阅读说明：本技术 光纤连接器 (Optical fiber connector ) 是由 W·克劳福德 于 2020-01-10 设计创作，主要内容包括：一种用于端接光纤缆线的光纤连接器包含内部壳体、外部壳体、连接器子组合件和压接套筒。所述外部壳体相对于所述内部壳体径向朝外安置,且所述连接器子组合件包含被配置成接收端接所述光纤缆线的光纤的套管的套管篮。所述压接套筒环绕所述连接器子组合件的后向部分和所述光纤缆线的端部部分,并压接到其上。所述内部壳体被配置成牢固地围绕所述压接套筒安置,且所述外部壳体被配置成牢固地围绕所述内部壳体安置。(A fiber optic connector for terminating a fiber optic cable includes an inner housing, an outer housing, a connector subassembly, and a crimp sleeve. The outer housing is disposed radially outward relative to the inner housing, and the connector subassembly includes a ferrule basket configured to receive a ferrule that terminates optical fibers of the fiber optic cable. The crimp sleeve surrounds a rearward portion of the connector subassembly and an end portion of the fiber optic cable and is crimped thereto. The inner housing is configured to be securely disposed about the crimp sleeve and the outer housing is configured to be securely disposed about the inner housing.)

1. An optical fiber connector for terminating an optical fiber cable, the connector comprising:

an inner housing;

an outer housing disposed radially outward relative to the inner housing;

a connector subassembly including a ferrule basket configured to receive a ferrule terminating an optical fiber of the fiber optic cable; and

a crimp sleeve surrounding a rearward portion of the connector subassembly and an end portion of the fiber optic cable and crimped thereto,

wherein the inner housing is configured to be securely disposed about the crimp sleeve, an

Wherein the outer housing is configured to be securely disposed about the inner housing.

2. The fiber optic connector of claim 1, wherein the crimp sleeve is configured to be crimped onto a mandrel at a rear end of the connector subassembly.

3. The fiber optic connector of claim 1, wherein the connector subassembly comprises:

a connector body; and

a ferrule retained by a ferrule basket, the ferrule basket axially slidable relative to the connector body against a force of a spring,

wherein a sliding range of the ferrule and ferrule basket is limited by the connector body and the mandrel.

4. The fiber optic connector of claim 1, wherein the inner housing includes a first end toward a front end of the connector and a second end toward the rear end of the connector,

wherein the inner shell includes a forward flange portion having flattened outer peripheral portions at opposite top and bottom regions of the forward flange portion, an

Wherein the flattened peripheral portion of the forward flange portion is configured to engage a complementary portion of the outer housing to prevent rotation of the inner housing relative to the outer housing.

5. The fiber optic connector of claim 1, wherein the inner housing comprises:

a body portion extending in a longitudinal direction from the forward flange portion to a rearward flange portion; and

a boot portion extending rearward in a longitudinal direction from the rearward flange portion.

6. The fiber optic connector of claim 5, wherein the boot portion is made of rubber or elastomer to provide strain relief for the fiber optic cable.

7. The fiber optic connector of claim 1, wherein the inner housing is a one-piece unitary construction.

8. The fiber optic connector of claim 1, wherein the inner housing includes a first housing portion and a second housing portion.

9. The fiber optic connector of claim 8, wherein the first housing portion and the second housing portion are separate structures configured to be coupled to one another.

10. The fiber optic connector of claim 9, wherein the first housing portion is constructed of plastic and the second housing portion is constructed of rubber or an elastomer such that the first housing portion is more rigid than the second housing portion.

Technical Field

The present disclosure is directed to a fiber optic connector that attaches a connector subassembly to a fiber optic cable without the use of an external clamp encasement. More specifically, a fiber optic connector includes a unitary inner housing that connects a connector subassembly to a fiber optic cable.

