Patent Publication Number: US-8113720-B2

Title: Hybrid fiber/copper connector system and method

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 11/787,197, filed Apr. 13, 2007, which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 11/606,793, filed Nov. 29, 2006; which application is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates generally to connectors for communications cable. More specifically, the present invention relates to hybrid fiber/copper connector systems and methods. 
     BACKGROUND 
     It is known to provide portable cameras and other data or image gathering devices with cable to provide power to the device and to carry data to and from the device. As these devices have increased in image or data gathering capacity, greater demand for bandwidth to carry data to and from the devices has arisen. One way of providing this increased bandwidth is to use optical fiber for carrying data to and from the devices. 
     However, optical fiber may not be able to provide an adequate power supply for the devices, so it is still desirable to have copper or other metallic wires extending to the devices. Hybrid cables including both copper wires and optical fiber within a single cable have been used to meet the power and data transfer needs of these devices. Since the techniques and devices for terminating and connectorizing copper and fiber cables are quite different, new connectors or methods of connecting such hybrid cables to each have been developed. These known connectors do allow interconnection of cables and devices but require that the entire connector be replaced if any one element of the cable or connector are damaged. Common hybrid cables may include two or more optical fibers and one or more pairs of copper wires. If any of these wires or optical fibers, or the termination of these wires or optical fibers are damaged, the entire connector must be replaced and all of the wires and fibers reterminated. 
     Improvements to hybrid connectors are desirable. 
     SUMMARY 
     The present invention relates generally to a hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly. The present invention also relates to a hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly which permits repair of damaged fibers or copper conductors carried by a hybrid cable without requiring replacement of the entire hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly or the cable. The present invention also relates to connectors for hybrid fiber/copper cables. The present invention further relates to a method of repairing a hybrid fiber/copper cable and connector. 
     Another aspect of the present invention relates to a hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly provided in the form of a kit that allows conversion of a hybrid fiber/copper connector from one gender to a different gender. 
     Another aspect of the present invention relates to a hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly that allows the hybrid fiber/copper connectors of the assembly to be converted from being hybrid connectors to being only fiber connectors or only copper connectors. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate several aspects of the present invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. A brief description of the drawings is as follows: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly having features that are examples of inventive aspects in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure, the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly shown in a fully assembled configuration; 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view taken along line  2 - 2  of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is an exploded perspective view of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly of  FIGS. 1-3 ; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the first inner housing half of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a top view of the first inner housing half of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a bottom view of the first inner housing half of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 8  is a side view of the first inner housing half of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 9  is a rear end view of the first inner housing half of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view of the fiber optic adapter of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 , the fiber optic adapter configured to be placed within the first inner housing half of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 11  is a perspective view of the second inner housing half of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 12  is a side view of the second inner housing half of  FIG. 11 ; 
         FIG. 13  is a bottom view of the second inner housing half of  FIG. 11 ; 
         FIG. 14  is a rear end view of the second inner housing half of  FIG. 11 ; 
         FIG. 15  is a cross-sectional view of the second inner housing half taken along line  15 - 15  of  FIG. 14 ; 
         FIG. 16  is a perspective view of the conductor mount of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 , the conductor mount configured to be placed within the second inner housing half of  FIG. 11 ; 
         FIG. 17  is a front view of the conductor mount of  FIG. 16 ; 
         FIG. 18  is a side view of the conductor mount of  FIG. 16  shown with the electrical conductors removed; 
         FIG. 19  is a perspective view of the conductor mount retainer of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 , the conductor mount retainer configured to be placed within the second inner housing half of  FIG. 11 ; 
         FIG. 20  is a top view of the conductor mount retainer of  FIG. 19 ; 
         FIG. 21  is a bottom view of the conductor mount retainer of  FIG. 19 ; 
         FIG. 22  is a side view of the conductor mount retainer of  FIG. 19 ; 
         FIG. 23  is a rear end view of the conductor mount retainer of  FIG. 19 ; 
         FIG. 24  is a perspective view of the strength member clamp of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 , the strength member clamp configured to be placed within the second inner housing half of  FIG. 11 ; 
         FIG. 25  is a top view of the strength member clamp of  FIG. 24 ; 
         FIG. 26  is a front end view of the strength member clamp of  FIG. 24 ; 
         FIG. 27  is a side view of the strength member clamp of  FIG. 24 ; 
         FIG. 28  illustrates a top perspective view of the first inner housing half and the second inner housing half of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4  in a partially assembled configuration, the first inner housing half and the second inner housing half configured to be removably mounted together to form an inner connector assembly of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 29  illustrates a bottom perspective view of the first inner housing half and the second inner housing half of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4  in a partially assembled configuration; 
         FIG. 30  illustrates an outer housing of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 , the outer housing configured to receive the first and second inner housing halves of  FIGS. 28-29 ; 
         FIG. 31  illustrates a rear end view of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 4 , the first hybrid fiber/copper connector shown in a fully assembled configuration; 
         FIG. 32  is a cross-sectional view taken along line  32 - 32  of  FIG. 31 ; 
         FIG. 33  is an exploded perspective view of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly of  FIGS. 1-3 ; 
         FIG. 34  is a perspective view of the first inner housing half of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33 ; 
         FIG. 35  is a top view of the first inner housing half of  FIG. 34 ; 
         FIG. 36  is a bottom view of the first inner housing half of  FIG. 34 ; 
         FIG. 37  is a side view of the first inner housing half of  FIG. 34 ; 
         FIG. 38  is a rear end view of the first inner housing half of  FIG. 34 ; 
         FIG. 39  is a perspective view of the fiber optic connector retainer of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33 , the fiber optic connector retainer configured to be placed within the first inner housing half of  FIG. 34 ; 
         FIG. 40  is a bottom view of the fiber optic connector retainer of  FIG. 39 ; 
         FIG. 41  is a top view of the fiber optic connector retainer of  FIG. 39 ; 
         FIG. 42  is a side view of the fiber optic connector retainer of  FIG. 39 ; 
         FIG. 43  is a perspective view of the second inner housing half of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33 ; 
         FIG. 44  is a side view of the second inner housing half of  FIG. 43 ; 
         FIG. 45  is a bottom view of the second inner housing half of  FIG. 43 ; 
         FIG. 46  is a rear end view of the second inner housing half of  FIG. 43 ; 
         FIG. 47  is a cross-sectional view of the second inner housing half taken along line  47 - 47  of  FIG. 46 ; 
         FIG. 48  is a perspective view of the conductor mount retainer of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33 , the conductor mount retainer configured to be placed within the second inner housing half of  FIG. 43 ; 
         FIG. 49  is a top view of the conductor mount retainer of  FIG. 48 ; 
         FIG. 50  is a side view of the conductor mount retainer of  FIG. 48 ; 
         FIG. 51  is a rear end view of the conductor mount retainer of  FIG. 48 ; 
         FIG. 52  illustrates a top perspective view of the first inner housing half and the second inner housing half of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33  in a partially assembled configuration, the first inner housing half and the second inner housing half configured to be removably mounted together to form an inner connector assembly of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33 ; 
         FIG. 53  illustrates a bottom perspective view of the first inner housing half and the second inner housing half of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33  in a partially assembled configuration; 
         FIG. 54  illustrates an outer housing of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33 , the outer housing configured to receive the first and second inner housing halves of  FIGS. 52-53 ; 
         FIG. 55  illustrates a rear end view of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 33 , the second hybrid fiber/copper connector shown in a fully assembled configuration; 
         FIG. 56  is a cross-sectional view taken along line  56 - 56  of  FIG. 55 ; 
         FIG. 57  illustrates a first quad fiber connector to be assembled by mounting together two of the first inner housing halves of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 58  illustrates a second quad fiber connector to be assembled by mounting together two of the first inner housing halves of  FIG. 34 , the second quad fiber connector configured to mate with the first quad fiber connector of  FIG. 57 ; 
         FIG. 59  is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a first hybrid fiber/copper connector that is configured to be a part of an assembly similar to the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly of  FIGS. 1-3 ; 
         FIG. 60  is a side view of the second embodiment of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 59 ; 
         FIG. 61  is an exploded perspective view of the second embodiment of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 59 ; 
         FIG. 62  is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a second hybrid fiber/copper connector that is configured to mate with the second embodiment of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIGS. 59-61  to form an assembly similar to the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly of  FIGS. 1-3 ; 
         FIG. 63  is a side view of the second embodiment of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 62 ; 
         FIG. 64  is an exploded perspective view of the second embodiment of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 62 ; 
         FIG. 65  is a front perspective view of a bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector having features that are examples of inventive aspects in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 66  is a rear perspective view of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 65 ; 
         FIG. 67  is an exploded perspective view of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 65 ; 
         FIG. 68  is a front view of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 65 ; 
         FIG. 69  is a side view of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 65 ; 
         FIG. 70  is a cross-sectional view taken along line  70 - 70  of  FIG. 65 ; 
         FIG. 71  is a front perspective view of a bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector having features that are examples of inventive aspects in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 72  is a rear perspective view of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 71 ; 
         FIG. 73  is an exploded perspective view of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 71 ; 
         FIG. 74  is a rear view of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 71 ; 
         FIG. 75  is a side view of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector of  FIG. 70 ; and 
         FIG. 76  is a cross-sectional view taken along line  76 - 76  of  FIG. 72 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Reference will now be made in detail to the exemplary aspects of the present invention that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. 
