OPTICAL CONNECTOR FERRULE DESIGNED TO MINIMIZE MANUFACTURING IMPERFECTIONS AND MATING MISALIGNMENTS BY INCORPORATING EXACT CONSTRAINT PRINCIPLES

摘要

A ferrule assembly, in a preferred embodiment, having a first ferrule, a second ferrule, and at least two alignment members to align the first and second ferrules during mating is provided. The first ferrule, the second ferrule and the alignment members interact at the mating interface of the first and second ferrules to provide three constraint lines. In one embodiment, the first ferrule has a body with at least one channel for receiving at least one optical fiber. The first ferrule body includes a first surface portion for retaining a first alignment member and a second surface portion for retaining a second alignment member, the first and second surface portions being V-shaped. The second ferrule has a body with at least one channel for receiving at least one optical fiber. The second ferrule body includes a first surface portion for retaining the first alignment member and a second surface portion for retaining the second alignment member, the first surface portion being V-shaped and the second surface portion being flat.