Abstract:
The present disclosure is related to an apparatus and method that enables fiber optic network installers to mount fiber optic connections in raised floor locations that would otherwise be unsuited to the task. The method and apparatus permit using a de facto standard raised floor enclosures to accommodate fiber optic connections while maintaining bend radius considerations. In an exemplary embodiment, a patch panel includes a panel face defined by a bottom edge, a top edge and opposing side edges each joined to the bottom and top edges; a cable management bar operably coupled to the panel face, spaced apart from at least one surface side defining the panel face and extending a substantial length defining a length of the panel face; and a pair of mounting brackets extending from the opposing side edges. Each mounting bracket includes a mounting plane aligned with a plane of a corresponding angled mounted rail for mounting thereto such that the panel face is perpendicular to a bottom wall defining the enclosure in which it is mounted.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
   The present disclosure is directed generally to a patch panel for a fiber optic network and, more particularly, to a raised floor patch panel for use with prior art raised floor enclosure designs to accommodate fiber optic connections while maintaining a suitable bend radii of the fiber optic cables within the raised floor panel enclosure. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   It is sometimes necessary to patch communication cables within the floor or ceiling space in data centers, storage area networks (SAN) and local area networks (LAN). Patch panels and like cabinetry (e.g., enclosures) are widely employed in communication systems to facilitate such connections along various distribution paths of a network. 
   Floor spaces are typically low profile and fire codes require that the enclosures create isolation between the plenum air space and the cable interconnect point. This isolation, or fire stop, prevents any burning of connectivity components from making the plenum air space toxic in the event of a fire. 
   Raised floor enclosures typically fit under a single 2 foot×2 foot raised floor tile. Most models use the raised floor tile as a “lid”. The enclosures are UL Listed enclosures, suitable for low voltage applications and for use in air handling spaces. 
   A variety of sizes are available to match floor height. Most models include brackets for attachment to raised floor support pedestals. Enclosures include threaded equipment mounting rails and have multiple, edge-protected cable access ports with fire-rated foam sealing kits. 
   In enclosures designed for use in low height floors, two facing pairs of pivoting or fixed equipment mounting rails are used to provide easy access to the front and rear of the patch panel.  FIG. 1  illustrates a common raised floor enclosure  10  manufactured by American Access, which can be installed in a standard floor tile footprint. Enclosure  10  includes a 2 foot by 2 foot opening and has a depth ranging from 1.75 inches to 11 inches. For depths of 6 and 8 inches, the enclosure design of  FIG. 1  is equipped with 19 inch spaced apart mounting rails  12  designed to accommodate copper terminated cable assemblies. The rails  12  are inclined at angles ranging from 45-60 degrees from the floor of the enclosure depending on the supplier. For more shallow floor depths such as 2 inch and 4 inch depths, the rails  12  are mounted such that the mounting surface is parallel with a bottom wall  14  defining the enclosure  10 . It should be noted that the enclosure  10  was originally conceived when “fiber in the zone” or under floor patching of fiber optics was not popular. Therefore, the rail locations in the existing enclosures are not optimally located to accommodate suitable fiber optic bend radii. In the same vain, the designers of these existing enclosures have not accounted for any installation of cassettes (e.g., a modular fiber optic system) within these enclosures. 
   Therefore, there is a need for an apparatus and method that permits de facto standard raised floor enclosures to accommodate fiber optic connections, in raised floor locations, for example, while maintaining bend radius considerations. Further, there is a need for an apparatus and method that enables installation of “ready to use” modular fiber optic cassettes in de facto standard raised floor enclosures. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   Exemplary embodiments of the invention include an optical fiber cable patch panel for mounting in a raised floor patch panel enclosure having angled mounted brackets. The patch panel includes a panel face, a cable management bar and a pair of mounting brackets. The panel face is defined by a bottom edge, a top edge and opposing side edges. The cable management bar extends from at least one surface side defining the panel face and extends a substantial length defining a length of the panel face. The pair of mounting brackets extend from the opposing side edges, wherein each mounting bracket includes a mounting plane aligned with a plane of a corresponding angled mounted bracket for mounting thereto such that the panel face is perpendicular to a bottom wall defining the enclosure in which it is mounted. 
