Abstract:
A structured wiring system and apparatus and method for preinstallation of cabling therefor in a building, preferably during construction thereof. A cabling support bracket holds cabling in place at a central signal receiving and distribution location, the bracket including a flange that forces wall finishers to leave a cutout providing access to the cabling. The cabling extends from the central signal receiving location in the building to each prospective access point at which cabling support brackets and wall plates are installed. A filler plate can be mounted on the flange of the support bracket to cover the hole and indicate where the central location is. Additionally, identifiers can be associated with particular installations to provide compensation to the builder who included the preinstallation. When a signal distribution system is to be installed, a cabinet base is placed on the support bracket flange. The cabinet base is a mount on which signal handling modules can be installed and to which a cover can be attached. If necessary, additional cabinets can be attached and knockouts can be removed to allow passage of wires between cabinets.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is related to U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,108,331 and 5,114,365 which are incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY  
       [0002]     Distribution of signals, such as those for telephone, antenna, satellite and cable television services, and computer networking, has long been handled by separate cabling within a building for each type of signal. When new signals are added, new cables must be wired, and the separate cabling scheme has been maintained even within newly constructed buildings. Retrofitting an existing structure with new cabling can be difficult and costly.  
         [0003]     Wireless solutions have arisen for some applications, but these can be limited in range and quality depending on the protocol used, the materials used in a structure, and the type of signal distributed over the wireless network. Additionally, there can be security and privacy issues surrounding the use of wireless solutions.  
         [0004]     To simplify the use of the separate cabling, the different cables can be bundled from a central location in what are known as structured wiring schemes. The signals for different service are received in a cabinet in the central location and cables for each service and for each point of use exit the cabinet. All cables going to a particular point of use are bundled and brought to an access points in a wall of the point of use where they can be connected to respective wall plates and connectors. To further simplify, some structured wiring schemes include wall plates that hold all types of connectors needed for the various cables in the bundle.  
         [0005]     Excellent and preferred examples of structured wiring systems include the tecLAN™, ProLAN™, and iLAN™ systems of UStec™, Victor, N.Y. Such systems include a tecCenter™ comprising a rough-in cabinet housing a panel assembly and accessories and is covered by a panel or door. The tecCenter™ receives telephone, television, and data signals from outside the building, as well as audio, visual, data, and other signals from inside the building, and distributes the signals throughout the house over cabling, such as UStec&#39;s tecWire™, though conventional wiring can be used. The tecCenter™ includes equipment modules to process, encode, blend, and otherwise control signal amplitude and distribution as necessary. Once implemented, and with appropriate modules installed in the tecCenter™, the user can, for example, view and control satellite or cable television throughout the house without having more than one satellite receiver or cable box, view and control the output of a DVD player in one room of the house from another room in the house, listen to and control audio from any suitable audio device in one part of the house from any other room in the house, and access an in-house computer network from anywhere in the house. Further, an appropriately equipped tecLAN™, ProLAN™, or iLAN™ can be used to control environmental equipment in the building, view security and other cameras connected to the system, and control lighting in the building, among many other features.  
         [0006]     The tecLAN™, ProLAN™, and iLAN™ systems are excellent systems and are easy to install in any home or other building during construction. However, this requires that the owner and/or ultimate resident of the home or building instruct the builder to install such a system. For buildings constructed before the resident(s) of the building are known or own the building, such as spec houses and new spec office buildings and the like, such systems are less likely to be installed since installing the cabinet and running cabling from the central location to each access point can be expensive.  
         [0007]     To avoid some of the expense, builders can opt to run cabling to each access point, install wall plates with the various connectors that will be needed, but not include a cabinet and/or tecCenter™. However, access to the cabling at the typical tecCenter™ installation point can then be a problem since, after the cabling has been installed, the walls of the building are finished with drywall or the like, painted, etc., so that the cabling is sealed off in the wall cavity.  
         [0008]     To overcome this problem of sealed off cabling, embodiments contemplate a prewiring system for an in-house network including a cabling support bracket that holds the cabling in an easily accessible fashion at the cabinet installation location. Embodiments also include a flange that projects through the space that will be occupied by wall finishing material, such as drywall. The flange forces a wall finisher to cut a hole in the finishing material, thereby ensuring access to the supported cabling. Once the wall is finished, a filler plate can be used to cover the hole created by the flange. The fillet plate can be a simple, blank plate, or can have a design or indicia printed thereon. For example, the plate can carry a logo or the like, or can include a unique identifier that the occupant can later use when installing a tec system.  
