Fiber optic adapter assembly

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11579379-B2
Application number	US-202016835277-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 30, 2020
Priority date	Mar 28, 2019
Publication date	Feb 14, 2023
Grant date	Feb 14, 2023

Abstract

A fiber optic adapter assembly reduced in size from a SFP footprint to a SC footprint to accommodate a first fiber optic connector on a first side within one or more ports, and a second fiber optic connector on a second side within one or more ports. The first fiber optic connector is a duplex fiber optic connector with an overall length of about 50 mm and the second fiber optic connector is a behind-the-wall connector with an overall length of about 15 mm thereby reducing the overall length of a connector and adapter assembly for increasing optical fiber density.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A fiber optic adapter assembly, comprising:
an outer housing having a reduced outer wall thickness, the outer housing having a first side wall, a second side wall, and a width extending from the first side wall to the second side wall, the outer housing having a first end wall, a second end wall, and a height extending from the first end wall to the second end wall, the first side wall, the second side wall, the first end wall, and the second end wall defining a generally rectangular receptacle including a first duplex connector port and a second duplex connector port, the first duplex connector port being above the second duplex connector port along the height, the generally rectangular receptacle being non-partitioned such that the first duplex connector port is open to the second duplex connector port and the fiber optic adapter assembly is free of any wall inside the generally rectangular receptacle extending from the first side wall to the second side wall;
a first pair of opposing alignment sleeve holder openings including a first alignment sleeve holder opening and a second alignment sleeve holder opening, the first pair of alignment sleeve holder openings being located in the first duplex connector port and being connected with a first bridge member between the first alignment sleeve holder opening and the second alignment sleeve holder opening;
a second pair of opposing alignment sleeve holder openings including a third alignment sleeve holder opening and a fourth alignment sleeve holder opening, the second pair of alignment sleeve holder openings being located in the second duplex connector port and being connected with a second bridge member between the third alignment sleeve holder opening and the fourth alignment sleeve holder opening;
wherein a width of the outer housing is less than or equal to about 12.90 mm and a height of the outer housing is less than or equal to about 9.50 mm; and
wherein the width is greater than the height.

2. The fiber optic adapter assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the outer housing has a first port side and a second port side opposite the first port side, the first and second duplex connector ports opening through the first port side, the fiber optic adapter assembly further comprising third and fourth duplex connector ports opening through the second port side, wherein the fiber optic adapter assembly is configured to mate with first and second duplex fiber optic connectors in the first and second duplex connector ports and wherein the fiber optic adapter assembly is configured to mate with third and fourth duplex fiber optic connectors in the third and fourth duplex connector ports.

3. The fiber optic adapter assembly according to claim 2 , wherein the first, second, third, and fourth duplex fiber optic connectors are the same type of the duplex fiber optic connector.

4. The fiber optic adapter assembly according to claim 2 , wherein the first and second duplex fiber optic connectors are a first type of duplex fiber optic connector and the third and fourth fiber optic connectors are a second type of duplex fiber optic connector, wherein the second type of duplex fiber optic connector is a behind-the-wall fiber optic connector.

5. The fiber optic adapter assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the outer housing further comprises a mounting clip, the mounting clip having a widthwise dimension greater than the width of the housing, the widthwise dimension of the mounting clip being less than about 18.0 mm.

6. The fiber optic adapter assembly according to claim 4 , wherein the behind-the-wall connector further comprises a release latch formed as part of the outer housing for releasably securing the behind-the-wall connector within a port of the adapter.

7. The fiber optic adapter assembly according to claim 6 , wherein the outer housing is configured to receive an inner body in each of the third and fourth duplex connector ports, each inner body comprising a pair of opposing protrusions, the first and second side walls of the outer housing defining a pair of opposing openings for each inner body, each pair of opposing protrusions being arranged to latch with the respective pair of openings.

8. The fiber optic adapter assembly according to claim 1 wherein the outer housing is configured to receive two duplex fiber optic connectors in a simplex SC footprint.

9. The fiber optic adapter assembly as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the first side wall defines first and second keyways for the first and second duplex connector ports, respectively.

10. The fiber optic connector assembly as set forth in claim 9 , wherein the second side wall defines third and fourth keyways for the first and second duplex connector ports, respectively.

11. The fiber optic connector assembly as set forth in claim 10 , wherein each of the first and second keyways has a first cross-sectional size and each of the third and fourth keyways has a second cross-sectional size less than the first cross-sectional size.

12. The fiber optic connector assembly as set forth in claim 1 , further comprising a first pair of opposing adapter latch hooks in the first duplex connector port and a second pair of opposing adapter latch hooks in the second duplex connector port.

Assignees

• Senko Advanced Components Inc

Inventors

• Chang Jimmy
• Takano Kazuyoshi
• Newbury Paul

Classifications

• G02B6/3897

  Connectors fixed to housings, casing, frames or circuit boards (G02B6/44528 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G02B6/3893 Primary

  Push-pull type, e.g. snap-in, push-on · CPC title

• G02B6/406 Primary

  of the ferrule type, connecting a plurality of pairs of ferrules · CPC title

• G02B6/3879

  Linking of individual connector plugs to an overconnector, e.g. using clamps, clips, common housings comprising several individual connector plugs · CPC title

• G02B6/3825

  with an intermediate part, e.g. adapter, receptacle, linking two plugs · CPC title