Receptacle alignment device for detachable fiber array for photonics integrated circuit of CPO module and receptacle alignment method using same

Abstract

In order to provide technology that makes it possible to completely prevent a receptacle from being misaligned during pre-alignment and re-alignment following epoxy application, as well as completely prevent epoxy from sticking to and becoming cured with a receptacle-fixing unit for fixing the receptacle, a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for a photonics integrated circuit of a CPO module according to one embodiment of the present invention is a device for aligning a receptacle to a photonics integrated circuit in a structure in which the receptacle is fixed to an upper surface of the photonics integrated circuit through epoxy, and a fiber array is detachably seated on the receptacle and is restricted in movement when seated through an uneven portion of the upper surface of the receptacle, the receptacle alignment device being characterized by comprising: a jig for fixing the photonics integrated circuit; a gripper for fixing a fiber unit in which the fiber array is seated on the receptacle; a moving module for moving the gripper along three axes; and a receptacle-fixing unit which is configured to be able to move up and down while positioned above the receptacle in an area adjacent to the gripper, and applies a force that pulls the receptacle upward so that the receptacle is fixed in contact with the fiber array until the receptacle is fixed to the photonics integrated circuit through epoxy, thereby fixing the receptacle in close contact with the fiber array while suppressing horizontal and vertical movement of the receptacle during fine alignment following epoxy application.

Description

Receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical integrated circuit of a CPO module and a receptacle alignment method using the same

[0001] The present invention relates to a technology for active alignment of a receptacle for fixing a detachable fiber array (FA) used in a co-packaged optics (CPO) module. Specifically, the invention relates to a technology that prevents the receptacle from shifting from its target position during active alignment after applying epoxy when fixing the receptacle to a photonics integrated circuit (COIC), while simultaneously completely preventing interference with the fixing device of the epoxy caused by the fixing of the receptacle.

[0002] Co-Packaged Optics (CPO) is a technology that improves data transmission efficiency by integrating optical and electronic components within the same package. By combining a switch ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) and an optical engine on a single substrate, it aims to shorten electrical signal transmission distances and increase bandwidth density and power efficiency.

[0003] CPO is expected to be applied in fields requiring large-scale data transmission, such as data centers, high-performance computing, and artificial intelligence, and its importance is expected to become even more prominent as data transmission requirements increase in the future.

[0004] CPO offers the advantage of minimizing power consumption by reducing the need for long-distance electrical connections through the integration of optical components into the same package as electronic ICs. It is useful in applications where real-time data processing is critical due to reduced latency caused by the elimination of electrical signal conversion, and improves space efficiency by eliminating the need for bulky and complex external optical modules.

[0005] The fiber array (FA), a core component of such CPO, may experience reduced transmission efficiency due to installation issues such as misalignment, damage to the optical fibers during installation, failure of the fiber array caused by external environmental factors (e.g., vibration, heat, humidity) during use, or performance degradation or failure resulting from environmental conditions, including optical fiber wear, contamination, or quality degradation. This leads to data transmission loss and signal distortion.

[0006] In this case, in order to enable simple management of the CPO by replacing only the FA, a CPO module using a detachable fiber array that allows for the replacement of the FA is provided. In this technology, a receptacle on which the FA is mounted and fixed is fixed to an optical integrated circuit, and then the FA is detached from the receptacle, thereby allowing only the FA to be replaced in the CPO.

[0007] For this product, it is essential to initially fix the receptacle in the correct position on the optical integrated circuit. In conventional technology, the FA prepares a fiber unit with a receptacle having an embossed structure on its upper surface, moves it together to perform dry alignment on the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit, moves the fiber unit upward from the position where alignment is complete, applies epoxy for fixing the receptacle at that location, brings the fiber unit into contact with the epoxy, performs re-alignment, and then cures the epoxy to fix the receptacle to the optical integrated circuit.

[0008] In this case, when positioning the fiber unit in the epoxy for re-aligning, the fixation force between the receptacle and the FA is very weak, leading to problems such as the receptacle becoming misaligned and separation occurring between the receptacle and the FA during partial alignment after epoxy application; thus, a technique to fix the receptacle to the FA is required. However, when fixing the receptacle using a gripper, the sides of the receptacle must be gripped; in this case, a problem arises where the epoxy in contact with the lower surface comes into contact with the gripper fixing the receptacle and hardens together with it during curing.

