Abstract:
A module for interconnecting fiber optic cables and/or cords includes: a housing having a rear wall; a plurality of MPO adapters mounted in the rear wall; and forty-eight fiber optic adapters mounted to a front portion of the housing, the duplex adapters being operatively connected with the MPO adapters.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    The present application claims priority from and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/103,850, filed Jan. 15, 2015, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention is directed to datacommunications equipment, and in particular datacommunications equipment for fiber optic interconnections. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    A network patching system is typically used to interconnect the various communication lines within a closet or computer room. In a conventional network patching system, the communication lines are terminated within a closet in an organized manner via one or more patch panels mounted on a rack or frame. Multiple ports are included in the patch panel, typically in some type of organized array. Each of the different ports is connected with a communications line. In small patching systems, all communications lines may terminate on the patch panels of the same rack. In larger patching systems, multiple racks may be used, wherein different communications lines terminate on different racks. Interconnections between the various communications lines are made connecting patch cords to the ports. By selectively connecting the various communications lines with patch cords, any combination of communications lines can be interconnected. 
         [0004]    It may be desirable to provide different devices for interconnecting datacommunications lines. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0005]    As a first aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to a module for interconnecting fiber optic cables and/or cords. The module comprises: a housing having a rear wall; a plurality of MPO adapters mounted in the rear wall; and forty-eight fiber optic adapters mounted to a front portion of the housing, the fiber optic adapters being operatively connected with the MPO adapters. 
         [0006]    As a second aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to an assembly for interconnecting fiber optic cables and/or cords comprising a  1 U telecommunications shelf and two fiber optic telecommunications modules mounted to the shelf. Each of the modules comprises: a housing having a rear wall; a plurality of MPO adapters mounted in the rear wall; and forty-eight fiber optic adapters mounted to a front portion of the housing, the fiber optic adapters being operatively connected with the MPO adapters. 
         [0007]    As a third aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to an assembly for interconnecting fiber optic cables and/or cords comprising a  1 U telecommunications shelf having a window with side edges and two fiber optic telecommunications modules mounted to the shelf. Each module comprises: a housing having a rear wall; a plurality of MPO adapters mounted in the rear wall; forty-eight fiber optic adapters mounted to a front portion of the housing, the fiber optic adapters being operatively connected with the MPO adapters; and latches that engage the side edges of the window to snap-mount the module to the shelf. Each of the modules is configured to be oriented in the shelf in an upright or an inverted orientation, and wherein each module further comprises a faceplate indicating the upright and inverted orientations. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         [0008]      FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a module for interconnecting fiber optic cables and cords according to embodiments of the invention. 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is a rear perspective view of the module of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  is an enlarged partial front perspective view Of one of the latches of the module of  FIG. 1  used to attach the module to a fiber shelf. 
           [0011]      FIG. 4  is an enlarged partial front perspective view of another of the latches of the module of  FIG. 1  used to attach the module to a fiber shelf. 
           [0012]      FIG. 5  is front perspective view of the module of  FIG. 1  attached to a fiber shelf. 
           [0013]      FIG. 6  is a front view of a labeling plate attached to the front side of the module of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0014]      FIG. 7  is a rear perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a module for interconnecting fiber optic cables and cords. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0015]    The present invention is described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments that are pictured and described herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. It will also be appreciated that the embodiments disclosed herein can be combined in any way and/or combination to provide many additional embodiments. 
         [0016]    Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms that are used in this disclosure have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The terminology used in the below description is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used in this disclosure, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will also be understood that when an element (e.g., a device, circuit, etc.) is referred to as being “connected” or “coupled” to another element, it can be directly connected or coupled to the other element or intervening elements may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly connected” or “directly coupled” to another element, there are no intervening elements present. 
