Fiber optic splice closure and associated methods

• US 5,692,299 A
• Filed: 05/30/1995
• Issued: 12/02/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tyco Electronics Corporation (TE Connectivity Limited)
• Original Assignee: Raychem Corporation (TE Connectivity Limited)
• Inventors: Daems, Daniel Francois, Holman, John Randolph, Claunch, Carney Preston II, Wilcox, Edward Jackson
• Primary Examiner(s): Eley, Timothy V.
• Application Number:
  US08/452,750
• Time in Patent Office: 917 Days
• Field of Search: 29/868, 29/869, 29/872, 29/873, 29/402.09, 29/402.14, 29/402.15, 29/402.17, 385/134, 385/135
• US Class Current: 29/869
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/4446 Cable boxes, e.g. splicing boxes with two or more multi fibre cables
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/44465 Seals
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/44775 Cable seals e.g. feed-through cable seals integrated to the box seals G02B6/4444; pulling eyes G02B6/44465
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49194 Assembling elongated conductors, e.g., splicing, etc.
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49195 with end-to-end orienting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49732 by attaching repair preform, e.g., remaking, restoring, or patching

Abstract

A splice closure including a frame having a partition wall to define front and rear access areas for the closure. The frame carries one or more splice trays on a first surface portion making the splices accessible from the front or first access area. A slack storage compartment is provided on the second surface portion. The slack storage compartment includes one or more pairs of opposing sidewalls that define an access opening for the slack that is accessible from the rear access area. An extension member for the frame is disclosed for obtaining greater amounts of slack from the cable, such as for a taut sheath cable splice. A tandem longitudinal arrangement of splice trays is also disclosed and may be used for a taut sheath ring splice or for repairing a severed cable. A method is disclosed for making a taut sheath optical fiber splice to the severed cable.

Claims

1. A method for making a taut sheath optical fiber splice to a fiber optic cable of the type having an outer jacket and a plurality of buffer tubes containing optical fibers, the buffer tubes being arranged around a central supporting member in a helical lay pattern which reverses directions at regular intervals along the cable thereby defining an oscillating helical lay pattern having a predetermined period, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a splice closure including an elongate frame and splice organizing means mounted thereon for holding one or more optical fiber splices, the frame having a predetermined length as least as great as the period of the oscillating helical lay pattern of the cable;

removing the jacket from a predetermined longitudinal portion of the cable corresponding to at least the period of the oscillating helical lay pattern of an underlying predetermined buffer tube to thereby produce slack in the predetermined buffer tube;

securing the predetermined longitudinal portion of the cable to the frame; and

splicing one or more of the fibers of the predetermined buffer tube to respective one or more fibers of another fiber optic cable and securing the splices within the splice organizer means.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the splice closure further comprises a housing, and further comprising the step of securing the housing around the frame and the splice organizer means.

3. A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of providing the elongate frame of predetermined length comprises the step of adding an extension member to a first longitudinally extending portion of the frame on which the splice organizer means is mounted.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of providing the splice closure includes providing second splice organizer means on the frame longitudinally adjacent the first splice organizer means.

5. A method for repairing a severed portion of a fiber optic cable of the type having one or more severed buffer tubes containing severed optical fibers, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a splice closure comprising an elongate frame, and splice organizing means on the frame for securing splices between predetermined optical fibers, the splice organizing means comprising a plurality of splice trays and first and second mounting means for mounting at least one of the splice trays in each of respective first and second longitudinally adjacent positions on the elongate frame;

securing respective first and second ends of the fiber optic cable to respective opposing ends of the elongate frame of the splice closure; and

making first and second splices between a patch optical fiber and respective first and second ends of each severed optical fiber and positioning the first and second splices in splice trays at respective first and second longitudinally adjacent positions on the elongate frame;

whereby the longitudinal arrangement of the splice trays permits obtaining slack for repairing each severed optical fiber with an intervening patch optical fiber.

6. A method according to claim 5 wherein the splice closure further comprises a housing, and further comprising the step of securing the housing around the frame and the splice organizer means.