Source: https://patents.google.com/patent/EP1170610B1/en
Timestamp: 2020-01-20 21:09:30
Document Index: 413336123

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 22', 'art 71', 'art 71', 'art 82', 'art 82', 'art 82']

EP1170610B1 - Opto-electrical hybrid connector and process for assembling the same - Google Patents
Opto-electrical hybrid connector and process for assembling the same Download PDF
EP1170610B1
EP1170610B1 EP01116141A EP01116141A EP1170610B1 EP 1170610 B1 EP1170610 B1 EP 1170610B1 EP 01116141 A EP01116141 A EP 01116141A EP 01116141 A EP01116141 A EP 01116141A EP 1170610 B1 EP1170610 B1 EP 1170610B1
EP01116141A
EP1170610A2 (en
EP1170610A3 (en
Noboru c/o Yazaki Parts Co. Ltd. Yamaguchi
2000-07-03 Priority to JP2000201220 priority Critical
2000-07-03 Priority to JP2000201220 priority
2001-06-20 Priority to JP2001185972A priority patent/JP3801464B2/en
2001-06-20 Priority to JP2001185972 priority
2001-07-03 Application filed by Yazaki Corp filed Critical Yazaki Corp
2002-01-09 Publication of EP1170610A2 publication Critical patent/EP1170610A2/en
2004-03-24 Publication of EP1170610A3 publication Critical patent/EP1170610A3/en
2006-12-06 Publication of EP1170610B1 publication Critical patent/EP1170610B1/en
230000003287 optical Effects 0 claims description 278
With regard to various vehicles including motorcars, extremely many signals from various sensors and those for controlling various electronic equipments have to be handled. When these signals are transmitted by using individual signal lines, the number of the signal lines becomes enormous, causing a wiring harness to be very heavy. In addition, in recent years, informations transmitted from various electronic equipments have been enhanced and much denser, causing a wiring harness to be furthermore heavy. Therefore, recently, a part of a wiring harness has been replaced by an optical fiber cable (optical fiber cord) and for example, a system in which an optical fiber cable connects nodes with each other has been employed.
A hybrid connector pair of a socket-type hybrid connector (named the "hybrid connector" herein) and a plug-type hybrid connector (named the "opposing connector" herein) is disclosed in US 4 969 924, in which the hybrid connector integrally has an electrical connector portion and an optical connector portion in a housing which includes an opened front face and an egagement chamber for receiving the opposing connector therein. The opposing connector includes an end of a ferrule at which an optical fibre core is exposed in a cylindrical mandrel to be coupled in a case of an optical element module of the optical connector portion of the hybrid connector in the coupling state of the connectors.
Further, a hybrid connector is disclosed in EP 1 102 097 which is published before the priority date of present claims 4, 7 and 8. The optical connector includes an optical element module in a shielding case and an optical sleeve in a receiving cylinder of a holder protruding into an engaging space of a socket type housing for coupling the sleeve with the ferrule of the opposing connector when the latter is received in the engaging space. The holder is inserted into an inner wall of the housing and includes at an outside end thereof a hollow portion in which the outside end of the sleeve is exposed to protrude into an annular cylindrical projection formed on the optical element module.
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to solve the problem described above and to provide processes for assembling a hybrid connector, by which the assembling operation can be simplified and the optical element modules can be stably positioned so that the workability of the assembling operation is improved and the optical loss is reduced, as well as to provide such hybrid connectors.
The hybrid connectors of the invention are defined in claims 5 and 7. The assembling processes of the invention are defined in claims 1 and 4.
In order to attain the above objective, a first aspect of the present invention is to provide a process for assembling a hybrid connector having electric and optical connectors formed integrally with each other, the optical connector including: at least one optical element module having an optical element; sleeves, each of which has an optical waveguide, provided in accordance with the number of the optical element modules; a housing shared with the electric connector, the housing having receiving cylinders for holding the sleeves therein; and a case for holding the optical element modules, the process comprising the steps of:
a first assembly step of reaching a provisionally incompletely inserted state, in which each sleeve is incompletely inserted into the corresponding receiving cylinder;
a second assembly step of reaching a completely inserted state, in which each optical element module is pressed against an end face of the corresponding sleeve exposed from the receiving cylinder so as to further insert the sleeve into the corresponding receiving cylinder, then engaging each second projection formed on the optical element module with a corresponding hollow portion formed in the receiving cylinder so as to align a position of the optical element with an axis of the corresponding receiving cylinder, and then placing the optical element module on a first wall formed in the housing or holding the optical element module between a pair of walls formed in the housing so as to prevent the optical element module from rotating; and
Preferably, in the first assembly step, the sleeve is inserted into the receiving cylinder until the sleeve comes into contact with first projections formed in the receiving cylinder for press-inserting the sleeve, and in the second assembly step the sleeve is press-inserted into the receiving cylinder crushing the first projections.
