SYSTEMS AND ASSOCIATED HARDWARE

[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 of U.S.

Provisional Application Serial No. 62/592,078 filed on November 29, 2017, the content of which is relied upon and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD

[0002] The disclosure relates generally to fiber optic cable management equipment and, more particularly, to a fiber optic jumper and cable management system for use with rack mounted data center telecommunications equipment.

BACKGROUND

[0003] Racks, frames, cabinets and the like for supporting computer and other electronic equipment are very well known. Similarly, raceways for routing cables and wires to and from that equipment are likewise known ln particular, a number of raceways have been proposed for routing cables, wires and the like vertically through or adjacent to equipment racks, frames, cabinets and the like. Such raceways may be used to route cables vertically to equipment mounted or otherwise supported on a rack from other equipment on the rack, from overhead or underfloor raceway, or the like. These cables are generally routed in the vertical direction to a point adj acent to the desired equipment and then routed in the horizontal direction to the desired equipment.

[0004] An important characteristic of such raceways is the presence of a plurality of openings in the sides of the raceway through which cables may be routed, thereby facilitating more convenient access between the equipment and the interior of the raceway. The cables may be routed through the openings by bending them around the projections, thus allowing the cables to be routed with relative precision, and preventing cables from hanging loosely across the face of the rack itself. A gap at the distal ends of each pair of adjacent projections permits cables to be inserted into each respective opening. The gap is narrower than the opening, thus aiding in the retention of the cables within the opening. The distal ends of all the projections may then be covered by a cover, thus providing further retention capability.

[0005] Unfortunately, conventional designs suffer from a number of drawbacks, including most particularly the relatively limited size of the openings. The openings between conventional projections are only approximately as large as the size of the projections themselves. Such small openings are frequently inadequate to handle the large number of cables that are frequently routed horizontally from a certain elevation on a vertical raceway to the equipment mounted thereon. Thus, vertical raceways having larger openings are required.

[0006] More recently, a number of raceways have been developed having a small number of widely spaced fingers or other retention members projecting from a trough. Between each pair of adjacent projections is a wide opening which is many times larger than the width of the projections, such that a raceway for a full height rack might have only six or eight sets of projections. Unfortunately, because so few projections are available for the cables to be routed around, this type of raceway does not allow cables to be routed as precisely as with the conventional types of raceway, there is a much greater chance of cables dangling loosely, and/or cables of greater length must be used in order to reach a projection before being bent toward the desired equipment.

[0007] Still more recently, a new vertical raceway has been made available that utilizes a PVC trough attached to a steel base. The trough includes a base member and a plurality of narrow finger-like side members extending perpendicularly therefrom. A slit, narrower in width than the fingers, is formed between each pair of adjacent fingers for routing cables therethrough, similar to the conventional designs described above. Barbs at the distal ends of the fingers limit access to the slits to only a narrow gap, thereby preventing cables which have been installed in the slits from accidentally becoming dislodged. Advantageously, each finger is scored near the base member so that it may easily be broken off and removed, thereby creating a wider opening for receiving cables. A hingeable cover may be attached to the distal ends of the remaining fingers by clipping a plurality of hinges in between the tips of the fingers and attaching the cover thereto. The raceway may be attached to the side of a rack to route cables to electronic components mounted on or in the rack by guiding the cables vertically to a location adjacent to the selected component and then through one of the openings formed between the fingers.

[0008] Unfortunately, this raceway still suffers from a number of drawbacks. First, once fingers are broken off of the raceway to create larger openings, they cannot be replaced. Further, if one or more fingers is broken off to create a larger opening, the gap between the fingers which remain to define the opening is quite large, with very little material or structure remaining to retain the cables in the opening, other than the raceway cover. Also, the cover may be attached only using hinge members which are each mounted on the distal ends of a pair of adjacent fingers, rather than to the trough itself, thus increasing the risk of mechanical failure, particularly as the cover is opened and closed.

[0009] Consequently, there is an unresolved need for a cable management system that provides a solution for addressing one or more of the problems set forth in conventional fiber optic cable routing solutions described above.