         [0009]     Embodiments also contemplate the use of a multicable that includes all the conductors of bundled cabling from each access point in a single cable. Thus, large, awkward bundles of cables from each access point are eliminated. In place of such bundles, a single cable or pair of cables can be used.  
         [0010]     Further, embodiments contemplate a modular cabinet assembly that allows for installation of as much or as little equipment as a user desires for a central server. A base plate attaches to the flange of the cabling support bracket and provides one or more mounting points for equipment to handle the various signals to enter the cabinet. If more equipment is desired than a single cabinet can handle, additional cabinets can be attached in a train and aligned knockouts can be used to pass wiring from cabinet to cabinet. In embodiments, the modular cabinet arrangement can be used at access points in the structure, though the modular cabinet design is primly intended for use in the central location at which signals are received into the building structured wiring system in place of the large single cabinet typically used in such systems. In embodiments in which a filler plate is omitted, a unique identifier can be applied to one or more cabinet modules.  
         [0011]     With this prewiring arrangement and modular cabinet design, the cost of prewiring a structure, such as a spec house, can be greatly reduced. The reduction in cost makes it more likely that builders will install such prewiring arrangements in the speculative buildings they erect. Further, the identification system of embodiments can be used to provide builders a fee or other recognition when occupants of the spec buildings later install a tec system since builder information can be associated with the unique identifier.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]      FIG. 1  is a schematic illustration of a cabling support bracket mounted on a building support according to embodiments.  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is a close-up schematic illustration of the cabling support bracket mounted on a building support according to embodiments seen in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is a schematic illustration of a cabling support bracket mounted on a building support according to embodiments after wall finishing material has been mounted over the cabling support bracket.  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is a schematic illustration of a cabling support bracket mounted on a building support according to embodiments after wall finishing material has been mounted over the cabling support bracket and with a filler plate mounted thereon according to embodiments.  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is a schematic illustration of a cabinet base mounted on a building support over the cabling support bracket and/or wall finishing material according to embodiments after wall finishing material has been mounted over the cabling support bracket.  
         [0017]      FIG. 6  is another schematic illustration of a cabinet base mounted on a building support over the cabling support bracket and/or wall finishing material according to embodiments after wall finishing material has been mounted over the cabling support bracket, this view showing the aligned flanges and opening in the base according to embodiments.  
         [0018]      FIG. 7  is a schematic illustration of a cabinet base mounted as in  FIG. 6 , but with two additional cabinet bases daisy chained therewith using the tabs, recesses, and knockouts according to embodiments.  
         [0019]      FIG. 8  is a schematic top view illustration of a cabinet base and cover mounted on a finished wall according to embodiments.  
         [0020]      FIG. 9  is a schematic flow diagram of a method according to embodiments.  
         [0021]      FIG. 10  is a schematic flow diagram of a method according to embodiments.  
         [0022]      FIGS. 11 and 12  are schematic close-ups of the cable support arrangement according to embodiments. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION  
       [0023]     For the sake of simplicity, embodiments will be described in terms of a residential building, such as “spec house.” However, embodiments can be employed in any suitable building.  
         [0024]     A structured wiring system is contemplated in a house and will include a central location at which signals are received into the system, a plurality of access points in the house, and cabling  30  to the access points from the central location. “Central location” here simply means a point at which the signals are gathered together for distribution, not that the location itself is in a physically central location within the edifice. Preferably, embodiments employ a multicable as the cabling  30 , the multicable including all the conductors associated with the signals required at each access point and/or received at the central location. Alternatively, embodiments can employ two cables or even one cable over which multiplexed or otherwise encoded and blended signals are carried. As an additional alternative, all signals can be digitized and represented as data packets and the cabling  30  can be category 5 cabling such as is used for Ethernet networks. In another alternative, conventional cabling is used and gathered at the central location. Embodiments preferably employ a multicable with two coaxial cables and two Cat5e cables, such as the tecWire™ sold by UStec of Victor, N.Y.  