Preferably, a moving length of the sleeve in the receiving cylinder in the second assembly step is shorter than that in the first assembly step.
According to the constitution described above, in the second assembly step, the labor required for press-insertion of the sleeve is reduced, thereby the assembly operation can be simplified further.
A second aspect of the present invention is to provide a process for assembling a hybrid connector having electric and optical connectors formed integrally with each other, the optical connector including: at least one optical element module having an optical element; sleeves, each of which has an optical waveguide, provided in accordance with the number of the optical element modules; a housing shared with the electric connector, the housing having receiving cylinders for holding the sleeves therein; a sleeve holder to be inserted in the housing for holding the sleeves together with the receiving cylinders; and a case for holding the optical element modules, the process comprising the steps of:
a first assembly step with a sleeve holder of setting the sleeves in the receiving cylinder, fitting the sleeve holder thereto and inserting each sleeve into the corresponding receiving cylinder by the sleeve holder so that each sleeve is provisionally incompletely inserted into the corresponding receiving cylinder;
a second assembly step with a sleeve holder of pressing each optical element module against an end face of the corresponding sleeve exposed from the end of the sleeve holder so that each sleeve is completely inserted into the corresponding receiving cylinder, then engaging each second projection formed on the optical element module with a corresponding hollow portion formed in the housing and/or the sleeve holder so as to align a position of the optical element with an axis of the corresponding receiving cylinder, and then placing the optical element module on a wall formed in the housing or holding the optical element module between a pair of walls formed in the housing so as to prevent the optical element module from rotating; and
In order to attain the objective, a third aspect of the present invention is to provide a hybrid connector including electric and optical connectors formed integrally with each other, the optical connector comprising:
Preferably, a second wall, which faces the first wall and holds the optical element modules between the first and second walls, is formed on the receiving cylinder.
A fourth aspect of the present invention is to provide a male hybrid connector including electric and optical connectors formed integrally with each other, the optical connector comprising:
Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of a hybrid connector according to the third embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a front view of the hybrid connector;
Figure 3 is a plan view of the hybrid connector; .
Figure 4 is a left side view of the hybrid connector;
Figure 5 is a right side view of the housing;
Figure 6 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step before the insertion of the sleeve;
Figure 7 is a sectional view illustrating a provisionally incompletely inserted state in the first assembly step being an incomplete insertion of the sleeve;
Figure 8 is a rear view of the state shown in Fig. 7;
Figure 9 is a sectional view illustrating a state, in which the optical element module is started to be pressed, in a second assembly step;
Figure 10 is a sectional view illustrating a completely inserted state in a second assembly step after the optical element module is pressed;
Figure 11 is a rear view of the state shown in Fig. 10;
Figure 12 is a sectional view illustrating a third assembly step before the mounting of the shielding case;
Figure 13 is a sectional view illustrating a state, in which the assembly is completed;
Figure 14 is a right side view illustrating another example of the housing;
Figure 15 is a perspective view illustating the primary part of the view shown in Fig. 14;
Figure 16 is an exploded perspective view of a hybrid connector according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 17 is a sectional view (longitudinal sectional view taking the center of the receiving cylinder at the electric connector side as the standard) of a housing shown in Fig. 16;
Figure 18 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step with a sleeve holder before the insertion of the lens sleeve (sleeve);
Figure 19 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step with a sleeve holder when the lens sleeve is set in the receiving cylinder;
Figure 20 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step with a sleeve holder when the lens sleeve is on the way to be inserted into the receiving cylinder by the sleeve holder;
Figure 21 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step with a sleeve holder when the lens sleeve is provisionally incompletely inserted into the receiving cylinder;
Figure 22 is a sectional view illustrating a second assembly step with a sleeve holder when the lens sleeve is completely inserted into the receiving cylinder after the optical element module is pressed; and
Figure 23 is a sectional view illustrating a second assembly step with a sleeve holder after the shielding case is mounted.
Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of a hybrid connector according to the third embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a front view of the hybrid connector; Figure 3 is a plan view of the hybrid connector; Figure 4 is a left side view of the hybrid connector; and Figure 5 is a right side view of the housing.
