An underwater pluggable fiber optic connector plug and its assembly

By using plug rotor, corrugated spring and oil bag II in the plug-in and unplugging fiber optic connector plug, the problem of seal failure in deep water environment is solved, and effective sealing and optical signal transmission are achieved at any depth of water.

CN110780390BActive Publication Date: 2025-07-01CHINA AVIATION OPTICAL ELECTRICAL TECH CO LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
CN201910935877.2
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Patents(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2019-09-29
Publication Date
2025-07-01
Estimated Expiration
2039-09-29

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing underwater plug-in and unplugged fiber connectors fail to seal under deep water and high water pressure environments, resulting in leakage of silicone oil.

Method used

An underwater plug-in and unplugged fiber optic connector plug is designed, using a plug turntable and corrugated spring structure to achieve alignment and closure of the fiber optic channel, and the pressure balance inside and outside the plug is maintained through the cooperation of the oil bag II and the drainage hole.

Benefits of technology

In deep water environment, the optical fiber pin contacts and silicone oil in the plug are always in a sealed state, avoiding the invasion of external water bodies, ensuring the transmission of optical signals, and maintaining effective sealing at any depth of water.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

The present invention relates to an underwater pluggable optical fiber connector plug and its assembly. The plug includes a plug housing, a connecting nut assembled outside the plug housing, and a plug accessory housing connected to the plug housing. A plug turntable is assembled inside the plug housing, and a plug stopper and a plug inner housing are sequentially assembled inside the plug turntable. A needle-loading inner housing for fixing an optical fiber pin contact is assembled in the plug inner housing, and a torsion spring is also installed at the center of the needle-loading inner housing. When the head seats are inserted into each other, the plug turntable can rotate to align the optical fiber channel Ⅳ with the optical fiber pin contact. After the head seats are separated, the plug turntable rotates back under the action of the torsion spring to misalign the optical fiber channel Ⅳ with the optical fiber pin contact, realizing the closure of the optical fiber channel. During the entire plugging and unplugging process of the plug of the present invention, the inner cavity containing the pin contact and silicone oil in the plug is always in a sealed state and will not be affected by the external water body. By the volume change of the silicone oil in the drain hole and the oil bladder, the balance between the inside and outside of the plug is always maintained, and it can be plugged and unplugged at any water depth.
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Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of connectors, and specifically to an underwater pluggable fiber optic connector plug and its components. Background Art

[0002] An underwater pluggable fiber optic connector is a fiber optic connector that can be plugged and unplugged underwater. It requires a static and dynamic sealing structure, and can maintain the internal sealing of the connector in both the inserted and separated states in water. The fiber optic contact is docked in the sealed cavity and will not be contaminated by the outside world, so as to effectively transmit optical signals. The existing underwater plug connectors cannot meet the use environment of deep water and high water pressure, resulting in the leakage of silicone oil and the failure of sealing inside the connector in the deep water environment. Summary of the Invention

[0003] To overcome the above defects, the present invention provides an underwater pluggable fiber optic connector plug and its components. When the plug is used underwater, whether it is inserted into or separated from the socket, the inner cavity of the plug containing the fiber optic pin contact and silicone oil is always in a sealed state, and the external water body and the like will not affect it during underwater plugging and unplugging. At the same time, the oil bladder II and the drain hole inside the plug cooperate to keep the pressure inside and outside the plug connector always balanced, so that the plug and its components of the present invention can be plugged and unplugged at any water depth under the condition of effective sealing.

[0004] The present invention solves its technical problems by adopting the following technical solutions. An underwater pluggable fiber optic connector plug according to the present invention includes a plug housing, a connection nut assembled outside the plug housing, and a plug accessory housing connected to the plug housing. Among them, a plug turntable is assembled inside the plug housing, and a plug stopper and a plug inner housing are sequentially assembled from front to back inside the plug turntable. A corrugated spring is assembled between the plug inner housing and the plug stopper. A needle-loading inner housing for fixing the fiber optic pin contact is assembled inside the plug inner housing. The insertion end of the fiber optic pin contact is located in the fiber optic channel III on the plug stopper. A torsion spring is also installed at the center of the needle-loading inner housing. When the plug and the socket are inserted, the plug turntable can rotate so that the fiber optic channel IV on the plug turntable is aligned with the fiber optic pin contact. After the plug and the socket are separated, the plug turntable rotates back under the action of the torsion spring to misalign the fiber optic channel IV with the fiber optic pin contact, thereby closing the plug fiber optic channel.

