US20100034503A1 - Keyed fibre optic connector - Google Patents
Keyed fibre optic connector Download PDFInfo
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- US20100034503A1 US20100034503A1 US12/365,593 US36559309A US2010034503A1 US 20100034503 A1 US20100034503 A1 US 20100034503A1 US 36559309 A US36559309 A US 36559309A US 2010034503 A1 US2010034503 A1 US 2010034503A1
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- United States
- Prior art keywords
- keying
- receptacle
- connector
- cavity
- socket
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Classifications
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- G—PHYSICS
- G02—OPTICS
- G02B—OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS
- G02B6/00—Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings
- G02B6/24—Coupling light guides
- G02B6/36—Mechanical coupling means
- G02B6/38—Mechanical coupling means having fibre to fibre mating means
- G02B6/3807—Dismountable connectors, i.e. comprising plugs
- G02B6/381—Dismountable connectors, i.e. comprising plugs of the ferrule type, e.g. fibre ends embedded in ferrules, connecting a pair of fibres
- G02B6/3826—Dismountable connectors, i.e. comprising plugs of the ferrule type, e.g. fibre ends embedded in ferrules, connecting a pair of fibres characterised by form or shape
- G02B6/3831—Dismountable connectors, i.e. comprising plugs of the ferrule type, e.g. fibre ends embedded in ferrules, connecting a pair of fibres characterised by form or shape comprising a keying element on the plug or adapter, e.g. to forbid wrong connection
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- G—PHYSICS
- G02—OPTICS
- G02B—OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS
- G02B6/00—Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings
- G02B6/24—Coupling light guides
- G02B6/36—Mechanical coupling means
- G02B6/38—Mechanical coupling means having fibre to fibre mating means
- G02B6/3807—Dismountable connectors, i.e. comprising plugs
- G02B6/389—Dismountable connectors, i.e. comprising plugs characterised by the method of fastening connecting plugs and sockets, e.g. screw- or nut-lock, snap-in, bayonet type
- G02B6/3893—Push-pull type, e.g. snap-in, push-on
Definitions
- the present invention relates to a keyed fibre optic connector.
- the present invention relates to an interlocking connector and receptacle pair for fibre optic cables with a geometric keying system moulded into the interface thereby preventing connectors with a first key from being interconnected via a receptacle having a differing key.
- Optical fibres terminated by connectors and the receptacles which are adapted to received these connectors are an important part of virtually any fibre optic communications system.
- such connectors and receptacles may be used to interconnect fibre segments to create longer lengths, to connect optic fibre to active or passive devices, etc.
- the prior art reveals a variety of systems for preventing a connector plug from being inserted into a receptacle socket.
- One of these prior art systems comprises at least one tab arranged at a certain position on the connector plug, each of which is adapted for insertion into a corresponding tab receiving indentation moulded in the receptacle socket. In the absence of such a hollow the tab buts against the opening of the receptacle socket, thereby preventing the connector plug from being completely inserted into the receptacle socket, thereby preventing the connector plug from being correctly interconnected with the receptacle socket.
- a keying system for providing selective interconnection between a receptacle socket and a connector plug terminating an optic fibre, the connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket.
- the keying system comprises a raised boss configured to one of a plurality of predefined boss keying geometries and a cavity configured to one of a plurality of predefined cavity keying geometries.
- the boss is either in one of the receptacle socket or on a forward end of the connector plug and the cavity is formed in another of the receptacle socket or the forward end of the connector plug.
- At least one of the predefined boss keying geometries matches at least one of the predefined cavity keying geometries.
- a receptacle for providing selective interconnection with a connector plug terminating a first optic fibre, the connector plug comprising a cavity having a connector keying geometry formed in a forward end thereof.
- the receptacle comprises at least one receptacle socket comprising a raised boss therein, the boss having a shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries, the connector keying geometry corresponding to one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries.
- a receptacle for providing selective interconnection with a connector plug terminating a first optic fibre, the connector plug comprising a boss having a connector keying geometry formed in a forward end thereof.
- the receptacle comprises at least one receptacle socket comprising a cavity formed therein, the cavity having a shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries, the connector keying geometry corresponding to one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries.
- a connector terminating an optic fibre for providing selective interconnection with a receptacle socket, the receptacle socket comprising a raised boss having a receptacle keying geometry formed therein.
- the connector comprises a connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket and comprising a cavity, the cavity having one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries formed in a forward end thereof, the receptacle keying geometry corresponding to one of the predefined connector keying geometries.
- the connector plug can be inserted into the receptacle socket.
- a connector terminating an optic fibre for providing selective interconnection with a receptacle socket, the receptacle socket comprising a cavity having a receptacle keying geometry formed therein.
- the connector comprises a connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket and comprising a boss having one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries formed in a forward end thereof, the receptacle keying geometry corresponding to one of the predefined connector keying geometries.
- the connector plug can be inserted into the receptacle socket.
- the system comprises a receptacle comprising back-to-back receptacle sockets, each of the sockets comprising a raised boss disposed therein and configured to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries, a first connector plug terminating the first optic fibre, the plug adapted for insertion into a first of the back-to-back receptacle sockets and comprising a cavity formed in a forward end of the plug, the cavity configured to one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries, and a second connector plug terminating the second optic fibre, the plug adapted for insertion into a second of the back-to-back receptacle sockets and comprising a cavity formed in a forward end of the plug, the cavity configured to one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries.
- At least one of the predefined connector keying geometries matches at least one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries and when a receptacle keying geometry of a boss of a first of the back-to-back receptacle sockets corresponds to the connector keying geometry of the first cable and a receptacle keying geometry of a boss of a second of the back-to-back receptacle sockets corresponds to the connector keying geometry of the second cable, the first cable can be inserted in the first socket and the second cable can be inserted in the second socket bringing the first optic fibre into axial alignment with the second optic fibre.
- a receptacle for providing selective interconnection between first and second fibre optic cables, each cable comprising a connector plug comprising a cavity having a connector keying geometry formed in a forward end thereof.
- the receptacle comprises back-to-back receptacle sockets, each of the sockets comprising a raised boss, the boss having a shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries.
- Each of the connector keying geometries corresponds to one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries and when the receptacle keying geometry of the boss of a first of the back-to-back receptacle sockets corresponds to the connector keying geometry of the first cable and when the receptacle keying geometry of the boss of a second of the back-to-back receptacle socket corresponds to the connector keying geometry of the second cable, the connector plug of the first cable can be inserted in the first socket and the connector plug of the second cable can be inserted in the second socket, thereby interconnecting the first and second cables.
- a field-configurable receptacle for providing selective interconnection with a connector plug in a fibre optic communications system, the connector plug comprising a connector keying geometry formed in a forward end thereof.
- the receptacle comprises at least one receptacle socket adapted for receiving the connector plug and comprising a configurable shape, the shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries.
- the he connector keying geometry corresponds to one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries and when the shape is configured to correspond to the connector keying geometry, the connector plug may be inserted into the socket.
