Abstract:
A coupling device, in particular for an optical fiber network, the device being of the type comprising a housing ( 100 ) and a shutter ( 200 ) pivoted to the housing ( 100 ) in register with the outline of an opening ( 112 ) therein, the device being characterized by the fact that the shutter ( 200 ) comprises a cylindrical dome ( 210 ) centered on the pivot axis, and by the fact that the pivot axis is set back from the front face ( 114 ) defining the opening of the housing ( 100 ).

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to the field of devices for coupling together appropriately-fitted hardware in a local network, in particular by means of optical fibers. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Optical fibers have long been restricted to long and medium distance communications at high data rates. Nevertheless, optical fibers are now seen to be moving progressively into the local networks of businesses. Optical fibers are progressively reaching the access points of subscriber terminals, i.e. they are directly serving workstations fitted with electro-optical interface cards. 
     Although mainly used for computer purposes (local networks), the coupling device of the present invention can nevertheless also be used for other optical connections, for example in the context of multimedia applications. 
     Various types of coupling have already been proposed, in particular for optical fiber networks. 
     In particular, projecting optical sockets have been proposed that are placed in skirting boards or in mounting boxes sunk into walls. Such a socket is sometimes protected by a shutter, and under such circumstances it is considered as being dust-proof under certain structural conditions. 
     Proposals have recently been made for a retractable socket of the type shown diagrammatically in accompanying FIGS. 1 and 2 where the socket is shown respectively in the closed position and in the open position, with the principle thereof consisting in hiding the mechanism that receives the optical connection inside the skirting board. In FIGS. 1 and 2, there can be seen a coupling device comprising a housing  10  that can be received inside a skirting board, a shutter  20  that is hinged to pivot on the housing  10  about an axis  20  that coincides with the front face  12  of the housing  10 , and a support  30  associated with the shutter  20  and carrying connectors  40 . To access the connectors  40  for coupling purposes, the device is opened by pivoting the shutter  20 , as shown in FIG.  2 . That known device has the advantage of occupying minimum space when the socket is not in use. Nevertheless, such a device suffers from a major drawback: in the open position which is required throughout use in the coupled position, it occupies a relatively large amount of space (see FIG.  2 ). 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An object of the present invention is to propose a coupling device that occupies a minimum amount of space, both at rest and when in use in the coupled position. Another object is to provide dust-proofing around the connectors. 
     According to the present invention, these objects are achieved by a device of the type comprising a housing and a shutter pivoted to the housing in register with the outline of an opening therein, characterized by the fact that the shutter comprises a cylindrical dome centered on the pivot axis, and by the fact that the pivot axis is set back from the front face defining the opening of the housing. 
     According to another advantageous characteristic of the present invention, the pivot axis of the shutter is situated at a distance from the front face of the housing that is substantially equal to the radius of the cylindrical dome. 
     Other characteristics, objects, and advantages of the present invention appear on reading the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings given by way of non-limiting example, and in which: 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIGS. 1 and 2, described above, are diagrams showing a coupling device in the state of the art, respectively in the closed position and in the open position; 
     FIGS. 3 and 4 are two similar section views through a coupling device of the present invention respectively in the closed position and in the open position; 
     FIGS. 5,  6 ,  7 , and  8  show a variant embodiment of a housing of the invention, FIG. 5 being a front face view, FIGS. 6 and 7 being two orthogonal side views, and FIG. 8 being a section view of the housing on section plane VIII—VIII of FIG. 5; 
     FIGS. 9,  10 ,  11 , and  12  show a variant embodiment of a shutter of the invention, FIG. 9 being a view of the front face of the shutter, while FIGS. 10 and 11 are two orthogonal side views, and FIG. 12 is a section view on section plane XII—XII of FIG. 9; 
     FIGS. 13 and 14 are plan views of two connector supports suitable for use in the context of the invention; 
     FIGS. 15 and 16 are two views respectively similar to FIGS. 3 and 4 and showing a variant embodiment of the device fitted with sealing gaskets; and 
     FIGS. 17,  18 , and  19  are diagrams showing how the coupling device of the invention is used, FIG. 17 being a section view, similar to FIG. 3, through the device in the closed position, FIG. 18 being a section view, similar to FIG. 4, through the device in the open position and in the coupled state, and FIG. 19 being a view of the front face of the device. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The coupling device of the present invention shown in the accompanying figures essentially comprises a support block or housing  100 , a shutter or tilting body  200 , and a support  300  receiving connectors  400 . Where appropriate, the device may also have a covering finger plate  500 . 
