JPH0590410U - Plug for optical connector - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] To realize high-density mounting and remove the plug of the optical connector from the adapter without using special equipment. A plug for an optical connector, which is inserted and fixed in an adapter, includes an engagement step portion, and an engagement release member slidable in a plug insertion / removal direction. A pair of pressing pieces that have a pair of inclined surfaces that come into contact with the protrusions formed on both sides of the pair of elastic engagement claws and that have a width that is substantially equal to or smaller than the width of the main body portion of the plug; And a slide holding portion slidably held by the plug for connecting and fixing the pair of pressing pieces.

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

[Industrial applications]

 The present invention relates to a plug for an optical connector, which is inserted and fixed to an adapter having a pair of elastic engaging claws for connecting the end face of the optical fiber to the optical fiber inserted from the other side while aligning the optical axis. , A plug for an optical connector for high-density mounting.

[0002]

[Prior Art]

 As the above-mentioned optical connector, there is one shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. The optical connector comprises a plug 20 and an adapter 30 into which the plug 20 is inserted. The adapter 30 has openings 31 at both ends, the ferrules 21 of the plug 20 are inserted from both sides into the sleeve 32 that communicates with each other inside, and the end faces of the optical fibers 22 held inside the optical fibers 22 are aligned with each other. The optical cables 36 are connected to each other in common.

The plug 20 is a prismatic member made of synthetic resin, and holds the ferrule 21 in a floating manner inside. Further, the plug 20 is provided with an engagement step portion 23 on its side surface and a recess 24 into which a part of the detachment tool 50 is inserted when detaching from the adapter 30. Inside the adapter 30, an arm 35a that elastically deforms from the engaged position to the disengaged position, a hooking portion 35b formed at the tip of the arm 35a, and both sides of the hooking portion 35b are provided. A pair of elastic engaging claws 35, each of which is composed of a convex portion 35c formed in the portion, are arranged. When the arm 35a is elastically deformed to the disengaged position, the removal tool 50 described later is engaged with the convex portion 35c.

When the plug 20 is inserted into the adapter 30, the arm 35a of the elastic engaging claw 35 is elastically deformed and the hooking portion 35b engages beyond the engaging stepped portion 23 of the plug so that the plug 20 is retained. Fix to the adapter 30.

On the other hand, in order to remove the plug 20 from the adapter 30, for example, a removal tool 50 which is a removal tool dedicated to the optical connector is used. As shown in FIG. 8, this detaching tool 50 includes a grip portion 56, a holding portion 55 that is inserted into the plug 20 attached to the adapter 30 from the optical axis direction, and wraps the plug 20 from three sides, and an elastic member of the adapter 30. A claw portion 51 that elastically deforms the dowel claw 35 to the disengaged position, and a projection portion 54a that is axially supported by the shaft 52 and that can be inserted into and removed from the concave portion 24 of the plug 20 described above is provided at one end and the knob portion 54b is provided at the other end. And an arm portion 54 formed in the.

To remove the plug 20 from the adapter 30 using the removing tool 50, as shown in FIG. 7, the removing tool 50 is inserted from the optical axis direction of the plug 20 and the knob 54b is operated by fingers. The protrusion 54a of the arm 54 is inserted into the recess 24 of the plug 20. At this time, the tip end inclined surface 51a of the claw portion 51 of the detaching tool 50 comes into contact with the convex portion 35c of the elastic engagement claw 35 of the adapter 30 to elastically deform the arm 35a in the engagement releasing direction. The engaging portion 35b of the arm 35a is opened to be larger than the engaging step portion 23 of FIG. Then, in this state, the gripper 56 is held and the detaching tool 50 is pulled out. Then, the engagement step portion 23 of the plug 20 is disengaged from the hooking portion 35b of the elastic engagement claw 35, and the plug 20 is disengaged from the adapter 30.

[0007] Japanese Patent Application No. 60-218932 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-78507) discloses a plug 20 that can be detached from the adapter 30 without using the detaching tool 50.

As shown in FIG. 9, in this conventional example, the sliding frame 40 is slidably attached to the plug 20 so as to surround the four circumferences of the plug 20. The sliding frame 40 is formed on both sides of the opening 41 that allows the pair of elastic engaging claws 35 to pass therethrough and the retracting movement of the sliding frame 40 relative to the plug 20 on both sides of the hooking portion 35b of the elastic engaging claw 35. The inclined surface 42 that engages with the pair of raised portions 35c and elastically deforms the elastic engagement claw 35 in the engagement releasing direction. In FIG. 9, the same components as those of the conventional example shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are designated by the same reference numerals.