[0009] The present invention was developed to solve the problems of the existing technology described above. Its purpose is to provide a technology that can increase the production yield of CPO modules by enabling stable fixation of the receptacle from pre-alignment to the curing of the epoxy, thereby allowing the receptacle to be fixed relatively stably to the FA without a gripper in a technology for fixing the receptacle to the FA, which addresses the problem of the receptacle becoming misaligned due to the very weak fixing force between the receptacle and the FA when positioning the fiber unit in the epoxy for re-aligning, and the problem of the receptacle separating from the receptacle and the FA during partial alignment after epoxy application.

[0010] To achieve the above objective, a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module according to one embodiment of the present invention relates to a device for aligning a receptacle to an optical direct circuit in a structure comprising a receptacle fixed to the upper surface of the optical direct circuit via epoxy, and a fiber array detachably mounted to the receptacle, wherein movement is restricted when mounted via an uneven portion on the upper surface of the receptacle. The device comprises: a jig for fixing the optical direct circuit; a gripper for fixing a fiber unit in which the fiber array is mounted on the receptacle; and a moving module for moving the gripper in three axes. The invention is characterized by including a receptacle fixing unit configured to be vertically movable while positioned above the receptacle in an area adjacent to the gripper, and applying a force to pull the receptacle upward so as to contact and fix the receptacle until the receptacle is fixed to the optical integrated circuit through epoxy, thereby ensuring that the receptacle is tightly fixed to the fiber array, while simultaneously suppressing horizontal and vertical movement of the receptacle during micro-aligning after epoxy application.

[0011] The above-described receptacle fixing unit preferably includes: a contact unit that applies a force to pull the receptacle upward while in contact with the upper surface of the receptacle; and a unit movement module that moves the contact unit up and down.

[0012] The above receptacle may be a magnetic material, and the above contact unit may be a pillar-shaped magnet.

[0013] The above contact unit can be a permanent magnet.

[0014] The above contact unit is an electromagnet, and it is possible to control the power supply so that magnetic force is generated when it comes into contact with the receptacle.

[0015] It is preferable that the contact unit is installed in an area excluding the point where the gripper grips the fiber unit, and contacts the upper surface of the receptacle in an area other than the gripping point of the gripper with respect to the fiber unit.

[0016] It is preferable that the above contact units be arranged in multiple numbers so as to contact the upper surface of the receptacle at multiple points symmetrical to each other with respect to the center of the receptacle.

[0017] Meanwhile, a receptacle alignment method using a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical integrated circuit of the above-described CPO module comprises: a first step of fixing the optical integrated circuit to a jig; a second step of preparing a fiber unit in which the fiber array is seated on the receptacle; a third step of pre-aligning the position on the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit while the gripped fiber unit is moved and positioned on the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit using the gripper and the receptacle fixing unit; and a fourth step of applying a fixing epoxy after the fiber unit is moved upward through the gripper while fixing the direction parallel to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit in a state where pre-alignment is completed following the completion of the third step. The method is characterized by comprising: a fifth step of, after the epoxy is applied, moving the fiber unit downward using the gripper while fixing it in a direction parallel to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit so that the fiber unit and the epoxy adhere at the position where the pre-alignment is completed, and then re-aligning the fiber unit in a direction parallel to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit using the gripper; a sixth step of curing the epoxy; and a seventh step of, after performing the sixth step, removing the receptacle fixing unit from the receptacle and removing the fiber array from the receptacle using the gripper.

[0018] According to the present invention as described above, a receptacle generally made of a magnetic material is reinforced by providing an upper and lower external force through a receptacle fixing unit that provides magnetic force on the upper surface of the receptacle, thereby reinforcing the contact force with the FA according to the uneven structure of the receptacle from the pre-aligning stage until the receptacle is completely fixed to the optical integrated circuit at an accurate position from the time of epoxy curing. This has the effect of completely preventing the receptacle from becoming misaligned during pre-aligning and re-aligning after epoxy coating, while simultaneously completely preventing the epoxy from adhering to and curing together with the receptacle fixing unit used to fix the receptacle.

[0019] Through this, it is possible to effectively improve the production yield of CPO modules with a high probability, which is caused by receptacle misalignment and epoxy curing problems.

[0020] FIG. 1 is an inverted perspective view with the top and bottom reversed to explain the structure of a receptacle fixing unit of a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] FIG. 2 is an inverted perspective view of a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module according to one embodiment of the present invention, including the area (A) of FIG. 1.

