ANTENNA AND CABLE MOUNT

Abstract: An antenna mount for a station for mobile telephony, comprising a central mount section for mounting at least one antenna, wherein against the outer side of said mount section, at least one fastening element is provided whose side facing away from the mount section comprises juxtaposed receiving means, wherein in a number of said receiving means a cable is secured, while connectors are provided which support a number of cover plates extending along said mount section, thereby at least substantially covering the cables and the mount section.

Description: ANTENNA AND CABLE MOUNT The invention relates to an antenna mount, in particular for use with a station for mobile telephony. Such antenna mounts are known from practice. These known antenna mounts comprise a tubular section, which by a first, lower end thereof is secured to, for instance, a building by means of clips or the like, while adjacent a second, upper end, a number of antennae and associated elements are secured. Cables extending from the antennae or electronics arranged therewith to, for instance, a transceiver are laid against this mount section and tied thereto by, for instance, tie strips or the like. This prevents the cables from possibly coming loose from the mount section and, for instance, striking the antennae and damaging it, or becoming damaged themselves. These known antenna mounts have as a drawback that the securing of the cables against the mount section is time-consuming, as is the removal during, for instance, repair works, replacement or the addition of new cables. In the last case, the cable to be newly added is typically simply tied over the cables already secured. This complicates the detachment of the earlier arranged cables even further. Further, this known antenna mount has the drawback that much binding material is lost. Further, the appearance of this known antenna mount is not pleasant, in particular not because of the cables tied thereto. The object of the invention is to provide an antenna mount of the type described in the preamble, wherein the drawbacks mentioned above are avoided while the advantages thereof are maintained. To that end, an antenna mount according to the invention is characterized by the features of claim 1. The use of fasteners placed against the central mount section and provided with receiving means for securing cables, offers the advantage that individual cables or bundles of cables can readily be secured against the central mount section, while the cables or bundles of cables are preferably simply fixed through clamping. Detachment of an individual cable or bundle is thus readily possible, without requiring detachment of any other cables. Moreover, by the fasteners, the position of each of the cables is unequivocally determined. It is further observed that it is of course also possible to connect individual cables or bundles of cables to individual receiving means by conventional binding means. In that case, too, individual cables or bundles of cables can then be detached. By further providing cover plates capable of being secured to the fasteners, such that the cables and the central mount section are at least largely covered, a pleasant appearance is obtained and the cables as well as the mount section are outwardly protected. This will increase the lifetime of the antenna mount while the required maintenance will be reduced. The cover plates can be removed individually, so that in each case, the proper cables can be reached. In further elaboration, an antenna mount according to the present invention is characterized by the features of claim 2. By providing the fastening element, on a first side thereof, with a profile adapted to the outer shape of the mount section, the advantage achieved is that the fastening element can unequivocally be secured to the mount section so as to be fixed in position. At the same time, this effects an unequivocal positioning of the receiving means, located along the edge of the fastening element which edge faces the outer side. Thus, in a simple manner, an unequivocal, neat positioning of individual and bundled cables is obtained. Moreover, this advantageously realizes the effect that the position of the connectors is fixed, at least relative to the longitudinal axis of the mount section, so that fastening of the cover plates is simplified even further. In a further advantageous embodiment, an antenna mount according to the present invention is further characterized by the features of claim 4. The first clamp means of the connectors, which can suitably cooperate with the second clamp means for the cover plates, offer the advantage that the cover plates can be placed in a simple manner. As desired, a number of fastening elements can be provided in spaced apart relationship along the mount section, provided with said connectors, so that in each case, a good support and clamp action of the cover plates is obtained. In a further embodiment, an antenna mount according to the present invention is characterized by the features of claim 6. The providing the outer side of the mount with a fastening face, the antenna mount can readily be mounted on a wall or the like. The or each fastening face is preferably formed or at least defined by a flat side of a number of the fastening elements placed on the mount section. Thus, the functionality of the fastening elements is increased even further and the necessity for further mounting means is removed. In a further advantageous embodiment, an antenna mount according to the present invention is characterized by the features of claim 9. In such embodiment, wherein at least the receiving means are slightly deformable, for instance by manufacturing them from a relatively elastic material on a rigid support, the advantage achieved is that cables can be secured in the, for instance, substantially cylindrical slots through form locking, so that no further mounting material is required therefor. It will in fact be understood that the locking of cables in the receiving means can also be