[0009]

[Problems to be solved by the device]

 By the way, at the manufacturing stage of such an optical connector, an inspection is performed as to whether or not the plug 20 and the adapter 30 forming the optical connector are manufactured accurately. This inspection is performed by confirming whether the optical axes of the pair of connected optical fibers are fixed by the adapter 30 so that they are in contact with each other.

Specifically, this inspection is performed by inserting a plug 20 having optical fibers from both sides into an adapter 30 and transmitting an optical signal from one optical fiber to the other optical fiber, and then measuring the optical signal with a measuring device. This is done by measuring the attenuation amount of.

In this case, since the optical fiber is still connected to the measuring device, the same ferrule and plug will always be used. Each time each adapter 30 is inspected, a pair of plugs 20 are inserted into this adapter 30, and when the inspection is completed, the plugs 20 are removed from the adapters 30 using the above-mentioned removal tool 50, and new adapters 30 are added. Repeat the operation of inserting.

However, since the number of adapters 30 to be inspected is enormous, there is a problem that performing such an operation using the detachment tool 50 is complicated and the measurement time becomes long.

Further, since the detachment tool 50 is large, if it is twisted during insertion, the adapter 30 or the plug 20 may be damaged.

Further, as the adapter 30 into which such a plug 20 is inserted, in addition to the one for connecting a pair of plugs 20 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 9, a plurality of adapters as shown in FIG. There is one that connects five pairs of plugs 20. As described above, in the case of connecting a plurality of pairs of plugs 20, it is preferable to make the connection in a space as small as possible.

However, in the conventional example as shown in FIG. 9, since the sliding frame 40 is installed so as to surround the four circumferences of the plug 20, the size of the opening 31 formed in the adapter 30 also slides. It was increased by the wall thickness of the frame 40. High-density mounting is required for this type of optical connector. In the conventional example as shown in FIG. 9, the high-density mounting in the use example in which a plurality of plugs are connected as shown in FIG. It was not possible to meet the condition.

Therefore, the present invention has an object to provide a plug for an optical connector in which a plug can be detached from an adapter without using a special tool while satisfying the condition that high-density mounting is possible. ..

[0017]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 As a means for solving the above-mentioned problems, the present invention inserts an end face of an optical fiber into an adapter having a pair of elastic engaging claws for connecting the optical fiber inserted from the other end with the optical axis aligned. A plug for an optical connector to be fixed, which has an engaging step portion that engages with an elastic engaging claw of the adapter when the plug is inserted into the depth of the adapter and fixes the both, and an elastic connector. An engagement releasing member that is slidable with respect to the main body portion in the insertion / removal direction of the plug that releases the engagement with the engagement step portion by elastically deforming the engagement claw in the engagement releasing direction is provided. The mating release member has a pair of inclined surfaces that come into contact with the protrusions formed on both sides of the pair of elastic engaging claws, respectively, and is located at least at a position where the plug is inside the adapter when the plug is inserted and fixed in the adapter. Almost equal to the width of the part A pair of pressing pieces provided corresponding to a pair of elastic engaging claws having a narrow width or a width smaller than that, and a pair at a position that is outside the adapter when the plug is inserted and fixed in the adapter. And a slide holding part for connecting and fixing the pressing piece of.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is provided spring means for pressing the disengagement member to a non-engaging position where the inclined surface of the pressing piece is not in contact with the projections of the pair of elastic engaging claws. Has been.

[0019]

[Action]

 According to the invention, the plug is provided with a disengagement member slidably on itself. To disengage the plug from the adapter, press the disengagement member against the elastic engagement pawl of the adapter. As a result, the elastic engagement claws are elastically deformed and the engagement with the engagement step of the plug is released. If you pull the plug as it is, the plug will come off the adapter. There is no need to use special tools for this. Further, since the pair of pressing pieces constituting the disengagement member have a width substantially equal to or smaller than the width of the body portion of the plug, the size of the opening formed in the adapter is minimized. The number of plugs can be minimized and multiple plugs can be mounted at high density.

Further, if the spring means is provided, the disengagement member can be pressed to the non-engagement position where the inclined surface of the pressing piece is not in contact with a part of the arm. The removing member does not hinder the inspection or use of the optical connector.

[0021]

【Example】

 Hereinafter, a plug for an optical connector according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the optical connector of FIG. 4, and FIGS. 2 and 3 show an embodiment of components used in a plug for an optical connector according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of an optical connector using the plug of FIG.

