JP3646971B2 - Fiber array measurement equipment - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention, connection and the introduction or fiber array each other to the optical waveguide of the light emitted from the light source, to a measurement apparatus for the optical fiber of the fiber array used in the bonding or the like with the microarray lens.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Referring to FIG. 5, there is shown an apparatus 9 that splits light from an LD light source 1, which is an example of a light source, through a waveguide 3 and introduces the light into a measurement-side optical fiber 7 attached to a fiber array 5. . In this apparatus 9, since the waveguide 3 only branches light, it is manufactured by changing the refractive index by doping ions into the glass substrate using semiconductor technology. For this reason, it can process with high precision.
[0003]
On the other hand, the fiber array 5 shown in FIG. 6 has a V-groove 13 as an example of a plurality of grooves provided on a base 11 by machining, and presses and fixes the measurement-side optical fiber 7 with a presser plate 15. Therefore, it is necessary to know the accuracy of the fiber array 5 from the interval between the assembled optical fibers 7.
[0004]
Although the interval between the optical fibers 7 is used here, it is actually the interval between the cores of the optical fibers 7 and is hereinafter referred to as “the interval between the optical fibers 7”.
[0005]
In addition, since the accuracy measurement of the fiber array 5 of the present invention is hardly carried out, the following method can be considered to be realized.
[0006]
That is, referring to FIG. 7, in order to measure the distance P between the optical fibers 7 of the fiber array 5 in order to determine the application or the like, the optical component 19 is attached to the fixed base 17, and the X axis is fixed to the fixed base 17. The fiber array 5 is attached to the movable base 21 that can be moved and positioned in the Y-axis and Z-axis directions, and the movable base 21 is moved. Then, the light source 23 provided in the optical component 19 is projected onto the light receiving means 25 through the measurement-side optical fiber 7 attached to the fiber array 5 of the movable base 21 and visually or by an image using a camera. The distance P between the measurement side optical fibers 7 is measured after the mating surfaces 27A and 27B are brought into close contact with each other using an auxiliary shaft or the like.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, such a configuration in the conventional technique has the following problems.
[0008]
That is, referring to FIG. 8, if the optical component 19 and the mating surfaces 27 </ b> A and 27 </ b> B of the fiber array 5 are not parallel, the position is out of order and measurement cannot be performed. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, if air enters between the mating surfaces 27A and 27B, refraction (B in FIG. 9) occurs at the contact surface between the glass and air, and the original optical path (FIG. 9). Since there is a deviation from the middle A), there is a problem that the irradiation angle becomes unstable and accurate measurement cannot be performed.
[0009]
Further, when performing parallel alignment by visual observation or an image monitor using a camera, there is a problem that there are many inaccurate elements in positioning and a long time is required.
[0010]
Furthermore, since there are many cases where a micrometer with low accuracy is used for measuring the position of the feed system due to the measurement accuracy of a normal optical system, there is a problem that high-accuracy measurement cannot be performed.
[0011]
The purpose of the present invention has been made in view of the above conventional art and to provide a measurement device of the fiber array that can measure fiber array with high precision.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, a fiber array measuring apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention is a fiber in which a connection end face of a block in which a plurality of optical fibers are aligned and fixed and a connection end face of the plurality of optical fibers are flush with each other. the arrays disposed opposite against the connection end face of an optical component having a single optical fiber, a plurality of optical fibers aligned and fixed to the fiber array, the light quantity of either the single optical fiber of the optical component was connected to the measuring means, the other was connected to the optical projecting means, the fiber array is moved vertically with respect to the horizontal direction is opposite the direction of the optical part article, a plurality of optical fibers of the fiber array A fiber array measurement device that measures the positions of the cores of a plurality of optical fibers of a fiber array by obtaining a position where the measurement light quantity of each optical fiber is maximized,
An optical component is fixed, and is provided at the rear of the optical component, and holds the optical component so that the surface alignment can be freely adjusted , and a surface alignment mechanism including a load cell at the rear ,
Vertically the fiber array to the optical component, connected by moving the fiber array in the lateral direction with respect to the optical component as well as positioned to coincide roughly the fiber array by moving the front-rear direction and the left-right direction A moving mechanism that parallelizes the surfaces and slightly separates the connection surfaces;
A correction liquid having the same refractive index as that of the core of the optical fiber is automatically applied so that air is expelled into a small gap between the optical component and the connection surface of the fiber array and light is transmitted straight through the respective joint surfaces without being refracted. Correction liquid supply means provided at a position above the joint surface for supplying;
And a controller for controlling the surface matching mechanism, the moving mechanism, and the correction liquid supply means .
