A method of packaging a fiber coupler

Abstract

The application discloses a packaging method of an optical fiber coupler, which comprises the following steps: placing a coupling area in a groove on a substrate, and bonding optical fibers with the groove; penetrating the substrate into a heat-shrinkable tube and fixing the same by heat shrinking, and sealing two ends by using first glue; penetrating the heat-shrinkable tube into a protective circular tube after laying second glue on the surface of the heat-shrinkable tube and bonding the same; sleeving a blocking circular tube on input and output optical fibers and placing the same in the protective circular tube, and injecting third glue between the optical fibers and the blocking circular tube and between the blocking circular tube and the protective circular tube to seal and bond the same. The first glue is preferably ultraviolet glue, the second glue is preferably heat-curing glue, the third glue is preferably 353ND glue, and the materials of the substrate, the protective circular tube and the blocking circular tube are preferably quartz. The blocking circular tube and the heat-shrinkable tube are arranged in a spaced mode to disperse stress, the cross section of the groove is in a U shape or a V shape, and the length of the blocking tube is 3 mm. The method replaces part of a traditional structure with the blocking circular tube, reduces the amount of glue, enhances sealing performance and moisture resistance, and improves external tension resistance and stress resistance.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of optical communication devices, in particular to a packaging method of an optical fiber coupler. BACKGROUND

[0002] Optical fiber coupler: also known as optical splitter, is a kind of optical passive device that two or more optical fibers are combined together and then fused and stretched to achieve a set of optical splitting ratio, which is widely used in telecommunication network, cable television network, optical fiber sensing and other fields. After completing the fusion and tapering of the optical fiber, the coupling area needs to be packaged and protected to ensure the stability of the product parameters.

[0003] At present, the conventional packaging of optical fiber coupler adopts quartz substrate to fix the coupling area of the coupler, and the combination of the quartz substrate and the coupling area of the coupler is arranged in a quartz round tube, and the quartz round tube is used to seal and protect the coupling area. The coupling area of the coupler realizes the function of splitting light, and the coupling area of the coupler is fixed on the quartz substrate by one layer of packaging glue, and the two ends of the quartz round tube are sealed by two layers of packaging glue. However, since the wall of the quartz round tube is relatively thin, and the end of the quartz round tube is directly in contact with the two layers of packaging glue, if a glue with high hardness is selected, the quartz round tube will be broken due to thermal expansion and contraction, so a glue with medium hardness must be selected for the two layers of packaging. However, this leads to some problems. In terms of moisture resistance, the intermolecular gap of the glue with medium hardness is relatively large, and water molecules can easily penetrate into the device, which limits the moisture resistance. In terms of external tensile resistance, the stability of the glue with medium hardness under stress is not as good as that of the glue with high hardness, which affects the overall external tensile resistance of the optical fiber coupler.

[0004] Therefore, the existing packaging method of the optical fiber coupler has limitations in the selection of glue, which affects the performance of the optical fiber coupler in terms of moisture resistance and external tensile resistance, and a new packaging method needs to be explored to improve this situation. SUMMARY

[0005] The purpose of the present application is to provide a packaging method of an optical fiber coupler to solve the problems existing in the prior art and improve the overall moisture resistance of the optical fiber coupler.

[0006] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present application provides the following solutions:

[0007] The present application provides a packaging method of an optical fiber coupler, comprising the following steps:

[0008] S1, after the coupling area is made, the coupling area is placed in the groove of the substrate, the substrate is provided with a placing groove corresponding to the input optical fiber and the output optical fiber respectively, and the input optical fiber and the output optical fiber are bonded with the corresponding placing grooves respectively;

[0009] S2, the substrate is inserted into a heat shrink tube so that the heat shrink tube wraps the substrate and the coupling region, part of the input fiber and part of the output fiber are located in the heat shrink tube;

[0010] S3, the heat shrink tube is heat shrunk and fixed, and after the heat shrink tube is completely heat shrunk, two ends of the heat shrink tube are respectively sealed with first glue;

[0011] S4, second glue is applied on the surface of the heat shrink tube;

