Optical Communication Connector
First Claim
1. An optical communication connector, comprising a ferrule having retractable alignment pins that are actuable between an extended position and a retracted position.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
In accordance with the following description, an optical communication connector includes a ferrule having retractable alignment pins that are actuable between an extended position and a retracted position. For example, the connector may include an inner housing assembly having optical fibers and an outer housing positioned over the inner housing assembly. The outer housing is shaped to be removable from the inner housing assembly, which has a movable pin clamp mechanically coupled to alignment pins for aligning the connector with another connector. The pin clamp may be slid from a first position (corresponding to a male gender) to a second position (corresponding to a female gender). Separately or in combination with changing gender, the polarity of a communication connector may be changed due to its inclusion of an asymmetric polarity-changing feature that is actuable by an installer to change a polarity of the communication connector. Such a feature may actuated by being moved from a first position to a second position relative to the communication connector.
-
Citations
41 Claims
- 1. An optical communication connector, comprising a ferrule having retractable alignment pins that are actuable between an extended position and a retracted position.
-
17. An optical communication connector, comprising:
-
an inner housing assembly having optical fibers disposed therein; and an outer housing disposed over the inner housing assembly, the outer housing shaped to be removable from the inner housing assembly; wherein the inner housing assembly comprises a movable pin clamp mechanically coupled to alignment pins for aligning the connector with another connector, wherein the pin clamp may be slid from a first position to a second position, and wherein the first position corresponds to a male gender and the second position corresponds to a female gender. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
-
-
34. An optical communication connector, comprising:
-
an inner housing assembly that houses a plurality of optical fibers disposed in a ferrule, wherein the inner housing assembly has a stop surface that defines a first position corresponding to a male gender and a second position corresponding to a female gender; and a movable pin clamp disposed in the inner housing assembly, wherein the pin clamp has a deflectable tab that may be slid relative to the stop surface from the first position to the second position to change the gender of the connector. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37)
-
-
38. An optical communication connector, comprising:
-
an inner housing assembly having a ferrule with optical fibers disposed therein; and an outer housing shaped to slide over the inner housing assembly; wherein the outer housing has a polarity key disposed thereon, and wherein the outer housing may be rotated 180-degrees along an axis orthogonal to a front face of the ferrule to cause the polarity key to be rotated from a first position to a second position, wherein the first position corresponds to a first polarity and the second position corresponds to a second polarity, and wherein the inner housing assembly has at least two recessed features, each being shaped to accept the polarity key when the outer housing is slid over the inner housing assembly.
-
-
39. A communication connector, comprising a polarity-changing feature actuable by an installer to change a polarity of the communication connector, the polarity-changing feature being an asymmetric feature that may actuated by being moved from a first position to a second position relative to the communication connector.
-
40. A fiber adapter panel having a plurality of optical communication connectors, at least one of which comprises:
-
an inner housing assembly having optical fibers disposed therein; and an outer housing disposed over the inner housing assembly, the outer housing shaped to be removable from the inner housing assembly; wherein the inner housing assembly comprises a movable pin clamp mechanically coupled to alignment pins for aligning the connector with another connector, wherein the pin clamp may be slid from a first position to a second position, and wherein the first position corresponds to a male gender and the second position corresponds to a female gender.
-
-
41. An optical communication cable comprising at least one end terminated at an optical communication connector, the optical communication connector comprising:
-
an inner housing assembly having optical fibers disposed therein; and an outer housing disposed over the inner housing assembly, the outer housing shaped to be removable from the inner housing assembly; wherein the inner housing assembly comprises a movable pin clamp mechanically coupled to alignment pins for aligning the connector with another connector, wherein the pin clamp may be slid from a first position to a second position, and wherein the first position corresponds to a male gender and the second position corresponds to a female gender.
-
Specification