[0010] No admission is made that any reference cited herein constitutes prior art. Applicant expressly reserves the right to challenge the accuracy and pertinence of any cited documents.

SUMMARY

[0011] One embodiment of the disclosure relates to a rack for mounting electronic equipment, the rack comprising a pair of vertical support members for supporting at least one electronic component, wherein each of the vertical support members includes a regular pattern of mounting apertures that repeats linearly at a first regular interval. The rack may also include a cable management system disposed generally adjacent one of the vertical support members, the cable management system. The cable management system may include a trough and a plurality of outwardly extending projections forming a plurality of cable rings, wherein each projection of the plurality of outwardly extending projections is configured to interlock with an adjacent projection of the plurality of outwardly extending projections.

[0012] Additional features and advantages will be set forth in the detailed description which follows, and in part will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the description or recognized by practicing the embodiments as described in the written description and claims hereof, as well as the appended drawings.

[0013] lt is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are merely exemplary, and are intended to provide an overview or framework to understand the nature and character of the claims.

[0014] The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate one or more embodiments, and together with the description serve to explain principles and operation of the various embodiments. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] FlGs. 1A-1F provide perspective views of an equipment rack or frame having an exemplary jumper and cable management system consistent with certain disclosed embodiments;

[0016] FlGs. 2A and 2B provide perspective views of alternate embodiments of cable routing fingers that may be used in a fiber optic cable routing and management system in accordance with the disclosed embodiments;

[0017] F1G. 3 illustrates an exemplary fiber optic jumper radius controller, which may be used as part of one or more of the fiber optic cable routing and management system(s) shown in FlGs. 1A-1F;

[0018] F1G. 4 is a magnified view of a portion of the fiber optic cable routing and management system(s) shown in FlGs. 1A-1F, in accordance with certain disclosed embodiments; and

[0019] F1G. 5 is another magnified view of a portion of the fiber optic cable routing and management system(s) shown in FlGs. 1A-1 F, consistent with certain disclosed embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiments, examples of which is/are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Whenever possible, the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

[0021] F1G. 1 is a perspective view of a four post rack 100 used in a standard data center environment. FlGs. 1B-1F illustrate various embodiments of a cable management system 1 lOa-l lOe in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention ln this embodiment, the cable management system comprises a channel assembly and a cover assembly. The channel assembly includes a trough and a plurality of cable guides. The trough has a base member and two side members extending perpendicularly therefrom. The trough may be formed from a sheet of suitable metal, such as aluminum or steel, and bent into shape, or it may be machined or extruded from a suitable metal material. Each side member includes a plurality of circular apertures for mounting the trough to a rack, frame, cabinet or the like, and an evenly-spaced series of small rectangular apertures extending along its outer edge for mounting the cable guides thereto. [0022] FlGs 2 and 3 is a magnified view of a portion 200 of the cable management system 110 of FlGs. 1E-1F. Each cable guide 200 includes a linear projection support bracket and a plurality of projections 210, 220 extending therefrom. The projection support bracket has a planar flange 240 and a series of tabs 230a, 203b forming a channeled recess therebetween. Evenly-spaced bosses are disposed on the inward-facing surfaces of at least some of the tabs 230a, 203b for mating with the rectangular apertures in the side members of the trough. The cable guide 200 maybe mounted on a side member of the trough by aligning the bosses on the tabs 230a, 230b with the rectangular apertures in the trough and then inserting the side member into the channeled recess between the planar flange and the series of tabs 230a, 230b. As the side member is inserted, the bosses, which are preferably beveled, may make contact with the side member, thus urging the lateral deflection of the tabs 230a, 203b. As the edge of the side member is seated in the bottom of the channeled recess, the bosses spring back into the rectangular apertures and are thereafter retained therein, thus preventing the cable guide from being removed.

[0023] ln a feature of the present disclosure, one or more slots may extend inward from the edge of each side member, and at least one positioning boss maybe disposed on each projection support bracket. Alignment of the cable guide with the side member may then be facilitated by aligning the positioning boss with the slot and inserting it therein. This causes the other bosses to be properly aligned with the rectangular apertures, and the continuing disposition of the positioning boss within the slot aids in guiding the cable guide onto the edge of the side member until fully seated thereon.