[0012] S5, the heat shrink tube is inserted into a protective circular tube so that the heat shrink tube is bonded to the protective circular tube through the second glue;

[0013] S6, a blocking circular tube is respectively sleeved on the input fiber and the output fiber, and the two blocking circular tubes are respectively located in the protective circular tube, one blocking circular tube is located at one end of the protective circular tube, and the other blocking circular tube is located at the other end of the protective circular tube;

[0014] S7, third glue is respectively injected between the input fiber and the inner wall of the corresponding blocking circular tube, between the output fiber and the corresponding blocking circular tube, and between the outer wall of each blocking circular tube and the inner wall of the protective circular tube, so that the input fiber and the corresponding blocking circular tube are sealingly bonded, the output fiber and the corresponding blocking circular tube are sealingly bonded, and each blocking circular tube and the protective circular tube are sealingly bonded.

[0015] Preferably, the first glue is ultraviolet glue.

[0016] Preferably, the second glue is heat-curing glue.

[0017] Preferably, in step S5, after the heat shrink tube is inserted into the protective circular tube, the protective circular tube is heated to melt the second glue, and then the protective circular tube is cooled so that the heat shrink tube is bonded to the protective circular tube through the second glue.

[0018] Preferably, the third glue is 353ND glue.

[0019] Preferably, the material of the substrate is quartz.

[0020] Preferably, each blocking circular tube has a spacing with the heat shrink tube.

[0021] Preferably, the material of the protective circular tube and the material of the blocking circular tube are both quartz.

[0022] Preferably, the length of the blocking circular tube is 3mm.

[0023] Preferably, the cross section of the placing groove is U-shaped or V-shaped; each placing groove is communicated with the groove at one end; and the groove is located between the two placing grooves.

[0024] The present application has the following technical effects relative to the prior art:

[0025] The sealing method of the optical fiber coupler of the present application uses a sealing round tube to replace most of the second sealing glue in the conventional sealing structure, and injects a third glue into the gap between the sealing round tube and the protective round tube and between the optical fiber and the sealing round tube, thereby achieving good sealing effect of the optical fiber coupler. This sealing method not only reduces the amount of glue and avoids the problem of cracking of the quartz round tube caused by too much second glue, but also uses a third glue with higher hardness to improve the sealing performance and enhance the moisture resistance of the optical fiber coupler.

[0026] Further, the sealing method of the optical fiber coupler of the present application provides additional protection for the coupling area of the coupler by sleeving a heat shrink tube outside the substrate. The size of the heat shrink tube is carefully designed to tightly fit the substrate, effectively preventing damage to the taper area from external factors and improving the reliability and stability of the coupler.

[0027] Further, after the heat shrink tube is heat shrunk and fixed, the two ends are sealed with ultraviolet glue, further enhancing the overall sealing performance and preventing moisture and other impurities from entering the interior of the coupler and affecting its performance.

[0028] Further, the sealing method of the optical fiber coupler of the present application effectively improves the resistance to external tension of the optical fiber coupler by the combination of the heat shrink tube, the protective round tube and the sealing round tube, and the use of 353ND glue with better hardness and adhesion strength. This structure can better withstand external tensile force and reduce damage to the coupler caused by external force.

[0029] Further, the heat shrink tube and the protective round tube are well bonded together, further enhancing the stability and tensile strength of the overall structure.

[0030] Further, each step in the sealing method of the optical fiber coupler of the present application is easy to implement, without the need for complex equipment and processes, thereby improving production efficiency.

[0031] The sealing method of the optical fiber coupler of the present application effectively improves the moisture resistance and tensile strength of the product, strengthens the protection of the taper area of the coupler, improves the sealing performance, and is simple and convenient to operate. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0032] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings needed in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings in the following description only constitute some embodiments of the present application, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can also be obtained from these drawings without creative effort.

[0033] Figure 1 Flow chart of the packaging method of the optical fiber coupler of the present application;

[0034] In the figure: 1, substrate; 2, heat shrink tube; 3, first glue; 4, second glue; 5, protective circular tube; 6, blocking circular tube; 7, third glue. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely in the following with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments only constitute some embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort belong to the scope of protection of the present application.

