EP0077478A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Optical fiber connector
Assignee: International Business Machines Corp
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Filing: 1982-09-28
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2002-09-28
Abstract
Abstract An optical fiber connector is provided having identical connector halves (10) including mating surfaces (14) which are made of a soft metal and the surface configuration is coined or stamped therein by the same die to provide minimum manufacturing tolerance errors between fiber holding rails (16) located in a channel (18) on each surface. Locating holes (26) and projections (24) are likewise located in said mating surfaces (14) so that, when one surface is reversed with respect to the other and mated thereto, the optical fibers (12) placed between the rails and precisely cut with respect to a limit line (34) will mate end to end coaxially with the end surfaces in the same plane.
Inventors
- 👤 Balliet Layton
- 👤 Hope Bauman Alvin, Jr.
- 👤 Ramnath Gupta Omkarnath
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-08 14:38
CPC Classifications
G; G02; G02B; G02B6/00; G02B6/24; G02B6/36; G02B6/38; G02B6/3807; G02B6/3833; G02B6/3855; G02B6/3857; G02B6/25; G02B6/3809; G02B6/381; G02B6/3826; G02B6/383; G02B6/3834; G02B6/3841; G02B6/3887; G02B6/3888; G02B6/3628; G02B6/3648; G02B6/3652; G02B6/3684; G02B6/3696
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
236 words
Connector for coupling fiber optic lines, characterized in that it comprises : a first and second identical connector half (10 and 20), each having a surface which is identically coined or stamped using the same die; a pair of parallel thin supporting means' (16) separated from each other by a distance less than the diameter of the optic fibers (12) to be coupled, stamped into said surface of each of said connector halves so as to support and center a fiber placed therebetween; at least one alignment hole (26) and one alignment projection (24) located on said coined surface and separated from each other and of a shape and size to mate when one connector half is reversed and mated with the other; means (32) for holding a fiber optic line in place between said supporting means on said coined surface of each of said first and second connector halves; severing means (40) for severing a fiber optic line at right angles to the axis of the fiber optic line at the same place on each connector half; and connecting means (25, 27 and 44) for drawing and receiving said coined surfaces of said first and second identical connector halves together, the exact location being established by said mating alignment holes and said alignment projections to thereby bring the ends of said fiber optic lines to be coupled into coaxial alignment abutting in the same plane.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
236 words
Connector for coupling fiber optic lines, characterized in that it comprises : a first and second identical connector half (10 and 20), each having a surface which is identically coined or stamped using the same die; a pair of parallel thin supporting means' (16) separated from each other by a distance less than the diameter of the optic fibers (12) to be coupled, stamped into said surface of each of said connector halves so as to support and center a fiber placed therebetween; at least one alignment hole (26) and one alignment projection (24) located on said coined surface and separated from each other and of a shape and size to mate when one connector half is reversed and mated with the other; means (32) for holding a fiber optic line in place between said supporting means on said coined surface of each of said first and second connector halves; severing means (40) for severing a fiber optic line at right angles to the axis of the fiber optic line at the same place on each connector half; and connecting means (25, 27 and 44) for drawing and receiving said coined surfaces of said first and second identical connector halves together, the exact location being established by said mating alignment holes and said alignment projections to thereby bring the ends of said fiber optic lines to be coupled into coaxial alignment abutting in the same plane.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
31 words
Connector according to Claim 1, wherein at least said surfaces of said first and second connector halves to be coined are made of a metal soft enough to be accurately stamped.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
61 words
Connector according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein said pair of parallel thin supporting means on each of said coined surfaces are rails which support the fiber optic lines to be coupled in the center thereof and exert a radial force thereon as the first and second identical connector halves are mated, thereby centering and aligning coaxially the fiber optic lines.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
60 words
Connector according to Claim 3, wherein said rails are sufficiently thin to provide resilient support for said fiber optic line of larger diameter held therebetween as said identical mated connector halves are drawn together and then providing resilient support for said fiber optic line of smaller diameter, the resilient support causing said different diameter optic fiber lines to align coaxially.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
63 words
Connector according to any one of the preceding Claims, wherein said pair of parallel thin supporting means are located in a channel which extends lengthwise along the middle of the coined surface of each connector half, the channel depth being related to said pair of supporting means so as to provide coined surface contact when the connector halves are mated with fibers therebetween.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
54 words
Connector according to any one of the preceding Claims, wherein each coined surface of each connector half includes a step and said means for holding a fiber optic line in place comprises staking means which extend from said step in said connector half against said fiber to maintain said optic fiber line in place.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
38 words
Connector according to any one of the preceding Claims, wherein each connector half has a strain relief means extending from the back end of said connector half where said fiber optic line is gripped to provide strain relief.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
91 words
Connector according to any one of the preceding Claims, wherein said severing means includes a tool having an alignment hole and an alignment projection adapted to mate with one of the alignment projections and alignment holes, respectively, in each of- said connector halves to thereby provide the cut in the fiber optic line at the same point relative to its connector half so that, when the connector half mating surfaces are drawn together, the cut ends of the fiber optic line will lie in the same plane and abut one another.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
56 words
Connector according to any one of the preceding Claims, wherein said connecting means for each connector half includes a hole therethrough and a threaded hole therein so that a connector half, when reversed and mated with the other connector half, can be drawn together by threaded bolts operating through said holes and in said threaded holes.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
34 words
Connector according to any one of the preceding Claims, wherein said surfaces to be mated on each connector half have limit lines coined therein at which the fiber optic line is to be severed.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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