JP3868800B2 - closure - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a closure, and more particularly to a closure for protecting and storing an optical fiber cable.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The closure for protecting and storing the optical fiber cable has a space for introducing the optical fiber cable therein, and protects and stores the optical connection portion between the optical fiber cables in the space.
[0003]
5 (a) to 5 (c) show such a conventional closure 1. FIG. This closure includes a cylindrical sleeve 2 and end face plates 3 that respectively close both ends of the sleeve 2 in the axial direction, and the optical fiber cable 4 is connected to the cable introduction port 3a provided in the end face plate 3. The optical fiber introduced into the optical fiber cable 4 and drawn out from the optical fiber cable 4 is introduced into the tray laminated body 5 disposed in the space in the sleeve 2. Processing such as long processing is performed.
[0004]
As shown in FIGS. 5 (b) and 5 (c), such a sleeve 2 is composed of two divided parts 2a and 2b made of a resin such as polyethylene, which are formed using a mold, and an optical fiber. After the cable 4 is introduced and subjected to a predetermined treatment, the divided products 2 a and 2 b are overlapped with each other and wound with a metal band 6, and the band 6 is fixed with a fastener 7. At that time, a plurality of bands 6 and fasteners 7 are provided along the axial direction of the sleeve 2, and a packing (not shown) is provided at the joint between the divided products 2a and 2b. Airtightness and watertightness can be obtained.
In FIG. 5, reference numeral 8 denotes a packing that seals between the end face plate 3 and the optical fiber cable 4 inserted through the introduction port 3 a of the end face plate 3.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
Incidentally, in the above-described conventional closure 1, the sleeve 2 is composed of the divided parts 2a and 2b as described above, and ribs, grooves and the like for preventing the positional deviation of the band 6 are formed. Due to such a structure, the divided products 2a and 2b cannot be formed by resin extrusion using an extrusion die, and each part must be formed one by one by injection molding and press molding of synthetic resin. I must. For this reason, it is necessary to prepare a plurality of expensive dies, and parts are formed one by one by the process of mold clamping, molding, and mold opening, so that the work efficiency is low, which causes an increase in cost. In addition, there are various demands on the length of the closure in the longitudinal direction depending on the number of connection points and connection form. In this case, a new mold must be prepared for each design change of the closure size, which also increases costs. It was.
[0006]
Further, the conventional closure 1 has a problem that the number of parts is large because packing, a plurality of bands 6 and fasteners 7 are required for assembling the divided parts 2a2b of the sleeve 2. Furthermore, when assembling the sleeve 2, the packing is interposed between the divided parts 2a and 2b, and then the band 6 is wound and then tightened with the fastener 7. Therefore, not only the assembly is troublesome but also the removal is troublesome. There was a problem that it took.
[0007]
The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and the object thereof is to greatly reduce the labor and cost of creating a sleeve as compared with the prior art, and to reduce the labor of assembling and removing the sleeve. It is to provide a closure that can be reduced.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention proposes the following means.
The invention according to claim 1 is a closure including a sleeve having a space into which an optical fiber cable is introduced, and end face plates that close both ends of the sleeve in the axial direction. The sleeve is integrally formed. And having a constant cross-sectional shape orthogonal to the axial direction, an opening having an opening surface extending in the axial direction of the sleeve at the lower portion of the sleeve, and opening and closing the opening at the upper portion of the sleeve And at least one thin-walled portion that functions as a hinge, and both ends forming the opening are fastened by fastening means so that the end face plate is sealed inside the sleeve. The end face plate is formed with a first introduction port for introducing an optical fiber cable below the center of the end face plate, from the center of the end face plate. A plurality of second introduction ports for introducing an optical fiber cable having a diameter smaller than that of the optical fiber cable are formed in the portion, and further, the first introduction port is inserted into the entrance / exit part cut out to the lower end of the end face plate And both ends forming the opening of the sleeve are respectively provided with hanging plates bent downwardly, and each hanging plate has a hole through which the bolt of the fastening means is inserted. The stopper (19) inserted into the access portion (17a) when the hanging plate is fastened and sealed by the fastening means in a state where the opening portion is closed is the sleeve (19). It is sandwiched from both sides by portions located on both sides of the opening, and is pressed toward the first introduction port .
