JP4806672B2 - Optical connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical connector, and more particularly to an optical connector that can be assembled to the tip of an optical fiber at a connection site or the like.

In recent years, an optical connector that can be assembled at the tip of an optical fiber cable such as an optical drop cable has been proposed. This optical connector includes a connector main body having a ferrule, and a fastening tool for fastening the jacket of the optical fiber cable to the connector main body (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).
JP 2005-265993 A JP 2005-208220 A

As a method for confirming conduction in an optical line, there is a method of detecting leakage light by bending light into an optical fiber to generate leakage light.
However, in the conventional optical connector, since the optical fiber drawn from the optical fiber cable is not exposed to the outside, it is difficult to confirm conduction.
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an optical connector capable of confirming conduction.

In the optical connector according to claim 1 of the present invention, the built-in optical fiber inserted and fixed to the ferrule has the connector main body that is butt-connected to another optical fiber, and the other optical fiber is bent. A retaining part for retaining the other optical fiber, and a retaining part for retaining at least a part of the flexible part of the other optical fiber. And it is connected so that the direction can be changed with respect to the connector body, and the bending part can be increased in bending with respect to the connector body, thereby generating a bending loss. Thus, the leakage light generated can be emitted to the outside.
An optical connector according to a second aspect of the present invention is the optical connector according to the first aspect, wherein the built-in optical fiber inserted and fixed to the ferrule is connected to the other optical fiber and the other optical fiber. A holding part that holds the other optical fiber; and a holding part that holds at least one of the bending parts of the other optical fiber and the holding part that holds the other optical fiber. And is connected so that the direction can be changed with respect to the connector body, and the retaining component can be slid relative to the connector body while being tilted with respect to the connector body. Therefore, it is possible to increase the bending of the bent portion to generate a bending loss and to emit the leakage light generated thereby. To.
An optical connector according to a third aspect of the present invention is the optical connector according to the first or second aspect, wherein the retaining component is rotatably connected to the connector main body at a connecting portion, and is rotated by using the connecting portion as a fulcrum. It can be inclined with respect to the connector body.
An optical connector according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the optical connector according to the third aspect, wherein the flexible insertion portion has a pair of side wall portions arranged with an insertion space through which the flexible portion is inserted, and the connecting portion is The side wall portion and the connector main body are rotatably connected.
An optical connector according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the optical connector according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein a distal end side of the flexible insertion portion is a distal end side open portion, and the distal end side open portion is the leakage light. Can be released to the outside.
An optical connector according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the optical connector according to the fourth aspect, wherein the flexible insertion portion includes a bottom wall portion provided between one side edges of the pair of side wall portions, The leakage light can be generated by inclining toward the bottom wall.
An optical connector according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is the optical connector according to the second aspect, wherein the drawing component is rotatably connected to the connector main body at a connecting portion, and the connector main body is rotated by using the connecting portion as a fulcrum. The connecting portion comprises a shaft portion formed on one of the side wall portion and the connector body, and a bearing elongated hole formed on the other, The shaft portion is slid with respect to the connector main body by moving along the elongated hole in a state where the shaft portion is fitted in the bearing elongated hole.
An optical connector according to an eighth aspect of the present invention is the optical connector according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, wherein a fluorescent material that emits light by the leakage light is used for the retaining component.

According to the optical connector of the present invention, it is possible to increase the bending of the bending portion by inclining the retaining part with respect to the connector main body, thereby generating a bending loss, and the leakage light generated thereby can be observed from the outside. It is.
For this reason, even if an optical fiber such as an optical drop cable does not emit leakage light even if it is bent and cannot perform continuity confirmation and control (line identification) by confirming leakage light, the continuity state (such as communication light) By conducting the bending state while the transmission light is being transmitted), it is possible to realize non-destructive confirmation and contrast of the optical fiber. In addition, it is an advantage of the present invention that the operation of inclining the retaining part and generating leakage light is easy.
The bending state of the optical fiber not only generates bending loss (emits leakage light) but also maintains transmission loss to the extent that it does not affect the working line. Therefore, even when the optical fiber is operated as a working line, the optical fiber can be bent in a live line state, and the continuity can be confirmed and controlled without affecting the communication of the working line.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing an optical connector 60 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the retaining component 20. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the retaining component 20. FIG. 4 is a side sectional view showing the retaining component 20. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the connection mechanism 2. FIG. 6 is an exploded view of the connection mechanism 2. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the connection mechanism 2.
In the following description, the left side in FIG. 1 may be referred to as the front, and the right side may be referred to as the rear.