[0036] The purpose of the present application is to provide a packaging method of an optical fiber coupler to solve the problems in the prior art and improve the overall moisture resistance of the optical fiber coupler.

[0037] In order to make the above-mentioned purposes, features and advantages of the present application more apparent and easy to understand, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the drawings and specific embodiments.

[0038] As shown in the figure, the present embodiment provides a packaging method of an optical fiber coupler, comprising the following steps: Figure 1

[0039] S1, after the fabrication of the coupling region, the coupling region is placed into the groove of the substrate 1, the substrate 1 is provided with a placing groove corresponding to the input optical fiber and the output optical fiber respectively, and the input optical fiber and the output optical fiber are respectively bonded with the corresponding placing groove;

[0040] S2, the substrate 1 is inserted into a heat shrink tube 2, so that the heat shrink tube 2 wraps the substrate 1, and the coupling region, part of the input optical fiber and part of the output optical fiber are located in the heat shrink tube 2;

[0041] S3, the heat shrink tube 2 is heat shrunk and fixed, and after the heat shrink tube 2 is completely heat shrunk, the two ends of the heat shrink tube 2 are respectively sealed with the first glue 3;

[0042] S4, the second glue 4 is applied on the surface of the heat shrink tube 2;

[0043] ​S5, the heat shrink tube 2 is inserted into the protection tube 5, so that the heat shrink tube 2 is bonded together with the protection tube 5 through the second glue 4;

[0044] S6, a blocking tube 6 is sleeved on the input optical fiber and the output optical fiber respectively, and the two blocking tubes 6 are located in the protection tube 5 respectively, one blocking tube 6 is located at one end of the protection tube 5, and the other blocking tube 6 is located at the other end of the protection tube 5;

[0045] S7, the third glue 7 is injected between the input optical fiber and the inner wall of the corresponding blocking tube 6, between the output optical fiber and the corresponding blocking tube 6, and between the outer wall of each blocking tube 6 and the inner wall of the protection tube 5 respectively, so that the input optical fiber and the corresponding blocking tube 6 are sealed and bonded, the output optical fiber and the corresponding blocking tube 6 are sealed and bonded, and each blocking tube 6 and the protection tube 5 are sealed and bonded.

[0046] The packaging method of the optical fiber coupler of the embodiment replaces most of the second packaging glue in the traditional packaging structure with the blocking tube 6, and injects the third glue 7 into the gap between the blocking tube 6 and the protection tube 5 and between the optical fiber and the blocking tube 6, so as to achieve good sealing effect of the optical fiber coupler. This sealing method not only reduces the amount of glue and avoids the problem of cracking of the quartz tube caused by too much second glue, but also uses the third glue 7 with high hardness to improve the sealing performance and enhance the moisture resistance of the optical fiber coupler.

[0047] In the optional scheme of the embodiment, preferably, the first glue 3 is ultraviolet glue; the use of ultraviolet glue to seal the two ends of the heat shrink tube 2 further enhances the overall sealing performance and prevents moisture and other impurities from entering the interior of the coupler and affecting its performance.

[0048] In the optional scheme of the embodiment, preferably, the second glue 4 is heat-curing glue; in the optional scheme of the embodiment, preferably, after the heat shrink tube 2 is inserted into the protection tube 5 in step S5, the protection tube 5 is heated to melt the second glue 4, and then the protection tube 5 is cooled, so that the heat shrink tube 2 is bonded together with the protection tube 5 through the second glue 4; the heat shrink tube 2 is well bonded together with the protection tube 5 through the hot melt glue, which further enhances the stability and tensile strength of the overall structure.

[0049] In the optional scheme of the embodiment, preferably, the third glue 7 is 353ND glue. By combining the heat shrink tube 2, the protection tube 5 and the blocking tube 6, and using 353ND glue with better hardness and bonding strength, the external tensile resistance of the optical fiber coupler is effectively improved. This structure can better withstand external tensile force and reduce damage to the coupler caused by external force.

