HK1079289B - Device for an optical fibre connection - Google Patents

Description

Device for connecting optical cable

Technical Field

The invention relates to an apparatus for coaxially connecting optical cables, comprising a ferrule receiver and an adapter housing for receiving the ferrule receiver.

Background

Fiber optic cables are known to be coaxially connected by splicers. The ends of the cables to be connected carry plug connectors that are received by the splicer. The plug connector has a metal ring machined with high precision, which is introduced into the sleeve of the respective adapter in such a way that their end faces come into contact. The sleeve is supported within the sleeve receptacle. For receiving the plug connector sleeve receptacle, for example, the two ends are provided with latching hooks. The outer shape of the adapter housing is determined according to the geometry formed by the known mounting openings. It is known to form the adapter housing as a separate part for ease of manufacture and assembly, preferably with two identical half shells. To prevent that a gap may form between the two half-shells, they are welded, for example.

US 5,317,663 discloses an adapter housing for receiving a split sleeve receiver, wherein the adapter housing comprises a base body and a housing wall formed as a cover. A groove is machined in the base body of the adapter housing, into which a complementary spring formed on the sleeve receiver can be fitted. In this regard, the offset of the joint seam is beneficial to the stabilization of the adapter. However, this embodiment requires at least two different tools for manufacturing the base body and the cover.

Japanese patent application JP2000266963 discloses a one-piece adapter housing into which an integral cannula receiver can be fitted. The ferrule receiver carries a locating flange that is positioned within a complementary notch in the adapter housing. The notch in the adapter housing can be produced cost-effectively. However, the disadvantage is that the adapter housing is weak in the contact region of the plug connector and dust easily enters.

Disclosure of Invention

The object of the invention is therefore to provide an arrangement for coaxial connection of optical cables, comprising an adapter housing and a ferrule receiver, which arrangement has a high stability with a low number of components.

The invention proposes a device for coaxial connection of optical cables, comprising an integral adapter housing and an integral sleeve receptacle, wherein the sleeve receptacle is provided with two positioning flanges, the adapter housing is provided with two positioning receivers complementary to the positioning flanges, each positioning receiver comprises two stops and a positioning hook, the positioning hook is arranged between the two stops, the flanges are arranged on the outer sides of two opposite housing walls, characterized in that the positioning receivers are arranged on the opposite housing walls, and the stops abut the two opposite housing walls with the flanges.

The integral cannula receiver is positionable within the integral adapter housing with the positioning receiver having at least one positioning hook and at least one stop. The adapter with the adapter housing and the sleeve receptacle each being integrally formed has a higher stability than a separately formed adapter. By means of the integral embodiment of the adapter housing, it is prevented that gaps can form in the contact region of the two half-shells. The adapter housing can be molded in only one tool. No stop member or similar additional member is required to secure the ferrule receiver card slot within the adapter housing. For this reason, the slot fixing is suitable for automatic installation. Machining the alignment receiver in the adapter housing can be accomplished without the need for a notch in the adapter housing.

In a preferred embodiment, the stop and the positioning hook of the positioning receptacle are free of notches. This makes it possible to design the tool cost-effectively and to finish the contact surfaces without special tools.

In other constructions, the positioning hook has a ramp as an installation aid. The angle may be appropriately selected in accordance with the supporting force required for positioning the receiver and the maximum force allowed during the assembly.

In another embodiment, the positioning receptacle of each positioning flange comprises two stops and one positioning hook, wherein the positioning hook is arranged between the stops. This arrangement can stably grip the positioning flange of the sleeve receiver. It is also conceivable to realize the anti-tip stable clamping of the positioning flange by a construction comprising two positioning hooks and one centering stop. However, from the point of view of manufacturing technology, an embodiment with two stops and one latching hook is preferred.

In another embodiment, the locking slot is fixed with two positioning receivers on opposite housing walls. The embodiment with two positioning receptacles allows a stable connection. To install the ferrule receiver within the adapter housing, the housing needs to be temporarily deformed to overcome the detent hook geometry of the protrusion. In this respect, it is advantageous if the housing has a smaller material accumulation at this point. Usually at the end plates on the outside of two opposite housing walls, the housing is flanged, so that in this embodiment it is preferred to machine the positioning receptacles on the inside of the other two housing walls.

For certain applications, a connecting tab is required, which is used, for example, as a protection against laser radiation. To prevent the adapter from changing in its outer dimensions due to the mounting opening, a possible connecting lug can be attached to the adapter housing by means of an additional built-in snap-in fastening. The sleeve receiver is formed by positioning receiving pieces on two opposite shell walls, and can form additional clamping groove fixing on the other two shell walls. In this regard, the machining of the connector bayonet fixing does not interfere with the machining of the ferrule receiver positioning receiver.