In Fig. 1, the reference numeral 1 denotes a hybrid connector to be mounted on a print-circuit board, which is not shown in the figure. The hybrid connector 1 comprises an electric connector 3 and an opetical connetor 4, both of which share a housing 2. As explained later on, the hybrid connector according to the present invention is constructed so that the assembling operation thereof can be easily carried out and the optical element modules 8 and 9 can be stably positioned upon the assembly.
The hybrid connector 1 is connected to a hybrid connector 5, in which two optical fiber cables (optical fiber cords; not shown in the figure), on each end of which a corresponding ferrule is mounted, are mounted in parallel in a housing of the hybrid connector 5. Out of the two optical fiber cables, one is for transmitting while the other is for receiving. On an end face of the ferrule, there is exposed a core portion ((plastic) optical fiber consisting of a core and a clad), an optical axis of which aligns with that of a respective optical waveguide 28 in a sleeve 7 explained later on.
The electric connector 3 consists of the housing 2 and electric terminals (PCB terminals) 6. The optical connector 4 consists of the housing 2, the sleeves 7, optical element modules 8 and 9, and a shielding case 10. The optical element modules 8 and 9 of the optical connector 4 may be called a receiving/emission module, receiving/transmitting module or a fiber optic transceiver (FOT). The shielding case 10 corresponds to the case described in the claims.
In the following, each element of the hybrid connector 1 will be explained with reference to Figs. 1 - 5, thereafter the assembly (method of the assembly) of the hybrid connector 1 will be explained in detail.
The housing 2 made of an insulative synthetic resin is formed in a rectangular box shape, in which a front face 11 is opened. That is, the housing 2 is formed in a rectangular box shape with an upper wall 12, bottom wall 13, right sidewall 14, left sidewall 15 and an inside wall 16. The upper wall 12 is provided with a lock portion, with which a locking arm formed on the hybrid connector 5 engaged. Each of the right sidewall 14 and the left sidewall 15 is provided with a corresponding pocket 17 for receiving a fixing pin 18 made of metal therein and engaging with the same. Each pocket 17 is provided with a through hole, which is opened at the print-circuit board side, and a part of the fixing pin 18 is fixed to the print-circuit board through the through hole.
The inside wall 16 of the housing 2 is provided integrally with a pair of receiving cylinders 19, which is formed in a cylindrical shape so that the inner cross section thereof is round. The receiving cylinder 19 has a length in accordance with the length of the sleeve 7. The receiving cylinder 19 protrudes toward an engaging space 20 for engaging with the hybrid connector 5 in the housing 2 and is formed to also protrude toward the rear of the inside wall 16. The ferrules are inserted from the engaging space 20 side.
On the outside rear end of each receiving cylinder 19 at the side from which the sleeve 7 is inserted, a corresponding engaging part 22 protruding with having a ring-shape is integrally formed with the receiving cylinder 19. On an end face of the outside rear end, there is formed a hollow portion 23 (see Fig. 6 or Fig. 15) depressed along the axis of the receiving cylinder 19. On the outside rear end of each receiving cylinder 19 at the side of the right sidewall 14 and the left sidewall 15, there is provided a step 24. In addition, at the bottom wall 13 side thereof, a leg 25 is continuously formed.
Each electric terminal 6 is a known electrically conductive terminal having a letter L-shape. Out of two parts of the L-shape, one part is situated in the engaging space 20 of the housing 2 through the inside wall 16, while the other part is to be fixed on the print-circuit board. Since the electric terminals 6 are mounted on two steps upper and lower (two terminals on each step) with respect to the housing 2, the electric terminals 6 having two different kinds of length are needed.
The first assembly step of the first aspect of the present invention will be explained with reference to Figs. 6 8. Figure 6 is a sectional view illustrating the first assembly step before the insertion of the sleeve, Fig. 7 is a sectional view illustrating a provisionally incompletely inserted state in the first assembly step being incompletely through the insertion of the sleeve, and Fig. 8 is a rear view of the state shown in Fig. 7
In Fig. 6, the sleeves 7 are moved in the direction of arrow P with being held at the sides thereof. The sleeves 7 move toward the end face of the receiving cylinder 19. Then, the sleeves 7 are inserted into the receiving cylinder 19 from the end face of the receiving cylinder 19 in the direction of arrow P and then, as shown in Fig. 7, each end of the sleeves 7 comes in contact with the first projections 21. At this time, each sleeve 7 is incompletely inserted into the receiving cylinder 19 (the provisionally incompletely inserted state). As shown in Fig. 8, when two sleeves 7 are provisionally incompletely inserted, the assembly advances to the second step.