   Further exemplary embodiments include a raised floor enclosure and patch panel assembly. The assembly includes a raised floor enclosure having two angled mounting rails spaced a predetermined distance from each other, each rail including spaced mounting openings; and a patch panel mounted to the raised floor enclosure. The patch panel includes a panel face, a cable management bar and a pair of mounting brackets. The panel face is defined by a bottom edge, a top edge and opposing side edges. The cable management bar extends from at least one surface side defining the panel face and extends a substantial length defining a length of the panel face. The pair of mounting brackets extend from the opposing side edges, wherein each mounting bracket includes a mounting plane aligned with a plane of a corresponding angled mounted bracket for mounting thereto such that the panel face is perpendicular to a bottom wall defining the enclosure in which it is mounted. 
   Further exemplary embodiments also include a method for mounting a patch panel for fiber optic cables in a raised floor enclosure having angled mounted rails. The method includes disposing a fiber optic cable management bar extending from at least one surface side defining a panel face, the fiber optic cable management bar extending a substantial length defining a length of the panel face, the panel face defined by a bottom edge, a top edge and opposing side edges; disposing a pair of mounting brackets extending from the opposing side edges, wherein each mounting bracket includes a mounting plane aligned with a plane of a corresponding angled mounted rail; and mounting the pair of mounting brackets to the angled mounted rails of the enclosure such that the panel face is perpendicular to a bottom defining the enclosure. 
   Further aspects, implementations, and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent from the description of the drawings and the detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention as provided herein below. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     So that those having ordinary skill in the art to which the disclosed invention appertains will more readily understand how to make and use the same, reference may be made to the drawings wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a prior art raised floor enclosure having two pairs of angled mounting brackets therein. 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a 1 U raised floor patch panel for use with the enclosure of  FIG. 1  in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view of six cassettes installed in a 2 U raised floor patch panel having swivel mounting brackets and a data card for use with the enclosure of  FIG. 1  in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 4  is a top plan view of  FIG. 3  illustrating suitable bend radii of the cables extending from the cassettes and guided out of the enclosure using a pair of opposing cable management bars of the patch panel in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     FIG. 1  illustrates a conventional raised floor enclosure  10 , which can be installed in a standard floor tile footprint. In one embodiment, enclosure  10  includes a 2 foot by 2 foot opening  16  defined by two opposing trunk walls  18  and two opposing patch walls  20 . Each trunk wall  18  defines a trunk opening  22 , while each patch wall  20  defines a patch opening  24 . The trunk wall openings  22  allow fiber optic cables into enclosure  10  for connection therein, while patch wall openings  24  allow fiber optic cables to exit enclosure  10  after connection within enclosure  10 . As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , two pairs of mounting rails  12  are angularly or obliquely disposed (relative to bottom wall  14 ) on opposing patch walls  24 . Rails  12  are mounted to walls  20  using fasteners  26 , such as rivets or screws, for example. Each rail  12  includes a plurality of spaced apart mounting holes  28  along a length defining each rail  12 . The rails  12  are inclined at angles ranging from 45-60 degrees from the floor of the enclosure depending on the supplier and spaced apart from a corresponding rail  12  with a span  30  of about 19 inches to accommodate copper terminated cable assemblies, as discussed above. 
   Referring now to  FIG. 2 , a patch panel  50  mountable to the enclosure  10  of  FIG. 1  is illustrated, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Patch panel  50  is a 1 unit (1 U) raised floor patch panel including a patch face  52  disposed perpendicularly relative to bottom wall  14  defining enclosure  10 . Face  52  includes three serially aligned openings  54  configured to receive a corresponding cassette (not shown) or a pre-terminated cabling assembly (not shown). Either side of each opening  54  includes an aperture  56  for receiving a fastener to retain a corresponding cassette or assembly with the opening  54 . 
   Terminal edges  57  defining opposing ends of face  52  each include a mounting flange  58  extending therefrom. Each flange  58  includes an oblique mounting plane  60 . The mounting plane  60  is tilted or oblique with respect to face  52  and bottom wall  14  of enclosure  10 . The mounting plane  60  is at a complementary angle with the pre-positioned mounting rails  12  to which it is mounted to in enclosure  10 . Each mounting plane  60  includes at least one mounting aperture  62  in which a fastener  64  extends therethrough for mounting with a respective mounting hole  28  of a corresponding rail  12 . In an exemplary embodiment, for example, fastener  64  includes a threaded fastener  64  while hole  28  is complementary threaded to threadably receive fastener  64 . 
