CN1244928A - optical interconnect system - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides an electro-optic receptacle (40) that may be pluggably substituted for a standard electrical receptacle, such as an RJ-type or D-subminiature receptacle. An opto-electrical receptacle (40) includes a housing (12) having a receptacle (120) for receiving an optical plug (500) having an optical cable attached thereto, and a plurality of electrical terminals (70) for connection to an electrical circuit. The terminals (70) are preferably arranged in a predetermined array corresponding to the terminal array (70) of a standard electrical receptacle. An optical-to-electrical conversion circuit is disposed within the housing (12) and is operable to convert optical signals from the optical plug into electrical signals for transmission to the electrical circuit via the terminals (70), and to convert electrical signals from the electrical circuit into optical signals via the terminals (70) for transmission to the optical plug (500).

Description

optical interconnect system

related application

This application is a copy of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 60/029,578, filed October 22, 1996, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/029,578, filed September 22, 1997, entitled "Optical Interconnect System" [Attorney Docket INSILCO 3.8-001 II] Continuation-in-Part of Patent Application 60/---, ---. The specifications of the above two applications are incorporated herein by reference.

field of invention

The invention relates to the field of optical fiber connectors.

Background of the invention

The connection of electronic data communication equipment, such as computers, network interfaces, circuit boards within routers, is usually accomplished using electrical connectors. In this regard, standard RJ-type telephone plugs and jacks and standard telephone wiring are now often used to interconnect data communication devices. Other standard types of electrical connectors are often used in data communication applications, such as 9-pin, 15-pin or 25-pin D-subminiature connectors. Consequently, manufacturers of data processing equipment have designed the circuit boards and physical configurations of their products to accommodate these types of connectors.

However, due to advances in the field of data communications, it is desirable to replace cabling with fiber optic cabling so that signals may travel between equipment components as light travels in fiber optic cables, rather than as electrical signals between conductive wires.

Summary of the invention

Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an adapter or optical receptacle that can be mounted within a circuit board to replace standard electrical receptacles directly or drop-in using mounting holes on the printed circuit board normally occupied by electrical receptacles. receptacle, and allows fiber optic receptacles to be connected to fiber optic cables.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a photoelectric socket capable of replacing a standard electrical socket is provided. The photoelectric socket includes a casing and a plurality of electrical terminals for connecting circuits, the casing has a socket for receiving an optical plug, and the plug is connected with an optical cable. The terminals are preferably arranged in a predetermined array corresponding to the terminal array (or trace) of a standard electrical socket. A photoelectric conversion circuit is set in the casing, which can convert the optical signal from the optical plug into an electrical signal, transmit it to the circuit through each terminal, and convert the electrical signal from the circuit into an optical signal through the terminal, and then transmit it to the optical plug . The photoelectric conversion circuit preferably includes a light emitting diode or a diode laser for converting electrical signals into optical signals and propagating along the optical cable, and a photodiode or phototransistor for receiving the optical signals propagating along the optical cable and converting them into electrical pulses for sent to the circuit.

According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, the photoelectric socket is configured to replace the RJ type modular socket in a plug-in manner. The RJ type jack is a mass-produced and widely used jack in the field of telephone and data communication. These sockets are economical and compact, and can be easily connected or disconnected without specially trained personnel. In addition, since RJ-type jacks are widely used as telephone jacks for home and business use, most people are already familiar with connecting and disconnecting the jacks. According to this embodiment, the outer dimensions of the housing of the optoelectronic socket are no larger than the smallest standard RJ-type socket intended to be replaced. The housing of the optoelectronic socket is preferably approximately rectangular, basically consistent with the outer dimensions of a standard RJ-type socket that is intended to be plugged in for replacement. In addition, the mounting structure and electrical terminals of the photoelectric socket according to this embodiment are arranged in a predetermined array, which is the same as the terminal array and mounting structure of a standard RJ socket. For example, if the photoelectric socket is constructed to plug-in replace the RJ type socket mounted on the PCB (printed circuit board), it will include a pair of mounting posts and an array of electrical terminals whose position and size are the same as those of a standard PCB mounted RJ socket. Type receptacles have the same mounting posts and terminal array. Alternatively, if the optoelectronic receptacle is configured to plug-in replace a surface-mount RJ-type receptacle, the electrical terminals are configured as surface-mount contacts and are arranged in a position and size that are comparable to those of a standard surface-mount RJ-type receptacle. Same size.

According to yet another aspect of this embodiment, there is provided an optical plug that accommodates the end of a fiber optic cable and that is similar in shape and mechanical function to a standard modular plug of an RJ-type jack. In this regard, the plug has a generally rectangular shape and includes a resilient plug detent that is similar in shape and function to the plug detent on a standard RJ type plug. In this manner, a novel optical plug and opto-receptacle is provided that is similar in size, shape and mechanical function to the traditional RJ-type plugs and sockets most people are familiar with. This also allows people to use the fiber optic system without having to become familiar with a new mechanical interconnection system.

According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, a mechanism is provided that can turn off the light source (such as LED or diode laser) in the optoelectronic socket when the optical plug is pulled out from the optoelectronic socket. Since the light signal can be prevented from impacting people's eyes, the above measures can enhance the safety of the photoelectric socket and prolong the life of the light source.

According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, electrically conductive wires may be provided together with the optical cable. Preferably, the electrical wires and optical cables are housed in one cable. When it is desired to directly connect an electrical signal to a data communication device while simultaneously connecting an optical signal to a data communication device through optical/electrical conversion, the above structure can be used. For example, when replacing a conventional telephone system with a fiber optic data communication device, it is desirable to use conventional telephone lines as a backup. Conventional landline telephone systems provide power to the telephone equipment over the telephone lines so that the telephone equipment can receive and transmit information even when utility power (such as on-site power for the telephone equipment) is lost or other power outages occur. By placing the conductive wire with the fiber optic cable, the conductive wire can be used to provide backup power, and/or a piece of conventional telephone equipment can be used in parallel with the fiber optic connector. In addition, if local power is not available at the photoelectric socket, conductive wires can be used to power the photoelectric conversion circuit, or even power the circuit on the PCB.