     The present disclosure relates to a hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly. Aspects of the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly include each connector having fiber and copper connecting components to connect two hybrid fiber/copper cables. 
     One preferred embodiment of a connector assembly permits repair of damaged fibers or copper conductors carried by a hybrid fiber/copper cable without requiring replacement of the entire connector assembly or the cable. Aspects of the present disclosure also allow the hybrid fiber/copper connectors of the assembly to be converted from one gender to a different gender. Further aspects of the present disclosure allow the hybrid fiber/copper connectors of the assembly to be converted from being hybrid connectors to being only fiber connectors or only copper connectors. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1-3 , a hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly  10  having features that are examples of inventive aspects in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure is illustrated. The hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly includes a first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  and a second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  adapted to mate with the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . The first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  may also be referred to herein as a female gender hybrid fiber/copper connector and the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  may be referred to herein as a male gender hybrid fiber/copper connector. 
     Each of the first and second hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14  includes an inner connector assembly that is received within an outer housing. The inner connector assembly  16  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  is terminated to a segment of hybrid fiber/copper cable carrying both optical fibers and copper wires. Similarly, the inner connector assembly  18  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is terminated to a segment of hybrid fiber/copper cable carrying both optical fibers and copper wires. Once terminated, inner connector assemblies  16 ,  18  are placed within the outer housings  20 ,  22  of the hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14 . 
     Before termination to the first and second hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14 , each cable segment is inserted through an end cap/cable clamp  24 ,  26 , respectively, that is threadably mounted to the outer housings  20 ,  22 . The end caps  24 ,  26  are configured to clamp the hybrid fiber/copper cable segments to their respective hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14  and provide a weather tight seal at the cable receiving ends  28 ,  30 , respectively, of the first and second hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14 . Once the end caps  24 ,  26  have been threaded and the hybrid cable segments connected to the respective hybrid connectors  12 ,  14 , the first and the second hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14  can, then, be mated to each other to establish both optical and electrical connection between the two hybrid cable segments. The outer housings  20 ,  22  of the two connectors  12 ,  14  cooperate to form a secure and generally weather-tight cover about the connections of the fiber strands and copper conductors within the two connectors  12 ,  14 . 
     A hybrid fiber/copper cable might be used in broadcast communications. For example, such a cable might be used to connect a camera to a production facility, such as at a sporting event or other entertainment venue. Certain known prior art assemblies for connecting segments of broadcast cable might require the use of a new assembly in case of failure of any single component within the assembly. Alternatively, the failure of any of the contacts within either connector of a known assembly might necessitate the retermination of one of the cable segments. 
     As will be described in further detail below, the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly  10  of the present disclosure is configured to permit repair or replacement of damaged components of the assembly. Reference herein will also be made to certain examples of hybrid fiber/copper connector assemblies that facilitate repair or replacement of damaged components of the assembly without requiring the use of a new assembly that are disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. U.S. 2006/0056769 A1 and U.S. 2006/0233496 A1, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. U.S. 2006/0056769 A1 and U.S. 2006/0233496 A1 illustrate a schematic cross-section of a hybrid fiber/copper communications cable that may be suitable for use with the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly  10  of the present disclosure. The hybrid cable, illustrated in  FIG. 4  of U.S. 2006/0056769 A1 and U.S. 2006/0233496 A1, includes a pair of jacketed optical fibers and four jacketed copper wires, extending adjacent a linearly extending strength member. This is one example configuration of a hybrid cable that might be suitable for use with the hybrid connector assembly  10  of the present disclosure. Other configurations of hybrid cables are also known, with more or fewer optical fibers and/or copper wires, which may also be used with the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly  10  of the present disclosure. 
     When used in the broadcast camera environment described above, one of the optical fibers may be used to transmit video and related audio signals to the camera and the second optical fiber may be used to transmit video and audio captured by the camera to the production facility or some other location. One pair of copper conductors may be used to provide power to operate the camera, while the other pair of copper conductors may be used to provide communications between the production facility and the camera operator. The number of fiber strands and copper conductors extending within the hybrid cable may be varied as required to support the desired usage and communication bandwidth of the camera. 
     According to another aspect of the disclosure, the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly  10  of the present disclosure is configured to allow the first and second hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14  of the assembly  10  to be converted from one gender to a different gender. As such, if an existing segment of a hybrid fiber/copper cable segment is terminated, for example, to a first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  (i.e., a female gender connector) and an available second segment of a hybrid cable is also terminated to a first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  (i.e., a female gender connector), the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  may be disassembled and converted into a second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  (i.e., a male gender connector), without retermination of the cable segment. The converted male gender hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  can, then, be mated to the female gender hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . 
     Furthermore, according to another aspect of the disclosure, the modular configuration of the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly  10  of the present disclosure allows both the first and the second hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14  of the assembly  10  to be converted from being hybrid connectors to being fiber-only connectors (e.g., quad fiber connectors) or copper-only connectors (e.g., having eight copper conductors). 
     Referring now to  FIG. 4 , an exploded view of the first, female gender, hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  is illustrated. The first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  includes a first inner housing half  32  and a second inner housing half  34 . The first and the second inner housing halves  32 ,  34  detachably mate together to form an inner connector assembly  16  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . Once the first and the second inner housing halves  32 ,  34  are terminated to a hybrid cable and joined together, they are inserted into an outer housing  20  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . As shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , and as discussed above, before the hybrid cable segments are terminated to the inner connector assemblies  16 ,  18  of the first and second hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14 , the hybrid cable segments are inserted through end caps  24 ,  26 . The end caps  24 ,  26  are, then, threaded onto the outer housings  20 ,  22  to clamp the hybrid cables and to seal it against the outer housings  20 ,  22 . 
     Referring back to  FIG. 4 , the first inner housing half  32  is configured to hold the fiber components of the connector  12  while the second inner housing half  34  is configured to hold the electrical/copper components of the connector  12 . 
     Now referring to  FIGS. 5-9 , the first inner housing half  32  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  is illustrated. The first inner housing half  32  includes an elongated body  36  defining an interior  38 . The body  36  includes a mating end  40  and a cable receiving end  42 . The first inner housing half  32  defines a pair of alignment pins  44  and a pair of pin openings  46  for cooperatively mating with the second inner housing half  34  (see second inner housing half  34  in  FIGS. 11-15 ). Adjacent the mating end  40  of the first inner housing half  32  is a pocket  48  configured to carry a fiber optic adapter  50 . 
     An adapter  50  configured to be placed within the first inner housing  32  is shown in  FIG. 10 . As depicted, the fiber optic adapter  50  is a duplex adapter including a front end  52  and a rear end  54 . Two fiber optic connectors mounted into the front end  52  of the fiber optic adapter  50  optically mate with two fiber optic connectors mounted into the rear end  54  of the fiber optic adapter  50 . As shown in  FIG. 28 , the fiber optic connectors  56  that are received within the fiber optic adapter  50  are LX.5 format connectors. As depicted, the adapter  50  is configured to receive and optically connect two pairs of LX.5 connectors  56 . LX.5 connectors and mating adapters are available from ADC Telecommunications, Inc. Other connector and adapter formats can also be used. 
     As shown in the end view in  FIG. 31 , the fiber optic adapter  50  includes shutters  58  adjacent the front and rear ends  52 ,  54  that pivot between an open position and a closed position. The shutters  58  are sized such that in the closed position, the shutters  58  block direct visual inspection through an open front end  52  or an open rear end  54 . As a result, in an event a fiber optic connector  56  is connected to one end of the fiber optic adapter  50 , the closed shutter  58  on the opposite end prevents a technician from looking directly at light on the opposite end of the fiber optic adapter  50 . Further details of the fiber optic adapter  50  and the fiber optic connectors  56  that are configured to be inserted into the adapter  50  are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,883,995 and 6,142,676, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     The fiber optic adapter  50  includes a pair of flanges  60  on the sides of the adapter  50 . The flanges  60  are received within recesses  62  defined in the first inner housing half  32 . 
