Optical subassembly having insertable cylindrical sleeve
First Claim
1. An optical communications module, comprising:
- a housing; and
an optical subassembly at least partially contained within the housing, the optical subassembly including;
a body composed of a first material;
a plug receptacle operably attached to the body and including a bore with an inner surface;
a hollow cylindrical sleeve composed of a second material, the sleeve having an outer surface that engages the inner surface of the plug receptacle when the sleeve is received by the plug receptacle bore, the sleeve being configured to operably receive an optical fiber connector therein such that at least a portion of the optical fiber connector extends into the sleeve and into the plug receptacle bore;
a plurality of surface features defined on at least one of the inner surface of the plug receptacle and the outer surface of the sleeve, the surface features facilitating the insertion of the sleeve into the plug receptacle; and
wherein the hardness of the second material exceeds that of the first material.
5 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An optical subassembly (“OSA”) for use in optical communications modules is disclosed. The OSA solves various issues related to the insertion and removal of an optical fiber connector into and from the OSA receptacle, including hard plug, wiggle performance, and shavings production. In one embodiment, an optical communications module is disclosed and includes a housing and an optical subassembly of the present invention partially contained within the housing. The optical subassembly includes various components, including a body composed of a first material, and a plug receptacle formed with the body. The plug receptacle includes an inner surface on which surface features, such as threads, are formed. A hollow cylindrical sleeve composed of a second material is received in the plug receptacle such that the outer sleeve surface engages the surface features of the plug receptacle inner surface and such that an optical fiber connector can be received by the sleeve.
112 Citations
15 Claims
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1. An optical communications module, comprising:
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a housing; and an optical subassembly at least partially contained within the housing, the optical subassembly including; a body composed of a first material; a plug receptacle operably attached to the body and including a bore with an inner surface; a hollow cylindrical sleeve composed of a second material, the sleeve having an outer surface that engages the inner surface of the plug receptacle when the sleeve is received by the plug receptacle bore, the sleeve being configured to operably receive an optical fiber connector therein such that at least a portion of the optical fiber connector extends into the sleeve and into the plug receptacle bore; a plurality of surface features defined on at least one of the inner surface of the plug receptacle and the outer surface of the sleeve, the surface features facilitating the insertion of the sleeve into the plug receptacle; and wherein the hardness of the second material exceeds that of the first material. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method for assembling an optical subassembly, the method comprising:
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defining a body and a plug receptacle that are operably connected; defining a plurality of surface features on an inner surface of the plug receptacle; and inserting a sleeve having a continuous outer surface into the plug receptacle, the surface features of the inner surface of the plug receptacle engaging the outer surface of the sleeve and controlling the amount of sliding force required to insert the sleeve into the plug receptacle, wherein the sleeve is configured to removably receive therein at least a portion of an optical fiber connector such that, when received within the sleeve, the at least a portion of the optical fiber connector is also received within the plug receptacle; and wherein the hardness of the sleeve exceeds that of the body. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15)
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Specification