Drawings

The invention is explained in more detail below with the aid of preferred embodiments. The attached drawings are as follows:

FIG. 1 shows a schematic of an adapter for coaxial connection of fiber optic cables;

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a cannula receiver;

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of a cutaway adapter housing;

FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view of the adapter housing with the sleeve receiver installed.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 schematically shows an adapter 1 for coaxial connection cables. The adapter 1 includes an adapter housing 10 that supports a covered cannula receiver 20 therein. The cable ends with plug connectors 30 which are receivable on both connection sides of the covered ferrule receptacle 20 in the splice 1. The adapter housing 10 is provided with a groove 11. For effective orientation or positioning of the plug connector 30 in the adapter 1, the plug connector 30 is provided with a spring 31 complementary thereto.

Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of the cannula receiver 20. The sleeve receptacle 20 is provided with a locating flange 21, an axial bore 23 and a spacer 24. The locating flange 21 is part of a bayonet mount for locating the ferrule receiver 20 within the adapter housing 10 shown in fig. 1. The cross section of the positioning collar 21 is preferably rectangular. This makes it possible to produce a simple construction and to subject the associated positioning and fastening to high loads. The latching hooks 22 serve to receive the plug connector 30 shown in fig. 1. To receive the plug connector 30 by means of the positioning hooks 22, the positioning hooks 22 need to be moved. The sleeve receptacle 20 is thus supported in the adapter housing 10, not shown in fig. 2, in such a way that it does not impede this movement and that the plug connector 30 can be received by the latching hooks 22. Furthermore, it is desirable that the ferrule receptacle 20 be effectively laterally guided within the adapter housing 10. For this purpose, the sleeve receptacle 20 has a gasket 24 thereon. The contact points of the two plug connectors 30 connected by the adapter 1 are located in a sleeve, not shown, which can be inserted into the bore 23 of the sleeve receptacle 20. In this respect, the material of the sleeve can be selected in accordance with the requirements made to the quality of the connection.

Fig. 3 shows a perspective view of the cutaway adapter housing 10. The adapter housing 10 has flanges 16 on the outer sides of the two housing walls 12, by means of which the adapter housing 10 can be connected to an end plate, not shown. A rectangular opening is machined into the adapter housing 10 for receiving the ferrule receiver 20 shown in fig. 2. A positioning receptacle, comprising a positioning hook 14 and two stops 15, is formed in each case on the housing wall 13 and on the opposite housing wall, not shown. Between the positioning hook 14 and the stop 15, the positioning flange of the sleeve receptacle 20 shown in fig. 2 can be positioned. The ferrule receiver 20 can be automatically installed in the orientation direction R within the integrally formed adapter housing 10. The positioning hook 14 is provided with a bevel 141 to facilitate the positioning process. During positioning, the adapter housing 10 needs to be slightly deformed to overcome the positioning hooks 14. The housing wall 12 has a material accumulation in this region due to the flange 16 which is usually present. The positioning receptacle is therefore preferably formed on the housing wall 13. By avoiding the cut-outs, the adapter housing 10 can be manufactured inexpensively with plastic injection molding using simple tools. The contact surface 151 covered by the stop 15 in fig. 3 can be precisely machined by approaching in the positioning direction R. The contact surface 142 of the positioning hook 14 can be machined by approaching opposite to the positioning direction R. The finishing of the contact surfaces 142, 151 thus requires no special tools.

Fig. 4 shows the adapter housing 10 with the sleeve receptacle 20 installed. The figure symbols correspond to the previous figures. The cannula receiver 20 is positioned between the positioning hook 14 and the stop 15 by means of a positioning flange 21. No other stop member is required for the positioning of the cannula receiver 20. The contact surfaces 142, 151 of the positioning receiver can be machined precisely, so that gaps can be avoided.

The outer shape of the adapter 1 is determined according to the geometry formed by the mounting opening, and only the length of the adapter 1 changes to a limited extent. For example, the adapter housing 10 is lengthened by the connecting piece, whereby protection against leaking laser radiation is achieved. In addition, it is also conceivable to attach a dust-proof device to the adaptor housing 10 when the plug connector 30 is pulled out. To receive the connectors, the housing wall 12 carries an additional locating flange 17 at the terminal end of the adapter housing 10. The machining of the locating flange 17 does not interfere with the machining of the sleeve receiver locating receiver. To avoid undercuts, the positioning flanges 17 are arranged diagonally offset.

List of reference numerals

1 jointer

10 adapter housing

11 groove

12 casing wall

13 casing wall

14 positioning hook

141 slope

142 contact surface

15 stop block

151 contact surface

16 Flange

17 positioning flange

20 casing tube receiver

21 positioning flange

22 positioning hook

23 holes

24 shim

30 plug

31 spring

Claims (3)

1. A device for coaxial connection of optical cables, comprising an integrated adapter housing (10) and an integrated sleeve receptacle (20), wherein the sleeve receptacle (20) is provided with two positioning flanges (21), and the adapter housing (10) is provided with two positioning receivers complementary to the positioning flanges (21), each positioning receiver comprising two stops (15) and one positioning hook (14), which positioning hook (14) is arranged between two stops (15), and a flange (16) is arranged on the outer side of two opposite housing walls (12), characterized in that the positioning receivers are arranged on the other two opposite housing walls (13), and the stops abut the two opposite housing walls (12) with the flanges (16).

2. The device of claim 1 wherein said positioning receiver is notch-free.

3. Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the positioning hook (14) is provided with a bevel (141).