[0005] Further, an oil bladder II is assembled inside the cavity of the plug accessory housing, and the oil bladder II is filled with silicone oil. A drain hole is also opened on the plug accessory housing. When the connector is inserted and separated, the water body outside the oil bladder II enters or exits through the drain hole, causing the volume of the silicone oil inside the oil bladder II to change, so that the internal pressure of the plug connector is always balanced with the external seawater pressure.

[0006] Further, the outer wall surface of the plug turntable mating end is a conical surface; a notch is also provided on the plug turntable for cooperating with the single key II on the inner housing of the plug to control the rotation angle of the plug turntable.

[0007] Further, the inner wall of the optical fiber channel IV is a conical surface, so that the diameter of the side of the optical fiber channel IV adjacent to the plug stopper is large and the diameter of the other side is small. A convex IV in the shape of a conical surface is provided between two adjacent optical fiber channels III on the plug stopper for adapting to the optical fiber channel IV to close the optical fiber channel IV; when the plug turntable rotates, the convex IV always closely adheres to the plug turntable under the action of the corrugated spring; in the closed state of the plug optical fiber channel, the convex IV is inserted into the optical fiber channel IV so that the optical fiber pin contact is not corresponding to the optical fiber channel IV, and an O-ring IV is also installed on the outer periphery of the convex IV to further seal between the plug turntable and the plug stopper.

[0008] Further, an elastic hook-type locking piece is provided on the wall surface of the connection nut connected to the outside of the plug housing; under the action of a pulling force, the connection nut can move relative to the locking piece towards the tail of the plug, so that the conical surface I on the connection nut presses the conical surface II on the locking piece to achieve unlocking.

[0009] An underwater pluggable optical fiber connector assembly includes a plug, and the plug includes a plug housing, a connection nut assembled outside the plug housing, and a plug accessory housing connected to the plug housing; wherein, a plug turntable is assembled in the plug housing, and a plug stopper and an inner housing of the plug are sequentially assembled in the plug turntable from front to back. A corrugated spring is assembled between the inner housing of the plug and the plug stopper, and a needle-loading inner housing for fixing the optical fiber pin contact is assembled in the inner housing of the plug. The mating end of the optical fiber pin contact is located in the optical fiber channel III on the plug stopper, and a torsion spring is also installed at the center of the needle-loading inner housing; when the head seat is inserted, the plug turntable can rotate so that the optical fiber channel IV on the plug turntable is aligned with the optical fiber pin contact; after the head seat is separated, the plug turntable rotates back under the action of the torsion spring to misalign the optical fiber channel IV with the optical fiber pin contact, thereby closing the plug optical fiber channel.

[0010] Further, an oil bladder II is assembled in the inner cavity of the plug accessory housing, and the oil bladder II is filled with silicone oil. A drain hole is also opened on the plug accessory housing. When the connector is inserted and separated, the water outside the oil bladder II enters or exits through the drain hole, causing the volume of the silicone oil inside the oil bladder II to change, so that the internal pressure of the plug connector is always balanced with the external seawater pressure.

[0011] Further, the outer wall surface of the plug turntable mating end is a conical surface; a notch is also provided on the plug turntable for cooperating with the single key II on the inner housing of the plug to control the rotation angle of the plug turntable.

[0012] Furthermore, the inner wall of the fiber optic channel Ⅳ is a conical surface, such that the diameter of the side of the fiber optic channel Ⅳ adjacent to the plug block is larger and the diameter of the other side is smaller. A convex Ⅳ in the shape of a conical surface is provided between two adjacent fiber optic channels Ⅲ on the plug block for mating with the fiber optic channel Ⅳ to close the fiber optic channel Ⅳ; when the plug turntable rotates, the convex Ⅳ always closely adheres to the plug turntable under the action of the corrugated spring; in the closed state of the plug fiber optic channel, the convex Ⅳ is inserted into the fiber optic channel Ⅳ to make the fiber optic pin contact not correspond to the fiber optic channel Ⅳ, and an O-ring Ⅳ is also installed on the outer periphery of the convex Ⅳ to further seal between the plug turntable and the plug block.

[0013] Furthermore, an elastic snap-type locking piece is provided on the wall surface of the connection nut connected to the outside of the plug housing; under the action of a tensile force, the connection nut can move relative to the locking piece towards the tail of the plug, such that the conical surface Ⅰ on the connection nut presses the conical surface Ⅱ on the locking piece to achieve unlocking.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following advantages:

[0015] (1) In the present invention, a plug turntable is provided inside the plug connector, such that the plug turntable can rotate when the head seat is inserted, so that the fiber optic channel Ⅳ on the plug turntable is aligned with the fiber optic pin contact inside the plug to open the plug fiber optic channel for easy docking with the socket fiber optic. After the head seat is separated, the plug turntable rotates back under the action of the torsion spring to misalign the fiber optic channel Ⅳ with the fiber optic pin contact to close the fiber optic channel Ⅳ, thereby protecting parts such as the fiber optic pin contact in the plug connector.

