JPH06201959A - Process and apparatus for production of optical fiber ribbon - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] The process from coloring of optical fiber to tape production is performed in a single production process. [Structure] A supply section 1 for supplying a plurality of optical fiber cores F, a coloring section 2 for coloring each core, a stabilizer section 3 for adjusting tension, and a resin for forming each tape T into one tape T. The tape portion 4 to be coated and the take-up / take-up portion 5 are provided side by side so that the core wire F is supplied and conveyed horizontally. The supply speed of the core wire and the winding speed of the tape are mainly driven by the take-up machine 51, and a series of steps of coloring, cooling, tape forming, and cooling are performed while adjusting the tension in the stabilizer section 3. The parts that make up each process are unitized and the tape manufacturing equipment is assembled according to the tape design.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for manufacturing an optical fiber tape used for optical communication or the like, and more particularly to a method for manufacturing an optical fiber tape capable of being manufactured by a series of manufacturing steps. And equipment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in the case of manufacturing an optical fiber tape with a plurality of optical fiber core wires, first, FIG.
In the coloring step, the wire rod F fed from the supply section 101 of the coloring device 100 and having the tension adjusted by the dancer 102 is a coloring die 103 containing a coloring resin as shown in FIG.
A colored film is formed by passing through the curing furnace 10
After the resin is cured at 4, the take-up machine 105 and the take-up machine 10
The wire material F ′ is wound up in 6 and colored and coated. Next, in a tape manufacturing apparatus 200 as shown in FIG. 2B, a plurality of wire rods F ′ colored in various colors are fed out from a supply section 201, and a tape die 202 containing a tape resin is provided.
And passing through the curing oven 203 to form a tape, and a take-off machine 2
04 and the winder 205, and the tape T covered with the tape is manufactured.

[0003]

However, according to such a conventional method for manufacturing an optical fiber tape, the coloring step and the tape manufacturing step are separate steps, and therefore, the supply and the winding are performed for each step. Must be performed, and it takes time to manufacture the tape from the optical fiber core, for example, 5 steps are required for manufacturing a 4-core tape and 13 steps are required for a 12-core tape. However, there have been problems such as an increase in size as a whole and an increase in opportunities for fiber damage due to supply and winding.

On the other hand, it is considered that the colored optical fiber core wire is supplied to the tape manufacturing process as it is without being wound in the coloring process. In this case, 1).
Since the optical fiber core drawn from the coloring device is located below the device, how to arrange the plurality of coloring devices 100 with respect to the tape manufacturing device 200 in order to supply it to the upper part of the tape manufacturing device. 2) How to design a supply for supplying a plurality of core wires. 3) The core wire drawn out from the UV resin curing device in the coloring step is at a considerably high temperature, so that the tape manufacturing apparatus is immediately ready. If it is supplied to the UV resin, it may cause foaming of the UV resin film, impairing the appearance of the tape and adversely affecting the characteristics such as transmission loss. 4) Immediately apply the core wire drawn from the coloring process to the tape manufacturing equipment. When supplied, various problems occur such that the tension of each core wire cannot be adjusted.

Further, in the conventional coloring and tape manufacturing process, since the core wire is vertically supplied from the upper side to the lower side, as shown in FIG. 16, from the coloring die 103 and the UV resin die 202 for the tape. There was a problem that the resin dropped and adhered to the subsequent resin curing device and the guide pulley, and the quartz tube in the curing device was contaminated, resulting in insufficient curing. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to solve such conventional problems and provide an optical fiber tape manufacturing method and apparatus capable of manufacturing an optical fiber tape having excellent appearance and characteristics at high speed in a series of steps. Another object of the present invention is to provide an optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus capable of manufacturing various kinds of optical fiber tapes with one apparatus. A further object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing an optical fiber tape which enables smooth supply of a plurality of optical fiber cores and automatic winding.

[0006]

A method of manufacturing an optical fiber tape according to the present invention which achieves such an object, comprises a step of supplying a plurality of optical fiber core wires, and a step of supplying each of the plurality of optical fiber core wires. A coloring step of coloring as necessary,
It consists of a tape process of applying a resin coating to a plurality of colored or uncolored optical fiber cores to form a tape, and a winding process of winding and winding the optical fiber tape, and these processes are performed as a series of processes. Yes, the optical fiber core wire is preferably conveyed in the horizontal direction in each of these steps, and more preferably, a cooling step for cooling the colored optical fiber core wire between the coloring step and the tape step, and It has a tension adjusting step for adjusting the tension of the optical fiber.