According to this embodiment, a plurality of electrically conductive wires provided with the optical cable is provided. The optical plug includes a plurality of RJ-type plug contacts, each contact is connected to a corresponding conductive line, and the plug also includes at least one optical cable. The photoelectric socket includes a plurality of RJ-type socket contacts, which are located in the housing of the photoelectric socket and contact the corresponding RJ-type plug contacts, thereby forming an electrical connection between each conductive wire and the corresponding RJ-type socket contacts. The RJ style jack contacts can be coupled to the output terminals of the optoelectronic jack to provide power for conventional telephone service, and/or to provide electrical connections to components on the jack or PCB.

Brief description of the drawings

1 is a front view of a photoelectric socket according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a top view of the photoelectric socket shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom view of the photoelectric socket shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is the rear view of the photoelectric socket shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a side view of the photoelectric socket shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a partial sectional view through one side of the photoelectric socket shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view through one side of the photoelectric socket shown in Fig. 1, on which an optical plug according to an embodiment of the present invention is inserted;

Fig. 8 shows a kind of PCB layout of the photoelectric plug shown in Fig. 1;

Figure 9 shows in more detail a cross-sectional view through one side of the optoelectronic socket shown in Figure 1;

10 is a top view of an optical plug according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 11 is a front view of the optical plug shown in Figure 10;

Figure 12 is a side view of the optical plug shown in Figure 10;

Figure 13 is a rear view of the optical plug shown in Figure 10;

14 is a top view of an optical plug according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 15 is a front view of the optical plug shown in Figure 14;

Figure 16 is a side view of the optical plug shown in Figure 14;

Figure 17 is a rear view of the optical plug shown in Figure 14;

18 is a top view of an optical plug according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 19 is a front view of the optical plug shown in Figure 18;

Figure 20 is a side view of the optical plug shown in Figure 18;

Figure 21 is a rear view of the optical plug shown in Figure 18;

Figure 22(a) is a cross-sectional view of the plug shown in Figures 10, 14 and 18;

Figure 22(b) shows an optical cable with a pair of optical fibers disposed therein;

Figure 23 shows a photoelectric socket according to another embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 24 shows a photoelectric socket according to another embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 25 shows a side view of the optical plug shown in Figure 24;

Figure 26 shows a front view of the optical plug shown in Figure 24;

Figure 27 shows a top view of the optical plug shown in Figure 24;

Figure 28 is a perspective view of the optical plug shown in Figure 24;

Fig. 29 is a schematic diagram of a photoelectric socket and a magnetic converter module;

Figure 30 shows a preferred embodiment of a photoelectric conversion switch;

Figure 31 shows an illustrative embodiment of a magnetic transducer module;

Figure 32 shows a photoelectric D-subminiature socket according to the present invention;

Figure 33 shows a preferred embodiment of a photoelectric conversion circuit that can be used for the photoelectric D-subminiature socket shown in Figure 32;

Figure 34 shows an insulation displacement element according to yet another embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 35 shows a situation where the insulation displacement element shown in Figure 34 is partially inserted into the optical plug;

Figure 36 shows the situation where the insulation displacement element shown in Figure 34 is fully inserted into the optical plug;

Figure 37 shows a plug that may be used with the insulation displacement element shown in Figures 34-36.

Detailed description of each preferred embodiment

1-9 show an illustrative optoelectronic receptacle 1 and optical plug 500 in accordance with the present invention. The photoelectric socket 1 is configured to replace a standard RJ45 telephone socket pluggably. 1, the photoelectric socket 1 includes a housing 12, which has a top side 10, a pair of lateral sides 20, a front side panel 30 with a jack 120, a bottom side 35 and a rear Side 40. Housing 12 is made of a dielectric material, such as a polymer, preferably polycarbonate. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention shown in Fig. 1-9, the external dimension of housing 12 is identical with the housing of common RJ 45 type telephone socket. The structure of the jack 120 is substantially the same as the corresponding jack in a standard RJ 45 type socket. Accordingly, the housing has a generally rectangular opening with an extension 125 at the bottom of the opening to engage the detent 310 on the optical plug 300, as shown in FIG. The housing 12 has a pair of ribs 122 extending from front to back.

4, 7 and 9, the housing 12 of the socket 1 has a recess 131 formed on the rear surface 40 thereof. A pair of holes 133 extend from the inner surface 132 of the concave portion toward the insertion hole 120 , so that a pair of openings 135 are formed at predetermined positions of the insertion hole 120 . As shown in FIGS. 4 and 7 , a circuit board 230 is provided in the concave portion 131 . A photoelectric conversion circuit is installed on the circuit board 230 . In the preferred embodiment shown in Figure 4, the photoelectric conversion circuit includes a photodiode for receiving optical signals and converting them into electrical signals, and a light emitting diode 210 for receiving electrical signals and emitting light pulses (" LED"). LED 210 is received in one hole 132, and photodiode 200 is received in the other hole 132.

1, 3, 4 and 5, the photoelectric conversion circuit on the circuit board 230 is connected to the tail pin 70 protruding downward from the bottom of the housing. The end pins 70 are arranged in an array matching the hole arrangement of the PCB shown in FIG. 8 . Since the opto jack 1 is intended to plug-in replace an RJ-45 style jack, the array of pins 70 is the same as that used in standard telephone RJ connectors. For this, it is not important to have all the end pins; some end pins can be omitted, or some can be left unconnected to the board. That is, only certain positions in the pin array need be utilized.

A pair of contacts 110 extend from the circuit board 230 in the recess 131 and pass through a slot 136 in the housing. Slot 136 is best seen in FIG. 9 .

