JPH05203833A - Manufacturing equipment for optical waveguide components - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] 1st holder, 2nd which constitutes an optical waveguide type component
A gap is prevented from being generated in the overlapping portion of the holder and the third holder, and the relative position is prevented from being displaced. A first holder 4 for irradiating and transmitting a light beam through an optical fiber 7, a second holder 5 for relaying the light beam through a waveguide, and a third holder 6 for receiving a light beam through an optical fiber 7A are concatenated and polymerized in series. The overlapping surface of the part is horizontally opposed to the upper surface of the optical system surface plate 9. Further, the arm 15 that holds the uppermost third holder 6 is lowered to exert a strong vertical force on the overlapping surface of each overlapping portion.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical waveguide type component manufacturing apparatus for laser-welding an optical waveguide holder and an optical fiber holder to manufacture an optical waveguide type component.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the development of technology in the technical fields of optical communication and optical information processing, optical fibers for single-mode transmission and optical waveguides forming optical coupling circuits and optical branch circuits are highly reliable. It is earnestly desired to implement it properly. As is well known, the diameter of the core portion of a single-mode transmission optical fiber is about several μm to 10 μm. Therefore, when connecting the single-mode transmission optical fiber and the above-mentioned optical waveguide, there is a relative positional deviation between them. It is necessary to suppress the thickness to about 1 μm or less to prevent an increase in connection loss.

FIG. 2 shows a conventional optical waveguide type component manufacturing apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-35205, etc., in which abutments 1 and 2 horizontally adjacent to each other at a predetermined interval are provided.
Between them, square bar-shaped columns 3 are arranged vertically in parallel with each other, with a first holder 4 on the abutment 1, a second holder 5 on the top of the column 3, and an abutment 2 Has a third holder 6,
Each is arranged.

The first holder 4 has an optical fiber 7 inserted therein in the longitudinal direction, and an opposite end face which overlaps with the end face of the second holder 5 is formed by polishing, so that the optical fiber 7 allows light rays not shown It has a function of transmitting irradiation to two holders. In addition, the second holder 5 is provided with a waveguide for transmitting light rays in the inner longitudinal direction, and the opposite end surfaces that overlap the end surface of the first holder 4 and the end surface of the third holder 6 are formed by polishing. , And has a function of relaying the light beam transmitted from the first holder 4 to the third holder 6 by relaying it through a waveguide. Further, in the third holder 6, as in the first holder 4, the optical fiber 7A is inserted in the inner longitudinal direction, and the second holder 5 is inserted.
The opposite end that overlaps with the end face has a polished end face, and has a function of receiving the light beam transmitted from the second holder 5 by the optical fiber 7A and transmitting it to a location not shown.

On the other hand, on both sides of the column 3, laser heads 8 which move vertically (see arrow) are opposed to each other, and the pair of laser heads 8 move in synchronization with each other to emit laser light (arrow). By irradiating each of the first holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6, the overlapping portion is laser-welded.

Therefore, in order to laser-weld the first holder 4, the second holder and the third holder 6, the first holder 4, the second holder and the third holder 6 arranged at a predetermined interval are connected in a row. After positioning so that the amount of light received by the third holder 6 that is overlapped and transmitted from the first holder 4 to the second holder 5 and the third holder 6 is maximized, the pair of laser heads 8 are used to position the first holder 4 Then, the overlapping portion of the second holder 5 may be laser-welded, and the overlapping portion of the second holder 5 and the third holder 6 may be similarly laser-welded.

[0007]

The conventional apparatus for manufacturing an optical waveguide type component is constructed as described above, and the second holder 5 and the third holder 6 for receiving a light ray are simply butted and connected and polymerized in a row. Therefore, the gap shown in FIG. 3 is likely to be formed in the overlapping portion between the second holder 5 and the third holder 6 due to the imperfect shape of the holder or the variation in the position where the holder is fixed and held. Further, there is a problem that the relative positions of the first holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6 are displaced due to the thermal expansion and surface tension action of the irradiation portion associated with the laser welding.
Therefore, there is a problem to be solved that a loss of transmitted light occurs.