Further, the optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus of the present invention includes a supply section for supplying a plurality of optical fiber core wires, a coloring section for coloring each of the plurality of optical fiber core wires as necessary, and a plurality of coloring sections. A tape portion which is made into a tape by applying a resin coating to the coated or uncolored optical fiber core wire,
The winding unit for pulling up and winding the optical fiber tape is continuously provided, and this manufacturing apparatus preferably supplies the cooling unit for cooling the optical fiber core colored by the coloring unit and the tape unit. The apparatus is provided with a tension adjusting section for adjusting the tension of the optical fiber core, and more preferably, each apparatus is unitized and detachable with respect to the entire manufacturing apparatus.

[0008]

By performing a series of steps from the supply of the optical fiber core wire to the coloring, tape formation and winding, it is possible to integrate a plurality of supplying and winding steps in the coloring step and the tape step. It is possible to reduce the number of steps and manufacture a high-quality optical fiber tape at high speed. In particular, by horizontally transporting the optical fiber core wire in each step, it is possible to prevent the resin from dropping in the coloring die and the tape die, and it is possible to eliminate the contamination of the subsequent curing furnace or the like and the resulting insufficient curing. . Further, by providing a cooling step and a tension adjusting step between the coloring step and the tape step, it is possible to eliminate the adverse effect on the tape step due to the heat of the optical fiber core wire after the coloring resin is cured, and further, all the coloring cores can be removed. The wire can be sent to the tape process with uniform tension, and a tape having excellent appearance and characteristics can be manufactured.

Further, by unitizing the apparatus for each step, the tape manufacturing apparatus can be easily assembled appropriately according to the design of the tape to be manufactured.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The optical fiber tape manufacturing method and apparatus of the present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus of the present invention mainly supplies a plurality of optical fiber cores F to supply a supply section (supplying section) 1 and each optical fiber core to a desired color. 2. The colored portion 2, the stabilizer portion 3 for cooling the colored optical fiber core wire F ′ and adjusting the tension thereof, and the resin for coating each optical fiber core wire into one tape. And a take-up / take-up unit 5 for taking up what has become the optical fiber tape T at a predetermined take-up speed and taking it up on a reel. It is configured to be supplied and transported substantially horizontally, and to perform the processes from the wire rod to the coloring and the tape all at once by a series of processes by the devices of the respective parts. The supply and conveyance of the optical fibers F and F ′ are driven mainly by the take-up machine 51 of the take-up / winding unit 5,
The linear velocity is determined by the take-up machine 51.

First, the structure of the supply unit 1 of the optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), the supply unit 1 has a plurality of (four in the figure) bobbin 11 of optical fiber cores and drive units such as motors and pulleys vertically arranged in multiple stages with respect to the supply unit main body. It is installed side by side.
Each bobbin 11 has a motor 12 for feeding the optical fiber.
The optical fiber core wire is paid out by the rotation of the bobbin 11 connected to the rotating shaft of the. The drawn optical fiber core wires are the pulleys 13 and 14 and the drawing tension dancer 1.
After 5, the product is sent to the next process.

Here, the pulley 14 is a fixed pulley pivotally supported on the main body of the supply section, while the pulley 13 has its shaft 1
The movable pulley is slidable with respect to 3a. In general, since the bobbin 11 has a certain width, the position of the optical fiber core wire moves from end to end of the bobbin when the optical fiber core wire is paid out. That is, when the movable pulley 13 is not provided as in the conventional supply section, the bobbin 1
1 and the fixed pulley 14 form a payout angle θ. This pay-out angle θ increases as the bobbin becomes larger, but if the pay-out angle θ exceeds a certain level, it becomes difficult to smoothly supply the optical fiber core wire, and the core wire may be damaged. In order to reduce the feeding angle θ, there are a guide traverse method that slides the guide that guides the core wire and a bobbin traverse method that slides the bobbin side.However, these methods increase the size and complexity of the mechanism as the number of bobbins increases. However, there is a problem that the position sensor of the core wire and the limit signal are required. By adopting the movable pulley 13 in the supply unit 1 according to the present invention, the movable pulley 13 slides its shaft 13a in accordance with the stress generated by the payout angle, so that the same function as the guide traverse is achieved and the apparatus becomes complicated. There is nothing to do. still,
The shaft 16a of the movable pulley is preferably rotated by a motor 16 in order to further improve its followability.

