Optical fiber cable with anti-split feature
First Claim
1. An optical communication cable, comprising:
- a jacket including an elongate member embedded in a first material such that the first material and the elongate member form a cohesive composite, wherein the jacket is mostly formed from the first material such that the jacket is greater than 50% the first material by volume, wherein the elongate member is formed from a second material embedded in the first material of the jacket, and wherein the jacket defines a channel therein;
a plurality of optical transmission elements located within the channel; and
armor comprising a wrapped sheet having a lateral edge on a side of the sheet, the armor positioned around the plurality of optical transmission elements within the channel of the jacket; and
wherein the elongate member of the jacket has an inner surface aligned with and located exterior to the lateral edge of the armor, and wherein, when viewed in cross-section, the elongate member fully overlays the lateral edge of the armor and extends tangentially therebeyond, whereby the elongate member provides an obstacle in the jacket that limits split initiation associated with the lateral edge or split propagation through the jacket originating therefrom.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An optical communication cable includes a jacket, optical transmission elements, and armor. The jacket is mostly formed from a first material and includes an elongate member formed from a second material embedded in the first material. The jacket defines a channel in which the optical transmission elements are located. The armor includes a wrapped sheet having a lateral edge and is positioned around the optical transmission elements within the channel. The elongate member has an inner surface aligned with and located exterior to the lateral edge of the armor; and, when viewed in cross-section, the elongate member fully overlays and extends tangentially beyond the lateral edge. Accordingly, the elongate member provides an obstacle in the jacket that limits zippering through the jacket originating from the lateral edge. Further, the elongate member may double as a tear feature for quickly accessing contents of the cable interior to the jacket.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An optical communication cable, comprising:
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a jacket including an elongate member embedded in a first material such that the first material and the elongate member form a cohesive composite, wherein the jacket is mostly formed from the first material such that the jacket is greater than 50% the first material by volume, wherein the elongate member is formed from a second material embedded in the first material of the jacket, and wherein the jacket defines a channel therein; a plurality of optical transmission elements located within the channel; and armor comprising a wrapped sheet having a lateral edge on a side of the sheet, the armor positioned around the plurality of optical transmission elements within the channel of the jacket; and wherein the elongate member of the jacket has an inner surface aligned with and located exterior to the lateral edge of the armor, and wherein, when viewed in cross-section, the elongate member fully overlays the lateral edge of the armor and extends tangentially therebeyond, whereby the elongate member provides an obstacle in the jacket that limits split initiation associated with the lateral edge or split propagation through the jacket originating therefrom. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An optical communication cable, comprising:
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at least one optical transmission element; armor having a lateral edge, the armor wrapped around the at least one optical transmission element such that the lateral edge overlaps another portion of the armor creating an overlapped portion; and a cohesive composite jacket comprising; a main portion formed from a first material and including an inner surface and an outer surface, the outer surface defining an exterior of the jacket; and a secondary portion formed from a second material and including an inner surface, the secondary portion embedded within the main portion; wherein the jacket defines a channel extending therethrough, and wherein the plurality of optical transmission elements and the armor are located within the channel of the jacket; wherein the secondary portion extends only part of the distance between the channel and the outer surface of the jacket such that a section of the main portion is located between the secondary portion and the outer surface of the jacket; and wherein the inner surface of the secondary portion is generally aligned with the overlapped portion of the armor such that the inner surface of the secondary portion is located between the overlapped portion of the armor and the outer surface of the jacket and, when viewed in cross-section, overlays the lateral edge of the armor and extends at least 2% and less than 15% of the perimeter of the channel tangentially beyond the lateral edge on either side thereof.
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13. An optical communication cable, comprising:
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(A) a core of the cable, comprising core elements comprising one or more optical fibers; (B) armor surrounding the core, the armor comprising two or more separate armor pieces each having a lateral edge joined to another of the separate armor pieces at corresponding interfaces to combine the separate armor pieces and form the armor, wherein the interfaces seat the lateral edges of joined separate armor pieces together in less than all degrees of freedom such that the respective separate armor pieces may be pulled tangentially apart from one another and away from the seating; and (C) a jacket surrounding the armor, wherein the jacket holds the separate armor pieces together, the jacket comprising; (i) a main portion formed from a first extrudable polymer material and including an inner surface and an outer surface; and (ii) secondary portions formed from a second extrudable polymer material and embedded within the main portion, wherein the main portion and the secondary portions are coextruded with each other, wherein the secondary portions respectively overlay the interfaces of the separate armor pieces, and wherein the secondary portions mitigate zippering associated with the corresponding interfaces and support single-step core access by facilitating tearing open of the jacket about the interfaces as the separate armor pieces are pulled tangentially apart from one another. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification