US-12625337-B2 - Fiber optic cassette

US12625337B2US 12625337 B2US12625337 B2US 12625337B2US-12625337-B2

Abstract

A cassette configured for the installation in a fiber enclosure system. The cassette includes a base, a first wall including a first front post, a second wall including a second front post, and a front wall with an opening including an adapter configured to connect to at least one fiber optic cable. The cassette further includes a latch located on the first wall configured to releasably connect the cassette to the fiber enclosure system, where a cassette lock is configured to retract the latch when the lock is actuated away from a rear of the cassette and deploy the latch when the lock is actuated toward the rear of the cassette.

Inventors

Benjamin J. Berridge
Joseph E. Sanders

Assignees

PANDUIT CORP.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20240306

Claims (20)

1 . A cassette configured for installation into a tray of a fiber enclosure system, the tray configured to slide within a chassis of the fiber enclosure system, and the tray including a first rail installed at a first side of the tray, a second rail installed at a second end of the tray, and a third rail installed on the tray between the first rail and the second rail, the cassette configured to be installed into the tray between the first rail and the third rail, and the cassette comprising: a first side wall including a first front post; a second side wall including a second front post; a front wall including an opening configured to install an adapter for receiving at least one fiber optic connector onto the cassette; a rear wall including an access opening configured to receive a fiber optic cable into the cassette, wherein at least a portion of the rear wall is configured to be parallel to the front wall; a base floor configured to connect the first side wall, the second side wall, the front wall, and the rear wall, the base floor further comprising a first internal wall rising up from the base floor and including a first end attached to the rear wall to define, at least in part, a first cable path leading into the cassette from the access opening included in the rear wall; a top cover configured to be positioned on top of the first side wall, the second side wall, and the rear wall, such that the portion of the rear wall configured to be parallel to the front wall extends from the base floor to the top cover when the top cover is installed onto the cassette; a first latch located on the first side wall and configured to releasably connect the cassette to the first rail included in the tray via a first retraction mechanism that enables movement of the first latch; and a second latch located on the second side wall and configured to releasably connect the cassette to the second rail included in the tray via a second retraction mechanism that enables movement of the second latch.
2 . The cassette of claim 1 , wherein the first internal wall includes a straight portion and a curved portion.
3 . The cassette of claim 1 , the base floor further comprising: a second internal wall rising up from the base floor to define, at least in part, a second cable path leading towards a splice component.
4 . The cassette of claim 3 , wherein the second internal wall includes a curved portion.
5 . The cassette of claim 1 , the base floor further comprising: a splice component including a plurality of splice holder walls rising up from the base floor.
6 . The cassette of claim 5 , wherein the plurality of splice holder walls includes at least one splice divider wall rising straight up from the base floor and at least one splice fastener wall rising up from the base floor and including a fastening ridge at a top.
7 . The cassette of claim 1 , the base floor further comprising: a slack loop comprising a loop wall rising up from the base floor in a circular shape.
8 . The cassette of claim 1 , the base floor further comprising: at least one cable tie down tower positioned adjacent to the access opening of the rear wall.
9 . The cassette of claim 1 , the rear wall further comprising: a retention tab.
10 . The cassette of claim 1 , wherein the adapter is an MPO or LC fiber optic connector adapter.
11 . A fiber enclosure system comprising: a chassis; a tray installed within the chassis, the tray configured to slide within the chassis; a first rail installed at a first side of the tray, a second rail installed at a second end of the tray, and a third rail installed on the tray between the first rail and the second rail; a cassette configured to be installed into the tray between the first rail and the third rail, the cassette comprising: a first side wall including a first front post; a second side wall including a second front post; a front wall including an opening configured to install an adapter for receiving at least one fiber optic connector onto the cassette; a rear wall including an access opening configured to receive a fiber optic cable into the cassette, wherein at least a portion of the rear wall is configured to be parallel to the front wall; a base floor configured to connect the first side wall, the second side wall, the front wall, and the rear wall, the base floor further comprising a first internal wall rising up from the base floor and including a first end attached to the rear wall to define, at least in part, a first cable path leading into the cassette from the access opening; a top cover configured to be positioned on top of the first side wall, the second side wall, and the rear wall, such that the portion of the rear wall configured to be parallel to the front wall extends from the base floor to the top cover when the top cover is installed onto the cassette; a first latch located on the first side wall and configured to releasably connect the cassette to the first rail included in the tray via a first retraction mechanism that enables movement of the first latch; and a second latch located on the second side wall and configured to releasably connect the cassette to the second rail included in the tray via a second retraction mechanism that enables movement of the second latch.
12 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 1 , wherein the first internal wall includes a straight portion and a curved portion.