The feeding tension dancer 15 is displaced according to the tension of the core wire, and the motor 1 is detected by detecting this displacement.
The output of 2 is controlled to adjust so that the tension of the core wire to be sent out is always constant. By configuring the supply unit 1 as described above, the winding tension of the optical fiber is 50 to 15
Even with a large bobbin that is lightly coiled at about 0 g, it is possible to eliminate the trouble in feeding the core wire, and to reduce the supply of a large number of supplies and to perform automatic bobbin replacement as described below.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of the supply unit 1 according to the present invention, which employs an automatic bobbin replacement supply. In this embodiment, the bobbin 11 is attached to a bobbin stand 17 which is continuously provided in the lateral direction. Each bobbin stand 17 is provided with a pindle connected to the rotating shaft of the motor 12 for feeding the optical fiber so as to be able to move forward and backward with respect to the bobbin 11. Pulley 13,
14 and the feeding tensioner 15 are the same as those of the supply unit 1 of FIG. Bobbin stand 17 of the supply department body
A space for transporting the empty bobbin after supply and the replacement bobbin and the bobbin mounting table 19 is provided below, and a guide rail (for guiding the movement of the bobbin mounting table 19 is provided in the space). (Not shown). The bobbin mounting table 19 is provided with a vertical drive mechanism so that the upper surface on which the bobbin is mounted moves up and down.

In such a structure, automatic exchange is performed as follows. That is, when a sensor (not shown) or the like detects that the optical fiber core wire of a certain bobbin is gone, the bobbin mounting table 19 moves to the lower part of the bobbin stand 17 to be replaced, and the upper and lower mechanisms raise the upper surface. After that, the bobbin pindle is withdrawn from the bobbin, the bobbin is placed on the upper surface of the bobbin mounting table 17, and the bobbin mounting table 19 is retracted from the supply section main body after the upper surface is lowered. Next, a new bobbin wound with an optical fiber core wire is placed on the bobbin mounting table 17, moved to the lower part of the bobbin stand 17, and the upper surface is raised until the new bobbin comes to the fixed position of the bobbin stand 17. Then, insert the pindle into the bobbin and finish the replacement.

Next, the colored portion will be described. As shown in FIG. 4 (a), the coloring part 2 has a plurality of vertically arranged individual coloring parts for each core in a substantially sealed housing 20, and each coloring part is shown in FIG. 4 (b). As shown in the figure, it mainly comprises a die portion 21 for coating a core resin with a UV resin (ultraviolet curing resin) containing a coloring pigment and a curing furnace 22 for curing the UV resin. Is the case 2
It is configured to be guided horizontally by the guide pulleys 23a and 23b provided inside the die 0 and conveyed through the die portion 21 and the curing furnace 22 in the horizontal direction. It should be noted that one or more curing furnaces 22 are installed depending on the conditions such as the linear velocity and the ability of the UV power source, although the curing furnace 22 varies depending on the coloring resin used.

The die part 21 comprises a nipple 21a, a die 21b and a die holder 21c as shown in FIG. 5 (a), and for supplying resin to the die part 21 as shown in FIG. 5 (b) or (c). 21d and a resin set screw 21e are provided. The nipple 21a and the die 21b have a die port so that the optical fiber core wire can be inserted and withdrawn horizontally in the die portion. Therefore, the nipple 21
Since the line separation between the line entering a and the line exiting from the die 21b becomes uniform and the difference in line length can be reduced, it is possible to eliminate characteristic fluctuations. The coloring resin is supplied to the die portion 21 from, for example, a supply tank 24 installed below the die portion 21. The coloring resin has a viscosity of 2000 to 7000.
Since it is used as a liquid paint of about cp, it is supplied in a pressurized state by pressurizing the tank 24 in order to prevent bubbles from being generated in the coating. Therefore, when the pressurization of the tank 24 is stopped after the work is completed, the resin in the die returns to the tank by the siphon effect, and the resin does not drop from the die port. Start and stop the pressurization of the tank 24
It is controlled by a controller such as a microcomputer (not shown) together with the take-up machine 51 of the winding device 5.

Further, since the die portion 21 is provided with the receiver 25, even if the resin supplied under pressure overflows from the die opening at the time of starting and stopping, it does not adhere to the surroundings. Thus, in the coloring part according to the present invention,
Since the die portion 21 and the curing furnace 22 are horizontally arranged side by side and the receiver 25 is provided, there is no risk of the resin falling from the die port adhering to the quartz tube or the guide pulley of the curing furnace 22. Therefore, insufficient hardening due to dirt on the quartz tube and line runout due to dirt on the guide pulley can be eliminated.
In addition, the coloring resin collected in the receiver 25 is the supply tank 24.
Returned to. Further, both the die part 21 and the receiver 25 are Y-
The Z stage 26 can adjust the position to the center of the core. The YZ stage 26 can be driven by providing a measuring device (not shown) on the downstream side of the curing furnace 22 and according to the output from this measuring device. These die part 21, tank 24, receiver 25 and YZ stage 26
Are all housed in a storage box provided at the front door of the housing 20. By storing the whole in the storage box in this way, it is possible to prevent shake due to wind, contamination due to dust or the like, disturbance such as temperature change, and further maintenance and inspection can be easily performed.

As shown in FIG. 6, the curing furnace 22 has a quartz tube 22a through which the optical fiber core wire coated with the colored resin by the die portion 21 passes and an ultraviolet ray to the optical fiber core wire via the quartz tube 22a. UV lamp 22 for irradiation
b and a reflection plate 22c installed so as to face the ultraviolet lamp 22b, the quartz tube 22a is purged with N ₂ gas at a predetermined flow rate in order to prevent the reaction of the resin with oxygen due to heat. The curing furnace 22 having such a configuration has a die part 21.
Similarly to the above, it is movable by the YZ stage 27, and the position of the center of the quartz tube 22a can be adjusted to the center of the core wire.

An auxiliary curing furnace 28 for low speed operation may be provided between the die portion 21 and the curing furnace 22 as shown in FIG. The auxiliary curing furnace 28 prevents overheating of the resin by the curing furnace 22 and various adverse effects thereof during low speed operation for confirming and correcting the running state after the start of the apparatus, like the auxiliary curing furnace of the tape device described later. Therefore, instead of the curing furnace 22, the resin is irradiated with the irradiation energy corresponding to the low speed and cured. Therefore, during the main operation at the set speed, the auxiliary curing furnace 2
No. 8 is not activated and the curing furnace 22 is activated.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the individual colored portions 4 are vertically stacked from the viewpoint of the space factor, but the colored portions are arranged horizontally in the optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus of the present invention. It goes without saying that it is okay.
The optical fiber core wire F ′ after coloring is conveyed to the tape portion 4, but in the tape manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, a gap between the coloring portion 2 and the tape portion 4 is shown in FIGS. As shown in (), a stabilizer unit 3 is provided, which includes a cooling unit 3A for cooling the thermally cured optical fiber core wire and a tension adjusting unit 3B for adjusting the tension of the optical fiber core wire.

In the stabilizer section 3, a plurality of stabilizer sections are arranged in a vertical multistage manner in the housing 30 so as to correspond to the coloring section 2, and partitions 30a and 30b orthogonal to the transport direction of the optical fiber core wire are provided. The cooling unit 3A and the tension adjusting unit 3B are provided to partition the cooling unit 3A and a gas passage for cooling air. The cooling unit 3A is heated in the curing furnace 22 of the coloring unit 2 and the optical fiber core wire whose outlet temperature of the coloring unit 2 is, for example, about 90 ° C. is supplied to the tape unit 4 as it is, so that the tape resin is foamed. It is provided in order to prevent the occurrence, and the span length from the colored portion 2 to the stabilizer portion 3 may be simply lengthened, but it is preferable to flow a cooling medium such as cooling air to positively cool by air. A high cooling effect can be obtained with a relatively small span length without being affected by the outside temperature. The span length is preferably 10 m or more, which allows the optical fiber core wire heated in the curing furnace 22 to be cooled to such an extent that the tape forming process is not adversely affected, for example, to about 40 ° C. Further, in order to obtain a large span length in a small space, it is composed of a plurality of independently rotating pulleys as shown in FIG.
It is preferable to have a multi-pass configuration in which the pair of guide pulleys 31 and 32 are used to make a turn.

In this embodiment, air is introduced from the back side of the housing 30 and passed through a filter 33 made of a porous material,
The air is evenly sent to the cooling unit 3A, and the air is discharged from the end of the cooling unit 3A through the partitions 30a and 30b and again through the back side of the housing 30. Further, a window portion 30c is provided on the front surface of the housing 30, and the guide pulley 3 of the cooling portion 3A is provided.
Make it possible to easily perform maintenance inspections such as 1, 32.

The tension adjusting section 3B comprises a take-up machine 35 rotated by a servo motor 34 and a dancer 36. By adjusting the load of the dancer 36, the tension of the optical fiber core wire can be arbitrarily set. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, the servomotor 34 for driving the take-up machine 35 is driven through the amplifier 37 using the speed signal of the take-up machine 51 of the take-up / winding device 5 as a reference signal, while the load of the dancer 36 is increased. When the change is detected by the potentiometer 38 provided in the dancer 36, a speed signal (speed command) calculated by the dancer converter 39 based on this detection signal and the reference signal from the take-up machine 51 is servo-controlled via the amplifier 37. It is sent to the motor 34, and the take-up machine 35 is driven so that the load of the dancer 36 becomes a predetermined value. As a result, it is possible to make the tension uniform for all of the plurality of optical fiber core wires sent from the previous process such as the coloring part 2 and to send them to the tape process, and thus the arrangement of the core wires in the manufactured tape is disturbed and the characteristics are deteriorated. Can be prevented.