     Referring back to  FIGS. 5-9 , the mating end  40  of the body  36  of the first inner housing half  32 , includes an exterior recessed portion  64  defined on a first side  66  of the body  36 . The recessed portion  64  is configured to act as a keying feature when the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is mated to the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 , as will be discussed in further detail below. In this manner, the correct orientation of the mating ends of the first and second connectors  12 ,  14  are obtained when the two hybrid connectors  12 ,  14  are mated. 
       FIGS. 11-15  illustrate the second inner housing half  34  of the first, female gender, hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . The second inner housing half  34  is configured to house the copper components of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . As shown, the second inner housing half  34  includes an elongated body  68  defining an interior  70 . The body  68  includes a mating end  72  and a cable receiving end  74 . 
     The second inner housing half  34  includes a pair of alignment pins  76  and a pair of pin openings  78  for cooperatively mating with the corresponding pins  44  and openings  46  of the first inner housing half  32 . 
     The second inner housing half  34  includes an integrally formed conductor pin support  80  adjacent the mating end  72 . The conductor pin support  80  defines four channels  82 . The channels  82  include therein four conductive pins  84 . The conductive pins  84  are shown in the cross-sectional view in  FIG. 15  which is taken along line  15 - 15  of  FIG. 14 . As depicted, each of the four conductive pins  84  includes two female ends  86 . The conductive pins  84  are generally permanently mounted within the pin support  80  and form a part of the second inner housing half  34 . 
     As in the first inner housing half  32 , the second inner housing half  34  defines an exterior recessed portion  88  on a first side  90  of the pin support  80 . The recess  88  is configured align with the recess  64  of the first inner housing half  32  when the two housing halves  32 ,  34  are joined to define a big recess. The big recess acts as a keying feature when the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  is mated to the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  such that the correct orientation of the mating ends of the first and second connectors  12 ,  14  are obtained. 
     The body  68  of the second inner housing half  34  includes an exterior circumferential groove  92 . The body  68  also defines opposing slots  94  positioned at each end of the circumferential groove  92 . The circumferential groove  92  and the slots  94  accommodate a strength member that might be a part of a hybrid cable. 
     The interior  70  of the second inner housing half  34  is configured to receive a conductor mount  96 . The conductor mount  96  is shown in  FIGS. 16-18 . The conductor mount  96  includes a generally hemispherical body  98  configured to match the curved shape of the interior  70  of the second inner housing half  34 . The conductor mount  96 , as depicted, includes four forwardly protruding conductive pins  100 . The forward ends  102  of the conductive pins  100  are adapted to be inserted within the channels  82  defined by the pin support  80  at the mating end  72  of the second inner housing half  34 . As shown in  FIG. 29 , the conductor mount  96  is removably inserted into a recess  104  in the interior  70  of the body  68  and slid forwardly toward the pin support  80 . The conductor mount  96  is slid until the conductive pins  100  physically and electrically mate with the rear female ends  86  of the conductive pins  84  in the channels  82  of the pin support  80 . 
     The rear ends  106  of the conductive pins  100  are exposed through openings  108  defined on the conductor mount  96 . The rear ends  106  of the conductive pins  100  are terminated to copper wires of a hybrid fiber/copper cable. Since the conductor mount  96  is a removable piece, the conductor mount  96  can be removed from the second inner housing half  34  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  (i.e., female gender connector) and reinserted into the second inner housing of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  (i.e., male gender connector) as part of the conversion of the genders of the hybrid connectors  12 ,  14 . 
     The conductor mount  96  is retained within the second inner housing half  34  by a conductor mount retainer  110  shown in  FIGS. 19-23 . As shown, the conductor mount retainer  110  includes an elongated body  112  with a front portion  114 , a rear portion  116  and a middle portion  118 . The front portion  114  defines a U-shaped body  120  with a pair of forwardly extending legs  122 ,  123 . Each leg  122 ,  123  defines a pair of flanges  124  on the sides of the legs  122 ,  123 . When the conductor mount retainer  110  is placed into the second inner housing half  34 , a rib  126  defined in the interior  70  of the second inner housing half  34  is received between the flanges  124 . The rib  126  and the flanges  124  help hold the conductor mount retainer  110  within the second inner housing half  34  with a friction fit. 
     The first leg  122  also defines a curved portion  126 . The curved portion  126  accommodates an alignment pin opening  78  defined in the second inner housing half  34  when the conductor mount retainer  110  is slidably inserted into the body  68  of the second inner housing half  34 . 
     The middle portion  118  of the conductor mount retainer  110  includes a recess  130  for receiving a strength member clamp  132 . The strength member clamp  132  is illustrated in  FIGS. 24-27 . The middle portion  118  of the conductor mount retainer  110  defines a slot  134  for receiving a tab  136  of the strength member clamp  132  for properly orientating the clamp  132 . The strength member clamp  132  defines a throughhole  138  extending laterally through its body  140 . The strength member clamp  132  defines a pair of laterally extending arms  142  that define a pocket  144  thereinbetween. The strength member clamp  132  is shown inserted into the recess  130  of the middle portion  118  of the conductor mount retainer  110  in  FIG. 29 . 
     Referring back to  FIGS. 24-27 , a strength member of a cable is to be received from the cable receiving end  28  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . The strength member is inserted through an opening  146  created between the body  68  of the second inner housing half  34  and the rear portion  116  of the conductor mount retainer  110 . The strength member is, then, to be guided downwardly between the arms  142  of the strength member clamp  132  and then upwardly and around the circumferential groove  92 . Once the strength member has been wrapped around the circumferential groove  92 , it is received into the throughhole  138  of the strength member clamp  132  at the opposite side of the arms  142 . The strength member, then, comes out of the throughhole  138  between the arms  142  and is crimped at this location. The crimped end of the strength member is held in the pocket  144  defined between the arms  142 . According to one embodiment, the strength member clamp  132  depicted herein is rated to hold 100 lbs. of force. 
     In  FIGS. 28-29 , the first and second inner housing halves  32 ,  34  are shown with the interior components inserted into the housing halves  32 ,  34 . As shown, the fiber optic adapter  50  in the first inner housing half  32  receives a pair of fiber optic connectors  56  which may be terminated to the optical fibers of a hybrid fiber/copper cable. The interior  38  of the body  36  of the first inner housing half  32  may accommodate optical slack storage. During a gender conversion, these fiber optic connectors  56 , just like the conductor mount  96  of the second inner housing half  34 , may be removed from the fiber optic adapter  50  and from the first inner housing half  32  and remounted within a first housing half of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  (i.e., male gender connector), to convert the gender of the hybrid fiber/copper connector. Such a male gender connector  14  having two male inner housing halves are shown in  FIG. 33 . The fiber optic connectors  56  and the fiber optic adapters  50  depicted in the present disclosure are described in further detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,883,995, the entire disclosure of which has been incorporated herein by reference. 
       FIG. 30  illustrates the outer housing  20  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . As discussed before, once the first and the second housing halves  32 ,  34  are joined, the inner connector assembly  16  is slidable inserted into the outer housing  20  from a cable receiving end  28 .  FIGS. 31-32  show the first and second inner housing halves  32 ,  34  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  placed into the outer housing  20  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . 
     The outer circumferential wall  150  of the outer housing  20  includes gripping features  152 . The mating end  154  of the outer housing  20  includes a plurality of circumferentially arranged ball bearings  156 . The ball bearings  156  at the mating end  154  are configured to engage a circumferential recess  158  defined on an intermediate circumferential wall  160  of the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . When the outer housings  20 ,  22  of the two hybrid connectors  12 ,  14  are coupled, a sliding ring  162  of the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is slid over the mating end  154  and the ball bearings  156  of the outer housing  20  of the first hybrid connector  12  to hold the two hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14  in a mated configuration. The sliding locking ring  162  of the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  and the recess  158  for receiving the ball bearings  156  is illustrated in  FIGS. 1-3  and  54 . In  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the sliding ring  162  is shown as having been slid over the ball bearings  156  of the outer housing  20  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . The sliding ring  162  is spring biased toward a locking position to hold the ball bearings  156  against the recess  158  on the intermediate circumferential wall  160  of the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . 
     As discussed previously, before a hybrid cable segment is to be terminated to the inner connector assembly  16  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 , the hybrid cable segment is inserted through an end cap cable clamp  24 . The end cap  24  is threadingly mated to the cable receiving end  28  of the outer housing  20  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . As the end cap  24  is threaded, a collet  164  within the end cap  24  is compressed by a tapered rear seal member  166 . Please refer to  FIG. 2  for a cross-sectional view of the end cap  24  and the collet  164 . As the collet  164  is compressed radially inwardly, it seals the cable jacket to the outer housing  20  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . A similar cable clamp and operation thereof is described in further detail in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,575,786 and 6,846,988, the entire disclosures of which have been incorporated herein by reference. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 33 , an exploded view of the second, male gender, hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is illustrated. The second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  includes a first inner housing half  170  and a second inner housing half  172 . The first and the second inner housing halves  170 ,  172  detachably mate together to form the inner connector assembly  18  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . Once the first and the second inner housing halves  170 ,  172  are mated and terminated to a hybrid cable, they are inserted into an outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . 