[0016] (2) In the present invention, a convex Ⅳ adapted to the fiber optic channel Ⅳ on the plug turntable is provided on the plug block for inserting into the fiber optic channel Ⅳ when the plug fiber optic channel is closed and cooperating with the O-ring Ⅳ to play a sealing role. At the same time, a corrugated spring is provided between the plug block and the plug turntable. During the rotation of the plug turntable, under the action of the corrugated spring, the convex Ⅳ always closely adheres to the plug turntable to play a sealing role.

[0017] (3) In the present invention, the mating ends of the socket turntable and the plug turntable are both designed as conical surfaces, which can better and faster drain the surrounding water during mating. The parts inside the plug are sealed with O-rings. For example, an O-ring Ⅵ is installed between the inner housing of the plug and the plug turntable, and an O-ring Ⅶ is installed between the plug housing and the inner housing of the plug. Throughout the entire process of mating or separating, the inner cavity of the plug containing the fiber optic pin contact and silicone oil is always in a sealed state, and external water bodies will not affect it during underwater plugging and unplugging. At the same time, the oil bladder Ⅱ and the drain hole cooperate to always keep the pressure inside and outside the plug balanced, enabling the plug of the present invention to be used at any water depth under effective sealing. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of the socket connector of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the socket rotation structure.

[0020] Figure 3 It is Figure 2 a schematic diagram of the components being assembled in place.

[0021] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the closed state of the socket optical fiber channel.

[0022] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the open state of the socket optical fiber channel.

[0023] Figure 6 It is a cross-sectional view of the plug connector of the present invention.

[0024] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of the plug rotation structure.

[0025] Figure 8 It is a schematic diagram of the closed state of the plug optical fiber channel.

[0026] Figure 9 It is a schematic diagram of the open state of the plug optical fiber channel.

[0027] Figure 10 It is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the optical fiber connector of the present invention.

[0028] Figure 11 It is a schematic diagram of the uninserted state of the optical fiber connector of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 12 It is a schematic diagram of the initial mating state of the optical fiber connector of the present invention.

[0030] Figure 13 It is a schematic diagram of the fully mated state of the optical fiber connector of the present invention.

[0031]

Explanation of Components and Symbols

[0032] 1: Socket housing, 2: Sleeve, 3: Socket turntable, 4: Socket stop, 5: Socket accessory housing, 6: Inner socket housing, 7: Inner housing with mounting hole, 8: Fiber optic jack contact, 9: Spring, 10: Step Ⅰ, 11: Oil bladder Ⅰ, 12: Retaining ring, 13: Washer, 14: Nut, 15: Stuffing box, 16: Projection Ⅰ, 17: Through slot, 18: Starting point of through slot, 19: End point of through slot, 20: Fiber optic channel Ⅰ, 21: Fiber optic channel Ⅱ, 22: Projection Ⅱ, 23: O-ring Ⅰ, 24: Single key Ⅰ, 25: Keyway Ⅰ, 26: O-ring Ⅱ, 27: O-ring Ⅲ, 28: Plug housing, 29: Connecting nut, 30: Plug turntable, 31: Inner plug housing, 32: Plug stop, 33: Inner housing with pin mounting, 34: Plug accessory housing, 35: Corrugated spring, 36: Torsion spring, 37: Outer plug retaining ring, 38: Fiber optic pin contact, 39: Oil bladder Ⅱ, 40: Locking piece, 41: Tail of socket sleeve, 42: Conical surface Ⅰ, 43: Conical surface Ⅱ, 44: Single key Ⅱ, 45: Notch, 46: Projection Ⅲ, 47: Groove, 48: Fiber optic channel Ⅲ, 49: Projection Ⅳ, 50: Fiber optic channel Ⅳ, 51: O-ring Ⅳ, 52: Convex key, 53: Keyway Ⅱ, 54: Insertion end conical surface of plug turntable, 55: Insertion end conical surface of socket turntable, 56: Drain hole, 57: O-ring Ⅴ, 58: O-ring Ⅵ, 59: O-ring Ⅶ. Detailed implementation mode

[0033] To further elaborate on the technical means and technical effects adopted by the present invention, the present invention will be described in detail below in conjunction with embodiments.