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the closure according to the first aspect, a packing that comes into contact with the other hanging plate when the opening of the sleeve is closed is attached to one upper portion of the pair of hanging plates. And the holes for inserting bolts of the pair of hanging plates are located below the packing.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the closure according to the first or second aspect, a tray for storing an extra length of the optical fiber drawn from the optical fiber cable is stored in the sleeve. .
[0009]
According to the closure according to the present invention, since the sleeve is integrally formed, the minimum number of parts is sufficient. In addition, since the sleeve can be assembled simply by fastening both ends forming the opening of the sleeve by the fastening means, the sleeve can be easily assembled. The sleeve can be easily removed and the sleeve can be easily assembled and removed.
[0010]
According to a closure according to this invention, since the cross-sectional shape of the sleeve is constant in the axial direction, it is possible to form the sleeve by extrusion of synthetic resin. Thereby, compared with the conventional method of forming a plurality of parts one by one by injection molding, the sleeve can be produced by one extrusion molding, and the manufacturing efficiency of the sleeve is greatly improved. In addition, it is not necessary to prepare a plurality of expensive dies, and the sleeve can be created with a single die, thereby reducing the cost of the sleeve. Furthermore, even when there is a change in the closure size, it can be dealt with by cutting the molded product extruded from the mold, and a wide variety of closure size changes can be handled without changing the mold.
[0012]
According to the closure of the present invention, when the sleeve is opened and closed, the opening functions as a hinge that uses the thin portion of the sleeve as a fulcrum, so that the sleeve can be opened and closed smoothly even though the sleeve is an integrally molded product. Can be done.
[0013]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 4 are views showing a closure according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a partially broken closure, FIG. 2 is a front view of a partially broken closure, and FIG. 2 is a right side view, and FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing an open / close state of the closure.
[0014]
A closure 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 includes a cylindrical sleeve 11 made of a resin such as weather-resistant polyethylene and an end plate 12 made of the resin that closes both ends of the sleeve 11 in the axial direction. Has been.
The sleeve 11 has a space for introducing the optical fiber cables 13 and 13A therein, and the tray laminate 14 is disposed in the space.
[0015]
In this tray stack 14, a plurality of box-shaped trays 14a along the axial direction of the sleeve 11 are stacked in the vertical direction, and an optical fiber 13c extra length processing section drawn from the optical fiber cable 13 in each tray 14a. (Not shown) is accommodated, and an optical connection portion (not shown) fused with the optical fiber 13c of another optical fiber cable to be branched is accommodated.
[0016]
Further, a connecting rod 15 extends along the longitudinal direction of the tray laminate 14, that is, along the axial direction of the sleeve 11, and the end face plate 12 is fixed via the connecting rod 15. ing. The end plate 12 is a member that closes both ends of the sleeve 11 in the axial direction. The end plate 12 is provided with an introduction portion 16 for introducing the optical fiber cable 13 into the sleeve 11.
[0017]
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4A and 4B, the introduction portion 16 includes a first introduction port 17 formed in a substantially circular shape slightly below the center of the end face plate 12 and slightly above the center. A plurality of second introduction ports 18 formed through the optical fiber cable 13 and the optical fiber cable 13 is passed through the first introduction port 17. The optical fiber cables 13 and 13A are introduced into the sleeve 11 by passing the cable 13A.
[0018]
The first introduction port 17 is provided with an entry / exit part 17a formed by cutting the lower part to the lower part of the end face plate 12. When the optical fiber cable 13 is passed, the stopper 19 is inserted into the entry / exit part 17a. And locked. At this time, the optical fiber cable 13 is inserted into the first introduction port 17 via the C-shaped packing 20 so that the space between the optical fiber cable 13 and the stopper 19 and the end face plate 12 is hermetically sealed. Stopped.