As shown in FIG. 1, the optical connector 60 includes a connector main body 10 and a retaining component 20 that holds the optical fiber 13 to the connector main body 10.
The connector body 10 includes a ferrule 3 with a connection mechanism, a housing 4 that houses the ferrule 3 with a connection mechanism, and an urging means 5 provided in the housing 4. Reference numeral 8 denotes a knob that can be attached to the outside of the housing 4.

The housing 4 is formed in a sleeve shape that accommodates the ferrule 3 with a connection mechanism.
The housing 4 includes a housing body 4a and a pair of connection portions 9 and 9 extending rearward from the rear end of the housing body 4a.
The connecting portions 9 and 9 are formed in a plate shape, and are arranged substantially parallel to each other and spaced from each other. The connection portions 9 and 9 are formed with circular bearing holes 9a and 9a into which shaft portions 42 and 42 of the retaining component 20 described later are fitted.

  The urging means 5 applies a reaction force to the housing 4 to push the connection mechanism 2 forward, thereby urging the ferrule 3 with a connection mechanism forward. The optical connector 60 is used as another optical connector. When the connection is made, the ferrule 1 is given a butting force with the counterpart optical connector. As the biasing means 5, for example, a coil spring can be used.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5 to 7, the ferrule 3 with a connection mechanism includes a ferrule 1 and a connection mechanism 2 provided on the rear end side of the ferrule 1.
An optical fiber introduction hole 1b (fine hole) is formed in the ferrule 1 along the central axis, and a built-in optical fiber 6 (such as a bare optical fiber) is inserted and fixed in the optical fiber introduction hole 1b. Yes. The front end of the built-in optical fiber 6 is exposed at the front end surface 1 a of the ferrule 1, and the rear end protrudes from the rear end of the ferrule 1 and is inserted into the connection mechanism 2.
The ferrule 1 is made of ceramic such as zirconia or glass, for example.

As shown in FIG. 5 to FIG. 7, the connection mechanism 2 butt-connects the rear end portion 6 a of the built-in optical fiber 6 to the front end portion 13 a of the optical fiber 13, and connects the element unit 7 and the element unit 7. It is a clamp part provided with the clamp spring 11 to hold | maintain.
The element unit 7 includes a flange portion 7d fixed to the rear end portion of the ferrule 1, a base portion 7a (base portion side element) extending rearward from the flange portion 7d, and two lid bodies disposed on the base portion 7a. 7b and 7c (lid side elements), and the elasticity of the clamp spring 11 allows the optical fiber to be sandwiched between the base 7a and the lids 7b and 7c.
The flange portion 7d has a fitting recess 7f into which the rear end portion of the ferrule 1 is fitted.

The base portion 7a has a substantially semicircular cross section, a substantially triangular cross section, etc., and is integrally formed with the flange portion 7d, and can be made of metal, plastic, or the like.
The lid body 7b and the lid body 7c have a substantially semicircular cross section, a substantially triangular cross section, and the like, and are arranged side by side on the base portion 7a. The lids 7b and 7c can be made of plastic, metal, or the like. The first lid 7b is disposed in front of the second lid 7c, that is, on the ferrule 1 side.

An alignment mechanism 12 is formed in the element unit 7. The alignment mechanism 12 is a groove formed in the inner surface of the base portion 7a and the inner surfaces of the lid bodies 7b and 7c, and a guide portion 12a formed in the rear end portion of the base portion 7a and the rear portion of the lid body 7c, and a guide portion 12a. And an aligning portion 12b formed on the ferrule 1 side.
The aligning portion 12b is narrower than the guide portion 12a, and aligns the built-in optical fiber 6 and the tip end portion 13a of the optical fiber 13 between the base portion 7a and the first lid 7b. These are butt-connected.
The aligning mechanism 12 can be formed on both the base 7a and the lids 7b and 7c, or can be formed on only one of them.
The clamp spring 11 is a means for applying a clamping force to the element unit 7 and is a plate member having a C-shaped cross section in the illustrated example.
Reference numeral 17 in FIGS. 1 and 7 is a connection point between the built-in optical fiber 6 and the optical fiber 13.