     The support block or housing  100  comprises a frame  110  and two side plates  120  and  130 . The frame  110  is preferably rectangular. It defines the outline of an opening  112  that is also rectangular and it corresponds to the front face  114  of the housing. The two side plates  120  and  130  are parallel to each other and orthogonal to the frame  110 . They project from the long sides  115  and  116  of the frame  110 . 
     Each of the two side plates  120  and  130  has a respective bore  122 ,  132  passing through the thickness thereof. The two bores  122  and  132  lie on the same axis O. 
     The centers of the bores  122  and  132  are situated at a distance from the front face  114  that is substantially equal to the radius of a cylindrical dome  210  belonging to the shutter  200 . 
     The bores  122  and  132  are designed to receive complementary stub axles  222  and  232  projecting on a common axis from the shutter  200 . 
     The side plates  120  and  130  have means for indexing the shutter  200  between a closed position as shown in FIG.  3  and an open position as shown in FIG.  4 . These indexing means are designed to ensure that the shutter  200  holds itself relative to the housing  100  in each of said open and closed positions while nevertheless allowing the shutter  200  to move between those two positions when urged appropriately. 
     By way of non-limiting example, the indexing means are formed by at least one resilient tab  140  provided with a recess or a through bore  142  designed to receive at least one complementary stud  242 . 
     The resilient tab  140  is preferably secured to the housing  100  while the stud  242  is secured to the pivoting shutter  200 . Nevertheless, the opposite configuration could also be used. Thus, the resilient tab may be provided on the pivoting shutter while the complementary indexing stud is provided on the housing  100 . 
     More precisely, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, two resilient tabs  140  and  144  can be provided on a single side plate of the housing  100  to co-operate with respective studs  242  and  244  provided on the pivoting shutter  200  depending on whether it is placed in its closed position as shown in FIG. 3 or its open position as shown in FIG.  4 . 
     In another embodiment, shown in FIGS. 5 to  12 , a first resilient tab  140  can be provided on one of the side plates  130  to co-operate with a stud  242  provided on a first side plate  230  of the shutter  200 , and a second resilient tab  144  can be provided on the second side plate  120  to co-operate with a second stud  244  provided on a second side plate  222  of the shutter  200 . 
     The person skilled in the art will readily understand that the studs  242 ,  244  penetrate into the recesses or bores  242  in the tabs  140 ,  144  by the tabs being deformed inelastically. 
     Means are also provided for limiting the amplitude of pivoting of the shutter  200  relative to the housing  100 . 
     These pivot-limiting means can be embodied in various different ways. 
     In the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, these pivot-limiting means are constituted by a central beam  150  provided on at least one of the side plates  120 ,  130  of the housing  100  and serving as abutments for the studs  242 ,  244  depending on the position occupied by the shutter  200 . 
     In contrast, in the second embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 to  12 , the means for limiting pivoting of the shutter  200  relative to the housing  100  are constituted by means provided on the shutter  200  and coming into abutment against at least one of the cross-members  117 ,  118  of the frame  110 . 
     Still more precisely, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 to  12 , these pivot-limiting means are formed, for the closed position, by a peg  250  projecting from the cylindrical dome  210  to bear against the cross-member  117 , and for the open position, by ribs  260  projecting from the cylindrical dome  210  and adapted to bear against the cross-member  118 , possibly accompanied by the edges of the side plates  220 ,  230  of the shutter  200  coming to bear against the cross-member  117 . 
     As can be seen particularly in FIGS. 3,  4 , and  8 , one of the cross-members  117  parallel to the axis of rotation of the shutter  200  is preferably constituted by a sloping plane, e.g. a plane that slopes towards the axis of rotation at 45° relative to the outline of the opening in the housing  100 . Such an inclined plane  117  extends parallel to the opening channel of the device and makes it easier to put the connection means into place. 
     Where appropriate, as shown in FIGS. 5 to  8 , at least one of the side plates  120 ,  130  can be fitted with a resilient tongue having teeth  160  enabling the housing  100  to be held stationary by being snap-fastened in a skirting board or in a complementary finger plate  500 . 
     The shutter or tilting body  200  essentially comprises a cylindrical dome  210  centered on its axis of rotation and two mutually parallel side plates  220 ,  230  which are perpendicular to the axis of rotation. 
     The general shape of the tilting body  200  has two planes of symmetry: one parallel to the two side plates  220 ,  230 ; and the other containing the axis of rotation. The two same-axis stub axles  222 ,  232  designed to penetrate into the bores  122 ,  132  are provided on the outside surfaces of the side plates  220 ,  230 . 