[0034] It should be noted that: The terms indicating directions such as "front", "rear", "tail end", "tail" in the present invention are all based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention, and therefore cannot be construed as a limitation to the present invention. Specifically, the ends where the socket and the plug are inserted are defined as the front end of the socket and the front end of the plug respectively, and the other ends of each are their tail ends. The directions of "front" and "rear" are consistent with those of "front end" and "tail end".

[0035] The underwater pluggable connector assembly of the present invention includes a socket connector and a plug connector that is inserted into the socket connector, as Figure 1As shown, the socket connector includes a socket housing 1, a sleeve 2 assembled outside the socket housing, a socket turntable 3 and a socket stopper 4 assembled inside the socket housing at the socket mating end, and a socket accessory housing 5 connected to the socket housing. The socket turntable is located in front of the socket stopper. A socket inner housing 6 is also assembled inside the socket housing, which is located behind the socket stopper. A mounting hole inner housing 7 is fixed inside the cavity of the socket inner housing. Four groups of single-core fiber optic jack contacts 8 are fixed in the mounting hole inner housing by positioning claws for butt-joint with the fiber optic pin contacts in the plug connector to achieve fiber optic connection. A spring 9 is assembled on the outer periphery of the socket inner housing to provide elastic force for the movement of the socket turntable and the socket stopper. One end of the spring is limited by the socket stopper, and the other end is limited by the step Ⅰ 10 on the socket housing. A space is left between the socket inner housing and the socket stopper to facilitate the axial movement of the socket stopper and the socket turntable inside the socket housing. An oil bladder Ⅰ 11 is assembled inside the cavity of the socket accessory housing. The oil bladder Ⅰ is filled with silicone oil. When the connector is mated and separated, the internal pressure of the socket connector is balanced with the external seawater pressure through the change in the volume of the silicone oil inside the oil bladder Ⅰ. The oil bladder Ⅰ is sealed by extrusion. One end of it is extruded between the socket inner housing and the socket accessory housing, and the other end is extruded and sealed on the tail housing of the socket accessory housing through a retaining ring 12 and a washer 13. The material friction coefficients on both sides of the washer are different. Both the retaining ring and the washer are made of metal and can slip. It is not easy for the washer and the oil bladder Ⅰ to slip. When the retaining ring is tightened, the oil bladder Ⅰ will not rotate. Without the washer, the retaining ring will drive the oil bladder Ⅰ to rotate together. The tail of the socket accessory housing is connected to a four-core deep-sea optical cable. The optical cable passes through the nut 14 at the tail of the socket accessory housing and is sealed with the socket accessory housing through a stuffing box 15 and encapsulated by vulcanization (this technology is prior art and will not be elaborated here).

[0036] As Figure 2 shown, a protrusion Ⅰ 16 is provided on the outer circumference of the socket turntable and can slide along the through groove 17 on the socket housing, so as to realize the rotation of the socket turntable while performing a linear movement in the axial direction. When the protrusion Ⅰ slides from the starting point 18 to the ending point 19 of the through groove, it drives the socket turntable to rotate, making the fiber optic channel Ⅰ 20 on it gradually align with the fiber optic channel Ⅱ 21 on the socket stopper, thus opening the socket fiber optic channel. On the contrary, when the protrusion Ⅰ slides from the ending point to the starting point of the through groove, it drives the socket turntable to rotate, making the fiber optic channel Ⅰ and the fiber optic channel Ⅱ gradually stagger, thus closing the socket fiber optic channel.

[0037] The inner wall surface of the fiber optic channel Ⅰ on the socket turntable is conical, with the diameter of the side adjacent to the socket stopper being larger and the other side being smaller. As Figure 5 shown. In one embodiment, four fiber optic channels Ⅱ are provided on the socket stopper. A conical protrusion Ⅱ 22 is provided between adjacent fiber optic channels Ⅱ for adaptation to the fiber optic channel Ⅰ. An O-ring Ⅰ 23 is installed on the outer periphery of each protrusion Ⅱ and is embedded in the groove on the end face of the socket stopper. As Figure 2As shown. In the case of four optical fiber channels II and four protrusions II, the angle (central angle) between the center of each protrusion II and the center of the adjacent optical fiber channel II on the same cross-section is 45°. When the optical fiber channels of the socket turntable and the socket stopper are in a closed state, the protrusion II on the socket stopper is inserted into the optical fiber channel I, and the conical surface on the protrusion II is in close contact with the conical surface of the inner wall of the optical fiber channel I and is sealed by the O-ring I 23. At this time, the optical fiber channel I and the optical fiber channel II do not correspond to each other, and each is regarded as a closed state, as Figure 4 shown. When the socket and the plug are inserted into each other, under the action of the insertion force, the protrusion I on the socket turntable slides along the through groove to rotate the socket turntable by 45°, so that the optical fiber channel I and the optical fiber channel II are aligned and the optical fiber channel is opened, as Figure 5 shown. Conversely, when the protrusion I slides from the end point to the starting point of the through groove, the socket turntable rotates reversely by 45° to make the optical fiber channel I correspond to the protrusion II and close the optical fiber channel I and the optical fiber channel II.

