Multi-point adaptation structure

Abstract

The present invention relates to a multi-point adapter structure, which includes a fixed end and a floating end that are axially pluggable. The frame of the floating end is provided with a plurality of plugs capable of radial and axial floating. The mounting panel of the fixed end is provided with a plurality of sockets for plugging with the plugs. The plugs include an input plug for receiving input signals from the socket and an output plug for outputting signals to the socket. The floating end has a plurality of groups of input plugs and output plugs connected by functional modules, and the input plugs and output plugs connected by the functional modules process the signals input from the fixed end through signal processing such as branching, wavelength division, amplification, or attenuation, or rearrange the signals, and then retransmit them to the fixed end. The present invention integrates the connector and the functional module into the floating end, thereby rearranging the signal processing and transmission links and realizing the one-time plugging and unplugging of the plurality of connectors at the floating end and the fixed end. This not only simplifies the structure, compresses the space occupied by the link, reduces the difficulty of use and assembly, but also improves the efficiency of use.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of connectors, and in particular relates to a multi-point adaptation structure. Background Art

[0002] Existing optoelectronic signals, when processed or rearranged and connected through connectors and functional module devices, often use the form of interconnecting functional module processing units and optical cable assemblies or electrical cable assemblies. This makes the link length too long. In addition, when there are many signal paths that need to be processed and distributed through different connectors and functional module processing units and the interleaving relationships are complex, the following problems arise:

[0003] (1) Each connector needs to be docked separately, and most connectors are docked in the form of threads or bayonet, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive.

[0004] (2) The assembly relationship is complex and prone to errors;

[0005] (3) The connector tail accessories and cables will take up a lot of space, resulting in an increase in the size of the equipment;

[0006] (4) The cable fixing method must be reasonable, otherwise the reliability of the equipment will be greatly reduced.

[0007] (5) High cost. Summary of the Invention

[0008] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a multi-point adapter structure, which can realize signal processing and transmission, and realize the simultaneous plugging and unplugging of multiple groups of connectors at different positions.

[0009] The objectives of the present invention and the technical problems solved are achieved by adopting the following technical solutions. A multi-point adapter structure proposed in the present invention includes a fixed end and a floating end that are axially pluggable. The floating end frame is provided with a plurality of plugs capable of radial and axial floating. The fixed end mounting panel is provided with a plurality of sockets adapted to be plugged with the plugs. The plugs include input plugs for receiving input signals from the sockets and output plugs for outputting signals to the sockets. The floating end has a plurality of groups of input plugs and output plugs connected by functional modules with specific functions. The functionally connected input plugs and output plugs process the signals input from the fixed end through branching, wavelength division, amplification, or attenuation, or rearrange the signals before retransmitting them to the fixed end.

[0010] The purpose of the present invention and the solution to its technical problems can be further achieved by adopting the following technical measures.

[0011] In the aforementioned multi-point adapter structure, the functional module is located in the closed cavity of the floating end frame, and the closed cavity is also provided with a cable inner conductor for connecting to the functional module and the tail ends of the input plug and the output plug.

[0012] In the aforementioned multi-point adapter structure, the input plug and the output plug both include an optoelectronic hybrid plug and a low-frequency plug.

[0013] In the aforementioned multi-point adapter structure, the floating-end frame also features a plug with a tail connected to an external cable. This plug, in conjunction with the fixed-end receptacle, transmits signals through the external cable or transfers signals from the external cable to the receptacle. In the aforementioned multi-point adapter structure, the fixed-end mounting panel and the floating-end frame utilize guide pins and pin holes to provide primary mating guidance. The plug and receptacle also feature guide pins and pin holes for secondary mating guidance.

[0014] The aforementioned multi-point adaptation structure, the frame of the floating end includes an outer frame and an inner frame fixed in the outer frame, and multiple branches are formed on the inner side of each side of the inner frame for realizing plug installation and positioning, and the various sides and branches of the inner frame are hollow structures that are interconnected. The cable inner conductors and functional modules that realize the connection between the plugs are located inside each side, and the cable inner conductors extend into the branches and are connected to the tail of the plug.

