Optical fiber connection housing

• US 20040013389A1
• Filed: 03/25/2003
• Published: 01/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CommScope Technologies, LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Aptus 50. GmbH
• Inventors: Taylor, Christopher Charles
• Granted Patent: US 6,788,871 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 385/134
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/4454 with splices

Abstract

The invention relates to a housing for providing a connection between optical fibers in line groups or similar in a building and one or more devices. Said housing is molded from a plastic material and comprises two housing parts (10 and 11). One housing part (10) is configured in such a way that it is fixed to a wall and can therefore accommodate optical fibers from line groups, and contains formations (15) that define the paths along which the fibers can extend. The second housing part (11) is pivotably mounted on the first part (10) and houses a shell (25). Said shell (25) contains formations that define the path for guiding optical fibers to a splice area and then to one or more exits (23, 23).

Claims

1. A housing for use in providing a connection between optical fibres located in trunking or the like in a building and one or more items of equipment, said housing comprising first and second housing members which are connectable, said first housing member being mountable on a wall or the like in the building so that it can receive optical fibres from said trunking and having formations which define a path for said fibres, said second housing member having formations which define a path which can receive said fibres from said first housing member and along which the fibres can be guided to a splice region, said housing member having further formations which define paths for fibres extending from said splice region to one or more outlets.

2. A housing according to claim 1, wherein said second housing member comprises two parts, a first part being pivotally connected to a first housing member and being moulded so as to define said one or more outlets, and said second part including a tray-like member which has said formations which define said paths.

3. A housing according to claim 2, wherein the splice region is defined in said tray-like member and is arranged to receive one or more splice units.

4. A housing according to claim 3, wherein each splice unit comprises a moulded member which defines a number of side-by-side channels.

5. A housing according to claim 3, or claim 4, wherein the splice region also accommodates a breakout unit which, when used, is disposed below the splice unit or units.

6. A housing according to any preceding claim, wherein the formations define paths which are arranged to have a radius of curvature which is not less than a preselected critical radius.

7. A housing according to any preceding claim, wherein the paths are so defined that the optical fibres can extend around them a plurality of times.

8. A housing according to any preceding claim, wherein the formations provided on the first housing member define a path whose shape enables the direction of the fibres to be changed without subjecting the fibre to bending of less than a critical bending radius.