[0038] The socket turntable and the socket stopper are sealed by the O-ring I 23. At the same time, the protrusion II located within the O-ring I 23 cooperates with the optical fiber channel I. When the socket turntable rotates, since both the protrusion II and the optical fiber channel I have a conical surface structure, the socket stopper will separate from the socket turntable by a small distance. However, due to the action of the spring force, the protrusion II on the socket stopper always closely adheres to the socket turntable. Coupled with the action of the O-ring I 23, the inner cavity of the socket containing the optical fiber jack contact 8 and silicone oil is finally in a sealed environment.

[0039] Furthermore, a single key I 24 is provided on the socket stopper for cooperating with the key groove I 25 on the socket housing so that the socket stopper and the socket turntable can reciprocate axially in a straight line within the socket housing. The starting position of the protrusion I 16 on the socket turntable is at the starting point of the through groove and is limited by the front end of the sleeve outside the socket housing, so that the socket turntable, the socket stopper, the spring, etc. are limited within the socket housing. The parts within the socket housing are sealed by O-rings, such as the O-ring II 26 installed between the sleeve and the socket turntable, the O-ring III 27 installed between the sleeve and the socket housing, and the O-ring V 57 installed between the socket housing and the inner socket housing.

[0040] Figure 6The following is a cross-sectional view of the plug. The plug connector includes a plug housing 28, a connecting nut 29 assembled outside the plug housing, a plug turntable 30 assembled inside the plug housing, a plug inner housing 31 and a plug stop 32 assembled inside the plug turntable, a needle-holding inner housing 33 assembled inside the plug inner housing, a plug accessory housing 34 connected to the plug housing, etc. The plug inner housing 31 is located behind the plug stop 32, and a corrugated spring 35 is assembled between the plug inner housing and the plug stop. A torsion spring 36 is also installed at the center of the needle-holding inner housing to provide elastic force for the rotation of the plug turntable. The two ends of the torsion spring are respectively limited by the plug turntable and the tail end of the needle-holding inner housing. The plug turntable is fixed by a plug outer retaining ring 37 so that the plug turntable cannot move axially. Figure 6 The four groups of single-core fiber optic pin contacts 38 shown are fixed in the needle-holding inner housing 33 by positioning claws and are used to insert and mate with the fiber optic jack contacts 8 in the socket to achieve fiber optic connection. An oil bladder II 39 is assembled in the inner cavity of the plug accessory housing. The oil bladder II is filled with silicone oil. When the connector is inserted and separated, the internal pressure of the plug connector is balanced with the external seawater pressure by the change in the volume of the silicone oil inside the oil bladder II. Its assembly method is the same as that of the oil bladder I in the socket connector. One end is squeezed and assembled between the plug housing and the plug accessory housing, and the other end is squeezed and sealed on the tail housing of the plug accessory housing through a retaining ring and a washer. This will not be elaborated here. The tail of the plug is connected to a four-core deep-sea optical cable. The optical cable is sealed between the stuffing box and the plug accessory housing and is encapsulated by vulcanization. The parts inside the plug housing are sealed by O-ring seals. For example, an O-ring seal VI 58 is installed between the plug inner housing and the plug turntable, and an O-ring seal VII 59 is installed between the plug housing and the plug inner housing.

[0041] Three elastic hook-type locking pieces 40 are provided on the wall surface of the connecting nut outside the plug housing and are used to be stuck on the tail of the socket sleeve 41 after being inserted and mated with the socket connector to achieve connection and locking with the socket connector. Under the action of tensile force, the connecting nut can move relative to the locking piece towards the tail of the plug, so that the conical surface I 42 on the connecting nut presses the conical surface II 43 on the locking piece to achieve unlocking. A single key II 44 is also provided on the plug inner housing and is used to cooperate with the notch 45 on the plug turntable to control the rotation angle of the plug turntable. When the plug turntable rotates and the single key II moves from one end of the notch to the other end, the fiber optic channel IV on the plug turntable should be aligned with the fiber optic pin contact. When the plug turntable rotates in the reverse direction, the fiber optic channel IV should not correspond to the fiber optic pin contact. There are two protrusions III 46 at the front end of the plug turntable, which cooperate with two grooves 47 on the socket turntable when the heads are inserted and mated, so that the socket turntable drives the plug turntable to rotate synchronously. As shown in the drawing, both the protrusion III 46 and the groove 47 are semicircular. In other embodiments, the protrusion III 46 and the groove 47 can also be other shapes, but the shapes of the protrusion III 46 and the groove 47 need to be the same and adapted.