As shown in Figure 6, the mechanical structure of the contact piece 110 and the way the contact piece 110 is installed in the housing are preferably consistent with the corresponding features of the standard contact piece adopted by the standard RJ-45 type socket, but in this specific implementation Only two contacts are provided in the example, while eight contacts are provided on a standard RJ-45 socket. In FIG. 1, the contacts 110 are spaced approximately 0.040 inches (1.02 mm) apart in the middle and are equidistant from the centerline of the jack 120 so that they correspond to standard RJ-45 style contact pair 1 . The same as the traditional RJ-45 type socket, the contacts 110 include protruding fingers extending downward and backward from the surface of the jack 120, and the free ends of each contact 110 are arranged in a vertical groove. When the plug 300 is inserted When opening the insertion hole 120 , the contact piece 110 can flex upwards in the insertion hole 120 . Contacts 110 are coupled to circuit board 230 and are connected to a shorting element 540 on plug 300 as described below.

Referring to Figures 1, 5 and 6, a metal shielding shell 60 may be provided around 10 to protect socket 1 from interference from electronic components on the PCB. The shielding structure may be the same as the shielding shell of the RJ-45 socket used for data communication. A pair of shielding pins 80 project downward from the bottom surface of the housing, ie extend downward from a plane defined by the bottom surface. As shown in Figure 8, the shield pins are spaced apart from each other and from the mounting connector so that the spacing of the shield pins actually matches the spacing of the shield pins typically used to mount and connect to RJ-45 style jacks. The housing 10 also has a pair of circuit board mounting posts 50 arranged to snap fit into holes in the PCB. The circuit board mounting hole 50 has the same configuration and location relative to the tail pin 70 and shield pin 80 as compared to the board mounting post on a standard RJ-45 style connector. Figure 8 shows the relative position on a standard RJ-45 style jack.

Figures 10-13 show an optical plug 500 suitable for being inserted into the optical socket 1 shown in Figures 1-9. Plug 500 has a generally rectangular plug body 501 made of, for example, a flexible polymer (preferably polycarbonate molding compound). The plug body 510 has a front surface 520 , a rear surface 560 , a top side 522 , a bottom side 550 , and a pair of lateral sides formed with the groove 510 . A resilient detent 310 extends from the bottom side 310 of the plug body 501 . A pair of protrusions 502 , 503 protrude slightly outward from the opposite side 512 located near the front side 520 of the plug body 510 . A pair of optical cables 800 , 810 pass through the plug 500 , each cable being flush with a flat surface 542 of an annular boss 543 . When the plug 500 is inserted into the socket 120 of the socket 1 , the rib 122 of the socket 1 matches with the groove 510 on the plug 500 . The interfitting of grooves 510 and ribs 122 can provide a number of advantages, such as enabling proper alignment of plug 500 within receptacle 120 . In addition, since the RJ-type telephone plug does not have a corresponding groove, the protruding rib 122 can additionally serve to prevent the insertion of a standard RJ-type telephone plug. The protrusions 502, 503 provided to cooperate with the slots 504 in the socket 120 together with the grooves 510 can prevent the lateral movement of the plug 500 in the socket. Except for the bumps and grooves, the outer dimensions of the front of the plug body 501 are generally similar to a standard RJ-type plug. In this regard, the elastic latch 310 also has substantially the same structure as a standard RJ-type plug.

The plug body 501 also includes a pair of guide slots 505 , 506 disposed at the junction of the front surface 506 and the top surface 522 . The positions of the guide grooves 505, 506 correspond to the positions of the contacts 110 in the socket. The plug body 501 includes a pair of fiber optic holes 511 extending from a recess 570 formed in the plug rear side 560 to the opening plane of the protrusion 543 . As best seen in FIG. 22 , each fiber hole 511 has a relatively larger diameter portion 580 , a tapered portion 590 , and a smaller diameter portion 595 opening on the flat surface 542 of the protrusion 543 . The plug body 501 also includes several strain relief elements 571-574, which are substantially the same in structure as the strain relief elements of a conventional RJ-type plug.

A short-circuit element 540 in the form of a metal rod is mounted on the plug body 501 near the front upper edge. The shorting element 540 extends laterally across or across the guide slots 505, 506 of the plug body. The shorting bar can be placed at a lower position than that shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 . In any case, when the plug 500 is inserted into the socket 1, the contacts 110 of the socket 1 are received in the guide grooves 505, 506 (as described above, and as shown in FIGS. The sides are open) and cooperate with the shorting element 540 to establish an electrical connection between the contacts 110 .

29 and 30 show a photoelectric conversion circuit according to a preferred embodiment, which is located on the circuit board 230 of the socket 1 . The photoelectric circuit 600 includes the aforementioned LED 210 and the photodiode 200 for receiving. Two of the end pins 70 ("TX-" 70.1 and "TX+" 70.2) are connected across the LED 210. The end pin 70.2 (TX+) is connected to one of the contacts 110, and the input terminal of the LED 210 is connected to the other contact 110. When no plug 300 is inserted into the jack 120, the contacts 110 are not connected to each other, thereby creating an open circuit (in FIG. LED 210 turns off. The receiving photodiode 200 is connected to the signal input of an amplifier 610 (leads 2 and 3). The signal output (lead 7) of the amplifier 610 is connected to the other of the end pins 70.3 (denoted "RX+"). The ground connections (leads 4 , 8 ) of the amplifier 610 are connected to a local or analog ground 630 . The analog ground 630 is connected to another end pin 70.4 (denoted as RX-) and connected to the principle ground 620 through an induction coil 640 . The power input connections (leads 1 and 5) of the amplifier 610 are connected through a resistor 670 to a node 690, and then through an insulated induction coil 650 to terminal pin 70.2 ("TX+"). Node 660 is also connected to local ground 630 through a capacitor 650 . Induction coil 650 and capacitor 660 isolate the power input connections (leads 1, 5) from signals and transients on TX+. The local ground 930 is connected to a main ground potential 620 through an induction coil 640 . In this embodiment, the primary ground potential 620 is the shield enclosure 60 . In other words, the main ground potential is the case ground potential. The local ground 630 can be effectively isolated from transients applied to the main ground 620 by means of an induction coil 640 .