[0013]
Accordingly, the position of the optical fiber in the fiber array, that is, the position of the core of the optical fiber is determined by moving the fiber array relative to the optical component and sequentially measuring the positions of the plurality of measurement-side optical fibers. The parallelism of the surfaces at this time is performed by using a surface alignment mechanism that enables surface alignment by supporting the optical component described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 9-133732 in a swingable manner. The positioning is performed so that the amount of received light is maximized by detecting the amount of light from the light source transmitted from the optical component to the measurement-side optical fiber.
[0014]
Further, a correction liquid having the same refractive index as that of the core of the optical fiber is automatically supplied from above by a correction liquid supply means into a gap provided between the bonding surface of the optical component and the measurement-side optical fiber. Prevent air from entering between the faces.
[0015]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0016]
FIG. 1 shows a fiber array measuring device 29 according to the present invention. In this fiber array measuring device 29, a fixed stage 33 is provided on the upper left side of the gantry 31 in FIG. 1, and a movable stage 35 is provided in the center of the gantry 31 so as to face the fixed stage 33. It has been.
[0017]
A main shaft 37 is provided at the upper end of the fixed stage 33 so as to penetrate in the Z-axis direction, and a surface matching mechanism 39 is provided at the tip (right side in FIG. 1) of the main shaft 37. The main shaft 37 is slightly movable in the Z-axis direction, and a load cell 41 for detecting a pressing force against the main shaft 37 is provided at the rear end (left side in FIG. 1).
[0018]
As the surface-matching mechanism 39, the one shown in detail in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-133732 previously filed can be used, so that detailed description will be omitted and only the outline will be described.
[0019]
Referring to FIG. 3, the surface matching mechanism 39 has a spherical space 43 inside, and an optical component 19 having a light source 23 as shown in FIG. 7 in a movable holder 45 inside the space 43. Has a spherical seat 49 for fixing. The spherical seat 49 is supported by a spring 51, and air is blown to the spherical seat 49 from the front and back and from the top and bottom by air nozzles 53F and 53R, and the spherical seat 49 floats in the space 43.
[0020]
Thereby, the joint surface 27A of the optical component 19 supported by the movable holder 45 faces the joint surface 27B of the fiber array 5 attached to the optical component fixing holder 57 of the movable stage 35.
[0021]
Referring again to FIG. 1, in the movable stage 35, a Z block 61 is provided at the lowest stage so as to be movable in the Z axis direction by a Z axis motor 63 via a Z axis ball screw 65 and the like. As shown in FIG. 2, the amount of movement is measured by a high-resolution Z scale 66 such as a laser length measuring device or a differential transformer. For example, in the case of using a laser length measuring device, a prism is installed in the Z block 61 that is a moving body, and the length is measured using an interference fringe pulse generated along with the movement.
[0022]
An X block 67 is provided on the Z block 61 so as to be movable in the X axis direction by an X axis motor 69 via an X axis ball screw 71 and the like. And a high-resolution X scale 73 such as an operating transformer.
[0023]
A Y block 75 is provided on the X block 67 so as to be movable in the Y axis direction by a Y axis motor 77 via a Y axis ball screw 79 and the like. The amount of movement of the Y block 75 is, for example, a laser length measuring device. And a high-resolution Y scale 81 such as an operating transformer.
[0024]
Referring also to FIG. 3, an optical component fixing holder 57 is provided on the Y block 75, and the fiber array 5 whose pitch is measured is attached to the optical component fixing holder 57.
[0025]
As shown in FIG. 6 described above, the fiber array 5 is formed with V-grooves 13 for mounting a plurality of measurement-side optical fibers 7 at a predetermined interval. The measurement-side optical fiber 7 is placed and fixed by a presser plate 15 from above. The measurement-side optical fiber 7 is connected to an O / E converter 83 which is an example of a light quantity measuring unit.
[0026]
Further, referring to FIG. 1, a correction liquid (matching oil) having the same refractive index as that of the glass between the bonding surfaces is provided above the bonding surfaces 27A and 27B of the optical component 19 and the measurement side optical fiber 7 to be faced. ) Is provided.
[0027]
The control of the air nozzles 53F, 53R of the surface matching mechanism 39, the control of the X-axis motor 69, the Y-axis motor 77, the Z-axis motor 63, the matching oil dispenser 85, etc., as well as the high resolution X scale 73 and the high A resolution Y scale 81, a load cell 41 that measures the pressing force of the spindle 37 of the surface matching mechanism 39, and a personal computer 87 as a control device that receives signals from the O / E converter 83 are provided.