effected in other manners. The invention further relates to a fastening element for use with an antenna mount according to the invention. Further advantageous exemplary embodiments of antenna mounts according to the present invention are given in the subclaims. To clarify the invention, exemplary embodiments of such antenna mount will hereinafter be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In these drawings: Fig. 1 shows an antenna mount according to the invention in disassembled condition; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of an antenna mount according to Fig. 1; Figs. 3-7 are sectional top plan views of alternative embodiments of antenna mounts according to the invention; Fig. 8 is a sectional top plan view of a further alternative embodiment of an antenna mount according to the invention; and Fig. 9 is a top plan view of a cable duct covered with a cover plate according to the present invention. In this specification, identical or corresponding parts have identical or corresponding reference numerals. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an antenna mount 1 according to the invention, in disassembled condition. The antenna mount, universally applicable and particularly suitable for use with a station for mobile telephony,, comprises a central mount section 2, suitable for mounting an antenna. The mount section 2 is, for instance, circular-cylindrical, such as tubular. Secured along the mount section 2 at different positions is a fastening element 4, whereby on the one hand cables 6, individually or in bundles, can be secured or at least positioned, and on the other hand cover plates 8 can be provided around the mount section 2. The fastening elements 4 have a relatively small height relative to the mount section 2. As appears from Fig. 2, the fastening element 4 comprises two halves 4a, 4b, each being substantially semi-circular in top plan view. The two halves 4a, 4b are identical and intercoupled by bolt connections 10. For assembling, the two halves 4a, 4b are placed against each other from opposite sides of the mount section 2 and clamped against the mount section 2 by means of the bolt connections 10. The first half 4a will be discussed in more detail hereinbelow. Figs. 2-8 are sectional top plan views taken along a plane centrally through the fastening element 4, at right angles to the longitudinal direction of the mount section 2, in different embodiments. The fastening element 4 comprises a top flange 12 and a bottom flange 14, extending parallel and at right angles to the longitudinal direction of the mount section 2. Provided in opposite positions in the bottom flange 14 and the top flange 12 are recesses 16 whose section encloses a circular segment. The angle α enclosed by the relevant circular segment is preferably greater than 180°. Hence, the outwardly directed opening 18 of each recess 16 has a width D smaller than the diameter of the relevant circular segment. In the exemplary embodiment shown according to Fig. 2, each half 4a, 4b comprises six of such recesses 16, so that the fastening element 4 has 12 of such recesses 16. It will be understood that other numbers are also possible. The top flange 12 and bottom flange 14 are interconnected by a wall 20 following at least a part of the recesses 16. Between two adjoining recesses 16, a portion 22 of the wall 20 is slightly displaced inwards relative to the outer longitudinal edge of the flanges 12, 14. In said portion 22, an opening 22 is in each .case centrally provided, through which a bolt 24 can extend with its screw thread directed outwards, for reasons to be specified below. Provided above the opening 22 is a slotted recess 13 through which the head of the bolt 36 and a part of the screw thread thereof can pass, allowing, in the case of a mounted fastening element, the bolt to be slid into the opening 22. Optionally, screw thread may be tapped in said opening 26, so that a bolt can be screwed herein directly. The halves 4a, 4b can, for instance, be manufactured through molding from plastic or metal or any other suitable material. In the embodiments shown, all recesses 16 have the same dimensions. However, it will be understood that herein, too, variations are possible, while, moreover, recesses of a different section may be provided, for instance polygonal. By means of the bolts 24, three connectors 28 are secured against the outer side of the fastening element 4. The connectors have a central part 30 abutting against said flat portion 22 of the wall 20. This central part 30 has its outwardly facing side provided with a slotted recess 32, which will be discussed in more detail hereinbelow. Extending from the central part 30, on both sides thereof, is a wing 34 having a slotted recess 36 on its inwardly facing side, which recess has a circular segment-shaped section whose center line corresponds to the center line of the recesses 16. Accordingly, when a connector 28 is placed, on both sides of the central part 30, a substantially circular-cylindrical space 38 is substantially entirely enclosed by the slotted recesses 36 and the adjoining recesses 16. On their outwardly facing sides, the wings have an inclined outer face 40. In this context, "inclined" should be understood to mean sloping downwards from the slot 32 in the direction of the circumference of the flanges 12, 14. Provided in the central part 30 is a bore, such that the connector 28 can be slid over the bolt 24 and secured thereagainst by means of a fitting nut 42. Fig. 3a is a partly sectional top plan view of a portion of a connector 28 provided with the slot 32. The slot 32 diverges in outward direction from a bottom 44, bounded by wall parts 46. Adjacent the bottom 44, there is provided an undercut 48 on either side in the wall 46, which undercut extends throughout the length of the slot 32. The cover plates 8 have a curved outer face 50, bent over on both the longitudinal sides through an angle of, for instance, 90°, to form edge flanges 52. The edge flanges 52 have their free longitudinal edge provided with a profile 54, which comprises at least a clamp finger 56 extending throughout the height of the edge flanges 52. As shown in Fig. 2, a plate part 8 can abut by its edge flanges 52 against the longitudinal edges 46 of the slots 32 of two spaced apart connectors 28, with the clamp finger 56 received in the relevant undercut 48 and the plate part 50 abutting against the inclined outer face 40 of the relevant connectors. Hence, in this manner, the cover plate 8 can readily be clamped on the connectors 28. A closing block 58 is provided which can be clamped in the slot 32 over the nut 42. Opposite the clamp finger 56, the edge flange 52 is provided with an undercut 60 in which a clamp edge 62 of the clamp block 58 can be received for further clamping of the cover plate 8. As appears from Fig. 2, two cover plates 8 can be secured in each connector. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 2, three cover plates are provided, which together cover the central section 2 and the fastening elements 4 completely. This creates a pleasant appearance with a slightly rounded triangular cross section. As a matter of fact, the clamp blocks 58 can extend over the full height of the mount, at least of the cover plates, for further closing the space between the cover plates 8. An antenna mount according to Figs. 1 and 2 can be applied as follows. A number of fastening elements 4 are clamped onto the central mount 2, whereafter a suitable number of cables 6 are pressed into the recesses 16. Preferably, cables 6 are pressed into the recesses 16, which together with the connectors define the spaces 38. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 2, this means that six cables 6 are secured. With slight elastic deformation of the cables 6 and/or the longitudinal edges of the recesses 16, the cables 6 are first pressed into the recesses 16, whereupon the connectors are secured in their appropriate positions by means of the bolt 24 and nut 42. Thus, the cables are clamped in the space 38. Next, the cover plates 8 are clamped onto the connectors 28 and subsequently further retained by means of the clamp blocks 58. This results in a proper protection of the cables, while the antenna mount moreover obtains an attractive appearance. It will be understood that it is not required that each space 38 include a cable, while, moreover, thinner cables or bundles of cables can be included in the spaces 38, with or without clamping. Indeed, also when a thinner cable is received in such space 38, it will be retained. Fig. 3 shows an alternative embodiment of an antenna mount according to the present invention, wherein eight cables 6 are secured against fastening elements 4 by means of four connectors 28. On two opposite sides, cover plates 8 are secured against in each case two connectors 28, in a manner described hereinabove. In this embodiment, the connectors on the front and rear sides are left clear. However, it will be understood that here, too, cover plates can be secured on, comparable with cover plates 8, such that an at least substantially entirely closed outer face is again obtained. Fig. 4 shows a further alternative embodiment, wherein a support part 4c is mounted on a first part 4a of a fastening element, again by means of bolt connections 10 (not shown). The support part 4c largely corresponds to the first part 4a, but the four recesses 16 located adjacent the central part are omitted here and replaced by a flat wall part 64 which can be placed against a wall 66. On the side opposite the wall 66, a first alternative embodiment of a connector 28a is shown, comparable with the connector 28 as shown in Figs. 1-3. This connector has slightly thicker, shorter wings 34a, such that the cover plate 8 is kept at a slightly greater distance from the fastening element 4. Adjacent the wall 66, on either side of the fastening element 4, a second alternative embodiment of a connector 28b is mounted, a first side of which is provided with a relatively short wing 34b provided with a slot 36b of a circular segment- shaped section which encloses a relatively small angle, for instance 90°. On the opposite side, the connector 28b is provided with a second wing 34c having a relatively great length, comprising two slotted recesses 36c, 36b, both having a circular-segment shaped cross section. By means of the connector 28b, a cable 6 is secured in two spaces 38a. By means of the connectors 28a, 28b, two cover plates 8 are secured over the central section 2. the fastening elements 4 and the cables 6, to form a substantially rounded, triangular section. Fig. 5 shows an embodiment wherein three connectors 28a are symmetrically provided, whereby three cover plates 8 are secured. Between the fastening elements 4 and the cover plates 8, relatively much space is left clear. Hence, in the recesses 16 located between the connectors, further cables 6 can be included, if so desired. Fig. 6 shows a further alternative embodiment, wherein fastening elements as shown in Fig. 4 are used. Two connectors 28b are secured on the first part 4a of the fastening element 4 with their relatively long wings 34c turned towards each other, while the support part 4c is mounted on a wall 66. One cover plate 8 is secured on the connectors 28b. By means of the connectors 28b, six cables 6 are secured on the first fastening part 4a. Fig. 7 shows a further alternative embodiment, wherein a first and a second part 4a, 4b are mounted on a central mount section 2. Connectors 28b are mounted in pairs on the two parts 4a, 4b, two by two, with the relatively long wings 34c turned towards each other. Two cover plates 8 are provided, secured on the connectors 28c, while covering the long wings 34c and the cables 6 retained therebelow. In this embodiment, too, additional cover plates may be provided over the now clear parts of the connectors and cables. In this embodiment, twelve cables 6 are secured. Fig. 8 shows a first part 4a of a fastening element 4, designed as shown in Fig. 7. In this embodiment, the first part 4a is directly mounted on a wall 66 while