Fiber Optic Spool Drawer With Translatable Drawer And Routing Guides
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Solution Overview
Problem
Fiber optic installations face challenges in interconnecting components with varying fiber optic cable lengths, requiring efficient and cost-effective cable distribution while preventing damage and increasing routing versatility.
Innovation Solution
A fiber optic spool drawer with a translatable and removable drawer and a rotatable spool, featuring a guide system, rail system, and selective locking mechanism, allows bidirectional translation and removal, and includes front and back routing guides to manage fiber optic cables and prevent damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If fiber optic cables with varying lengths are used to connect components in different housings, then routing versatility is improved, but cable damage risk increases due to minimum bend radius constraints
Solution Approach 1:
A spool drawer assembly is introduced as an intermediary device between the housing and external components. The spool drawer includes a spool that winds and unwinds fiber optic cables, allowing controlled cable deployment with proper bending radius maintained through the spool mechanism. This mediator enables versatile routing while protecting against cable damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The spool drawer is designed to be translatable along rails within the housing, allowing dynamic adjustment of cable length and routing position. The drawer can move in and out to deploy or retract cables as needed, providing adaptability while maintaining cable integrity through controlled movement rather than fixed rigid connections.
2Area of stationary object
If fiber optic equipment is mounted in equipment racks to optimize space, then space utilization is improved, but cable routing flexibility deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The spool drawer assembly is nested within the housing unit that is mounted in the equipment rack. The drawer can translate in and out of the housing, allowing cable deployment without removing equipment from the rack. This nested configuration maintains compact space utilization while providing cable routing flexibility when needed.
3Adaptability or versatility
If fiber optic cables are routed from front or back of housing, then routing options increase, but cable management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spool drawer extracts the cable management function from the main housing body into a separate, movable drawer component. This separation allows the drawer to be pulled out for cable deployment and then retracted, simplifying cable management by concentrating all routing functions in one accessible location rather than distributing complexity throughout the housing.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of the disclosure are directed to a fiber optic spool drawer with a translatable and/or removable drawer for deployment of fiber optic cable. In exemplary aspects disclosed herein, the fiber optic spool drawer includes a housing with a translatable drawer and a rotatable spool disposed within an interior area of the housing. The translatable drawer includes a selective locking mechanism and is bidirectionally translatable within and bidirectionally removable from the housing. The rotatable spool is mounted to the translatable drawer and configured to rotate to deploy fiber optic cable. Still further, the fiber optic deployment assembly also includes front and back routing guides to manage and prevent damage to the fiber optic cables deployed. Accordingly, as an example, the fiber optic spool drawer may facilitate easy, efficient, and versatile fiber routing while preventing damage to the fiber optic cable.