   The oblique mounting plane  60  allows patching face  52  to be mounted perpendicular to the bottom wall  14  of the enclosure  10 . This orientation provides an installer the maximum amount of space in front of and behind panel  50  for fiber cable management. It will be recognized that panel  50  can be made to accommodate 1 U (see  FIG. 2 ) or 2 U (see  FIG. 3 ) designs, however the height of the panel  50  can be larger depending on the available height in the enclosure  10 . 
   In an exemplary embodiment as illustrated in  FIG. 2 , each mounting flange  58  includes oblique mounting plane  60  and a plane  66  extending from plane  60 . Plane  66  extends from a respective plane  60  and is substantially perpendicular to both face  52  and mounting planes  60 . Each plane  66  extends from a corresponding side edge  57  defining face  52 . 
   Still referring to  FIG. 2 , patch panel  50  includes two cable management bars  70 ,  72  disposed in front of and behind the panel face  52 , respectively. The cable management bars  70 ,  72  each have the ability to lash or tie cables off such that they are not free to be damaged with the handling of adjacent or opposing (opposite the patching face) patch cables. The cable management bars  70 ,  72  are often required to support the cables and relieve stress on the terminals. The bars  70 ,  72  are positioned to precisely accommodate an entry and exit location (e.g., through openings  22  and  24 ), respectively, of the fiber optic interconnect cable and arc the fiber optic interconnect cable connected to a “ready to use” fiber optic cassette, for example (see  FIGS. 3 and 4 ). A length of each of the bars  70 ,  72  is substantially equal to the length of patch panel  50 . 
   Patch panel  50  is further equipped with a convenient labeling surface  74  for notation of ports in the patch panel  50 . The labeling surface  74  is defined by a plurality of spaced apart fingers  76  extending from a top edge  78  defining face  52 . Fingers  76  support a semi-rigid erasable data card  80  (see  FIGS. 3 and 4 ). The erasable data card  80  provides a surface on which to label ports of patch panel  50 . Terminal ends of the two middle fingers  76 , for example, but is not limited thereto, include L-shaped flanges  82  to cooperate with complementary configured apertures  84  of data card  80 . It will be recognized by one skilled in the pertinent art that each of the L-shaped flanges  82  preferably has a width less than a width of a corresponding finger  76  to prevent further translation of data card  80  along finger  76 . Each L-shaped flange  82  includes a first section  86  and a second section  88 . The first section extends substantially perpendicular to a surface defining a respective finger  76  while the second section  88  extends from the first section  86  substantially parallel to the surface defining the respective finger  76 . 
   As best seen with reference to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the data card  80  can be removed by first lifting a front edge  90  thereof and rotating card  80  about an opposite rear edge  92  until card  80  is substantially parallel with face  52 . Then card  80  may be slid off from engagement with second section  88  of L-shaped flanges  82 . Hook and loop self adhesive patches (not shown) can be strategically placed such that the card  80  will not flutter or relocate due to air movement with the cover (not shown) of enclosure  10  when open, if necessary. To access the rear of the panel  50 , the data card  80  is easily removed to allow access between the fingers  76  to install or remove fiber optic connectors, such as cassettes  94  illustrated in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the panel  50  may be attached to an extender bracket (not shown) that allows the installed panel  50  to be repositioned from the side of the enclosure  10  to allow sufficient space to install a cassette  94 . 
   Referring now to  FIG. 3 , an alternative embodiment of the present disclosure is illustrated. In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the face  52  of the patching surface can be swiveled with respect to the mounting plane  60 . In particular, each plane  66  is pivotally coupled to a respective plate  96  extending substantially perpendicular to face  52 . Mounting plane  60  extending from plane  66  is pivotally coupled to plate  96  via pivot  98 . Plane  66  also includes a plurality of apertures  100  for alignment with a corresponding aperture (not shown) defined by plate  96  for disposing a pin or screw therethrough to prevent further swiveling about pivot  98 . This swiveling action allows a single patch panel  50  to accommodate multiple angles in the variety of enclosures  10  on the market. The swiveling feature has the additional effect of allowing for compensation for any errors in rail  12  orientation during the enclosure manufacturing operation. For example, if the left rail  12  were disposed at an angle of 43 degrees and the right at 48 degrees relative to wall  14  of  FIG. 1 , the swiveling mounting planes  60  would naturally allow compensation and location of the patch panel face  52  perpendicular to the enclosure floor or bottom wall  14 . 
