Optical waveguides – With disengagable mechanical connector – Optical fiber/optical fiber cable termination structure
Patent
1992-04-03
1994-02-01
Lee, John D.
Optical waveguides
With disengagable mechanical connector
Optical fiber/optical fiber cable termination structure
385 66, 385 78, G02B 638
Patent
active
052838501
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a connector for at least one optical fiber end, for the purpose of connecting one or more fibers to an electronic component, or of connecting two or more fibers in alignment with each other.
There is a need to provide connectors for connecting fibers together or for connecting one or more optical fibers to an electronic component. Proper positioning of the fibers governs the quality of light transmission.
The various connection devices that have already been proposed mostly require the fiber(s) to be glued or crimped inside a connector part. However, such devices prevent any disassembly and thus any repair.
That is why other devices make use of the principle of radial compression to bring and hold a fiber in a rigid guide piece that ensures it is properly positioned. This applies to JP-A-60042719 and to WO/01610 which define such a connector. However there are two drawbacks in using a rigid guide piece. The first is to require machining tolerances concerning the entire piece which are very difficult to satisfy. The second is to require a special connector for each diameter of fiber.
EP-A-0 156 361 describes a device for fixing the end of an optical fiber, that device comprising a cylindrical sleeve pierced by an axial opening for passing the fiber and suitable for insertion in an adaptor. The sleeve is made of stainless steel, for example, and it has at least one radial slot imparting a degree of resilience thereto. The sleeve includes a tapering front guide portion which is compressed by the adaptor. However, the connector in that document suffers from a certain number of defects relating to the presence of a sleeve that projects beyond the connector and to the rigidity of the sleeve.
An object of the present invention is to obtain an improvement in the optical qualities of a connector, and in its general versatility, and also to obtain certain simplifications.
The present invention provides an optical fiber connector for receiving at least one end of an optical fiber having a front end for optical connection, the connector comprising:
a deformable sleeve having a front end and a bore for receiving said fiber;
a rigid tubular connector body having a front reference face defining a reference plane and a cavity in which the deformable sleeve is compressed to hold said fiber relative to the body; characterized in that:
the front end of the flexible sleeve, once compressed inside said cavity, is set back relative to said reference face of said connector body; the front face of said optical fiber projects beyond the front face of said flexible sleeve up to the limit of the reference plane; and the transverse and axial positioning of the optical fiber is provided by said flexible sleeve without there being any direct contact between the rigid tubular connector body and the optical fiber.
Thus, by screwing or snap-fastening a cap, or by any other conventional means in the art, the sleeve is displaced towards the front of the body and its dimensions are such as to prevent it from projecting beyond the front face of the connector. The optical fiber can be cut and polished before it is received in the connector, or its projecting portion can be cut and polished after insertion in the connector, preventing particles from the tapering sleeve becoming deposited thereon and spoiling its optical qualities.
To interconnect at least two optical fibers at their front ends, it is possible to use a common centralizer. The use of a centralizer does not imply that the fibers must project from said body insofar as the centralizer may be received in a portion left empty by the set-back sleeves. The centralizer is advantageously "floating" relative to the two rigid bodies, thereby avoiding any need for the purpose of centering the fibers to apply severe tolerances when machining the body of the connector. This also makes it possible to use a range of centralizers having different diameters in association with the same connector, the inside diameter of the centralizer being selected as a function o
REFERENCES:
patent: 4186999 (1980-02-01), Harwood et al.
patent: 4236787 (1980-12-01), Iacono et al.
patent: 4614402 (1986-09-01), Caron et al.
patent: 4828353 (1989-05-01), Yamaguchi et al.
patent: 5095517 (1992-03-01), Monguzzi et al.
Heartney Phan T.
Lee John D.
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