     As in the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 , the first inner housing half  170  is configured to hold the fiber components of the connector  14  while the second inner housing half  172  is configured to hold the electrical/copper components of the connector  14 . 
     Now referring to  FIGS. 34-38 , the first inner housing half  170  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is illustrated. The first inner housing half  170  includes an elongated body  174  defining an interior  176  including a mating end  178  and a cable receiving end  180 . The first inner housing half  170  defines a pair of alignment pins  182  and a pair of pin openings  183  for cooperatively mating with the second inner housing half  172 . 
     Adjacent the mating end  178  of the first inner housing half  170  are a pair of longitudinal slots  184  configured to hold a pair of fiber optic connectors  56 . The fiber optic connectors  56  are inserted in a side-by-side orientation, extending out forwardly from the mating end  178  of the first inner housing half  170 . The longitudinal slots  184  are configured to align the fiber optic connectors  56  with the fiber optic adapter  50  of the first hybrid connector  12  when the two hybrid connectors  12 ,  14  are mated. The interior  176  of the body  174  of the first inner housing half  170  may accommodate optical slack storage. 
     The first inner housing half  170  defines a forwardly protruding tab  186  at the mating end  178  of the first inner housing half  170 . The tab  186  is located on a first side  188  of the body  174 . The tab  186  is configured to mate with the recess  64  defined on the body  36  of the first inner housing half  32  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  to act as a keying feature when the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is mated to the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . In this manner, the correct orientation of the mating ends of the first and second connectors  12 ,  14  are obtained when the two hybrid connectors  12 ,  14  are mated. As will be discussed below, the second inner housing half  172  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  also includes a forwardly extending tab  190  that aligns with the tab  186  of the first inner housing half  170 . The two tabs  186 ,  190  together form a large tab that engages the large recess defined on the combined inner housings  32 ,  34  of the female hybrid connector  12 . The two tabs  186 ,  190  also act to protect the fiber optic connectors  56  as the tabs  186 ,  190  extend alongside of the fiber optic connectors  56 . 
     A connector retainer  192  configured to be placed over the fiber optic connectors  56  is shown in  FIGS. 39-42 . The connector retainer  192  includes a generally flat body  194  that is adapted to lie flush with the upper face of the first inner housing half  170 . It should be noted that all of the components of the inner housing halves  32 ,  34 ,  170 ,  172  are configured to lie flush with the upper faces of the inner housing halves  32 ,  34 ,  170 ,  172  so that different inner housing halves such as two first inner housing halves  32 ,  170  (of either the first or the second hybrid fiber/copper connector) or two second inner housing halves  34 ,  172  (of either the first or the second hybrid fiber/copper connector) can be mated to form different kinds of connectors. Two such examples have been shown in  FIGS. 57 and 58 , wherein two first inner housing halves  32  of a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  have been joined to form the female end of a quad fiber optic connector  200  and two first inner housing halves  170  of a male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  have been mated to form the male end of a quad fiber optic connector  202  that is to mate with the female quad fiber connector  200 . Other combination configurations are certainly possible since all of the inner components are mounted flush with the upper faces of the inner housing halves  32 ,  34 ,  170 ,  172 . 
     Still referring to  FIGS. 39-42 , the connector retainer  192 , as depicted, includes a pair of downwardly extending tabs  196  that are received into recesses  198  formed on the first inner housing half  170  to frictionally hold the connector retainer  192 . The connector retainer  192  includes a longitudinal slot  193  at the front end for accommodating a separator wall  191  that separates the two fiber optic connectors  56 . The longitudinal slot  193  allows the connector retainer  192  to lie flush with the inner housing half upper face. 
     Underneath the connector retainer  192 , on each side of the longitudinal slot  193 , is a pair of ramped tabs  195 . The ramped tabs  195  are configured to hold down the cantilever snap fit structures  197  of the fiber optic connectors  56  such that the fiber optic connectors  56  do not lock into the fiber optic adapters  50  when the male and female hybrid connectors  12 ,  14  are mated. Please refer to U.S. Pat. No. 5,883,995, the entire disclosure of which has been incorporated herein by reference, for further description of the fiber optic connector  56  depicted and the interlocking mechanism of the fiber optic connector  56  and the fiber optic adapter  50 . 
     The fiber optic connectors  56  that are inserted directly into the first inner housing half  170  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  or that are connected to the fiber optic adapter  50  within the first inner housing half  32  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  are terminated to the optical fibers of a hybrid fiber/copper cable segment. In certain embodiments, the optical fibers of the cable segment may be terminated to the ferrules of the fiber optic connectors  56  as known in the art. 
     In other embodiments, the fiber optic connectors  56  may be field-terminable. As such, the fiber optic connectors  56  may be provided with a preterminated fiber stub that can be heat-spliced in the field using a V-groove for aligning the fiber stub from the connector  56  and the optical fiber coming from the hybrid cable. In certain other embodiments, the fiber optic connectors  56  may be provided as part of an insert that includes the V-groove, wherein optical fibers coming from the hybrid cable may be spliced to the fiber stubs in the field utilizing the V-groove for alignment. An example field termination method is described in further detail in U.S. Pat. No. 6,811,323, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Although heated epoxy may be used, other known techniques for field-splicing the optical fiber ends can be utilized. 
       FIGS. 43-47  illustrate the second inner housing half  172  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . The second inner housing half  172  is configured to house the copper components of the second, male, hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . As shown, the second inner housing half  172  includes an elongated body  204  defining an interior  206 . The body  204  includes a mating end  207  and a cable receiving end  208 . Similar to the first inner housing half  170 , the second inner housing half  172  includes a pair of alignment pins  210  and a pair of pin openings  212  for cooperatively mating with the corresponding pins  182  and openings  183  of the first inner housing half  170 . 
     Adjacent the mating end  207  of the second inner housing half  172  is an integrally formed conductor pin support  214 . The conductor pin support  214  defines four channels  216  for nesting four conductive pins  218 . The conductive pins  218  are shown in the cross-sectional view in  FIG. 47  which is taken along line  47 - 47  of  FIG. 46 . As depicted, each of the four conductive pins  218  includes a female end  220  and a forwardly protruding male end  222 . The conductive pins  218  are generally permanently mounted within the pin support  214  and form a part of the second inner housing half  172 . 
     As in the first inner housing half  170 , at the mating end  206  of the second inner housing half  172 , there is a tab  190  protruding forwardly defined on a first side  226  of the body  204 . The tab  190  is configured to mate with the recess  88  defined on the body  68  of the second inner housing half  34  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  to act as a keying feature when the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is mated to the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . In this manner, the correct orientation of the mating ends of the first and second connectors  12 ,  14  are obtained when the two hybrid connectors  12 ,  14  are mated. The tab  190  aligns with the tab  186  of the first inner housing half  170  to form a large tab. The large tab engages the large recess defined on the combined inner housings of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . As discussed above, the two tabs  186 ,  190  also act to protect the fiber optic connectors  56  as the tabs  186 ,  190  extend alongside of the fiber optic connectors  56 . 
     It should also be noted that, if two first inner housing halves  170  or if two second inner housing halves  172  of a male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  are mated to form, for example, a quad fiber optic connector  202 , the tabs  186  will be positioned diagonally from each other and not aligned vertically with each other. Please see  FIG. 58 . This provides a keying feature for mating with, for example, a connector formed from two first inner housing halves  32  or two second inner housing halves  34  of a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . Please see  FIG. 57 . The recesses  64  on the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  also become positioned diagonally such that the tabs  186  of a quad male  202  can only be mated with the recesses  64  of another mating quad female connector  200 . Please see  FIGS. 57 and 58  for the keying feature. 
     Still referring to  FIGS. 43-47 , the body  204  of the second inner housing half  172  includes an exterior circumferential groove  230 . The body  204  also defines opposing slots  232  positioned at each end of the circumferential groove  230 . The circumferential groove  230  and the slots  232 , as discussed above, accommodate a strength member that might be a part of a hybrid cable terminated to the male hybrid connector  14 . 
     The interior  206  of the second inner housing half  172  is configured to receive a conductor mount that is identical to the conductor mount  96  shown in  FIGS. 16-18 . The forward ends  102  of the conductive pins  100  are adapted to be inserted within the channels  216  defined by the pin support  214  at the mating end  207  of the second inner housing half  172 . As shown in  FIG. 49 , the conductor mount  96  is inserted into a recess  234  in the interior  206  of the body  204  and slid forwardly toward the pin support  214  until the conductive pins  100  physically and electrically mate with the female ends  220  of the conductive pins  218  that are in the channels  216  of the pin support  214 . The male ends  222  of the conductive pins  218  protrude out for electrically mating with the female ends  86  of the conductive pins  84  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . 