[0015] In the aforementioned multi-point adaptation structure, a coiling device for gathering the inner conductors of overlong cables is provided inside the edge of the inner frame.

[0016] The aforementioned multi-point adapter structure, wherein the branch has an opening on the connector mounting surface side for the front end of the plug to extend out, and the other side is closed, and a frame positioning pin is provided on the closed side for cooperating with the positioning hole on the outer frame to achieve precise positioning between the inner frame and the outer frame.

[0017] In the aforementioned multi-point adapter structure, the branches are equipped with optoelectronic hybrid plugs and / or low-frequency plugs.

[0018] In the aforementioned multi-point adaptation structure, the outer frame realizes first-level guidance by cooperating with the frame guide pins provided thereon and the panel guide pin holes on the fixed-end mounting panel; second-level guidance is realized between each plug at the floating end and each socket at the fixed end by cooperating with the connector guide pins and the connector guide pin holes; third-level guidance is realized between the adapted plug and socket by cooperating with the shell; fourth-level guidance is realized by cooperating with each other between the adapted plug contacts and the socket contacts.

[0019] In the aforementioned multi-point adapter structure, the plug at the floating end and the socket at the fixed end are both distributed in rotational symmetry.

[0020] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has obvious advantages and beneficial effects. By means of the above technical solution, the present invention can achieve considerable technological advancement and practicality, and has wide industrial application value. It has at least the following advantages:

[0021] 1) The multi-point adapter structure of the present invention can realize the simultaneous plugging and mating of multiple groups of connectors at different positions, thereby simplifying the assembly process and reducing the difficulty of assembly.

[0022] 2) The multi-point adaption structure of the present invention includes a fixed end and a floating end. When the fixed end and the floating end are plugged in, the floating end connector can adapt to the position of the fixed end connector within a certain range.

[0023] 3) The multi-point adaptation structure of the present invention is a flat structure, which occupies little space in the system.

[0024] 4) Optical fibers, functional modules, cables, and radio frequency lines are laid out in the closed cavity of the metal frame and are reliably protected by the metal frame. Therefore, thinner cable inner conductors can be used and the volume will be greatly reduced.

[0025] 5) The floating end and the fixed end of the present invention are plugged in through multi-stage guidance, and the connectors of the floating end and the fixed end of the present invention are distributed in a rotationally symmetrical manner, thereby achieving high-precision blind mating.

[0026] 6) The present invention integrates the connector and functional module at the floating end, thereby rearranging the long signal processing and transmission links and realizing one-time plugging and unplugging of signal output and input connectors. This not only simplifies the structure, compresses the space occupied by the link, reduces the difficulty of use and assembly, but also improves the efficiency of use. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the floating end structure of the multi-point adaptation structure of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the inner frame part of the floating end;

[0029] Figure 3 is another schematic diagram of the inner frame portion of the floating end;

[0030] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the wiring of the inner frame of the floating end;

[0031] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the fixed end structure of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the adapter structure of the present invention after insertion.

[0033]

Main component symbol description

[0034] 1: Floating end

[0035] 11: Outer frame

[0036] 12: Inner frame

[0037] 121: Branch

[0038] 13: Photoelectric mixed plug

[0039] 14: Low frequency plug

[0040] 15: Power plug

[0041] 16: Connector mounting surface

[0042] 17: Frame mounting surface

[0043] 18: Frame positioning pin

[0044] 19: Frame mounting screws

[0045] 101: Wireway

[0046] 102: RF power splitter

[0047] 103: Cable inner conductor

[0048] 104: Wire coiling device

[0049] 105: Optical power splitter 106: Stop surface

[0050] 107: Frame guide pin

[0051] 108: Guide pin positioning column

[0052] 109: Connector guide pin

[0053] 2: Fixed end

[0054] 21: Install the panel

[0055] 22: Photoelectric mixed socket

[0056] 23: Low frequency socket

[0057] 24: Power socket

[0058] 25: Panel guide pin hole

[0059] 26: Connector guide pin hole DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0060] In order to further illustrate the technical means and effects adopted by the present invention to achieve the predetermined purpose of the invention, the specific implementation method, structure, characteristics and effects of the multi-point adaptation structure proposed in the present invention are described in detail below in combination with the accompanying drawings and preferred embodiments.