         [0017]    Referring now to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , a telecommunications module for interconnecting fiber optic cables and cords, designated broadly at  10 , is shown therein. The module  10  includes a box-like housing  12  with a ceiling  14 , a floor (not shown), side walls  18 , and a rear wall  20 . The housing  12  is sized to mount on a shelf sized at 1U (i.e., approximately 1.75 inches in height). On its front side, the module  10  includes two sets of  24  duplex fiber optic adapters  22 . Each set of fiber optic adapters  22  is arranged in upper and lower rows of twelve adapters each, with the sets of adapters  22  being side-by-side across the front of the module  10 . The adapters  22  are conventional fiber optic adapters and need not be described in detail herein. 
         [0018]    Referring now to  FIGS. 1 and 4 , the front side of the module  10  also includes features that enable the module  10  to be attached to a 1U fiber shelf  50 . A pair of snap latches  24  are located between the sets of adapters  22  and project forwardly. Each of the snap latches  24  has a hook  26  and an opposed shoulder  28  that enables it to receive a vertical edge of the shelf  50 . In addition, a latch  30  ( FIG. 3 ) projects forwardly from each of the lateral edges of the module  10 ; each latch  30  includes a hook  31  and a shoulder  32  that can receive a vertical edge of the shelf  50 . 
         [0019]    Referring now to  FIGS. 1 and 3 , the front side of the module  10  also includes two latching projections  34  that are located on opposite sides of the sets of adapters  22 . These latching projections  34  enable the module to mount a kit for “intelligent patching” (i.e., a system that can track connectivity of cords and cables connected to the adapters  22 ). An exemplary system/kit is the iPATCH® system, available from CommScope, Inc., (Hickory, N.C.). 
         [0020]    Referring now to  FIG. 2 , three MPO connectors  36  are mounted to the rear wall  20  of the housing  12 . These MPO connectors  36  are sixteen fiber connectors that receive a sixteen fiber MPO attached to a fiber optic cable. 
         [0021]    The housing  12  protects optical fibers (not shown) that extend between the MPO connectors  36  and the adapters  22 . There are multiple arrangements of such fibers known to those of skill in this art that need not be described in detail herein. 
         [0022]      FIG. 5  illustrates the module  10  mounted in the shelf  50 . As can be seen in  FIG. 5 , the shelf  50  includes four windows  52  with vertical side edges  54  (only two windows  52  are visible in  FIG. 5 ). The module  10  is mounted on the shelf  50  by inserting the adapters  22  through the windows  50 ; the latches  24  contact the side edges  54  and deflect, then recover, as the module  10  is moved forward to snap-mount the module  10  on the shelf  50 . The side edges  54  of the window  50  are captured between the hooks  26  and the shoulders  28  of the latches  24 . Similarly, the latches  30  engage respective side edges  54  of the window  50  and deflect, then recover to capture the side edges  54  between the hooks  31  and the shoulders  32 . The latching projections  34  are free to receive an intelligent patching kit if desired. The resulting assembly  56  comprising the shelf  50  and two modules  10  can be mounted within a  1 U space on a conventional telecommunications rack or cabinet. 
         [0023]      FIG. 6  shows the module  10  with a faceplate  60  attached thereto for assisting with orientation of the module  10 . As discussed at length in U.S. Pat. No. 7,416,347, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety, fiber optic modules often have an “ALPHA” or “BETA” orientation in order to provide proper connectivity for the fibers connected thereto. The faceplate  60  includes indicia  62  that is oriented so that an operator can quickly discern an “ALPHA” or “BETA” configuration of the module  10  irrespective of whether the module  10  is horizontally or vertically oriented. 
         [0024]      FIG. 7  illustrates another fiber optic module  110  according to embodiments of the invention. The module  110  includes three TAP connectors  136  on its rear wall  120 . 
         [0025]    It should also be noted that, because the modules  10 ,  110  include  48  fiber optic adapters  22 , they are configured to be able to receive either three 16-fiber MPOs or four 12-fiber MPOs. As such, the modules can be employed through transitions between 12-fiber based systems and 16-fiber based systems. Thus, as higher data transmission speeds (such as 40 Gb, 100 Gb, or even 400 Gb) become more standard and/or commonplace, the modules can be modified to address the changing needs of end users. 
         [0026]    The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the claims. The invention is defined by the following claims, with equivalents of the claims to be included therein.