Cable management arm with trough and breakaway feature
First Claim
1. A cable management arm assembly for organizing cables of a computer server, said arm assembly comprising:
- an inner arm slide bracket;
an inner arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the inner arm section being pivotably mounted to the inner arm slide bracket, said inner arm section including a first trough defined by a base plate and opposing side plates;
a break-away link including a first end and a second end, said first end of the break-away link being pivotably mounted to the second end of the inner arm section;
an outer arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the outer arm section being pivotably mounted to the second end of the break-away link, said outer arm section including a second trough defined by a base plate and opposing side plates; and
an outer arm slide bracket pivotably coupled relative to the second end of the outer arm section, wherein the inner arm section pivots relative to the break-away link to a first position where one of said side plates defining the first trough is parallel and adjacent to one of said side plates defining the second trough, and wherein the inner arm section and the outer arm section pivot relative to the break-away link to a second position where the side plate of the first trough is almost parallel to the side plate of the second trough but is disposed farther away therefrom than in the first position;
said break-away link applying a locking force to lock said inner and outer arm sections in said first position until sufficient force is exerted when pivoting said inner and outer arm sections to said second position to overcome said locking force.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A cable management arm assembly for a computer server that includes a break-away link that allows the arm assembly to be pivoted away from the back panel of the computer server while the server is attached to a computer rack. The cable management arm further includes an inner arm section, an inner arm slide racket, an outer arm section and an outer arm slide bracket. The inner arm section is pivotably mounted to the inner arm slide bracket at one end, and is pivotably mounted to the break-away link at an opposite end. Likewise, the outer arm section is pivotably mounted to the outer arm slide bracket at one end, and is pivotably mounted to the break-away link at an opposite end. When the computer server is retracted into the rack, the sections pivot and rotate in such a manner that the inner arm section and the outer arm section are in contact with each other and are parallel, where the break-away link forms an extension of the outer arm section. The break-away link allows the folded arm assembly to pivot away from the back panel of the server when the server is in the retracted position.
134 Citations
45 Claims
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1. A cable management arm assembly for organizing cables of a computer server, said arm assembly comprising:
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an inner arm slide bracket;
an inner arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the inner arm section being pivotably mounted to the inner arm slide bracket, said inner arm section including a first trough defined by a base plate and opposing side plates;
a break-away link including a first end and a second end, said first end of the break-away link being pivotably mounted to the second end of the inner arm section;
an outer arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the outer arm section being pivotably mounted to the second end of the break-away link, said outer arm section including a second trough defined by a base plate and opposing side plates; and
an outer arm slide bracket pivotably coupled relative to the second end of the outer arm section, wherein the inner arm section pivots relative to the break-away link to a first position where one of said side plates defining the first trough is parallel and adjacent to one of said side plates defining the second trough, and wherein the inner arm section and the outer arm section pivot relative to the break-away link to a second position where the side plate of the first trough is almost parallel to the side plate of the second trough but is disposed farther away therefrom than in the first position;
said break-away link applying a locking force to lock said inner and outer arm sections in said first position until sufficient force is exerted when pivoting said inner and outer arm sections to said second position to overcome said locking force.- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A cable management arm assembly for organizing cables of a computer server, said computer server operable to be mounted to a computer rack by a pair of opposing slide assemblies, each slide assembly including a stationary member mounted to the rack and a slidable member mounted to the server and slidable relative to the stationary member, said arm assembly holding the cables when the computer server is in a home position within the rack, when the computer server is slid out of the rack on the slide assemblies to an extended position, and when the arm assembly is in a break-away position where the arm assembly is moved away from a back panel of the computer server and the computer server is in the home position, said arm assembly comprising:
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an inner arm bracket operable to be mounted to the slidable member;
an inner arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the inner arm section being pivotably mounted to the inner arm bracket;
a break-away link including a first end and a second end, said first end of the break-away link being pivotably mounted to the second end of the inner arm section;
an outer arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the outer arm section being pivotably mounted to the second end of the break-away link; and