[0050] In the optional scheme of the embodiment, preferably, the material of the substrate 1, the material of the protective circular tube 5 and the material of the blocking circular tube 6 are all quartz; in practical applications, in addition to quartz, the skilled in the art can also select other materials to manufacture the substrate 1, the protective circular tube 5 and the blocking circular tube 6 according to actual needs.

[0051] In the optional scheme of the embodiment, preferably, each blocking circular tube 6 has a spacing with the heat-shrinkable tube 2; when the blocking circular tube 6 directly contacts with the heat-shrinkable tube 2, stress concentration is prone to occur at the contact position under the action of external stress (such as tension, pressure, etc.); and the spacing between the blocking circular tube 6 and the heat-shrinkable tube 2 can effectively disperse the stress, so that the stress is more evenly distributed in the entire packaging structure. In this way, the risk of local stress being too high to cause damage to the packaging structure can be reduced, and the external stress resistance of the optical fiber coupler can be improved.

[0052] In the optional scheme of the embodiment, preferably, the length of the blocking circular tube 6 is 3 mm.

[0053] In the optional scheme of the embodiment, preferably, the cross section of the placement groove is U-shaped or V-shaped, which facilitates the fixation of the input optical fiber and the output optical fiber in the placement groove; each placement groove has one end communicating with the groove; and the groove is located between the two placement grooves.

[0054] The principles and implementation manners of the present application are described by using specific examples in the present application; the above examples are only used to help understand the method of the present application and its core idea; meanwhile, for the skilled in the art, according to the idea of the present application, the specific implementation manners and application ranges will all have changes. In summary, the content of the present specification should not be understood as a limitation of the present application.

Claims

1. A method of packaging a fiber coupler, comprising: The method comprises the following steps: S1, after the coupling area is made, the coupling area is placed into a groove of a substrate, the substrate is provided with placing slots corresponding to input and output optical fibers respectively, and the input and output optical fibers are bonded with the corresponding placing slots respectively; the cross section of the placing slot is U-shaped or V-shaped; each placing slot is communicated with the groove at one end; the groove is located between the two placing slots; S2, the substrate is inserted into a heat shrink tube, so that the heat shrink tube wraps the substrate, and the coupling area, part of the input optical fiber and part of the output optical fiber are located in the heat shrink tube; S3, the heat shrink tube is heat shrunk and fixed, and after the heat shrink tube is completely heat shrunk, the two ends of the heat shrink tube are sealed with first glue respectively; S4, second glue is applied on the surface of the heat shrink tube; the second glue is hot curing glue; S5, the heat shrink tube is inserted into a protective circular tube, the protective circular tube is heated to melt the second glue, and then the protective circular tube is cooled, so that the heat shrink tube is bonded with the protective circular tube through the second glue; S6, a blocking circular tube is sleeved on the input optical fiber and the output optical fiber respectively, and two blocking circular tubes are located in the protective circular tube, one blocking circular tube is located at one end of the protective circular tube, and the other blocking circular tube is located at the other end of the protective circular tube; S7, third glue is injected between the input optical fiber and the inner wall of the corresponding blocking circular tube, between the output optical fiber and the corresponding blocking circular tube, and between the outer wall of each blocking circular tube and the inner wall of the protective circular tube respectively, so that the input optical fiber and the corresponding blocking circular tube are sealed and bonded, the output optical fiber and the corresponding blocking circular tube are sealed and bonded, and each blocking circular tube and the protective circular tube are sealed and bonded.

2. The method of packaging a fiber coupler of claim 1, wherein: The first glue is ultraviolet glue.

3. The method of packaging a fiber coupler of claim 1, wherein: The third glue is 353ND glue.

4. The method of packaging a fiber coupler of claim 1, wherein: The material of the substrate is quartz.

5. The method of packaging a fiber coupler of claim 1, wherein: There is a gap between each blocking circular tube and the heat shrink tube.

6. The method of packaging a fiber coupler of claim 1, wherein: The material of the protective circular tube and the material of the blocking circular tube are both quartz.

7. The method of packaging a fiber coupler of claim 1, wherein: The length of the blocking circular tube is 3mm.

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