	US 7,600,927 B2
	Optical splicer, optical module, and method of producing optical splicer
Kazuhito Saito, Yokohama (Japan); Mitsuaki Tamura, Yokohama (Japan); Maki Ikeji, Yokohama (Japan); Hiroshi Kohda, Yokohama (Japan); and Eiichiro Yamada, Yokohama (Japan)
Assigned to Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd., Osaka (Japan)
Filed on Oct. 31, 2007, as Appl. No. 11/980,405.
Application 11/980405 is a division of application No. 11/057385, filed on Feb. 15, 2005, abandoned.
Claims priority of application No. P2004-038880 (JP), filed on Feb. 16, 2004.
Prior Publication US 2008/0267567 A1, Oct. 30, 2008
Int. Cl. G02B 6/255 (2006.01); G02B 6/38 (2006.01)

U.S. Cl. 385—95 [385/99; 385/71]

3 Claims

1. A method of producing an optical fiber connector, the method comprising:

removing a part of a coating of a first optical fiber ribbon of multiple fibers to expose a first plurality of first optical fibers, each of the first optical fibers having a first end portion and a second end portion;

removing a part of a coating of a second optical fiber ribbon of multiple fibers to expose a second plurality of second optical fibers less than the first plurality of first optical fibers, each of the second optical fibers having a first end portion and a second end portion;

enlarging a mode field diameter of the first end portion of the first and second optical fibers so that the mode field diameters of the first and second optical fibers become over 30 μm;

providing an optical fiber connecting unit having a first side and a second side opposite to each other, and a plurality of through holes extending from the first side to the second side of the optical fiber connecting unit;

inserting each of the first plurality of optical fibers into one of the through holes from the first side of the optical fiber connecting unit;

inserting each of the second optical fibers into one of the through holes from the second side of the optical fiber connecting unit such that the first end portion of at least one of the second optical fibers faces the first end portion of at least one of the first optical fibers with keeping distance between end faces thereof being over 200 μm, and such that at least one of the first optical fibers does not face any of the second optical fibers; and

covering end faces of the first end portions of the first and second optical fibers facing each other and an end face of the first end portions of said at least one of the first optical fibers that does not face any of the second optical fibers with an adhesive having a refractive index matched with a refractive index of cores of the optical fibers in the fiber hole.