The optical fiber 13 is an optical fiber led out from the coated optical fiber 14 such as an optical drop fiber cable or an optical fiber cord, and is, for example, an optical fiber core wire or an optical fiber strand. The distal end portion 13a is, for example, a bare optical fiber drawn from the optical fiber 13.
FIG. 8 shows an example of the coated optical fiber 14. In this coated optical fiber 14, the optical fiber core wire 13 and the strength member 18 are collectively covered with a coating 14a. The coated optical fiber 14 in the illustrated example corresponds to an optical element portion of an optical drop fiber cable. A tear notch 14c is formed on the side surface 14b of the coated optical fiber 14.

Next, the retained component 20 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4, the retaining component 20 is to be secured to the connector body 10 in a state where the optical fiber 13 is bent, and the bending portion of the optical fiber 13 (hereinafter, the bending portion 15). It has a flexible insertion part 21 into which at least a part is inserted, and a holding part 22 that holds the coated optical fiber 14.
The flexible insertion portion 21 has a pair of side wall portions 23 and 24 arranged to face each other, and a bottom wall portion 25 provided between lower edge portions 23a and 24a which are one side edge of the side wall portions 23 and 24. And it has a U-shaped cross section.

The side wall parts 23 and 24 are opposed to each other substantially in parallel with an insertion space 26 through which the flexible part 15 is inserted.
As shown in FIG. 2, the distal end side (front end side) of the flexible insertion portion 21 is open, and the optical fiber 13 can be introduced into the connector main body 10 through the distal end side open portion 26a.
When the front end portions 23b, 24b of the side wall portions 23, 24 and the front end portion 25a of the bottom wall portion 25 are compared in the front-rear direction position, the front end portion 25a of the bottom wall portion 25 is located slightly rearward. In a state where the component 20 is inclined, the optical fiber 13 can be introduced into the connector main body 10 through the space between the side wall portions 23 and 24 where there is no bottom wall portion 25. The other side edge side (upper side in FIG. 1) of the side wall portions 23 and 24 is open, and this portion is referred to as an upper open portion 26b.
The side wall portions 23 and 24 are disposed on the inner surface side of the connection portions 9 and 9.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the front-rear direction position of the front end part 25 a of the bottom wall part 25 is preferably ahead of the front-rear direction position of the central part 15 a of the flexible part 15. As a result, when the optical fiber 13 bends downward, the central portion 15a comes into contact with the bottom wall portion 25 and becomes difficult to bend, so that the optical fiber 13 in the flexible insertion portion 21 can be prevented from being bent downward.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the holding portion 22 has a U-shaped holding portion main body 34 having side wall portions 31 and 32 and a bottom wall portion 33 provided between the lower edge portions 31 a and 32 a. And a cover portion 35 rotatably connected to one side wall portion 31.
The space between the side walls 31 and 32 is a fitting groove 36 into which the tip of the coating 14a of the coated optical fiber 14 is fitted.
On the inner surfaces of the front portions of the side wall portions 31 and 32, stopper projections 31b and 32b are formed to which the front end of the coating 14a of the coated optical fiber 14 is abutted.

Fixing claws 31 c and 32 c for sandwiching the coated optical fiber 14 are formed on the inner surfaces of the side wall portions 31 and 32. The fixing claws 31c and 32c are ridges extending substantially perpendicular to the front-rear direction, and can be fixed by sandwiching the coated optical fiber 14. In the illustrated example, the coated optical fiber 14 is fixed to the holding portion 22 along the front-rear direction.
The cover part 35 is connected to the side wall part 31 via the hinge part 35a, and the upper opening part 36a of the fitting groove 36 can be opened and closed by rotating about the hinge part 35a.
The retaining part 20 can be an integrally molded product made of plastic.

A fluorescent material may be used for the retaining part 20. As this fluorescent material, one that emits light by leaking light (for example, wavelength 1.55 μm) emitted from the optical fiber 13 is selected.
For example, the retaining component 20 may be formed of a resin material containing a fluorescent material, or the fluorescent material may be applied to the outer surface of the retaining component 20.
The use of a fluorescent material facilitates detection of leakage light.

