Granted Patent B2

US 7,263,252 · App. 10/898,913 · Granted Aug 28, 2007

Abstract

Claims (22)

1. An optical switch comprising:

at least one input optical fiber;

output optical fibers;

at least one movable mirror, which directs a light beam from the input optical fiber selectively to one of the output optical fibers, a direction-of the movable mirror being changeable, and the direction of the movable mirror being changed to switch the output optical fiber that combines with the light beam reflected by the movable mirror;

at least one shutter, which appropriately intercepts the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror from the input optical fiber, the shutter intercepting the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror while the direction of the movable mirror is changed;

a splitter, which splits the light beam of wavelength multiplexed light (light containing wavelength components) projected from the input optical fiber into light beams based on a wavelength of the light beam from the input optical fiber; and a lens, which changes the split light beams into converging light beams, the optical switch further comprising: movable mirrors including said movable mirror, the number of movable mirrors being more than or equals to that of light beams split by the splitter, the movable mirrors respectively corresponding to the light beams split by the splitter, the optical switch further comprising shutters including said shutter, the number of shutters being equal to that of movable mirrors, the shutters respectively corresponding to the movable mirrors, and each shutter intercepting the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror between the lens and the movable mirror.

2. The optical switch according to claim 1 , wherein the shutter includes a beam portion, which is supported in a cantilever manner and which is elastically deformable and which has a flat plate shape, the beam portion includes a shielding portion on its free end portion, and the shutter further includes an actuator, which bends/deforms the beam portion to move the shielding portion.

3. The optical switch according to claim 2 , wherein the beam portion is supported substantially in parallel with a principal ray in the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror.

4. The optical switch according to claim 3 , wherein the actuator deforms the beam portion by an electromagnetic force.

5. The optical switch according to claim 3 , wherein the front surface (surface on which the light beam falls) of the shielding portion has a regular reflective property with respect to the light.

6. The optical switch according to claim 3 , wherein the shutter intercepts the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror in a position of approximately 2 mm or less from the movable mirror.

7. The optical switch according to claim 3 , wherein the shutter intercepts the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror in a position where the shutter has an optically confocal relation with the movable mirror.

8. The optical switch according to claim 2 , wherein the beam portion is supported substantially vertically with respect to a principal ray in the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror.

9. The optical switch according to claim 8 , wherein the front surface (surface on which the light beam falls) of the shielding portion has a non-regular reflective property with respect to the light.

10. The optical switch according to claim 2 , wherein the shutter is driven in accordance with a driving electric signal, and intercepts the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror in a state in which the driving electric signal is not supplied.

11. The optical switch according to claim 1 , wherein the shutter includes a beam portion, which is supported in a cantilever manner and which is elastically deformable, and a shielding portion, which is connected to a free end of the beam portion and which has a flat plate shape, the shielding portion extends substantially vertically with respect to the beam portion, and the shutter further includes an actuator, which bends/deforms the beam portion to move the shielding portion.

12. The optical switch according to claim 11 , wherein the beam portion is positioned on the side of the movable mirror from the shielding portion.

13. The optical switch according to claim 11 , wherein in a state in which the shutter intercepts the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror, the shielding portion is inclined by one degree or more with respect to a principal ray in the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror, about an axis that is substantially perpendicular to a rotation axis of the movable mirror and extends along the front surface of the movable mirror.

14. The optical switch according to claim 11 , wherein the actuator deforms the beam portion by an electromagnetic force.

15. The optical switch according to claim 11 , wherein a dimension of the movable mirror concerning a moving direction of the shielding portion of the shutter is longer than that of the shielding portion, and the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror falls on a position offset from a center of the movable mirror.

16. The optical switch according to claim 11 , wherein the shutter is driven in accordance with a driving electric signal, and intercepts the light beam traveling toward the movable mirror in a state in which the driving electric signal is not supplied.

17. The optical switch according to claim 1 , wherein the shutter includes a beam portion, which is supported in a center impeller manner and which is elastically deformable, and a shielding portion, which is supported by a substantial middle of the beam portion and which has a flat plate shape, the beam portion extends along the front surface (surface on which the light beam falls) of the shielding portion, and the shutter further includes an actuator, which deforms the beam portion to move the shielding portion along the front surface.

Assignments (6)