The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing an optical waveguide type component capable of controlling and preventing connection loss due to generation of a gap and displacement of a relative position.

[0009]

According to the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, an automatic stage operably arranged on an optical system surface plate and a jig for holding the automatic stage are vertically supported. A first holder that holds an optical fiber that transmits a light beam, and a waveguide that is vertically supported by the holding jig and is continuously connected to the upper end surface of the first holder in a cascade connection to relay the transmitted light beam. A second holder for holding, a third holder for holding an optical fiber for transmitting light rays that is serially connected to the upper end surface of the second holder, and the held third holder is pressed against the upper end surface of the second holder. With an operable arm,
A laser head for laser-welding the overlapping portions of the first holder, the second holder, and the third holder is provided, and the overlapping surface of the overlapping portion faces the upper surface of the optical system surface plate.

[0010]

According to the present invention, the first holder, the second holder, and the third holder are connected in series so as to overlap each other so that the overlapping surface of each overlapping portion is horizontally opposed to the upper surface of the optical system surface plate, and further Since the arm holding the third holder is lowered and the pressing force is vertically applied to the overlapping surface of each overlapping portion, it is possible to prevent the optical connection loss due to the generation of the gap and the shift of the relative position.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described in detail below based on the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. An optical system base 9 is provided with an automatic stage 10 so as to be operable. The tool 11 is vertically installed, and the holding jig 11 is configured such that the first holder 4 and the second holder 5 which are continuously connected in series in a column are detachably held.

The automatic stage 10 slides in the X direction (obliquely left and right direction in FIG. 1) while being guided by the pair of guide rails 100 laid on the upper surface of the optical system surface plate 9. X-direction automatic drive stage 10
1, a pair of guide rails 102 laid on the upper surface of the X-direction automatic drive stage 101, and a Y-direction automatic sliding in the Y-direction (oblique vertical direction in FIG. 1) while being guided by the pair of guide rails 102. The driving stage 103 and a rotation direction automatic stage 104 having a substantially disk shape in plan view, which is rotatably disposed on the Y direction automatic driving stage 103, are laminated and are slid or rotated under the control of a controller (not shown). It has a function to do. Further, the holding jig 11 is formed in a substantially concave shape and is erected on the rotation direction automatic stage 104.

On the other hand, a column 12 is erected vertically on the optical system surface plate 9, and a pair of guide rails 13 are vertically provided on an elevation surface of the column 12 on the side of the automatic stage 10.
An elevating body 14 is slidably fitted in the pair of guide rails 13 in the vertical direction.

An arm 15 for fine adjustment movement in the vertical and horizontal directions is horizontally mounted on the elevating body 14, and the arm 1
The third holder 6, which is continuously superposed on the upper end surface of the second holder 5, is detachably held by the holding portion 16 at the tip of the fifth holder 5. In addition, a wire 17 is attached to the lower part of the lifting body 14.
A weight 18 is hung via the. In addition, a stopper groove 19 that locks a stopper 19a at the lower portion of the lifting body 14 is provided near the side of the column 12, and the stopper 19a is disengaged from the lower portion of the lifting body 14 so that the lifting body 14 moves. While being guided by the pair of guide rails 13 to move downward, the second
The third holder 6, which is positioned and superposed on the upper end surface of the holder 5, is strongly pressed.

On the other hand, in the vicinity above the holding jig 11,
A pair of laser heads 8 are vertically movably opposed to each other so as to face the first holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6, and the laser light ( By irradiating (see arrow)
The overlapping portions of the holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6 are laser welded from the horizontal lateral direction.

Therefore, in order to prevent the connection loss and to laser-weld the first holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6, the first holders which are serially connected and polymerized in cascade are formed on the upper opening of the holding jig 11. 4 and the second holder 5 are sandwiched,
After the third holder 6 is held by the holding portion 16 of the arm and the third holder 6 is vertically connected and superposed on the upper end surface of the second holder 5, the controller is operated. Then, under the control of the controller, the X-direction automatic drive stage 101, the Y-direction automatic drive stage 103, or the rotation-direction automatic stage 104 of the automatic stage 10 slides or rotates, and the arm 15 moves finely in the vertical and horizontal directions. Then, the amount of light received from the optical fiber 7 of the lowermost first holder 4 to the optical fiber 7A of the uppermost third holder 6 via the waveguide of the second holder 5 is the third holder. The first holder 4, the second holder 5, the third holder 3
The holder 6 is positioned.