The retaining component 20 is rotatably connected to the connector main body 10 at the connecting portion 41.
The connecting portion 41 has shaft portions 42 and 42 that are formed to protrude from the outer surfaces of the side wall portions 23 and 24. The shaft portions 42 and 42 are formed in a cylindrical shape, and are fitted to the bearing holes 9a and 9a of the connection portions 9 and 9 of the connector main body 10 so as to be rotatable.
By adopting this structure, the structure of the mechanism for inclining the retaining component 20 can be simplified.
Conversely, a shaft portion may be formed in the connection portion 9 and a bearing hole may be formed in the side wall portions 23 and 24.

As shown in FIG. 1, the optical fiber 13 is introduced into the connector main body 10 through the insertion space 26 of the flexible insertion portion 21.
In the flexible insertion portion 21, the optical fiber 13 bends away from the bottom wall portion 25. Specifically, the optical fiber 13 becomes higher as it goes forward from the holding portion 22, and the height (distance from the bottom wall portion 25) becomes maximum in the flexible insertion portion 21, and gradually increases further from there. To reach the connector body 10.
The bent portion of the optical fiber 13 (flexible portion 15) is curved in a substantially arc shape within the flexible insertion portion 21. Reference numeral 15a denotes a central portion of the flexible portion 15, which is at the highest position in the figure.

Next, an example of a method for assembling the optical connector 60 at the tip of the coated optical fiber 14 will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the coating 14 a at the tip of the coated optical fiber 14 is removed to expose the optical fiber 13.
The length of the optical fiber 13 is adjusted so that the optical fiber 13 is butt-connected to the built-in optical fiber 6 in a bent state.
The front end portion of the covering 14a is fitted into the fitting groove 36 of the holding portion 22, and is sandwiched and fixed by the fixing claws 31c and 32c, and the cover portion 35 is closed.

The optical fiber 13 is connected to the built-in optical fiber 6 as follows.
As shown in FIG. 9, the optical fiber 13 is introduced into the housing 4 with the wedge 16 inserted between the base 7a of the element unit 7 and the lids 7b and 7c and pushed open, The distal end portion 13a of the optical fiber 13 is inserted from the guide portion 12a and guided to the aligning portion 12b.
The front end portion 13a of the optical fiber 13 is butt-connected to the rear end portion 6a of the built-in optical fiber 6 in the aligning portion 12b.
The optical fiber 13 is connected to the built-in optical fiber 6 with a sufficient abutting force by the biasing force due to the deflection.

As shown in FIG. 10, when the wedge 16 is pulled out, the optical fibers 6 and 13 are sandwiched between the lids 7b and 7c and the base portion 7a by the clamping force of the clamp spring 11, and the optical fibers 6 and 13 are connected. Maintained.
Note that the optical connector of the present invention performs the connection work efficiently if a wedge is inserted between the base and the lid in advance and then loaded into the optical connector in a state assembled to the optical connector (optical connector with a tool). be able to.

Next, a method for confirming the continuity of the optical fibers 6 and 13 in the optical connector 60 will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the retaining component 20 in a state of being oriented in the direction along the connector main body 10 (front-rear direction) is tilted by rotation about the connecting portion 41 as a fulcrum. The inclination angle is set so that leakage light is generated in the optical fiber 13.
In the example shown in FIG. 12, the retaining component 20 is inclined so as to be substantially perpendicular to the connector body 10. Note that the inclination angle of the retaining component 20 is not limited to the illustrated example as long as it is an angle at which leakage light can be confirmed.
By bending the retaining part 20, the bending of the flexible part 15 increases. That is, the bending portion 15 curved in a substantially arc shape in the bending insertion portion 21 has a large curvature without changing the bending direction.

As the bending portion 15 bends due to the inclination of the retaining part 20, bending loss occurs in the optical fiber 13, and leakage light occurs.
The generated leakage light is emitted to the outer peripheral side of the flexible portion 15. Since the flexible insertion portion 21 has a structure in which the insertion space 26 is opened to the outside, leak light is emitted to the outside through the opening portions 26a and 26b.
For example, the occurrence of leakage light can be confirmed by disposing a photodetector (not shown) on the distal end side of the drawing component 20 and detecting leakage light emitted to the outside through the distal end side opening 26a. Based on the presence or absence of leakage light, the continuity of the optical fibers 6 and 13 can be confirmed.
In addition, when a fluorescent material is used for the retaining component 20, the conduction of the optical fibers 6 and 13 can be confirmed based on the light emission of the fluorescent material due to leakage light.