[0024] Each projection includes a reinforced base, a shaft and a crosspiece. Each pair of adjacent projections 210, 220 defines a cable ring formed by the respective bases, shafts and crosspieces of the projections and the body of the projection support bracket. An opening into each cable ring is provided by a gap between the ends of the crosspieces of each pair of adjacent projections. This gap permits cables to be inserted into the ring by passing them sideways through the gap, as described further hereinbelow. As shown in Fig. 2A, projections 210, 220 form complementary (e.g., interlocking) interfaces for ease of insertion of cables while limiting the possibly of cables accidentally releasing from the cable ring.

[0025] The respective projections are evenly spaced along the length of the cable guide at a standardized spacing ln the embodiment shown and described, the spacing between the respective projections is equal to a single standard rack mounting unit (“RMU”), but it should be obvious that other standard spacings could be used such as spacings measured in alternative units or spacings which are multiples of the RMU. By using such a standard spacing, it is ensured that a cable ring is disposed at, and dedicated to, each RMU along the height of a rack. The benefit of this will become further evident below.

[0026] Because the cable guide is formed separately from the trough and subsequently attached thereto, rather than being formed integrally therewith, the cable guide may be formed from a different material than the trough. Thus, although the trough may preferably be formed from metal, the cable guides may be injection-molded from plastic in order to create rounded or beveled complementary edges along the edges of the projections 210, 220. The rounded edges of the cable rings do not chafe cables inserted therein like the sharp metal edges of prior art raceways would, while the rounded edges and comers of the edges of the ends of the crosspieces enable cables being installed in the cable rings to be smoothly guided through the gaps ln addition, by forming the shafts of the projections from plastic rather than from sheet metal, the width of the shafts may be reduced while still providing the requisite strength and resiliency, thus allowing the cable rings to be widened considerably relative to the width of the shafts. As a result, each cable ring includes a C-shaped opening having concave top and bottom portions and a narrow entry gap relative to the width and height of the ring, thus maximizing the utility of the cable ring in receiving and retaining a greater number of cables therein than was previously possible.

[0027] F1G. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a portion of the cable management system 110b of F1G. 1. Each cable guide 200 includes a linear projection support bracket and a plurality of commentary (e.g., interlocking) projections 210, 220 extending therefrom. The projection support bracket has a planar flange and a series of tabs forming a channeled recess therebetween. Evenly-spaced bosses are disposed on the inward-facing surfaces of at least some of the tabs for mating with the rectangular apertures in the side members of the trough. The cable guide maybe mounted on a side member of the trough by aligning the bosses on the tabs with the rectangular apertures in the trough and then inserting the side member into the channeled recess between the planar flange and the series of tabs. As the side member is inserted, the bosses, which are preferably beveled, may make contact with the side member, thus urging the lateral deflection of the tabs. As the edge of the side member is seated in the bottom of the channeled recess, the bosses spring back into the rectangular apertures and are thereafter retained therein, thus preventing the cable guide from being removed.

[0028] According to one embodiment, the cable management system 1 lOb may include an attachment of the cover assembly to the channel assembly. The cover assembly includes a cover and a plurality of hinge supports. The cover may be formed from sheet metal. Flanges are formed along the lateral edges of the cover to provide strength along the length of the cover as well as for use with the hinging mechanism of the hinge supports. The cover also includes a plurality of openings, for use with the hinge supports. Each hinge support includes a cover support, a cover support bracket and a hinge/lock block assembly.

[0029] According to one embodiment, each cover support, which may be injection-molded from plastic, includes a body portion, a hinge pivot shaft disposed at one end of the body portion and inner and outer mounting tabs, disposed at the opposite end. The hinge pivot shaft may be supported by support members which are inwardly offset to create a channeled area between the end of the body portion and the hinge pivot shaft. This channeled area is adapted to receive the edge of one of the flanges along the lateral edges of the cover when the cover is hinged open.

