Jig for connector operations

Abstract

To provide a jig for connector operations that can be easily attached to and detached from a connection board, while reliably securing a space at hand during termination operations.SOLUTION: A jig for connector operations has: an attachment base 12 that is fixed to a part of a back plate 108; a pair of side plates 18 that form wall surfaces with a port 106 as a base end in a direction separating from the port 106, in a state where the attachment base 12 is fixed to the back plate 108; and an opening and closing beam 24 that is arranged on a side of leading ends of the side plates 18. The attachment base 12 includes: a fixing part 14 to be fixed to the back plate 108; and a widening part 16, a width of which increases as separating from the port 106 in a state where the fixing part 14 is fixed to the back plate 108. The side plates 18 each include a parallel part 20 that is connected to the fixing part 14, and an expanding part 22 that is connected to the widening part 16.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a termination work for optical cables, and more particularly to a tool that is useful when inserting and removing a cable connector. [Background technology]

[0002] With the increase in data traffic and the improvement of communication speed, the use of optical fiber cables for communication lines is being promoted. In particular, in large facilities such as buildings, the number of optical fiber cables distributed within the building is very large, and when drawing in or switching equipment, it is necessary to accurately insert and remove (terminate) multiple cable connectors arranged in a narrow space into the connecting ports. However, when performing termination work in such a place where cables are densely packed, there is a risk of malfunctions or incorrect connections due to the worker's hands or the cables themselves touching or getting caught on surrounding cables.

[0003] In view of this situation, connector working jigs such as those disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3 have been proposed. For example, the connector working jig disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a wiring attachment part formed in a frame shape surrounding a group of ports arranged in a row in a vertical direction on each level of a plurality of shelves constituting a connection board, and a pair of trumpet parts arranged in the longitudinal direction of the wiring attachment part and extending in a direction away from the group of ports from the wiring attachment part as a base point. The trumpet parts are configured to have a warp such that the distance between the pair of trumpet parts increases toward the tip side.

[0004] In the connector work jig having such a configuration, the wiring board mounting portion is fixed to the outer periphery of the group of ports arranged on the connection board, and the trumpet portion can push aside wiring other than the wiring connected to the port in the area surrounded by the wiring board mounting portion. This prevents wiring from piling up on the hands during the work, and allows the termination work to be performed with a clear view of the hands. However, the connector work jig disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a wiring board mounting portion formed in a frame shape, and requires a permanent magnet or other attachment / detachment means to be attached to the frame-shaped portion. This may make it difficult to use the jig on a highly integrated connection board with a narrow gap between adjacent ports.

[0005] The connector working jig disclosed in Patent Document 2 has a U-shaped base in which the upper ends of a pair of vertical plate parts are connected by a connecting part, and a curved plate part arranged along the longitudinal direction of the vertical plate parts and configured to be warped outward as it moves away from the port group in the attached state. In addition, the connector working jig disclosed in Patent Document 2 is provided with a temporary fastening protrusion on the outer side of the vertical plate parts, which is pressed against the side of the adjacent port group. With the connector working jig configured in this way, it can be attached to the connection board even if the gap between adjacent ports is narrow. However, the connector working jig disclosed in Patent Document 2 does not take measures to prevent misidentification of the port number for inserting and removing the optical cable.

[0006] Such problems are solved by the connector work jig disclosed in Patent Document 3. In the connector work jig disclosed in Patent Document 3, a line number indication indicating a port number is provided on the inside of an extended sheet portion corresponding to the curved portion of the connector work jig disclosed in Patent Document 2. Therefore, in addition to the effects of the connector work jig disclosed in Patent Document 3, the connector work jig disclosed in Patent Document 3 can prevent wiring errors during termination work.

