RAPID DEPLOYMENT PACKAGING FOR OPTICAL FIBER
A packaging arrangement for telecommunications cabling is disclosed herein. The packaging arrangement includes a modular spool assembly defined by a first flange, an opposing second flange, and a spool hub separating the first flange from the second flange, wherein a telecommunications cable may be wound between the first and second flanges. Each flange defines a first cable contact side, a second cable-end storage side, and an opening allowing the telecommunications cable to pass from the first side to the second side, the second side defining a storage compartment for storing an end of the telecommunications cable passing through the opening in the flange.
This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 15/282,193, filed Sep. 30, 2016, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 14/861,779, filed Sep. 22, 2015, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,470,869, which is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/038,066, filed Sep. 26, 2013, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,146,374, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/707,517, filed Sep. 28, 2012, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELDThe present disclosure relates to fiber optic telecommunications devices. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to packaging arrangements for storage, shipping, and rapid deployment of fiber optic cables.
BACKGROUNDAs demand for telecommunications increases, fiber optic networks are being extended in more and more areas. In facilities such as multiple dwelling units, apartments, condominiums, businesses, etc., fiber optic enclosures are used to provide a subscriber access point to the fiber optic network. These fiber optic enclosures are connected to the fiber optic network through subscriber cables connected to a network hub. However, the length of subscriber cable needed between the fiber optic enclosure and the network hub varies depending upon the location of the fiber optic enclosure with respect to the network hub. As a result, there is a need for fiber optic deployment packaging arrangements that can effectively manage varying lengths of subscriber cable. There is also a need for fiber optic cable storage, transport, and deployment packaging assemblies that utilize cost-effective, recyclable materials.
SUMMARYAn aspect of the present disclosure relates to a deployment packaging arrangement for fiber optic cabling. The arrangement includes a plurality of spools disposed around a core or a spindle, each independently rotatable with respect to the core for winding/unwinding the fiber optic cable, wherein flanges defining the spools include hollow portions to provide a compartment for storage of pre-terminated cable ends. According to one embodiment, each flange defines an opening or a passage large enough to allow a termination element to be pulled through the flange after the cable has been unwound from the spool and deployed.
Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a method of fiber optic cable deployment utilizing a modular cable deployment or pulling system that includes a plurality of cable termination elements coupled together using a system of snap-fit carriers for the termination elements, wherein all of the termination elements, and, thus, the cables terminated with each of the termination elements can be pulled at the same time. The carriers may be designed/structured based on the termination elements used for the cabling to be deployed.
A further aspect of the present disclosure relates to a packaging arrangement for winding telecommunications cabling, the packaging arrangement comprising a modular spool assembly defined by a first flange, an opposing second flange, and a spool hub separating the first flange from the second flange, wherein a telecommunications cable may be wound between the first and second flanges. Each flange defines a first cable contact side, a second cable-end storage side, and an opening allowing the telecommunications cable to pass from the first side to the second side, the second side defining a storage compartment for storing an end of the telecommunications cable passing through the opening in the flange.
A further aspect of the present disclosure relates to a cable deployment system comprising a plurality of carriers detachably coupled together (e.g., with a snap-fit interlock according to one example embodiment), each carrier including a retention structure for holding a telecommunications device terminated to an end of a telecommunications cable. Each carrier may include a male snap-fit structure and a female snap-fit structure, wherein the male snap-fit structure is configured to be interlocked with the female snap-fit structure of another one of the carriers.
A further aspect of the present disclosure relates to a method of deploying a plurality of cables from a packaging arrangement, each cable wound around a separate spool, the method comprising removably attaching telecommunications devices that are terminated to ends of each of the cables to carriers, wherein the carriers are removably attached to each other with a snap-fit interlock, and pulling all of the carriers at the same time away from the spools.
A further aspect of the present disclosure relates to a method of assembling a packaging arrangement for telecommunications cabling, the method comprising constructing a spool by coupling a first flange to a second flange with a spool hub, each flange defining a first cable contact side, a second cable-end storage side, passing an end of a telecommunications cable through either the first flange or the second flange through an opening on the flange from the first side to the second side of the flange, winding the telecommunications cable around the hub between the first flange and the second flange, and placing the spool around a spindle.
A variety of additional aspects will be set forth in the description that follows. These aspects can relate to individual features and to combinations of features. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the broad concepts upon which the embodiments disclosed herein are based.
Reference will now be made in detail to the exemplary aspects of the present disclosure that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like structure.
