GB2367902A

GB2367902A - Organising ribbon fibres of varying sizes

Info

Publication number: GB2367902A
Application number: GB0024119A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Luiz Neves Mendes; Douglas Dowling
Original assignee: Tyco Electronics Raychem BVBA
Current assignee: Commscope Connectivity Belgium BVBA
Priority date: 2000-10-03
Filing date: 2000-10-03
Publication date: 2002-04-17
Also published as: GB0024119D0

Abstract

A device (1) for organising a plurality of ribbon fibres (20) comprises a first part (2) and a second part (3) which can be brought together to enclose an opening (4) in which ribbon fibres (20) can be accommodated. To ensure a good fit even when the device is not filled to capacity, the cross-sectional area of the opening can be varied, by inserting modules (5) into the opening. Also provided is a ribbon fibre organising device mountable support. Kit of parts forming the device, a cable termination with the device, a management system and a method of organising ribbon fibres are also provided.

Description

RIBBON FIBRE ORGANISER

The present invention relates to an organiser for optical fibres which are grouped together as ribbons, hereinafter called"ribbon fibres". More in particular, the present invention relates to a device comprising a first part and a second part, which parts can be brought together to enclose an opening having a predetermined cross-sectional area, in which opening ribbon fibres can be accommodated. Such a device is described in International Patent Application PCT/GBOO/02467.

In the known device, the second part can be fitted on one of four faces of the first part, each face defining a through opening having a different pre-determined crosssectional area. Although this known device is useful as a tool for installation purposes, it is less suitable in other applications, such as when used as a fixed cable termination. Such fixed applications normally require the device to be mounted on a support, thus making the access of the various faces difficult if not impossible.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a device for organising a plurality of ribbon fibres which can be mounted on a support.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a device for organising a plurality of ribbon fibres of which the two parts are in a fixed orientation when the device is enclosing the ribbon fibres.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device for organising a plurality of ribbon fibres which is economical to manufacture.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a device for organising a plurality of ribbon fibres which is easy to use.

It is a yet further object of the present invention to provide a kit-of-parts for forming a device as described above, as well as a method of organising ribbon fibre.

These and other objects may be met by a device as described in the preamble which is, according to the present invention, characterised by modules insertable into the opening so as to reduce the cross-sectional area of said opening.

By providing modules which can be inserted into the opening, the cross-sectional area of the opening can be reduced in a number of steps, depending on the number of modules inserted. The first and second parts of the device have substantially the same orientation, independent of the number of ribbon fibres to be accommodated. The device according to the present invention can therefore have only a single opening the size of which is modified according to a particular application. It will be understood that a device according to the present invention may be provided with a plurality of openings, at least one of which or all of which have a size which can be varied by inserting modules.

In order to fittingly accommodate a number of ribbon fibres, the opening is advantageously rectangular, although other shapes would be possible. In a preferred embodiment, the modules have the same height as the opening. In this way, only the width of the opening is affected by the insertion of modules, not its height. This embodiment is particularly advantageous when the height of the opening corresponds to the width of the ribbon fibres, thus allowing the ribbon fibres to be accommodated sideways.

The device is advantageously provided with attachment means for attaching the modules to the first and/or second part. In one embodiment, the modules are each provided with a pin which is receivable in a corresponding socket in the first part. In a preferred embodiment, however, the modules are hingedly connected to the first part.

Such a hinged arrangement is particularly advantageous as it reduces the number of separate parts which have to be handled during the application of the device. Also, it prevents the modules from getting lost. Advantageously the hinged connections are releasable, thus allowing unwanted modules to be removed.

In a preferred embodiment, the modules are integral with the first part. That is, the modules and the first part are constituted by a single piece connected by a flexible

element which forms a so-called"living hinge". Also in this embodiment the modules may be removed by, for example, cutting or tearing. Advantageously, the hinged modules are each provided with retaining means for retaining the modules in the opening.

Preferably, the first and second parts of the device are hingedly connected and are advantageously formed as a single integral piece. The device may further be provided with locking means for locking the first part and the second part when brought together.

A kit-of-parts for forming a device as defined above comprises a first part, a second part and at least one module for inserting into the opening enclosed by the first and second parts.

In general, the present invention provides a device for organising a plurality of ribbon fibres, the device comprising a first part and a second part, which parts can be brought together to enclose an opening, in which opening ribbon fibres can be accommodated, which device is characterised by being mountable on a support, the opening having a variable cross-sectional area so as to be able to accommodate various numbers of ribbon fibres. The variable size of the opening could also be attained by varying the distance between the first and second parts.

The device according to the present invention can advantageously be used as a cable termination for ribbon fibres and may be used in a system for optical fibre management.

The present invention further provides a method of organising ribbon fibres in a device as defined above, comprising the steps of: - determining the required cross-sectional area of the opening based on the number of ribbon fibres to be organised, - inserting the modules necessary to obtain said required cross-sectional area, - accommodating the ribbon fibres in the device, and - bringing the first part and the second part together.

The present invention will now further be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which : Figure 1 shows, in perspective, a device according to the present invention, Figure 2 schematically shows, in side view, part of the deivice of fig. 1, Figures 3a-3d show, in side view, different configurations of the device of figures 1 and 2, Figure 4 shows, in perspective, another embodiment of the device of the present invention.

The device 1 shown merely be way of non-limiting example in Fig. 1 comprises a first or bottom part 2 and a second or upper part 3. The parts 2 and 3 together define an opening (4 in Fig. 2) which is shown to contain a number of ribbon fibres 20 and modules 5. In the example shown, two modules 5 are accommodated in the device 1, leaving half of the opening available for the ribbon fibres 20.

