optical fiber 11 Housing part 12 Flange part 13 Connection end surface 14 Opening part 20A-20D Square hole-shaped optical fiber insertion hole (long-slot optical fiber insertion hole One case)
21 Guide pin hole 60 Coating material 100 Molded member 102 Molded pin

Claims (10)

A ferrule for an optical connector for positioning and holding the multi-core optical fiber ribbon, in which a plurality of optical fibers are exposed by removing the coating of the multi-core optical fiber ribbon,
Having a housing part,
A ferrule for an optical connector, wherein a plurality of long-groove optical fiber insertion holes for inserting, positioning, and holding a plurality of optical fibers are formed on a connection end surface of the housing portion.   The plurality of optical fiber insertion holes are arranged in a matrix at intervals between each other along the first direction and the second direction orthogonal to the first direction on the connection end surface. The ferrule for optical connectors according to claim 1.   The optical fiber insertion hole is formed in a square hole shape when viewed in cross section, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in series in the optical fiber insertion hole. Item 3. A ferrule for an optical connector according to Item 2.   The optical fiber insertion hole has a corrugated portion matched to the outer peripheral surface of each optical fiber, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in series in the optical fiber insertion hole. The manufacturing method of the ferrule for optical connectors of Claim 1 or Claim 2 characterized by the above-mentioned.   5. The optical connector according to claim 1, wherein one or more optical fiber ribbons are held in a housing portion of the optical connector ferrule. 6. Ferrule. A method of manufacturing a ferrule for an optical connector for positioning and holding the multi-core optical fiber tape core wire, in which a plurality of optical fibers are exposed by removing the coating of the multi-fiber optical fiber ribbon,
On the connection end surface of the housing portion of the optical connector ferrule, a plurality of optical fiber insertion holes are formed,
A method of manufacturing a ferrule for an optical connector, wherein a plurality of the optical fibers are inserted into each optical fiber insertion hole, positioned and held.   The optical fiber insertion holes are arranged in a matrix at intervals between the first direction and a second direction orthogonal to the first direction on the connection end surface. The manufacturing method of the ferrule for optical connectors of description.   The optical fiber insertion hole is formed in a square hole shape when viewed in cross section, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in series in the optical fiber insertion hole. The manufacturing method of the ferrule for optical connectors as described in any one of Claims 1-3.   The optical fiber insertion hole has a corrugated portion matched to the outer peripheral surface of each optical fiber, and the plurality of optical fibers are arranged in series in the optical fiber insertion hole. The manufacturing method of the ferrule for optical connectors of Claim 6 or Claim 7.   The optical connector ferrule according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein one or more optical fiber ribbons are held in a housing portion of the optical connector ferrule. Production method.

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