Background

Fiber optic communication systems typically use a network of fiber optic cables to transmit large amounts of data. A typical fiber optic connector includes a ferrule that supports an end portion of an optical fiber. When two fiber optic connectors are interconnected, the end faces of the ferrules on each connector are directly opposite each other. Thus, the optical fibers supported by each ferrule are also directly opposite each other. Further, when the connectors are in this interconnected state, a spring in each connector biases the optical fibers toward each other. The optical signal may then be transmitted from one optical fiber to another.

Conventionally, the cannula may be disposed in a cannula holder carrier, which is then secured to the outer barrel. Conventional outer barrels include a clamp sheath arrangement to easily fit the barrel around and over the ferrule holder carrier and cable. Thus, the clamp encasement can be opened to move over and around these components. The outer housing may then be disposed over the fixture encasement in order to provide a safe and stable connector assembly.

It may be desirable to provide a hardened fiber optic connector that overcomes one or more of the problems of conventional prior art connectors recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art.

Disclosure of Invention

According to various aspects of the present disclosure, a fiber optic connector for terminating a fiber optic cable includes an inner housing, an outer housing, a connector subassembly, and a crimp sleeve. The outer housing is disposed radially outward relative to the inner housing, and the connector subassembly includes a ferrule basket configured to receive a ferrule that terminates optical fibers of a fiber optic cable. The crimp sleeve surrounds and is crimped to the rearward portion of the connector subassembly and the end portion of the fiber optic cable. The inner housing is configured to be securely disposed about the crimp sleeve, and the outer housing is configured to be securely disposed about the inner housing.

Drawings

Features and advantages of the present disclosure are described in and will be apparent from the following drawings description and detailed description.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an example hardened fiber optic connector according to aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 is a top cross-sectional view of the exemplary connector of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of an inner housing of the exemplary connector of fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a side cross-sectional view of the inner housing of fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a top view of the inner housing of fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the exemplary connector of fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is a side view of a connector subassembly and a crimp sleeve of the example connector of fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a connector subassembly of the exemplary connector of fig. 1.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of another example hardened fiber optic connector according to aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 10 is a side view of the exemplary connector of fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is a perspective view of another example hardened fiber optic connector according to aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 12 is a side cross-sectional view of the exemplary connector of fig. 11.

Fig. 13 is an exploded perspective view of an inner housing of the exemplary connector of fig. 11.

Fig. 14 is a perspective view of an inner housing and connector subassembly of the exemplary connector of fig. 11.

Fig. 15 is a side cross-sectional view of the inner housing and connector subassembly of fig. 14.

Detailed Description

Throughout the description, like reference numerals in the various figures will refer to like parts. As a prelude to the detailed description, it should be noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

Fig. 1-8 illustrate an exemplary fiber optic connector 100, such as a hardened fiber optic connector, for terminating a fiber optic cable 190. Fiber optic cable 190 may include one or more optical fibers; however, the connector 100 is configured to terminate a single optical fiber 192. The fiber optic connector 100 includes a front end 102 configured to couple with a fiber optic receptacle, and a rear end 104 into which a fiber optic cable 190 extends. The fiber optic connector 100 extends in a longitudinal axial direction from a front end 102 to a rear end 104. It should be appreciated that the mating between the fiber optic connector 100 and the receptacle may be secured using a threaded engagement, a 90 degree turn lock, a quick release, a push-pull latch, or a bayonet configuration.

The connector 100 includes an inner housing 120, a connector subassembly 130, an outer housing 140, and a crimp sleeve 180. The outer housing 140 surrounds at least a portion of the inner housing 120 and the connector subassembly 130, and the inner housing 120 is of a one-piece, unitary construction (i.e., a monolithic structure). The outer housing 140 may comprise a rigid material sufficient to withstand environmental conditions.

The fiber optic connector 100 uses an SC-type connector subassembly 130, although other types of connector subassemblies such as LC, FC, ST, MT, and MT-RJ are contemplated by the present invention through the use of a suitable crimp housing. As shown, the connector subassembly 130 may be an industry standard SC-type connector assembly having a connector body 132, a ferrule 134 in a ferrule basket 135, a spring 136, and a mandrel 138. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the ferrule 134 is held by a ferrule basket 135 that is axially slidable relative to the connector body 132 against the force of a spring 136, constrained by the connector body 132 and a mandrel 138.