As shown in FIG. 10, the tape portion 4 is a housing 4
A die part 41 for tape for coating a resin for tape by arranging a plurality of colored or uncolored optical fiber cores in parallel in 0, and a tank 42 containing the resin for tape
And two main curing ovens 4 to cure the coating
3, 43 'and an auxiliary curing furnace 44 for low speed operation, and guide pulleys 45, 46 for conveying the optical fiber core wire and the tape are provided on both lateral sides of the housing 40. The wire and the tape are transported in the housing 40 in the horizontal direction as in the previous step. By horizontally arranging the dies 41 and the main curing ovens 43 and 43 'in this way, the problem of resin dropping from the die port and the contamination of the curing oven due to the same as in the coloring part 2 is solved. It

The die 41 is supplied with the tape resin in a pressurized state from the tank 42 installed below the die 41 as in the case of the die 21 of the coloring section 2. Moreover, it is preferable to provide a receiver (not shown) for receiving the resin supplied under pressure and returning it to the tank 42 when it overflows from the die opening at the time of starting and stopping. Dice part 4
The position of 1 can be adjusted to the center of the core by a YZ stage (not shown). The driving of this YZ stage is similar to that of the YZ stage of the coloring section 2 in the main curing furnace 4.
It can be performed according to the output from the measuring device provided on the downstream side of 3 '.

The auxiliary curing oven 44 is used to cure the tape coating in place of the curing ovens 43 and 43 'from the start of the tape portion to the start of the actual operation state. That is, before entering the actual operation state, the tape part first checks the appearance of the colored coating, the color, the appearance of the tape coating, the arrangement of the colored core wires, the running state of the core wires, etc., and removes the guide, the tension value, and the tape twist. Check and correct the above, and then start the main operation at the set linear speed.
In the state of this confirmation, the speed of the core wire is low, for example, 5 to 2
Since the irradiation energy amount is about 5 m / min, when the energy irradiation is performed by the main curing furnaces 43 and 43 ′ whose irradiation energy amount is set for high speed, the furnace temperature is 950 when the temperature is higher than 450 ° C.
There is a risk that the temperature will rise to ℃ and the tape resin will decompose and carbonize. This decomposing carbonization is, for example, when the stopped state of the core is 1-2.
It is estimated that this occurs in seconds, and there is a possibility that the wire pulling speed may proceed even at 25 m / min or less. Volatile components at the time of decomposition adhere to the quartz tube of the curing furnace, which causes insufficient curing due to the decrease in the transmittance due to the black color thin film, and decomposed carbide adheres to the die and impairs the tape appearance and characteristics. May lead to problems such as a decrease in Therefore, at low speed, it is necessary to cure the resin with a correspondingly low irradiation energy.

For this reason, the irradiation energy amount of the main curing furnaces 43 and 43 'themselves may be controlled to reduce the energy amount at low speed, but the curing furnace is easy to design and control, and the linear velocity changes. From the viewpoint of quick response and the like, it is preferable to install the auxiliary curing furnace 44. As such an auxiliary curing furnace 44, as shown in the embodiment of FIG. 10, for example, the irradiation energy of an ultraviolet spot irradiator 47 having an output of 1.5 to 2.5 kW and a relatively small ultraviolet light heat ratio is supplied to a lens or the like. A device in which the light is guided between the die 41 and the main curing furnace 43 by the light converging means 48 and the expandable optical guide 49 is preferably used. Such an auxiliary curing furnace 44
The irradiation head can be set at an arbitrary position on the tape ejected from the die 41.

To drive the auxiliary curing furnace 44, first, the auxiliary curing furnace 44 is turned on for a predetermined time, for example, 2 to 5 seconds by starting the tape portion, during which the linear velocity is required for confirmation and correction of the core wire and the tape automatically or manually. Set a low speed, for example, 2 to 25 m / min, and operate. During this time, the guide comes off as described above,
The tension value, tape twist, etc. are confirmed and corrected, and then the linear speed is set to the set speed of the main operation and the main curing furnace 4
3, 43 'are turned on, while the auxiliary curing furnace 44 is turned off.
On / off control of the auxiliary curing furnace 44 and the main curing furnaces 43 and 43 'is performed by programmable control by a work program as in the pressure control of each die of the coloring part 2 and the tape part 4 and the control of the take-up machine 51. It can be carried out.

The main curing furnaces 43 and 43 'are a quartz tube 43a through which a tape having a core coated with a resin passes, and the quartz tube 43a.
The quartz tube 43a is purged with N ₂ gas at a predetermined flow rate for the purpose of preventing the reaction of the resin with oxygen due to heat. In the illustrated embodiment, two curing furnaces are provided to support high-speed operation, but one curing furnace may be used.

A take-up / wind-up unit 5 is provided following the tape unit 4. As shown in FIG. 11, the take-up machine 51 of the take-up / winding section 5 mainly includes a take-up machine 51 that determines the linear velocity and a plurality of take-up machines (first and second two in the figure) for adjusting the take-up tension. (Shown in FIG. 4), a take-up bobbin portion 53, a labeler 54 for cutting a tape and attaching a label, and a cutter 55. Further, an auxiliary take-up machine 56 is provided between the accumulators 52 and 52 '.
Is provided.

