US 10,114,189 B2Granted

Coupler for cable trough

AssigneeCommScope Technologies LLC

InventorsMatthew D. Ferris, Alex Watts

Life of this patent

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Abstract

Couplers for a cable trough system including a terminal end sized to receive a terminal end of a trough member along a longitudinal direction of the body. A spring may be coupled to the body for securing the terminal end of the trough member to the coupler, the spring including first and second spring arms extending generally in opposition to one another in a plane generally parallel to the longitudinal direction. The spring may be received in a slot formed by the trough member. Also included may be a spring release mechanism coupled to the body, the spring release mechanism sliding in the longitudinal direction between a locked position, such that the first and second spring arms engage the terminal end of the trough, and an unlocked position, such that the first and second fingers release the first and second arms of the spring.

Claims4

Dependent claims

A cable trough system comprising:

a trough member having a terminal end and including opposing longitudinally-extending first and second sidewalls coupled to a bottom wall generally forming a trough, an exterior surface of the first sidewall of the trough member including opposing longitudinally-extending channel walls projecting outwardly from the exterior surface, extending along a longitudinal direction of the trough member, and defining a slot therebetween, wherein the slot extends from the terminal end to an opposing terminal end of the trough member;
a coupler including a body including a bottom wall and two opposing longitudinally-extending side walls defining a trough, the body having a body terminal end defining an overlap region, the overlap region being sized to slideably receive the terminal end of the trough member along a longitudinal direction of the body;
and
a spring comprising at least one resilient spring arm coupled to an outer surface of one of the two side walls of the coupler;
wherein the entirety of the spring is received between the opposing channel walls in the slot when the trough member is inserted into the coupler;
and
wherein the spring is biased to resiliently expand in a plane parallel to the first sidewall such that the spring engages at least one of the opposing channel walls within the slot to couple the trough member to the coupler.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/791,589Filed 6 Jul 2015 · continuation
Priority: 27 Mar 2002
Published: US 2016/0097908 A17 Apr 2016
Granted: 30 Oct 2018
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification17 codes

G02B 6/4461
Ducts; Conduits; Hollow tubes for air blown fibres: articulated
G02B 6/4439
Mechanical structures for providing tensile strength and external protection for fibres, e.g. optical transmission cables: auxiliary devices
H02G 3/0608
Joints for connecting lengths of protective tubing or channels, to each other or to casings, e.g. to distribution boxes; Ensuring electrical…:…
F16B 5/0016
A tongue on the edge of one sheet, plate or panel co-operating with a groove in the edge of another sheet, plate or panel: with snap action

Family

Application10/107,547Parent of this division · filed 27 Mar 2002
Application11/382,341Parent of this division · filed 9 May 2006
US 7,093,997 B2Parent of this division · filed 22 Aug 2006
Application13/736,206Parent of this continuation · filed 8 Jan 2013
US 8,365,384 B2Parent of this division · filed 5 Feb 2013
US 2016/0097908 A1Pre-grant publication · published 7 Apr 2016
US 9,104,004 B2Parent of this continuation
Application13/736,206Parent of this division
US 2003/0183731 A1Published application
US 2006/0210356 A1Published application
US 2013/0129300 A1Published application
US 10,114,189 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.