29 and 31 show a driver circuit 700 for driving the photoelectric conversion circuit 600 shown in FIG. 30 . Preferably, the driver circuit 700 is incorporated in a standard 16-pin dip mounting and can be mounted on circuits commonly used to isolate circuits, such as magnetic circuits via electrical Ethernet connections. board position. Therefore, the driver circuit shown in FIG. 6 is also called a "magnetic converter". In general, the driver circuit includes a fiber optic LED driver 710 that drives the LED 210, and a data digitizer 720 that acts as a receiver for the photodiode 200. Driver 710 and digitizer 720 may be of any known type. An example of an acceptable digitizer 720 is the ML6622 High Speed Data Digitizer produced by Micro Liner, and an example of an acceptable driver 710 is the ML6632 High Speed Fiber Optic LED Driver produced by Micro Linear. Driver 710 may also be supplemented by a discrete amplifier 711, NAND gate 712 and transistor 31 as shown in FIG.

In use, the optoelectronic socket 1 is mounted on a circuit board of a data communication device, such as an Internet or other interface card for a personal computer, router, peripheral device or the like. The socket 1 is mounted in a mount normally used for RJ type sockets. End pins 70 are received in corresponding holes in the circuit board and electrically connected to tracks on the circuit board, such as by conventional soldering techniques. The socket 1 is held on the circuit board by means of mounting posts 50 on the housing, and these mounting posts 50 are snapped into corresponding holes on the circuit board. The driver circuit shown in Figures 29 and 31 or other suitable driver circuit is connected to the appropriate end pin 70 of the socket by the track on the circuit board. Preferably, the track of the driver 700 corresponds to the track of a traditional design as a replaceable magnetic chip, so that the photoelectric socket 1 and the driver circuit 700 can plug-in replace the traditional RJ-type socket and the magnetic chip without changing the layout of the PCB. track.

Figures 23 to 28 show a photoelectric socket 1 and a plug 500 according to another embodiment of the present invention, wherein components similar to those shown in Figures 1-22 use the same reference numerals. Plug 500 is similar to that shown in FIGS. 10-14 and has a generally rectangular plug body 501 made of a dielectric material such as a flexible polymer, preferably polycarbonate molding compound. The plug body 510 has a front surface 520 , a rear surface 560 , an upper side 522 , a bottom side 550 , and a pair of lateral sides 512 formed with the groove 510 . A resilient detent 310 extends from the bottom side 310 of the plug body 501 . A pair of protrusions 502 , 503 project slightly outward from opposite sides 512 near the front side 520 of the plug body 510 . However, the front surface 520 has a generally flat surface in which there is a vertically extending groove 1500 where the fiber optic cables 800 , 810 terminate flush with the plane of the front surface 520 . The photoelectric socket 1 is similar to the socket shown in FIGS. bottom side 35 , and a rear side 40 . Like the socket shown in FIGS. 1-9 , the socket 120 has substantially the same structure as a standard RJ-45 type socket, which has a generally rectangular opening with an extension 125 at the bottom of the opening to incorporate an optical The latch 310 on the plug 300 and the socket also have a pair of ribs 122 extending from front to back. However, the receptacle 1 includes a vertically extending spacer bar 1600 which cooperates with the groove 1500 on the plug 500 shown in FIG. 24 to prevent light received or transmitted on one cable from hitting the other cable.

The manner in which the fiber optic cable is terminated within the plug 500 will now be described with reference to Figures 22a and 22b. An optical cable 900 having a pair of shielded plastic optical fibers 800, 810 may be terminated in such a manner that a portion of the outer jacket 930 is removed to expose the shielded optical fibers 910, 920, a portion of the jacket 940 on the optical fibers 910, 920 is stripped, The stripped length is slightly larger than the small diameter portion 595 of the fiber hole 511 . Insert each optical fiber into the optical fiber hole 511 in the plug body, so that the bare optical fiber 910, 920 protrudes from the front end of each optical fiber hole 511. The optical fibers 910, 920 are cut flush with the flat surface 541 of the protrusion 543, for example by means of a razor-like blade. It is preferred to provide a connection tool having a socket for receiving the plug body and which, when the plug body is received in the tool socket, moves the blade across the front face of the plug body. The connection tool can also force each strain relief member downward, disconnecting the strain relief member from the rest of the body at break point 573, and pivoting the strain relief member downward about hinge point 571, thus allowing the tension relief The release element engages the outer jacket of the cable or the jacket of an individual optical fiber. At this point, the terminated fiber optic cable is ready for use.

In order to connect the optical cable to the socket 1, the plug 500 can be inserted into the socket 120 of the socket 1, as shown in FIG. 7 . The groove 510 in the plug 500 cooperates with the protruding rib 122 of the socket 1, so that the plug 500 is precisely positioned in the socket. The annular protrusion 543 on the front surface of the plug 500 enters the opening 135 of the hole 133 so that the optical fibers 910, 920 held by the plug 500 can be precisely aligned with one of the openings 135 of the receptacle. Each fiber can then be in optical communication with the socket's LED or receiving photodiode. The spring detent 310 on the plug 500 engages with a corresponding extension 125 of the receptacle 120 . Projections 502, 503 on the sides of the plug body engage in slots 504 (one of which is shown in FIG. 9 ) in the side walls of the receptacle 120 . The guide slots 505, 506 engage and guide the contacts 110 when the plug is inserted into the receptacle. Both contacts 110 are in contact with the shorting bar 540 on the plug 500, so that the tail pin 70.2 (TX+) is connected to the input of the LED 210 (like the symbol switch 580 is closed in FIG. 30 ) and the LED 210 is operated.