[0042] The sealing method between the socket turntable and the socket stopper is the same. Between two adjacent optical fiber channels Ⅲ48 on the plug stopper, a conical protrusion Ⅳ49 is provided for mating with the optical fiber channel Ⅳ50 on the plug turntable to close the optical fiber channel Ⅳ. The mating end of the optical fiber pin contact 38 is assembled in the optical fiber channel Ⅲ48. Figure 9 The optical fiber pin contact is not shown in Figure 6 . The inner wall of the optical fiber channel Ⅳ is also of a conical structure, so that the diameter of the side of the optical fiber channel Ⅳ adjacent to the plug stopper is larger than that of the other side. In the closed state of the optical fiber channel of the plug, the protrusion Ⅳ49 is inserted into the optical fiber channel Ⅳ, so that the optical fiber pin contact in the optical fiber channel Ⅲ is not aligned with the optical fiber channel Ⅳ. An O-ring Ⅳ51 embedded in the end face groove of the plug stopper is installed on the outer periphery of each protrusion Ⅳ for further sealing between the plug turntable and the plug stopper. When the head and socket are inserted into each other, the semi-circular protrusion Ⅲ46 on the plug cooperates with the semi-circular groove 47 on the socket to drive the plug turntable to rotate by the same angle (45°), so that the optical fiber channel Ⅳ is aligned with the optical fiber pin contact and is also aligned with the optical fiber channel Ⅰ and the optical fiber channel Ⅱ in the socket, realizing the insertion of the optical fiber pin contact and the optical fiber jack contact. When the plug turntable rotates, due to the conical structures of the protrusion Ⅳ and the optical fiber channel Ⅳ, the plug stopper will be separated from the plug turntable by a small distance. However, due to the elastic force of the rear corrugated spring 35, the protrusion Ⅳ on the plug stopper always clings to the plug turntable. Coupled with the function of the O-ring Ⅳ51 embedded in the end face groove of the plug stopper on the outer periphery of the protrusion Ⅳ, the inner cavity of the plug connector containing the optical fiber pin contact and silicone oil is finally in a sealed environment.

[0043] The principle and process of the head and socket insertion of the connector assembly of the present invention are as follows:

[0044] Figure 11 The figure shows a schematic diagram of the uninserted state of the connector assembly of the present invention. At this time, the turntables of the plug and socket are both in the initial state, and the optical fiber channels of both are not opened. When inserting, the key 52 on the socket sleeve cooperates with the keyway Ⅱ53 on the plug connection nut to guide the insertion for accurate positioning to ensure the alignment and insertion of the optical fiber channel Ⅰ and the optical fiber channel Ⅳ. Figure 12The figure shows a schematic diagram of the state when the plug turntable and the socket turntable are aligned and start to be inserted. The outer wall surface of the insertion end of the plug turntable and the inner wall surface of the insertion end of the socket turntable are both conical surfaces, which is beneficial to better and faster drain the surrounding water. During further insertion, under the action of the insertion force, the protrusion Ⅰ on the socket turntable slides along the through groove, causing the socket turntable and the socket stopper to move towards the socket tail, so that the outer circumferential conical surface of the insertion end of the plug turntable first passes through the O-ring Ⅱ 26 at the front end of the socket and is sealed, making the inside and outside of the connector sealed during the insertion process. Drainage holes 56 are provided on both the plug and the socket tail accessory housing, which is beneficial to the entry and exit of the water outside the oil sac Ⅰ and the oil sac Ⅱ when the volumes of the oil sac Ⅰ and the oil sac Ⅱ in the connector change. In this way, the pressure balance inside and outside the connector can be always maintained, reducing the risk of seal failure. When the protrusion Ⅰ slides to the end position of the through groove, the optical fiber channel Ⅰ and the optical fiber channel Ⅱ are aligned. Due to the cooperation of the semi-circular protrusion Ⅲ 46 and the semi-circular groove 47, the socket turntable drives the plug turntable to rotate synchronously, making the optical fiber channel Ⅳ align with the optical fiber pin contact. Since the optical fiber channel Ⅱ and the optical fiber jack contact are always aligned, the optical fiber channel Ⅰ and the optical fiber channel Ⅳ are always aligned during the insertion process. Finally, after the insertion is in place, the optical fiber pin contact, the optical fiber channel Ⅳ, the optical fiber channel Ⅰ, the optical fiber channel Ⅱ, and the optical fiber jack contact are all aligned, and the optical fiber pin contact and the optical fiber jack contact are docked. At the same time, the three locking pieces on the plug connection nut are hooked into the end of the socket sleeve to achieve locking.