The take-up machine 51 has its shaft connected to a motor (not shown), and its rotation determines the optical fiber core wire and the linear velocity of the tape in the entire optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus as described above. That is, the rotation of the take-up machine 51 is controlled so that the optical fiber core wire and the tape are conveyed through the entire apparatus at a predetermined linear velocity. The first and second accumulation dancers 52 and 52 'respectively output fixed position output signals, control the peripheral speed of the winding bobbin portion 53 and the rotation of the auxiliary take-up machine 56, and adjust the tape winding tension.

Further, in the take-up / take-up unit 5 according to the present invention, the take-up bobbin can be automatically replaced while the optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus is in operation.
The first and second accumulation dancers 52, 5 so that the tape can be stored between the take-up machine 51 and the winding bobbin portion 53 even if the winding bobbin portion 53 stops during one operation.
2'has a predetermined storage line effective length, and the lower pulley can be moved downward in response to the stop of the winding bobbin portion 53 and the deceleration of the auxiliary take-up machine 56. In the illustrated embodiment, the storage line effective lengths are each about 80 m.

A take-up bobbin 57 is mounted on the take-up bobbin portion 53 by an automatic bobbin switching / removal mechanism as described later, and a pindle 53a for fixing the take-up bobbin 57 is rotated by a motor (not shown) and slid in the axial direction. The tape is fed in line with a constant pitch width in conjunction with a possible guide traverse 58, and the tape is aligned and wound with a predetermined tension. At this time, the rotation of the motor, that is, the winding peripheral speed is controlled so as to change according to the change in the fixed position output signal of the second accumulation dancer 52 '. The automatic bobbin switching / removing mechanism of the take-up bobbin portion 53 is configured to move the take-up bobbin laterally while the pindle 53a rotated by the motor is configured to be movable forward and backward with respect to the take-up bobbin 57 as shown in FIG. It is configured by providing a transport mechanism.

When the take-up bobbin which has been wound is exchanged and conveyed, the labeler 54 fixes the adhesive seal fed from the label supply roll 54b to the tape by driving the piston 54a. The cutter 55 operates next to the piston 54a of the labeler 54 and cuts the rear end of the tape fixed with an adhesive seal. The operation of the take-up / winding section 5 having such a configuration will be described.

First, in the starting mode, the auxiliary take-up machine 56 is rotationally controlled so that the first accumulation dancer 52 is in the fixed position by the fixed position output signal from the first accumulation dancer 52, and the winding bobbin portion 53 is also provided. Is controlled so that its winding peripheral speed changes according to the change in the fixed position output signal of the second accumulation dancer 52 ', and the tape is applied to the winding bobbin set in the winding bobbin section 53 with a predetermined tension.
As shown in FIG. 3 (a), they are aligned and wound. After that, when the winding bobbin winds a predetermined amount of tape, the motor of the winding bobbin portion 53 is slowly stopped by a stop command. As a result, the winding bobbin is stopped, and at the same time, the piston 54a of the labeler 54 is actuated to attach the adhesive seal to the tape and fix the tape. Further, the pindle 58 that fixed the take-up bobbin retracts, and the transport mechanism moves the take-up bobbin to the cutter 55.
And the empty winding bobbin is transported to the winding bobbin portion 5
3, the pindle 58 moves to the take-up bobbin side to fix a new take-up bobbin, and the setting is completed. When the setting of the new winding bobbin is completed, the motor of the winding bobbin portion 53 is slowly started up and starts rotating (returns to the start mode).

On the other hand, during the automatic exchange of the winding bobbin,
The take-up machine 51 continues to rotate at a constant speed as it is, and the tape is sequentially sent to the first and second accumulation dancers 52 and 52 '. Here, the second accumulation dancer 52 ′ starts storing the line with the slow stop of the winding bobbin portion 53, and descends using the effective length of the storing line. The auxiliary pulling machine 56 is decelerated by the component signal of the change in the fixed position output from the second accumulation dancer 52 ′, and the storage line of the first accumulation dancer 52 is started. When the automatic exchange is completed during this period, the mode is returned to the start mode again, and the first and second accumulation dancers 52, 5
The tape stored in 2'is wound on a new winding bobbin, and the winding proceeds in the same manner.