- a field-configurable connector for providing selective interconnection with a receptacle in a fibre optic communications system, the receptacle comprising at least one receptacle socket having a receptacle keying geometry formed therein.
- the connector comprises a connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket and comprising a configurable shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries.
- One of the predefined connector keying geometries corresponds to the receptacle keying geometry and when the receptacle keying geometry corresponds to the connector keying geometry, the connector plug can be inserted into the receptacle socket.
- FIG. 1 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 2 is a front plan view of a connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 3 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 4 is a front plan view of a receptacle in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 5A is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 5B is a side plan view of a connector in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 6 is a front plan view of a receptacle with a connector installed in a socket thereof in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 7 is a side cut away view along VII-VII in FIG. 6 ;
- FIG. 8 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 9 is a front plan view of a receptacle in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 10 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with a second alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 11 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with an second alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 12 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 13 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with a third alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 14 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with a forth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 15 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with a forth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 16 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with a fifth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 17 is a front plan view of a receptacle in accordance with a fifth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 18 is a side cut away view along VIII-VIII in FIG. 17 of a receptacle in accordance with a fifth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 19A is an orthogonal view of an illustrative embodiment of an installer modifiable connector keying system
- FIG. 19B is a front orthogonal view of a second illustrative embodiment of an installer modifiable connector keying system.
- FIG. 20 is a front orthogonal view of a receptacle for mounting on active devices in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention.
- the connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention will be described.
- the connector generally referred to using the reference numeral 2 , which serves to connect a fibre optic cable 4 to a receptacle (not shown) is disclosed.
- connector 2 forms part of a cable assembly with an LC type connector plug attached at one end.
- LC type connectors it is not intended to limit the invention to this type of connector. Accordingly, the present invention may also be used, for example, with LC, SC, FC, MU and other similar connectors having a ferrule guide and/or support.
- the connector is comprised of a connector plug housing 6 , fabricated from a suitable non-conductive material such as glass filled thermoplastic, through which the optic fibre 8 extends protruding from a forward end 10 thereof.
- the optic fibre 8 is held rigidly within a hollow ferrule 12 , fabricated from a suitable stiff non-conductive material such as ceramics, which is in turn held in axial alignment within the plug housing 6 , thus ensuring that the optical fibre is maintained in substantially axial alignment with the central axis A of the plug housing 6 .
- ferrule 12 is held rigidly inside the plug housing 6 , but may also be spring loaded allowing some movement of the ferrule 12 , and thus the optic fibre 8 , forward and backwards along the central axis A.
- a cavity 14 also in axial alignment with the central axis A, is moulded or machined into the forward end 10 of the plug housing 6 with the optic fibre 8 /ferrule assembly 12 being axially aligned therein.
- a flexible locking tab or latch 16 is attached to the outside of the plug housing 6 allowing the plug housing 6 to be removeably attached to a suitable receptacle (not shown).
- the join between optic fibre cable 4 and the plug housing 6 is protected by means of a flexible strain-relieving boot 18 , typically manufactured from rubber, rubberised plastic or the like.
- a pair of raised tabs as in 20 may be moulded to the outside of the plug housing which, as will be seen below, mate with corresponding indentations in the receptacle (both not shown).
- the optic fibre 8 is typically inserted through the ferrule 12 and bonded thereto with an appropriate adhesive or bonding technique.
- the ends of the optic fibre 8 /ferrule 12 are then cut and polished according to a predefined geometry dictated to the standard being implemented. The polishing results in an exposed end 22 of the optic fibre 8 extending forward of the forward end 10 of the plug housing, thereby allowing light to propagate to and from the optic fibre 8 .
- the cavity 14 through which the optic fibre 8 /ferrule 12 assembly extends, is configured to one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries.
- the connector keying geometry is illustratively provided by a cavity having a cavity keying geometry having an oval or egg shaped cross section with a first generally circular concentric portion of radius X 1 and a keying portion 24 extending a distance of X 2 from the centre of the optic fibre 8 , with X 2 being illustratively greater than radius X 1 .
- the cavity keying portion 24 for example a flute, notch or protuberance, is illustratively symmetric about an axis B, with axis B at a predetermined connector keying angle ⁇ from the horizontal plane C.
- the maximum point of extension X 2 from the core of the optic fibre 8 must be chosen such that it is sufficiently less than distance y between the centre of the optic fibre 8 and the outer surface of the plug housing 6 to ensure that sufficient material remains between the cavity 14 and the outer surface of the plug housing 6 for all keying angles ⁇ .
- the other dimensions of the cavity keying portion 24 are preferably selected such that the cavity keying portion 24 is difficult to modify, for example by removing the cavity keying portion 24 using a knife or the like in the case of a protuberance, or to modify without destroying the connector 2 , thereby deterring the user from modifying the connector 2 for other purposes.
- the cross section of the cavity keying portion 24 could alternatively be of a different shape, for example a square notch or concave depression in the side wall of the cavity 14 , or could also be asymmetric. As will be seen below, the combination of the cavity keying portion 24 with the connector keying angle ⁇ provides one embodiment for the connector portion of the keying system.
- the receptacle illustratively comprises a receptacle housing 28 fabricated from a non-conductive material such as glass filled thermoplastic into which are moulded one or more receptacle sockets 30 .
- the sockets 30 are dimensioned for receiving the forward end 10 of the plug housing 6 which is held snugly therein.
- receptacle 26 having a duplex configuration with two (2) sockets 30
- the receptacle 26 could also be simplex with a single socket 30 , or provide for three (3) or more sockets 30 .
- the receptacle housing 28 can be fastened to a patch bay panel or the like (not shown) by means of a pair of integrated flanges 32 and/or by screws or similar fasteners inserted through the cut outs 34 in the flanges.
- Each receptacle socket 30 is terminated by a rear wall 36 and onto which is moulded a raised boss 38 , illustratively of an oval or egg shape, having a circular ferrule accepting bore 40 therein.
- a reciprocal locking mechanism 42 which, referring to FIG. 1 in addition to FIG. 3 , mates with the latch 16 , thereby securely interlocking the connector 2 with the receptacle 26 when the connector plug housing 6 is completely inserted into the socket 30 .
- a pair of indentations 44 are also moulded in the socket 30 which mate with the corresponding tabs 20 moulded into the connector plug housing 6 .
- the tabs 20 prevent a connector 2 from being completely inserted into a receptacle 26 which does not have these indentations. Note that in an alternative embodiment both the tabs 20 and indentations 44 could be absent without otherwise affecting the present invention.
- each socket 30 is configured to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries.
- the receptacle keying geometry is provided by a raised boss 38 having a boss keying geometry, mounted on the rear wall 36 of the socket 30 comprising an oval or egg shaped cross section having a first generally circular concentric portion of radius x 1 and a keying portion 46 , for example a protuberance such as a ridge, projecting a distance of x 2 from the centre of the ferrule cavity 40 , x 2 being illustratively greater than radius x 1 , although in a given implementation the distance of x 2 could also be smaller than x 1 .
