JP2014066864A - Optical fiber coating removal tool - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical fiber coating removal jig having a simple structure and capable of removing an outermost coating more reliably.
When the holding portions 3 are deformed so as to approach each other, the contact portions 9a and 9c of the contact members 7a and 7b can be brought into contact with each other. Therefore, the optical fiber core wire 15 is sandwiched between the contact portions 9a and 9c. The contact members 9a and 9c can be deformed and come into contact with each other while the optical fiber core 15 is sandwiched therebetween. For this reason, it is desirable that at least one of the contact portions 9a and 9c has a flexural modulus in the range of 50 MPa to 2000 MPa. More desirably, the flexural modulus is in the range of 162 MPa to 1050 MPa.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical fiber core sheath removal jig for removing an outermost coating remaining around an optical fiber core wire after separation of a multi-fiber tape fiber.

  In some cases, a multi-core tape fiber in which a plurality of optical fiber cores are taped is used. In the multi-fiber tape fiber, a plurality of optical fiber core wires are arranged in parallel and integrated with each other by a resin (outermost coating).

  The multi-fiber tape fiber is used by being separated into respective optical fiber core wires at the terminal portion and connected to other optical fiber core wires or the like. When the multi-fiber tape fiber is separated, the outermost coating used for forming the tape remains on the outer periphery of each optical fiber core wire. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the outermost coating from the outer periphery of the separated optical fiber.

  As such a jig for removing the tape coating of the optical fiber core wire, it is configured in a bowl shape that rotatably supports a pair of movable pieces, and by bringing the tips of the movable pieces close together, the tips of the movable pieces The coated optical fiber in which the tape coating remains is sandwiched between the gripping members attached to the gripping member, and the coated optical fiber is sandwiched between the gripping projections of the gripping members on both sides, and the two gripping members are moved by moving the pair of gripping members. An optical fiber core tape removal device that reduces the adhesive force of the tape coating on the coated optical fiber by moving the gripping position of the coated optical fiber by the gripping projection of the gripping member along the longitudinal direction of the coated optical fiber. Yes (Patent Document 1).

JP 2004-145081 A

  However, the coating removal device for the optical fiber core described in Patent Document 1 uses a spring or the like and has a complicated structure. In addition, since the width of the contact surface that sandwiches the optical fiber core is relatively wide, 1 to 3 mm, it is difficult to apply a sufficient pressure to the optical fiber core, and the jacket (tape coating) can be removed. In many cases, it is not performed reliably. In addition, the abutment surface is made of a plastic that is “hard enough not to damage the optical fiber core wire”, but if the optical fiber core wire is actually made of such a relatively hard material, In some cases, the jacket could not be removed.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an optical fiber coating removal jig that has a simple structure and can more reliably remove the jacket.

  In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention is an optical fiber core sheath removal jig for removing the outermost coating remaining around the optical fiber core wire after the separation of the multi-fiber tape fiber. And a pair of resin fiber abutting portions provided on opposite surfaces of the clamping portion, respectively, and at least one of the fiber abutting portions has a flexural modulus of 50 MPa to 2000 MPa. The outermost coating remaining around the optical fiber core wire can be removed by pulling out the optical fiber core wire from the state where the optical fiber core wire is sandwiched between the fiber contact portions. It is the optical fiber coating removal tool characterized.

  Thus, by setting the bending elastic modulus of the fiber contact portion to 50 MPa to 2000 MPa, the outermost coating of the optical fiber core wire can be reliably removed when the optical fiber core wire is sandwiched. Specifically, if the flexural modulus is too high, the optical fiber may be scratched, or the fiber abutting portion will not adhere to the outer periphery of the optical fiber core, making it difficult to remove the outermost coating. It may become. Further, if the bending elastic modulus is too low, the fiber abutting portion may be deformed too much, which may make it difficult to remove the outermost coating.

  Further, the pair of fiber contact portions may have different bending elastic moduli.

  By doing in this way, for example, by making one fiber contact part slightly harder and softening the other fiber contact part, while ensuring the adhesion between the fiber contact part and the fiber core, Wear and deformation of the fiber contact portion can be suppressed.

  In addition, it is desirable that at least one of the pair of fiber contact portions is an elastomer member.

  By doing in this way, a fiber contact part can be made to contact | adhere to the outer peripheral part of an optical fiber core wire reliably.

