Patent Abstract:
A transition device for interconnecting a hybrid trunk cable and electronic equipment includes: an enclosure having first and second ends; a trunk power connector mounted to the first end of the enclosure; a trunk optical connector mounted to the first end of the enclosure; and a plurality of hybrid jumper cables exiting the second end of the enclosure, each of the hybrid jumper cables including at least two power conductors terminated with jumper power connectors and at least one optical fiber terminated with a jumper optical connector.

Full Description:
RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    The present application claims priority from and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/203,183, filed Aug. 10, 2015, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to power and signal distribution, and more particularly to distribution from hybrid cables. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Latest developments in technology for delivering power and data in wireless infrastructure use hybrid cables, wherein the term “hybrid cable” is intended to mean a cable that includes both power conductors and one or more fiber optic cords or cables. An exemplary hybrid cable is the HFF cable, available from CommScope, Inc. (Joliet, Ill.). Unlike RF-based systems, a single hybrid trunk cable can be used to power multiple sectors, thereby eliminating multiple runs of RF cable. However, in order to use a single hybrid trunk cable, at some point the trunk cable must transition to hybrid jumper cables. Typically, these are distributed inside an enclosure that transitions the trunk conductor gauge to the jumper conductor gauge and connects the optical fibers in the trunk to the optical fibers in the jumper cables. Currently, transitions are achieved by making connections inside the enclosure, requiring it to be opened, cables to be fed/mated to the enclosure, and power and fiber connections to be made, all in the field (e.g., on the top of cell sites near a remote radio unit (RRU)). This practice can create many issues for installers, including time, safety, connection errors (such as loose power connections and/or poor fiber cleaning), and more opportunity for connector damage. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0004]    As a first aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to a transition device for interconnecting a hybrid trunk cable and electronic equipment, comprising: an enclosure having first and second ends; a trunk power connector mounted to the first end of the enclosure; a trunk optical connector mounted to the first end of the enclosure; and a plurality of hybrid jumper cables exiting the second end of the enclosure, each of the hybrid jumper cables including at least two power conductors terminated with jumper power connectors and at least one optical fiber terminated with a jumper optical connector. 
         [0005]    As a second aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to an assembly comprising: (a) a transition device for interconnecting a hybrid trunk cable and electronic equipment and (b) a hybrid trunk cable. The transition device comprises: an enclosure having first and second ends; a trunk power connector mounted to the first end of the enclosure; a trunk optical connector mounted to the first end of the enclosure; a plurality of hybrid jumper cables exiting the second end of the enclosure, each of the hybrid jumper cables including at least one power conductor terminated with a jumper power connector and at least one optical fiber terminated with a jumper optical connector. The hybrid trunk cable has an optical connector and a power connector, the optical connector of the hybrid trunk cable being connected to the trunk optical connector of the first end of the enclosure, and the power connector of the hybrid trunk cable being connected to the trunk power connector of the first end of the enclosure. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         [0006]      FIG. 1  is a rear perspective view of a transition assembly according to embodiments of the present invention. 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  is a front perspective view of the transition assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0008]      FIG. 3  is a front perspective view of the fixture and bundled hybrid jumper cables of the transition assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0009]      FIG. 4  is a front perspective view of the panel and mounted thereon the trunk optical connector and the trunk power connector of the transition assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0010]      FIG. 5  is a rear perspective view of a hybrid trunk cable with power and optical connectors to be mated with the transition assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0011]      FIG. 6  is a front perspective view of the transition assembly of  FIG. 1  with the housing removed. 
           [0012]      FIG. 7  is a front perspective view of an alternative array of bundled hybrid jumper cables for a transition assembly according to embodiments of the invention. 
           [0013]      FIG. 8  is a front perspective view of a transition assembly employing the bundled hybrid jumper cables of  FIG. 7 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0014]    The present invention is described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments that are pictured and described herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. It will also be appreciated that the embodiments disclosed herein can be combined in any way and/or combination to provide many additional embodiments. 