- the boss keying portion 46 is illustratively symmetric about an axis such as D, with axis D at a predetermined receptacle keying angle ⁇ 1 from the horizontal plane E.
- the keying angles ⁇ and ⁇ as well as the lengths X 1 , X 2 and x 1 , x 2 must match such that the cross section of the raised boss 38 is the mirror image of the cross section of the cavity 14 and that the cavity 14 fits snugly over the raised boss 38 .
- the keying angles ⁇ and ⁇ do not match, then a portion of the front surface 10 of the connector plug housing 6 will butt against the boss keying portion 46 of the raised boss 38 thereby preventing the connector 2 from being correctly inserted into the receptacle 26 .
- receptacles 26 can have multiple sockets 30 1 , 30 2 , 30 3 each socket 30 1 , 30 2 , 30 3 having a raised boss 38 1 , 38 2 , 38 3 with differing keying angles ⁇ 1 , ⁇ 2 , ⁇ 3 .
- a receptacle 26 is shown with three raised bosses 38 1 , 38 2 , 38 3 , and three keying angles ⁇ 1 , ⁇ 2 , ⁇ 3 a receptacle 26 could easily be manufactured having many sockets 30 , each socket 30 having a corresponding raised boss 38 and keying angle ⁇ in any one of a number of combinations. It should also be understood that multiple connectors 2 with different connector keying angles ⁇ can also be bundled together into a multiple connector assembly (not shown).
- sockets such as 30 4 may be included with raised bosses such as 38 4 which are circular in cross section without the inclusion of a receptacle keying portion, thereby allowing conventional non-keyed connectors to be inserted into the receptacle 26 .
- the present system can be designed for use as a one way system or a two way system.
- a one way system being defined as a system where keyed connectors can only be connected with a keyed receptacle and a two way system is defined as a system where keyed connectors are backward compatible with legacy system receptacles (or vice versa), allowing for example, keyed connectors to be used with existing receptacles.
- legacy bosses 38 4 allow for the plug housing 6 of a connector 2 to be correctly inserted into the socket 30 4 regardless of the connector keying angle ⁇ (provided, of course, the length X 1 of FIG. 2 is less than the length X 2 and corresponds to the radius of the legacy boss 30 4 ).
- FIG. 5A in addition to FIG. 4 , an illustrative embodiment of a one way system is disclosed.
- a tab 39 could be moulded into or otherwise attached to the outside of the plug housing 6 .
- FIG. 5B as known in the art, existing LC type behind the wall (BTW) connectors and receptacles include such an assembly.
- the tabs of these prior art connectors extend only partially along the plug housing 6 and stop at a position Z 1 well short of the forward end 10 of the plug housing 6 .
- the plug housing 6 can also be prevented from being fully inserted into legacy LC receptacles.
- the socket 30 will have to be modified to include a notch within which the tab 39 fits. It will be apparent now to a person of ordinary skill in the art that, in the absence of a receiving groove in the receptacle (all not shown) for the tab 39 , or a groove of the correct depth, the tab 39 would butt against the receptacle housing thereby preventing the user from inserting the plug housing 6 completely into the socket 30 .
- the plug housings 6 and the sockets 30 be colour coded, with a given colour corresponding to a given pair of keying angles ⁇ , ⁇ , in order to aid the user in determining which connector 2 belongs in which socket 30 .
- other coding means such as symbols, alphanumeric characters, etc., may be used alone or in combination with colours to provide a variety of means for distinguishing keyed connectors and receptacle sockets from one another.
- FIG. 6 a connector 2 inserted into the first socket 30 of a duplex receptacle 26 is shown.
- FIG. 7 in addition to FIG. 6 , and assuming that the keying angles ⁇ , ⁇ are a matched pair, on insertion the forward end 10 of the plug housing 6 butts against the rear wall 36 of the socket 30 .
- the latch 16 is engaged by the reciprocal locking mechanism 42 thereby holding the plug housing 6 securely in the socket 30 .
- the ferrule 12 containing the optic fibre is inserted into the ferrule accepting bore 40 and the raised boss 38 is encircled by the cavity 14 , with the exposed end 22 of the optic fibre 8 being substantially in alignment with reference plane F.
- sockets as in 30 , 46 in back-to-back relationship would have the same predefined receptacle keying geometries to ensure that fibre optic cables having compatible connector keying geometries could be interconnected.
- the connector 2 can be readily removed from the receptacle 26 by depressing the latch 16 , thereby releasing the reciprocal locking mechanism 42 .
- a connector 2 in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.
- the cavity 14 includes two connector keying portions 24 , 24 ′ corresponding to two different connector keying angles ⁇ , ⁇ ′.
- connectors 2 can be provided which mate with the sockets having receptacle keying portions with different keying angles ⁇ , provided, of course, that the receptacle keying angle ⁇ matches with one of the connector keying angles ⁇ , ⁇ ′. It will now be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art that the number of connector keying portions 24 at a variety of keying angles ⁇ could be increased to provided for a variety of keying situations.
- Raised bosses 38 2 , 38 3 are depicted as having multiple receptacle keying portions (respectively) 46 2 , 46 2 ′′ and 46 3 ′, 46 3 ′′, 46 3 ′′′.
- receptacle keying portions 46 2 , 46 2 ′′ and 46 3 ′, 46 3 ′′, 46 3 ′′′.
- a connector 2 in accordance with a second alternative embodiment including a plug housing 6 having a cavity 48 therein, with the cavity 48 machined or moulded to comprise a generally circular section 50 and a protuberance 52 such as a ridge, tab or the like running axially along the inside of the cavity 48 . Similar to the keying system as discussed hereinabove, the protuberance 52 is positioned along the inside of the cavity at the requisite keying angle .theta. Referring now to FIG. 11 in addition to FIG. 10 , a receptacle 26 comprised of one or more sockets 30 having raised bosses 54 is shown.
- the raised bosses 54 are moulded or machined to include an indentation 56 , for example such as a notch, slot or flute, therein. Similar to the ridge 52 , the indentation 56 is positioned on the raised boss 54 at a requisite keying angle ⁇ .
- protuberance 52 and corresponding indentation 56 have been portrayed as being symmetrically concave in cross section, other shapes of cross sections, for example a square or triangular notch, could also be applied in the context of the present invention. Additionally, the shapes could be asymmetric.
- tabs 57 can be moulded or otherwise bonded to the inside of the sockets 30 1 , 30 2 , in the receptacle 26 .
- the connector plug housing (not shown) be modified to include a suitable notch therein for reception of the tab 57 .
- a connector 2 in accordance with a third alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.
- the plug housing 6 is machined or moulded to include a cavity 58 therein having both an indentation 60 and a protuberance 62 therein.
- the indentation 60 and a protuberance 62 are positioned within the cavity 58 at requisite keying angles as discussed hereinabove.