[0022] FIG. 3 is a side view illustrating a state in which a fiber unit is installed in an optical integrated circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0023] FIG. 4 is a rear view illustrating the structure of a receptacle fixing unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] FIG. 5 is an inverted front view illustrating the structure of a receptacle fixing unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] FIG. 6 is an inverted side view illustrating the function of a receptacle fixing unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a form in which a receptacle is fixed to a receptacle fixing unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] FIG. 8 is a schematic drawing illustrating examples of the shapes of receptacle fixing units according to each embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] Hereinafter, various embodiments and / or aspects are disclosed with reference to the drawings. For illustrative purposes, numerous specific details are disclosed in the following description to aid in a general understanding of one or more aspects. However, it will also be recognized by those skilled in the art that these aspects may be practiced without such specific details. The following description and the accompanying drawings describe specific exemplary aspects of one or more aspects in detail. However, these aspects are exemplary, and some of the various methods in the principles of the various aspects may be used, and the description is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents.

[0029] As used herein, terms such as "examples," "examples," "aspects," "examples," etc., may not be interpreted as implying that any aspect or design described is better or more advantageous than other aspects or designs.

[0030] Additionally, the terms “comprising” and / or “comprising” should be understood to mean that the relevant feature and / or component is present, but not to exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, components and / or groups thereof.

[0031] Additionally, terms including ordinal numbers, such as first, second, etc., may be used to describe various components, but said components are not limited by said terms. Such terms are used solely for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the first component may be named the second component, and similarly, the second component may be named the first component. The term "and / or" includes a combination of a plurality of related described items or any of a plurality of related described items.

[0032] Furthermore, in the embodiments of the present invention, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, unless otherwise defined, have the same meaning as generally understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant technology, and should not be interpreted in an ideal or overly formal sense unless explicitly defined in the embodiments of the present invention.

[0033] FIG. 1 is an inverted perspective view with the top and bottom reversed to explain the structure of a receptacle fixing unit of a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical integrated circuit of a CPO module according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is an inverted perspective view of a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical integrated circuit of a CPO module according to an embodiment of the present invention including area (A) of FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a side view to explain the state in which a fiber unit is installed on an optical integrated circuit according to an implementation of an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a rear view to explain the structure of a receptacle fixing unit according to an implementation of an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 5 is an inverted front view to explain the structure of a receptacle fixing unit according to an implementation of an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 6 is an inverted side view to explain the function of a receptacle fixing unit according to an implementation of an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram to explain the form in which a receptacle is fixed to a receptacle fixing unit according to an implementation of an embodiment of the present invention. Drawing, FIG. 8 is a schematic drawing for explaining examples of the shapes of receptacle fixing units according to each embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] Meanwhile, in the following description, some components described in the drawings may be omitted or excessively enlarged or reduced in order to explain the function of each component of the present invention, but it will be understood that such illustrated components do not limit the technical features and scope of rights of the present invention.

[0035] In addition, in the following description, multiple drawings will be referred to simultaneously to explain a single technical feature or a component constituting the invention.

[0036] Referring to the drawings above, a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module according to one embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as the “alignment device of the present invention”) is characterized by comprising a jig (10), a gripper (20), a moving module (30), and a receptacle fixing unit (40).

[0037] In the following description, the jig (10), gripper (20), and moving module (30) are configured as they are typical of a general alignment device, so a detailed description is omitted.

[0038] The jig (10) is a component provided in a station for fixing an optical integrated circuit (110) in an alignment device as shown in FIG. 3, and can be formed or installed on the base of the alignment device on which the movable module (30) shown in the drawings is installed. The jig (10) can be configured as a jig-shaped structure formed on the base as shown in FIG. 3, a modular structure capable of size adjustment or position adjustment of the dam structure, or a component installable on the base.

[0039] In the present invention, the CPO comprises a structure in which a receptacle (102) is fixed to the upper surface of an optical integrated circuit (110) via epoxy (103) as described above, and a fiber array (101) is detachably mounted to the receptacle (102), wherein movement is restricted when mounted via the uneven surface portion of the upper surface of the receptacle (102). In particular, the CPO of the present invention refers to a fiber array (FA) separable type CPO in which the fiber array (101) can be detachably mounted from the fixed structure of the receptacle (102) and the optical integrated circuit (110). The array device of the present invention relates to a device for aligning the receptacle (102) to the optical integrated circuit (110) in the above-described FA separable type CPO, and the jig (10) is a member for fixing the optical integrated circuit (110) for aligning the receptacle (102) in the above-described structure.

