OPTICAL SWITCH AND OPTICAL FIBER ALIGNING UNIT

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To exactly introduce optical fibers into desired fiber aligning grooves by providing an optical fiber aligning unit with a guide plate separate from fixing plates for fixing the optical fibers to a fiber array. SOLUTION: The plural fixing plates 14 are fixed adjacently to the guide plate 12 between the guide plate 12 and separating grooves 17 to the fiber array 11 included in the optical fiber aligning unit 10. The optical fibers 9 peeled and exposed from the front ends of fiber ribbons 8 are introduced into the respective first fiber aligning grooves 15a by utilizing respective fiber introducing space parts. The optical fibers 9 are guided to the respective fiber aligning grooves 15a by the guide plate 12 and, therefore, the optical fibers 9 may be exactly introduced into the desired first fiber aligning grooves 15a. After the completion of the introduction of the optical fibers 9 into the respective first fiber aligning grooves 15a, the respectively fixing plates 14 are lined up in the state of pressing the same to the peripheral surfaces of the optical fibers 9 and are fixed to the fiber array 11.