- Such a connector 2 would mate with a receptacle having a socket therein with a raised boss including both an indentation and a protuberance located at keying angles (all not shown) matching the keying angles of the indentation 60 and the protuberance 62 of the connector 2 .
- the plug housing 6 is machined or moulded to include a cavity 64 having a cross section which varies depending on the depth of the cavity 64 .
- the cavity 64 is comprised of an inner aligning portion 66 , illustratively cylindrical, and an outer portion 68 having an illustratively oval or egg shaped cross section with a depth Z and a keying portion 70 .
- the keying portion 70 is positioned at a predetermined keying angle ⁇ from the horizontal axis C.
- the corresponding receptacle 26 is comprised of one or more sockets 30 having a raised boss 72 machined, moulded or other wise formed into a rear wall 36 thereof.
- the raised boss 72 is comprised of a lower portion 74 having an illustratively oval or egg shaped cross section and an upper aligning portion 76 , illustratively cylindrical. Additionally, the lower portion 74 has a protruding keying portion 78 which is positioned at a predetermined keying angle ⁇ from the horizontal axis E.
- the thickness Z of the lower portion 74 of the raised boss 72 must be the same or less than the depth Z of the upper portion 66 of the cavity 64 .
- the keying angles ⁇ , ⁇ . match and the thickness Z is the same as or less than the depth Z, when the plug housing 6 is inserted into the socket 30 of the receptacle 26 , the cavity 64 will mate with the raised boss 72 , thereby allowing the connector 2 to be securely fastened to the receptacle. If the keying angles ⁇ , ⁇ do not match, then illustratively the forward end 10 of the plug housing 6 will butt against the protruding keying portion 78 of the raised boss 72 thereby preventing correct insertion of the plug housing 6 in the socket 30 . Similarly, if the thickness z is somewhat greater than the depth z then plug housing 6 will be prevented from being completely inserted into the socket 30 , thereby preventing the flexible locking tab or latch 16 from being engaged.
- a receptacle 26 in accordance with a fifth alternative embodiment of the present invention will be disclosed.
- the receptacle 26 is similar as to described hereinabove with the difference that the receptacle keying portion 46 of the raised boss includes a bevelled or chamfered outer surface 80 in order to facilitate insertion of a connector (not shown) into the socket 30 .
- Other types of surfaces, for example rounded, could also be implemented in order to facilitate insertion of a connector.
- the present keying system be field configurable by the installer in order to provide connectors and receptacles with an installer selected keying.
- the cavity 14 would be provided in an interchangeable module 82 for insertion into a suitably adapted receiving cut out 84 in the forward end 10 of the plug housing 6 .
- the module 82 would be held in place within the plug housing by clips, an adhesive or other suitable securing means.
- the raised bosses 38 could be manufactured separately from the receptacle 26 and including a shaft 86 having a second geometry, for example a regular geometric form, such as a triangle, square, hexagon, octagon or the like, a series of grooves 88 therein.
- the shaft 86 would be rotated to the requisite receptacle keying angle and inserted in a shaft receiving opening 90 having a first geometry in the rear wall 36 of each socket 30 until the raised boss is in contact with the rear wall 36 .
- the shaft receiving opening 90 could include, for example, a ridged inner surface 92 adapted to mate with the series of grooves 88 on the shaft 86 .
- the shaft 86 could also be held in place within the shaft receiving opening 90 by an adhesive, for example.
- the cavities and raised bosses of the invention could be modifiable and adaptable through removal from or addition to the cavities or raised bosses through the provision of a suitable tool (for example by cutting away a portion of a raised boss or fluting the inside of a cavity).
- the keying system could also be moulded into single sided receptacles 94 for mounting on active components, attenuators and the like (not shown).
Abstract
A keyed connector system for providing selective interconnection between a receptacle socket and a connector plug terminating an optic fibre, the connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket. The keying system comprises a raised boss configured to one of a plurality of predefined boss keying geometries and a cavity configured to one of a plurality of predefined cavity keying geometries. The boss is either in one of the receptacle socket or on a forward end of the connector plug and the cavity is formed in the other of the receptacle socket or the forward end of the connector plug. At least one of the predefined boss keying geometries matches at least one of the predefined cavity keying geometries. When the boss keying geometry matches the cavity keying geometry, the boss can be inserted into the cavity thereby interconnecting the connector plug with the receptacle socket.
Description
- This application is a continuation of, and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §120 to, co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/779,335 entitled “Back-To-Back Receptacle” filed on Jul. 18, 2007, which is a divisional of, and claims priority to, U.S. application Ser. No. 10/945,935 entitled “Keyed Fibre Optic Connector,” filed on Sep. 22, 2004 and now U.S. Pat. No. 7,258,493, which claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/504,189, entitled “Keyed Fibre Optic Connector,” filed on Sep. 22, 2003, each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
- 1. Field of Invention
- The present invention relates to a keyed fibre optic connector. In particular, the present invention relates to an interlocking connector and receptacle pair for fibre optic cables with a geometric keying system moulded into the interface thereby preventing connectors with a first key from being interconnected via a receptacle having a differing key.
- 2. Discussion of Related Art
- Optical fibres terminated by connectors and the receptacles which are adapted to received these connectors are an important part of virtually any fibre optic communications system. For example, such connectors and receptacles may be used to interconnect fibre segments to create longer lengths, to connect optic fibre to active or passive devices, etc. However, in some cases, for example for security reasons or in order to better manage a telecommunications network, it is desired to physically limit the insertion of a connector plug into a particular receptacle socket, and as a result prevent the transmission of data via that connector plug and receptacle socket.
- The prior art reveals a variety of systems for preventing a connector plug from being inserted into a receptacle socket. One of these prior art systems comprises at least one tab arranged at a certain position on the connector plug, each of which is adapted for insertion into a corresponding tab receiving indentation moulded in the receptacle socket. In the absence of such a hollow the tab buts against the opening of the receptacle socket, thereby preventing the connector plug from being completely inserted into the receptacle socket, thereby preventing the connector plug from being correctly interconnected with the receptacle socket. One drawback of these prior art designs is that that the tab, being typically moulded into the plastic connector plug housing, can be easily removed by filing or using a sharp blade or the like. Another drawback is that such prior art designs only allow two types of connector plugs to be differentiated between: connector plugs with a tab and connector plugs without a tab.
- The prior art also reveals keying systems such as the U.S. patent application Ser. No. published with the No. 2002/0126960 A1 comprising a connector plug and receptacle socket. Interconnection of the connector plug and receptacle socket is limited to connector plug/receptacle socket pairs where a key within the receptacle socket mates with a corresponding key receiving slot in the connector plug. A connector plug with a key receiving slot in one position is unable to interconnect with receptacle sockets with a differently positioned key. As a result, by providing a number of differently positioned keys and key receiving slot a system of selective interconnection between connector plugs and receptacle sockets can be arrived at. These systems, however, are generally impractical in many fibre optic systems given the relatively small size of the connector plug and the receptacle socket.