enclosing a space 68 of a semi-circular section. Herein, for instance a mount section 2 of a comparable shape can be received, yet this space may also be kept open. In this manner, six cables 6 are secured in an elegant manner and at least largely covered by a cover plate 8. Fig. 9 shows a cable duct 70 of a box-shaped configuration. The cable duct 70 has two upright walls 72 whose free longitudinal edges are provided with outwardly extending snap edges 74, allowing a cover plate 8 to be secured therebehind by the clamp fingers 56. In the cable duct 70, cables 6 can be retained by means of a clamp body 76. The present invention is in no way limited to the exemplary embodiments shown in the specification and Figures. Many variations thereof are possible within the framework of the invention outlined by the claims. Thus, the central mount section may have a section other than circular, for instance polygonal, while fastening elements may be used having an inner shape adapted thereto. The cover plates may moreover have a different shape, for instance for forming a substantially polygonal antenna mount. All types of combinations of the shown parts of fastening elements, connectors and cover plates may be applied. Also, connectors may be used for securing cables in recesses without cover plates being each time secured to the relevant connectors. Thus, for instance in the embodiment shown in Fig. 5, by means of such connector, a number of cables can be secured in the recesses located below the cover plates. Also, conventional binding means may be used for securing cables in such recesses 16 individually or bundled. The use of an antenna mount according to the present invention offers the advantage that cables can simply be secured and removed again, possibly independently of each other, while a good protection of the cables is obtained and, moreover, the mount presents an attractive appearance. The cover plates may also be secured to the connectors in another manner, or coupled in another manner. These and many further variations are understood to fall within the outlined framework of the invention.

Claims: Claims 1. An antenna mount for a station for mobile telephony, comprising a central mount section for mounting at least one antenna, wherein against the outer side of said mount section, at least one fastening element is provided whose side facing away from the mount section comprises juxtaposed receiving means, wherein in a number of said receiving means a cable is secured, while connectors are provided which support a number of cover plates extending along said mount section, thereby at least substantially covering the cables and the mount section. 2. An antenna mount according to claim 1, wherein the fastening element has its first side provided with a profile adapted to the outer shape of said mount section, whereby the fastening element is mounted with a proper fit against the outer side of said mount section, the fastening element having its opposite, second side provided with said series of receiving means. 3. An antenna mount according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the mount section has a substantially circular cross section at least at the level of the or each fastening element, the or each fastening element being substantially circular segment-shaped, the cover plates having a shape curved along an imaginary cylindrical surface, wherein in mounted condition, the axis of symmetry of the relevant cover plate coincides with or, viewed from the cover plate, is located behind the longitudinal axis of the mount section. 4. An antenna mount according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the or each connector comprises first clamp means, the or each cover plate comprising second clamp means for clamping cooperation with said first clamp means. 5. An antenna mount according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cover plates, in mounted condition, extend over at least substantially the full height of the antenna mount. 6. An antenna mount according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one fastening face is provided on the outer side of the mount, parallel to the longitudinal axis of the mount section. 7. An antenna mount according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cover plates form a substantially circular-cylindrical outer face. 8. An antenna mount according to any one of claims 1-7, wherein the cover plates form a substantially flattened circular-cylindrical outer face. 9. An antenna mount according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the fastening element is at least partially manufactured from an at least slightly flexible material, the receiving means comprising at least a number of substantially cylindrical slots whose longitudinal axes are approximately parallel to the longitudinal axis of the mount section and which are open on the side facing away from the mount section over a width smaller than the diameter of the slots, the arrangement being such that the longitudinal edges of a slot can resiliently engage over a cable or the like included in the slot. 10. An antenna mount according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the connectors are clamped or screwed in or to a fastening element. 11. An antenna mount according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein by means of the connectors, cables are secured in the receiving means. 12. A fastening element for use with an antenna mount according to any one of the preceding claims.

Inventors: KOUTERS LUCAS JOHANNES CORNELI, VAN DER MAST HENDRICUS LEONARD, WITTE JOHANNES HENDRICUS, KOUTERS, LUCAS, JOHANNES, CORNELIS, VAN DER MAST, HENDRICUS, LEONARDUS, MARIA, WITTE, JOHANNES, HENDRICUS
Applicants: KOUTERS LUCAS JOHANNES CORNELI, LIBERTEL NETWERK BV, MAST HENDRICUS LEONARDUS MARIA, WITTE JOHANNES HENDRICUS, KOUTERS, LUCAS, JOHANNES, CORNELIS, LIBERTEL NETWERK B.V., VAN DER MAST, HENDRICUS, LEONARDUS, MARIA, WITTE, JOHANNES, HENDRICUS
Application year: 2000
Main classification: H01Q1
IPC codes: F16L3, H01Q1, H02G3