Referring now to
Referring now specifically to
As noted above, the storage compartment 30 defined by the second side 28 of the flange 16 may be used to store a termination element 32 that might be terminated to one end of the cable 14. A termination element 32 generally refers to any device that might be used to terminate the end of a cable 14 for further connectivity. An example of a termination element 32 might be a telecommunications connector 38 that is terminated to the cable 14. For example, the telecommunications connector 38 may be a fiber optic connector. The fiber optic connector 38 may be a multi-fiber optic connector such as an MPO connector 38, an example of which is shown in
Although the principles of the present disclosure will be described and illustrated in terms of cable termination elements 32 in the form of fiber optic connectors 38 or fiber optic cassettes 40, it should be noted that the principles herein may be applicable to others types of structures that may be terminated at the ends of the fiber optic cables 14 stored in the packaging arrangement 10.
Now referring to
As discussed above, during the initial assembly of the packaging arrangement 10, for each spool 12, one end of a cable 14, before that cable 14 is wound around the spool 12, is passed through one of the flanges 16 of the spool 12 and is contained within the storage compartment 30. The end that is passed through the flange 16 may be unterminated when initially winding the cable 14 around the spool 12 and may be terminated afterwards with a termination element 32 after passing that end through the spool 12. As shown in
In this manner, the flanges 16 provide options during packaging for the types of terminations that will be used in the packaging arrangement 10. Once the packaging has been assembled, the entire arrangement 10 may be placed within an outer box or enclosure during storage or transport. During deployment, the spindle 20 of the packaging arrangement 10 may be placed around a mandrel type device to facilitate rotating the spools 12.
Referring now to
Referring specifically now to
Still referring to
As noted, one of the termination elements 32 that may be terminated to either end of the cable 14 on one of the spools 12 may be a multi-fiber connector 38 in the form of an MPO connector. The MPO connectors, as discussed above, may be enclosed in cable-pulling enclosures 39 when stored around the spools 12. MPO connectors are generally known in the art, and, thus, further details will not be discussed herein. As shown in
Each carrier 50 defines a body 60 having the first end 54, the second end 58, and a length L extending therebetween. At the first end 54, the female snap-fit structure 52 is defined. At the second, opposite end 58, the male snap-fit structure 56 that is configured to be coupled to the female snap-fit structure 52 of another carrier 50 is defined. The body 60 of the carrier 50 is configured to carry two MPO connectors 38 that are stacked along their longitudinal axes A. The body 60 defines a first side 62 including opposing flexible cantilever arms 64 and a post 66 protruding therefrom. The flexible cantilevers arms 64 and the post 66 are configured to receive the cable pulling enclosure 39 surrounding the MPO connector 38. The enclosure 39 defines an aperture 68 that is normally used for pulling cables attached to the enclosure 39. The post 66 of the carrier is configured to be inserted into the aperture 68 when coupling the enclosure 39 to the carrier 50. The body 60 defines a second side 70 having a similar configuration as the first side 62 for holding another MPO connector 38 along the same orientation. In the depicted embodiment, the carrier 50 includes a cable management structure 72 adjacent the female snap-fit structure 52. The cable management structure 72 is defined by a partial flexible ring 74 that is configured to retain cabling therewithin and keep the cabling close to the chain formed by the carriers 50.
As noted above, the cables 14 that are wound around the deployment packaging arrangement 10 may be terminated with various different telecommunications devices, depending upon the cable used and the connectivity arrangement. The fiber optic cassettes 40/40a shown in
An example of a fiber optic cassette 40 having SC type connection locations (e.g., adapters 42) is illustrated in
As shown, cabling 14 that is terminated to the cassette 40 may include a boot 120 to provide strain relief at cable entry location 104. Cable 14 can flex away from cassette body 86 in the direction of arrow B, and may be protected from excessive bending by boot 120. Entry 104 is located close to corner 102, so that boot 120 and cable 14 is partially protected at entry 104 by being able to reside in a rear channel 106.
As shown in
In general, cassette 40 includes top 94 and bottom 96 which are generally parallel to each other and define the major surfaces of cassette body 86. Sides 98, 100, front 88, and rear 90 define the minor sides of cassette body 86. When the cassettes 40 are placed on the carriers 50a, they are normally juxtaposed such that the minor sides of the bodies 86 are stacked, to minimize the footprint of the carriers 50a. Similarly, if a cassette 40 is being stored within one of the flanges 16 of a spool 12, the cassette 40 may be laid in the storage compartment 30 with a major surface of the body 86 parallel to a flange's major cross-dimension to reduce thicknesses of the flanges 16 needed.
In the illustrated embodiment, adapters 42 are sized to receive front SC connectors. LC connectors can be used with appropriate sized adapters 42a (as shown in the version of
Cable 14 is connected to cable entry location 104 with a crimp tube 130 and a crimp ring 132 which crimps jacket 110 and strength member 112 to crimp tube 130. A small pocket 136 captures crimp tube 130 for retention with cassette body 86. Pocket captures hex end 138 of crimp tube 130 to retain cable 14 with cassette body 86.
Disposed within interior 92 of cassette body 86 may be a plurality of radius limiters 140 which can provide cable bend radius protection for the fibers disposed within interior 92. Cable radius limiters 140 can be in the form of discrete interior structures, and/or curved exterior surfaces which form around the front 88, rear 90, and sides 98, 100.
