Patent Description:
Outdoor telecommunications cabinets have become popular in recent years. They can protect a wide range of telecommunications equipment including radios, multicarrier power amplifiers (MCPA), combiners, power supplies, batteries, and wireless cell site backhaul equipment. These cabinets can protect base station equipment from environmental conditions while minimizing operating expenses and energy consumption.

Typically, telecommunications cabinets have racks adjacent their vertical walls for mounting equipment horizontally within the cabinet (i.e., stacking radios in a flat configuration). Electronic equipment (which may include AC/DC rectifiers, Radio Baseband units, network routers, Fiber test and management devices, alarm interface components, and current and surge protection devices) is conventionally mounted in standard <NUM>" or <NUM>" width rack structures. However, new radios do not fit this standard with the main body of the radio unit acting as a heat sink and requiring vertical mounting. It may be desirable to provide rack configurations that enhance flexibility of mounting equipment within the cabinet.

<CIT> relates to cabinets, and more specifically to electronics cabinets. A rack for an equipment cabinet includes a plurality of rack sections adapted for mounting on an equipment cabinet, each of the rack sections including a vertical panel, a lower horizontal panel extending from a lower edge of the vertical panel, and an upper horizontal panel extending from an upper edge of the vertical panel, the rail sections being vertically stacked.

<CIT> relates to the field of computers, and more particularly to computer racks, rack systems, and a system for utilizing non-dedicated rack space.

<CIT> relates to the mounting of telecommunication equipment, e.g. a telecommunication cabinet, to a structure. More particularly, the disclosure presents a mounting bracket intended for the mounting of telecommunication equipment to a structure, such as a wall or a pole. Also, the disclosure presents a mounting rail intended for the mounting of telecommunication equipment to a structure, such as a wall or pole. Still further, the disclosure presents a mounting system that comprises the above-mentioned mounting bracket and the above-mentioned mounting rail.

According to the invention, the problem is solved by the subject matter outlined in independent claims <NUM> and <NUM>. Advantageous further developments of the invention are set forth in the dependent claims.

The present invention now is described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms, as long as it falls under the scope of the appended claims, and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth 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.

In the figures, the thickness of certain lines, layers, components, elements or features may be exaggerated for clarity.

As used herein, phrases such as "between X and Y" and "between about X and Y" should be interpreted to include X and Y. As used herein, phrases such as "between about X and Y" mean "between about X and about Y. " As used herein, phrases such as "from about X to Y" mean "from about X to about Y.

It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being "on", "attached" to, "connected" to, "coupled" with, "contacting", etc., another element, it can be directly on, attached to, connected to, coupled with or contacting the other element or intervening elements may also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being, for example, "directly on", "directly attached" to, "directly connected" to, "directly coupled" with or "directly contacting" another element, there are no intervening elements present.

Spatially relative terms, such as "under", "below", "lower", "over", "upper", "lateral", "left", "right" and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is inverted, elements described as "under" or "beneath" other elements or features would then be oriented "over" the other elements or features. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated <NUM> degrees or at other orientations) and the descriptors of relative spatial relationships used herein interpreted accordingly.

Referring now to the figures, a telecommunications cabinet, designated broadly at <NUM>, is illustrated in <FIG>. The cabinet <NUM> may be of conventional construction and need not be described in detail herein. In some embodiments, the cabinet <NUM> is designed around the standard <NUM>" rack. In some embodiments, the cabinet <NUM> is generally box-shaped, with opposing side walls <NUM>, a ceiling <NUM>, and a floor <NUM>. In some embodiments, a center support member <NUM> extends between the ceiling <NUM> and the floor <NUM> and divides the cabinet <NUM> into two approximately equal compartments or sections <NUM>. Each compartment <NUM> of the cabinet <NUM> has a removable rear wall <NUM> which allows easy access to the back of telecommunications equipment <NUM>, <NUM> mounted within the cabinet <NUM>. A door <NUM> is pivotably coupled to each side wall <NUM>. In some embodiments, the side walls <NUM>, doors <NUM>, and/or rear walls <NUM> may comprise perforations <NUM> which allow air to circulate within the cabinet <NUM> to help prevent telecommunications equipment <NUM>, <NUM> mounted within the cabinet <NUM> from overheating (<FIG>).

