JP4638345B2 - Tray housing structure and optical closure - Google Patents

Description

The present invention, the tray accommodating structure of the optical fiber excess length storage tray to yield capacity for accommodating the extra length of the optical fiber, and an optical closure with its tray accommodating structure.

When an optical fiber installed overhead on a utility pole or the like is drawn indoors, a box-shaped optical closure is used to connect the core wires and accommodate the extra length of the optical fiber. This optical closure is provided with a welded portion holding portion for holding an optical fiber connecting portion therein and an extra length accommodating space for accommodating the extra length of the optical fiber, and an extra tray is provided in the extra length accommodating space to provide an optical fiber. It is configured to store the surplus length.
This tray is normally formed so that it can be stacked, and is stored separately for each optical fiber to be stored, and stacked and assembled in an optical closure (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2000-287345 A

However, the tray having the above-described conventional configuration has a height (thickness) that is sufficiently higher than the diameter of the optical fiber even in a form in which one optical fiber is accommodated in one tray, and the tray itself has a thickness. Therefore, when the number of optical fibers to be stored is large, the stacked height becomes large, and the extra length accommodating space of the optical closure requires a large space.
The present invention has been made in view of such problems, the tray accommodating structure housing a large number of optical fiber excess length accommodating tray to the optical fiber excess length fraction can be separated housed in a small space, further light with the tray accommodation structure The purpose is to provide a closure.

In order to solve the above problems, tray structure according to the invention of claim 1 holds a hook member for suspending the excess optical fiber length receiving tray, the left and right side portions of the excess optical fiber length receiving tray A pair of side holding means and a lower holding means for holding the lower part of the optical fiber extra length storage tray are provided, and the suspended optical fiber extra length storage tray is integrally formed of a flexible member. It is composed of a plurality of thin plates, and the plurality of thin plates are connected in the vertical direction and can be bent at the connecting portion, and the thin plate is cut and formed to wind and store the optical fiber in at least one of the thin plates. Optical fiber holding means, and further has suspension means for suspending the connected thin plate on the hook body at the end of any one thin plate, and the connected thin plates are folded and overlapped. The An internal space and an optical fiber storage unit that, the hook body, the side retaining means and the lower holding means, a leg portion extending to a suspension or an optical fiber excess length storage tray back to hold a respective at said legs An optical fiber winding space is provided in the space behind the optical fiber extra length storage tray that is surrounded .

With this configuration, the optical fiber can be wound and accommodated even at the back of the accommodated tray, so that it is possible to separate and accommodate the preceding optical fiber before branching and the branched optical fiber by using only one tray. Thus, maintenance work and the like are facilitated. In particular, when storing optical fibers in a closure, it is possible to store the pre-wired optical fibers in a live state through which light passes through in a tray and work while hanging on the hook body. Thus, no stress is applied to the optical fiber in the live state.
Further, since the periphery of the tray is held by the hook body, the lower holding means, and the side holding means, the tray can be stably held, and the optical fiber winding space is formed by the legs provided in the tray housing structure. Can be wound and accommodated well, and maintenance work is easy.
Furthermore, since the optical fiber storage tray to be stored forms an optical fiber storage portion by stacking flexible thin plates, the thickness of the tray is determined by the diameter and the number of windings of the optical fiber to be stored, and the minimum thickness. A tray can be formed. Therefore, even if a plurality of trays are overlapped to accommodate a plurality of optical fibers, the overall thickness can be reduced, and an optical fiber accommodation space including the trays can be formed in a space-saving manner.
Here, “having flexibility” includes a property having a restoring force (elasticity), and also includes, for example, paper that is easily deformed.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the optical fiber holding means of the extra optical fiber length storage tray is opposed to prevent the optical fiber that is wound and stored from protruding to the side of the tray. A first holding means provided with a free end toward the inner side, and a free end provided leftward and rightward in the first holding means in order to limit the minimum bending radius of the wound optical fiber. And a second holding means.
With this configuration, the optical fiber stored in the tray does not protrude, and the minimum bend radius is regulated. Therefore, even if the optical fiber is pulled, the minimum curvature is not interrupted, and the bending or the characteristic is reduced. There is no such thing as deterioration.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the configuration according to the first or second aspect, the connecting portion of the thin plate is provided with a pinching means that is notched to hold the optical fiber.
With this configuration, the optical fiber can be stored satisfactorily.

An optical closure according to a fourth aspect of the invention is characterized by comprising the tray accommodating structure according to any one of the first to third aspects .
With this configuration, the optical fiber housing space can be reduced, and the entire optical closure can be reduced in size and weight. Further, since the optical fiber is accommodated in the tray and the back thereof, the optical fiber is not caught when the lid of the optical closure is tightened.