In the illustrated embodiment, the adapters 42 are formed in a block construction 150 having a front end 152 and an opposite rear end 154. Front end 152 includes a profile for receiving SC connectors. Front end 152 includes SC clips for clipping to an SC connector. Adapter block 150 also includes a rear clip 158 which clips to a hub and ferrule 160 (hub mounted to ferrule) which terminates each fiber exposed within interior 92 of cassette 40. Hub and ferrule 160 form a rear non-conventional connector 200. A split sleeve 162 is also provided for ferrule alignment between hub and ferrule 160 (rear connector) and the ferrule of the front SC connector.
In such a termination, fibers may be provided with excess length between crimp tube 130 and the rear connectors defined by the termination at hub and ferrule 160. Severe bending of the fibers is to be avoided. In the illustrated embodiment, the small size of the cassette 40 may require that some fibers reverse direction via limiters.
A cassette 40a having LC adapters 42a at the front of the body may be constructed similarly to the SC cassette 40 shown in
Further details of similar fiber optic cassettes 40/40a are described in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2013/0089292, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Referring back to
With the given modular cable pulling system 48, any number of termination elements 32 such as connectors 38 or cassettes 40/40a may be placed on daisy-chained carriers 50/50a and used to pull the cables 14 at the same time.
Now referring to
Also as shown in
The packaging arrangements 10 described and illustrated herein may be used to store, transport, and deploy various types of telecommunications cables 14, including fiber optic cables. According to one example embodiment, 3.0 mm or 4.0 mm (ruggedized) fiber optic cabling with 6 or 12 fibers may be used. Other embodiments include the use of 1.2 mm, 1.7 mm, or 2.0 mm fiber optic cabling.
Various modifications and alterations of this disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of this disclosure, and it should be understood that the inventive scope of this disclosure is not to be unduly limited to the illustrative embodiments set forth herein.
Claims
1. A packaging arrangement for winding telecommunications cabling, the packaging arrangement comprising:
- a modular spool assembly defined by a first flange, an opposing second flange, and a spool hub separating the first flange from the second flange, wherein a telecommunications cable may be wound between the first and second flanges;
- each flange defining a first cable contact side, a second cable-end storage side, and an opening allowing the telecommunications cable to pass from the first side to the second side, the second side defining a storage compartment for storing an end of the telecommunications cable passing through the opening in the flange.
2. A packaging arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the packaging arrangement includes a plurality of the modular spool assemblies arranged on a single spindle, each independently rotatable with respect to the spindle.
3. A packaging arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the end of the telecommunications cable stored within the storage compartment is terminated with a termination element.
4. A packaging arrangement according to claim 3, wherein the termination element is a fiber optic connector.
5. A packaging arrangement according to claim 4, wherein the fiber optic connector is an MPO connector.
6. A packaging arrangement according to claim 3, wherein the termination element is a fiber optic cassette configured to separate out multiple fibers of a fiber optic cable to a plurality of connection locations.
7. A packaging arrangement according to claim 6, wherein the connection locations are defined by first fiber optic connectors, each having a ferrule.
8. A packaging arrangement according to claim 7, wherein the fiber optic cassette includes fiber optic adapters for connecting the first fiber optic connectors with second fiber optic connectors incoming from an exterior of the cassette.
9. A packaging arrangement according to claim 8, wherein the fiber optic adapters are SC adapters.
10. A packaging arrangement according to claim 8, wherein the fiber optic adapters are LC adapters.
11. A packaging arrangement according to claim 6, wherein the opening allowing the telecommunications cable to pass from the first side to the second side of the flange is large enough to accommodate the fiber optic cassette.
12. A packaging arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the second side of the flange defines a snap-fit interlock structure for temporarily holding a termination element terminated to the end of the telecommunications cable that has passed through the opening in the flange.
13-33. (canceled)
34. A method of assembling a packaging arrangement for telecommunications cabling, the method comprising:
- constructing a spool by coupling a first flange to a second flange with a spool hub, each flange defining a first cable contact side, a second cable-end storage side;
- passing an end of a telecommunications cable through either the first flange or the second flange through an opening on the flange from the first side to the second side of the flange;
- winding the telecommunications cable around the hub between the first flange and the second flange; and
- placing the spool around a spindle.
35. A method according to claim 34, further comprising placing a plurality of the spools around the spindle, each independently rotatable with respect to the spindle.
36. A method according to claim 34, further comprising placing the spool and the spindle within a box.
37. A method according to claim 34, further comprising covering the second side of the flange after passing the end of the telecommunications cable through the opening on the flange.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 26, 2018
Publication Date: Oct 4, 2018
Inventor: Michael James Ott (Hudson, WI)
Application Number: 15/935,491