A vertical rail <NUM> (also seen in <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>) is mounted to each of the side walls <NUM>. Additional vertical rails <NUM> are mounted to the center support member <NUM>. As described in further detail below, the vertical rails <NUM>, <NUM> are positioned to provide mounting locations for an equipment rack <NUM> according to embodiments of the present invention (i.e., mounting one or more equipment racks <NUM> within a section <NUM> of the cabinet <NUM>). The vertical rails <NUM>, <NUM> also provide mounting locations for support rails <NUM> which provide additional structural support to the cabinet <NUM>.

Referring now to <FIG>, the components of the equipment rack <NUM> according to embodiments of the present invention are illustrated (see also, e.g., <FIG>). The components of the equipment rack <NUM> include a structural rail <NUM> (<FIG>), an insert plate <NUM> (<FIG>), and an equipment mounting bracket <NUM> (<FIG>). The equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention may be used with a standard telecommunication cabinet <NUM> described herein. In some embodiments, the equipment rack <NUM> may be used to mount telecommunications equipment <NUM>, <NUM> (e.g., passively cooled radios) within the cabinet <NUM> (see, e.g., <FIG>). The equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention may allow a telecommunications cabinet <NUM> that has been deployed in the field to be reconfigured to accept radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> from a different manufacturer (i.e., allowing different sizes and/or types of radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> to be mounted within the cabinet <NUM>), thereby providing a cost effective and standardized radio mounting solution. For example, a standard cabinet <NUM> that is configured to mount equipment horizontally within the cabinet <NUM> (i.e., stacking radios in a flat configuration) may be reconfigured by utilizing the equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention to allow the equipment to be vertically mounted within the cabinet <NUM>.

The first component of the equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention, i.e., the structural rail <NUM>, is shown in <FIG>. The structural rail <NUM> is generally rectangularly shaped, with a main body <NUM> and four walls (i.e., a top wall 42a, a bottom wall 42b, and opposing side walls <NUM>) that extend radially outwardly from the main body <NUM>. The four walls <NUM> define a cavity <NUM> that is sized and configured to receive an insert plate <NUM> (see, e.g., <FIG>). Each side wall <NUM> comprises a plurality of mounting apertures <NUM> that allow the structural rail <NUM> to be mounted and secured to vertical rails <NUM>, <NUM> (e.g., via bolts) within the telecommunications cabinet <NUM>.

The main body <NUM> of the structural rail <NUM> comprises a series of holes <NUM>. As shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments, the series of holes <NUM> are positioned longitudinally along a center axis A of the structural rail <NUM>. As discussed in further detail below, the holes <NUM> within the main body <NUM> provide location(s) to secure the insert plate <NUM> to the structural rail <NUM>. As shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments, the structural rail <NUM> may comprise eight (<NUM>) holes <NUM>. In some embodiments, the holes <NUM> may be grouped into two sets of four (<NUM>) holes <NUM>, with each hole <NUM> in a set being separated by a distance of approximately <NUM>. In some embodiments, the two sets of holes <NUM> may be spaced apart a distance of approximately <NUM> (i.e., the distance between the two holes <NUM> closest to the center of the structural rail <NUM>).

In some embodiments, the main body <NUM> of the structural rail <NUM> may also comprise two rows of elongate or oblong slots <NUM>. Each row of slots <NUM> may be positioned within the main body <NUM> adjacent to the top and bottom walls 42a, 42b of the structural rail <NUM>, respectively. As discussed in further detail below, the slots <NUM> within the main body <NUM> provide location(s) to secure the radio mount bracket <NUM> (see <FIG>) to the structural rail <NUM> and also allow for different insert plates <NUM> and brackets <NUM> (which correspond to different radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM>) to be used with the structural rail <NUM>. As shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments, each row may comprise twenty-one (<NUM>) slots <NUM>. In some embodiments, each adjacent slot <NUM> within a row may be separated by a distance of approximately <NUM> (measured to the center of each slot <NUM>). Each slot <NUM> may have a length of approximately <NUM>.