[0007] However, in all of the connector working jigs disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3, the trumpet part, the curved plate part, and the extension sheet are made of flexible materials. Therefore, when the optical wiring becomes dense, the trumpet part, the curved plate part, and the extension sheet may be pushed in by the surrounding optical cables, and may not be able to maintain the expanded state. This may result in a problem that the space to be reserved for termination becomes narrow. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0008] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-142656 [Patent Document 2] JP 2008-64916 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2008-224891 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0009] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENTS The present invention aims to solve the above problems and provide a connector work jig that can easily perform attachment and detachment work to a connection board while reliably securing hand space during termination work. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the connector work jig of the present invention comprises a mounting base fixed to a portion of a rear plate exposed at the top of a terminal block in an optical cable connection board having a terminal block on which a plurality of ports are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the width direction of the ports, a pair of side plates whose upper ends are connected to the mounting base and which form a wall surface in a direction away from the port with the port as its base end when the mounting base is fixed to the rear plate, and an opening / closing beam arranged at the tip side of the side plates, wherein the mounting base has a fixing portion for fixing to the rear plate and a widening portion which widens as it moves away from the port when the fixing portion is fixed to the rear plate, and the side plates have a parallel portion connected to the fixing portion and an opening portion connected to the widening portion.

[0011] In the connector working tool having the above-mentioned features, the opening and closing beams may be provided at the lower ends of the widened portions of the pair of side plates, so that the opening and closing beams do not get in the way when performing the termination work.

[0012] Furthermore, in the connector working jig having the above-mentioned characteristics, it is desirable that the expanding portion has a plurality of linear guide lines arranged from the parallel portion side to the tip side along the arrangement positions of the ports, and that the port numbers corresponding to the respective ports are marked near both ends of the guide lines. By having such characteristics, it becomes easy to confirm the ports to be connected, and it becomes possible to prevent working errors such as incorrect connection. Effect of the Invention

[0013] According to a connector working jig having the above-mentioned characteristics, it is possible to easily perform attachment and detachment operations to and from a connection board while reliably securing hand space during termination work. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1]13 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a connector working jig attached to the front side of the rear panel. FIG. [Diagram 2] 13 is a front view showing the configuration of a connector working jig attached to the front side of the rear panel. FIG. [Diagram 3] 13 is a side view showing the configuration of a connector working jig attached to the front side of the rear panel. FIG. [Figure 4] 13 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a connector working jig attached to the rear side of the rear panel. FIG. [Diagram 5] 13 is a side view showing the configuration of a connector working jig attached to the back side of the rear panel. FIG. [Figure 6] 13 is a perspective view showing a state in which a connector working jig is attached to a rear plate provided on a shelf of the connection board. FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged view of the perspective view shown in FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a state in which the movable parts of the opening and closing beams are opened in the perspective view shown in FIG. [Figure 9] 1 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of a connection board to which a connector working jig according to an embodiment is applied; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] Hereinafter, the embodiment of the connector working jig of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiment shown below is a part of a preferred embodiment for carrying out the present application, and even if a part of the configuration is changed, it can be considered as a part of the present invention.

[0016] [Configuration: Connection board] The connector working jig 10 according to this embodiment is a jig used for terminating a connection board 100 as shown in FIG. 9. The specific configuration of the connection board 100 is not limited, but it is preferable that the connection board 100 has at least the following elements. That is, a shelf 102 formed in multiple stages is provided, and each stage of the shelf 102 is provided with a bundling section 102a (see FIG. 6 and FIG. 7) for arranging the optical cable 110 (see FIG. 6) arranged on the shelf 102, and a plurality of port groups are arranged in parallel. In each port group, a plurality of ports 106 are arranged on a straight line along a direction perpendicular to the width direction of the port 106 (see FIG. 7). In addition, each port 106 is arranged on a terminal block 104 provided for each port group, and the terminal block 104 is fixed to a back plate 108 provided on the shelf 102. In addition, although not shown in the example shown in FIG. 9, the terminal block 104 is provided on both the front and back of the back plate 108. The back panel 108 has a bent portion 108a at its upper end, which increases its strength against bending in the longitudinal direction (the width direction of the shelf 102 in FIG. 9).

[0017] [Configuration: Connector work jig (front side)] Next, the configuration of the connector work jig 10 to be attached to the front side of the back plate 108 will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 3. The connector work jig 10 according to this embodiment is basically composed of a mounting base 12, side plates 18, and an opening and closing beam 24. The mounting base 12 is an element that serves to fix the connector work jig 10 with the back plate 108 of the connection board 100 as a base point. The mounting base 12 according to this embodiment has a fixing portion 14 and a widening portion 16.