  Moreover, it is desirable that the thickness of the tip of the fiber contact portion is less than 1 mm.

  By doing in this way, since the front-end | tip of a fiber contact part can be pressed to optical fiber core wire outer periphery with sufficient pressure, outermost coating | cover can be removed reliably.

  Moreover, it is desirable that the fiber contact portion is formed on a contact member that can be attached to and detached from the clamping portion.

  By doing in this way, when the tip of the fiber contact portion deteriorates due to wear or deformation, the contact member can be easily replaced.

  At this time, the fiber contact portions are respectively provided above and below the contact member, and the respective fiber contact portions can be used by changing the mounting direction of the contact member with respect to the clamping portion. Is desirable.

  By doing in this way, when the tip of the fiber contact portion deteriorates, the work can be performed at the tip of the new fiber contact portion by attaching the contact member upside down.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it is a simple structure and can provide the optical fiber coating removal jig which can remove outermost coating more reliably.

The disassembled perspective view which shows the optical fiber coating removal jig 1. FIG. The assembly perspective view which shows the optical fiber coating removal jig 1. FIG. The figure which shows contact member 7a, 7b. The figure which shows the state which isolate | separates the tape core wire. The figure which shows the state which inserted | pinched the optical fiber core wire 15 with the optical fiber coating removal jig 1. FIG. The figure which shows the state which removes the outermost coating | cover 17 of the optical fiber core wire 15 with the optical fiber coating removal jig 1. FIG.

  Hereinafter, the optical fiber coating removal jig 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the optical fiber coating removal jig 1, and FIG. 2 is an assembled perspective view showing the optical fiber coating removal jig 1. The optical fiber sheath removal jig 1 is mainly composed of a clamping part 3, a contact member holding part 5, contact members 7a, 7b and the like.

  A pair of clamping part 3 is integrally formed so that it may oppose. A contact member holding portion 5 is provided at the distal end portion of the sandwiching portion 3. The contact member holding part 5 has, for example, a groove shape. Contact members 7a and 7b are attached to the contact member holding portion 5, respectively. The contact members 7a and 7b can be easily detached from the contact member holding portion 5 (arrows A and B in FIG. 1).

  The sandwiching portions 3 can be elastically deformed at their connecting portions. Therefore, when the contact members 7a and 7b are attached to the contact member holding portion 5 as shown in FIG. 2, the contact members 7a and 7b can be easily brought into contact with each other by applying force from above and below the clamping portion 3. Can do. Further, if the force is removed, the contact members 7a and 7b are separated from each other and can be returned to the original state.

  Such a clamping part 3 can be comprised integrally with hard resin, for example. In addition, about the shape of the clamping part 3 grade | etc., It is not restricted to the example shown in figure, The form will not be ask | required if the contact members 7a and 7b can be contacted with a simple structure.

  FIG. 3 is a front view showing the contact members 7a and 7b. The contact members 7a and 7b are provided with guide portions 11 at both ends. The guide portion 11 is a guide mechanism that meshes with the guide portions 11 of the opposing contact members 7a and 7b to bring the contact members 7a and 7b into contact with each other.

  The contact member 7 a is provided with contact portions 9 a and 9 b so as to be sandwiched between the guide portions 11. Similarly, the contact member 7 b is provided with contact portions 9 c and 9 d so as to be sandwiched between the guide portions 11. The contact members 7a and 7b may have the same shape or different shapes.

  In the illustrated example, by bringing the contact portion 9a of the contact member 7a close to the contact portion 9c of the contact member 7b, the guide portions 11 are fitted to each other, and the contact portions 9a, 9c and Can be touched straight. Similarly, if the contact members 7a and 7b in the figure are turned upside down and attached to the contact member holding portion 5, the contact portion 9b of the contact member 7a and the contact portion 9d of the contact member 7b are connected. By bringing them closer, the guide portions 11 can be fitted to each other, and the contact portions 9b and 9d can be brought into direct contact with each other. The contact portions 9a and 9b are integrally formed of the same material. Similarly, the contact portions 9c and 9d are integrally formed of the same material.