Thus, according to the tray accommodating structure of the present invention, the optical fiber can be wound and accommodated even at the back of the accommodated tray, and the preceding optical fiber before branching and the branched optical fiber can be separated by using only one tray. And can be easily accommodated.
Further, according to the optical closure of the present invention, the optical fiber accommodation space can be reduced, and the entire optical closure can be reduced in size and weight.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view showing an example of an optical fiber extra-length storage tray (hereinafter simply referred to as a tray), which is composed of three thin plates 1 (1a, 1b, 1c) connected in the vertical direction, and the whole is a composite. A resin film is punched and formed integrally. Reference numeral 2 denotes a stored optical fiber.

The thin plates 1 are each formed in a quadrangular shape, and the connecting portion 3 is formed thinner than the thin plate 1 and is easily bent. In the central thin plate 1b, optical fiber holding pieces 4 as optical fiber holding means are formed at four places, upper, lower, left and right, and through holes 5 as a pair of suspension means are formed at the upper part.
The optical fiber holding pieces 4 provided on the upper and lower sides are tongue-like pieces 4a as clamping means formed by notching a U-shaped cut from the end, and are formed vertically symmetrical with the upper thin plate 1a. A cut is provided from the connecting portion or the connecting portion with the lower thin plate 1b. And it has the free end toward the inner side which opposes. Further, a claw piece 7a as a second holding means having a free end toward the end portion is punched and formed inside the tongue-like piece 4a, and the stored optical fiber 2 is sandwiched between the tongue-like pieces 4a. The optical fiber held between the claw pieces 7a is prevented from jumping out.

On the other hand, the optical fiber holding pieces 4 provided on the left and right are tongue-like pieces 4b as first holding means provided by forming U-shaped slits 8 and are formed symmetrically, each in the vicinity of the end. It is connected to the thin plate 1b and has a free end facing inward. Further, a claw piece 7b as a second holding means having a free end toward the outside is punched and formed inside the tongue-like piece 4b, and light stored in the same manner as the optical fiber holding pieces 4 provided above and below. While sandwiching the fiber, the optical fiber held by the claw piece 7b is prevented from jumping out.
Further, the minimum curvature (minimum bending radius) of the held optical fiber is determined and held by the claw piece 7a of the tongue-like piece 4a provided at the top and bottom and the claw piece 7b of the tongue-like piece 4b provided at the left and right. Even if the optical fiber is pulled carelessly from the outside, the minimum curvature determined by these four claw pieces 7a, 7a, 7b, 7b is not interrupted.
And the through-hole 5 is formed so that it may protrude upward so that the connection part 3 with the upper thin plate 1a may be pinched | interposed from right and left, and it may be formed vertically long in order to insert and suspend the suspension object mentioned later.

FIG. 2 shows a state in the middle of bending the tray, and an optical fiber storage portion is formed on the front surface of the central thin plate 1b which is bent and overlapped in the order of A and B shown in the figure.
Although the optical fiber holding pieces 4 are provided at four locations, it is possible to hold the optical fibers as long as there is at least one pair, and three or five or more optical fibers may be provided. Moreover, although one pair of the through-holes 5 is provided, you may provide only one in the upper center of the center thin plate 1b.
Alternatively, the tongue pieces 4a and 4b and the claw pieces 7a and 7b may be formed in opposite directions. However, the directions of the tongue-like pieces 4a and 4b and the claw pieces 7a and 7b provided therein remain opposite to each other.

In this way, since the optical fiber storage portion is formed by stacking flexible thin plates, the thickness of the tray is determined by the diameter and the number of windings of the optical fiber to be stored, and the tray can be formed with the minimum thickness. Therefore, even if a plurality of trays are overlapped to accommodate a plurality of optical fibers, the overall thickness can be reduced, and an optical fiber accommodation space including the trays can be formed in a space-saving manner. And since it comprises three thin plates, an optical fiber accommodation part can be made into the space isolate | separated from the circumference | surroundings, and an optical fiber can be accommodated stably.
Further, since the first holding means is provided, the stored optical fiber does not protrude from the tray, and the minimum curvature is defined by the second holding means. Therefore, even if the optical fiber is pulled, it is minimized. The curvature is not interrupted, and there is no breakage or deterioration of characteristics. Further, since the holding means is provided, the optical fiber can be stored well.
In addition, by forming with a synthetic resin, the tray can be made robust even if it is thin, and can be stored without being stressed by being appropriately deformed (the degree of swelling changes) regardless of the amount of optical fiber stored. In addition, the thin plate can be easily formed integrally and can be formed transparently, so that it is possible to confirm the state of accommodation of the optical fiber without opening it.
Furthermore, it is not necessary to separately manufacture and assemble the holding piece, and can be manufactured at low cost.