When the first holder 4, the second holder 5 and the third holder 6 are positioned, the stopper 19 of the stop mechanism 19 is positioned.
a is disengaged from the lower portion of the lifting body 14, the lifting body 14 is moved downward while being guided by the pair of guide rails 13 by the weight of the weight 18, and the arm 15 is lowered to be positioned on the upper end surface of the second holder 5. 3 Press down the holder 6 strongly. Then, the automatic stage 10 and the arm 15 operate again to finally adjust the positioning of the first holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6.

However, when the positioning of the first holder 4, the second holder 5 and the third holder 6 is finally completed, the pair of laser heads 8 horizontally crosses the overlapping portion of the first holder 4 and the second holder 5. The laser welding is performed from the above, and the overlapping portions of the second holder 5 and the third holder 6 are similarly laser welded.

According to the above construction, the first holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6 are connected in series in a cascade manner so that the overlapping surface of each overlapping portion is horizontally opposed to the upper surface of the optical system surface plate 9. Since pressure is applied vertically to each overlapping surface of the first holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6 to increase the degree of adhesion, a gap is generated between the overlapping portions of the second holder 5 and the third holder 6. It is possible to reliably eliminate the above-mentioned problem and prevent the optical connection loss from being suppressed. Further, the thermal expansion and the surface tension action of the irradiation part due to the laser welding are prevented from being suppressed by the weight acting on the first holder 4, the second holder 5, and the third holder 6 in the vertical direction. It is possible to reliably prevent the relative positions of the second holder 5 and the third holder 6 from being displaced.

In the above embodiment, the first holder 4 is arranged at the lowest position and the third holder 6 is arranged at the highest position, but it goes without saying that they may be arranged upside down.

[0021]

As described above, according to the present invention, the first holder, the second holder and the third holder are concatenated and polymerized in tandem so that the overlapping surface of each overlapping portion is horizontally opposed to the upper surface of the optical system surface plate. Let
Moreover, since the arm holding the third holder is lowered and the pressing force is strongly exerted vertically on the overlapping surface of each overlapping portion, it is possible to significantly suppress and prevent the connection loss due to the generation of the gap and the displacement of the relative position. There is a remarkable effect that it can be done.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view showing an embodiment of an optical waveguide type component manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an essential part showing a conventional optical waveguide type component manufacturing apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a second conventional manufacturing apparatus for an optical waveguide type component.
FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a defective state in which a gap is formed between the holder and the overlapping portion of the third holder.

[Explanation of symbols]

4 ... 1st holder, 5 ... 2nd holder, 6 ... 3rd holder, 7
... optical fiber, 7A ... optical fiber, 8 ... laser head,
9 ... Optical surface plate, 10 ... Motorized stage, 11 ... Holding jig, 15 ... Arm.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued Front Page (72) Inventor Masahide Saito 1 Taya-cho, Sakae-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd. Yokohama Works

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An automatic stage operably arranged on an optical system surface plate, a first holder vertically supported by a jig for holding the automatic stage and holding an optical fiber for transmitting a light beam, and the holding unit. A second holder that is vertically supported by a jig and is connected in series to the upper end surface of the first holder in a column to hold a waveguide that relays the transmitted light beam, and is connected in parallel to the upper end surface of the second holder in a column. A third holder that holds an optical fiber that is overlapped and transmits a light beam, an operable arm that presses the gripped third holder against the upper end surface of the second holder, and the first holder
And a laser head for laser-welding each overlapping portion of the holder, the second holder, and the third holder, wherein the overlapping surface of the overlapping portion faces the upper surface of the optical system surface plate. Manufacturing equipment.