[0028]
Next, the measurement operation of the fiber array 5 will be described.
[0029]
1 to 4, first, the optical component 19 having the optical fiber 23 connected to the LD light source 1 is attached to the movable holder 45 of the surface matching mechanism 39. On the other hand, to the optical component fixing holder 57, the fiber array 5 in which the measurement-side optical fibers 7 are placed one by one in each V groove 13 of the fiber array 5 whose pitch is to be measured and fixed from above by the holding plate 15 is attached.
[0030]
The joint surface 27B of the fiber array 5 is processed to be flush with the base 11 and the presser plate 15 after aligning the end faces of the plurality of optical fibers provided in the V-groove 13.
[0031]
Subsequently, the joining surface 27B of the measurement side optical fiber 7A attached to the leftmost in FIG. 6 attached to the V groove 13 of the fiber array 5, for example, is attached to the movable holder 45 of the surface matching mechanism 39 as a reference. A certain amount of positioning is performed while visually or looking at an image so as to face the joint surface 27A of the optical component 19 that is provided.
[0032]
That is, the Z-axis motor 63 of the movable stage 35 is operated to move the Z block 61 in the Z-axis direction, the X-axis motor 69 is operated to move the X block 67 in the X-axis direction, and the Y-axis motor 77 is further moved. Is operated to move the Y block 75 in the Y-axis direction so that the joining surfaces 27A and 27B are substantially aligned.
[0033]
When the rough positioning is completed, the Z block 61 is moved in the Z axis direction (left direction in FIG. 1) by the operation of the Z axis motor 63, and the joining surface 27B of the measurement side optical fiber 7 is light on the surface matching mechanism 39 side. Press against the joining surface 27A of the component 19. The pressing force at this time is monitored by the load cell 41 so that the spherical seat 49 of the surface matching mechanism 39 is freely moved so that proper surface alignment is performed.
[0034]
When the mating of the joining surfaces 27A and 27B is completed, the air nozzle 53R on the rear side of the mating mechanism 39 is stopped, and the spherical seat 49 is moved to the inner wall on the rear side (left side in FIG. 3) by the air from the front air nozzle 53F. Press to fix. Thereafter, the Z axis of the movable stage 35 is moved to provide a slight gap in the joint surfaces 27A and 27B. Thereafter, the matching oil dispenser 85 causes the same refractive index as that of the glass of the optical fiber core between the joint surfaces 27A and 27B. Is injected from above to expel air and allow light to pass straight through the joint surfaces 27A and 27B without being refracted. Subsequently, light is emitted from the LD light source 1 to the optical component 19 through the optical fiber 23, and the amount of light received by the measurement-side optical fiber 7 is electrically detected by the O / E converter 83. Positioning at many positions, each axis coordinate of this position is measured by the high resolution X scale 73 or the like and stored in the personal computer 87.
[0035]
In this way, when the surface alignment and center alignment of the first measurement-side optical fiber 7 are completed, the amount of received light is similarly measured via the measurement-side optical fiber 7B attached to the second V-groove 13 of the fiber array 5. The X block 67 is moved so that becomes maximum. The position of the X block 67 at this time is measured by the high resolution X scale 73 and transmitted to the personal computer 87. The personal computer 87 calculates the interval between the reference measurement-side optical fiber 7A position and the second measurement-side optical fiber 7B position obtained and stored in advance.
[0036]
Thereafter, the distance between the optical fibers 7 in the fiber array 5 is measured by successively positioning the measurement-side optical fibers 7C,.
[0037]
From the above results, since the amount of movement of the X block 67 is measured using a high-resolution scale, the pitch of the measurement-side optical fibers 7 attached to the fiber array 5 can be measured with high accuracy. Thereby, since the pitch of the optical fiber 7 of the fiber array 5 can be measured with high accuracy, the use application of the fiber array 5 can be appropriately determined according to the accuracy of the pitch of the optical fiber 7.
[0038]
In addition, the surface matching mechanism 39 performs surface alignment between the optical fiber 23 of the optical component 19 and the measurement-side optical fiber 7, and also performs surface alignment and center alignment from the amount of light transmitted through both the optical fibers 23 and 7. It is possible to perform surface matching with high speed and high adhesion, and to measure the interval between the optical fibers 7 of the fiber array 5 with high accuracy.