  Next, the usage method of the optical fiber coating removal jig 1 of this invention is demonstrated. First, as shown in FIG. 4, the predetermined length of the end portion of the tape core wire 13 is separated into optical fiber core wires 15 (in the direction of arrow C in the figure). At this time, since the outermost coating 17 for integrating the optical fiber cores 15 is provided on the tape core wire 13, the outermost coating 17 is provided on the outer periphery of the separated optical fiber core 15. Remains.

  Next, the separated optical fiber core wire 15 is sandwiched by the optical fiber sheath removal jig 1. FIG. 5 is a front view showing a state in which the optical fiber core wire 15 is sandwiched by the optical fiber sheath removal jig 1. As described above, when the holding portions 3 are deformed so as to approach each other, the contact portions 9a and 9c of the contact members 7a and 7b can be brought into contact with each other. Therefore, the optical fiber core wire 15 is sandwiched between the contact portions 9a and 9c.

  Here, in the illustrated example, it is preferable that the contact portions 9a and 9c are deformed and contact each other with the optical fiber core wire 15 interposed therebetween. In this way, the contact portions 9a and 9c come into contact with each other, so that a force for removing the outermost coating 17 can be applied in a wide range in the circumferential direction of the optical fiber core wire 15, and more easily (less number of times). The outermost coating 17 can be removed). For this reason, it is desirable that at least one of the contact portions 9a and 9c has a flexural modulus in the range of 50 MPa to 2000 MPa. More desirably, the flexural modulus is in the range of 162 MPa to 1050 MPa.

  If the bending elastic modulus is too high (too hard), the optical fiber core wire 15 may be damaged. If the bending elastic modulus is too high, the optical fiber core wire 15 is in point contact. This is because the coating removal efficiency deteriorates. On the other hand, if the flexural modulus is too low (too soft), the contact portions 9a and 9c are easily deformed too much with respect to the optical fiber core wire 15, and sufficient pressure is applied to the outermost coating. This is because the outermost coating removal efficiency is deteriorated. As such contact portions 9a and 9c, for example, rubber (elastomer) is desirable.

  The upper and lower contact portions 9a and 9c may have the same bending elastic modulus, but may have different bending elastic moduli. In this case, it is sufficient that at least one of the ranges satisfies the above range, but it is desirable that the upper and lower bending elastic moduli are different from each other after both the ranges are satisfied. For example, by making the bending elastic modulus of one abutting portion 9a higher than that of the other abutting portion 9c, deformation of the abutting portion 9a is suppressed, and deformation on the abutting portion 9c side is increased. Can do.

  If both of the bending elastic moduli are too low, they are easily deformed. Therefore, when the optical fiber core wire 15 is sandwiched or pulled out, positional deviation occurs at the tip portions of the abutting portions 9a and 9c, and both the tip ends. There is a risk that they will not be able to contact each other (meshing will worsen). In such a case, there is a possibility that pressure cannot be stably applied over the entire length of the optical fiber core wire 15.

  On the other hand, if the bending elastic moduli of both are too high, they are not easily deformed, so that when the optical fiber core wire 15 is sandwiched or pulled out, the contact portions 9a and 9c and the optical fiber core wire 15 are in point contact. The pressure may not be applied over a wide range of the outer periphery of the optical fiber core 15.

  However, if one side is hardened and the other is softened within a predetermined range, at least one of them reliably contacts the optical fiber core 15 and the other side is greatly deformed, so that the optical fiber core 15 Adheres closely to the outer periphery. Therefore, when pulling out the optical fiber core wire 15, it is possible to suppress the displacement of the tip portions of the contact portions 9 a and 9 c and to apply pressure over a wide range of the outer periphery of the optical fiber core wire 15. Therefore, it is more preferable that the upper and lower contact portions 9a and 9c are made of different materials.

  FIG. 6 is a view showing a state in which the outermost coating 17 of the optical fiber core wire 15 is removed by the optical fiber coating removal jig 1, and is an enlarged cross-sectional view in the vicinity of the contact portions 9a and 9c. As shown in FIG. 6A, the optical fiber core wire 15 (the outermost coating 17) is sandwiched from above and below by the contact portions 9a and 9c. Here, the thickness of the contact portions 9a and 9c is a tapered shape that becomes thinner toward the tip, and the thickness of the tip (E in the figure, the contact portion 9a in the axial direction of the optical fiber core 15) The contact length between 9c and the optical fiber core wire 15) is preferably less than 1 mm.