As shown in fig. 3, the inner housing 120 includes a first end 122 toward the front end 102 of the connector 100 and a second end 124 toward the rear end 104 of the connector 100. Inner housing 120 includes a forward flange portion 150 having flattened outer peripheral portions 152 at opposite top and bottom regions of forward flange portion 150. Flattened peripheral portion 152 of forward flange portion 150 is configured to engage a complementary portion of outer housing 140 to prevent rotation of inner housing 120 relative to outer housing 140.

Referring to fig. 2 and 5, the inner housing 120 includes a main body portion 154 extending in a longitudinal direction from a forward flange portion 150 to a rearward flange portion 156, and a shoe portion 158 extending in a longitudinal direction rearward from the rearward flange portion 156. Boot portion 158 can be made of any conventional bendable material to provide strain relief for cable 190. The shoe portion 158 may include one or more notched portions 159 to enhance the flexibility of the shoe portion 158. Boot portion 158 of inner housing 120 may be a flexible member that provides a joint between connector 100 and fiber optic cable 190 and permits fiber optic cable 190 to bend and/or rotate relative to connector 100.

The forward flange portion 156 includes a pair of opposing outer side walls 160 between the flattened peripheral edge portions 152 at the top and bottom regions. The body portion 154 has opposing outer side walls 162 that are aligned with the side walls 160 in the longitudinal direction. The side wall 162 to side wall 162 dimension in the transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction is less than the side wall 160 to side wall 160 dimension in the transverse direction. Accordingly, inner housing 120 defines a longitudinally rearwardly facing radially extending surface 164 at the junction between sidewall 160 and sidewall 162. Similarly, rearward flange portion 156 includes a pair of opposing sidewalls 166 that are aligned in the longitudinal direction with sidewalls 160 and 162. The sidewall 162-to-sidewall 162 dimension in the transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction is less than the sidewall 166-to-sidewall 166 dimension in the transverse direction. Accordingly, the inner housing 120 defines a radially extending surface 168 facing forward in the longitudinal direction at the junction between the sidewall 166 and the sidewall 162. As discussed in more detail below, the rear-facing surface 164 and the front-facing surface 168 are configured to secure the outer housing 140 to the inner housing 120.

As shown in fig. 2, the inner housing 120 has an inner wall 170 extending in a longitudinal direction and a protrusion 172 extending inwardly from the inner wall 170. The protrusion 172 may be an annular protrusion or one or more axial protrusions spaced apart from each other around the circumference of the inner wall 170. The projection 172 thus defines a radially extending surface 174 facing forward in the longitudinal direction and a radially extending surface 176 facing rearward in the longitudinal direction.

The outer housing 140 has a generally cylindrical shape with a first end 142 and a second end 144. The outer housing 140 generally protects the connector subassembly 130 and, in some embodiments, may also lock the fiber optic connector 100 with a corresponding mating receptacle. In addition, the outer housing 140 includes a passageway between a first end 142 and a second end 144. As mentioned above, the access of the outer housing 140 is locked such that the inner housing 120 is prohibited from rotating when the fiber optic connector 100 is assembled. For example, the inner surface 178 of the outer shell includes a flattened region 179 configured to receive the complementary flattened peripheral portion 152 of the forward flange portion 150 to prevent rotation of the inner shell 120 relative to the outer shell 140. In addition, the inner surface 178 of the outer housing 140 forming the passageway has one or more internal shoulders 178a, 178b configured to inhibit the inner housing 120 from being inserted into the outer housing 140 beyond a predetermined position.