     As in the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 , the rear ends  106  of the conductive pins  100  are exposed through openings  108  defined on the conductor mount  96 . The rear ends  106  of the conductive pins  100  are terminated to copper wires of a hybrid fiber/copper cable, just as in the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . And, since the conductor mount  96  can be removed from the second inner housing half  172  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  (i.e., male gender connector) and reinserted into the second inner housing half  34  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  (i.e., female gender connector), the gender of the hybrid connector  14  can be converted. 
     The conductor mount  96  is retained within the second inner housing half  172  by a conductor mount retainer  240  shown in  FIGS. 48-51 . The conductor mount retainer  240  is similar to the conductor mount retainer  110  of  FIGS. 19-23 . However, the conductor mount retainer  240  is shaped for insertion into the male gender hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . As shown, the conductor mount retainer  240  includes an elongated body  242  with a front portion  244 , a rear portion  246  and a middle portion  248 . The front portion  244  defines a U-shaped body  250  with a pair of forwardly extending legs  252 ,  253 . The first leg  252  defines a pair of flanges  254  on the side of the leg  252 . The flanges  252  are configured to receive a rib  256  on the interior  207  of the second inner housing half  172  for holding the conductor mount retainer  240  with a friction fit within the body  204 . The second leg  253  defines a curved portion  258  for accommodating the alignment pin opening  212  defined in the second inner housing half  172 . 
     The middle portion  248  of the conductor mount retainer  240  includes a recess  260  for receiving a strength member clamp. The strength member clamp used in the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is the same clamp  132  illustrated in  FIGS. 24-27 . The middle portion  248  of the conductor mount retainer  240  defines a slot  262  for receiving the tab  136  of the strength member clamp  132  for proper orientation of the clamp  132 . As shown in  FIG. 53 , the strength member clamp  132  is inserted into the recess  260  of the middle portion  248  of the conductor mount retainer  240  so as to lie flush with the upper face of the second inner housing half  172 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 53 , along with a tab  264  at the rear portion of the conductor mount retainer  240 , the strength member clamp  132  defines a recess  266  for receiving a second rib  268  located in the interior  207  of the body  204  of the second inner housing half  172 . 
     As in the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 , the strength member is inserted through an opening  270  created between the body  204  of the second inner housing half  172  and the rear portion of the conductor mount retainer  240 . The strength member is, then, guided downwardly between the arms  142  of the strength member clamp  132  and then upwardly and around the circumferential groove. Once the strength member has wrapped around the circumferential groove  230 , it is received into the throughhole  138  of the strength member clamp  132  at the opposite side of the arms  142  and comes out of the throughhole  138  of the strength member clamp  132 . It is crimped in the pocket  144  defined between the arms  142 . 
     In  FIGS. 52 and 53 , the first and second inner housing halves  170 ,  172  are shown with the interior components inserted into the first and second inner housing halves  170 ,  172 . As shown, the first inner housing half  170  receives a pair of fiber optic connectors  56  which may be terminated to the optical fibers of a hybrid fiber/copper cable. These fiber optic connectors  56  are retained by the connector retainer  192  and the cantilever snap fit structures  197  are held down to prevent locking of the fiber optic connectors  56  within the fiber optic adapter  50  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . These fiber optic connectors  56 , just like the conductor mount  96  of the second inner housing half  172 , may be removed from the first inner housing half  170  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  and remounted within a first housing half  32  of a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  (to the fiber optic adapters therein), to convert the gender of the hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . Such a female gender connector  12  and the two inner housing halves are shown in  FIG. 4 . 
       FIG. 54  illustrates the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . As discussed before, once the first and the second housing halves  170 ,  172  are joined, the inner connector assembly  18  is slidably inserted into the outer housing  22  from a cable receiving end  30 .  FIGS. 55-56  show the first and second inner housing halves  170 ,  172  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  placed into the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . 
     When the outer housings  20 ,  22  of the two hybrid connectors are coupled, a sliding ring  162  of the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is slid over the mating end  154  and the ball bearings  156  of the outer housing  20  of the first hybrid connector  12  to hold the two hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14  in a mated configuration. The sliding locking ring  162  of the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  and the recess  158  for receiving the ball bearings  156  is illustrated in  FIGS. 1-3  and  54 . In  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the sliding ring  162  is shown as having been slid over the ball bearings  156  of the outer housing  20  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . The sliding ring  162  is spring biased toward a locking position to hold the ball bearings  156  against the recess  158  on the intermediate circumferential wall  160  of the outer housing  22  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . 
     As discussed previously for the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 , before the hybrid cable is to be terminated to the inner connector assembly  18  of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 , the hybrid cable is inserted through an end cap cable clamp  26 . As depicted, the cable clamps  24 ,  26  and the cable receiving ends  28 ,  30  of the outer housings  20 ,  22  of the hybrid connectors include wrench flat portion with a plurality of opposing wrench flats  280  to aid the assembly of cable clamps  24 ,  26  to outer the housings  20 ,  22 . As shown on  FIGS. 2-3 ,  30 , and  54 , the cable receiving ends  28 ,  30  of the outer housings  20 ,  22  may be threaded to receive and engage the cable clamps  24 ,  26 . 
     In another embodiment of the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly, instead of being provided to connect two cable segments, the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  or the second hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  can be provided as part of a bulkhead configuration such as seen in FIGS. 8-11 of U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. U.S. 2006/0056769 A1 and U.S. 2006/0233496 A1, the entire disclosures of which have been incorporated herein by reference. 
     In one embodiment of a bulkhead version of the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly, the outer housings of the first and second hybrid fiber/copper connectors may be provided with mounting flanges such as shown in FIGS. 8-11 of U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. U.S. 2006/0056769 A1 and U.S. 2006/0233496 A1, for mounting the hybrid fiber/copper connectors to a bulkhead. Openings defined through the flanges receive removable fasteners such as screws which engage fastener openings of the bulkhead. 
     The bulkhead may form part of any equipment, such as a camera, an enclosure, a cabinet, a panel, etc. Cables from within, for example, a camera or any other equipment, of which the bulkhead may form part of, enter into the cable receiving end of the hybrid fiber/copper connectors. The hybrid cable, which will have terminated thereto fiber optic connectors  56  and a conductor mount  96 , is coupled to the inner housing halves of the hybrid fiber/copper connectors as described above for the first and second hybrid fiber/copper connectors  12 ,  14 . It should be noted that the connector protruding out from the bulkhead may be a female hybrid fiber/copper connector such as connector  12  or it may be a male hybrid fiber/copper connector such as connector  14 . One embodiment of a bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector is shown in  FIGS. 65-70  and one embodiment of a bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector is shown in  FIGS. 71-76 . 
     When a female hybrid fiber/copper connector is used with the bulkhead, the fiber optic connectors  56  terminated to a hybrid cable coming from within the bulkhead equipment may be connected to the fiber optic adapters  50  inside the first inner housing half of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector. The conductor mount  96  that is terminated to the hybrid cable coming from within the bulkhead equipment may be directly inserted into the second inner housing half of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector and mate with the pins  84  within the pin support  80 . 
     In assembling the bulkhead versions, the same steps can be followed as described above for the non bulkhead versions of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . Once assembled, the female bulkhead hybrid fiber/copper connector will be ready to mate with a male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  such as shown in  FIG. 33  of the present disclosure. 
     If a male hybrid fiber/copper connector is used with the bulkhead, the fiber optic connectors  56  terminated to a hybrid cable coming from within the bulkhead equipment are directly inserted into the first inner housing half of the second (i.e., male) hybrid fiber/copper connector. The conductor mount  96  that is terminated to the hybrid cable coming from within the bulkhead equipment is directly inserted into the second inner housing half of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector and mates with the pins  218  within the pin support  214 . 
     In assembling the bulkhead version, the same steps can be followed as described above for the non bulkhead versions of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . Once assembled, the male bulkhead hybrid fiber/copper connector will be ready to mate with a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  such as shown in  FIG. 4  of the present disclosure. 
     Since both hybrid connectors  12 ,  14  are constructed in modular form with removable portions, repair or replacement of a damaged component is achieved. It is known for one or more information carrying elements within a hybrid cable or the connectors terminating these elements (such as fiber optic connectors and pin conductors) to be damaged, necessitating repair or replacement of the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly. While replacement is possible and is the common response to damage, this solution requires a camera operator to carry an entire spare assembly. Alternatively, to repair a damaged termination, either connector of cable segment could be removed and that cable segment could be reterminated. However, retermination is time consuming and is difficult to accomplish in the field, where the damage is likely to occur while using the camera. Assembly of the present invention is constructed to permit individual elements of cable or terminations of these elements to be replaced in the field by a camera operator with simple tools and does not require that the camera operator carry an extensive array of replacement items. 