     In FIGS. 9 to  12 , there can be seen the indexing studs  242 ,  244  that co-operate with the resilient tabs  140 ,  144 , and also the ribs  260  projecting from the cylindrical dome  210 . 
     By way of non-limiting example, the studs  242 ,  244  that co-operate with the tabs  140 ,  144  allow the shutter  200  to pivot through an angle of 45° between its closed position and its open position. 
     As mentioned above, the device also comprises a plate  300  serving as a support for connectors  400 . The support plate  300  is plane. It includes means for fixing the connectors  400 . The fixing means can be embodied in numerous different ways. 
     The fixing means are preferably constituted by bores  310 ,  312 . Such bores  310 ,  312  can be configured in various ways, as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14. 
     More precisely, these figures show two bores  310 ,  312 . Nevertheless, the invention is not limited to this number of connectors. 
     The support plate  300  can be molded together with the shutter  200  or it can be applied and fixed to the shutter  200  by any appropriate means. 
     In the particular embodiment shown in the accompanying figures, the support plate  300  is applied to the shutter  200  and is fixed in the plane of symmetry of the shutter  200  that includes the axis O by means of protuberances  320 ,  322 ,  324 ,  326  provided on the edges of the support plate  300  and designed to engage in complementary indentations  270 ,  272  formed in the side plates  220 ,  230 . 
     The connectors  400  are conventional and are not described in detail below. It may be observed that, in use, the axes of the connectors  400  extend perpendicularly to the plane of the support plate  300 . The connectors  400  can be fixed to the support  300  by various means such as screws, snap-fastening, etc. 
     In another variant, the connector support  300  can itself be molded as one or more portions shaped to define the connector assemblies passing therethrough. 
     The projections  260  provided on the outside surface of the cylindrical dome  210  are preferably formed by rectilinear ribs parallel to the pivot axis. Their function is to make the shutter  200  easier to handle. 
     The person skilled in the art will readily understand that since the axis of rotation of the shutter  200  is situated at a distance from the front face  114  of the housing  100  that is substantially identical to the radius of the cylindrical dome  210 , the volume occupied by the device remains unchanged regardless of the open or closed position of the shutter  200 . 
     It is also shown that when the shutter  200  is in its closed position, it completely covers the outline of the opening  112  in the frame  110 . It thus serves to provide part of the dust-proofing around the connectors  400 . 
     This dust-proofing can be improved by means of a case  450  added to the housing  100 , as shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, co-operating with gaskets  452 ,  454  resting against the pivoting shutter  200 . 
     Still more precisely, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the case  450  has side walls  458 , a wall  455  orthogonal to the frame  110 , and a wall  456  parallel thereto and placed against the bottom of the housing  100 . 
     A first gasket  452  is situated at the base of the sloping plane face  117  of the frame  110 . A second gasket  454  is disposed at the end of the wall  456 . 
     To use the coupling device of the present invention, the procedure is essentially as follows. 
     Firstly, the model of support plate  300  is selected as a function of the desired feedthroughs  400 . These feedthroughs are fixed to the chosen connector support  300 . 
     Thereafter the fitted support  300  is inserted into the tilting body  200 . For this purpose, the support  300  is placed on the axis of the indentations  270 ,  272  and is pushed home into the dome  210  until the studs  320 ,  322 ,  324 , and  326  engage in said indentations by elastic deformation of the side plates  220 ,  230 . Engagement of the projections  320 ,  322 ,  324 , and  326  in the indentations  270 ,  272  provides good positioning of the support  300 , preventing it from pivoting in the body  200 . 
     The resulting assembly  200 ,  300  is then inserted into the housing  100 . For this purpose, said assembly is inserted between the side plates  120 ,  130  to position the stub axles  222 ,  232  in the bores  122 ,  132  by elastically deforming the side plates  120 ,  130 . 
     The device can be held with the shutter  200  in the closed position so long as a coupling is not required, e.g. as shown in FIG.  17 . 
     When it is desired to connect a workstation, it suffices to apply finger pressure to cause the assembly constituted by the tilting body  200 , the support  300 , and the connectors  400  to pivot about the axis of the stub axle  222 ,  232 . The feedthroughs fixed to the body  300  then become accessible and it suffices to connect the appropriate plug(s) of the workstation to the feedthroughs, as shown in FIGS. 18 or  19 . 
     Naturally, the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described above, but extends to any variant within the spirit of the invention. 
     In particular, the invention is not limited to connecting optical fibers as mentioned above, but can also be applied to connecting electrical conductors.