The second assembly step will be explained with reference to Figs. 9 - 11. Figure 9 is a sectional view illustrating a state, in which the optical element module is started to be pressed, in the second assembly step, Fig. 10 is a sectional view illustrating a completely inserted state in the second assembly step after the optical element module is pressed, and Fig. 11 is a rear view of the state shown in Fig. 10.
After the completely inserted state is realized as described above, the assembly advances to the third step. The third assembly step will be explained with reference to Figs. 12 and 13. Figure 12 is a sectional view illustrating the third assembly step before the mounting of the shielding case and Fig. 13 is a sectional view illustrating a state, in which the assembly is completed.
As explained above, the hybrid connector 1 is assembled through a process including the first, second and third assembly steps. That is, the optical connector 4 portion of the hybrid connector 1 is assembled through the first to third assembly steps described above.
Summarizing the first to third assembly steps, in the first assembly step, each sleeve 7 is provisionally inserted incompletely through a receiving cylinder 19 of a housing 2. In the second assembly step, optical element modules 8 and 9 are pressed so that the sleeve 7 is further inserted into the receiving cylinder 19 to reach the completely inserted state. Each projection 35 of the optical element modules 8 and 9 engages with a hollow portion 23 of the receiving cylinder 19. The position of the optical element is aligned with the axis of the receiving cylinder 19. The optical element modules 8 and 9 are placed on the first wall 26 of the housing 2 or held between a pair of the walls of the housing 2 (i.e. the first wall 26 and the second wall 42).
Figure 16 is an exploded perspective view of a hybrid connector according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention and Fig. 17 is a sectional view of a housing.
In Fig. 16, there is shown a hybrid connector 51 to be mounted on a print-circuit board (not shown in the figure). The hybrid connector 51 includes electrical connectors 53 and optical connectors 54, which share a housing 52 with each other. The hybrid connector 51 is constructed so that the assembling operation thereof can be easily carried out as well as the hybrid connector 1 described above (see Fig. 1) and the optical element modules 8 and 9 described above can be stably positioned upon the assembly.
The hybrid connector 51 is connected to a hybrid connector similarly to the hybrid connector 5 in Fig. 1. To end face of each ferrule of the hybrid connector, a corresponding lens sleeve 56 explained later on is optically combined. That is, both optical axes are aligned with each other.
The housing 52 made of an insulative synthetic resin is formed in a rectangular box shape, in which a front face 58 is opened. That is, the housing 52 is formed in a rectangular box shape with an upper wall 59, bottom wall 60, right sidewall 61, left sidewall 62 and an inside wall 63. The upper wall 59 is provided with a lock portion, with which a locking arm formed on the hybrid connector 51 (see Fig. 16) engaged. Each of the right sidewall 61 and the left sidewall 62 is provided with a corresponding pocket 64 for receiving a fixing pin 65 made of metal therein and engaging with the same. Each pocket 64 is provided with a through hole, which is opened at the print-circuit board side, and a part of the fixing pin 65 is fixed to the print-circuit board through the through hole.
The inside wall 63 of the housing 52 is provided integrally with a pair of receiving cylinders 66, each of which has a notched portion 67. The receiving cylinder 66 is formed in a cylindrical shape so that the inner cross section thereof is round when the sleeve holder 55 is inserted into the housing 52 (i.e., into the receiving cylinder 66 in this preferred embodiment) so as to close the notched portion 67. The receiving cylinder 66 has a length in accordance with the length of the lens sleeve 56. The receiving cylinder 66 protrudes toward an engaging space 68 in the housing 52 (see Fig. 17) and is formed to also protrude toward the rear of the inside wall 63. Between the receiving cylinders 66, there is formed a slit (not shown in the figure) for guiding a perpendicular wall 80 (explained later on) of the sleeve holder 55 by notching. In the receiving cylinder 66, each ferrule described above is inserted from the engaging space 68 side.
On an inner face of each receiving cylinder 66, there are formed a stopper 69 (one of which being shown in the figure) against the corresponding lens sleeve 56 and a fifth projection 70 for aligning the optical axes. The stopper 69 is formed at the engaging space 68 side so that a flange 88 (explained later on) of the lens sleeve 56 abuts against the stopper 69. The fifth projection 70 is formed at the rear side of the inside wall 63 so as to hold an optical waveguide 86 (explained later on) of the lens sleeve 56. That is, the fifth projection 70 is formed in a triangular shape in the cross section thereof so as to put the optical waveguide 86 thereon, thereby holding the optical waveguide 86. (The top of the fifth projection 70 can be crushed to align the optical axes.)
On the outside rear end of each receiving cylinder 66 at the side from which the lens sleeve 56 is inserted, a corresponding engaging part 71 is integrally formed with the receiving cylinder 66. On an end face of the outside rear end, there is formed a hollow portion 72 depressed along the axis of the receiving cylinder 66. On the outside rear end of each receiving cylinder 66 at the side of the right sidewall 61 and the left sidewall 62, there is provided a step 73 (only one of which being shown in the figure). In addition, at the bottom wall 60 side thereof, a leg 74 is continuously formed.
A leg 74 including a guide portion 75 is formed in a letter H-shape in a cross sectional view thereof. A horizontal wall 81 (explained later on) of the sleeve holder 55 can come into and out from the guide portion 75. The portion of the receiving cylinder 66, which protrudes rearward exceeding the end face of the end of the receiving cylinder 66, is provided with a first wall 76, which is similar in terms of the function to the first wall 26 (see Fig, 15) described above. The first wall 76 serves as a stopper to prevent the optical element modules 8 or 9 from rotating and is formed to have a flat surface. In this preferred embodiment, each second wall 77 facing the first wall 76 is provided with the engaging part 71. (The first wall 76 and second wall 77 hold the optical element modules 8 or 9 therebetween so as to prevent the optical element modules 8 or 9 from rotating.)
Each holder portion 79 is provided with a corresponding press part 82, which abuts against a corresponding flange 88 (explained later on) of the lens sleeve 56 at the front end of the holder portion 79. Each holder portion 79 is also provided with a corresponding sixth projection 83 (Only one of the projections 83 is shown and the projections 83 has the same function as the fifth projection 70.) for aligning the optical axes, which is matched with the projection 70 of the receiving cylinder 66 on an inner surface of the holder portion 79. Furthermore, each holder portion 79 is provided with a hollow portion 84 (see Fig. 20; only one of the hollow portions 84 being shown) continuing to the hollow portion 72 of the receiving cylinder 66 and a wall 85 (corresponding to the second wall described in the claims) having-the function of the second wall 77 at the rear end of the holder portion 79.
The lens sleeve 56 is made of transparent synthetic resin or glass. Each lens sleeve 56 consists of a cone-shaped optical waveguide 86 having a tapered side thereof, a convex lens 87 formed at the end face of the optical waveguide 86 at the large diameter side thereof, and the flange 88 protrudingly formed toward the outside of the convex lens 87. As for the lens sleeve 56, the convex lens 87 faces an end of the ferrule and the end face of the optical waveguide 86 at the small diameter side thereof faces the light-emitting element (not shown in the figure) or the light-receiving element (not shown in the figure) of the optical element module 8 or 9.
On the side of the optical waveguide 86, there is formed an air layer, at the boundary of which the light transmitting through the optical waveguide 86 is totally reflected. The face of the flange 88 at the convex lens 87 side abuts against the stopper 69 of the receiving cylinder 66. The press part 82 of the sleeve holder 55 abuts against the face of the flange 88 at the optical waveguide 86 side thereof. In other words, the lens sleeve 56 is pressed by the press part 82 and positioned by abutting against the stopper 69.
The first assembly step of the second embodiment of the present invention with a sleeve holder will be explained with reference to Figs. 18 - 21. Figure 18 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step with a sleeve holder before the insertion of the lens sleeve (sleeve). Figure 19 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step with a sleeve holder when the lens sleeve is set against the receiving cylinder. Figure 20 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step with a sleeve holder when the lens sleeve is on the way to be inserted into the receiving cylinder by the sleeve holder. Figure 21 is a sectional view illustrating a first assembly step with a sleeve holder when the lens sleeve is provisionally incompletely inserted into the receiving cylinder.
In Fig. 18, the lens sleeves 56 are moved in the direction of arrow R with being held at the sides thereof and set up at a position in the receiving cylinder 66 as shown in Fig. 19. (The flange 88 of the lens sleeve 56 is situated between the stopper 69 and the fifth projection 70 of the receiving cylinder 66.)