[0019]
Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a cable holding portion 21 for fixing the optical fiber cable 13 introduced from the first introduction port 17 with a grip or the like is provided inside the end face plate 12, while the connecting rod 15. A cable fixing portion 22 is provided at a position near the end face plate 12, and the introduced optical fiber cable 13 is fixed by being sandwiched from both sides by the cable holding portion 21, and the tension member 13 a of the optical fiber cable 13 is fixed by the cable fixing portion 22. It is fixed by being gripped with a.
[0020]
Further, a cable fixing portion 23 is also provided on the inner upper portion of the end face plate 12, and the optical fiber cable 13 </ b> A introduced from the second introduction port 18 is held and fixed by the cable fixing portion 23. A packing 29 for maintaining airtightness and watertightness with the sleeve 11 is mounted on the outer periphery of the end face plate 12 (see FIGS. 1 and 2).
The optical fiber cable 13 includes a tension member 13a disposed at the center, a slot rod 13b disposed on the outside thereof, an optical fiber 13c such as an optical fiber core housed in a slot groove of the slot rod 13b, It has a structure having an outer skin 13d such as a resin covering the outside of the slot rod 13b.
[0021]
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, hanging brackets 25 are respectively attached to the upper outer portions of the end face plates 12 via bars 24. The hanging metal fitting 25 has a bolt 26 and a holding plate 27, and a support wire (see FIG. 2) 28 is sandwiched together with the holding plate 27 and tightened with the bolt 26, thereby being connected to the end plate 12 and the connecting rod 15. An optical connection unit (not shown) composed of the tray stack 14 is suspended from the support line 28.
[0022]
In this embodiment, the sleeve 11 is integrally formed of a synthetic resin with a space of a size that can accommodate the optical connection unit including the end face plate 12 and the tray stack 14. That is, as shown in FIG. 4A, the sleeve 11 is formed in a cylindrical shape having an opening 110 that is openable and closable, and both end portions 111 and 111 forming the opening 110 are fastening means. Are fastened by bolts 31, washers 32 a and 32 b, and nuts 115.
[0023]
More specifically, the sleeve 11 is formed in a substantially square cylindrical shape having the same thickness from one end to the other end in the axial direction, and extends in the axial direction at the lower portion thereof as shown in FIG. An opening portion 110 having an existing opening surface is provided. Further, both end portions 111 forming the opening 110 of the sleeve 11 are provided with hanging plates 112 and 113 bent so as to hang downward.
[0024]
Of both the hanging plates 112 and 113, a hole 112a is formed in the left hanging plate 112 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4A and 4B. Further, the right hanging plate 113 is formed thicker than the left hanging plate 112, a convex portion 114 is formed on the upper portion thereof, and a packing 116 is attached to the convex portion 114. In addition, a hole 113 a is formed in the hanging plate 113 at a position slightly lower than the convex portion 114.
[0025]
When both end portions 111 forming the opening 110 are closed from the state of FIG. 4A as shown in FIG. 4B, one hanging plate 112 comes into contact with the other hanging plate 113 and packing 116, By tightening with fastening means such as bolts 31 in this state, both the hanging plates 112 and 113 are sealed with each other, whereby airtightness and watertightness with respect to the inside of the sleeve 11 can be obtained.
[0026]
In this embodiment, since the length of the sleeve 11 is several tens of centimeters, the fastening means is provided at three predetermined locations. However, the number varies depending on the length of the sleeve 11. Needless to say.
[0027]
Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, thin portions 117 formed by partially removing the thickness of the sleeve 11 are provided on both upper sides of the sleeve 11, that is, both shoulders. ing. The thin-walled portion 117 is cut in, for example, a V shape along the axial direction on both shoulders of the sleeve 11. When the sleeve 11 is opened and closed, it functions as a hinge so that the sleeve 11 can be easily opened and closed. Yes.