The particular embodiment of the device 1 shown in Fig. 1 is a cable termination which is further provided with a spiral tube 15 to enclose the ribbon fibres. Such a cable termination can be used to secure ribbon fibres in tight bundles at the entrance of a splice tray.

As shown in Fig. 2, the first part 2 and the second part 3 are in this particular embodiment connected by a living hinge 9 which is integral with the two parts. The parts 2 and 3 define an opening 4 into which modules 5 may be inserted. In the embodiment shown, the modules 5 have the same height as the opening 4 when the parts 2 and 3 are brought together, thus varying only the width of the opening 4. This will later be further explained with reference to figures 3a-3d. The height of the modules 5 advantageously corresponds with the width of a standard type of ribbon cable. Thus the opening 4 may be dimensioned to accommodate twenty-four ribbons of twelve fibres each stacked sideways, or twelve ribbons of twenty-four fibres stacked upwards.

As shown in Fig. 2, the modules 5 of this embodiment are provided with pins 6 which may be received in appropriate sockets in the bottom part 2 so as to hold the

modules in their respective places.

In the example shown in Fig. 3a, three modules 5 are accommodated in the first part 2, thus leaving only one quarter of the opening 4 available for fibre ribbons 20. By removing, or not inserting, one module 5 the space available for the ribbon fibres may be increased, as shown in Fig. 3b where about half of the opening 4 is available for ribbon fibres 20. In Fig. 3c, only a single module 5 is inserted while in Fig. 3d none of the modules 5 is inserted, leaving the entire opening available for the ribbon fibres 20. As clearly shown in figures 3a-3d, the effective size of the opening 4 may be varied, thus ensuring a snug fitting and proper organisation of the ribbon fibres, even when the number of ribbon fibres is smaller than the maximum capacity of the device.

In the preferred embodiment shown in Fig. 4 the modules 5 are hingedly connected to the base part 2. Retaining means are provided to retain the modules 5 in the opening.

The retaining means are constituted by hooks 8 which fit into a slot 9 formed in the base part 2. Locking means are provided to lock the base part and the upper part when brought together. The locking means are constituted by a hook 10 which, when the parts are brought together, may snap behind a ridge 11 in the base part 2. The base part 2 is generally flat, allowing an easy mounting on a support (not shown).

As shown in Fig. 4, the device 1 may be constituted as a single integral piece, the constituent parts being connected by living hinges. In this embodiment, therefore, a living hinge 12 connects the base part 2 and the upper part 3, while living hinges 13 connect the modules 5 to the base part 2. By making the device 1 as a single piece, the number of components is reduced and the application of the device is facilitated. As can be seen from Fig. 4, each of the modules 5 may or may not be pivoted into the opening 4, thus reducing its size. Although in the embodiment shown three modules 5 are used to vary the size of the opening 4, it is of course possible to use only one or two modules, or to use a greater number of modules such as four, five or six or even ten.

Instead of using insertable modules to reduce the effective size of an opening having otherwise fixed dimensions, it is also possible to vary the dimensions of the

opening 4 itself, thus eliminating the need for inserts. In such an alternative embodiment the upper part may be adjustably (e. g. slidably) arranged with respect to the base part 2, the distance between the parts defining the size of the opening 4. Retaining means, e. g. constituted by a pin engaging a corrugated surface, may be provided to maintain a certain mutual distance and, thereby, a certain size of the opening.

It will therefore be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments shown and that many additions and modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined in the appending claims.

Claims

1. Device (1) for organising a plurality of ribbon fibres (20), the device comprising a first part (2) and a second part (3), which parts can be brought together to enclose an opening (4) having a predetermined cross-sectional area, in which opening (4) ribbon fibres (20) can be accommodated, characterised by modules (5) insertable into the opening (4) so as to reduce the cross-sectional area of said opening (4).

2. Device according to claim 1, in which the modules (5) have the same height as said opening (4).

3. Device according to claim 1 or 2, in which the modules (5) are each provided with a pin (6) which is receivable in a corresponding socket (7) in the first part (2).

4. Device according to claim 1 or 2, in which the modules (5) are hingedly connected to the first part (2).

5. Device according to claim 4, in which the hinged connections are releasable.

6. Device according to claim 4, in which the modules (5) are integral with the first part (2).

7. Device according to claim 4,5 or 5, in which the modules (5) are each provided with retaining means (8).

8. Device according to any of the preceding claims, in which the first (2) and the second (3) parts are hingedly connected.

9. Device according to claim 8, in which the first part (2) is integral with the second part (3).

10. Device according any of the preceding claims, further provided with locking means (10) for locking the first part (2) and the second part (3) when brought together.

11. Device (1) for organising a plurality of ribbon fibres (20), the device comprising a first part (2) and a second part (3), which parts can be brought together to enclose an opening (4), in which opening (4) ribbon fibres (20) can be accommodated, characterised by being mountable on a support, the opening (4) having a variable cross-sectional area so as to be able to accommodate various numbers of ribbon fibres (20).

12. Device according to claim 11, in which the first part (2) and the second part (3) can be retained at two or more different mutual distances.

13. Kit-of-parts for forming a device (1) according to any of the preceding claims.

14. Cable termination for ribbon fibres provided with a device (1) according to any of claims 1 to 12.

15. System for optical fibre management provided with a device (1) according to any of claims 1 to 12.

16. Method of organising ribbon fibres in a device (1) according to any of claims 1 to 10, comprising the steps of: i) determining the required cross-sectional area of the opening (4) based on the number of ribbon fibres (20) to be organised, ii) inserting the modules (5) necessary to obtain said required cross-sectional area, iii) accommodating the ribbon fibres (20) in the device (1), and iv) bringing the first part (2) and the second part (3) together.