Thereafter, when the flange 88 of the lens sleeve 56 abuts against the stopper 69 of the receiving cylinder 66 so that the lens sleeve 56 and the sleeve holder 55 are prevented from moving (or when the lens sleeve 56 is inserted near to the stopper 69 by the sleeve holder 55), the first assembly step with a sleeve holder is completed. At this time, the lens sleeve 56 is in a provisionally incompletely inserted state thereof and the notched portion 67 of the receiving cylinder 66 is closed by the sleeve holder 55. Then, the process advances to the second assembly step with a sleeve holder.
In the following, the second assembly step with a sleeve holder will be explained with reference to Fig. 22. Figure 22 is a sectional view illustrating a second assembly step with a sleeve holder when the lens sleeve is completely inserted into the receiving cylinder after the optical element module is pressed.
As shown in Fig. 22, the optical element modules 8 and 9 are set up at the corresponding end face side of the lens sleeve 56, which is exposed from the receiving cylinder 66 and the sleeve holder 55. Then, the optical element modules 8 and 9 are moved in the direction of the arrow S so that the optical element modules 8 and 9 are pressed onto the end of the sleeve holder 55 thereby the lens sleeve 56 is in a completely inserted state into the receiving cylinder 66.
When the lens sleeve 56 is in the completely inserted state, the process advances to the third assembly step with a sleeve holder. The third assembly step with a sleeve holder will be explained with reference to Fig. 23. Figure 23 is a sectional view illustrating a second assembly step with a sleeve holder after the shielding case is mounted.
As explained above, the hybrid connector 51 is assembled through a process including the first assembly step with a sleeve holder, the second assembly step with a sleeve holder and third assembly step with a sleeve holder. That is, the optical connector 54 portion of the hybrid connector 51 is assembled through the first to third assembly steps with a sleeve holder described above.
Summarizing the first to third assembly steps with a sleeve holder, in the first assembly step with a sleeve holder, each lens sleeve 56 is provisionally inserted incompletely through a receiving cylinder 66 of a housing 52.
In the second assembly step with a sleeve holder, optical element modules 8 and 9 are pressed so that the lens sleeve 56 is further inserted into the receiving cylinder 66 to reach the completely inserted state. At this time, each projection 35 of the optical element modules 8 and 9 engages with the hollow portion 72 of the housing 52 side and/or the hollow portion 84 of the sleeve holder 55 side, thereby the position of the optical element is aligned with the axis of the receiving cylinder 66. The optical element modules 8 and 9 are held between a pair of the walls (the first wall 76, the second wall 77 and the wall 85) of the housing 52 and the sleeve holder 55.
Each projection 35 of the optical element modules 8 and 9 engages with the hollow portion 72 of the housing 52 side and/or the hollow portion 84 of the sleeve holder 55 side, thereby no clearance arises and each position of the optical element modules 8 and 9 is stable thereafter. The optical element modules 8 and 9 are held between a pair of the walls (the first wall 76, the second wall 77 and the wall 85) of the housing 52 and the sleeve holder 55, thereby the positional shift of the optical element modules 8 and 9 due to the rotation thereof is prevented from occurring and each position of the optical element modules 8 and 9 is stable thereafter. Therefore, the workability improves and the optical loss, is reduced.
The aforementioned preferred embodiment is described to aid in understanding the present invention and variations may be made by one skilled in the art.
A process for assembling a hybrid connector (1) having an electric connector (3) and an optical connector (4) which share a housing (2) to be provided integrally with each other,
the hybrid connector (1) including an end face of a ferrule with an exposed core portion of an optical fiber for alignment with a sleeve (7) of the hybrid connector (1),
the hybrid connector (1) comprising the housing (2) having an open front face (11) and an engaging space(20) in the housing (2) and being formed with an inside wall (16) provided integrally with a receiving cylinder (19) protruding into the engaging space (20) and also protruding toward the rear of the inside wall (16),
the optical connector (4) including: an optical element module (8; 9) having an optical element; the sleeve (7) provided with an optical waveguide (28) and held in the receiving cylinder (19); and a case (10) having a receiving part (37) for the optical element module (8,9) therein,
a first assembly step in which the sleeve (7) is inserted into the receiving cylinder (19) from an outside rear end thereof at the rear of the inside wall (16) into a provisionally incomplete inserted state in which an end of the sleeve (7) is exposed from the receiving cylinder (19);
a second assembly step in which the optical element module (8; 9) is set on the exposed end face of the sleeve (7) and is pressed against the exposed end face so as to further insert the sleeve into the receiving cylinder (19),
then engaging a protruding cylindrical projection (35), formed on the optical element module (8; 9) and in which the exposed end face of the sleeve (7) is received, with a corresponding hollow portion (23) formed in the receiving cylinder (19) so as to align the position of the optical element with the axis of the receiving cylinder,
then placing the optical element module (8; 9) on a first wall (26) formed on the rear of the housing (2) or holding the optical element module between a pair of walls (26, 42) formed on the rear of the housing (2) so as to prevent the optical element module (8; 9) from rotating; and
a third assembly step of engaging the case (10) with the optical element module (8; 9) and with a radially protruding engaging part (22) which is integrally formed at the outside rear end of the receiving cylinder (19), so that the optical element module is received in the receiving part (37) of the case (10) together with the engaging part (22) while the case holding the optical element module, so as to fix the position of the optical element module.