13 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 11 , the base floor further comprising: a second internal wall rising up from the base floor to define, at least in part, a second cable path leading towards a splice component.
14 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 13 , wherein the second internal wall includes a curved portion.
15 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 11 , the base floor further comprising: a splice component including a plurality of splice holder walls rising up from the base floor.
16 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 15 , wherein the plurality of splice holder walls includes at least one splice divider wall rising straight up from the base floor and at least one splice fastener wall rising up from the base floor and including a fastening ridge at a top.
17 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 11 , the base floor further comprising: a slack loop comprising a loop wall rising up from the base floor in a circular shape.
18 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 11 , the base floor further comprising: at least one cable tie down tower positioned adjacent to the access opening of the rear wall.
19 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 11 , the rear wall further comprising: a retention tab.
20 . The fiber enclosure system of claim 11 , wherein the adapter is an MPO or LC fiber optic connector adapter.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/341,783, filed Jun. 8, 2021, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/669,623, filed on Oct. 31, 2019 (now U.S. Pat. No. 11,048,055, granted on Jun. 29, 2021), which claims benefit to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/768,225, filed Nov. 16, 2018, the entirety of all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein. FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a fiber optic cassette for installation in a fiber enclosure system. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Optical fibers allow for transmission of communications over longer distances and at higher bandwidths than copper wire cables. Optical fibers are also advantageous for communication systems because signals suffer less loss than copper wire cables and are immune to electromagnetic interference. Optical fibers are therefore often used for high bandwidth, long distance applications. As demand for high bandwidth increases, it is advantageous to use smaller and/or higher capacity adapters to minimize the amount of data center rack space needed per optical fiber port. Due to this, many users of data centers are transitioning to smaller Local Connector adapters (“LC adapters”) or Multi-Fiber Push-on/Pull-off adapters (“MPO adapters”). As more capacity is sought, more space is used within a cassette to accommodate the increased fiber density. Utilizing space within the cassette is limited due to the attachment mechanisms housed within the cassette that allows for the cassette to be installed and removed from a fiber enclosure system. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a fiber optic module or cassette for use within a fiber enclosure system including a base, a first wall including a first front post, a second wall including a second front post, and a front wall with an opening including an adapter configured to connect to at least one fiber optic cable, a latch located on the first wall configured to releasably connect the cassette to a fiber enclosure system, and a cassette lock configured to retract the latch when the lock is actuated away from a rear of the cassette deploy the latch when the lock is actuated toward the rear of the cassette. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following description in conjunction with the drawing figures in which: FIG. 1 depicts an isometric view of an example cassette of the present invention with the cover installed. FIG. 2 depicts an isometric view of the cassette of FIG. 1, with the cover removed. FIG. 3 depicts the cassette lock of the cassette of FIG. 2. FIG. 4 depicts a close-up isometric view of a portion of the cassette lock of the cassette of FIG. 2. FIG. 5 depicts an isometric view of an example fiber enclosure system. FIG. 6 depicts an isometric view of the tray of the fiber enclosure system of FIG. 5, with one cassette installed in the tray. FIG. 7 depicts a top perspective of the tray of FIG. 6, with the retraction mechanism and latch in an engaged position. FIG. 8 depicts a close-up of the retraction mechanism and latch of FIG. 7. FIG. 9 depicts a top perspective of the tray of FIG. 6, with the retraction mechanism and latch in a disengaged position. FIG. 10 depicts a close-up of the retraction mechanism and latch of FIG. 9. DETAILED DESCRIPTION The disclosed cassette, also commonly known as a module, solves or improves upon one or more of the above noted and/or other problems and disadvantages with prior cassettes. The disclosed cassette provides for a new cassette locking system that enables an increased area within the cassette to achieve a higher fiber density. These and other objects, features, and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon reading this disclosure. Turning now to the drawings, FIGS. 1 and 2 depict one example of a cassette 50 of the present invention. The cassette 50 includes a cassette body 52. The cassette body 52 is generally rectangularly shaped, and includes a base 54, first side 56, second side 58, front 60, and rear 61. The first side 56 includes a first side wall 57 that is attached at generally a right angle to the base 54. The second side 58 includes a second side wall 59 that is attached at generally a right angle to the base 54. The front 60 includes a front wall 63 that is attached at generally a right angle to the base 54. The rear 61 includes a rear wall 65 that is attached at generally a right angle to the base 54. The cassette 50 may also include a cassette cover 62 which extends parallel to the base 54 of the cassette body 52 from the first side wall 57 to the second side wall 59 and from the front 60 to the rear 61. The front wall 63 is located at the front 60 of the cassette. The front wall 63 spans the width of the cassette 50, from the first side