As described above, in the optical connector 60, by inclining the retaining component 20, the bending portion 15 is bent to generate leakage light, and the leakage light can be observed from the outside.
For this reason, even if it is the optical fiber 14 with a coating | coated which cannot perform a continuity check and a contrast (line | wire identification) by confirmation of leak light, such as an optical drop cable, leak light is not emitted even if it is bent. By making the bent state while the transmission light such as light is transmitted), the conduction confirmation and the control can be realized non-destructively. Further, the operation of inclining the retaining part 20 and generating leakage light is easy.
The bending state of the optical fiber 13 not only generates bending loss (releases leaked light) but also maintains transmission loss to the extent that it does not affect the working line. Therefore, even when the optical fiber 13 is operated as a working line, the continuity can be confirmed and compared without affecting the communication of the working line by keeping the optical fiber 13 in a bent state while being in a live state.

Next, an optical connector 80 which is a second embodiment of the optical connector of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the retaining component 70. FIG. 14 is a plan view showing the retaining component 70. FIG. 15 is a side sectional view showing the retaining component 70.
In the following description, components common to the optical connector 60 are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 to 15, a shaft portion 83 is formed on the outer surface of the connecting portion 19 extending rearward from the rear end of the housing body 4 a so as to be fitted in the bearing elongated hole 82 of the retaining component 70. .

Hereinafter, the retained component 70 will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 13 to 15, the retaining component 70 includes a flexible insertion portion 71 and a holding portion 22 that holds the coated optical fiber 14.
The flexible insertion portion 71 has a pair of side wall portions 73 and 74 and a bottom wall portion 75 that are arranged to face each other, and the flexible portion 15 of the optical fiber 13 is inserted into the insertion space 76 between the side wall portions 73 and 74. it can.
The side wall portions 73 and 74 are formed with bearing elongated holes 82 into which the shaft portion 83 of the connecting portion 19 is fitted. The bearing long hole 82 is formed in a straight line having a constant width along the front-rear direction. The side wall parts 73 and 74 are disposed on the outer surface side of the connection parts 19 and 19.
The distal end side (front end side) of the flexible insertion portion 71 is open. This portion is referred to as a distal end side open portion 76a. Moreover, the upper side in FIG. 13 is also open. This portion is referred to as an upper opening portion 76b.

In the connecting part 81, the retaining part 70 is rotatably connected to the connecting part 19 by fitting the shaft part 83 into the bearing elongated hole 82.
The shaft slot 83 is fitted in the bearing slot 82 so as to be movable, and as will be described later, the retaining component 70 is tilted while maintaining the connected state to the connector main body 10. The bearing elongated hole 82 can be slid in the extending direction.

Next, a method for confirming the continuity of the optical fibers 6 and 13 in the optical connector 80 will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the retaining component 70 in a state of being oriented in the direction (front-rear direction) along the connector main body 10 is tilted by turning about the connecting portion 81 as a fulcrum. In the example shown in FIG. 17, the retaining component 70 is substantially perpendicular to the connector body 10. In this state, the extending direction of the bearing elongated hole 82 is also perpendicular to the connector body 10. At this time, leakage light may or may not occur.

Next, as shown in FIG. 18, the retaining component 70 is slid upward (toward the distal end). At this time, the retaining component 70 slides along the extending direction of the bearing elongated hole 82 while maintaining the fitting between the shaft portion 83 and the bearing elongated hole 82.
As a result, the bending of the bending portion 15 is increased, bending loss occurs in the optical fiber 13, and leakage light is generated. The generated leakage light is emitted to the outer peripheral side of the flexible portion 15. The leaked light is emitted to the outside through the open portions 76a and 76b.
For example, the occurrence of leakage light can be confirmed by arranging a photodetector (not shown) on the distal end side of the retaining component 70 and detecting leakage light emitted to the outside through the distal end side opening 76a. Based on the presence or absence of leakage light, the continuity of the optical fibers 6 and 13 can be confirmed.