  In addition, in this embodiment, although the connection part of the thin plates 1 is formed thinly, you may make it easy to bend by making a dotted-line notch. Further, although the optical fiber holding piece 4 is provided only on the central thin plate 1b, the optical fiber holding piece 4 may be provided on the upper thin plate 1a or the lower thin plate 1c so as to hold the optical fiber. In this way, a single tray can store a plurality of extra optical fiber lengths. In addition, the tray is formed of three thin plates, but it is possible to store optical fibers only by connecting two sheets, and when connecting four or more sheets, it is possible to provide a large number of optical fiber accommodating portions. Become.

  FIG. 3 shows a tray housing structure for housing the tray. FIG. 3A is an explanatory view showing the relationship between the tray housing structure and the tray, and FIG. 3B shows a front view of the tray housed in the tray housing structure. The tray housing structure includes a pair of hook bodies 11 as suspension means for suspending the tray, a pair of lower holding means 12 for holding the lower part of the tray, and a pair of side holding means 13 for holding the left and right ends of the tray. Each of them is formed to protrude forward from the rear. Reference numeral 10 denotes an optical fiber extra length storage tray.

  The hook body 11 has a hook 11a formed by bending the tip upward, and is formed so as to prevent the suspended tray 10 from coming off. And the separation wall 11b is provided in the hook body center part used as the base of the hook 11a, and the hook body leg part 11c is provided in the back of the separation wall 11b. The leg portion 11c is provided to form an optical fiber winding space, and the separation wall 11b and the hook body leg portion 11c form an optical fiber holding arm for holding the optical fiber accommodated in the optical fiber accommodating portion. .

On the other hand, the lower holding means 12 is formed in the same shape as the hook body 11 in the vertical direction, has a hook-shaped bent portion 12a at the tip, a separation wall 12b at the center, and a leg at the back of the separation wall 12b. 12c is provided, and the separation wall 12b and the leg 12c form an optical fiber holding arm. Further, the side holding means 13 has a pair of gripping pieces 13a extending laterally in order to grip the tray 10 at the tip, and is formed in a substantially F shape. The leg 13b is formed on the back of the gripping piece 13a. An optical fiber holding arm is formed by one of the gripping pieces 13a and the leg portion 13b.
The lower holding means 12 may be formed in a substantially F shape like the side holding means 13. However, the tray 10 can be satisfactorily suspended and held even if it is turned upside down by having the same shape as the hook body 11.

  In this way, as shown in FIG. 3B, the tray 10 is suspended and accommodated in a tray accommodation structure including a pair of hook bodies 11, a pair of lower holding means 12, and a pair of left and right side holding means 13. 4 is an enlarged view of a main part of the tray 10 suspended from the hook body 11, FIG. 5 is an explanatory side view of the tray 10 accommodated in the tray accommodating structure, and C represents an optical fiber winding space. As shown in this figure, the tray 10 suspended from the hook body 11 is accommodated while its lower and side portions are held by the lower holding means 12 and the side holding means 13. A fiber winding space C is formed in the back space formed by the respective legs 11c, 12c, and 13b, and the optical fiber 2 can be separately wound and accommodated.

  The tray 10 is first rotated halfway from above to insert the hook body 11 into the through hole 5 and is suspended as shown in FIG. Further, since one extra optical fiber is normally stored in one tray 10, when two are stored, the trays 10 are stored in two stages as shown in FIG.

In this way, by allowing the optical fiber to be wound and accommodated even at the back of the accommodated tray, it is possible to separate and accommodate the preceding optical fiber before branching and the branched optical fiber by using only one tray. Thus, maintenance work and the like are facilitated.
In addition, since the tray is held by the hook body, the lower holding means, and the side holding means, the tray can be stably held, and the optical fiber winding space is formed by the legs provided in the tray housing structure. The fiber can be wound and accommodated easily, and maintenance work is easy.

  7 to 9 are explanatory views of an optical closure provided with the tray accommodating structure and accommodating the tray. FIG. 7 is a front view with the lid opened, FIG. 8 is a front view in a closed state, and FIG. The right side views are shown. Reference numeral 15 denotes an optical closure, which is composed of a main body 15a provided with a support line fixing portion 17 for attaching to the support line 16 at an upper portion, and a lid body 15b that closes the opened front surface of the main body 15a. It is connected.