[0028]
Since this embodiment is configured as described above, in order to attach the sleeve 11, the suspension fitting 25 is suspended from the support wire 28 in advance, and the end plate 12, the tray laminated body 14, and the like are optically connected to the suspension fitting 25. The unit 110 is connected integrally, and the opening 110 of the sleeve 11 is shown by an arrow shown in FIG. 4A with respect to the end face plate 12, the tray stack 14, the connecting rod 15, and the processed optical fiber cables 13 and 13A. After opening in the direction a and opening the end plate 12 and the tray stack 14 in the space inside, the hanging plates 112 and 113 at both ends 111 forming the opening 110 are fastened by fastening means.
[0029]
That is, the drooping plates 112 and 113 are closed in the opposite direction to the arrow a at a position below the sleeve 11 and brought into contact with each other, and the bolt 31 with the washer 32a is brought into contact with each other as shown in FIG. Is inserted into the hole 112a of the drooping plate 112 and the hole 113a of the drooping plate 113, and the nuts 115 are tightened by interposing the washers 32b on the bolts 31, thereby sealing the opening 110. Complete.
[0030]
In this case, since the sleeve 11 has only a substantially square cylindrical shape integrally formed, unlike the conventional example constituted by the divided products 2a and 2b, only a minimum number of parts is required. Moreover, the sleeve 11 has the same cross-sectional shape from one end to the other end in the axial direction. In other words, the wall thickness is constant in the longitudinal direction (the axial direction of the sleeve 11). As a result, continuous extrusion using an extrusion die is performed. Therefore, a separate molding die is not necessary.
[0031]
Further, when the tray laminated body 14 and the end face plate 12 are stored in the internal space, both ends 111 forming the opening 110 are simply fastened by fastening means (bolts 31, washers 32a, 32b, nuts 115). 11 can be assembled. Therefore, compared to the conventional example in which several bands are tightened around the sleeve, not only the sleeve 11 can be easily assembled but also the sleeve 11 can be added when the optical fiber cable 13 is added. The sleeve 11 can be easily detached and the sleeve 11 can be easily assembled and removed.
[0032]
Also, thin shoulders 117 are provided on both shoulders of the sleeve 11, and these thin portions are recesses along the longitudinal direction of the sleeve formed at the time of extrusion molding. When the sleeve 11 is opened and closed, the sleeve 11 is used as a fulcrum. Since the opening portion 110 of the eleventh member performs a hinge function to open and close, the side surface of the sleeve 11 can be smoothly opened and closed despite being an integrally molded product. This makes it easier to assemble and remove the sleeve 11.
In addition, although there are two thin portions in this embodiment, it may be two or more or less.
[0033]
Furthermore, since the sleeve 11 is formed in a substantially square cylindrical shape corresponding to the end face plate 12, the space factor of the internal space becomes good. That is, the tray stack 14 accommodated in the space inside the sleeve 11 has a cubic shape in which the box-shaped trays 14a are stacked, and the sleeve 11 has a shape corresponding thereto. As compared with the sleeve 2 having a circular cross section as in the prior art, the unnecessary space can be omitted and the space factor can be improved.
[0034]
In addition, when the sleeve 11 is assembled, the sealed opening 110 is positioned directly below the sleeve 11, so that there is no risk of water or the like entering therethrough, and reliable and sufficient airtightness and watertightness are obtained. can get.
The end face plate that closes both ends in the present invention is not limited to the structure and shape of this embodiment, and includes all members that seal both ends of the sleeve in a watertight manner and means having the function.
And since the same entrance is provided at the lower part of the both end face plates, the work of introducing the optical fiber cable into the closure is facilitated, and therefore the work of branching the optical fiber can be performed efficiently.
Furthermore, since the sleeve connecting portion is only at the lower part of the closure, and there is no other connecting portion, there is an advantage that the airtightness and water tightness are excellent.