         [0025]     Embodiments include a cabling support bracket  10  at the central location that attaches to a support structure  20 , such as a stud in a framed house. The bracket has a mounting flange  11  through which wood screws  12  or the like secure the bracket to the stud. Mounting holes  13  and mounting screws  14  can pass through a plate  15  that extends from the mounting flange parallel to the future finished wall surface. Cabling holders  16  protrude from the bracket near a cutout with an alignment flange  17  protruding toward the center of the room. The flange  17  protrudes far enough that it will extend a couple of millimeters beyond drywall or other finishing material  21  that will be placed on the wall. Before drywall is installed, the cabling  30  from each access point is brought to the central location, and ends  31  of the cabling  30  are secured to the attachment point  16  on the bracket  10  with plastic ties or the like as particularly seen, for example, in  FIGS. 11 and 12 . Preferably, adhesive tape or the like  32  is wrapped around the cabling  30  several inches before an end  31  of the cabling  30  and a plastic tie  35  is passed through the attachment point  16 , through a gap  33  between wrapped wires in the cabling  30  and under the tape  32 , and back through the attachment point  16  to be closed. This allows the cabling  30  to be hung by the plastic tie  35 , presenting several inches of cabling  30  at the cutout that can simply be grabbed and pulled into the room. Also, ample cabling  30  is preferably left in the wall cavity so that installers have enough to do whatever might need to be done when work is done at the access point.  
         [0026]     With the protruding flange  17  around the cutout, a drywaller is forced to cut a hole in the drywall  21  and leave access to the wall cavity through the cutout in the plate  15 . Similar accommodations must be made in other finishing materials. After the drywall  21  is installed, a filler plate  40  can be placed over the opening, using, for example, the flange  17  and holes  19  therein as well as holes  41 . The filler plate  40  can in embodiments include indicia and/or a unique identifier  42  associated with the builder/installer and/or with the structure into which the tecWire™ system is installed. Alternatively, the unique identifier  42  can be placed on the cabinet if it is installed immediately instead of using a filler plate  40 .  
         [0027]     The modular cabinet of embodiments can be attached at the central location in place of the filler plate  40  either at the initial installation of the system or later in the life of the edifice. The cabinet includes a base  50  that mounts on the portion of the cutout flange  17  protruding from the drywall  21 . This placement of the base  50  on the flange  17  is mostly for alignment, and the cabinet base  50  of embodiments is preferably mounted to the stud via screws extending through holes  55 ,  19  in the cabinet base  50  and in the bracket mounting flange  15 , respectively.  
         [0028]     In embodiments, the cabinet base  50  includes a matrix of holes  54  with which equipment modules  60  can be installed in the cabinet, such as the basic telephone and coaxial television signal splitter module shown in  FIG. 5 . The cabinet base  50  is preferably substantially rectangular with walls  51  on all sides protruding into the room when mounted. At least two of the walls preferably include a plurality of through holes or slots  52  to allow ventilation for cooling of modules  60  installed in the cabinet. The cabinet base  50  further includes a through hole and flange  58  that match the cutout in the bracket plate so that the ends  31  of the cabling  30  can be pulled through to modules  60  installed on the cabinet base  50 . Embodiments include a cover  70  placed on the cabinet base  50  with a latching system  59 ,  71  holding the cover  70  to the base  50 . Corresponding lock tabs can be included on both the cover and the base to impede entry into the cabinet.  
         [0029]     If more modules  60  are desired than one cabinet can accommodate, one or more additional cabinets  50 ′,  50 ″ can be added to the system in a modular fashion, such as is seen in  FIG. 7 . To speed alignment of the bases, at least one wall  51  of each base includes tabs  56  on an external face and mating holes  57  on the external face of at least one opposite wall  51 . The tabs  56  of one base are received by mating holes  57  of a corresponding adjacent base  50  when properly mounted. This is seen in  FIG. 7 , where tabs  56  of a first base  50  are received in the recesses  57 ′ of a second base  50 ′, and tabs  56 ′ of the second base  50 ′ are received in recesses  57 ″ of a third base  50 ″. To allow connection between modules and/or across cabinets, the walls  51  of the cabinet bases include one or more weakened portions or knockouts  53  that can be removed to make cable passthroughs. As seen, for example, in  FIG. 7 , when the cabinet bases  50 ,  50 ′,  50 ″ are mounted, the knockouts  53 ,  53 ′,  53 ″ are aligned for easy, compact feeding of the cabling  30  or other connecting media.  
