Patent ID: 7144163

Claim:
An optical connector equipped with a shutter, comprising: a connector housing formed with a connector hole into which an optical connector is inserted and connected and within which said optical connector and a connection reception side optical connector are connected together, and a separate shutter unit assembly provided in a shutter unit receiving portion formed within said connector housing, wherein: said shutter unit assembly comprises a main section which is fitted within said shutter unit receiving portion of said connector housing and a plurality of tongue leaf shaped shutter leaves which are linked to said main section in the vicinity of the interior surface of said connector hole, and which, by being arranged so as to project from said main section into said connector hole, intercept light which is emitted from an optical fiber which is exposed at the tip end of said connection reception side optical connector; said shutter leaves are provided in said connector housing as linked to said main section so as to be changeable over by rotational displacement with respect to said main section about linking sections as axes between light interception positions in which they project from said linking sections into said connector hole, and retracted positions in which, by said optical connector being inserted into said connector hole, they are pressed down so as to reduce the amounts by which they project into said connector hole, so as to allow connection of said optical connector to said connection reception side optical connector; and when said shutter leaves are in said light interception position, said shutter leaves are mutually overlapped over one another so as to close said connector hole.