[0039]
Further, by injecting matching oil having the same refractive index as that of the glass of the core of the optical fiber between the joint surfaces 27A and 27B to drive out air, refraction between the joint surfaces 27A and 27B is prevented and light is straightened. Since it can permeate | transmit, a stable measurement can be performed.
[0040]
Further, FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the present invention in which an optical fiber 23 having a light source 1 is incorporated in an optical component 19, but instead, as a light source such as an LD or LED. The light emitting element may be incorporated in FIG. 4 in the form of the optical component 19 of FIG.
[0041]
In addition, this invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, It can implement in another aspect by making an appropriate change. That is, in the above-described embodiment, the optical fiber interval measurement that is the object of the present invention is actually determined by the operator based on the measured accuracy of the optical fiber 7 interval and whether or not the fiber array 5 is used. However, it is also possible to determine the accuracy standard and make the determination automatically by the personal computer 87.
[0042]
Further, in FIG. 4, even if the light source 1 and the light quantity measuring means 25 are exchanged, the same effect is obtained.
[0043]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, in the fiber array measuring apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the position of the optical fiber of the fiber array is measured using the measurement-side optical fiber attached to the groove. performing centering by translating the fiber array in the vertical direction against, it is possible to measure the optical fiber position of full Aibaarei with high accuracy. At this time, since the optical component is movably supported by the surface matching mechanism, the surface can be accurately aligned and parallelized by simply pressing the optical component against the measurement side optical fiber. In addition, the positioning is performed so that the amount of light received from the light source is transmitted from the optical component to the measurement-side optical fiber so that the amount of received light is maximized, so that highly accurate measurement can be performed quickly.
[0044]
In addition, the correction liquid supply means automatically supplies the correction liquid having the same refractive index as that of glass from the upper side between the mating surfaces of the optical component to be mated and the measurement side optical fiber so that air does not enter between the mating surfaces. Therefore, light is not refracted between the mating surfaces, and the surface matching and positioning performed by measuring the amount of received light can be performed stably.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front view showing a fiber array measuring apparatus according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view seen from the II direction in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a surface matching mechanism.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing an example of attaching an optical component according to the present invention to a surface matching mechanism, and an explanatory view of attaching the component to an optical component fixing holder.
FIG. 5 is a device for introducing light from a light source into an optical fiber via a waveguide.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which an optical fiber is attached to a fiber array.
FIG. 7 is a comparative example of a conventional fiber array measuring apparatus.
FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing inconveniences when the mating surfaces are not parallel.
FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which light is refracted by air.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 LD light source (light source, light intensity measuring means)
5 Fiber array 7 Measurement side optical fiber 13 Groove 27A, 27B Groove 29 Fiber array measuring device 39 Surface alignment mechanism 55, 59 Joint surface 63 Z axis motor (movement mechanism)
69 X-axis motor (movement mechanism)
73 High resolution X scale (High resolution measurement means)
77 Y-axis motor (movement mechanism)
83 O / E converter (light quantity measuring means)
85 Matching oil dispenser (correction liquid supply means)
87 PC (control device)

Claims (1)

A plurality of connection end faces of the aligned fixed block optical fiber and the fiber array is flush with connecting end surfaces of the plurality of optical fibers, and opposed against the connection end face of an optical component having a single optical fiber, Either one of the plurality of optical fibers aligned and fixed to the fiber array or one optical fiber of the optical component is connected to the light quantity measuring means, the other is connected to the light projecting means, and the fiber array is connected to the light is moved vertically with respect to the horizontal direction is opposite the direction of the part products, by determining the position where the measurement light quantity of each optical fiber of the plurality of optical fibers of the fiber array is maximized, a plurality of optical fibers array A fiber array measuring device for measuring the position of a fiber core,
An optical component is fixed, and is provided at the rear of the optical component, and holds the optical component so that the surface alignment can be freely adjusted , and a surface alignment mechanism including a load cell at the rear ,
Vertically the fiber array to the optical component, connected by moving the fiber array in the lateral direction with respect to the optical component as well as positioned to coincide roughly the fiber array by moving the front-rear direction and the left-right direction A moving mechanism that parallelizes the surfaces and slightly separates the connection surfaces;
A correction liquid having the same refractive index as that of the core of the optical fiber is automatically applied so that air is expelled into a small gap between the optical component and the connection surface of the fiber array and light is transmitted straight through the respective joint surfaces without being refracted. Correction liquid supply means provided at a position above the joint surface for supplying;
A fiber array measuring apparatus comprising: a control device that controls the surface matching mechanism, the moving mechanism, and the correction liquid supply means .

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