[0061] See also Figure 1-6 , which is a schematic diagram of the structures of the various parts of the multi-point adaptation structure of the present invention. The multi-point adaptation structure includes a floating end 1 and a fixed end 2 for adaptation and plugging. The fixed end 2 includes a mounting panel 21 and a plurality of sockets fixed on the mounting panel. The sockets can be optoelectronic hybrid sockets 22, low-frequency sockets 23 or power sockets 24. In this embodiment, the sockets include optoelectronic hybrid sockets 22, low-frequency sockets 23 and power sockets 24.

[0062] The floating end 1 has multiple plugs for adapting and plugging with the fixed end sockets. When the floating end 1 and the fixed end 2 are plugged into place, the multiple plugged plugs and sockets form multiple groups of connector assemblies. In the above-mentioned connector assemblies, some transmit signals to the plugs through the sockets, and the plugs in this group are defined as input plugs and the sockets as output sockets; the other part transmits signals to the sockets through the plugs, and the plugs in this group are defined as output plugs and the sockets as input sockets. The above-mentioned floating end is also provided with a functional module for processing or rearranging signals received by the input plugs. Each input plug is connected to at least one output plug through the functional module. Therefore, when the floating end and the fixed end are plugged into each other, the signal transmitted from any output socket to the input plug pluged with it is processed by the functional module and transmitted to the corresponding output plug, and then transmitted by the output plug to the input socket pluged with it, completing signal processing and transmission. In an embodiment of the present invention, the functional module includes a radio frequency power splitter 102 and an optical power splitter 105, which respectively realize the distribution of radio frequency signals and optical signals. However, in other embodiments, the functional module may also be a wavelength division multiplexer, an amplifier, an attenuator or a wiring module, etc., which processes the signal or rearranges the signal through wavelength division, amplification, attenuation, etc.

[0063] In an embodiment of the present invention, the floating end 1 includes an outer frame 11 and an inner frame portion fixed in the outer frame 11, wherein the inner frame portion includes an inner frame 12, and a plurality of branches 121 for realizing plug installation and positioning are formed on the inner side of the inner frame 12. In this embodiment, the outer frame 11 and the inner frame 12 are both rectangular structures, and branches 121 extend inward from the inner sides of the four sides of the inner frame 12. The branches 121 have a cavity that can accommodate the plug, that is, the branches 121 are used as plug housings.

[0064] The branch 121 is open on one side (connector mounting surface 16 side) and closed on the other side (frame mounting surface 17 side). The open side allows the front end of the plug to extend to facilitate insertion into the adapter socket, and the closed side allows the outer frame 12 to be positioned on the outer frame 11 via frame locating pins 18 that cooperate with corresponding locating holes on the outer frame 11. In this embodiment of the present invention, frame mounting screws 19 for engaging and locking with the outer frame 11 are provided on each edge of the frame mounting surface of the inner frame 12 and each branch 121. In this embodiment of the present invention, each frame mounting screw is located at the same axial height of the inner frame 12 to facilitate adaptive fixation on the same radial surface as the outer frame 11. In order to meet the installation and fixation requirements of the plug, the surface of the branch 121 provided with the frame positioning pin 18 protrudes from the surface of the inner frame 12 provided with the frame mounting screw 19, that is, the frame mounting screw 19 on the branch 121 is located at the convex edge formed on the outside of the axial middle part of the branch 121; the part of the inner frame 11 that adapts to the branch is a stepped structure, and the upper step surface of the stepped structure is adapted and fixed to the frame mounting screw 19 on the outside of the branch 121, and the lower step surface is provided with a positioning hole that cooperates with the frame positioning pin 18 for positioning.