The outer housing 140 includes at least one opening 148 extending from a middle portion of the outer housing 140 toward the first end 142. In this case, the outer housing 140 includes a pair of opposing openings 148 at the first end 142, thereby defining alignment portions or fingers 149a, 149 b. In addition to aligning the outer housing 140 with the receptacle during mating, the alignment fingers 149a, 149b may protect the connector subassembly 130.

As shown in fig. 1, the alignment fingers 149a, 149b may have different shapes and/or sizes so that the connector 100 may mate with a socket in only one orientation. It should be appreciated that the alignment fingers 149a, 149b may include alignment marks so that a technician may quickly and easily mate the connector 100 with a jack. After the alignment fingers 149a, 149b are seated into the socket, a technician may engage the external threads of a coupling nut (not shown) with the complementary internal threads of the socket to provide a secure optical connection.

As best shown in fig. 3 and 4, the inner housing 120 has a generally flat outer wall 171 between the side walls 162 at the top and bottom regions. The inner housing 120 further includes one or more protrusions 173 extending outwardly from the outer wall 171. The one or more protrusions 173 are configured to substantially mate with the inner surface 178 of the outer housing 140 to seal the passage. The portions of the flat outer wall 171 that are free of the one or more protrusions facilitate sealing by the one or more protrusions 173 and reduce the overall material thickness to aid in the molding process, as will be understood by those skilled in the art.

Referring to fig. 2 and 8, the connector 100 includes a crimp sleeve 194 configured to be inserted into the fiber optic cable 190 between the one or more optical fibers 192 and an outer jacket 196 of the cable 190. The crimp sleeve 194 protects the one or more optical fibers 192 during termination of the cable 190 with the connector 100. Fiber optic cable 190 may include one or more strength members 198, such as Kevlar strand (Kevlar strand), that extend through the length of fiber optic cable 190 alongside the one or more optical fibers 192.

As shown in FIG. 8, the crimp sleeve 180 extends over a rear portion of the mandrel 138 to over a shoulder portion 139 of the mandrel 138 and a forward portion of the fiber optic cable 190. The crimp sleeve 180 includes an annular barb 182 or one or more circumferential barb portions at a rear end thereof configured to secure the inner housing 120 relative to the crimp sleeve 180. Specifically, the projections 172 extending inwardly from the inner wall 170 are retained between the tapered region 184 and the annular barb 182 of the crimp sleeve 180 resulting from the crimp onto the mandrel 138.

With one of the strength members 198 disposed on the radially outer surface of the mandrel 138, the crimp sleeve 180 is crimped onto the mandrel 138 and the fiber optic cable 190 to secure the connector subassembly 130 to the fiber optic cable 190.

When terminating the fiber optic cable 190 with the connector 100, which typically occurs at a manufacturing facility, the coupling nut and outer housing 140 are slid over the fiber optic cable 190, followed by the inner housing 120, and then the mandrel 138. The crimp sleeve 194 is then inserted into the end of the fiber optic cable 190. The optical fibers 192 of the cable 190 are terminated with the ferrule 134 and the connector subassembly 130 is placed about the fiber optic cable 190. The reinforcing member 198 may be placed onto the outer surface of the rear portion of the mandrel 138. The crimp sleeve 180 is then moved forward over the rearward portion of the mandrel 138 until reaching the shoulder 139, while the rearward portion of the mandrel 138 surrounds the fiber optic cable 190. The crimp sleeve 190 is crimped onto the mandrel 138 and the fiber optic cable 190 to secure the cable 190 to the connector subassembly 130.

Next, inner housing 120 is slid forward until projections 172 extending inwardly from inner wall 170 are retained between tapered region 184 of crimp sleeve 180 and annular barb 182 at the rear end of crimp sleeve 180. The resilient nature of the inner housing 120, for example made of rubber or any known elastomer, enables the inner housing 120 to escape over the annular barb 182 and onto the outer surface of the inner housing 120. The outer housing 140 is slid forward over the inner housing 120 until the shoulder 141 of the outer housing 140 reaches the rearward facing surface 164 of the inner housing 120 and the rear end 144 of the outer housing 140 is positioned forward of the forward facing surface 168 of the rearward flange portion 156. The coupling nut may then be slid forward to a position restrained by a protrusion from the outer surface of the outer housing so as to be configured to couple the connector 100 to a socket.