As described above, in the take-up / take-up unit 5 according to the present invention, it is possible to automatically change the alignment winding and the winding bobbin without changing the linear velocity of the optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus. The tape shown is "over the brim" of bobbin.
Therefore, it is not twisted or broken, and it is possible to prevent the feeding failure and the like. 1 to 1
Although the respective devices (the supply unit 1, the coloring unit 2, the stabilizer unit 3, the tape unit 4, and the take-up / winding unit 5) have been described with respect to the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention is as follows. Each of these devices can be unitized and combined as required to form a tape manufacturing device. An embodiment of a tape manufacturing apparatus comprising such a combination of units is shown in FIGS. 14 (a) and 14 (b). In the figure, each of a supply unit 1, a coloring unit 2 and a stabilizer unit 3 supplies 2 to 4 optical fiber cores, and is provided with a multi-stage structure of 2 to 4 so that coloring and tension can be adjusted. (Or FIG. 3), FIG. 4 (or FIG. 7)
And, the tape unit 4 has a structure as shown in FIG. 8, in which a plurality of colored optical fiber cores or uncolored optical fiber cores are collected and coated with a resin for tape to form a tape. Has a configuration as shown in FIG. The take-up / winding unit 5 has a structure as shown in FIG.

The tape manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 14 (a) shows the most basic arrangement of the apparatus units and can manufacture a tape having 2 to 4 cores. Further, the tape manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 1B has a supply unit 1 and a coloring unit 2.
Also, three unit rows of the stabilizer unit 3 are provided, and one tape unit 4 and take-up / take-up unit 5 are provided.
It is connected to. With such an arrangement, tapes having 2 to 12 cores can be manufactured. In addition, if the coloring step is unnecessary, the supply unit 1 is directly connected to the tape unit 4 and the take-up / winding unit 5, and if the tape forming step is unnecessary, the supply unit 1 and the coloring unit 2 are taken-up / take-up. The arrangement and combination of the units can be changed as appropriate by connecting to the unit 5.

By unitizing each device in this way, it is possible to assemble a manufacturing device that easily realizes a desired process of the optical fiber core wire or the optical fiber tape.
In addition, the same machine can be used to produce many items of tape, and even if one unit fails, the route can be changed, so that it is possible to continue working without stopping production. Example 1 Supply Section A bobbin having a body diameter of 330 mm and a bobbin width of 230 mm was used, the winding amount of the wire rod was 80 km, and the optical fiber core was fed at a feeding linear velocity of 200 m / min by a method using a movable pulley shown in FIG. The line was drawn out and the occurrence of abnormality was investigated. Using the same bobbin, the optical fiber core wire was paid out by the conventional bobbin traverse method at the same drawing linear velocity, and the occurrence of abnormality was investigated. As a result, in the conventional method, an abnormality was found about once every 10,000 km due to the malfunction of the wire rod position sensor, malfunction of the limit switch, motor failure, operation control abnormality, etc. No abnormalities were found during the test. Example 2 Stabilizer Section A stabilizer section as shown in FIG. 8 is provided between the coloring section and the tape section, the cooling span length is 10 m, the case without the stabilizer section, the optical fiber core wire temperature, the tape appearance and characteristics (transmission). Ross) etc. were compared. As a result, the optical fiber temperature before the tape process is 50 to 50 when the stabilizer is not provided.
While the temperature was 60 ° C., the temperature of the optical fiber was lowered to 28 to 30 ° C. by providing the stabilizer portion, and a tape having no bubbles generated on the surface was obtained. Further, the arrangement of the cores of the obtained tape was uniform, and the transmission loss at λ = 1.55 μm (measured by OTDR) was 0.24 to 0.34 dB / km without the stabilizer portion. With the provision of the stabilizer, it became 0.22 dB / km or less.

Further, FIG. 17 shows the temperature of the colored optical fiber at a predetermined distance in the multipath of the stabilizer section (inside temperature of the housing: 25 ° C.) from the curing furnace outlet of the coloring section (solid line).
The same applies to the conventional example without the stabilizer section as shown in FIG.
7 (dotted line). As is clear from the figure, in the tape device of the present invention, the optical fiber temperature at the outlet of the curing furnace was 150 to 230 ° C. by providing the stabilizer part, but at about 10 m, it became almost the same as the temperature inside the housing of 25 ° C. Was shown.

Further, the residual strain of the colored optical fiber (0.01 to 0.03 when there is no stabilizer) was less than 0.02, which was small. Example 3 Winding unit Using a winding / winding unit as shown in FIG. 11, a wire speed of 100 from a set of optical fiber core wires of about 45 km was used as a raw material.
When the tape was wound around 9 km x 5 bobbins at -200 m / min, there was no problem at all. Further, in the conventional winding, about 20 bobbins caused a stepping defect due to one winding defect due to brim over, but the winding according to this example did not cause any defect.