In the present embodiment, the basic configuration of the adapter and the plug constituting the optical connector is the same as that shown in the conventional example. That is, the optical connector is composed of the plug 2 and the adapter 10 into which the plug 2 is inserted (FIGS. 1 and 4). The plug 2 has a main body portion 4 having substantially the same structure as the conventional plug shown in FIG. 6, and an engagement releasing member 6 slidably attached to the main body portion 4. is doing.

The adapter 10 has openings 11 on both end surfaces, and the ferrules 4c of the plug 2 are inserted into the sleeve 13 that communicates inside from both sides, and both end surfaces of the optical fiber 4d held inside the sleeve 10 are connected to each other. The optical cables are connected by making the optical axes in common and contacting each other.

The main body portion 4 of the plug 2 comprises a front portion 4a made of a synthetic resin prismatic member and a rear portion 4b snap-fixed to the front portion 4a. A ferrule 4c is movably held inside the front portion 4a. In addition, it has an engagement step 4e on its side surface.

On the other hand, inside the adapter 10, an arm 15a that is elastically deformed from an engagement position to an engagement release position, a hook portion 15b formed at the tip of the arm 15a, and a hook portion 15b. There are provided a pair of elastic engaging claws 15 formed of a pair of protrusions 15c formed on both sides of the elastic engaging claw 15. When the arm 15a is elastically deformed to the disengagement position, the projection 15c is engaged with the inclined surface 7c of the pressing piece 7 described later.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, an engagement releasing member 6 is attached to the body portion 4 so as to be relatively slidable with respect to the body portion 4. The engagement releasing member 6 connects the pressing piece 7 (FIG. 2) that presses the elastic engagement claw 15 of the adapter 10 to elastically deform in the engagement releasing direction when the plug 2 is inserted, and these pressing pieces 7 are connected. And a plate 8 (FIG. 3) for connecting the two members, which are assembled by screwing.

As shown in FIG. 2, the pressing piece 7 has a plate-shaped base portion 7a and a bifurcated protruding portion 7b having the same shape as the claw portion of the detaching tool 50 described above. An inclined surface 7c that comes into contact with the elastic engaging claw 15 of the adapter 10 is provided at the tip of the protruding portion 7b. Reference numeral 7d in the drawing indicates a screw hole for assembly.

As shown in the drawing, the pressing piece 7 has a width at least approximately equal to the width of the main body portion 4 at a position where the pressing piece 7 is inside the adapter 4 when the plug 2 is inserted and fixed in the adapter 10. The pressing piece 7 can, of course, also have a smaller width. As a result, the size of the opening 11 of the adapter 10 can be minimized, and the mounting density can be increased even when a plurality of plugs are connected as shown in FIG.

The plate 8 connects and fixes the pressing piece 7, and has a mounting surface 8 a of the pressing piece 7 as shown in FIG. A screw insertion hole 8b is formed in the mounting surface 8a. In this embodiment, the two pressing pieces 7 are connected by the two plates 8 to form the box-shaped disengagement member 6 that slidably surrounds the plug 2. The fixing position between the pressing piece 7 and the plate 8 is such that when the plug 2 is inserted and fixed in the adapter 10, it is located outside the adapter 10. Therefore, even if the plate 8 is attached, the mounting density of the adapter 10 is reduced. Has no effect.

As shown in FIG. 5, the spring means 9 is installed between the end surface 8c of the plate 8 of the disengagement member 6 and the end surface 4f of the front portion 4a of the body portion of the plug 2, and the pressing piece It is also possible to press the engagement releasing member 6 to a non-engaging position where the inclined surface 7c of the armature 7 does not contact the protrusion 15c of the arm 15. In this case, it is desirable to make the spring force of the spring means 9 weaker than the ferrule pressing force of about 1 kgf. Alternatively, although not shown, a friction surface is provided at a position where the main body portion 4 of the plug 2 comes into contact with the disengagement member 6, and the disengagement member 6 is moved relative to the main body portion 4 unless force is applied. It is also possible to prevent it from sliding. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the disengagement member 6 from interfering with the inspection or use of the optical connector during normal use. Next, a method of attaching / detaching the plug for the optical connector according to the present embodiment to / from the adapter will be described.

