Implements or apparatus for applying pushing or pulling force – Method or apparatus for placement of conductive wire – By fluid pressure differential in conduit
Patent
1995-12-15
1998-05-12
Watson, Robert C.
Implements or apparatus for applying pushing or pulling force
Method or apparatus for placement of conductive wire
By fluid pressure differential in conduit
B65H 5900
Patent
active
057495653
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an optical fibre installation tool, and in particular to a tool for use in customer lead in (CLI) operations, that is to say the way in which optical fibres (such as telecommunications optical fibres) are led into customers'premises.
2. Related Art
In the United Kingdom, the telecommunications network includes a trunk network which is substantially completely constituted by optical fibre, and a local access network which is substantially completely constituted by copper pairs. Eventually, it is expected that the entire network, including the access network, will be constituted by fibre.
The ultimate goal is a fixed, resilient, transparent telecommunications infrastructure for the optical access network, with capacity for all foreseeable service requirements. One way of achieving this would be to create a fully-managed fibre network in the form of a thin, widespread overlay for the whole access topography, as this would exploit the existing valuable access network infrastructure. Such a network could be equipped as needs arise, and thereby could result in capital expenditure savings, since the major part of the investment will be the provision of terminal equipment on a `just in time` basis. It should also enable the rapid provision of extra lines to new or existing customers, and flexible provision or
In order to be completely future proof, the network should be single mode optical fibre, with no bandwidth limiting active electronics within the infrastructure. Consequently, only passive optical networks (PONs) which can offer this total transparency and complete freedom for upgrade, should be considered.
In a PON, a single optical fibre is fed out from the exchange head-end (HE), this fibre being fanned out via passive optical splitters at cabinets and distribution points (DPs) to feed optical network units (ONUs). The ONUs can be in customer'premises, or in the street serving a number of customers. The use of optical splitters enables sharing of feeder fibre and exchange based optical line termination (OLT) equipment, thereby giving PONs a cost advantage. In the United Kingdom, simplex PONs are planned, so that each customer is serviced by a pair of optical fibres.
In order to achieve the goal of providing a fixed, resilient, transparent telecommunications optical fibre access network, it will be important to minimise the installation costs at each part of the network. The present invention is concerned with minimising the cost of installation of fibre from a customer's premises to the nearest network node, and in particular to a cost-effective way of getting fibre into a customer's premises. In this connection, it should be noted that the preferred way of installing fibre is by the well known fibre blowing process (see EP 108590). In this process, a fibre unit (usually a four-fibre unit for residential premises) is blown through a small diameter (5mm) polyethylene tube.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a tool for installing an optical fibre transmission line between the inside of a customer's premises and the outside thereof along a pre-installed tubular pathway which passes through an aperture in a wall of said premises, the tool comprising a housing, a motor mounted within the housing, a motor output shaft, and a pair of drive wheels, at least one of the drive wheels being drivably connected to the output shaft of the motor, and the drive wheels being mounted on the housing for relative movement towards/away from one another, whereby the optical fibre transmission line can be driven along the tubular pathway by the inter-engagement of the counter-rotating drive wheels.
Preferably, the tool further comprises a slipping clutch provided between the motor and the output shaft. Advantageously, the motor is provided with means such as gearing for reversing the direction of drive of the output shaft.
The tool may further comprise guide means for guiding the optical fibre transmission line to the nip betw
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Frost Peter Lewis John
Jessop Paul David
British Telecommunications public limited company
Watson Robert C.
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