[0043]

As is apparent from the above embodiments, according to the tape manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, the steps from the supply of the optical fiber core wire to the coloring, tape formation and winding are performed in a series of steps. The coloring and tape-forming of the optical fiber core wire can be performed by the feeding and winding steps, and the optical fiber tape can be manufactured at high speed. In addition, the size of the entire apparatus can be reduced, and the control system can be simplified. Further, by reducing the number of steps, the chances of damaging the optical fiber core wire can be reduced, and a high-quality optical fiber tape can be manufactured. In particular, by horizontally transporting the optical fiber core in each process, it is possible to prevent the resin from dropping in the coloring die or the tape die, resulting in contamination of the subsequent curing furnace, etc. It is possible to eliminate stains and the like. Also, by providing a cooling step and a tension adjusting step between the coloring step and the tape step, the heat of the optical fiber core wire after curing the colored resin is surely removed and the tension of each colored core wire is made uniform in the tape step. Since it can be supplied, it is possible to eliminate the adverse effect on the tape die due to the heat of the optical fiber core, and it is possible to manufacture a tape having excellent appearance and characteristics.

Further, by unitizing the apparatus for each process, the tape manufacturing apparatus can be easily assembled appropriately according to the design of the tape to be manufactured.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a tape manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

2A and 2B are views showing a supply section of the tape manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1, in which FIG. 2A is a side view and FIG. 2B is a top view.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing another embodiment of the supply unit.

FIG. 4 shows a coloring part of the tape manufacturing apparatus of FIG.
(A) is a side view and (b) is a top view.

5A is a cross-sectional view showing a main part (die part) of a colored part, and FIGS. 5B and 5C are perspective views, respectively.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing another main part (curing furnace) of the colored part.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing another embodiment of the coloring section.

8A and 8B are views showing a stabilizer portion of the tape manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1, in which FIG. 8A is a side view and FIG. 8B is a top view.

9 is a diagram showing an electric system of a stabilizer section in FIG.

10 is a diagram showing a tape unit of the tape manufacturing apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 11 is a view showing a take-up / take-up device of the tape manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG.

12 is a diagram showing a main part of the take-up / winding device shown in FIG. 11;

13A and 13B are views showing the state of the tape wound on the winding bobbin, wherein FIG. 13A is taken up by the take-up / take-up device of the present invention, and FIG. 13B is a conventional take-up / take-up device. It shows what was wound up by.

FIG. 14 is a view showing a unit of the tape manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, in which (a) and (b) show different embodiments.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a conventional tape manufacturing apparatus, in which (a) shows a coloring apparatus and (b) shows a tape manufacturing apparatus.

FIG. 16 is a view showing a die part in a conventional tape manufacturing device.

FIG. 17 is a graph showing the relationship between the temperature and the distance of the optical fiber core wire sent to the stabilizer section from the coloring step, where the solid line shows the embodiment and the dotted line shows the conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1-Supply unit (Supply unit) 2-Coloring unit 3-Stabilizer unit 3A-Cooling unit 3B-Tension adjusting unit 4 ...・ ・ ・ Tape 5 ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ Collecting / winding part F ・ ・ ・ ・ Optical fiber core F '・ ・ ・ ・ Colored optical fiber core T ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ Tape

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Naoyuki Saito 2-1-1 Oda Sakae, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa Within Showa Electric Wire & Cable Co., Ltd. (72) Hiromi Murakami 2 Sakae, Oda, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa 1st-1st Showa Electric Cable Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Takeo Shiono 2nd-1st 1-1 Oda Sakae, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A supplying step of supplying a plurality of optical fiber core wires, a coloring step of coloring each of the plurality of optical fiber core wires as necessary, and a plurality of colored or uncolored optical fiber cores. A method for producing an optical fiber tape, comprising a tape step of applying a resin coating to the wire to form a tape and a winding step of winding and winding the optical fiber tape, and performing these steps as a series of steps. 2. The method of manufacturing an optical fiber tape according to claim 1, wherein the optical fiber core wire is conveyed in a horizontal direction in each of the steps. 3. The method of manufacturing an optical fiber tape according to claim 1, further comprising a cooling step of cooling the colored optical fiber core wire between the coloring step and the tape step. 4. The method for manufacturing an optical fiber tape according to claim 1, further comprising a tension adjusting step for adjusting the tension of the colored optical fiber core wire between the coloring step and the tape step. . 5. A supply section for supplying a plurality of optical fiber cores, a coloring section for coloring each of the plurality of optical fiber cores as necessary, and a plurality of colored or uncolored optical fiber cores. An apparatus for producing an optical fiber tape, comprising: a tape portion formed by applying a resin coating to the wire to form a tape; and a winding portion that winds and winds the optical fiber tape. 6. The optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising a cooling unit for cooling the optical fiber core wire colored by the coloring unit. 7. The optical fiber tape manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising a tension adjusting section for adjusting the tension of the optical fiber core wire supplied to the tape section. 8. The optical fiber tape according to claim 5, wherein the supply section, the coloring section, the tape section, and the winding section are each unitized and detachable with respect to the entire manufacturing apparatus. Manufacturing equipment.