DE102005050739B4 - Demultiplexed polymer fiber transfer receiver and method of making the same - Google Patents

Abstract

Demultiplex receiver for polymer fiber transmission 1.1. with one or more input channels for the connection of one or more polymer optical fibers (4), 1.2. one or more output channels for connecting photo receivers (7), 1.3. a one-piece injection-molded dispersion unit (6) for the wavelength-dependent distribution of optical signals on the output channels, 1.4. wherein the demultiplex receiver has a base body (1) made in one piece by injection molding with a recess (2), 1.6. in which the input channel or channels, the dispersion unit (6) and the output channels are arranged.

Description

The invention relates to a demultiplex receiver for polymer fiber transmission with one or more input channels for the connection of one or more polymer optical fibers, one or more output channels for the connection of photoreceivers and a dispersion unit for the wavelength-dependent distribution of optical signals on the output channels and a method for its preparation

Modern optical communication systems use a high bandwidth of the optical fibers by using high-bit-rate transmission channels. In order to be able to use the possibility of transmitting information via the fiber, transmitter modules and receiver-side receiver modules are necessary on the transmitter side.

Applications of the optical technologies of communication technology have a very broad field of application. From large parts of the existing telecommunications network via multimedia transmission in the automobile to data transmission in the office and home area. Optical data transmission provides high transmission capacity, is less susceptible to electromagnetic interference, and at the same time provides electrical isolation between transmitter and receiver. Also, optical fibers, especially plastic fibers, are cheaper and much lighter than copper cables of the same capacity and also cover a wider range of distances.

Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM), which emerged in the mid-1990s, made it possible to significantly increase the transmission capacity of the then mainly used optical fibers. With this method, the individual data to be transmitted are no longer transmitted in a temporal arrangement one behind the other on the fiber medium, but at the same time guided on the optical waveguide. Work is currently underway to introduce the successful WDM technology in the long-distance optical range (wavelength λ = 1.3 ... 1.7 μm) into the area of short-range networks with transmission lengths below 2000 m.

Here you work with light in the visible wavelength range and uses as a transmission medium polymer fibers (POF), as in this application level, the components must be produced as cost-effectively as possible for the end user.

Of particular importance is the field of mobile multimedia applications. In addition to the higher data rate and the resulting improved integration of multimedia applications in buses or automobiles, considerable weight reductions of the wiring harness will be expected.

In order to come to a complex optical data transmission system taking into account the aforementioned aspects, several individual tasks must be solved. This includes, among other things, the splitting of wavelength-coded light signals into the original individual signals.

Optical wavelength splitting in the visible range of the optical spectrum has hitherto been used in individual construction by the use of dispersion prisms, diffraction, transmission or reflection gratings.

In addition to such well-known individual building blocks, which are mostly realized in large Spektrometeraufbauten exists z. B. a solution of the Fraunhofer Institute IIS in Erlangen: In the patent application DE 10240057 A1 an arrangement is proposed which, with the aid of wavelength-dependent mirrors, can split light into its color components and distribute them spatially separated to individual polymer fibers. However, the mechanical structure of this solution is very demanding and therefore expensive, so that such a structure for the low-cost range of the consumer market (home and automobile) is not suitable.

Other solutions for optical demultiplexers are out EP 0194613 A2 . US 2003/0179472 A1 . DE 10160508 B4 . US 2005/0175347 A1 and the DE 198 21 245 C1 , of the EP 1 170 607 A1 , of the US 6,201,908 B1 or the US 6,292,298 B1 known. The three last-mentioned documents specify, in particular, different embodiments of division units with which the wavelength-dependent beam splitting is carried out. For the input and output optics lenses are usually made of plastic or glass used in these solutions. The US 6,201,908 B1 indicates here a beam splitting unit, which is composed of a prefabricated optical block with a plurality of filters and a cast coupling module made of plastic, in which an array of aspherical lenses as output optics and a collimating lens are integrated as input optics. However, such a filter block can only be used for the task for which it is made. Light sources with different wavelengths or different distribution of the channels can not be used because the replacement of the filters is not possible. Even with the other solutions shown a replacement of the filters of the beam splitting optics is either complicated or not possible at all.

A simplification of the production of modules of the optical data technology in the sense of cheaper mass production is through the Application of injection molding technology achieved. Here exist solutions of DE 41 09 651 A1 , of the DE 100 43 324 A1 of the DE 600 05 018 as well as the already mentioned DE 102 40 057 A1 Instructions for using this technology. However, injection molding is proposed only for the production of individual parts of the optical modules, whereby the effort-minimizing effect of the application of injection molding is limited.

The main disadvantages of the known state of the art, for which a summary in Daum et al: "POF optical polymer fibers for data communication", Springer-Verlag, 2001, is present, consist in the size and in the complex manufacturing method, not for a consistent Mass production is really less expensive modules suitable.

The object of the invention is therefore to develop a cost-effective demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transmission, which allows the simple and cost-minimized design of complex optical transmission systems without sacrificing transmission and signal processing quality. In addition, a manufacturing method for the simple and cost-effective production of optical modules according to the claims should be found.

These objects are achieved by the design of a demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transmission according to the features of the main assembly claim and by a method for producing a demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transmission according to the features of the method claim, wherein in subclaims to the main assembly claim further, particularly advantageous embodiments of the demultiplexing according to the invention Receivers are claimed for polymer fiber transfer.

The essence of the arrangement invention lies in the surprisingly simple and advantageous combination of the radiation dispersion known per se by a prism, the signal evaluation by photoelectronic elements at the output of the demultiplex receiver according to the invention for polymer fiber transmission, according to the invention newly provided passive or self-adjustment of the demultiplexed Receiver for polymer fiber transmission incoming polymer fibers and the invention consistently applied arrangement of all sub-elements in a base body as a base recording.