- In order to address the drawbacks of the prior art, there is provided a keying system for providing selective interconnection between a receptacle socket and a connector plug terminating an optic fibre, the connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket. The keying system comprises a raised boss configured to one of a plurality of predefined boss keying geometries and a cavity configured to one of a plurality of predefined cavity keying geometries. The boss is either in one of the receptacle socket or on a forward end of the connector plug and the cavity is formed in another of the receptacle socket or the forward end of the connector plug. At least one of the predefined boss keying geometries matches at least one of the predefined cavity keying geometries. When the boss keying geometry matches the cavity keying geometry, the boss can be inserted into the cavity thereby interconnecting the connector plug with the receptacle socket.
- There is also provided a receptacle for providing selective interconnection with a connector plug terminating a first optic fibre, the connector plug comprising a cavity having a connector keying geometry formed in a forward end thereof. The receptacle comprises at least one receptacle socket comprising a raised boss therein, the boss having a shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries, the connector keying geometry corresponding to one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries. When the receptacle keying geometry corresponds to the connector keying geometry, the connector plug can be inserted into the receptacle socket.
- Furthermore, there is provided a receptacle for providing selective interconnection with a connector plug terminating a first optic fibre, the connector plug comprising a boss having a connector keying geometry formed in a forward end thereof. The receptacle comprises at least one receptacle socket comprising a cavity formed therein, the cavity having a shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries, the connector keying geometry corresponding to one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries. When the receptacle keying geometry corresponds to the connector keying geometry, the connector plug can be inserted into the receptacle socket.
- Additionally, there is provided a connector terminating an optic fibre for providing selective interconnection with a receptacle socket, the receptacle socket comprising a raised boss having a receptacle keying geometry formed therein. The connector comprises a connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket and comprising a cavity, the cavity having one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries formed in a forward end thereof, the receptacle keying geometry corresponding to one of the predefined connector keying geometries. When the receptacle keying geometry corresponds to the connector keying geometry, the connector plug can be inserted into the receptacle socket.
- Also there is provided a connector terminating an optic fibre for providing selective interconnection with a receptacle socket, the receptacle socket comprising a cavity having a receptacle keying geometry formed therein. The connector comprises a connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket and comprising a boss having one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries formed in a forward end thereof, the receptacle keying geometry corresponding to one of the predefined connector keying geometries. When the receptacle keying geometry corresponds to the connector keying geometry, the connector plug can be inserted into the receptacle socket.
- Furthermore, there is provided a system for providing selective interconnection between first and second optic fibres. The system comprises a receptacle comprising back-to-back receptacle sockets, each of the sockets comprising a raised boss disposed therein and configured to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries, a first connector plug terminating the first optic fibre, the plug adapted for insertion into a first of the back-to-back receptacle sockets and comprising a cavity formed in a forward end of the plug, the cavity configured to one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries, and a second connector plug terminating the second optic fibre, the plug adapted for insertion into a second of the back-to-back receptacle sockets and comprising a cavity formed in a forward end of the plug, the cavity configured to one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries. At least one of the predefined connector keying geometries matches at least one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries and when a receptacle keying geometry of a boss of a first of the back-to-back receptacle sockets corresponds to the connector keying geometry of the first cable and a receptacle keying geometry of a boss of a second of the back-to-back receptacle sockets corresponds to the connector keying geometry of the second cable, the first cable can be inserted in the first socket and the second cable can be inserted in the second socket bringing the first optic fibre into axial alignment with the second optic fibre.
- Additionally, there is provided a receptacle for providing selective interconnection between first and second fibre optic cables, each cable comprising a connector plug comprising a cavity having a connector keying geometry formed in a forward end thereof. The receptacle comprises back-to-back receptacle sockets, each of the sockets comprising a raised boss, the boss having a shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries. Each of the connector keying geometries corresponds to one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries and when the receptacle keying geometry of the boss of a first of the back-to-back receptacle sockets corresponds to the connector keying geometry of the first cable and when the receptacle keying geometry of the boss of a second of the back-to-back receptacle socket corresponds to the connector keying geometry of the second cable, the connector plug of the first cable can be inserted in the first socket and the connector plug of the second cable can be inserted in the second socket, thereby interconnecting the first and second cables.
- There is also provided a field-configurable receptacle for providing selective interconnection with a connector plug in a fibre optic communications system, the connector plug comprising a connector keying geometry formed in a forward end thereof. The receptacle comprises at least one receptacle socket adapted for receiving the connector plug and comprising a configurable shape, the shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries. The he connector keying geometry corresponds to one of the predefined receptacle keying geometries and when the shape is configured to correspond to the connector keying geometry, the connector plug may be inserted into the socket.
- In addition, there is provided a field-configurable connector for providing selective interconnection with a receptacle in a fibre optic communications system, the receptacle comprising at least one receptacle socket having a receptacle keying geometry formed therein. The connector comprises a connector plug adapted for insertion into the receptacle socket and comprising a configurable shape corresponding to one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries. One of the predefined connector keying geometries corresponds to the receptacle keying geometry and when the receptacle keying geometry corresponds to the connector keying geometry, the connector plug can be inserted into the receptacle socket.