[0030] Like the channel formed by the tabs of the projection support bracket, a channeled recess is formed between the inner and outer mounting tabs of the cover support. A boss is disposed on the inward-facing surface of the outer tab for mating with one of the rectangular apertures in the side members of the trough. The cover support may be mounted on a side member of the trough, adjacent to one or more cable guides by aligning the boss on the inward facing surface of the outer tab with a rectangular aperture in the trough and then inserting the side member into the channeled recess between the inner and outer tabs. As the side member is inserted, the boss, which is preferably beveled, may make contact with the side member, thus urging the lateral deflection of the outer tab. As the edge of the side member is seated in the bottom of the channeled recess, the boss springs back into the rectangular aperture and is thereafter retained therein, thus preventing the cover support from being removed. Further strength may be imparted by passing fasteners through mounting apertures in the cover supports and the trough.

[0031] The shape of the sides of the body portion is similar to the shape of the sides of the projections 210, 220. Each side of the body portion, together with the projection 210, 220 adjacent thereto, defines a cable ring formed by the base, shaft and crosspiece of the adjacent projection and the correspondingly-shaped side of the body portion. An opening into each cable ring is provided by a gap between the end of the crosspiece of the adjacent projection 210, 220 and the similar protrusi on on the side of the body portion. This gap permits cables to be inserted into the ring by passing them sideways through the gap, as described further hereinbelow. The cover support is preferably one RMU in size, and the cable rings formed above and below it are preferably of the same dimensions as the cable rings formed by the cable guides. Once again, the benefit of this will become further evident below.

[0032] According to one embodiment, the cover support may be further strengthened by the use of a cover support bracket formed from sheet metal. A tab may be disposed at one end of the bracket to be inserted into an undercut in the end of the body portion of the cover support, and the body of the cover support bracket may rest against the body portion of the cover support ln this position, the end of the cover support bracket is disposed between, and substantially coplanar with, the inner mounting tabs of the cover support. The same fasteners used to secure the outer mounting tab of the cover support to the side member of the trough may also be used to attach the cover support bracket on the opposite surface of the side member.

[0033] According to one embodiment, each hinge/lock block assembly includes a hinge block and a lock assembly. The hinge block has a pair of locating bosses, a lock boss, a lock stop, a pivot face disposed in a recessed area between two inwardly facing support faces, and a lock knob hole. The block is installed on the inside of the cover with the lock boss and locating bosses protruding through openings in the cover. The lock assembly includes a lock, a lock knob and a wave spring washer. The lock knob includes a recessed area, a lock knob shaft having a pair of lock knob slots therein, and an axial central hole. The spring washer is retained around the shaft in the recessed area to frictionally maintain the lock in the desired disposition, and the shaft is inserted through the lock knob hole in the hinge block with the washer disposed between the knob and the outside surface of the cover.

[0034] ln one embodiment, at least two hinge/lock block assemblies are disposed along each lateral edge of the cover to enable the cover to be hinged open on either lateral edge. A cover support and cover support bracket corresponding to each hinge/lock block assembly are disposed at appropriate locations on the trough. Cover may then be mounted onto the trough by first placing the locks along at least one lateral edge of the cover in their open positions. The cover is then positioned so that each corresponding cover support hinge pivot shaft is trapped between the flange along that lateral edge of the cover and the pivot face of the hinge block. The vertical load of the cover is supported by one of the hinge block support faces resting on the end of the hinge pivot shaft. Once the hinge/lock block assemblies are placed in this position, the lock knobs may be rotated to their closed positions ln the closed position, each lock hook is positioned over its respective hinge pivot shaft and between the support members. When so closed, the hinge pivot shaft thus functions as a pin enclosed within a generally cylindrical barrel formed by the lock hook, the cover flange, and the hinge block pivot face. The cylindrical shape of the barrel is created by the arcuate surfaces of the hinge block pivot face and the underside of the lock hook ln this arrangement, the axis of rotation of each lock knob is generally perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the hinge block about the cover support hinge pivot shaft.