     For example, if one of the fiber strands within cable in cable segment becomes damaged, and the camera operator can identify the damaged strand, the camera operator may loosen the cable clamp, remove the first and second inner housing halves  32 ,  34  from the outer housing  20  of, for example, the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . With interior of the inner connector assembly  16  exposed, the fiber connector  56  terminating the damaged fiber may be removed from adapter  50  within the first inner housing half  32  and moved to one side. A replacement fiber segment, such as a patch cord including ends terminated with fiber optic connectors  56  may be used. 
     A similar process may be followed to replace a damaged copper pin conductor. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 59-61 , a second embodiment of a first (i.e., female gender) hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  that is configured to be a part of an assembly similar to the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly  10  of  FIGS. 1-3  is shown. The second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  is similar in configuration to the first embodiment of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  shown in  FIG. 4 , except for a number of differences that will be discussed below. 
     As discussed previously, in certain embodiments, the fiber optic connectors  56  that are used with the different male and female hybrid fiber/copper connectors may be field terminable. Referring to  FIG. 61 , the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  is shown with one example of a field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305 . The field terminable fiber optic assembly  305  shown in  FIG. 61  is described in further detail in Patent Application having Attorney Docket No. 02316.2503U.S.01, entitled “FIELD TERMINABLE FIBER OPTIC CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY”, filed concurrently herewith on the same day, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. As noted above, a field terminable fiber optic connector assembly may also be used with the first embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . 
     The field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  is formed as an insert that may be inserted into the first inner housing half  332  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312 . The first inner housing half  332  of the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  has been specifically configured to receive the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  shown. The fiber optic connectors  356  of the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  are configured to mate with the fiber optic adapter  50  located within the first inner housing half  332 . 
     As discussed previously, a field terminable fiber optic connector assembly allows a damaged fiber to be repaired in the field using heat splicing. 
     It should be noted that the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  is not limited to use with the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  shown in  FIG. 61  and that it can also house fiber optic connectors whose ferrules have been preterminated to optical fibers of a cable at the factory setting, such as the fiber optic connectors  56  shown in  FIG. 28 . 
     As discussed above, the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  includes a number of differences from the first embodiment  12 . One difference lies in the configuration of the strength member clamp. The body  368  of the second inner housing half  334  of the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  includes a slot  394  for receiving a strength member clamp bar  432 . The bar  432  includes a throughhole  438  that is configured to receive a strength member of a cable. Once the strength member of a cable is received from a cable receiving end  328  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312 , the strength member is inserted through the hole  438  of the bar  432  and is crimped at opposite side of the hole  438 . Once the strength member is inserted through the hole  438 , the strength member may be crimped to the bar in a number of different ways including crimping a crimp ball (e.g., made out of stainless steel in one embodiment) to the end of the strength member that is larger than the hole  438  of the bar  432 . In this manner, removal of the strength member from the bar  432  is prevented. In certain embodiments, the bar  432  may be made from metallic materials and may provide a grounding path to the strength member. In one embodiment, the bar  432  is made from stainless steel. According to one embodiment, the strength member clamp bar  432  depicted herein is rated to hold 225 lbs. of force for about 5 minutes. 
     Another difference between the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  and the first embodiment  12  lies in the configuration of the conductor mount  396 . The conductor mount  396  includes six forwardly protruding conductive pins  400 . The lower layer of conductive pins  400   b  may be power pins and the upper layer  400   a  of conductive pins may be communications pins. As discussed above, when used in a broadcast camera environment, one of the optical fibers of the hybrid connector may be used to transmit video and related audio signals to the camera and the second optical fiber may be used to transmit video and audio captured by the camera to the production facility or some other location. Four of the copper conductors may be used to provide power to operate the camera, while the other two of copper conductors may be used to provide communications between the production facility and the camera operator. The number of fiber strands and copper conductors extending within the hybrid cable may be varied as required to support the desired usage and communication bandwidth of the camera and the hybrid connectors disclosed herein may be configured accordingly. 
     The second inner housing half  334  of the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  includes an integrally formed conductor pin support  380  that is configured to mate with the conductor mount  396 . The conductor pin support  380  defines six channels  382  which include six conductive pins  384  within the channels  382 . The forward ends of the conductive pins  400  of the conductor mount  396  are adapted to be inserted into the channels  382  defined by the pin support  380 . The conductor mount  396  is removably inserted into the body  368  of the second inner housing half  334  of the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  and slid forwardly toward the pin support  380  until electrical connection is established. Unlike the first embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 , the second embodiment  312  does not include a conductor mount retainer  110 . The conductor mount  396  is held within the body  368  of the second inner housing half  334  by friction. 
     The rear ends of the conductive pins are exposed through openings  408  defined on the conductor mount  396 . The rear ends of the conductive pins  400  are terminated to copper wires of a hybrid fiber/copper cable. Since the conductor mount  396  is a removable piece, the conductor mount  396  can be removed from the second inner housing half  334  of the first hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  (i.e., female gender connector) and reinserted into the second inner housing of the second hybrid fiber/copper connector (i.e., male gender connector)  314  as part of the conversion of the genders of the hybrid connectors  312 ,  314 . 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 62-64 , the second embodiment of a second (i.e., male gender) hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  that is configured to mate with the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  of  FIGS. 59-61  to form an assembly similar to the hybrid fiber/copper connector assembly  10  of  FIGS. 1-3  is shown. The second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  is similar in configuration to the first embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  shown in  FIG. 33 , except for a number of differences. 
     In  FIG. 64 , the second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  is shown with the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305 , discussed in further detail in Patent Application having Attorney Docket No. 02316.2503U.S.01, entitled “FIELD TERMINABLE FIBER OPTIC CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY”, filed concurrently herewith on the same day, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     As noted above, a field terminable fiber optic connector assembly may also be used with the first embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . 
     The field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  is formed as an insert that may be inserted into the first inner housing half  470  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314 . The first inner housing half  470  of the second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  has been specifically configured to receive the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  shown. A connector retainer  492  is placed over the fiber optic connectors  356  once the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  is placed within the first inner housing half  470 , as shown in  FIG. 64 . When the second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  is mated to the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  shown in  FIGS. 59-61 , the fiber optic connectors  356  of the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  mate with the fiber optic adapter  50  located within the first inner housing half  332  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312 . 
     It should be noted that the second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  is not limited to use with the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  shown in  FIG. 64  and that it can also house fiber optic connectors whose ferrules have been preterminated to optical fibers of a cable at the factory setting, such as the fiber optic connectors  56  shown in  FIG. 33 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 64 , the fiber optic connectors  356  are mounted within the first inner housing half  470  of the second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  in an upside down orientation as compared to the first embodiment  14 . However, as in the first embodiment  14 , the connector retainer  492  of the second embodiment  314  also includes ramped tabs  495  underneath thereof. The ramped tabs  495  press against the bottom side of the fiber optic connectors  356  and cause the cantilever snap fit structures  497  at the opposite side to be flexed against the body  474  of the first inner housing half  470 . In this manner, when the fiber optic connectors  356  of the field terminable fiber optic connector assembly  305  are coupled to a fiber optic adapter  50  (e.g., of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector), the fiber optic connectors  356  do not lock into the fiber optic adapter  50 . 
     As discussed above, the second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  includes a number of differences from the first embodiment  14 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 64 , as in the female counterpart, one difference lies in the configuration of the strength member. The strength member clamp in the form of a bar  432  with a hole  438  is used. As in the female counterpart, once the strength member of a cable is received from a cable receiving end  330  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314 , the strength member is inserted through the hole  438  of the bar  432  and is crimped at opposite side of the hole  438  with a crimp ball (e.g., made out of stainless steel). 
     Still referring to  FIG. 64 , the second inner housing half  472  of the second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  is configured to receive a conductor mount that is identical to the conductor mount  396  shown in  FIG. 61 . Thus, the integrally formed pin support  514  adjacent the mating end  507  of the second inner housing half  472  is configured to receive the forward ends  402  of the six conductive pins  400  of the conductor mount  396 . The six conductive pins  400  of the conductor mount  396  establish an electrical connection with the conductive pins  518  within the conductor pin support  514 . Each of the conductive pins  518  includes a female end and forwardly protruding male end and are generally permanently mounted within the pin support  514 . 
     Again, as in the second embodiment of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312 , the second embodiment of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  does not include a conductor mount retainer. The conductor mount  396  is held within the body  504  of the second inner housing half  472  by friction. 