[0040] The gripper (20) is composed of a fixed protruding gripper (21) and a cylinder moving gripper (22) as shown in FIG. 1, and additionally includes a vacuum (air) gripper, so that the fiber array (101) is gripped as shown in FIG. 1 according to the movement of the cylinder moving gripper (22) and the driving of the vacuum gripper. In the present invention, the vacuum gripper is understood to exist inside the body as a configuration that grips the fiber array (101) by adsorbing it with a vacuum inside the body where the fixed protruding gripper (21) is present, as shown in FIG. 1.

[0041] When supplying for alignment of the receptacle (102), the fiber array (101) can be provided as a fiber unit seated on the receptacle (102). As described above, as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 7, the fiber array (101) is seated on the uneven surface of the receptacle (102). Then, by means of the seating force on the uneven surface and the suction force of the vacuum gripper described above, the receptacle (102) can be adsorbed to the fiber array (101) and provided as a fiber unit.

[0042] The moving module (30) moves the gripper in three axes to move the fiber units (101, 102) fixed to the gripper (20), thereby performing the function of enabling alignment with respect to the receptacle (102), transfer of the fiber units (101, 102), and final separation of the fiber array (101). In the present invention, two axes such as the x and y axes refer to directions parallel to the base on which the jig (10) is installed, and one axis such as the z axis refers to the vertical direction perpendicular to the base on which the jig (10) is installed. That is, in the description of the drawings above and in the following description, the term "vertical" will be understood to refer to the vertical direction perpendicular to the base on which the jig (10) is installed, i.e., the height direction.

[0043] The movement module (30) is configured as the above-mentioned 3-axis movement module and 3-axis rotation module, and can be configured to enable parallel 2-axis movement and rotation, etc., when aligning the receptacle (20). In the following description, the alignment of the receptacle (20) should be understood as aligning the receptacle (20) with respect to the optical integrated circuit (110) through 2-axis movement and rotation, etc., with respect to the gripper (20) that fixes the entire fiber unit.

[0044] The receptacle fixing unit (40) is configured to be movable up and down while positioned above the receptacle (102) in an area adjacent to the gripper (20), as shown in FIGS. 1 to 8, and is configured to perform the function of preventing the relative horizontal and vertical movement of the receptacle (102) with respect to the optical integrated circuit (110) during micro-aligning after epoxy application by applying a force to pull the receptacle (102) upward so that the receptacle (102) is fixed in contact with the receptacle (102) until the receptacle (102) is fixed to the optical integrated circuit (110) through epoxy, thereby causing the receptacle (102) to be fixed in close contact with the fiber array (101).

[0045] In particular, as described above in the present invention, the receptacle (102) is moved upward after the first array is advanced for fixation with the optical integrated circuit (110), and then moved downward through a 1-axis up-down movement while the epoxy (103) is applied so as to come into contact with the epoxy (103) applied at the target location of the optical integrated circuit (110), and then placed at the final fixation location through re-aligning, and then the epoxy (103) is cured.

[0046] In this case, if the receptacle (102) is fixed using a gripper or similar device that fixes it from a side similar to the gripper (20), some of the epoxy (103) may protrude to both sides of the receptacle (102) due to compression of the epoxy (103) according to the above process. In this case, the gripper and the epoxy are inevitably in contact, and accordingly, some slippage may occur due to slippage and pressure between the epoxy and the receptacle (102). In particular, since the epoxy must be cured while the gripper is gripping the receptacle (102), the epoxy in contact with the gripper is cured together during curing, and a problem arises where the unit is damaged when the gripper is separated from the fiber unit later.

[0047] The above-described embodiment of the present invention includes a key technical feature to solve this problem, in particular, that the receptacle fixing unit (40) can fix the receptacle (102) by moving up and down and contacting only the upper part, specifically the upper surface, of the receptacle (102).

[0048] To this end, in each embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2, the receptacle fixing unit (40) may be configured to include a contact unit (41) and a unit moving module (42). As shown in FIG. 2, 4 to 8, the contact unit (41) refers to a configuration that applies a force to pull the receptacle (102) upward while contacting the upper surface of the receptacle (102), and the unit moving module (42) includes a cylinder moving module, etc., and performs the function of moving the contact unit (41) in the up and down direction (d1).

[0049] The receptacle (102) is typically composed of a magnetic material that responds to magnetic force. Accordingly, the contact unit (41) is preferably composed of a pillar-shaped magnet so that when it contacts the upper surface of the receptacle (102), it can apply a force that pulls the receptacle (102) in the up and down direction.