[0045] The separation process of the connector is opposite to the insertion process. First, pull the plug connection nut backward. The conical surface Ⅱ 43 on the locking piece hook is lifted from the end of the socket sleeve by the conical surface Ⅰ 42 on the connection nut. Then continue to pull out the plug to achieve separation. After separation, the socket turntable is driven by the spring 9 at the rear end to rotate and move linearly in the opposite direction along the through groove, automatically closing the optical fiber channel Ⅰ and the optical fiber channel Ⅱ. The plug turntable rotates back under the elastic force of the torsion spring, and the optical fiber channel Ⅳ and the optical fiber channel Ⅲ are closed synchronously.

[0046] As can be seen from the above, during the entire process of the connector's insertion and separation, the inner cavity of the socket connector filled with the optical fiber jack contact and silicone oil and the inner cavity of the plug connector filled with the optical fiber pin contact and silicone oil are always in a sealed state. When the connector is inserted and removed underwater, the external water body and the like will not affect it. At the same time, due to the action of the oil sac Ⅰ and the oil sac Ⅱ, the pressure inside and outside the connector is always kept balanced. Therefore, under the condition of effective sealing, the connector can be inserted and removed at any water depth.

[0047] The attached drawings are described by taking 4 jack contacts, 4 pin contacts, 4 O-ring seals Ⅰ 23 and 4 O-ring seals Ⅳ as examples. In this case, the rotation angle of the socket turntable is 45°. However, the present invention is not limited to four-core pin and jack, and the rotation angle of the socket turntable is not limited to 45°. In other cases, as long as the number of optical fiber channels Ⅰ, optical fiber channels Ⅱ, protrusions Ⅱ, optical fiber channels Ⅲ, optical fiber channels Ⅳ, protrusions Ⅳ, optical fiber jack contacts and optical fiber pin contacts are equal, and it can ensure that when the protrusion Ⅰ slides along the through groove from the starting point to the ending point, the rotation of the socket turntable can make the optical fiber channel Ⅰ align with the optical fiber channel Ⅱ after rotation from the initial correspondence with the protrusion Ⅱ, and at the same time drive the plug turntable to rotate to align the optical fiber channel Ⅳ with the optical fiber pin contact, and it can ensure that when the protrusion Ⅰ slides reversely along the through groove, the optical fiber channels Ⅰ, Ⅱ and Ⅳ can be closed.

[0048] Figure 2 Three protrusions Ⅰ and three through grooves are shown, but the present invention is not limited thereto. In the case of the four-core pin and jack shown in the attached drawings, it can also be four through grooves, five through grooves, two through grooves, etc. The number of protrusions Ⅰ is equal to the number of through grooves, and each through groove can realize that when the protrusion Ⅰ slides along the through groove, the circumferential rotation degree of the socket turntable can realize the opening or closing of the optical fiber channels Ⅰ, Ⅱ and Ⅳ.

[0049] The specific structure of the plug of the present invention is the same as that of the plug in the above-described connector assembly embodiment, and will not be elaborated here.

