Cascadable modem apparatus
First Claim
1. A cascadable data communication equipment (DCE) apparatus comprising:
- a housing having a top and a bottom;
a plurality of angled feet attached to the housing bottom in cantilever fashion to define a distal portion of each foot;
a plurality of receiving slots defined in the housing top and disposed to receive the distal portions of a plurality of angled feet from an adjacent housing;
a resilient locking tab attached to the housing bottom in cantilever fashion to define a distal portion directed away from the housing bottom, the tab being responsive to force applied to the distal portion to flex inwardly toward the housing bottom;
a raised portion on the housing top configured to engage a locking tab from an adjacent housing and interlock the two adjacent housings.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A cascadable modem apparatus includes a modem housing having a top and a bottom. A plurality of angled feet are attached to the housing bottom in cantilever fashion to define a distal portion of each foot. The feet serve both to support the modem on an platform as well as to attach the modem to a similarly configured, adjacent modem assembly. In the preferred embodiment, a plurality of receiving slots are defined in the housing top and are correspondingly disposed to receive the distal portions of a plurality of angled feet from an adjacent modem housing. In this way, insertion of the distal portions of the feet snugly into the receiving slots of an adjacent modem effectively attaches the two adjacent modem assemblies. Preferably, a resilient locking tab is attached to the housing bottom in cantilever fashion to define a distal portion directed away from the housing bottom. As a result, the tab is responsive to force applied to the distal portion to flex inwardly toward the housing bottom. A raised portion on the housing top is configured to engage a locking tab from an adjacent modem housing, flex the tab inwardly as the two adjacent modem housings are interconnected, and captively engage the locking tab when the two modem housings are aligned, to effectively interlock the two adjacent modem housings.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A cascadable data communication equipment (DCE) apparatus comprising:
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a housing having a top and a bottom; a plurality of angled feet attached to the housing bottom in cantilever fashion to define a distal portion of each foot; a plurality of receiving slots defined in the housing top and disposed to receive the distal portions of a plurality of angled feet from an adjacent housing; a resilient locking tab attached to the housing bottom in cantilever fashion to define a distal portion directed away from the housing bottom, the tab being responsive to force applied to the distal portion to flex inwardly toward the housing bottom; a raised portion on the housing top configured to engage a locking tab from an adjacent housing and interlock the two adjacent housings. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 20)
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9. A cascadable data communication equipment (DCE) apparatus comprising:
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a housing having a top and a bottom; a plurality of feet attached to the housing bottom, each foot defining a freestanding distal portion; feet engaging means disposed in the housing top for releasably engaging the distal portion of the plurality of feet of an adjacent housing; and locking means associated with the housing for releasably interlocking two aligned and adjacently disposed housings. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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21. A cascadable apparatus comprising:
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a housing having a top and a bottom; a plurality of angled feet attached to the housing in cantilever fashion to define a distal portion of each foot, wherein the distal portion projects below the housing bottom; and means attached to the housing for releasably engaging the distal portion of the feet; whereby two adjacent housings are releasably held in fixed relation. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24)
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Specification