an outer arm bracket pivotably coupled relative to the second end of the outer arm section, said inner arm section and said outer arm section being substantially parallel when the arm assembly is in the home position, wherein the inner arm section pivots relative to the inner arm bracket and the break-away link and the outer arm section pivots relative to the outer arm bracket when the cable arm assembly is moved from the home position to the extended position, and wherein the inner arm section pivots relative to the inner arm bracket and the break-away link and the outer arm section pivots relative to the break-away link and the outer arm bracket when the arm assembly is moved from the home position to the break-away position;
said break-away link applying a locking force to lock said inner and outer arm sections in said home position until sufficient force is exerted when pivoting said inner and outer arm sections to said break-away position to overcome said locking force.- View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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32. A cable management arm assembly for organizing cables of a computer server, said computer server operable to be mounted to a computer rack by a pair of opposing slide assemblies, each slide assembly including a stationary member mounted to the rack and a slidable member mounted to the server and slidable relative to the stationary member, said arm assembly holding the cables when the computer server is in a home position within the rack, when the computer server is slid out of the rack on the slide assemblies to an extended position, and when the arm assembly is in a break-away position where the arm assembly is moved away from a back panel of the computer server and the computer server is in the home position, said arm assembly comprising:
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an inner arm bracket operable to be mounted to one of the slidable members, said inner arm bracket including at least one pair of prongs defining at least one cut-out section in the inner arm bracket;
an inner arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the inner arm section being pivotably mounted to the inner arm bracket;
a break-away link including a first end and a second end, said first end of the break-away link being pivotably mounted to the second end of the inner arm section;
an outer arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the outer arm section being pivotably mounted to the second end of the break-away link;
an extension link including a first end and a second end, said first end of the extension link being pivotably mounted to the second end of the outer arm section; and
an outer arm bracket pivotably coupled relative to the second end of the outer arm section, said inner arm section and said outer arm section being substantially parallel when the arm assembly is in the home position, wherein the inner arm section pivots relative to the inner arm bracket and the break-away link and the outer arm section pivots relative to the outer arm bracket when the cable arm assembly is moved from the home position to the extended position, and wherein the inner arm section pivots relative to the inner arm bracket and the break-away link and the outer arm section pivots relative to the break-away link and the outer arm bracket when the arm assembly is moved from the home position to the break-away position. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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40. A cable management arm assembly for organizing cables of a computer server, said computer server operable to be mounted to a computer rack by a pair of opposing slide assemblies, each slide assembly including a stationary member mounted to the rack and a slidable member mounted to the server and slidable relative to the stationary member, said arm assembly holding the cables, when the computer server is slid out of the rack on the slide assemblies to an extended position, and when the computer server is in a home position within the rack, and when the arm assembly is in a break-away position where the arm assembly is moved away from a back panel of the computer server and the computer server is in the home position, said arm assembly comprising:
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an inner arm bracket operable to be mounted to one of the slidable members;
an inner arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the inner arm section being pivotably mounted to the inner arm bracket by a pair of opposing pivot pins, said inner arm section including a first trough defined by a base plate and opposing side plates;
a break-away link including a first end and a second end, said first end of the break-away link being pivotably mounted to the second end of the inner arm section by a pair of opposing pivot pins;
an outer arm section including a first end and a second end, said first end of the outer arm section being pivotably mounted to the second end of the break-away link by a pair of opposing pivot pins, said outer arm section including a second trough defined by a base plate and opposing side plates;
an extension link including a first end and a second end, said first end of the extension link being pivotably mounted to the second end of the outer arm section by a pair of opposing pivot pins;
an outer arm bracket pivotably coupled to the second end of the extension link by a pair of opposing pivot pins, said outer arm bracket operable to be mounted to the rack proximate one of the stationary members; and
a stabilizing arm section coupled to the outer arm bracket, said stabilizing arm section including a stabilizing bracket connected to an end of the stabilizing arm section opposite to the outer arm bracket, said stabilizing arm bracket operable to be coupled to the rack proximate another stationary member of a slide assembly, said inner arm section and said outer arm section being substantially parallel when the arm assembly is in the home position, wherein the inner arm section pivots relative to the inner arm bracket and the break-away link and the outer arm section pivots relative to the outer arm bracket and the extension link when the cable arm assembly is moved from the home position to the extended position, and wherein the inner arm section pivots relative to the inner arm bracket and the break-away link, the extension link and the outer arm section pivots relative to the break-away link and the outer arm bracket when the arm assembly is moved from the home position to the break-away position. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
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Specification