[0050] The above are only the preferred embodiments of the present invention, and do not impose any form of limitation on the present invention. Any person skilled in the art, without departing from the scope of the technical solution of the present invention, any simple modification, equivalent change and modification made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of the present invention still fall within the scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. An underwater pluggable fiber optic connector plug, comprising a plug housing, a connection nut assembled outside the plug housing, and a plug accessory housing connected to the plug housing; characterized in that Inside the plug housing, a plug turntable is assembled. Inside the plug turntable, a plug stopper and a plug inner housing are successively assembled from front to back. A corrugated spring is assembled between the plug inner housing and the plug stopper. An inner needle housing for fixing the optical fiber pin contact is assembled in the plug inner housing. The mating end of the optical fiber pin contact is located in the optical fiber channel Ⅲ on the plug stopper. A torsion spring is also installed at the center of the inner needle housing. The two ends of the torsion spring are respectively limited by the plug turntable and the tail end of the inner needle housing. When the head seat is inserted into the mating plug, the plug turntable can rotate so that the optical fiber channel Ⅳ on the plug turntable is aligned with the optical fiber pin contact. After the head seat is separated, the plug turntable rotates back under the action of the torsion spring to misalign the optical fiber channel Ⅳ with the optical fiber pin contact, thus closing the plug optical fiber channel. The inner wall of the optical fiber channel Ⅳ is a conical surface, so that the diameter of the side of the optical fiber channel Ⅳ adjacent to the plug stopper is large and the diameter of the other side is small. A conical protrusion Ⅳ is provided between two adjacent optical fiber channels Ⅲ on the plug stopper for mating with the optical fiber channel Ⅳ to close the optical fiber channel Ⅳ. When the plug turntable rotates, the protrusion Ⅳ always closely adheres to the plug turntable under the action of the corrugated spring. In the closed state of the plug optical fiber channel, the protrusion Ⅳ is inserted into the optical fiber channel Ⅳ so that the optical fiber pin contact is not aligned with the optical fiber channel Ⅳ. An O-ring Ⅳ is also installed on the outer periphery of the protrusion Ⅳ to further seal between the plug turntable and the plug stopper. A notch is also provided on the plug turntable for cooperating with the single key Ⅱ on the plug inner housing to control the rotation angle of the plug turntable.

2. The underwater pluggable fiber optic connector plug according to claim 1, characterized in that An oil bladder Ⅱ is assembled in the inner cavity of the plug accessory housing. The oil bladder Ⅱ is filled with silicone oil. A drain hole is also opened on the plug accessory housing. When the connector is inserted into the mating plug or separated, water outside the oil bladder Ⅱ enters or exits through the drain hole, causing the volume of the silicone oil inside the oil bladder Ⅱ to change, so that the internal pressure of the plug connector is always balanced with the external seawater pressure.

3. The underwater pluggable fiber optic connector plug according to claim 1, characterized in that An elastic snap-type locking piece is provided on the wall surface of the connecting nut connected to the outside of the plug housing. Under the action of a pulling force, the connecting nut can move relative to the locking piece towards the tail of the plug, so that the conical surface Ⅰ on the connecting nut presses the conical surface Ⅱ on the locking piece to achieve unlocking.

4. An underwater pluggable optical fiber connector assembly, comprising a plug and a socket, characterized in that The plug is the plug according to any one of claims 1-3. The socket includes a socket housing. A sleeve is assembled outside the socket housing. Inside the socket housing, a socket turntable and a socket stopper are assembled at the mating end of the socket. The socket turntable is located in front of the socket stopper. An O-ring Ⅱ is installed between the socket turntable and the sleeve. An inner socket housing is also assembled inside the socket housing. The inner socket housing is located behind the socket stopper. A spring is assembled on the outer periphery of the inner socket housing. One end of the spring is limited by the socket stopper, and the other end is limited by the step Ⅰ on the socket housing. The socket housing is also connected to a socket accessory housing. An oil bladder Ⅰ is assembled in the socket accessory housing. One end of the oil bladder Ⅰ is squeezed between the inner socket housing and the socket accessory housing, and the other end is squeezed and sealed on the tail housing of the socket accessory housing through a retaining ring and a washer. The material friction coefficients on both sides of the washer are different. The retaining ring slips relative to the washer, and the washer does not slip relative to the oil bladder Ⅰ.

5. The underwater pluggable fiber optic connector assembly according to claim 4, wherein Protrusions Ⅰ are provided on the outer circumference of the socket turntable and can slide along the through groove on the socket housing, so that the socket turntable can rotate while performing an axial linear movement.

6. The underwater pluggable fiber optic connector assembly according to claim 4, characterized in that The inner wall surface of the optical fiber channel Ⅰ on the socket turntable is conical, with the diameter of the side adjacent to the socket stopper being larger and the diameter of the other side being smaller. The socket stopper is provided with an optical fiber channel Ⅱ, and between adjacent optical fiber channels Ⅱ, there are raised portions Ⅱ in the shape of a conical surface for adapting to the optical fiber channel Ⅰ. An O-ring seal Ⅰ is installed on the outer periphery of each raised portion Ⅱ and is embedded in the groove on the end face of the socket stopper. The socket turntable and the socket stopper are sealed by this O-ring seal Ⅰ.

7. The underwater pluggable fiber optic connector assembly according to claim 4, characterized in that The outer wall surface of the mating end of the plug turntable and the inner wall surface of the mating end of the socket turntable are both conical.

Citation Information

Patent Citations

  • Underwater pluggable optical fiber connector plug and assembly thereof

    CN210775916U

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    US9077099B1