Optical waveguides – Accessories – Splice box and surplus fiber storage/trays/organizers/ carriers
Patent
1991-09-24
1993-08-31
Gonzalez, Frank
Optical waveguides
Accessories
Splice box and surplus fiber storage/trays/organizers/ carriers
G02B 636
Patent
active
052416178
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to an optical fibre back plane for telephone exchange equipment such as transmission, switching and/or distribution equipment.
Exchange equipment of this type has a plurality of vertically-spaced shelves, each of which contains a plurality of vertically-positioned cards carrying electronic components. A back plane is positioned behind the cards of each shelf, the back planes being provided with connectors for interfacing the cards with other cards and with external cabling. Typically, external cabling is housed within vertical channels positioned at the sides of the shelves.
Conventionally, external cabling is co-axial, and this is generally satisfactory for exchange transmission equipment, that is to any transmission equipment for multiplexing bit streams for transmission over trunk and junction networks. Nowadays, however, it is envisaged that such transmission equipment will incorporate switching equipment, and this leads to problems in making interconnections with the back planes. Basically, these problems arise from the size of the connectors which are required for co-axial cable. Moreover, the problem is exacerbated by the requirements for such equipment to cope with increased bit transmission rates.
One known way of alleviating these problems is to use optical fibre cables instead of co-axial cables. Apart from their increased bandwidth, the advantage of using optical fibres is that they are physically much smaller than co-axial cable, and so are easier to connect to the back planes of exchange equipment. Unfortunately, in conventional optical technology, incoming optical fibres are exposed, and so must be ruggedised. This leads to an increase in effective fibre size, and also to an approximately tenfold cost increase.
The aim of the invention is to provided an optical fibre back plane for feeding optical fibres to exchange equipment without requiring such optical fibres to be ruggedised.
The present invention provides an optical fibre back plane for feeding incoming optical fibres to exchange equipment, the optical fibre back plane comprising a support member, attachment means for attaching the support member to the exchange equipment for pivotal movement about an axis, and optical interface means for connecting the incoming optical fibres to on-board optical fibres, wherein the optical fibre back plane is provided with support means for supporting the incoming optical fibres, the support means extending parallel, and closely adjacent, to said axis.
Advantageously, the back plane is provided with second optical interface means for connecting on-board optical fibres to optical fibres leading to the exchange equipment.
In a preferred embodiment, the support member is formed with a first fibre storage area for storing spare incoming optical fibres, and the support member is formed with a second fibre storage area for storing spare on-board optical fibres. The fibre storage areas may be positioned on opposite sides of the support member. Conveniently, the or each fibre storage area is provided with at least one generally cylindrical boss whose radius of curvature is at least equal to the minimum bend radius for optical fibres.
Preferably, the support means is constituted by a tube extending part way along the support member adjacent to one edge thereof, said one edge being associated with a hinge which constitutes the attachment means. The incoming optical fibres exiting the tube may be guided towards the first fibre storage area by a curved channel whose radius of curvature is at least equal to the minimum bend radius for optical fibres. Advantageously, the first fibre storage area is positioned on the opposite side of the support member to the tube, the incoming optical fibres passing from the curved channel to the first fibre storage area via a slot formed in the support member.
The first-mentioned optical interface means may be positioned within the first fibre storage area. Conveniently, the on-board optical fibres pass from the first fibre storage area to the second fibre s
REFERENCES:
patent: 4840449 (1989-06-01), Ghandeharizadeh
patent: 4911521 (1990-03-01), Ryuto et al.
patent: 4932744 (1990-06-01), Messelhi
Peacock John
Peter Lee
British Telecommunications public limited company
Gonzalez Frank
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