     Since the conductor mount  396  is a removable piece, the conductor mount  396  can be removed from the second inner housing half  472  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  314  and reinserted into the second inner housing  334  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  312  as part of the conversion of the genders of the hybrid connectors  312 ,  314 . 
     As noted previously, instead of being provided to connect two cable segments, the female hybrid fiber/copper connector or the male hybrid fiber/copper connector can be provided as part of a bulkhead configuration such as seen in FIGS. 8-11 of U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. U.S. 2006/0056769 A1 and U.S. 2006/0233496 A1, the entire disclosures of which have been incorporated herein by reference. 
     The bulkhead may form part of any equipment, such as a camera, an enclosure, a cabinet, a panel, etc. Cables from within, for example, a camera or any other equipment, of which the bulkhead may form part of, enter into the cable receiving end of the hybrid fiber/copper connectors. The hybrid cable, which will have terminated thereto fiber optic connectors and a conductor mount, is coupled to the inner housing halves of the hybrid fiber/copper connectors as described above for the first and second hybrid fiber/copper connectors. It should be noted that the connector protruding out from the bulkhead may be a female hybrid fiber/copper connector or it may be a male hybrid fiber/copper connector. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 65-70 , one embodiment of a bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612  is shown. The bulkhead female hybrid connector  612  includes a bulkhead mounting panel  609 , an outer housing  620 , a first inner housing half  632 , and a second inner housing half  634 . The first inner housing half  632  is configured to hold the fiber components of the bulkhead female connector  612  while the second inner housing half  634  is configured to hold the electrical/copper components of the bulkhead female connector  612 . The first and the second inner housing halves  632 ,  634  detachably mate together and are inserted into the outer housing  620  of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612 . After insertion, the outer housing  620  is fastened to the bulkhead mounting panel  609 . The bulkhead mounting panel  609  includes fastener holes  607  for mounting to a bulkhead. 
     As shown in  FIG. 67 , the outer housing  620  includes a mating end  754  and a cable receiving end  628 . A grounding spring  605  is inserted into the outer housing  620 . The grounding spring  605  is configured to make contact with the outer housing  22  of a male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  for grounding the entire hybrid assembly. As shown in the cross-sectional view in  FIG. 70 , the grounding spring  605  is inserted within a circumferential recess  604  of the interior of the outer housing  620 . The interior surface of the grounding spring  605  makes contact with the exterior surface of the intermediate circumferential wall  160  of the outer housing  22  of a male hybrid connector  14  for establishing a grounding pathway between the two outer housings  620 ,  22 . 
     After the first and second inner housing halves  632 ,  634  are inserted into the outer housing  620  from the cable receiving end  628 , the cable receiving end  628  is inserted through an opening  603  in the panel  609  and fastened to the panel  609  with a nut  601 . A grounding ring  611  is captured between the nut  601  and the panel  609  as the outer housing  620  is fastened to the panel  609 . The outer housing  620  includes a circumferential flange portion  613  that is configured to capture an o-ring  615  against the panel  609  for providing a watertight seal. The o-ring  615  is shown in the cross-sectional view in  FIG. 70 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 67 , the cable receiving end  628  of the outer housing  620  and the opening  603  of the panel  609  may include intermating flats for keying purposes. 
     The mating end  754  of the outer housing  620  is preferably configured to mate with the outer housing  22  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  shown in  FIG. 54 . As such, the mating end  754  of the outer housing  620  includes a plurality of circumferentially arranged ball bearings  756  that are configured to engage a circumferential recess  158  defined on an intermediate circumferential wall  160  of the outer housing  22  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . When the outer housing  620  of the bulkhead female hybrid connector  612  is coupled to the outer housing  22  of the male hybrid connector  14 , the sliding ring  162  of the outer housing  22  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is slid over the mating end  754  and the ball bearings  756  of the outer housing  620  of the bulkhead female hybrid connector  612  to hold the two hybrid fiber/copper connectors in a mated configuration. The sliding locking ring  162  of the outer housing  22  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  and the recess  158  for receiving the ball bearings  756  is illustrated in  FIGS. 1-3  and  54 . The sliding ring  162  is spring biased toward a locking position to hold the ball bearings  756  against the recess  158  on the intermediate circumferential wall  160  of the outer housing  22  of the male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14 . 
     The cable receiving end  628  of the bulkhead female hybrid connector  612  is configured to threadingly receive an end cap  624 . A hybrid cable segment that includes preterminated fiber optic connectors and also copper conductors may be inserted through the end cap  624  to mate with the fiber and copper components of the bulkhead female hybrid connector  612 , as will be discussed below. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 67 , the first inner housing half  632  of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612  includes a body  636  with a fiber optic adapter  50  removably mounted to the body  636 . The fiber optic adapter  50  may be mounted to the body  636  in the same manner as in the first inner housing half  32  of the female hybrid connector  12  of  FIGS. 4-9 . The fiber optic adapter  50  mounted to the first housing half  632  is illustrated in  FIG. 10 . As depicted, the fiber optic adapter  50  is a duplex adapter including a front end and a rear end. Two fiber optic connectors mounted into the front end of the fiber optic adapter  50  can optically mate with two fiber optic connectors mounted into the rear end of the fiber optic adapter  50 . As depicted, the adapter  50  is configured to receive and optically connect two pairs of LX.5 type connectors. Other connector and adapter formats can also be used. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 67 , the body  636  includes a mating end  640  and a cable receiving end  642 . The first inner housing half  632  defines alignment features for cooperatively mating with the second inner housing half  634  of the bulkhead female hybrid connector  612 . The mating end  640  of the body  636  of the first inner housing half  632  includes an exterior recessed portion  664  defined on a first side  666  of the body  636 . The recessed portion  664  is configured to act as a keying feature when a male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  is mated to the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612 . In this manner, the correct orientation of the mating ends of the bulkhead female and the male hybrid connectors  612 ,  14  are obtained when the two hybrid connectors are mated. 
     The second inner housing half  634  is configured to house the copper components of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612 . The second inner housing half  634  includes a body  668  with a mating end  672  and a cable receiving end  674 . The second inner housing half  634  includes an alignment pin  676  and a pin opening  678  for cooperatively mating with a corresponding pin and opening of the first inner housing half  632 . 
     The second inner housing half  634  includes an integrally formed conductor pin support  680  adjacent the mating end  672 . The conductor pin support  680  defines six channels  682 . The channels  682  include therein six conductive pins  684 . Each of the six conductive pins  684  includes two female ends. The conductive pins  684  are generally permanently mounted within the pin support  680  and form a part of the second inner housing half  634 . 
     As in the first inner housing half  632 , the second inner housing half  634  defines an exterior recessed portion  688  on a first side  690  of the pin support  680 . The recess  688  is configured align with the recess  664  of the first inner housing half  632  when the two housing halves  632 ,  634  are joined to define a big recess. The big recess acts as a keying feature when the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612  is mated to a male hybrid fiber/copper connector  14  such that the correct orientation of the mating ends of the two hybrid connectors are obtained. 
     The cable receiving end of the body  674  of the second inner housing half  634  is configured to receive a removable conductor mount. The conductor mount is identical to the conductor mount  396  shown in  FIGS. 61 and 64 . The conductor mount  396  includes six forwardly protruding conductive pins  400 . The forward ends of the conductive pins  400  are adapted to be inserted within the channels  682  defined by the pin support  680  at the mating end  672  of the second inner housing half  634 . The conductor mount  396  is removably inserted into a recess  704  in the interior  670  of the body  668  and slid forwardly toward the pin support  680 . The conductor mount  396  is slid until the conductive pins  400  physically and electrically mate with the rear female ends of the conductive pins  684  in the channels  682  of the pin support  680 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 66 , the rear ends  406  of the conductive pins  400  are exposed through openings  408  defined on the conductor mount  396 . The rear ends  406  of the conductive pins  400  may be terminated to copper wires of a hybrid fiber/copper cable. Since the conductor mount  396  is a removable piece, the conductor mount  396  can be removed from the second inner housing half  634  of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612  and reinserted into a second inner housing  772  of a bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614 , as will be discussed further below. In this manner, the gender of a bulkhead hybrid connector may be changed. 
     In  FIGS. 65 ,  66 , and  68 - 70 , the bulkhead female hybrid connector  612  is shown in an assembled configuration. The fiber optic adapter  50  in the first inner housing half  632  is configured to receive a pair of fiber optic connectors  56  which may be terminated to the optical fibers of a hybrid fiber/copper cable. During a gender conversion, the fiber optic connectors  56 , just like the conductor mount  396  of the second inner housing half  634 , may be removed from the fiber optic adapter  50  and from the first inner housing half  632  and remounted within a first housing half of a bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614 , to convert the gender of the bulkhead hybrid fiber/copper connector. An example of such a male gender bulkhead connector  614  having two male inner housing halves is shown in  FIGS. 71-76 . 