In this way, the fiber optic cable is connected to the data communication device. The optical signal appearing on the optical fiber aligned with the receiving photodiode is converted to an electrical signal by photodiode 200, amplified by amplifier 610, and transmitted as a signal across RX+tail pin 70.3 and RX-tail pin 70.4 to a magnetic transducer or Driver loop 700 . The received signal is then further processed by means of the data digitizer of the magnetic converter 700 to provide a signal having conventional digital logic values (eg, ECL logic values, TTL logic values, etc.). Signals are passed from the magnetic transducer to the circuitry of the data communications device for processing in a conventional manner. The signal transmitted from the data communication device is applied to the LED driver of the magnetic converter 700, and then enters the photoelectric conversion circuit 600 at the end pins 70.2 and 70.1 of TX+ and TX-, is converted into an optical signal by the LED 210, and then sent to the The optical fiber to which the LED 210 is aligned.

Figures 18-21 show a plug according to yet another embodiment of the present invention, in which the same elements as in Figures 1-9 and 22 are given the same reference numerals. The plug is similar to the plug shown in FIGS. 10-14 except that the plug shown in FIGS. 18-21 includes a wire hole 1010 extending longitudinally forward from the recess 570 between the fiber holes 511 . The wire hole 1010 extends almost to the front end of the plug, but does not open at the front end 520 . The plug of FIGS. 18-21 includes a pair of insulation-displacement contacts 1012 in place of the shorting bars 540 of FIGS. 10-14. Additionally, the plug body 501 includes a pair of IDC channels 1020 extending downwardly from the top surface 522 and communicating therewith near the front end of the wire hole 1010 . In the situation shown in FIG. 20 , the insulation displacement contact 1012 is in a raised position within the IDC channel 1020 and is positioned in alignment with the guide slots 505 , 506 . Once an insulated wire is inserted into the corresponding wire hole 1010, the corresponding insulation displacement contact 1012 is moved downward to deflect the insulation surrounding each wire and make an electrical connection between the insulation displacement contact 1012 and the wire. The structure of the insulation displacement contact 1012, the guide grooves 505, 506, and the IDC channel 1020 can be the same as that adopted by a standard RJ type plug. The plug 500 of FIGS. 18-21 also has a cord strain relief member 1022 . The plug 500 shown in Figures 18-21 is for use with a fiber optic cable having both coated optical fibers and coated conductive wires. In use, the outer sheath of the cable is removed to expose the fiber as discussed above, and the fiber is inserted into the fiber hole and protrudes from the front end of the plug as discussed above. Subsequently, the coated conductive wire is inserted into the wire hole. The fiber is cut flush with the flat surface 542 of the raised portion 543 and at the same time, the insulation biasing contact is forced down through the insulation of the wire to make electrical contact with the wire. The wire strain relief 1022 is then pressed down into contact with the insulating sleeve on the wire, thereby securing the wire in place. Other strain relief elements (571-574) can lock the fiber in place in the manner described above. It is conceivable to use a tool to hold the plug 500 and perform the above-mentioned operations.

The socket 1 used for the plug shown in FIGS. 18-21 is the same as the socket 1 described above, except that the contact piece 110 is not connected to the TX+tail pin 70.2 of the socket 1 . Instead, each contact 110 is directly connected to another end pin (eg 74.5 to 74.8). When the plug shown in Figures 18-21 is inserted into the jack of socket 1, as described above, each optical fiber is in optical communication with the corresponding element of socket 1, and each contact piece 110 cooperates with a corresponding insulating offset contact piece, thus with A corresponding wire of the fiber optic cable is in electrical contact. In this way, the wires of the cable are electrically connected to the appropriate traces on the circuit board of the data communication device through corresponding end pins on the socket 1 .

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 18-21, the LED 210 remains continuously activated. In yet another embodiment shown in FIGS. 14-17 , the shorting bar in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-8 and the insulation displacement contact 1012 in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 18-21 are provided. According to this embodiment, the socket 1 comprises four contacts 110 , two of which cooperate with the shorting strip 540 and the other two cooperate with the corresponding insulation displacement contacts 1020 .

Although the above-described embodiments are desirable because they provide a particularly effective, economical and reliable design, various mechanisms may also be provided to disable the LED 210 when the plug is removed from the socket 1. For example, a sensing element coupled to a pair of switch contacts in the receptacle may be movably mounted in the receptacle, and the sensing element may be biased so that when the receptacle is in an idle state without a plug, The switch is off. Once the plug is inserted into the jack 120, the sensing element moves, the switch closes, and the LED activates. In a preferred embodiment, the contact pieces 110 shown in FIG. 1 are modified such that the first piece of the contact pieces 110 contacts the plug and is forced to mechanically cooperate with the second contact piece. In this configuration, the first contact is resiliently mounted in the jack like a conventional RJ-type socket contact, so that when the plug 500 is not inserted into the socket, the contact is biased to form an open circuit. In addition, the shorting bar 540 as described above may be replaced by a metal element integrally formed with the plug body. For example, the plug body itself may be made in whole or in part of metal and may cooperate with the sensing contacts in the same manner as the shorting bars. In yet another embodiment, the normally open plug-closed configuration provided by the shorting bar can be reversed so that the switch in the socket connected in parallel with the LED is normally closed, turning off the LED, and when a plug is inserted, the switch is off. ON to activate the LED. Additionally, LEDs can be disabled for magnetic converter circuit 700 by turning off the LEDs (via the TX+, TX- leads) when no signal is received on RX+ and RX-. Finally, the cut-off function of the LED and the wire connection function of the electrical transmission can be completely omitted.

Although described above in connection with an RJ45 type track, it should be understood that the present invention can also be used with other RJ type connectors, such as RJ11 and RJ38 type connectors and plugs.