Fig. 9 and 10 illustrate another exemplary fiber optic connector 100', such as a hardened fiber optic connector, for attaching a fiber optic cable to a ferrule. The connector 100' includes an inner housing 120, a connector subassembly 130, and a crimp sleeve 180 as described above in connection with the embodiment of fig. 1-8. The outer housing 140 'is similar to the outer housing 140 described above, but the first end 142' of the outer housing 140 'includes only a single protrusion 149' disposed radially outward relative to the sleeve housing the subassembly 130. Also, as shown in fig. 10, the length of the single projection 149 'is configured such that the leading end 147 of the projection 149' does not extend beyond the leading end 135 of the sleeve 134 of the cannula housing the subassembly 130.

Fig. 11-15 illustrate another example fiber optic connector 200, such as a hardened fiber optic connector, for attaching a fiber optic cable to a ferrule. Connector 200 includes connector subassembly 230, outer housing 240, and crimp sleeve 280, which are similar to the same parts described above in connection with the embodiment of fig. 1-8. The connector 200 further includes a first inner housing 220a and a second inner housing 220 b. The outer housing 240 surrounds the first inner housing 220a and at least a portion of the second inner housing 220a and the connector subassembly 230. The first inner housing 220a is constructed of a relatively rigid plastic that is more rigid than the second inner housing 220b, which is constructed of a rubber or elastomer. The outer housing 240 may comprise a rigid material sufficient to withstand environmental conditions.

The fiber optic connector 200 uses an SC-type connector subassembly 230, although other types of connector subassemblies such as LC, FC, ST, MT, and MT-RJ are contemplated by the present invention through the use of a suitable crimp housing. As shown, the connector subassembly 230 may be an industry standard SC-type connector assembly having a connector body 232, a sleeve 234 in a sleeve basket 235, a spring 236, and a spindle 238. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the sleeve 234 is held by a sleeve basket 235 that is axially slidable relative to the connector body 232 against the force of a spring 236, constrained by the connector body 232 and a mandrel 238.

As shown in fig. 13, the first inner housing 220a is disposed toward the front end 202 of the connector 200 relative to the second inner housing 220 b. The first inner housing 220a has a first front end 222 that is configured to engage a shoulder 278 defined by the inner surface 278 of the outer housing 240 to limit the distance the first inner housing 220a can move in the forward direction relative to the outer housing 240. The second rear end 224 of the first inner housing 220a includes barbs 225 that extend radially outward toward the rear end 204 of the connector 200. First front end 222 of first inner housing 220a includes flattened outer peripheral portions 252 at opposing top and bottom regions of first inner housing 220 a. Flattened peripheral portion 252 is configured to engage a complementary portion of outer housing 240 to prevent first inner housing 220a from rotating relative to outer housing 240.

Referring to fig. 12 and 13, the second inner housing 220b includes a main body portion 254 extending from the first inner housing 220a to a rearward boot portion 258 extending rearward in the longitudinal direction. Boot 258 may be made of any conventional bendable material to provide stress relief for cable 190. The shoe portion 258 may include one or more notched portions 259 to enhance the flexibility of the shoe portion 258. The boot 258 of the second inner housing 220b can be a flexible member that provides a joint between the connector 200 and the fiber optic cable 190 and permits the fiber optic cable 190 to bend and/or rotate relative to the connector 200.

As shown in fig. 12, the second inner housing 220b has an inner wall 270 extending in the longitudinal direction and a protrusion 272 extending inwardly from the inner wall 270. The protrusions 272 may be annular protrusions or one or more axial protrusions spaced apart from each other around the circumference of the inner wall 270. The projection 272 thus defines a radially extending surface 274 facing forward in the longitudinal direction and a radially extending surface 276 facing rearward in the longitudinal direction.