         [0030]     The filler plate  40  that covers the prewiring bracket hole of embodiments can take one of many forms. It can be a simple blank plastic plate, or can carry indicia  42 . For example, the indicia  42  can carry artwork or a company logo, and/or can include a unique identifier for the installation that can be used in one of several ways. In embodiments, the unique identifier can be used to associate the installation with the home owner, the builder of the home, both the owner and the builder, and more. In such an arrangement, the builder could get a fee for each installation when the home owner calls with the unique identifier. Rather than forming or printing unique identifiers  42  on the filler plates  40  directly, embodiments contemplate printing the unique identifiers  42  stickers that can be applied to the filler plates  40  or to the cabinet bases  50  or both, depending on exactly how the system is implemented.  
         [0031]     With particular reference to  FIG. 9 , embodiments thus also contemplate a method of distributing a structured wiring product comprising a supplier  100  contracting with builder/installers  200  to install the product in all new builds. In embodiments, the method can include supplying cabling  101  and supplying cabling support brackets  102 , though some installers will use cabling  30  from other sources. Further, the method can include supplying filler plates  103 , preferably including supplying unique identifiers  104  that can be associated with particular entities, such as particular builders, particular buildings, particular installs, particular access points, or any mixture of these. Alternatively, as discussed above, the unique identifiers  42  can be placed on the cabinets in addition to or rather than the filler plates  40 . In either case, embodiments include associating the identifiers  105  and storing the information associated with the identifiers  106 , which would be retrieved by or from an occupant/owner when it is time to install or expand a tec system. The method can include the steps required by the builder/installer  200 , as well. For example, embodiments can include installing a cabling support bracket  201 , installing cabling  202 , such as from a point of reception of signals into the structure to all contemplated access points in the structure, and attaching the cabling to the bracket  203 . Further, embodiments can include leaving a loop of cabling in a future wall cavity, leaving a cutout in a wall finishing material around a flange of each cabling support bracket  204 , and placing a filler plate on each cabling support bracket flange  205 . Embodiments can include concentrating cabling ends at the central signal receiving location  206  and transmitting/storing information to be associated with the unique identifier  207 .  
         [0032]     Embodiments further contemplate a method  300  of modular installation and expansion of a signal distribution system using a structured wiring arrangement installed according to the invention as described above as seen, for example, in outline form in  FIG. 10 . An installer or the occupant/owner of the building can retrieve the unique identifier for the installation from the filler plate  40  or cabinet, depending on what installation path the builder and/or owner chose. Transmitting the identifier  301  and ordering and receiving parts and materials for the new tec system  302  are contemplated in embodiments. On the supplier  100  side, receiving the identifier  107 , supplying the cabinet base(s) and cover(s)  108 , and supplying module(s) and other parts  109  are part of embodiments. Embodiments also contemplate providing a module attachment system on the cabinet base  110  and providing an alignment flange on the base corresponding to the cabling support bracket flange  111 . Additionally, providing walls on the base projecting opposite the alignment flange  112 , providing slots in at lest two of the walls to allow air to pass through the assembled cabinet  113 , and providing knockouts in at least two of the walls so that two bases aligned adjacent one another will have knockouts aligned  114  are contemplated in embodiments. Further, providing tabs on the external surface of one wall and corresponding recesses on the external surface of an opposite wall  115  facilitates alignment of adjacent cabinets.  
         [0033]     When the parts have been received, embodiments comprise removing the filler plate(s) or the cabinet cover(s)  303 , installing the cabinet base(s)  303  by mounting the alignment flange on the bracket flange, and installing modules on the base(s). Bringing cabling into the first cabinet base  306  and connecting the cabling to the module(s)  307  are contemplated, as well as adding additional base(s)  308  and aligning the additional base(s) by inserting tabs of one into recesses of another or vice versa. When the base(s) and module(s) are installed, the method includes mounting cover(s) on the base(s)  309 .  
         [0034]     It will be appreciated that various of the above-disclosed and other features and functions, or alternatives thereof, may be desirably combined into many other different systems or applications. Also that various presently unforeseen or unanticipated alternatives, modifications, variations or improvements therein may be subsequently made by those skilled in the art which are also intended to be encompassed by the following claims.