[0050] In this case, in one embodiment of the present invention, the contact unit (41) is composed of a permanent magnet, so that when it moves downward by the unit moving module (42) and approaches the receptacle (102), it can naturally apply a pulling force upward to the receptacle (102).

[0051] In another embodiment of the present invention, in order to control the above pulling force, the contact unit (41) is configured as an electromagnet controlled by the alignment device of the present invention, so that power application can be controlled to generate magnetic force when the contact unit (41) contacts the receptacle (102).

[0052] According to this, by adopting a structure that can apply a force to pull the receptacle (102) upward when contacting the upper surface of the receptacle (102) even in very narrow areas such as magnets, rather than gripping the receptacle (102) such as a gripper, the problem of gripping the conventional receptacle (102) described above can be completely solved. In addition, in cases where there is no unit for fixing the existing receptacle (102), if dry alignment is performed on the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit, the fiber unit is moved upward from the position where alignment is completed, epoxy for fixing the receptacle is applied to that position, the fiber unit is brought into contact with the epoxy, and then re-aligning is performed and the epoxy is cured to fix the receptacle to the optical integrated circuit, the problem of the position of the receptacle (102) shifting due to insufficient fixing force between the receptacle (102) and the fiber array (101) can also be completely resolved.

[0053] Meanwhile, as described in the drawings above, the receptacle fixing unit (40), specifically the contact unit (41), is preferably configured to be movable in the vertical direction (d1) and to provide an upward pulling force by contacting and fixing the receptacle (102) on the upper surface without interference from the gripper (20).

[0054] To this end, as illustrated in the drawings, it is preferable that the contact unit (41) be installed in an area excluding the point where the gripper (20) grips the fiber unit (101, 102) and positioned to contact the upper surface of the receptacle (102) in an area other than the gripping point of the gripper (20) for the fiber unit (101, 102).

[0055] To this end, it may have an arrangement structure as shown in FIG. 8 (a) and (b). For example, it may be in the form of a plurality of cylindrical columns arranged as in FIG. 8 (a), or configured as a straight bar or a U-shaped bar as in FIG. 8 (b).

[0056] Meanwhile, as can be confirmed by referring to the drawings above, the magnetic pulling force must be applied symmetrically with respect to the receptacle (102). That is, if the magnetic pulling force is asymmetric with respect to the center of the receptacle (102), the receptacle (102) will be pulled in a twisted manner according to the magnetic pulling force.

[0057] Accordingly, it is preferable that a plurality of contact units (41) be arranged to contact the upper surface of the receptacle (102) at a plurality of points that are symmetrical with respect to the center of the receptacle (102). In the examples of the drawings, it can be seen that a plurality of contact units (41) of a circular column are arranged at equal intervals symmetrically from the center of the receptacle (102).

[0058] Meanwhile, a specific processor for aligning the receptacle (102) to the optical integrated circuit (110) based on the structure described above will be explained. First, for alignment, a first step will be performed in which the optical integrated circuit (11) is fixed to the jig (10). Afterward, as shown in FIG. 7, a second step will be performed in which the receptacle (102) and the fiber array (101) are arranged as fiber units (101, 102) in which the fiber array (101) is seated on the receptacle (120).

[0059] When the second step is performed and the fiber unit (101, 102) is prepared for movement, the gripper (20) moves to the prepared 2-axis coordinate position by the movement module (30), and then the gripper (20) moves downward with the cylinder gripper (22) open, and grips the fiber unit (101, 102) using the cylinder gripper (22) and the vacuum gripper. After the fiber unit (101, 102) is gripped using the cylinder gripper (22) and the vacuum gripper, or simultaneously, the receptacle fixing unit (40) is also driven so that the contact unit (41) can apply a pulling force by contacting the upper surface of the receptacle (102) as shown in FIG. 6, etc.

[0060] In this way, the fiber units (101, 102) and the receptacle (102) are each gripped using the gripper (20) and the receptacle fixing unit (40), and the fiber units (101, 102) are moved to be adjacent to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit (110) through the control of the moving module (30), and then a third step is performed to pre-dry align the two-axis position on the upper surface.

[0061] When the primary fixing point is determined by the third step, the pre-alignment is completed, and in that state, the fiber unit (101, 102) is fixed in a 2-axis direction, that is, in a direction parallel to the optical integrated circuit (110) at the fixing point using the gripper (20) and the receptacle fixing unit (40) so that movement is restricted, and then moved upward in the d1 direction, and then the fourth step of applying fixing epoxy (103) is performed.