Additionally, in another embodiment of the present invention, the receptacle may be arranged to be mounted in a mount commonly used on circuit boards of various types of connectors such as the D-subminiature connector shown in FIG. 32 . The physical dimensions of the housing of such a receptacle are preferably no larger than the dimensions of the D-subminiature connector it replaces. Such housings are usually larger than the housing of an RJ jack. In this configuration, the receptacle and the corresponding plug in the receptacle may have a structure different from that described above. Preferably, however, the same structure as described above is used so that plug 500 is compatible with all optical plugs in the system. Figure 32 shows an optical plug 500, and three D-subminiature fiber optic receptacles 1100 of different sizes. The size and trace of each socket corresponds to that of the standard D-subminiature socket it will replace. In this manner, the D-subminiature optical receptacle 1100 can pluggably replace a standard electrical D-subminiature receptacle. Each socket 1100 has a photoelectric conversion and processing circuit 1200 inside. FIG. 33 shows a schematic circuit 1200 . Circuit 1200 includes an LED 210 and a receiving photodiode mounted within receptacle 1100 to form an optical connection to plug 500 in the same manner as described above in connection with FIGS. 1-30. The loop 1200 further includes a signal processing chip 1210, such as the ACS 104 fiber optic modem manufactured by Acapella, and a rectifier diode 1220 connected to each end pin 1400. Those skilled in the art should understand that if the potential across the diode is less than a threshold (eg +0.7 volts), the diode is almost an open circuit, and if the potential across the diode is greater than the threshold, the diode is close to a short circuit. Thus, capacitor 1230 may be charged by a positive signal appearing on the input (left side) of diode 1220 . The capacitor 1230 can store the electric energy from the diode 1220 and supply the electric energy to the appropriate connector of the signal processing chip 1210 . The capacitor 1230 can also provide electrical energy for the operation of the LED 210. The electrical connections or "pins" in this circuit are indicated in conjunction with the symbol D-subpin in the figures. However, there is no D-subminiature connector in this system. The socket 1100 replaces the D-subminiature connector. The plug has pins 1400 (partially shown) in corresponding positions corresponding to the position of the pins of the D-subminiature connector. The symbolic D-subpins in Figure 10 identify which pin of the receptacle corresponds to the end pin of a conventional D-subminiature connector.

Figures 34-37 illustrate alternative strain relief elements for coated optical fibers 800, 810, in which parts that are the same as those shown in Figures 1-33 are designated with the same reference numerals. The structure of the plug 500 is substantially the same as that shown in Figs. 18-22. However, an IDM 1700 is disposed within a channel 1900 of an insulation displacement element (IDM). IDM 1700 includes a pair of offset elements 1710 and four fixation elements 1720 . Referring to FIG. 36 , the IDM 1700 is at the pre-insertion position of the IDM channel 1900 at this time. Once the optical fibers 800, 810 are inserted into the plug as described above and as shown in FIG. 36, the IDM 1700 is pressed down within the IDM channel 1900 and the biasing element 1710 pierces the insulation 940 without touching the optical fibers 910, 920. In addition, the fixation element 1720 is firmly embedded within the walls of the IDM channel 1900 when the IDM is pressed down. In this manner, the IDM 1700 can secure the optical fibers 800 , 810 within the plug 500 . With this configuration, when the conductive wire and the optical fiber are arranged in one cable, the outer cable sheath 930 can enter the recess 570, since the optical fiber has been independently fixed in front of the recess 1700 by the IDM 1700, and the conductive wire has been Independently secured in front of the recess by the IDC 1012, the strain relief elements 571-574 can cooperate with optical fibers and conductive wires, respectively.

Additionally, in the configurations shown in Figures 34-37, tension relief element 1022 may be omitted since tension relief may be provided by tension relief elements 571-574. In contrast, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 18-21 , the outer cable jacket does not enter the recess 570 . As can be clearly seen in Fig. 21, the outer cable sheath 930 is stripped outside the recess 570, and the strain relief members 571-574 are only in contact with the respective optical fibers 800, 810 and not with the outer cable sheath that contains both optical fibers and conductive wires. Set of 930 fits.

The above description mainly focuses on the case of the pluggable replacement of RJ and D-subminiature connectors of the present invention. However, it should be understood that although plug-in replacement of the electrical connector as described above has considerable advantages, according to other embodiments of the present invention, it is not necessary to configure the connector in the form of plug-in replacement. In this regard, in applications where optoelectronic sockets are installed on new equipment, it is not necessary to provide the same pin array as RJ or D-subminiature connectors, or to ensure that the external dimensions of the socket do not exceed traditional RJ-type or D-subminiature connectors. D - External dimensions of subminiature connectors. Nevertheless, this embodiment offers the advantage that an internal optical conversion element can be provided for a fiber optic connector, which can adopt the familiar mechanical designation of RJ or D-subminiature modular jacks and plugs.

Claims (46)

