Flexible push-pull boot with a transition member
AssigneeUS Conec Ltd.
InventorsMitchell Cloud, Craig M. Conrad, Darrell R. Childers
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A flexible push-pull boot extends between a front end and a rear end, a rear portion has a spine and a plurality of ribs extending from the rear end toward the front end. There is also a middle portion from which a plurality of front extensions extend. At least one of the front extensions has an inwardly extending projection on an inside portion of the front extensions to retain a housing therebehind.
Claims20
A push-pull boot for a fiber optic connector, the fiber optic connector having an outer housing, the push-pull boot comprising:
- a main body having a rear portion, a transition portion forward of the rear portion, and a middle portion forward of the transition portion along a longitudinal axis, wherein a plurality of optical fibers of an optical cable jacket are supported within the transition portion and the middle portion by a continuous central opening;
- and
- a pair of front extensions extending forwardly from a top side and/or a bottom side of the middle portion, the push-pull boot having a rear facing surface on the front extensions to engage a forward facing surface of the outer housing of the fiber optic connector.
A flexible boot for an MPO fiber optic connector, the MPO fiber optic connector having a housing, the flexible boot comprising:
- a front end;
- a rear end;
- a rear portion having a spine and a plurality of ribs, the rear portion extending from the rear end toward the front end along a longitudinal axis and supporting an optical fiber cable of the MPO fiber optic connector;
- a middle portion through which the optical fiber cable passes;
- a plurality of front extensions extending forwardly from the middle portion;
- and
- an inwardly extending projection formed on an inside portion of at least one of the plurality of the front extensions and extending toward another of the plurality of front extensions,
- wherein the flexible boot is configured to have a stiffness along a length of the spine but is flexible in other directions.
An MPO fiber optic connector comprising:
- an inner housing;
- a multi-fiber ferrule supported by the inner housing, the multi-fiber ferrule supporting a plurality of optical fibers of a fiber optic cable;
- an outer housing surrounding the inner housing and slidable along a length of the inner housing;
- and
- a push-pull boot engaged to the outer housing, the push-pull boot having a rear portion, a transition portion forward of the rear portion, a middle portion forward of the transition portion, and a pair of front extensions extending forwardly from a top side and/or a bottom side of the middle portion,
- wherein the push-pull boot has a rear facing surface on each of the pair of front extensions to engage a forward facing surface of the outer housing of the MPO fiber optic connector, and
- wherein the push-pull boot is configured to have a stiffness along a longitudinal axis thereof but is flexible in other directions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.