[0035]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, since the sleeve is integrally molded, only a minimum number of parts is required, and the sleeve can be assembled simply by being fastened by the fastening means. Not only is it easy to attach, but also the sleeve can be easily removed when adding an optical fiber cable, etc., and the effect of facilitating assembly and removal of the sleeve with a small number of parts is obtained. In addition, the cost can be reduced.
[0036]
Further , according to the present invention, since the cross-sectional shape of the sleeve is constant in the axial direction, the sleeve can be formed by continuous extrusion molding. Thereby, compared with the conventional method of forming a plurality of parts one by one by injection molding, the sleeve can be produced by one extrusion molding, and the manufacturing efficiency of the sleeve is greatly improved. In addition, it is not necessary to prepare a plurality of expensive dies, and the sleeve can be created with one umbrella shape, thereby reducing the cost of the sleeve. Furthermore, even if there is a change in the closure size, it is possible to cope by cutting the molded product extruded from the mold to the required length, so that the closure size can be changed without changing the mold. A wide range of changes can be accommodated.
[0037]
In addition, according to the present invention, since the opening of the sleeve is opened and closed with the thin portion serving as a fulcrum, the sleeve can be opened and closed smoothly even though the sleeve is an integrally molded product. As a result, the effect of facilitating assembly and removal can be obtained.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a partially broken plan view showing a closure according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a partially broken front view showing the closure.
FIG. 3 is a left side view of FIG.
4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating a sleeve of a closure, where FIG. 4A is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the sleeve is opened, and FIG. 4B is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the sleeve is fastened and sealed.
5A is a plan view showing a conventional closure, FIG. 5B is a front view, and FIG. 5C is a side view.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Closure, 11 ... Sleeve, 12 ... End face plate, 13, 13A ... Optical fiber cable, 14 ... Tray laminated body, 15 ... Connecting rod, 31 ... Bolt as fastening means, 32a, 32b ... Washer as fastening means DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 110 ... Opening part, 111 ... End part which forms opening part, 112, 113 ... Hanging board, 114 ... Convex part, 115 ... Nut as fastening means, 116 ... Packing, 117 ... Thin part.

Claims (3)

In a closure (10) comprising a sleeve (11) having a space into which an optical fiber cable (13, 13A) is introduced, and end face plates (12) closing both axial ends of the sleeve,
The sleeve is integrally formed and has a constant cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the axial direction, and an opening (110) having an opening surface extending in the axial direction of the sleeve at a lower portion of the sleeve. And at least one thin-walled portion (117) functioning as a hinge when the opening is opened and closed at the upper portion of the sleeve, and both ends (111) forming the opening are fastened with fastening means (31, 32a , 32b, 115) and sealed in a state where the end face plate (12) is housed inside the sleeve ,
The end face plate (12) has a first introduction port (17) for introducing the optical fiber cable (13) below the center of the end face plate, and the optical fiber cable above the center of the end face plate. (13) A plurality of second introduction ports (18) for introducing a smaller-diameter optical fiber cable (13A) are formed, and further, the first introduction port (17) extends to the lower end of the end face plate (12). A stopper (19) to be inserted into the cut-in / out part (17a),
Both ends forming the opening of the sleeve are provided with hanging plates (112, 113) bent so as to hang downward,
Each drooping plate is formed with holes (112a, 113a) through which the bolts of the fastening means are inserted,
When the drooping plate is fastened and sealed by the fastening means with the opening being closed, the stopper (19) inserted into the access portion (17a) is the opening of the sleeve. A closure that is sandwiched from both sides by portions located on both sides of the first and pressed toward the first introduction port .   A packing (116) that is brought into contact with the other hanging plate when the opening of the sleeve is closed is mounted on one upper portion of the pair of hanging plates, and a bolt insertion hole of the pair of hanging plates. The closure according to claim 1, wherein the closure is located below the packing.   The closure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a tray (14a) for accommodating an extra length of the optical fiber (13c) drawn from the optical fiber cable is accommodated in the sleeve.

Images