[0065] The plugs installed in the branches 121 can be optoelectronic hybrid plugs or low-frequency plugs. In this embodiment of the present invention, the branches 121 are equipped with both optoelectronic hybrid plugs 13 and low-frequency plugs 14, meaning that each branch 121 is equipped with both plugs. In other embodiments of the present invention, each branch 121 can be equipped with either an optoelectronic hybrid plug 13 or a low-frequency plug 14, or with other types of plugs, or with multiple types of plugs simultaneously.

[0066] Power plugs 15 are provided on the four sides of the inner frame 12 . In the embodiment of the present invention, a branch 121 is formed on the inner side of each side, and a power plug 15 is fixed on each side.

[0067] In this embodiment of the present invention, the branches 121 and the plugs on each edge of the inner frame are floating plugs capable of floating radially and axially to mate with the fixed-end receptacles. Preferably, the four edges of the inner frame are defined to extend along the X and Y axes, respectively, and the floating plug and fixed-end receptacle are plugged and unplugged along the Z axis, allowing the floating plug to float in all three dimensions.

[0068] The insertion and engagement of the fixed end 2 and the floating end 1 of the present invention is achieved through multi-level guidance, wherein the floating end 1 achieves primary guidance through the cooperation of the frame guide pins 107 provided on the outer frame 11 and the panel guide pin holes 25 on the mounting panel 21 of the fixed end 2. Each floating plug on the floating end 1 is provided with a connector guide pin 109, and the fixed end socket is provided with a corresponding connector guide pin hole 26. The cooperation of the connector guide pins 109 and the corresponding connector guide pin holes 26 achieves secondary guidance when the floating end and the fixed end are inserted; the third level of guidance is achieved between the plug and socket that are adapted for insertion through the cooperation between the connector shells, and the fourth level of guidance is achieved through the cooperation between the contacts that are adapted for insertion. In an embodiment of the present invention, a guide pin positioning column 108 is further provided on the outer frame 11. The front end face of the guide pin positioning column 108 is a stop surface 106 for realizing axial positioning of the floating end. Preferably, the guide pin positioning column 108 is coaxially arranged with the frame guide pin 107. The stop surface 106 can cooperate with the fixed end mounting panel to realize the limit of the insertion into place when the fixed end and the floating end are inserted, thereby preventing over-insertion.

[0069] In an embodiment of the present invention, in order to ensure that all plugs and sockets can be plugged into place at the same time when the floating end 1 and the fixed end 2 are plugged in, the plugging distance and plugging direction of each plug on the floating end 1 of the present invention are completely consistent, and the plugging distance and plugging direction of each socket on the fixed end 2 are completely consistent. When the stop surface 106 on the guide pin positioning column 108 on the floating end 1 contacts the fixed end mounting panel 21, all connectors are plugged into place. The flatness and parallelism of the connector mounting surface 16 of the inner frame 12 and the connector mounting surface of the mounting panel 21 (the surface of the mounting panel facing the floating end) are consistent, so as to ensure that all connectors are installed smoothly and without tilt, the plugging distance is consistent, and the performance indicators after plugging are stable.

[0070] In this embodiment of the present invention, there are four branches 121, each of which is equipped with an optoelectronic hybrid plug 13 and a low-frequency plug 14. Two of the optoelectronic hybrid plugs 13 are input plugs, and the other two are output plugs. An optoelectronic hybrid input plug and an optoelectronic hybrid output plug are connected by a cable inner conductor 103, and an optical power splitter 105 and a radio frequency power splitter 102 are provided between the two for splitting the input plug signal into multiple signals. Thus, the floating end has two sets of optoelectronic hybrid distribution components consisting of an optoelectronic hybrid input plug, an optoelectronic hybrid output plug, an optical power splitter 105, and an radio frequency power splitter 102 connected by cable inner conductors. The optical power splitter 105 is used to split the optical signal input from the optoelectronic hybrid plug into multiple paths, and the radio frequency power splitter 102 is used to split the radio frequency signal input from the optoelectronic hybrid plug into multiple paths. The cable inner conductor 103 includes a conductive core for realizing electrical signal transmission and a bare fiber for realizing optical signal transmission. In other embodiments of the present invention, an optoelectronic hybrid distribution component may include multiple optoelectronic hybrid output plugs, that is, an optoelectronic hybrid input plug is connected to multiple optoelectronic hybrid output plugs through the optical power splitter 105 and the RF power splitter 102, and the signal is output through the multiple optoelectronic hybrid output plugs.