     The second, male gender, bulkhead hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  is illustrated in an exploded configuration in  FIG. 73 . The bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  includes a bulkhead mounting panel  909 , an outer housing  622 , a first inner housing half  770 , and a second inner housing half  772 . As in the female counterpart, the first inner housing half  770  is configured to hold the fiber components of the bulkhead male connector  614  while the second inner housing half  772  is configured to hold the electrical/copper components of the bulkhead male connector  614 . The first and the second inner housing halves  770 ,  772  detachably mate together and are inserted into the outer housing  622  of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614 . After insertion, the outer housing  622  is fastened to the panel  909 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 73 , the outer housing  622  includes a mating end  900  and a cable receiving end  630 . The cable receiving end  630  includes threads  901 . After the first and second inner housing halves  770 ,  772  are inserted into the outer housing  622  from the cable receiving end  630 , the cable receiving end  630  is inserted through an opening  902  in the panel  909  and fastened to the panel  909  with a nut  903 . A grounding ring  904  is captured between the nut  903  and the panel  909  as the outer housing  622  is fastened to the panel  909 . An o-ring  905  is captured between a circumferential flange portion  906  of the outer housing  622  and the panel  909  for providing a watertight seal. The o-ring  905  is shown in the cross-sectional view in  FIG. 76 . An end cap  626  is threadingly mated to the cable receiving end  630  of the outer housing  622  of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 73 , the cable receiving end  630  of the outer housing  622  and the opening  902  of the panel  909  may include intermating flats for keying purposes. 
     The mating end  900  of the outer housing  622  is configured to mate with the outer housing  20  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  shown in  FIG. 30 . Referring to  FIG. 76 , when the outer housing  20  of the female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  is coupled to the outer housing  622  of the bulkhead male hybrid connector  614 , a sliding ring  762  of the outer housing  622  of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  is slid over the mating end  154  and the ball bearings  156  of the outer housing  20  of the female hybrid connector  12  to hold the two hybrid fiber/copper connectors in a mated configuration. The sliding ring  762  is spring biased toward a locking position to hold the ball bearings  156  against a recess  758  on an intermediate circumferential wall  760  of the outer housing  622  of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614 . 
     Now referring to  FIG. 73 , as in the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612 , the first inner housing half  770  of the bulkhead male hybrid connector  614  is configured to hold the fiber components of the connector while the second inner housing half  772  is configured to hold the electrical/copper components of the connector. The first inner housing half  770  includes an elongated body  774  defining an interior  776  including a mating end  778  and a cable receiving end  780 . The first inner housing half  770  defines an alignment pin  782  and a pin opening  783  for cooperatively mating with the second inner housing half  772 . 
     Adjacent the mating end  778  of the first inner housing half  770  are a pair of longitudinal slots  784  configured to hold a pair of fiber optic connectors  56 . The fiber optic connectors  56  are shown in  FIG. 76 . It should be noted that the first inner housing half  770  may receive either factory preterminated fiber optic connectors or may be configured to receive an insert in the form of a field terminable fiber optic connector assembly, as shown in  FIG. 64 . In the depicted embodiment, the first inner housing half  770  is configured to receive factory preterminated fiber optic connectors  56 . The fiber optic connectors  56  are inserted in a side-by-side orientation, extending out forwardly from the mating end  778  of the first inner housing half  770 . The longitudinal slots  784  are configured to align the fiber optic connectors  56  with a fiber optic adapter  50  of a female hybrid connector  12  when the two hybrid connectors are mated. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 73 , the first inner housing half  770  defines a forwardly protruding tab  786  at the mating end  778  of the first inner housing half  770 . The tab  786  is located on a first side  788  of the body  774 . The tab  786  is configured to mate with the recess  64  defined on the body  36  of the first inner housing half  32  of a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  to act as a keying feature when the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  is mated to a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . In this manner, the correct orientation of the mating ends are obtained when the two hybrid connectors are mated. As will be discussed below, the second inner housing half  772  of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  also includes a forwardly extending tab  790  that aligns with the tab  786  of the first inner housing half  770 . The two tabs  786 ,  790  together form a large tab that engages the large recess defined on the combined inner housings  32 ,  34  of a female hybrid connector  12 . The two tabs  786 ,  790  also act to protect the fiber optic connectors  56  as the tabs  786 ,  790  extend alongside of the fiber optic connectors  56 . 
     A connector retainer  792  configured to be placed over the fiber optic connectors  56  is shown in  FIG. 73 . The connector retainer  792  is similar in configuration to the connector retainer shown in  FIGS. 33 ,  39 - 42 , and  64  and performs the same function. 
     As noted above, the fiber optic connectors  56  that are inserted directly into the first inner housing half  770  of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  or that are connected to the fiber optic adapter  50  within the first inner housing half  632  of the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612  are terminated to the optical fibers of a hybrid fiber/copper cable segment. In certain embodiments, the optical fibers of the cable segment may be terminated to the ferrules of the fiber optic connectors as known in the art and in other embodiments, the fiber optic connectors may be field-terminable. 
     Referring back to  FIG. 73 , the second inner housing half  772  includes an elongated body  804  defining an interior  806 . The body  804  includes a mating end  807  and a cable receiving end  808 . Similar to the first inner housing half  770 , the second inner housing half  772  includes an alignment pin and a pin opening for cooperatively mating with the corresponding pin  782  and opening  783  of the first inner housing half  770 . 
     Adjacent the mating end  807  of the second inner housing half  772  is an integrally formed conductor pin support  814 . The conductor pin support  814  defines six channels for nesting six conductive pins. Each of the six conductive pins includes a female end and a forwardly protruding male end. The conductive pins are generally permanently mounted within the pin support  814  and form a part of the second inner housing half  772 . 
     As in the first inner housing half  770 , at the mating end  807  of the second inner housing half  772 , there is a tab  790  protruding forwardly defined on a first side  826  of the body  804 . The tab  790  is configured to mate with the recess  88  defined on the body  68  of the second inner housing half  34  of a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12  to act as a keying feature when the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  is mated to a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . In this manner, the correct orientation of the mating ends are obtained when the two hybrid connectors are mated. The tab  790  aligns with the tab  786  of the first inner housing half to form a large tab. The large tab engages the large recess defined on the combined inner housings of a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . As discussed above, the two tabs  786 ,  790  also act to protect the fiber optic connectors  56  as the tabs extend  786 ,  790  alongside of the fiber optic connectors  56 . 
     The interior  806  of the second inner housing half  772  is configured to receive a conductor mount that is identical to the conductor mount  396  shown in  FIGS. 61 and 64 . The forward ends  402  of the conductive pins  400  are adapted to be inserted within the channels defined by the pin support  814  at the mating end  807  of the second inner housing half  772 . The conductor mount  396  is inserted into a recess in the interior  806  of the body  804  and slid forwardly toward the pin support  814  until the conductive pins  400  physically and electrically mate with the female ends of the conductive pins that are in the channels of the pin support  814 . The male ends of the conductive pins protrude out for electrically mating with the female ends  86  of the conductive pins  84  of a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . 
     As in the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612 , the rear ends  406  of the conductive pins  400  are exposed through openings  408  defined on the conductor mount  396 . The rear ends  406  of the conductive pins  400  are terminated to copper wires of a hybrid fiber/copper cable, just as in the bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612 . And, since the conductor mount  396  can be removed from the second inner housing half  772  of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  and reinserted into the second inner housing half  634  of a bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612 , the gender of the bulkhead hybrid connector can be converted. 
     The first inner housing half  770  is configured to receive a pair of fiber optic connectors  56  which may be terminated to the optical fibers of a hybrid fiber/copper cable. The fiber optic connectors  56  are retained by the connector retainer  792  and the cantilever snap fit structures are pressed against the body of the first inner housing half  770  to prevent locking of the fiber optic connectors  56  within the fiber optic adapter  50  of a female hybrid fiber/copper connector  12 . The fiber optic connectors (whether be factory terminated fiber optic connectors or fiber optic connectors that are part of a field terminable fiber optic connector assembly), just like the conductor mount  396  of the second inner housing half  772 , may be removed from the first inner housing half  770  of the bulkhead male hybrid fiber/copper connector  614  and remounted within a first housing half  632  of a bulkhead female hybrid fiber/copper connector  612  (to the fiber optic adapter therein), to convert the gender of the bulkhead hybrid fiber/copper connector. 
     The above specification, examples and data provide a complete description of the manufacture and use of the inventive aspects of the present disclosure. Since many embodiments of the inventive aspects can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure, the inventive aspects reside in the claims hereinafter appended.