In the optical connector according to the present embodiment, the connection between the adapter 10 and the plug 2 is performed in exactly the same way as in the conventional example (see FIG. 1A). When the plug 2 is removed from the adapter 10, the engagement releasing member 6 is pinched and moved in the direction of the adapter 10 to the engagement position. Then, the inclined surface 7c of the protruding portion 7b of the pressing piece 7 comes into contact with the protrusion 15c of the arm 15a to move the arm 15a in the disengagement direction, and the latching portion 15b of the elastic engagement claw 15 engages with the engagement step portion 4e. Get out of. By pulling the rear portion 4b of the plug 2 in this state, the plug 2 is disengaged from the adapter 10 (see FIG. 1B).

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, in order to release the connection between the adapter 10 of the optical connector and the plug 2, the plate 8 of the engagement releasing member 6 is pinched and moved in the direction of the adapter 10 while the plug 8 is being moved. Since it is only necessary to pull out the rear portion 4b of the second connector 2, it is possible to easily inspect a large number of optical connectors when inspecting the optical connectors.

If the disengagement member 6 is made of relatively inexpensive plastic, the present invention can be applied to all plugs for optical connectors.

[0035]

[Effect of the device]

 As described above, according to the present invention, the disengagement member is provided on the plug itself of the optical connector, and when the disengagement member is slid to the adapter side when the plug is removed from the adapter, the pressing piece is pushed. Presses the elastic engaging claws outwardly, and the elastic engaging claws are elastically deformed and disengaged from the engaging step portion of the plug. In this state, the plug can be easily removed from the adapter by pulling the rear part of the plug as it is. Therefore, it is not necessary to use a special tool as in the conventional example shown in FIG. 5, and the effect that the plurality of plugs can be mounted at high density without lowering the mounting density as in the conventional example shown in FIG. is there.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a cross section of a half of the optical connector of FIG. (A) shows a state where the disengagement member is in the non-engagement position, and (B) shows a state where the disengagement member is in the engagement position.

FIG. 2 shows the pressing piece used in FIG.
(A) is its plan view, (B) is its front view, and
(C) is a left side view of the same.

3 shows a plate used in FIG. 1, (A) is a plan view thereof, (B) is a front view thereof, and FIG.
(C) is a right side view.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of an embodiment of the optical connector according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a front view with a half section of another embodiment of the plug for an optical connector according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing a conventional optical connector.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a detached state of a conventional optical connector.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a tool for removing a plug used in a conventional optical connector.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a part of another example of a conventional optical connector in a cutaway manner.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a conventional adapter for an optical connector.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Plug 4 Body part 4a Front part 4b Rear part 4c Ferrule 4d Optical fiber 4e Engagement step part 4f End face 6 Engagement release member 7 Pressing piece 7a Base part 7b Projection part 7c Inclined surface 8 Plate 9 Spring member 10 Adapter 15 Elastic engagement claw 15a arm 15b hooking portion 15c protrusion

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Fumiaki Mochida, 6-18-12 Megurohonmachi, Meguro-ku, Tokyo Honda Tsushin Kogyo Co., Ltd. (72) Yasuhiro Ando 1-1-6, Uchisaiwaicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo No. Japan Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Inventor Ryo Nagase 1-1-6 Uchisaiwaicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Nihon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Inventor Kazunori Kanayama 1-1-6 Uchisaiwaicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo No. Japan Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (72) Shinichi Iwano 1-1-6 Uchisaiwaicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Nihon Telegraph and Telephone Corp.

Claims (2)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A plug for an optical connector, which is inserted and fixed to an adapter having a pair of elastic engaging claws for connecting the end face of the optical fiber to the optical fiber inserted from the other side while aligning the optical axes thereof, When the plug is inserted all the way into the adapter, the main body has an engagement step portion that engages with the elastic engagement claws of the adapter to fix them, and elastically deforms the elastic engagement claws in the engagement release direction. , An engagement releasing member slidable with respect to the main body portion in the inserting / removing direction of the plug for releasing the engagement with the engaging step portion, the engagement releasing member being provided on both sides of the pair of elastic engaging claws. Has a pair of inclined surfaces that come into contact with the protrusions formed on the respective parts, and has a width that is at least approximately equal to or smaller than the width of the main body portion at a position that is inside the adapter when the plug is inserted and fixed in the adapter. Have a pair A pair of pressing pieces provided corresponding to the elastic engaging claws, and a slide holding portion for connecting and fixing the pair of pressing pieces at a position that is outside the adapter when the plug is inserted and fixed in the adapter. A plug for an optical connector, which is configured to include the plug. 2. A spring means for pressing the engagement releasing member at a non-engaging position where the inclined surface of the pressing piece is not in contact with the projections of the pair of elastic engaging claws is provided. A plug for an optical connector according to claim 1.