The second component of the equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention, i.e., the insert plate <NUM>, is shown in <FIG>. The insert plate <NUM> is generally rectangularly shaped and is sized and configured to fit within the cavity <NUM> of the structural rail <NUM>. The insert plate <NUM> is specific to the radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> that will be mounted within the telecommunications cabinet <NUM>, but is universal to the structural rail <NUM>. The insert plate <NUM> comprises a pair of plate mounting holes <NUM> residing along a center axis of the insert plate <NUM>. Each plate mounting hole <NUM> is positioned to align with a respective hole <NUM> in the structural rail <NUM> such that the insert plate <NUM> may be fastened to the structural rail <NUM>.

The insert plate <NUM> further comprises a plurality of bracket mounting holes <NUM> (e.g., captive female threads). The bracket mounting holes <NUM> are positioned adjacent to the top and bottom edges of the insert plate <NUM> such that each of the bracket mounting holes <NUM> align with a respective slot <NUM> in the main body <NUM> of the structural rail <NUM>. As discussed in further detail below, when the insert plate <NUM> is fastened to the structural rail <NUM> via the plate mounting holes <NUM>, each of the bracket mounting holes <NUM> will align within a respective slot <NUM> and are positioned in the exact location to provide the correct positioning and spacing for the corresponding radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> (e.g., with the corresponding radio mount bracket <NUM>) that will be mounted on the equipment rack <NUM> and within the telecommunications cabinet <NUM>.

The third component of the equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention, i.e., radio mounting bracket <NUM>, is shown in <FIG>. Similar to the insert plate <NUM>, the radio mount bracket <NUM> is specific to the radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> that will be mounted within the telecommunications cabinet <NUM>, but is universal to the structural rail <NUM>. As shown in <FIG>, the bracket <NUM> has a main body <NUM> with a pair of flanges <NUM> that extend radially outwardly from opposing sides of the main body <NUM>. The main body <NUM> has a plurality of mounting holes <NUM>. The mounting holes <NUM> are configured such that the corresponding radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> may be secured to the bracket <NUM> (e.g., via bolts) (<FIG>).

The radio mounting bracket <NUM> includes a hanging member <NUM> that extends radially outwardly from a top edge of the main body <NUM>. The hanging member <NUM> is configured engage the top wall 42a of the structural rail <NUM> (e.g., via flanged edge 63a) to provide additional structural support when the bracket <NUM> (and radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM>) is secured to the structural rail <NUM> (see, e.g., <FIG> and <FIG>). In some embodiments, the bracket <NUM> may further include a support member <NUM> that extends radially outwardly from the bottom edge of the main body <NUM>. The support member <NUM> may help to position the bracket <NUM> flush against the structural rail <NUM>, thereby providing additional structural support to the radio mounting bracket <NUM>.

Each flange <NUM> has a pair of mounting holes <NUM>. When the bracket <NUM> is placed on the structural rail <NUM>, each mounting hole <NUM> aligns with a corresponding bracket mounting hole <NUM> in the insert plate <NUM> (and a slot <NUM> in the structural rail <NUM>). The radio mounting bracket <NUM> may be secured to the insert plate <NUM> (and thus, the structural rail <NUM>) via bolts through the mounting holes <NUM>. Alignment of the mounting holes <NUM> of the bracket <NUM> with the respective bracket mounting holes <NUM> of the insert plate <NUM> position the radio mounting bracket(s) <NUM> in the exact location on the structural rail <NUM>, thereby allowing the corresponding radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> to be positioned correctly with the appropriate spacing within the telecommunications cabinet <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, a technician can reconfigure an existing telecommunications cabinet <NUM> to allow the vertical mounting of radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> within the telecommunications cabinet <NUM> by utilizing the equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention.