  In the optical connector 80, bending of the flexible portion 15 can be increased by sliding movement of the retaining component 70, and leakage light can be generated reliably. Therefore, highly accurate continuity confirmation can be performed.

1 is a side view schematically showing an optical connector according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows a retention part. It is a top view which shows a retained part. It is a sectional side view which shows a retention part. It is a disassembled perspective view of a connection mechanism. It is an exploded view of a connection mechanism. It is sectional drawing of a connection mechanism. It is a perspective view which shows an example of a coated optical fiber. It is sectional drawing explaining operation | movement of a connection mechanism. It is sectional drawing explaining operation | movement of a connection mechanism. It is a side view explaining operation | movement of a retention part. It is a side view explaining operation | movement of a retention part. It is a perspective view which shows the retention component of the optical connector which is the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows a retained part. It is a sectional side view which shows a retention part. It is a side view explaining operation | movement of a retention part. It is a side view explaining operation | movement of a retention part. It is a side view explaining operation | movement of a retention part.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Ferrule, 6 ... Built-in optical fiber, 10 ... Optical connector main body, 13 ... Another optical fiber, 15 ... Deflection part, 20 ... Retention part, 21, 71 ... Deflection insertion part, 22 ... Holding part, 23, 24 ... Side wall part, 23a, 24a ... Lower edge part (one side edge), 25 ... Bottom wall part, 26, 76 -Insertion space, 26a, 76a ... tip side open part, 41, 81 ... connection part, 60 ... optical connector, 82 ... bearing long hole, 83 ... shaft part.

Claims (8)

The built-in optical fiber (6) inserted and fixed to the ferrule (1) is connected to the connector main body (10) butted to the other optical fiber (13), and the other optical fiber is bent. A retaining part (20) to be secured to the connector body,
The retaining part has a flexible insertion part (21) through which at least a part of the flexible part (15) of the other optical fiber is inserted, and a holding part (22) for holding the additional optical fiber; and It is connected so that the direction can be changed with respect to the connector body,
By inclining the retaining part with respect to the connector main body, bending of the flexible part can be increased to generate bending loss, and leakage light generated thereby can be emitted to the outside. An optical connector (60). The built-in optical fiber (6) inserted and fixed to the ferrule (1) is connected to the connector main body (10) butted to the other optical fiber (13), and the other optical fiber is bent. A retaining part (70) to be fastened to the connector body,
The drawing component has a flexible insertion part (71) through which at least a part of the flexible part of the other optical fiber is inserted, and a holding part (22) for holding the additional optical fiber, and the connector body Are connected so that the direction can be changed,
The retaining component is slidable relative to the connector body in a state of being inclined with respect to the connector body,
The optical connector (80) is characterized in that, by this sliding movement, bending of the bent portion can be increased to cause bending loss, and leakage light generated thereby can be emitted to the outside.   The said retention part is connected with the said connector main body in the connection part (41) so that rotation is possible, It can be made to incline with respect to a connector main body by the rotation which uses this connection part as a fulcrum. The optical connector according to 1 or 2. The flexible insertion portion has a pair of side wall portions (23, 24) disposed with an insertion space (26) through which the flexible portion is inserted,
The optical connector according to claim 3, wherein the connecting portion rotatably connects the side wall portion and the connector main body.   The distal end side of the flexible insertion portion is a distal end side open portion (26a), and the distal end side open portion can emit the leakage light to the outside. The optical connector according to item. The flexible insertion portion has a bottom wall portion (25) provided between one side edge (23a, 24a) of the pair of side wall portions,
The optical connector according to claim 4, wherein the leakage light can be generated by inclining the retaining component toward the bottom wall portion. The tension component is rotatably connected to the connector main body at a connecting portion (81), and can be inclined with respect to the connector main body by rotation using the connecting portion as a fulcrum.
The connecting portion includes a shaft portion (83) formed on one of the side wall portion and the connector body, and a bearing elongated hole (82) formed on the other.
The said retaining part slides with respect to the said connector main body by moving along this elongate hole in the state in which the said shaft part was fitted to the said bearing elongate hole, The movement of Claim 2 characterized by the above-mentioned. Optical connector.   The optical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein a fluorescent material that emits light by the leakage light is used for the retaining component.

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