Optical waveguides – With disengagable mechanical connector – Optical fiber to a nonfiber optical device connector
Patent
1997-11-05
2000-06-06
Lee, John D.
Optical waveguides
With disengagable mechanical connector
Optical fiber to a nonfiber optical device connector
385 53, G02B 642
Patent
active
060710152
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention refers to an electrical plug device with a socket though which a load can be connected to the mains.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
From DE 32 26 265 A1, a flexible electric cable is known which, besides the electric supply lines for connecting a device to the mains, comprises an optical waveguide via which signals may be transmitted. While electric signal lines placed in a common cable together with supply lines suffer interferences from the supply lines (cross-talk noise), light signals are not influenced by currents or voltages on the supply lines.
From DE 32 27 770 C2, an electrical plug device in the form of a socket is known, which allows for the connection of a power line to installed mains lines and further optically couples a light waveguide installed in the building to an optical waveguide of the line to be connected. To this avail, at least one contact portion of the electrical plug device of the socket is simultaneously arranged as a plug device for an optical waveguide. Thus, the plug device connects the electric and the optic portions of a cable to the building-side electric main lines and the optical data lines.
In recent years, in-house information distribution technology has become ever more important. Here, data telegrams are transmitted via a bus line system installed in the building. The bus line system includes electric bus couplers adapted to generate data telegrams and input them into the bus line system and to receive and evaluate data telegrams. The bus couplers are respectively connected to an external electric appliance. Thus, it is possible to monitor, remote-control or switch electric appliances in the building via the bus line system. Such a signal transmission system for in-house information distribution technology is described in EP 0 344 609 B1.
It is the object of the present invention to provide an electrical plug device allowing for the simultaneous connection of an electric appliance to the mains and to an electric bus line system without the data lines in the cable to be connected being influenced by the mains lines.
The plug device of the present invention is generally designed on the basis of common sockets for mains supply. Such sockets comprise a base fastened to a holder, contact elements and terminal clamps for main lines. According to the invention, a bus coupler is provided in or separate from the socket, the coupler being connectable to a building-side electric bus line. This bus coupler is an electric device adapted to perform an electronic telegram transfer with other bus couplers, e.g., a "Bus Interface Module" (BIM). Accordingly, the bus coupler may be designed as an intelligent version (including a microprocessor) or as a passive version (without microprocessor). For example, it comprises a microprocessor and electronic memories. The bus coupler is connected to a photoelectric transducer included in the socket and adapted to communicate with an optical waveguide via a window in the cover of the socket, the optical waveguide terminating in the associated plug adapted to be plugged into the socket. Thus, the socket not only serves to establish electric or optic connections, but at the same time it converts electric signals into light signals or light signals into electric signals. Whereas the data processing is performed in the building-side electric in-house information distribution system, it is the purpose of the socket to convert signals transmitted by the connected appliance via optical waveguides into electric signals and/or to convert electric signals generated by the bus coupler into light signals for the appliance connected therewith. In this manner, the usual electric in-house information distribution systems may be used that are uncoupled from the mains and are thus not influenced by the mains, while the connection of the electric appliance is made by a flexible cable in which the electric mains lines are combined with optical waveguides. The signals in the optical waveguides are not disturbed by vo
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Erbse, deceased Karl-Ulrich
Gringmann Klaus
Schmidt Helmut
Stefanski Manfred
Vicktorius Richard
Gebr. Merten GmbH & Co. KG
Lee John D.
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