First, a universal structural rail <NUM> is secured to the vertical rails <NUM>, <NUM> within the telecommunications cabinet <NUM>. Next, an insert plate <NUM> corresponding to the radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> to be mounted within the cabinet <NUM> (i.e., having a particular mounting hole <NUM>, <NUM> pattern) is placed within the cavity <NUM> of the structural rail <NUM>. When the insert plate <NUM> is mounted within the cavity <NUM> of the structural rail <NUM>, the bracket mounting holes <NUM> will align with respective slots <NUM> in the structural rail <NUM>. The insert plate <NUM> is secured to the structural rail <NUM> via fasteners (e.g., bolts) inserted through the plate mounting holes <NUM> of insert plate <NUM> and received through corresponding holes <NUM> of the structural rail <NUM>.

Next, each radio mounting bracket <NUM> may be secured to a respective piece of radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> via fasteners (e.g., bolts) inserted through mounting holes <NUM>. The radio mounting bracket <NUM> (and mounted radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM>) may then be mounted onto the structural rail <NUM> by utilizing the hanging member <NUM> which engages the top wall 42a of the structural rail <NUM> via flanged edge 63a. The hanging member <NUM> is configured to support the weight of the radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> and hold the bracket <NUM> and radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> on the structural rail <NUM>. This allows the technician to slide the bracket <NUM> (and mounted radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM>) along the top wall 42a of the structural rail <NUM> until the mounting holes <NUM> in the flanges <NUM> of the radio mounting bracket <NUM> align with bracket mounting holes <NUM> of the insert plate <NUM>. This allows the technician to easily position the bracket <NUM> (and radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM>) on the structural rail <NUM> without having to continuously hold the heavy radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM>.

Once the mounting holes <NUM> of the bracket <NUM> are aligned with mounting holes <NUM> of the insert plate <NUM>, the bracket <NUM> (and corresponding radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM>) may be secured to the equipment rack <NUM> via fasteners (e.g., bolts) inserted through the bracket mounting holes <NUM> of the insert plate <NUM> (and respective slots <NUM> of the structural rail <NUM>) and received through corresponding holes <NUM> in the radio mounting bracket <NUM>. Additional radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> may then be mounted within the telecommunications cabinet <NUM> in the same manner with alignment of the respective mounting holes <NUM>, <NUM>, thereby providing correct positioning and spacing for the corresponding radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> within the cabinet <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, the equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention allows for different sizes and/or types of radio equipment <NUM>, <NUM> to be vertically mounted within a standard telecommunications cabinet <NUM>. Exemplary radios that may be mounted utilizing the equipment rack <NUM> of the present invention may include, but are not limited to, Ericsson <NUM>, Ericsson <NUM>, Ericsson <NUM>, Ericsson <NUM>, Ericson <NUM>, Nokia AHPMDA, Nokia FZNJ, Nokia AZNC, and Huawei RRU5301.

Claim 1:
An equipment rack (<NUM>) for a telecommunications cabinet (<NUM>), comprising:
a universal structural rail (<NUM>) configured to be mounted within the telecommunications cabinet (<NUM>), the universal structural rail (<NUM>) having a main body (<NUM>) and four walls (42a, 42b, <NUM>) extending outwardly from the main body to define a cavity (<NUM>), wherein the main body comprises a plurality of holes (<NUM>) and/or slots (<NUM>);
a radio equipment-specific insert plate (<NUM>) comprising one or more plate mounting holes (<NUM>) and a plurality of bracket mounting holes (<NUM>), wherein the radio equipment-specific insert plate (<NUM>) is configured to fit within the cavity (<NUM>) of the universal structural rail (<NUM>) and secured to the universal structural rail (<NUM>) via fasteners through the plate mounting holes (<NUM>); and
a radio equipment-specific mounting bracket (<NUM>) having a main body (<NUM>) comprising a plurality of mounting holes (<NUM>), wherein the radio equipment-specific mounting bracket (<NUM>) is configured to be secured to the radio equipment-specific insert plate (<NUM>) via fasteners when one or more of the mounting holes (<NUM>) of the radio equipment-specific mounting bracket (<NUM>) are aligned with respective bracket mounting holes (<NUM>) of the radio equipment-specific insert plate (<NUM>), and wherein the radio equipment-specific mounting bracket (<NUM>) is configured such that a piece of telecommunications equipment (<NUM>, <NUM>) can be mounted thereto.