[0062] Afterwards, the fiber units (101, 102) are moved downward in the d1 direction while maintaining a fixed direction parallel to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit (110) through the gripper (20) and the moving module (30) so that the fiber units (101, 102) and the epoxy (103) are bonded at the position where pre-alignment is completed, and then the fiber units (101, 102) are re-aligned in a two-axis direction parallel to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit (110) through the gripper (20) and the moving module (30).

[0063] Subsequently, a sixth step of curing the epoxy is performed, and once the epoxy is cured, the receptacle fixing unit (40) is controlled to remove it from the receptacle (102). This may include embodiments such as moving the contact unit (41) upward, or, in the case of an electromagnet, releasing the power supply to remove the magnetic force and moving the contact unit (41) upward. Then, a seventh step is performed using a gripper (20) to move the fiber array (101) upward away from the receptacle (102) and remove it, thereby finally completing the process of fixing the receptacle (102) in a state aligned with the optical integrated circuit.

[0064] Although the embodiments have been described above with reference to limited embodiments and drawings, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and variations are possible from the description above. Terms such as "include," "compose," or "have" as described above imply that components may be inherent unless specifically stated otherwise; therefore, they should be interpreted as allowing for the inclusion of additional components rather than excluding other components. Furthermore, the scope of protection of the present invention shall be interpreted by the claims below, and all technical concepts within an equivalent scope shall be interpreted as being included within the scope of rights of the present invention.

Claims

1. A device for aligning a receptacle to an optical integrated circuit, wherein the receptacle is fixed to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit via epoxy, and the fiber array is detachably mounted to the receptacle, with movement restricted when seated through the uneven surface of the upper surface of the receptacle. Jig for fixing optical integrated circuits; A gripper that secures the fiber unit seated on the receptacle, wherein the fiber array above is a fiber unit; A movement module that moves the above gripper in three axes; and A receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical integrated circuit of a CPO module, characterized by including: a receptacle fixing unit configured to be vertically movable while positioned above the receptacle in an area adjacent to the gripper, and applying a force to pull the receptacle upward so as to contact and fix the receptacle until the receptacle is fixed to the optical integrated circuit through epoxy, thereby ensuring that the receptacle is tightly fixed to the fiber array, while simultaneously suppressing horizontal and vertical movement of the receptacle during micro-aligning after epoxy application.

2. In Paragraph 1, The above-mentioned receptacle fixation unit is, A contact unit that applies a force pulling the receptacle upward while in contact with the upper surface of the receptacle; and A receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module, characterized by including a unit movement module that moves the above contact unit up and down.

3. In Paragraph 2, The above receptacle is a magnetic material, and A receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module, characterized in that the above contact unit is a pillar-shaped magnet.

4. In Paragraph 3, A receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical integrated circuit of a CPO module, characterized in that the above contact unit is a permanent magnet.

5. In Paragraph 3, A receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module, characterized in that the contact unit is an electromagnet and power supply is controlled to generate magnetic force when in contact with the receptacle.

6. In Paragraph 2, The above contact unit is, A receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module, characterized in that the gripper is installed in an area excluding the point for gripping the fiber unit and contacts the upper surface of the receptacle in an area other than the gripping point of the gripper for the fiber unit.

7. In Paragraph 6, The above contact unit is, A receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical integrated circuit of a CPO module, characterized by being arranged such that a plurality of points are symmetrical to each other with respect to the center of the receptacle and contact the upper surface of the receptacle.

8. A method for receptacle alignment using a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical direct circuit of a CPO module according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein A first step of fixing the above optical integrated circuit to a jig; A second step of preparing a fiber unit in which the fiber array is seated on the receptacle; A third step of pre-aligning the position on the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit while the gripped fiber unit is moved and positioned on the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit using the gripper and the receptacle fixing unit; A fourth step of applying fixing epoxy after the fiber unit is moved upward through the gripper in a fixed position parallel to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit, while the pre-alignment is completed following the completion of the third step; Step 5: After the epoxy is applied, the fiber unit is moved downward using the gripper while maintaining a fixed direction parallel to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit so that the fiber unit and the epoxy adhere at the position where the pre-alignment is completed, and then the fiber unit is re-aligned using the gripper in a direction parallel to the upper surface of the optical integrated circuit; Step 6 for curing the above epoxy; and A receptacle alignment method using a receptacle alignment device for a detachable fiber array for an optical integrated circuit of a CPO module, characterized by including: a seventh step of removing the receptacle fixing unit from the receptacle and removing the fiber array from the receptacle using the gripper after performing the sixth step above.

Images