Blind-mating optical ferrule assemblies
View Patent ↗Example implementations relate to blind-mating optical ferrule assemblies. For example, an apparatus to blind-mate optical ferrule assemblies can comprise a first optical ferrule assembly including a ferrule housing and a ferrule disposed at least in part within the ferrule housing, a semi-final alignment pin and a semi-final alignment hole disposed on the first optical ferrule assembly to align the first optical ferrule assembly with a second optical ferrule assembly, and a final alignment pin and a final alignment hole disposed on the first optical ferrule assembly to further align the first optical ferrule assembly to the second optical ferrule assembly.
1. An optical blind-mate connector apparatus, comprising:
a first optical ferrule assembly including a ferrule housing and a ferrule disposed at least in part within the ferrule housing;
a semi-final alignment pin and a semi-final alignment hole disposed on the first optical ferrule assembly to align the first optical ferrule assembly with a second optical ferrule assembly;
a semi-final alignment base recessed from a surface of the optical ferrule assembly by a distance; and
a final alignment pin and a final alignment hole disposed on the first optical ferrule assembly to further align the first optical ferrule assembly to the second optical ferrule assembly.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
the semi-final alignment pin and the semi-final alignment hole are disposed on a base of the ferrule housing; and
the final alignment pin and the final alignment hole are disposed on a surface of the ferrule.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the semi-final alignment pin is on an opposite side of the apparatus relative to the final alignment pin.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the semi-final alignment pin extends further outward from a surface of the first optical ferrule assembly than the final alignment pin.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the semi-final alignment pin and semi-final alignment hole are tubular in shape.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the ferrule is independently movable within the ferrule housing.
7. A system for blind-mating optical ferrule assemblies, the system comprising:
an optical blind-mate connector adapter to blind-mate a first optical ferrule assembly to a second optical ferrule assembly with coarse tolerance;
a plurality of semi-final alignment features disposed on each of the first optical ferrule assembly and the second optical ferrule assembly to blind-mate the first optical ferrule assembly and the second optical ferrule assembly with a tighter tolerance relative to the sleeve housing;
a semi-final alignment base recessed from a surface of the optical ferrule assembly by a distance; and
a plurality of final alignment features disposed on each of the first optical ferrule assembly and the second optical ferrule assembly to blind-mate the first optical ferrule assembly to the second optical ferrule assembly with a tighter tolerance relative to the semi-final alignment features.
8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the final alignment feature is a final alignment pin or a final alignment hole and the semi-final alignment feature is a semi-final alignment pin or a semi-final alignment hole.
9. The system of claim 7 , wherein the distance by which the semi-final alignment base is recessed decreases in response to blind-mating of the first and second optical ferrule assemblies.
10. The system of claim 7 , wherein each of the semi-final alignment features has a coarse tolerance relative to the final alignment features.
11. A system for blind-mating optical ferrule assemblies, the system comprising:
an optical blind-mate connector apparatus including an opening to provide coarse alignment of a first optical ferrule assembly and a second optical ferrule assembly;
a first optical ferrule assembly to blind-mate with a second optical ferrule assembly within the optical blind-mate connector apparatus, the first and the second optical ferrule assemblies each having a plurality of semi-final alignment features and a plurality of final alignment features for blind-mating the first and the second optical ferrule assemblies; and
a semi-final alignment base recessed from a surface of the first optical ferrule assembly by a distance.
12. The system of claim 11 , the semi-final alignment features to align a positive mating force applied by the first optical ferrule assembly against the second optical ferrule assembly such that a first optical ferrule on the first optical ferrule assembly positively mates with a second optical ferrule on the second optical ferrule assembly.
13. The system of claim 11 , wherein the optical blind-mate connector adapter is mounted on a mid-plane.
14. The system of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of final alignment features includes a final alignment pin and a final alignment hole and the plurality of semi-final alignment features includes a semi-final alignment pin and a semi-final alignment hole.