   As illustrated in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , each bar  70 ,  72  extends from a plane defining a bottom edge of face  52  and then bends upwardly toward top edge  78  of face  52 . In this manner, sections  102  of each bar  70 ,  72  extending substantially parallel with top edge  78  are intermediate the bottom edge and top edge  78 . Therefore, sections  102  are intermediate patch panel ports allowing fiber optic cables  104  extending therefrom to be coupled thereto, thus maintaining a minimum bend radius thereof. In an exemplary embodiment, fiber optic cables  104  extending from a corresponding cassette  94  (e.g., six cassettes  94  shown in a 2 U embodiment of  FIGS. 3 and 4 ) may be secured to section  102  of a corresponding bar  72  with a hook and loop fastener  106  (shown in phantom), for example. The embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 4 , for example illustrates a bend radius of 1.4 inches with the placement of section  102  of bars  70 ,  72  relative to fiber optic cables  104  extending from cassettes  94 . However, other bend radii are contemplated suitable to the desired end purpose. 
   The component materials of the patch panel  50  are described below for the exemplary embodiments illustrated and described with respect to  FIGS. 2-4 , but are not limited thereto. Face  52  and mounting flange  58  may be formed of a polymer or metal. Data card  80  is preferably made of a material that can be erased, such as polystyrene or laminated paper. 
   The clear advantage of the patch panel  50  as described above is to allow fiber optic patching and “ready to use” cassette systems to be used in a location that would not normally accommodate the bend radius of fiber optic cables or depth of a fiber optic cassette system. The patch panel described above may be used in enclosures having a depth as low as 1.75 inches. When examining the depth available in a de facto standard raised floor box, it is apparent that there is not sufficient space to install a mated pair of TIA-604 standardized connectors in the orientation provided. The orientation change enabled by the present disclosure allows the installer to utilize the raised floor enclosures largest dimension to allow for the industry standard bend radii of 50 mm [2 inches] for fiber optic cables having a cable diameter of less than or equal to 3 mm. 
   Both the patching solution and the cassette solution benefit greatly by having the ability to lash off both the cables from behind and the patch cables from the front on the integrated cable management bars. This lashing action not only provides an amount of strain relief against unexpected tugs, but it also has the benefit of creating a neater installation with the cables gracefully exiting the plenum enclosure  10 . The optional variable pitch allows for the correction of any angle issues as well as an optimal fit in the enclosure. 
   The provision for port labeling is especially useful in today&#39;s world of frequent moves, adds and changes to a network system. Current raised floor enclosure patching systems do not have any accommodations for port labeling. 
   The raised floor patch panels allow data center managers and designers to take advantage of underutilized installation space beneath the raised floor structure of the data center, providing greater flexibility in structured cabling design and maximizing utility of costly data center floor space. Specifically designed for installation in raised floor boxes/enclosures that are part of the cabling pathways, the raised floor fiber patch panel described in accordance with the present disclosure addresses the special bend radius and depth requirements of fiber optic cabling systems. The unique design accommodates all installation approaches including conventional field termination techniques, pre-terminated cabling with cassette-based ribbon cabling solutions offered by the assignee of the present application and pre-terminated trunk style installations utilizing Ortronics 615 series adapter panels, patch cords and associated cable management hardware. The raised floor fiber patch panel of the present disclosure provides angled mounting brackets that result in horizontal patch panel orientation. The exemplary raised floor fiber patch panels also include removable/reusable labeling fields for enhanced convenience and accurate cabling administration and record keeping that is easily removed to provide rear patching access. Prior art panels typically use an adhesive label with informational indicia thereon that is applied to the panel. However, such labels are not easily replaced or removed. The data card of the present disclosure alleviates these issues. 
   While the invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.