[0018] In the case of the connector work jig 10 according to this embodiment, the fixing portion 14 is basically in the shape of a rectangular flat plate having a width that matches the width of the terminal block 104. The specific shape of the fixing portion 14 is not limited as long as it can be attached to the upper part of the back plate 108, i.e., the bent portion 108a. For example, in this embodiment, the shapes of the fixing portions 14, 14A are different between the connector work jig 10 attached to the front side of the back plate 108 and the connector work jig 10A (see FIG. 4) attached to the back side of the back plate 108.

[0019] As described above, the back plate 108 of the connecting board 100 to which the connector working jig 10, 10A according to the embodiment is applied has a bent portion 108a at the upper end, and this bent portion 108a is bent so as to protrude toward the front surface side (valley fold). Therefore, the fixing portion 14 of the connector working jig 10 attached to the front surface side of the back plate 108 is configured to sandwich the protruding portion of the bent portion 108a from above and below (in the thickness direction).

[0020] Specifically, it is composed of an upper support piece 14a and a lower support piece 14b. The upper support piece 14a is a rectangular flat plate having a width that matches the width of the port 106. The lower support piece 14b is a portion formed by bending an L-shaped protruding piece extending from both side surfaces of the tip side (the side located on the rear plate 108 side in the attached state is the base end) of the rectangular flat plate constituting the upper support piece 14a at a right angle toward the rear side of the upper support piece 14a. Since the tip of the L-shaped part of the lower support piece 14b is directed toward the base end side of the upper support piece 14a, the bent part 108a of the rear plate 108 can be inserted into a slit formed between the base end of the upper support piece 14a and the tip of the lower support piece 14b, and the bent part 108a can be sandwiched. In this embodiment, the lower support piece 14b is formed to be shorter than the upper support piece 14a.

[0021] The widening portion 16 is an element that plays a role of holding the widening portion 22 in the side plate 18. The widening portion 16 is composed of a flat plate-like member that is extended from the tip of the fixed portion 14, and is a member that has a trapezoidal or fan-shaped shape that widens toward the tip side from the connection portion with the fixed portion 14 as the base end. Note that, at both ends in the width direction of the widening portion 14, engagement pieces 16a are provided for connecting the widening portion 22 in the side plate 18, the details of which will be described later. The engagement pieces 16a according to this embodiment are formed by bending plate pieces protruding from both ends in the width direction of the widening portion 16 at a right angle toward the back side of the widening portion 16, similar to the lower surface support piece 14b of the fixed portion 14.

[0022] In this manner, in the mounting base 12 of this embodiment, the upper support piece 14a and the widening portion 16 of the fixed portion 14, which are composed of continuous plate pieces, are configured so that the plate surfaces form a right angle with the lower support piece 14b and the engagement piece 16a provided at both ends in the width direction.

[0023] The side plate 18 is an element that serves to prevent an optical cable (not shown) connected to the periphery of the port 106 to be worked on from interfering with the operator's hands during the termination operation. The side plate 18 according to the present embodiment is composed of a pair of plate pieces having a parallel portion 20 and an expanding portion 22. The parallel portion 20 is an element whose upper end is connected to the lower surface support piece 14b of the fixing portion 14 on the mounting base 12. In a state where the connector working jig 10 is attached to the connection board 100, it is arranged so as to sandwich the terminal block 104 on which the ports 106 are arranged, and by bringing the end portion (the side located on the base end side) located on the back plate 108 side into contact with the back plate 108, the mounting state of the connector working jig 10 can be stabilized. The expanding portion 22 is an element whose upper end is connected to the engaging piece 16a of the widening portion 16 on the mounting base 12, and is a plate piece that extends in a direction away from the port 106 in the mounted state with the end portion located on the parallel portion 20 side as the base end. Since it is a plate piece arranged along the side surface of the widening portion 16 formed in a trapezoidal or fan shape, the distance between the paired expanding portions 22 becomes wider toward the tip side. Further, a plurality of straight lines (guide lines 22a) are provided on the expanding portion 22 in accordance with the arrangement position of the port 106. The guide lines 22a are drawn from the base end side to the tip side of the expanding portion 22, and each guide line 22a is provided with a port number 22b corresponding to the arrangement position of the port 106.