The main body 15a has a welded part holding part 18 for holding the optical fiber welded part at the upper and lower parts in the center, and an optical fiber housing structure comprising the hook body 11, the lower holding means 12 and the side part holding means 13 is provided at the center. The tray 10 is accommodated. And the optical fiber introducing | transducing part 19 is formed in the right-and-left side part. For ease of viewing, the tray 10 on the drawing is shown hatched.
In the tray 10 accommodated in the optical closure 15, the extra length of the optical fiber 5 introduced before branching is accommodated in the tray 10, and the optical fiber winding space formed on the back of the tray 10 is in the optical fiber winding space after branching. The optical fiber 5 is accommodated. When there are a plurality of optical fibers 5 stored in the tray 10, the trays 10 are prepared in accordance with the number of the optical fibers 5 and are stacked and stored in the tray storage structure as shown in FIG. 6.

Thus, by using the optical fiber extra length storage tray, the optical fiber storage space can be reduced, and the entire optical closure can be reduced in size and weight. In addition, by adopting the above-mentioned tray housing structure, when the optical fiber is accommodated in the closure, the pre-wired optical fibers in the live state where light passes through are collectively stored in the tray and suspended on the hook body. The branched optical fiber can be accommodated and operated on the back, and no stress is applied to the live optical fiber during the branching operation or the like.
Further, since the optical fiber is accommodated in the tray and the back thereof, the optical fiber is not caught when the lid of the optical closure is tightened.

In the above-described embodiment, the optical fiber extra length storage tray is made of a synthetic resin film, but may be formed of other materials, for example, cardboard. Further, although the structure of the tray 10 suspended from the hook body 11 is the through-hole 5, it may be formed in a bowl shape like the hook body 11.
Moreover, although the hook body 11 and the lower holding means 12 are each configured as a pair, only one may be provided near the center. In this case, only one suspension means provided on the tray 10 may be provided. Further, the lower holding means 12 is not necessary, and the tray 10 can be suspended and held only by the hook body 11 and the side holding means 13, and an optical fiber winding space can be formed at the back.
The optical fiber extra length storage tray and the tray accommodation structure are not limited to use in an optical closure, and can be used to accommodate an extra length of an optical cable, for example, in an optical termination box.

It is a front view which shows an example of embodiment of an optical fiber surplus length storage tray. It is a perspective view in the middle of bending the optical fiber storage tray of FIG. The tray accommodation structure which accommodates the tray of FIG. 1 is shown, (a) is explanatory drawing, (b) is a front view which shows the state accommodated. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which suspended the tray on the hook body. It is side surface explanatory drawing of FIG. FIG. 4 is a side explanatory view of FIG. 3 showing a state where the tray is provided in two stages. It is a front view of the state which showed the optical closure which accommodated the tray of FIG. 1, and opened the lid | cover. It is the front view which closed the lid | cover of the optical closure of FIG. It is a right view of the optical closure of FIG.

  1. Thin plate 2. Optical fiber 4. Optical fiber holding piece (optical fiber holding means) 4a. Tongue piece (clamping means) 4b Tongue piece (first holding means) 5 ..Through hole (suspension means), 7a, 7b ..Nail piece (second holding means) 10 ..Tray (optical fiber extra length storage tray), 11 ..Hook body (suspension object), 12 -Lower holding means, 13-Side holding means, 15-Optical closure, C-Optical fiber winding space.

Claims (4)

A hook member for suspending the optical fiber excess length storage tray, a pair of side holding means for holding the right and left side portions of the excess optical fiber length receiving tray, the lower holding means for holding a lower portion of the excess optical fiber length receiving tray And
The optical fiber extra length storage tray to be suspended is
Consists of a plurality of thin plates formed integrally with a flexible member,
The plurality of thin plates are connected in the vertical direction and can be bent at the connecting portion,
In order to wind and store the optical fiber in at least one of the thin plates, optical fiber holding means formed by cutting out the thin plate,
Furthermore, it has a suspension means for suspending the connected thin plate to the hook body at the end of any one thin plate,
The internal space formed by bending the connected thin plates to be stacked is used as the optical fiber storage unit,
The hook body, the side holding means, and the lower holding means each have legs extending to the back of the optical fiber surplus storage tray to be suspended or held, and the back of the optical fiber surplus storage tray surrounded by the legs. A tray housing structure comprising an optical fiber winding space in a space . The optical fiber holding means of the optical fiber extra length storage tray includes first holding means provided with free ends facing inward in order to prevent the optical fiber wound and stored from protruding to the side of the tray. 2. The tray storage according to claim 1, further comprising: a second holding means provided with free ends toward the left and right outwards in the first holding means in order to limit a minimum bending radius of the wound optical fiber. Structure . The tray accommodating structure according to claim 1 , wherein the connecting portion of the thin plate is provided with a holding means that is notched to hold an optical fiber. An optical closure comprising the tray accommodating structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3 .

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