[0035] ln one embodiment, the cover support and cover support brackets of the hinge/lock block assemblies are interspersed between cable guides along the side members of the trough. Because all of the cable rings formed along the cable guides, all of the cable rings formed between the ends of the cable guides and the cover supports disposed therebetween, and all of the cover supports themselves are preferably each a single RMU in vertical length, each cable ring is thus disposed at a particular RMU segment location along the rack to which the cable management system is attached. Further, as described previously, electrical components and accessories such as horizontal cable management systems, patch panels (not shown) and other cable routing apparatuses are frequently sized and measured in whole numbers ofRMU's. Thus, by installing such components and accessories at particular RMU segment locations along the rack, an installer can be assured that at least one cable ring will substantially always be located laterally adjacent to each component or accessory so installed ln an exception to this arrangement, a component or accessory having a height of only a single RMU and disposed immediately adjacent one of the cover supports may not have a cable ring located laterally adjacent thereto. Thus, for example, a rack of RMU which uses a cover assembly having three hinge supports as illustrated herein would have forty-two usable cable rings, meaning that 93% of the RMU's in the rack would have a cable ring immediately adjacent thereto. Similarly, a rack of RMU which uses a cover assembly having two hinge supports as illustrated herein would have eighteen usable cable rings, meaning that 90% of the RMU's in the rack would have a cable ring immediately adjacent thereto lt should be understood, however, that cable supports may alternatively be designed with a structure forming a cable ring without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0036] ln operation, the cable management system 1 10 may be attached to the side of a rack using some or all of the circular apertures in one side member of the trough and suitable fasteners. As illustrated, the rack may include one or more pairs of vertical support members to which the cable management system may be attached directly, or the cable management system may alternatively be mounted adjacent the vertical support members using some other additional support structure (not shown). With the cover either hinged open on the side of the cable management system adjacent to the rack or removed entirely, cables may easily be installed vertically through the cable management system merely by moving the cables sideways into the trough lf one or more cable needs to be routed horizontally from the trough to a component or accessory installed on or in the rack, each such cable may be bent and inserted sideways through the gap in one of the cable rings immediately adjacent to the chosen component or accessory. Other cables may likewise be routed through the same cable ring, a different cable ring to the same component or accessory, or to a different location altogether. Once all cable routing in both the vertical and horizontal directions is complete, the cover may then be closed, in order to retain the respective cables in place, by either hinging the cover closed and locking it as described previously, or by installing the unattached cover on the cover supports, also as described previously.

[0037] According to one embodiment, the cable management system 110 comprises a double-channel assembly and a pair of cover assemblies. The double -channel assembly includes a double -trough and two sets of cable guides. The double-trough has a base member and two double-side members extending perpendicularly therefrom, thereby forming two separate, back-to-back channels from a double-trough having an H-shaped cross-section. The cable guides and all other components of the cable management system of the second preferred embodiment are identical to those of the cable management system of the first preferred embodiment, with the second set of components being assembled and utilized in the same way as the first except in reverse.

[0038] According to one embodiment, the cable management system 110 comprises a modified single-channel assembly and a cover assembly. The modified channel assembly includes an alternative trough and a set of cable guides. The alternative trough has a base member and two modified side members extending perpendicularly therefrom. Unlike the trough of the first preferred embodiment, each side member is bifurcated into primary and secondary planar members by a pair of closely spaced longitudinal bends. The secondary planar member of each side member is thus offset slightly inward from, but parallel to, the primary planar member of the side member. The offset provides sufficient lateral space to accommodate the width of the cable guides and cover supports such that, when mounted on the trough, they do not extend beyond the outermost surfaces of the side members. This feature thus helps to prevent the components of the cable management system from interfering with the rack and the components and cables mounted thereon. The cover assembly, cable guides and all other components of the cable management system of the third preferred embodiment are identical to those of the cable management system of the first preferred embodiment. Also, it should be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art that the double-channel assembly may be similarly modified.

[0039] Unless otherwise expressly stated, it is in no way intended that any method set forth herein be construed as requiring that its steps be performed in a specific order. Accordingly, where a method claim does not actually recite an order to be followed by its steps or it is not otherwise specifically stated in the claims or descriptions that the steps are to be limited to a specific order, it is no way intended that any particular order be inferred.

[0040] lt will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Since modifications combinations, sub -combinations and variations of the disclosed embodiments incorporating the spirit and substance of the invention may occur to persons skilled in the art, the invention should be construed to include everything within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.