[0024] Note that the length L of the expanding portion 22 (the length in the direction away from the port 106 in the mounted state) is not particularly limited, but in the case of using it with the connection board 100 as shown in FIG. 9, as an example, it may be determined as follows. Specifically, when the distance between the bundling portion 102a provided on the shelf 102 (see FIGS. 6 and 7) and the back plate 108 is A, the length L may be determined within the range of A / 2 ≤ L < A. By determining the length L within such a range, the effect of the side plate 18 (expanding portion 22) can be achieved, and at the same time, it is possible to avoid the opening / closing beam 24, which will be described in detail later, from interfering with the termination operation (the wiring path of the optical cable 110 (see FIG. 6) being behind the opening / closing beam 24).

[0025] With this configuration, it becomes easier to grasp the position of the port 106 where the termination work is performed, and it is possible to reduce work errors such as incorrect connection. Also, it is preferable to add the port number 22b in two places, at the base end side and the tip end side of the expansion section 22. The parallel section 20 and the expansion section 22 may be formed by bending or curving a single plate piece, or may be formed as separate bodies. Also, it is preferable that the side plate 18 is formed from a material having translucency, but it is not necessarily required to have translucency.

[0026] The opening / closing beam 24 is an element that plays a role in maintaining the open state of the tip of the expanding portion 22 on the side plate 18. The opening / closing beam 24 is composed of a beam base 24a and a movable portion 24b, and is configured to be openable and closable by the movement of the movable portion 24b relative to the beam base 24a. In this embodiment, a pair of beam bases 24a is disposed at the lower end of the tip side of the pair of expanding portions 22. One end of the movable portion 24b is rotatably attached to one beam base 24a, and the other end of the movable portion 24b is configured to be lockable to the other beam base 24a. The specific configuration of the rotation mechanism and locking mechanism in the movable portion 24b is not important, and any configuration that can obtain each function will suffice.

[0027] With this configuration, the expanded state of the expansion portion 22 on the side plate 18 is maintained, and even after the termination work of the optical cable 110 (see FIG. 6) is completed, the tip side of the expansion portion 22 can be opened by operating the movable portion 24b, and the connector work jig 10 can be removed from the connection board 100. The mounting position of the opening / closing beam 24 is not particularly limited as long as it is on the tip side of the expansion portion 22. For example, it may be on the upper or middle part of the tip side of the expansion portion 22, but by disposing it on the lower end, the field of view during the termination work is not obstructed. In this embodiment, the length (vertical length in the mounted state) of the side plate 18 (expanded portion 22) is set to be longer than the length of the arrangement range of the port 106 on the terminal block 104, and the opening / closing beam 24 is mounted in the range where the port 106 is not arranged, so that the opening / closing beam 24 does not interfere with the termination work.

[0028] [Actions and Effects] When using the connector work jig 10 according to this embodiment to perform termination work on the connection board 100 described above, the connector work jig 10 is used as follows. First, in the connection board 100 that is the subject of the work, the terminal block 104 having the port 106 that is the subject of the work is identified. After identifying the terminal block 104, the fixing portion 14 of the mounting base 12 is fixed to the bent portion 108a located at the top of the subject terminal block 104 (see FIGS. 6 and 7).

[0029] The mounting base 12 can be fixed to the bent portion 108a by pushing the connector working jig 10 so that the bent portion 108a is inserted into a slit provided between the upper support piece 14a and the lower support piece 14b of the fixing portion 14. When the connector working jig 10 is pushed so that the bent portion 108a is inserted into the slit, the base end side end of the parallel portion 20 constituting the side plate 18 comes into contact with the back plate 108, and the mounting state of the connector working jig 10 becomes stable.

[0030] In the case of a termination work in a connection board 100 as shown in FIG. 9, generally, as shown in FIG. 6, an optical cable 110 laid on a shelf 102 is pulled up toward a rear panel 108 to be connected to a port 106. When a termination work is performed in a state where the above-mentioned connector work jig 10 is attached to the connection board 100, the optical cable 110 is connected to a port 106 that is disposed between a pair of side panels 18 provided on the attached connector work jig 10 as shown in FIG. 7. Therefore, the optical cable 110 pulled up from the shelf 102 side is wired so as to straddle the upper side of the opening / closing beam 24 disposed on the tip side of the side panel 18. Therefore, it is possible to maintain good workability. Also, as described above, in this embodiment, the length of the side panel 18 (the vertical length in the attached state) is set to be longer than the length of the arrangement range of the port 106 in the terminal block 104, so that the opening / closing beam 24 disposed at the lower end of the side panel 18 does not obstruct the view during the termination work.