  If the thickness of the tips of the contact portions 9a and 9c is 1 mm or more, it becomes impossible to transmit sufficient pressure from the contact portions 9a and 9b to the optical fiber core wire 15 (the outermost coating 17). This is because the efficiency becomes worse. If the thickness of the tips of the contact portions 9a and 9c is too thin, the rigidity becomes low, and there is a possibility that sufficient pressure cannot be transmitted to the optical fiber core wire 15 (outermost coating 17). Therefore, the thickness of the tips of the contact portions 9a and 9c is desirably 0.2 mm or more.

  6 (a), the optical fiber core wire 15 is pulled out of the optical fiber sheath removal jig 1 (in the direction of arrow D in FIG. 5 and by pulling forward in FIG. 5). The optical fiber core wire 15 is squeezed while the outer coating 17 is crushed. Therefore, the outermost coating 17 is peeled off from the surface of the optical fiber core wire 15 (F in FIG. 6B). If the outermost coating 17 cannot be reliably peeled off from the optical fiber core wire 15 once, the steps shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B are repeated a plurality of times. After a part of the outermost coating 17 is peeled off, the outermost coating 17 can be peeled off from the site with a finger.

  As mentioned above, according to this invention, since the clamping part 3 is comprised integrally, there are few parts counts and a structure is simple.

  Further, since the contact portions 9a and 9c can be brought into contact with each other, when the optical fiber core wire 15 is sandwiched, the contact portions 9a and 9c come into contact with the optical fiber core wire 15 so as to be deformed. Therefore, the optical fiber core wire 15 and the contact portions 9 a and 9 c do not make point contact in a front view, and pressure can be reliably applied to the predetermined peripheral length of the optical fiber core wire 15. Moreover, since the optical fiber core wire 15 is pressed by the pressure accompanying the elastic deformation of the contact portions 9a and 9c, the optical fiber core wire 15 can be prevented from slipping.

  Further, since the contact members 7a and 7b are detachable, they can be easily replaced when the contact portions 9a and 9c deteriorate. At this time, since the contact members 7a and 7b have contact portions on the upper and lower sides, for example, even when the contact portions 9a and 9c are deteriorated, the contact members 7a and 7b are used upside down. Thus, new contact portions 9b and 9d can be used.

  Further, since the bending elastic modulus of the contact portions 9a and 9c (9b and 9d) is 50 MPa to 2000 MPa, it is possible to sufficiently apply pressure to the optical fiber core 15 and to contact the optical fiber core 15. The contact portions 9a and 9c can be brought into close contact with each other.

  Further, since the contact portion tip thickness is less than 1 mm, a sufficient pressure can be applied to the optical fiber core wire 15.

(Bending elastic modulus of contact part)
The bending elastic modulus of the contact portion was evaluated by changing the material of the contact portion and removing the outermost coating of the optical fiber core wire 15 using an optical fiber sheath removal jig having each contact portion. The evaluation method was that the outermost coating could be removed by applying a 1 kg load to an optical fiber jacketing jig having an abutment portion of each material, sandwiching the optical fiber core wire, and performing ten pulling operations. The case where the outermost coating could not be removed or the case where the optical fiber core wire was damaged was regarded as a failure, and the success rate was investigated at n = 100. The results are shown in Table 1.
Here, the reason why the applied load is 1 kg is that the load applied when a person holds the tool is approximately 1 kg.

  The material A in the table is “Ultem 1000” (trade name) manufactured by SABIC Innovative Plastics. Material B is “Prime Polypro J704UG” (trade name) manufactured by Prime Polymer Co., Ltd. Material C is “Novatec HJ560” (trade name) manufactured by Nippon Polypro Co., Ltd. Material D is “Perprene P90B” (product surface) manufactured by Toyobo Co., Ltd. The material E is “Perprene P40B” (trade name) manufactured by Toyobo Co., Ltd.

  The flexural modulus is defined by ASTM D 790 or JIS K6922-2. The evaluation method for hardness differs depending on plastic or rubber, but plastic is Rockwell hardness and rubber member durometer hardness.