The essence of the process according to the invention for the preparation of the demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transfer is also reflected in the extremely advantageous dual use of the injection molding technique in the process steps for the preparation of the body of the demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transfer and the subsequent incorporation of essential elements of the demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transfer injection molding technology.

The inventions are explained in more detail below using an exemplary embodiment in which both the arrangement features according to the invention of the demultiplex receiver for polymer fiber transmission and the method steps for its production are made clear.

The accompanying drawing shows a schematic diagram of the demultiplexing receiver according to the invention for polymer fiber transmission.

As shown in the drawing, an inventive demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transfer has the constituents basic body 1 , Recess 2 , self-adjusting fiber guide 3 with polymer fiber 4 as input channel, lens 5 , Prism 6 as a dispersion unit and photo receiver array 7 as part of an output channel. The drawing also shows an input beam 8th caused by the dispersing action of the prism 6 in partial beams 9 ; 10 and 11 was split.

The main body 1 is made as an injection molded part of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). PMMA is a scratch-resistant and transparent material with very high rigidity, whose light transmission is approx. 92% at 1 mm thickness and whose refractive index according to ISO 489 is 1.492.

The named basic body 1 has the recess 2 which is designed so that in it preferably made of polyvinyl chloride PVC lens 5 and the prism 6 Can find recording. PVC is a transparent material with a refractive index> 1.4 in the wavelength range of 300 ... 800 nm. The lens 5 forms an input optics for generating a parallel beam of the polymer fiber 4 emerging input beam 8th to pass through the dispersing prism 6 , This is advantageously also made of PVC, since this material has a very high Abbe number.

After passing through the prism 6 becomes the light split into its color components with its partial rays 9 to 11 - Containing, for example, the blue, green and red color component of visible light - collected on a photo receiver array with photodiodes for each color component and thus converted into a bunch of electrically demultiplexed signals.

According to the method invention, the production of the demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transfer takes place in injection molding technology. In the first process step, the main body with the recess 2 for receiving the self-adjusting fiber guide 3 , for the lens 5 and the prism 6 injected. In the second process step, the additional lens imaging the optical fiber with a further microsinjection 5 and the dispersing prism 6 inserted in optically high-quality with smooth surfaces.

The implementation described in the embodiment of the demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transmission is only one of several possible - the selected arrangement of the embodiment is to be understood as an advantageous embodiment of the invention.

So z. B. more than one polymer fiber 4 be introduced into the demultiplexing receiver for polymer fiber transmission, the multiplexed signals are split after passing through the dispersing prism in their individual signal components, received by corresponding photo-receiver arrays and can be continued as electrical signals. This allows for increased transmission capacity.

As special advantages of the invention can apply:
The described fabrication of the demultiplexed polymer fiber transmission receiver allows for cost-effective mass production of this important component of complex optical communication systems, laying the groundwork for their mass and cost-minimized adoption in a wide variety of applications such as enterprise, residential and automotive data communications, as well as capital goods industries ,

With the present integrated-optical demultiplexer receiver optical fibers with high numerical aperture can be used with low attenuation and high crosstalk attenuation as a transmission medium. The polymer fibers which can be massively used in the abovementioned fields of application in turn contribute to cost reduction and weight savings in the transmission systems.

The polymer-fiber-receiver coupling of the demultiplex receiver according to the invention for polymer fiber transmission can be done fully automatic by the integrated-optical production without adjustment and replaces previous expensive adjustment procedures. The alignment accuracy through the fiber guide produced by injection molding allows a fiber orientation in the range better 10 microns and better 1 °.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1

body

2

recess

3

fiber guide

4

polymer fiber

5

lens

6

prism

7

Photo receiver array

8th

input beam

9

partial beam

10

partial beam

11

partial beam

Claims (6)

Demultiplex Receiver for Polymer Fiber Transmission 1.1. with one or more input channels for the connection of one or more polymer optical fibers ( 4 1.2. one or more output channels for the connection of photoreceivers ( 7 ), 1.3. an integrally injection molded dispersion unit ( 6 ) for the wavelength-dependent distribution of optical signals on the output channels, 1.4. wherein the demultiplexing receiver is a one-piece injection molded body ( 1 ) with a recess ( 2 ), 1.6. in the one or more input channels, the dispersion unit ( 6 ) and the output channels are arranged. Demultiplex receiver for polymer fiber transmission according to claim 1, 2.1. in which the one or more input channels self-adjusting fiber guides ( 3 ) exhibit. Demultiplex receiver for polymer fiber transmission according to claim 1, 3.1. at the one or more input channels a lens ( 5 ) is subordinate Demultiplex receiver for polymer fiber transmission according to claim 3, 4.1. in which the lenses downstream of the input channel (s) ( 5 ) Injection molded parts are. 5. Method of making a demultiplexed polymer fiber transfer receiver, 5.1. the one or more input and output channels and a dispersion unit ( 6 ), 5.2. which in a basic body ( 1 ) within a recess ( 2 ), 5.3. wherein in a first method step the main body ( 1 ) with the recess ( 2 ) manufactured as an injection molded part and 5.4. in a second process step, the dispersion unit ( 6 ) by injection directly into the recess ( 2 ) of the basic body ( 1 ) is introduced. Process for producing a demultiplexed polymer fiber transfer receiver according to claim 5, 6.1. in which in a second process step next to the dispersion unit ( 6 ) also by injection molding one or more lenses ( 5 ) in the recess of the body ( 1 ) are introduced.

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