[0031] In addition, by using the connector work jig 10, it is possible to prevent the optical cables (not shown) connected to the ports 106 located on the left and right of the port 106 to be worked on from being pushed toward the port 106 to be worked on. This makes it possible to prevent the surrounding optical cables (not shown) from hanging over the port 106 to be terminated (blocking visibility and work space). This also makes it possible to improve the workability of the termination work. In addition, since it is no longer necessary to manually push aside the optical cables (not shown) connected to the left and right of the port 106 to be worked on when performing the termination work, it is possible to prevent problems caused by bending the pushed-aside optical cables (not shown) at an unreasonable angle.

[0032] Furthermore, since the guide lines 22a are marked on the widened portion 22 of the side plate 18 together with the port numbers 22b, it is possible to prevent erroneous connection. Also, as shown in Fig. 8, since the opening / closing beam 24 provided on the widened portion 22 can open the movable portion 24b, the connector work jig 10 can be removed from the connection board 100 even after the optical cable 110 has been wired from above the opening / closing beam 24.

[0033] [Configuration: Connector work jig (rear side)] Next, the connector working jig 10A to be attached to the back side of the rear panel 108 will be described with reference to FIGS. The connector working jig 10A attached to the back side of the back plate 108 is different from the connector working jig 10 attached to the front side mainly in the shape of the fixing part 14A in the mounting base 12. Specifically, a hook part 14a1 is provided on the base end side of the upper support piece 14a constituting the fixing part 14A, the lower support piece 14b is deleted, and an engagement piece 14c is provided in place of the lower support piece 14b. With this configuration, even if the lower support piece 14b is deleted, it is possible to support the parallel part 20 of the side plate 18. In addition, the bent part 108a of the back plate 108 is bent toward the front side. Therefore, the connector working jig 10A cannot be fixed by pinching the bent part 108a from the back side. Therefore, the hook part 14a1 provided on the base end side of the upper support piece 14a is hooked onto the tip of the bent part 108a to stably support the connector working jig 10A (see FIG. 5).

[0034] In the connector work jig 10A placed on the back side, the hook portion 14a1 is engaged and the base end portion of the parallel portion 20 constituting the side plate 18 is abutted against the back plate 108, thereby enabling the connector work jig 10A to be stably supported.

[0035] The other configurations, functions and effects are the same as those of the connector working jig 10 arranged on the front side described above. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 10,10A...Connector work jig, 12...Mounting base, 14,14A...Fixed portion, 14a...Upper support piece, 14a1...Hook portion, 14b...Lower support piece, 14c...Engagement piece, 16...Widening portion, 16a...Engagement piece, 18...Side plate, 20...Parallel portion, 22...Widening portion, 22a...Guideline, 22b...Port number, 24...Opening and closing beam, 24a...Beam base, 24b...Movable portion, 100...Connection board, 102...Shelf, 102a...Bundling portion, 104...Terminal block, 106...Port, 108...Rear plate, 108a...Bending portion, 110...Optical cable.

Claims

1. a mounting base fixed to a part of a rear plate exposed at an upper part of a terminal block in an optical cable connection board having a terminal block with a plurality of ports arranged in a direction perpendicular to a width direction of the ports; a pair of side plates each having an upper end connected to the mounting base and forming a wall surface in a direction away from the port with the port as a base end in a state in which the mounting base is fixed to the rear plate; An opening / closing beam disposed on the tip side of the side plate, the mounting base includes a fixing portion for fixing to the rear plate, and a width increasing portion that increases in width as the mounting base moves away from the port when the fixing portion is fixed to the rear plate, The side plate has a parallel portion connected to the fixed portion and an expanded portion connected to the expanded portion.

2. 2. The connector working jig according to claim 1, wherein the opening and closing beams are provided at lower ends of the widened portions of the pair of side plates.

3. The expanding portion has a plurality of linear guidelines arranged along the arrangement positions of the ports from the parallel portion side to the tip side, 3. The connector working jig according to claim 2, wherein port numbers corresponding to the respective ports are provided near both ends of said guide lines.

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