The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein in the first assembly step the sleeve (7) is inserted into the receiving cylinder (19) until the sleeve comes into contact with projections (21) formed in the receiving cylinder for press-inserting the sleeve, and in the second assembly step the sleeve (7) is press-inserted into the receiving cylinder (19) crushing the projections.
The process according to claim 2, wherein a moving length of the sleeve (7) into the receiving cylinder (19) in the second assembly step is shorter than that in the first assembly step.
A process for assembling a hybrid connector (51) having an electric connector (53) and an optical connector (54) which share a housing (52) to be provided integrally with each other,
the hybrid connector (51) including an end face of a ferrule for optically combining to a sleeve (56) of the hybrid connector (51),
the hybrid connector (51) comprising the housing (52) having an open front face (58) and an engaging space (68) in the housing (52) and being formed with an inside wall (63) provided integrally with a receiving cylinder (66) protruding into the engaging space (68) and also protruding toward the rear of the inside wall (63),
the optical connector (54) including: an optical element module (8; 9) having an optical element; the sleeve (56) which has an optical waveguide (86) and is held in the receiving cylinder (66), wherein the receiving cylinder has at the rear of the inside wall (63) a notched portion (67); a sleeve holder (55) inserted in the housing (52) holding the sleeve (56) by closing the notched portion of the receiving cylinder; and a case (57) having a receiving part (90) holding the optical element module (8; 9) therein,
a first assembly step of inserting the sleeve (56) in the receiving cylinder (66) from an outside rear end thereof at the rear of the inside wall (63), fitting the sleeve holder (55) thereto and inserting the sleeve (56) having a flange (88) into the receiving cylinder (66) by abutting a press part (82) of the sleeve holder (55) against the face of the flange (88) so that the sleeve is provisionally incompletely inserted into the receiving cylinder (66) and an end face of the sleeve (56) is exposed from the receiving cylinder (66);
a second assembly step in which the optical element module (8; 9) is set on the exposed end face of the sleeve (56) and is pressed against the exposed end face of the sleeve holder (55) so that the sleeve (56) is completely inserted into the receiving cylinder (66),
then engaging a protruding cylindrical projection (35), formed on the optical element module (8; 9) and in which the exposed end face of the sleeve (56) is received, with a corresponding hollow portion (72) formed in the receiving cylinder (66) and/or the sleeve holder (55) so as to align the position of the optical element (8; 9) with the axis of the receiving cylinder,
then placing the optical element module (8; 9) on a wall (76) formed on the housing (52) or holding the optical element module (8; 9) between a pair of walls (76, 85) formed on the housing (52) so as to prevent the optical element module from rotating; and
a third assembly step of engaging the case (57) with the optical element module (8; 9) and with a radially protruding engaging part (71) of the receiving cylinder (66) which is integrally formed at the outside rear end of the receiving cylinder, so that the optical element module is received in the receiving part (90) of the case (57) together with the engaging part (71) while the case holding the optical element modules, so as to fix a position of the optical element module.
A hybrid connector (1) including an electric connector (3) and an optical connector (4) which share a housing (2) to be provided integrally with each other,
the hybrid connector (1) including an end face of a ferrule with an exposed core portion of an optical fiber for alignment with an optical wave guide (28) of a sleeve (7) of the hybrid connector (1),
the hybrid connector (1) comprising the housing (2) having an open end face (11) and an engaging space (20) in the housing and being formed with an inside wall (16) provided integrally with a receiving cylinder (19) protruding into the engaging space (20) and being formed to also protrude toward the rear of the inside wall (16), an outside rear end of the receiving cylinder (19) at the rear of the inside wall (16) being integrally formed with a radially protruding engaging part (22),
the optical connector (4) comprising:
at least one optical element module (8; 9) having an optical element;
the sleeve (7) provided with an optical waveguide (28) and held in the receiving cylinder (19), wherein the sleeve (7) is insertable into the receiving cylinder (19) from the outside rear end thereof; and
a case (10) having a receiving part (37) holding the optical element module (8; 9) therein and positioning the optical element modules with respect to the housing, with the case (10) engaging the engaging part (22) of the receiving cylinder (19) so that the optical element module (8; 9) is received in the receiving part (37) of the case together with the engaging part (22),
wherein a hollow portion (23) depressed along an axis of the receiving cylinder (19) is formed at the outside rear end of the receiving cylinder (19) and the optical element module (8; 9) is provided with a cylindrical projection (35) engaging with the hollow portion (23) and aligning the position of the optical element with the axis,
and wherein a first wall (26) is formed on the housing (2) at the rear of the inside wall (16), so that the first wall places the optical element module (8; 9) thereon and prevents the optical element module from rotating.
