Telefonaktiebolaget Lm Ericsson (Publ)

Jan-Ake Engstrand

Paul Asger Eriksen

Hans-Christer Moll

Mikael Persson

Lars Erik Lundstrom

Ivan Jonas

Eva Ahlner

Dragutin Tretinjak

Jan-Agne Svensson

A mold arrangement for moulding an optodevice onto an optical ribbon fibre. The mould includes of a plurality of plates which are intended to be inserted between the movable top plate and the stationary bottom plate, or counterpressure plate, of a transfer moulding press, and includes an inlet channel, primary and secondary runners and an optodevice moulding cavity formed when two plates are brought together and through which the ribbon fibre extends. According to the invention, the mould cavity is provided with an outwardly projecting part at the ribbon-inlet end of the optodevice, and a seal in the form of a rubber sleeve or a sleeve of some similar material disposed around the ribbon and positioned in the mould cavity so that one end of the sleeve will completely fill the outwardly projecting part and so that the other end of the sleeve extends into the mould cavity. The seal in the moulded optodevice extends out from the optodevice around the ribbon fibre.

Sealing arrangement for optodevice moulds

A mold arrangement for molding an optodevice onto an optical fibre ribbon. The mould includes several plates which are intended for insertion between the movable top plate and the stationary bottom plate, or counterpressure plate, of a transfer molding press, and includes an inlet channel, primary and secondary runners, and an optodevice molding cavity which is defined by two of the plates, the mould plates, when the mould is closed, and through which the fibre ribbon extends. Each of the mould plates is provided with respective front and back exchangeable jaws. One jaw of the front jaws is provided in the jaw dividing plane with V-grooves which correspond in number to the number of fibers in the fibre ribbon and in which the optical fibers from which a protective covering material has been stripped are positioned so that their centers lie in the jaw dividing plane. That side of the other jaw which lies proximal to the fibers is provided with a recess in which a pad of soft resilient material is mounted. One jaw of the back jaws is provided in the jaw dividing plane with a recess in which the fibre ribbon is positioned so that the centers of the fibers lie in the jaw dividing plane. The other jaw is provided on that side thereof proximal to the ribbon with a recess in which a pad of soft resilient material is mounted. The pads project beyond the dividing plane of respective jaws and press against and firmly hold the fibre ribbon when the mould is closed.

Mold arrangement for optodevices

The present invention relates to a mold for simultaneously molding a plurality of ferrules onto a corresponding number of optical fibers. The mold preferably includes a runner plate, a first cavity plate, a second cavity plate, and a support plate, each of which is to be inserted between a movable top plate and a fixed bottom plate of a transfer molding machine. The plates to be inserted have a vertical inlet channel and primary and secondary runners for distributing molding compound. These runners lead to a plurality of first and second mutually coincidental mold cavities arranged in rows in the first and second cavity plates, respectively. In a preferred embodiment, each of the first and second mold cavities are made up of mutually coincidental, cylindrical coaxial parts and a larger coaxial, cylindrical bore formed in one or both cavity plates. The dividing plane between the first and second cavity plates coincides with the wider bore. The second mold cavity is formed in a conical insert which is inserted into the second cavity plate. The support plate includes narrow optical fiber receiving slots.

Mold and method for molding ferrules

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Tr.ANG.ngsund, Sweden

Jan-Ake Engstrand