  As is apparent from Table 1, the outermost coating removal success rate was 0% in the material A having a flexural modulus exceeding 2000 MPa. This is because the optical fiber core wire 15 and the contact portion are in point contact when viewed from the front because they are too hard, and the optical fiber core wire is damaged by applying a strong load in one place. In the material A, the success rate of the outermost coating removal was increased by performing the same operation by forming a gap so that the contact portions do not contact each other. For example, if the same operation is performed with a gap between the contact portions of 0.2 mm for an optical fiber core of 0.25 mm, the success rate of removing the outermost coating on a specific optical fiber core is 84. %. However, the success rate was 42% when an optical fiber having an outer diameter varying between 0.235 mm and 0.265 mm was used.

  On the other hand, the material E had a flexural modulus of less than 50 MPa and an outermost coating removal success rate of 0%. This is because the contact portion is easily deformed because it is too soft, and pressure cannot be sufficiently applied to the optical fiber core wire.

  On the other hand, in the materials B to D, the outermost coating removal success rate was 70% or more, and in particular, the materials B and C were 80% or more. This is because the contact portion is deformed by an appropriate hardness and the adhesion between the contact portion and the optical fiber core wire is improved. In the material B as well as the material A, the outermost coating removal success rate was improved by providing a gap between the contact portions. For a general optical fiber core with a diameter of 0.25 mm, the gap between contact portions is preferably about 0.15 mm or less, but the outer diameter of the optical fiber core varies. Since it is difficult to keep the gap constant, it is desirable that there is no gap in consideration of the stability of work, the simplicity of the jig structure, and the like.

Next, the material of the contact portion was made different between the upper and lower portions, and the outermost sheath removal of the optical fiber core wire 15 was performed using an optical fiber sheath removal jig having the respective contact portions in the same manner as described above. As a result, the success rate for material B and material D was 93%, and for the combination of material C and material D, the success rate was 97%. That is, in any case, a higher success rate was obtained than the combination of the same materials.
As described above, the deformation of the abutting portion having the larger bending elastic modulus can be suppressed and the deformation on the abutting portion side having the smaller bending elastic modulus can be increased. This is because the contact portion can be brought into contact in a wide range in the circumferential direction of the optical fiber while suppressing.

(Attachment tip thickness)
Next, the thickness of the tip of the contact portion (E in FIG. 6A) was similarly evaluated. Specifically, the outermost coating removal success rate was evaluated in the same procedure using only the material D and changing only the contact portion tip thickness. The results are shown in Table 2.

  As shown in the table, the removal success rate decreased as the contact tip thickness increased. This is because the pressure could not be sufficiently applied to the optical fiber from the contact portion. If it was less than 1.0 mm, the outermost coating removal rate generally exceeded 70%.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described referring an accompanying drawing, the technical scope of this invention is not influenced by embodiment mentioned above. It is obvious for those skilled in the art that various modifications or modifications can be conceived within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims, and these are naturally within the technical scope of the present invention. It is understood that it belongs.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ..... Optical fiber coating removal jig 3 ..... Holding part 5 ..... Contact member holding | maintenance part 7a, 7b ...... Contact member 9a, 9b, 9c, 9d ...... Fiber contact part 11 ... ... guide part 13 ......... tape core 15 ......... optical fiber core 17 ......... outermost coating

Claims (6)

An optical fiber core coating removal tool for removing the outermost coating remaining around the optical fiber core after separation of the multi-fiber tape fiber,
A pair of clamping parts that sandwich the optical fiber core; and
A pair of resin fiber abutment portions respectively provided on opposite surfaces of the sandwiching portion;
Comprising
The bending elastic modulus of at least one of the fiber contact portions is 50 MPa to 2000 MPa,
The outermost coating remaining around the optical fiber core wire can be removed by pulling out the optical fiber core wire from a state where the optical fiber core wire is sandwiched by the fiber abutting portion. Optical fiber coating removal jig.   The optical fiber coating removal jig according to claim 1, wherein the pair of fiber contact portions have different bending elastic moduli.   The optical fiber coating removal jig according to claim 1 or 2, wherein at least one of the pair of fiber abutting portions is an elastomer member.   The optical fiber coating removal jig according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a thickness of a tip of the fiber contact portion is less than 1 mm.   The optical fiber sheath removal jig according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the fiber contact portion is formed on a contact member that is attachable to and detachable from the clamping portion.   The fiber contact portions are respectively provided above and below the contact member, and the respective fiber contact portions can be used by changing the mounting direction of the contact member with respect to the clamping portion. The optical fiber coating removal jig according to claim 5.

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