1. A fiber optic cable socket for use with electronic data communication devices having a circuit board and a mount on said circuit board, the circuit board having a predetermined configuration and adapted to hold a The cable connector is connected to the electronic data cable connector of the circuit board, and the optical cable socket includes: (a) a casing; (b) an electrical circuit within said housing comprising at least one photoelectric conversion device mounted within said housing; (c) a receptacle in said housing for receiving a plug on an optical cable and maintaining optical communication between at least one optical fiber in the optical cable and said at least one photoelectric conversion device; (d) a plurality of mounting contacts on said housing, which are connected to said circuit and arranged in said predetermined structure, the optical cable receptacle can be mounted on a circuit board instead of a cable connector, so that The data communication device is connected to a fiber optic data cable. 2. Optical cable socket as claimed in claim 1, is characterized in that, this socket can replace the D-subminiature electronic data cable connector of 9 pins, and the predetermined structure of described installation contact piece on the described optical cable socket and 9 The same structure as the circuit board mount contacts of the pin D-Subminiature Electronic Data Cable connector. 3. The optical cable socket as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that, the socket can replace the 15-pin D-subminiature electronic data optical cable connector, and the predetermined structure of the installation contact piece on the optical cable socket is the same as that of the 15-pin The circuit board mount contacts of the D-subminiature electronic data cable connectors have the same structure. 4. The optical cable socket as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that, the socket can replace the D-subminiature electronic data optical cable connector of 25 pins, and the predetermined structure of the mounting contacts on the optical cable socket is the same as that of the 25 pins The circuit board mount contacts of the D-subminiature electronic data cable connectors have the same structure. 5. The optical cable socket as claimed in claim 1, wherein the socket can replace the RJ-45 telephone cable connector, and the predetermined structure of the installation contacts on the optical cable socket is the same as that of the RJ-45 type telephone cable. The circuit board mount contacts on the wire connectors have the same construction. 6. The optical cable socket according to claim 1, further comprising an energy storage element installed in said housing, a device for collecting the energy of the electronic data signal transmitted from the socket, said The circuit in the housing is powered by the energy storage element. 7. The optical cable socket as claimed in claim 6, wherein the loop further comprises a signal processing element for improving the electronic data signal passing in or out of the optoelectronic element, the signal processing element is composed of The energy storage element provides electrical energy. 8. A fiber optic cable jack for use with an electronic data communication device having a circuit board and a mount on said circuit board, said circuit board having a socket for an RJ type telephone cable jack Mounting parts, the optical cable socket includes: (a) a shell; (b) an electrical circuit within said housing comprising at least one photoelectric conversion device mounted on said housing; (c) a receptacle located in said housing for engaging a plug on an optical cable and maintaining optical communication between at least one optical fiber in the optical cable and said at least one photoelectric conversion device; (d) a plurality of mounting contacts on said housing connected to said internal circuitry and arranged in a termination structure corresponding to that of an RJ-type telephone jack which may be mounted in a On the circuit board, instead of an RJ type telephone cable connector, the data communication device is connected to an optical fiber data cable. 9. The socket of claim 8, wherein said housing includes a bottom surface, said terminal contact being disposed on said bottom surface. 10. The socket of claim 9, wherein said terminal contact includes a tail pin projecting downwardly from said bottom surface. 11. The socket according to claim 10, wherein said end pins are arranged at respective positions in an array, and the array includes a front row and a rear row extending laterally along said bottom surface, said front row The longitudinal separation distance from the rear row is about 2.54mm, the spacing between each position in each row is about 2.54mm, and the respective positions of the rear row are staggered from each position of the front row by about 1.27mm. 12. The receptacle of claim 10, further comprising a conductive shield shell at least partially surrounding and enclosing said housing, said shield shell comprising a projection downwardly from the bottom surface of said housing. extended shield pin. 13. The socket according to claim 10, characterized in that it comprises a pair of fixing posts fixed to the housing and protruding downward from the bottom surface of the housing. 14. The socket according to claim 8, wherein the housing is configured to fit in a space whose length, width and height do not exceed 22mm, 23mm and 21mm respectively. 15. The socket according to claim 8, wherein said at least one photoelectric conversion device in said circuit comprises a light emitting device and a photoelectric device for receiving, and said circuit further includes a photoelectric device connected to said receiving Amplifiers for optoelectronic devices. 16. The socket as claimed in claim 15, wherein the terminal contact includes a pair of contact pieces for signal transmission and a pair of contact pieces for signal reception connected to both ends of the light emitting diode, and the amplifier has a connection In the signal input joint of the photoelectric device for receiving, a signal output joint connected to the first signal receiving contact, a local ground joint connected to the second signal receiving contact, and a connection to the signal sending A supply connection for one of the contacts, said amplifier being powered by applying a direct current potential between one of said signal transmitting contacts and said second signal receiving contact. 17. The socket according to claim 16, further comprising a main grounding object and a partial grounding object, the local grounding object being connected to the main grounding object through an induction coil in the loop, Thus, by applying a DC potential between said sending signal contact and said main ground, a DC potential can be applied. 18. The receptacle of claim 17, further comprising an electrically conductive shield shell at least partially surrounding and surrounding said housing, said shield shell defining said primary ground. 19. The jack of claim 16, further comprising an induction coil coupled between said power supply contact and one of said signaling contacts to attenuate The AC signal component of the power supply connection of the amplifier. 20. The socket of claim 1, further comprising: means for disabling at least one of said photoelectric conversion devices when no plug is inserted into said jack. 21. The socket according to claim 20, wherein said at least one photoelectric conversion device in said circuit comprises a light emitting device, and said cut-off device can make said The lighting unit is switched off. 22. The socket as claimed in claim 21, wherein said means for turning off the light-emitting device comprises a pair of sensing contacts installed in said housing and extending into said socket, when a plug is inserted When the socket is inserted, the contacts are adapted to cooperate with the plug, therefore, only when a plug is inserted into the socket, the sensing contacts are connected to each other through the plug. 23. The socket according to claim 22, wherein each of the sensing contacts is connected in series with the light emitting device. 24. The socket of claim 21, wherein said means for shutting off includes a sensing element mounted to said housing, the element being movable between an inactive position and an offset position Move, the sensing element extends into the insertion hole in the standby position, and the device for blocking also includes an elastic element for pressing the sensing element to the standby position, and a For sensing pads, at least one sensing pad is associated with said sensing element such that when said sensing element moves between said two positions, said sensing pad is opened or closed. 