[0071] In the embodiment of the present invention, the four low-frequency plugs at the floating end can also realize power signal distribution through an adaptive functional module or directly through the wiring in the wiring trough.

[0072] In an embodiment of the present invention, each component of the inner frame 11 is a hollow structure. A wiring trough 101 is provided within the hollow structure for the inner conductors of the cable to pass through. The inner conductors of the cable distributed along the wiring trough 101 enter the corresponding branch 121 and connect to the corresponding plug. To facilitate link equal length control and prevent some inner conductors of the cable from being scattered within the wiring trough 101 due to being too short from the branch port, a wire coiling device 104 for accommodating excessively long inner conductors 103 of the cable is further provided within the hollow structure. The wire coiling device 104 can prevent excessively long inner conductors of the cable 103 from being scattered in the wiring trough 101. The tail of the plug of the present invention is directly connected to the inner conductors of the cable 103 distributed in the inner frame. Due to the cavity protection, damage to the plug, the cable, and the junction of the two caused by pulling the cable can be avoided. Thinner cables and simpler connector tails can be used, thereby effectively reducing the space occupied by the connector tail.

[0073] Specifically, in this embodiment, the four sides of the inner frame 11 are all hollow structures, and the hollow parts thereof are interconnected. The cavity in the branch 121 is connected to the hollow part of the side where it is located, so that the cable inner conductor 103 located in the hollow structure of each side of the inner frame and extending along each side can be introduced into the branch 121 to achieve connection with the connector. The cable winding device 104, the RF power splitter 102 and the optical power splitter 105 are all located in the hollow of the four sides of the inner frame 11. The cable inner conductor 103 includes an optical cable inner conductor, an electrical cable inner conductor and an RF cable inner conductor to achieve connection between optoelectronic hybrid plugs and between low-frequency plugs. In an embodiment of the present invention, the optical cable inner conductor is an optical fiber or an optical flexible board, and the electrical cable inner conductor and the RF cable inner conductor are conductive wire cores or electrical rigid-flexible boards. When an optically flexible board or an electrically rigid-flexible board is used, its appearance can be directly designed according to the shape of the wiring trough, and it can be directly fixed to the wiring trough (such as providing fixing holes on the optically flexible board or the electrically rigid-flexible board and fixing it in the wiring trough with screws), thereby achieving fast and neat wiring and fixation in the wiring trough.

[0074] In an embodiment of the present invention, the inner frame 12 is a metal frame. The present invention realizes that the inner conductor of the cable connected between the plug and the power splitter and the functional module are arranged in the wiring groove 101 of the metal frame and are reliably protected by the metal frame. As a result, the external protective structure of the inner conductor of the cable can be eliminated, and the smaller inner conductor of the cable can be directly used to meet the miniaturization requirements of the connector. In addition, the tail of the connector of the present invention is directly connected to the inner conductor of the cable, and the connection between the tail of the connector and the inner conductor of the cable is directly carried out in the inner frame 12. A relatively simple protection measure can be used between the two, thereby greatly reducing the axial size of the connector, realizing the flat design of the floating end, and reducing its occupied space.

[0075] The inner frame of the present invention is provided with a hollow structure inside for wiring, thereby freeing up the volume in the middle of the frame, reducing the actual space occupied by the module. Moreover, since the wiring of the inner frame of the present invention can be the inner conductor of the cable without the outer sheath, its size is smaller, thereby making the height of the inner frame smaller, greatly reducing the height occupied by the equipment.

[0076] In an embodiment of the present invention, the various plugs at the floating end are rotationally symmetrically distributed on the frame, and the various sockets at the fixed end are also rotationally symmetrically distributed on the mounting panel to ensure that the plugging and unplugging forces at each position are balanced when the fixed end and the floating end are plugged in and out, but this is not limited to this.