-
FIG. 1 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 2 is a front plan view of a connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 3 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 4 is a front plan view of a receptacle in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 5A is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 5B is a side plan view of a connector in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 6 is a front plan view of a receptacle with a connector installed in a socket thereof in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 7 is a side cut away view along VII-VII inFIG. 6 ; -
FIG. 8 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 9 is a front plan view of a receptacle in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 10 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with a second alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 11 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with an second alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 12 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 13 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with a third alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 14 is an orthogonal view of a connector in accordance with a forth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 15 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with a forth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 16 is an orthogonal view of a receptacle in accordance with a fifth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 17 is a front plan view of a receptacle in accordance with a fifth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 18 is a side cut away view along VIII-VIII inFIG. 17 of a receptacle in accordance with a fifth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 19A is an orthogonal view of an illustrative embodiment of an installer modifiable connector keying system; -
FIG. 19B is a front orthogonal view of a second illustrative embodiment of an installer modifiable connector keying system; and -
FIG. 20 is a front orthogonal view of a receptacle for mounting on active devices in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention. - Referring now to
FIG. 1 , a fibre optic connector in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention will be described. The connector, generally referred to using thereference numeral 2, which serves to connect a fibre optic cable 4 to a receptacle (not shown) is disclosed. As illustrated,connector 2 forms part of a cable assembly with an LC type connector plug attached at one end. It should be noted that although the illustrative embodiment of the present invention is described in reference to LC type connectors, it is not intended to limit the invention to this type of connector. Accordingly, the present invention may also be used, for example, with LC, SC, FC, MU and other similar connectors having a ferrule guide and/or support. - Still referring to
FIG. 1 , the connector is comprised of aconnector plug housing 6, fabricated from a suitable non-conductive material such as glass filled thermoplastic, through which theoptic fibre 8 extends protruding from aforward end 10 thereof. Theoptic fibre 8 is held rigidly within ahollow ferrule 12, fabricated from a suitable stiff non-conductive material such as ceramics, which is in turn held in axial alignment within theplug housing 6, thus ensuring that the optical fibre is maintained in substantially axial alignment with the central axis A of theplug housing 6. Typically,ferrule 12 is held rigidly inside theplug housing 6, but may also be spring loaded allowing some movement of theferrule 12, and thus theoptic fibre 8, forward and backwards along the central axis A. - A
cavity 14, also in axial alignment with the central axis A, is moulded or machined into theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6 with theoptic fibre 8/ferrule assembly 12 being axially aligned therein. A flexible locking tab or latch 16 is attached to the outside of theplug housing 6 allowing theplug housing 6 to be removeably attached to a suitable receptacle (not shown). The join between optic fibre cable 4 and theplug housing 6 is protected by means of a flexible strain-relievingboot 18, typically manufactured from rubber, rubberised plastic or the like. A pair of raised tabs as in 20 may be moulded to the outside of the plug housing which, as will be seen below, mate with corresponding indentations in the receptacle (both not shown). - During fabrication, the
optic fibre 8 is typically inserted through theferrule 12 and bonded thereto with an appropriate adhesive or bonding technique. The ends of theoptic fibre 8/ferrule 12 are then cut and polished according to a predefined geometry dictated to the standard being implemented. The polishing results in anexposed end 22 of theoptic fibre 8 extending forward of theforward end 10 of the plug housing, thereby allowing light to propagate to and from theoptic fibre 8. - Referring now to
FIG. 2 , a first illustrative embodiment of a keying system in accordance with the present invention will be described in more detail. Thecavity 14, through which theoptic fibre 8/ferrule 12 assembly extends, is configured to one of a plurality of predefined connector keying geometries. The connector keying geometry is illustratively provided by a cavity having a cavity keying geometry having an oval or egg shaped cross section with a first generally circular concentric portion of radius X1 and a keyingportion 24 extending a distance of X2 from the centre of theoptic fibre 8, with X2 being illustratively greater than radius X1. As illustrated inFIG. 2 , thecavity keying portion 24, for example a flute, notch or protuberance, is illustratively symmetric about an axis B, with axis B at a predetermined connector keying angle θ from the horizontal plane C. Of course, the maximum point of extension X2 from the core of theoptic fibre 8 must be chosen such that it is sufficiently less than distance y between the centre of theoptic fibre 8 and the outer surface of theplug housing 6 to ensure that sufficient material remains between thecavity 14 and the outer surface of theplug housing 6 for all keying angles θ. The other dimensions of thecavity keying portion 24 such as the width and profile, are preferably selected such that thecavity keying portion 24 is difficult to modify, for example by removing thecavity keying portion 24 using a knife or the like in the case of a protuberance, or to modify without destroying theconnector 2, thereby deterring the user from modifying theconnector 2 for other purposes. - The cross section of the
cavity keying portion 24 could alternatively be of a different shape, for example a square notch or concave depression in the side wall of thecavity 14, or could also be asymmetric. As will be seen below, the combination of thecavity keying portion 24 with the connector keying angle θ provides one embodiment for the connector portion of the keying system. - Referring now to
FIG. 3 , a receptacle in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention will be described. The receptacle, generally referenced using the numeral 26, illustratively comprises areceptacle housing 28 fabricated from a non-conductive material such as glass filled thermoplastic into which are moulded one ormore receptacle sockets 30. Referring toFIG. 1 in addition toFIG. 3 , thesockets 30 are dimensioned for receiving theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6 which is held snugly therein. Note that, although in the present illustrative embodiment areceptacle 26 having a duplex configuration with two (2)sockets 30 is disclosed, thereceptacle 26 could also be simplex with asingle socket 30, or provide for three (3) ormore sockets 30. - Referring back to
FIG. 3 , thereceptacle housing 28 can be fastened to a patch bay panel or the like (not shown) by means of a pair ofintegrated flanges 32 and/or by screws or similar fasteners inserted through thecut outs 34 in the flanges. - Each
receptacle socket 30 is terminated by arear wall 36 and onto which is moulded a raisedboss 38, illustratively of an oval or egg shape, having a circular ferrule accepting bore 40 therein. Also moulded into thesocket 30 is areciprocal locking mechanism 42 which, referring toFIG. 1 in addition toFIG. 3 , mates with thelatch 16, thereby securely interlocking theconnector 2 with thereceptacle 26 when the connector plughousing 6 is completely inserted into thesocket 30. A pair ofindentations 44 are also moulded in thesocket 30 which mate with thecorresponding tabs 20 moulded into the connector plughousing 6. Thetabs 20 prevent aconnector 2 from being completely inserted into areceptacle 26 which does not have these indentations. Note that in an alternative embodiment both thetabs 20 andindentations 44 could be absent without otherwise affecting the present invention. - Referring now to
FIG. 4 , eachsocket 30 is configured to one of a plurality of predefined receptacle keying geometries. Illustratively, the receptacle keying geometry is provided by a raisedboss 38 having a boss keying geometry, mounted on therear wall 36 of thesocket 30 comprising an oval or egg shaped cross section having a first generally circular concentric portion of radius x1 and a keyingportion 46, for example a protuberance such as a ridge, projecting a distance of x2 from the centre of theferrule cavity 40, x2 being illustratively greater than radius x1, although in a given implementation the distance of x2 could also be smaller than x1. Theboss keying portion 46 is illustratively symmetric about an axis such as D, with axis D at a predetermined receptacle keying angle φ1 from the horizontal plane E. - Referring to
FIG. 2 in addition toFIG. 4 , in order for aconnector 2 to correctly mate with areceptacle 26, the keying angles θ and φ as well as the lengths X1, X2 and x1, x2 must match such that the cross section of the raisedboss 38 is the mirror image of the cross section of thecavity 14 and that thecavity 14 fits snugly over the raisedboss 38. For example, in the illustrative embodiment if the keying angles θ and φ do not match, then a portion of thefront surface 10 of the connector plughousing 6 will butt against theboss keying portion 46 of the raisedboss 38 thereby preventing theconnector 2 from being correctly inserted into thereceptacle 26. - It is foreseen that a combination of eight (8) keying angles θ and φ equally distributed around 360° (for example 0°, 45°, 90°, 135°, 180°, 225°, 270°, 315°.) will provide adequate keying for most applications, although it will be understood that this could easily be extended to sixteen (16) or even greater with precision manufacturing of the
connector 2 andreceptacle 26. Referring back toFIG. 4 , it is also foreseen thatreceptacles 26 can havemultiple sockets socket boss receptacle 26 is shown with three raisedbosses receptacle 26 could easily be manufactured havingmany sockets 30, eachsocket 30 having a corresponding raisedboss 38 and keying angle φ in any one of a number of combinations. It should also be understood thatmultiple connectors 2 with different connector keying angles θ can also be bundled together into a multiple connector assembly (not shown). It should also be understood that sockets such as 30 4 may be included with raised bosses such as 38 4 which are circular in cross section without the inclusion of a receptacle keying portion, thereby allowing conventional non-keyed connectors to be inserted into thereceptacle 26. - Note that, although the above illustrative embodiment has been described with the
cavity 14 being moulded or machined into theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6 and the raisedboss 38 being located within thereceptacle socket 30, a person of ordinary skill in the art would understand that, with appropriate modifications, thecavity 14 could be moulded or otherwise formed into thereceptacle socket 30 and the boss formed in theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6. - Of note is that the present system can be designed for use as a one way system or a two way system. A one way system being defined as a system where keyed connectors can only be connected with a keyed receptacle and a two way system is defined as a system where keyed connectors are backward compatible with legacy system receptacles (or vice versa), allowing for example, keyed connectors to be used with existing receptacles.