25. The socket of claim 24, wherein one of the sensing element, the resilient element and the sensing contact is integrally formed as a single element. 26. The receptacle of claim 1, further comprising an electrical transmission contact mounted to said housing and extending into said receptacle, said electrical transmission contact being adapted to engage said fiber optic cable plug The electrical transmission contacts are connected to some of the mounting contacts so that the receptacle can be electrically and optically connected to the optical cable. 27. The jack of claim 26, wherein the configuration and spacing of the electrical transfer contacts correspond to the configuration and spacing of the electrical transfer contacts in an RJ-type telephone cable jack. 28. A fiber optic cable outlet for use with an electronic data communication device, said fiber optic cable outlet comprising: (a) a casing; (b) an electrical circuit within said housing comprising at least one photoelectric conversion device mounted on said housing; (c) a receptacle in said housing for engaging a plug on an optical cable and maintaining optical communication between at least one optical fiber in the optical cable and said at least one optoelectronic conversion device; (d) terminal contacts located on said housing and connected to said electrical circuit so that said optical cable receptacle can be connected to a data communication device; and (e) means for turning off said at least one photoelectric conversion device when no plug is inserted into said jack. 29. The socket as claimed in claim 28, wherein said at least one photoelectric conversion device in said circuit includes a light emitting device, and said cut-off device can make said The lighting unit is switched off. 30. The socket as claimed in claim 29, wherein said means for turning off the light-emitting device comprises a pair of sensing contacts installed in said housing and extending into said socket, when a plug is inserted When the socket is inserted, the contacts are adapted to cooperate with the plug, therefore, only when a plug is inserted into the socket, the sensing contacts are connected to each other through the plug. 31. The socket according to claim 30, wherein each of the sensing contacts is connected in series with the light emitting device. 32. The socket of claim 29, wherein said means for shutting off includes a sensing element mounted to said housing, the element being movable between an inactive position and an offset position Move, the sensing element extends into the insertion hole in the standby position, and the device for blocking also includes an elastic element for pressing the sensing element to the standby position, and a For sensing pads, at least one sensing pad is associated with said sensing element such that when said sensing element moves between said two positions, said sensing pad is opened or closed. 33. The socket of claim 32, wherein one of the sensing element, the resilient element and the sensing contact is integrally formed as a single element. 34. A fiber optic cable outlet for use with an electronic data communication device, the fiber optic cable outlet comprising: (a) a casing; (b) an electrical circuit within said housing comprising at least one photoelectric conversion device mounted on said housing; (c) a receptacle in said housing for engaging a plug on an optical cable and maintaining optical communication between at least one optical fiber in the optical cable and said at least one optoelectronic conversion device; (d) terminal contacts located on said housing and connected to said electrical circuit so that said optical cable receptacle can be connected to a data communication device; and (e) an electrical transmission contact piece mounted on the housing and extending into the jack, the electrical transmission contact piece is adapted to cooperate with the electrical contact piece on the optical cable plug, the electrical transmission contact piece is connected to the some of the mounting contacts so that the receptacle can be electrically and optically connected to the optical cable. 35. A plug for terminating optical cables, comprising a plug body having a front end and a rear end, and having an outer structure adapted to be inserted into a jack of a receptacle, and the front end of the plug protrudes into the socket The plug body defines at least one optical fiber hole extending between the front end and the rear end, at least one optical fiber can be located in the hole, one end of the optical fiber is close to the front end of the body, and the optical fiber is connected from the rear end of the body protruding, the plug body has a conductive short-circuit element. 36. The plug of claim 35, wherein said body is made of a dielectric material, and the shorting element comprises a metal element disposed on said body near its front end. 37. The plug according to claim 36, wherein the plug body is substantially rectangular and solid, and has left, right, upper, and lower sides extending in the front-rear direction, and the short-circuit element is exposed on the body upper side. 38. The plug according to claim 37, wherein at least two guide grooves are provided on the top of the body near the front edge for fitting and guiding the contacts on the socket to fit the short-circuit element. 39. A plug for terminating fiber optic cables, comprising a plug body of dielectric material having a front end and a rear end and having an outer structure adapted to be inserted into a receptacle of a receptacle, and The front end of the plug extends into the jack, the plug body defines at least one optical fiber hole extending between the front end and the rear end, at least one optical fiber can be located in the hole, and one end of the optical fiber is close to the front end of the body , the optical fiber protrudes from the rear end of the body, and the plug body also has at least one wire hole extending into the body from the rear end and one or more electrical contacts mounted on the body so as to cooperate with the conductors of the wires in the wire hole The electric contact pieces are exposed on the outside of the plug body so as to cooperate with the socket contact pieces. 40. The plug of claim 39, wherein the contacts include at least two insulation offset contacts proximate the front end of the body and exposed on an upper side of the body, the upper side of the body proximate the front edge There are also guide slots to mate and guide the contacts on the receptacle to mate with the insulation-biasing contacts of the plug. 41. The plug of claim 38, wherein said plug body is substantially the size and shape of an RJ-type telephone plug, and said guide slots are spaced to correspond to the spacing of the guide slots on an RJ-type telephone plug. 42. A plug for terminating fiber optic cables, comprising a plug body having a front end and a rear end, and having an outer structure corresponding to an RJ-type telephone plug, said plug being adapted to be inserted into a receptacle and the front end of the body extends into the insertion hole, the plug body defines at least one optical fiber hole extending between the front end and the rear end, at least one optical fiber can be located in the hole, the optical fiber One end is close to the front end of the body, and the optical fiber protrudes from the rear end of the body. 43. The plug of claim 40, wherein said plug body is substantially the size and shape of an RJ-type telephone plug, and the spacing of said guide slots corresponds to the spacing of the guide slots on an RJ-type telephone plug. 44. The receptacle of claim 8, further comprising an electrical transmission contact mounted to said housing and extending into said receptacle, said electrical transmission contact being adapted to engage said fiber optic cable plug The electrical contacts on the socket are connected to some of the mounting contacts so that the receptacle can be electrically and optically connected to the optical cable. 45. The socket of claim 1, wherein the plurality of mounting contacts includes end contacts and retention posts. 46. The jack of claim 8, further comprising means for disabling said at least one photoelectric conversion device when no plug is inserted into said jack.

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