Flat drop cable with features for enhancing stripability

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10545308-B2
Application number	US-201816214879-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 10, 2018
Priority date	Jan 22, 2014
Publication date	Jan 28, 2020
Grant date	Jan 28, 2020

Abstract

A flat drop cable has notches or other structures for enhancing the stripability of the jacket from the a core of the flat drop cable. The notches can have an angled configuration with surfaces that converge as the notch extends into the jacket. Inner edges of the notches can be positioned along a tear path that intersects the core of the flat drop cable. For example, the notches can be offset from a minor axis of the flat drop cable a sufficient distance such that the notches are positioned outside a central boundary region that extends tangent to sides of the core and parallel to the minor axis of the flat drop cable.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A fiber optic cable having a longitudinal axis, the fiber optic cable comprising:
a jacket having a length extending along the longitudinal axis, the jacket has a transverse cross-sectional profile defining a major axis extending between opposite first and second sides of the cable and a minor axis extending between opposite first and second ends of the cable, the major axis being transverse to the minor axis, the jacket having a flat construction so that the major axis is at least twice as long as the minor axis, the jacket having a curvature at the first and second sides of the cable so that the major axis extends through the curvature:
a core disposed within the jacket and extending along the longitudinal axis, the core including at least one optical fiber, the core being intersected by both the major and minor axes;
first and second strength members disposed within the jacket and extending along the longitudinal axis, the first and second strength members being positioned at opposite sides of the core so that the major axis intersects both the first and second strength members and the core, each of the first and second strength members having a rounded portion that matches the curvature of the jacket at a respective one of the first and second sides;
a first open-sided notch defined by the jacket that extends along the length of the jacket at the first end of the jacket, the first open-sided notch being defined by respective first and second surfaces that converge at a first convergence point offset into the jacket from the first end of the jacket, the respective first surface extending from the first convergence point towards the first side of the jacket and the respective second surface extending from the first convergence point towards the second side of the jacket; and
a second open-sided notch defined by the jacket that extends along the length of the jacket at the second end of the jacket, the second open-sided notch being defined by respective first and second surfaces that converge at a second convergence point offset into the jacket from the second end of the jacket, the respective first surface extending from the second convergence point, towards the first side of the jacket and the respective second surface extending from the second convergence point towards the second side of the jacket.

2. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 , wherein the first open-sided notch is disposed closer to the first side of the jacket than the second open-sided notch.

3. The fiber optic cable of claim 2 , wherein the first open-sided notch is offset from the minor axis.

4. The fiber optic cable of claim 3 wherein the second open-sided notch is offset from the minor axis.

5. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 , wherein the first and second strength members are at least twice as large as the core.

6. The fiber optic cable of claim 5 , wherein the minor axis defines a thickness of the jacket and wherein each of the first and second strength members has a transverse cross-dimension that extends along a majority of the thickness of the jacket.

7. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 , wherein the core includes a buffer layer within which the at least one optical fiber is disposed.

8. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 , wherein each of the first and second open-sided notches is provided outside of a boundary defined by first and second lines that are tangent to the core and that are perpendicular to the major axis.

9. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 , wherein the first open-sided notch is defined at the first end between the minor axis and the first side of the jacket, wherein a notch is not provided at the first end between the minor axis and the second side of the jacket, wherein the second open-sided notch is defined at the second end between the minor axis and the second side of the jacket, and wherein a notch is not provided at the second end between the minor axis and the first side of the jacket.

10. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 , wherein the jacket is tightly extruded about the core.

11. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 , wherein the jacket defines a passage extending along the longitudinal axis, the core being loosely disposed within the passage.

12. The fiber optic cable of claim 11 , further comprising a third strength member disposed within the passage between the core and the jacket.

13. The fiber optic cable of claim 12 , wherein the third strength member is water soluable.

14. The fiber optic cable of claim 12 , wherein the third strength member is one of a plurality of strength members disposed within the passage, the strength members within the passage being positioned to inhibit the core from adhering to the jacket during extrusion of the jacket around the core.

15. The fiber optic cable of claim 14 , wherein the plurality of strength members disposed within the passage includes two strength members disposed within the passage.

16. The fiber optic cable of claim 11 , wherein the passage is smaller than the first and second strength members.

17. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 , wherein the first and second ends of the cable are parallel to each other.

18. The fiber optic cable of claim 1 . wherein each of the first and second open-ended notches is symmetrical about a respective reference plane extending through the notch and parallel with the minor axis.

Assignees

• Commscope Technologies Llc
• Commscope Telecommunications Shanghai Co Ltd
• Commscope Tech Australia Pty Ltd

Inventors

• Fahd Aly
• Kachmar Wayne M
• Dick Steven James
• Hubbard Paul David
• Fu Wei
• Xu Dong

Classifications

• G02B6/4433

  Double reinforcement laying in straight line with optical transmission element · CPC title

• G02B6/245

  Removing protective coverings of light guides before coupling · CPC title

• G02B6/4402

  with one single optical waveguide (G02B6/4429, G02B6/4439, G02B6/4479 take precedence) · CPC title

• G02B6/4432

  with fibre reinforcements · CPC title

• G02B6/4494

  Physics · mapped topic