[0077] The floating end of the present invention also includes a plug for cooperating with the fixed end socket to realize external communication. The plug is connected to an external cable to transmit the external signal to the fixed end or transmit the fixed end signal through the external cable. Therefore, the multi-point adaptation structure of the present invention can not only integrate multiple connector components for signal processing and arrangement, but also integrate multiple connector components that only perform signal connection and transmission, with a wider range of functions and applications.

[0078] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and does not constitute any form of limitation to the present invention. Although the present invention has been disclosed as a preferred embodiment as above, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any technician familiar with the present profession can make some changes or modifications to equivalent embodiments of equivalent changes using the technical contents disclosed above without departing from the scope of the technical solution of the present invention. However, any simple modifications, equivalent changes and modifications made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of the present invention without departing from the content of the technical solution of the present invention are still within the scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A multi-point adapter structure comprising a fixed end and a floating end that are axially plugged together, characterized in that: The floating end's frame is equipped with multiple plugs capable of radial and axial floating, and the fixed end's mounting panel is equipped with multiple sockets adapted to mate with these plugs. These plugs include input plugs for receiving input signals from the sockets and output plugs for outputting signals to the sockets. The floating end has several sets of input plugs and output plugs connected by functional modules that implement specific functions. These input plugs and output plugs, connected by these functional modules, process or arrange the signals input from the fixed end and then retransmit them to the fixed end. The functional module is located in the closed cavity of the floating end frame, and the closed cavity is also provided with a cable inner conductor for connecting with the functional module and the tails of the input plug and the output plug.

2. The multi-point adaptation structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inner conductor of the cable is an optical fiber, an optical flexible board, a conductive wire core or an electrical rigid-flexible board.

3. The multi-point adaptation structure according to claim 1, wherein: The mounting panel at the fixed end and the frame at the floating end realize primary plug-in guidance through the cooperation of guide pins and pin holes. The plug and socket are also provided with guide pins and pin holes for realizing secondary plug-in guidance.

4. The multi-point adaptation structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The frame of the floating end includes an outer frame and an inner frame fixed in the outer frame. A plurality of branches for realizing plug installation and positioning are formed on the inner side of each side of the inner frame, and each side and branch of the inner frame are hollow structures interconnected. The inner conductors of the cables and the functional modules for realizing connection between the plugs are located inside each side, and the inner conductors of the cables extend into the branches and are connected to the tail of the plug.

5. The multi-point adaptation structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The inner side of the inner frame is also provided with a winding device for bundling the inner conductor of the cable and realizing equal length control of the link.

6. The multi-point adaptation structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The branch has an opening on the connector mounting surface side for the front end of the plug to extend out, and is closed on the other side. A frame positioning pin is provided on the closed side for cooperating with the positioning hole on the outer frame to achieve precise positioning between the inner frame and the outer frame.

7. The multi-point adaptation structure according to claim 6, characterized in that: The branch is equipped with an optoelectronic hybrid plug and / or a low-frequency plug.

8. The multi-point adaptation structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The outer frame achieves primary guidance by cooperating with the frame guide pins provided thereon and the panel guide pin holes on the fixed end mounting panel; secondary guidance is achieved between the floating end plugs and the fixed end sockets by cooperating with the connector guide pins and the connector guide pin holes; tertiary guidance is achieved between the matching plugs and sockets by cooperating with the shells; and fourth-level guidance is achieved by cooperating with the matching plug contacts and socket contacts.

9. The multi-point adaptation structure according to claim 8, characterized in that: The plug at the floating end and the socket at the fixed end are both rotationally symmetrically distributed to ensure balanced insertion and extraction forces between the fixed end and the floating end.

10. The multi-point adaptation structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The frame of the floating end is also provided with a plug whose tail is connected to the external cable. The plug cooperates with the fixed end socket to transmit the signal through the external cable or transmit the signal transmitted by the external cable to the socket.

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