- Referring to
FIG. 4 , for example, in an illustrative embodiment of a two way system using existing circular legacy bosses as in 38 4 is disclosed. Theselegacy bosses 38 4 allow for theplug housing 6 of aconnector 2 to be correctly inserted into thesocket 30 4 regardless of the connector keying angle θ (provided, of course, the length X1 ofFIG. 2 is less than the length X2 and corresponds to the radius of the legacy boss 30 4). - Referring to
FIG. 5A in addition toFIG. 4 , an illustrative embodiment of a one way system is disclosed. In order to stop akeyed connector 2 from being inserted into a socket such assocket 30 4, atab 39 could be moulded into or otherwise attached to the outside of theplug housing 6. Referring toFIG. 5B , as known in the art, existing LC type behind the wall (BTW) connectors and receptacles include such an assembly. However, the tabs of these prior art connectors extend only partially along theplug housing 6 and stop at a position Z1 well short of theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6. By extending thetab 39 such that it stops at a position Z2 closer to theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6, theplug housing 6 can also be prevented from being fully inserted into legacy LC receptacles. In order for such aconnector 2 to be correctly inserted into areceptacle 26, thesocket 30 will have to be modified to include a notch within which thetab 39 fits. It will be apparent now to a person of ordinary skill in the art that, in the absence of a receiving groove in the receptacle (all not shown) for thetab 39, or a groove of the correct depth, thetab 39 would butt against the receptacle housing thereby preventing the user from inserting theplug housing 6 completely into thesocket 30. - It is also foreseen that the
plug housings 6 and thesockets 30 be colour coded, with a given colour corresponding to a given pair of keying angles θ, φ, in order to aid the user in determining whichconnector 2 belongs in whichsocket 30. Additionally, other coding means such as symbols, alphanumeric characters, etc., may be used alone or in combination with colours to provide a variety of means for distinguishing keyed connectors and receptacle sockets from one another. - Referring now to
FIG. 6 , aconnector 2 inserted into thefirst socket 30 of aduplex receptacle 26 is shown. Referring toFIG. 7 in addition toFIG. 6 , and assuming that the keying angles θ, φ are a matched pair, on insertion theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6 butts against therear wall 36 of thesocket 30. At this point thelatch 16 is engaged by thereciprocal locking mechanism 42 thereby holding theplug housing 6 securely in thesocket 30. Simultaneously, theferrule 12 containing the optic fibre is inserted into theferrule accepting bore 40 and the raisedboss 38 is encircled by thecavity 14, with the exposedend 22 of theoptic fibre 8 being substantially in alignment with reference plane F. Insertion of a second connector (not shown) into asimilar socket 46 moulded into the rearward side of thereceptacle 26 and in back-to-back relationship with thesocket 30 would have the effect bringing the exposed end of the second connector's optic fibre into close contact with the exposedend 22 of theoptic fibre 8, with the optic fibres being substantially axially aligned, and thereby allowing light propagating in one of the optic fibres to be transferred to the other. Typically (although not necessarily), sockets as in 30, 46 in back-to-back relationship would have the same predefined receptacle keying geometries to ensure that fibre optic cables having compatible connector keying geometries could be interconnected. - The
connector 2 can be readily removed from thereceptacle 26 by depressing thelatch 16, thereby releasing thereciprocal locking mechanism 42. - Referring to
FIG. 8 , aconnector 2 in accordance with an alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention is disclosed. In this embodiment thecavity 14 includes twoconnector keying portions connectors 2 can be provided which mate with the sockets having receptacle keying portions with different keying angles φ, provided, of course, that the receptacle keying angle φ matches with one of the connector keying angles θ, θ′. It will now be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art that the number ofconnector keying portions 24 at a variety of keying angles θ could be increased to provided for a variety of keying situations. - Referring to
FIG. 9 in addition toFIG. 8 ,receptacles 26 havingsockets bosses bosses connectors 2 having multipleconnector keying portions - Referring now to
FIG. 10 , aconnector 2 in accordance with a second alternative embodiment is disclosed including aplug housing 6 having acavity 48 therein, with thecavity 48 machined or moulded to comprise a generallycircular section 50 and aprotuberance 52 such as a ridge, tab or the like running axially along the inside of thecavity 48. Similar to the keying system as discussed hereinabove, theprotuberance 52 is positioned along the inside of the cavity at the requisite keying angle .theta. Referring now toFIG. 11 in addition toFIG. 10 , areceptacle 26 comprised of one ormore sockets 30 having raisedbosses 54 is shown. The raisedbosses 54 are moulded or machined to include anindentation 56, for example such as a notch, slot or flute, therein. Similar to theridge 52, theindentation 56 is positioned on the raisedboss 54 at a requisite keying angle φ. - It should be understood that although the
protuberance 52 andcorresponding indentation 56 have been portrayed as being symmetrically concave in cross section, other shapes of cross sections, for example a square or triangular notch, could also be applied in the context of the present invention. Additionally, the shapes could be asymmetric. - Referring now to
FIG. 12 in addition toFIG. 11 , in order to prevent a standard connector cable (not shown) from being inserted into asocket 30 keyed by a raisedboss 54 having anindentation 56 therein,tabs 57 can be moulded or otherwise bonded to the inside of thesockets receptacle 26. In order for a connector to be inserted into a givensocket tab 57. - Referring to
FIG. 13 , aconnector 2 in accordance with a third alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention is disclosed. In this embodiment theplug housing 6 is machined or moulded to include acavity 58 therein having both anindentation 60 and aprotuberance 62 therein. Theindentation 60 and aprotuberance 62 are positioned within thecavity 58 at requisite keying angles as discussed hereinabove. Such aconnector 2 would mate with a receptacle having a socket therein with a raised boss including both an indentation and a protuberance located at keying angles (all not shown) matching the keying angles of theindentation 60 and theprotuberance 62 of theconnector 2. - Referring to
FIG. 14 , aconnector 2 in accordance with a forth alternative illustrative embodiment of the present invention is disclosed. In this embodiment theplug housing 6 is machined or moulded to include acavity 64 having a cross section which varies depending on the depth of thecavity 64. Illustratively, thecavity 64 is comprised of an inner aligningportion 66, illustratively cylindrical, and an outer portion 68 having an illustratively oval or egg shaped cross section with a depth Z and a keyingportion 70. In line with the keyed connectors as already disclosed hereinabove, the keyingportion 70 is positioned at a predetermined keying angle θ from the horizontal axis C. - Referring to