The hybrid connector according to claim 5, wherein a second wall (42), which faces the first wall (26) and holds the optical element module (8; 9) between the first and second walls, is formed on the receiving cylinder (19).
A hybrid connector (51) including an electric connector (53) and an optical connector (54) which share a housing (52) to be provided integrally with each other,
the hybrid connector (51) comprising the housing (52) having an open front face (58) and an engaging space (68) in the housing (52) being formed with an inside wall (63) provided integrally with a receiving cylinder (66) protruding into the, engaging space (68) and also protruding toward the rear of the inside wall (63), an outside rear end of the receiving cylinder (66) at the rear of the inside wall (63) being integrally formed with a radially protruding engaging part (71) and the receiving cylinder has at the rear of the inside wall (63) a notched portion (67),
the optical connector (54) comprising:
an optical element module (8; 9) having an optical element;
the sleeve (56) which has an optical waveguide (86) and is held in the receiving cylinder (66)
a sleeve holder (55) inserted in the housing (52) and holding the sleeve (56) by closing the notched portion (67) of the receiving cylinder (66); and
a case (57) having a receiving part (90) holding the optical element module (8; 9) therein and positioning the optical element module with respect to the housing, with the case (57) engaging the engaging part (71) of the receiving cylinder (66), so that the optical element module (8; 9) is received in the receiving part (90) of the case together with the engaging part (71),
wherein a hollow portion (72) depressed along an axis of the receiving cylinder (66) is formed in the outside rear end of the receiving cylinder (66), and the optical element module (8; 9) is formed with a protruding cylindrical projection (35) engaging with the hollow portion (72) and aligning the position of the optical element with the axis of the receiving cylinder,
wherein a first wall (76) is formed on the housing (52) at the rear of the inside wall (63) so that the first wall places the optical element module (8; 9) thereon and prevents the optical element module from rotating.
The hybrid connector according to claim 7, wherein a second wall (85), which faces the first wall (76) and holds the optical element modules between the first wall and the second wall, is formed on the receiving cylinder (66).
EP01116141A 2000-07-03 2001-07-03 Opto-electrical hybrid connector and process for assembling the same Expired - Fee Related EP1170610B1 (en)
JP2000201220 2000-07-03
JP2001185972A JP3801464B2 (en) 2000-07-03 2001-06-20 Hybrid connector
JP2001185972 2001-06-20
EP1170610A2 EP1170610A2 (en) 2002-01-09
EP1170610A3 EP1170610A3 (en) 2004-03-24
EP1170610B1 true EP1170610B1 (en) 2006-12-06
ID=26595268
EP01116141A Expired - Fee Related EP1170610B1 (en) 2000-07-03 2001-07-03 Opto-electrical hybrid connector and process for assembling the same
US (1) US6500026B2 (en)
EP (1) EP1170610B1 (en)
JP (1) JP3801464B2 (en)
DE (1) DE60124988T2 (en)
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2001-06-20 JP JP2001185972A patent/JP3801464B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
2001-07-02 US US09/895,329 patent/US6500026B2/en active Active
2001-07-03 DE DE60124988T patent/DE60124988T2/en active Active
2001-07-03 EP EP01116141A patent/EP1170610B1/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
EP1170610A3 (en) 2004-03-24
DE60124988D1 (en) 2007-01-18
JP3801464B2 (en) 2006-07-26
JP2002082258A (en) 2002-03-22
EP1170610A2 (en) 2002-01-09
US20020004336A1 (en) 2002-01-10
US6500026B2 (en) 2002-12-31
DE60124988T2 (en) 2007-09-20
JP3896035B2 (en) 2007-03-22 Optical connector
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