The outer housing 240 has a generally cylindrical shape with a first end 242 and a second end 244. The outer housing 240 generally protects the connector subassembly 230 and, in some embodiments, may also lock the fiber optic connector 200 with a corresponding mating receptacle. In addition, the outer housing 240 includes a passageway between a first end 242 and a second end 244. As mentioned above, the passage of the outer housing 240 is locked such that the first inner housing 220a is prohibited from rotating when the fiber optic connector 200 is assembled. For example, inner surface 278 of outer housing includes flattened region 279 configured to receive complementary flattened peripheral portion 252 of forward flange portion 250 to prevent rotation of first inner housing 220a relative to outer housing 240. Further, the inner surface 278 of the outer housing 240 forming the passageway has a shoulder 278 configured to inhibit insertion of the first inner housing 220a into the outer housing 240 beyond a predetermined position.

The outer housing 240 includes at least one opening 248 extending from a middle portion of the outer housing 240 toward the first end 242. In this case, the outer housing 240 includes a pair of opposed openings 248 at the first end 242, thereby defining alignment portions or fingers 249a, 249 b. In addition to aligning the outer housing 240 with the receptacle during mating, the alignment fingers 249a, 249b may protect the connector subassembly 230.

As shown in fig. 11, the alignment fingers 249a, 249b may have different shapes and/or sizes such that the connector 200 may mate with a socket in only one orientation. It should be appreciated that the alignment fingers 249a, 249b may include alignment marks so that a technician may quickly and easily mate the connector 200 with a jack. After the alignment fingers 249a, 249b are seated into the socket, a technician may engage the external threads of a coupling nut (not shown) with the complementary internal threads of the socket to provide a secure optical connection.

As best shown in fig. 13, the second inner housing 220b has a substantially flat outer wall 271 at the top and bottom regions between the side walls 262. The second inner housing 220b further includes one or more protrusions 273 extending outwardly from the outer wall 271. The one or more protrusions 273 are configured to substantially mate with the inner surface 278 of the outer housing 240 to seal the passage. The portion of the flat outer wall 271 without the one or more protrusions facilitates sealing by the one or more protrusions 273 and reduces the overall material thickness to aid the molding process, as will be understood by those skilled in the art.

Referring to fig. 2, the connector 200 includes a crimp sleeve 294 configured to be inserted into the fiber optic cable 190 between the one or more optical fibers 192 and the outer jacket 196 of the cable 190. The crimp sleeve 294 protects the one or more optical fibers 192 during termination of the cable 190 with the connector 200. The fiber optic cable 190 may include one or more strength members 198, such as kevlar strands, that extend through the length of the fiber optic cable 190 alongside the one or more optical fibers 192.

As shown in fig. 12 and 15, crimp sleeve 280 extends over a rear portion of mandrel 238 to over shoulder portion 239 of mandrel 238 and a forward portion of fiber optic cable 190. The crimp sleeve 280 includes an annular barb 282 or one or more circumferential barb portions at a rear end thereof configured to secure the second inner housing 220b relative to the crimp sleeve 280. With one of the strength members 198 disposed on the radially outer surface of the mandrel 238, the crimp sleeve 280 is crimped onto the mandrel 238 and the fiber optic cable 190 to secure the connector subassembly 230 to the fiber optic cable 190.

The foregoing description of exemplary embodiments provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the embodiments described herein to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the embodiments.

Although the present invention has been described above in detail, it should be clearly understood that it will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that the present invention may be modified without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Various changes in form, design or arrangement may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the foregoing description is to be considered exemplary rather than limiting, and the true scope of the invention is that defined in the following claims.

No element, act, or instruction used in the description of the present application should be construed as critical or essential to the invention unless explicitly described as such. Also, as used herein, the article "a" is intended to include one or more items. Where only one item is intended, the term "one" or similar language is used. Further, unless expressly stated otherwise, the phrase "based on" is intended to mean "based, at least in part, on".