FIG. 15 in addition toFIG. 14 , the correspondingreceptacle 26 is comprised of one ormore sockets 30 having a raisedboss 72 machined, moulded or other wise formed into arear wall 36 thereof. The raisedboss 72 is comprised of alower portion 74 having an illustratively oval or egg shaped cross section and an upper aligningportion 76, illustratively cylindrical. Additionally, thelower portion 74 has a protruding keyingportion 78 which is positioned at a predetermined keying angle φ from the horizontal axis E. As will now be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art, provided the keying angles θ, φ match, in order for theconnector 2 to be inserted completely into thereceptacle socket 30, the thickness Z of thelower portion 74 of the raisedboss 72 must be the same or less than the depth Z of theupper portion 66 of thecavity 64. - Still referring to
FIGS. 14 and 15 , provided the keying angles θ, φ. match and the thickness Z is the same as or less than the depth Z, when theplug housing 6 is inserted into thesocket 30 of thereceptacle 26, thecavity 64 will mate with the raisedboss 72, thereby allowing theconnector 2 to be securely fastened to the receptacle. If the keying angles θ, φ do not match, then illustratively theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6 will butt against the protruding keyingportion 78 of the raisedboss 72 thereby preventing correct insertion of theplug housing 6 in thesocket 30. Similarly, if the thickness z is somewhat greater than the depth z then plughousing 6 will be prevented from being completely inserted into thesocket 30, thereby preventing the flexible locking tab or latch 16 from being engaged. - Referring now to
FIGS. 16 , 17 and 18, areceptacle 26 in accordance with a fifth alternative embodiment of the present invention will be disclosed. Thereceptacle 26 is similar as to described hereinabove with the difference that thereceptacle keying portion 46 of the raised boss includes a bevelled or chamferedouter surface 80 in order to facilitate insertion of a connector (not shown) into thesocket 30. Other types of surfaces, for example rounded, could also be implemented in order to facilitate insertion of a connector. - It is also foreseen that the present keying system be field configurable by the installer in order to provide connectors and receptacles with an installer selected keying. Referring to
FIG. 19A , for example, thecavity 14 would be provided in aninterchangeable module 82 for insertion into a suitably adapted receiving cut out 84 in theforward end 10 of theplug housing 6. Themodule 82 would be held in place within the plug housing by clips, an adhesive or other suitable securing means. - Referring to
FIG. 19B , alternatively the raisedbosses 38 could be manufactured separately from thereceptacle 26 and including ashaft 86 having a second geometry, for example a regular geometric form, such as a triangle, square, hexagon, octagon or the like, a series ofgrooves 88 therein. Theshaft 86 would be rotated to the requisite receptacle keying angle and inserted in ashaft receiving opening 90 having a first geometry in therear wall 36 of eachsocket 30 until the raised boss is in contact with therear wall 36. Theshaft receiving opening 90 could include, for example, a ridgedinner surface 92 adapted to mate with the series ofgrooves 88 on theshaft 86. Theshaft 86 could also be held in place within theshaft receiving opening 90 by an adhesive, for example. - Alternatively, the cavities and raised bosses of the invention could be modifiable and adaptable through removal from or addition to the cavities or raised bosses through the provision of a suitable tool (for example by cutting away a portion of a raised boss or fluting the inside of a cavity).
- Referring to
FIG. 20 , although the above invention has been described using BTW receptacles for interconnecting two connectors, the keying system could also be moulded into singlesided receptacles 94 for mounting on active components, attenuators and the like (not shown). - Although the present invention has been described hereinabove by way of an illustrative embodiment thereof, this embodiment can be modified at will without departing from the spirit and nature of the subject invention.
Claims (7)
1. A connector system comprising:
a set of optical plugs, each optical plug having a housing and a ferrule, the housing having a front and back orientation and a forward end defining a cavity, the ferrule being disposed within the cavity, the housing defining a first keying geometry on the forward end around the cavity, the first keying geometry for each optical plug of the set of optical plugs being different; and
a set of optical receptacles, each optical receptacle having an opening to receive the optical plug and a ferrule receiving portion to receive the ferrule, the ferrule receiving portion defining a second keying geometry to cooperate with the first keying geometry, the second keying geometry for each optical receptacle of the set of optical receptacles being different and being adapted to cooperate with one and only one of the first keying geometries, wherein plugs and receptacles having keying geometries that cooperate are mating pairs;
wherein each plug and receptacle of a mating pair is marked with a matching visual identification different from plugs and receptacles having different first and second keying geometries, the visual identification being at least one of colour, alphanumerical indicia and symbols.
2. The connector system of claim 1 , wherein the first and second keying geometries are one or more protuberances and one or more indentations for receiving for receiving the protuberances.
3. The connector system of claim 1 , wherein the first keying geometry is a combination of at least one indentation from a plurality of indentation positions, and the second keying geometry is a combination of at least one protuberance from a plurality of possible protuberance positions.
4. The connector system of claim 3 , wherein the indentation is contiguous with the cavity and runs from the forward end backward.
5. The connector system of claim 4 , wherein the indentation is square-shaped in cross-section.
6. The connector system of claim 1 , wherein the housing is an LC housing.
7. The connector system of claim 1 , wherein the first keying geometry does not intrude into the cavity.
Priority Applications (1)
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US12/365,593 US20100034503A1 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2009-02-04 | Keyed fibre optic connector |
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US50418903P | 2003-09-22 | 2003-09-22 | |
CA002441872A CA2441872A1 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2003-09-22 | Keyed fibre optic connector |
CA2,441,872 | 2003-09-22 | ||
US10/945,935 US7258493B2 (en) | 2001-03-08 | 2004-09-22 | Keyed fibre optic connector |
US11/779,335 US7699533B2 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2007-07-18 | Back-to-back receptacle |
US12/365,593 US20100034503A1 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2009-02-04 | Keyed fibre optic connector |
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US11/779,335 Continuation US7699533B2 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2007-07-18 | Back-to-back receptacle |
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US20100034503A1 true US20100034503A1 (en) | 2010-02-11 |
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US11/779,335 Active US7699533B2 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2007-07-18 | Back-to-back receptacle |
US12/365,593 Abandoned US20100034503A1 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2009-02-04 | Keyed fibre optic connector |
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US11/779,338 Active US7674046B2 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2007-07-18 | Fibre optic connector keying system |
US11/779,335 Active US7699533B2 (en) | 2003-09-22 | 2007-07-18 | Back-to-back receptacle |
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Cited By (1)
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Also Published As
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US7674046B2 (en) | 2010-03-09 |
US20080013889A1 (en) | 2008-01-17 |
US20080013890A1 (en) | 2008-01-17 |
US7699533B2 (en) | 2010-04-20 |
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