         [0015]    Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms that are used in this disclosure have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The terminology used in the below description is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used in this disclosure, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will also be understood that when an element (e.g., a device, circuit, etc.) is referred to as being “connected” or “coupled” to another element, it can be directly connected or coupled to the other element or intervening elements may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly connected” or “directly coupled” to another element, there are no intervening elements present. 
         [0016]    Referring now to the drawings, a transition device, designated broadly at  10 , is shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The transition device  10  includes an enclosure  12  having a housing  14  with a closed end  16 . A connector plate  18  fits within the open end of the housing  14  and may be secured to the housing  14  with a gasket or other sealing technique. The connector plate  18  (see  FIG. 4 ) serves as a mounting location for a trunk power connector  20  of conventional construction and a trunk fiber optic connector  22  (which may be an MPO or multi-fiber connector). 
         [0017]    Referring to  FIGS. 1, 4 and 6 , the fixture  24  is mounted at the closed end  16  of the housing  14 , and may be sealed with a gasket, sealing compound, or the like. The fixture  24  is configured to secure four hybrid jumper cables  26  in a substantially aligned array or bundle. Each of the hybrid jumper cables  26  includes two power conductors  28  that terminate in a jumper power connector  30  and one or more optical fibers  32  that terminates in a jumper optical connector  34 . At their opposite ends, the power conductors  28  and the optical fibers  32  of the hybrid jumper cables  26  are connected with the connectors  20 ,  22  within the enclosure  12  in a conventional manner (see  FIG. 6 ). In the illustrated embodiment, the hybrid cables  26  are bundled together in substantial alignment with a collar  36  some distance from the fixture  24 . Typically, the hybrid jumper cables  26  extend between about 0.5 and 50 meter from the enclosure  12 , with a length of 0.75 meters being more typical. 
         [0018]    Referring now to  FIG. 5 , a hybrid trunk cable  40  is illustrated therein. The hybrid trunk cable  40  includes power conductors  42  that are terminated with a power connector  44  and optical fibers  45  that are terminated with an optical connector  46 . The power connector  44  is configured to mate with the trunk power connector  20  of the transition device  10 , and the optical connector  46  is configured to mate with the trunk optical connector  22  of the transition device  10 . 
         [0019]    Typically, the hybrid trunk cable  40  is routed from the base of an antenna tower or similar structure to a location adjacent a piece of equipment (such as an RRU) mounted on the structure, where it can be easily mated to the trunk power connector  20  and the trunk optical connector  22  of the transition device  10 . The power cables  28  of the hybrid jumper cables  26  are then connected to the equipment via the connectors  30  and the optical fibers  32  are connected to the equipment via the fiber optic connectors  34 . 
         [0020]    Those of skill in this art will appreciate that the transition device  10  may take other forms. The enclosure  12  may take a different shape. In some embodiments, the enclosure  12  may be partially or completely filled with a potting compound or resin or the like, or may even be formed by overmolding a compound over the power connector  20 , optical connector  22  and hybrid cables  26 . Other configurations will also be apparent to those of skill in this art. 
         [0021]    Moreover, the power connector  20  and optical connector  22  may be replaced by a hybrid trunk connector that mates with a hybrid trunk connector on the hybrid trunk cable. Also, the power and optical connectors  30 ,  34  on the power and optical jumper cables  28 ,  32  may be replaced with a hybrid connector. 
         [0022]    Referring now to  FIGS. 7 and 8 , an alternative embodiment of a transition device  110  is shown therein. The transition device  110  differs from the transition device  10  in the manner in which the hybrid cables  126  exit the enclosure  112 . In the transition device  110 , a circular multi-cable gland  124  is mounted on closed end of the housing  114 . The hybrid cables  126  are routed from the interior of the enclosure  112  through and away from the gland  124 . A square collar  136  maintains the hybrid cables  126  in a bundled fashion prior to their being broken out into power conductors  128  and optical fibers  132 . 
         [0023]    The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the claims. The invention is defined by the following claims, with equivalents of the claims to be included therein.

Technology Classification (CPC): 6