HK1070748B - Optical module capable of facilitating release from locking state with cage which accommodates optical module - Google Patents

Description

Optical module easy to release from locking state with cassette body accommodating optical module

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an optical module used in optical communication, and more particularly, to an optical module that can be locked in a case for accommodating a housing of the optical module.

Background

Generally, a known optical module used in optical communication includes an optical transceiver including a light emitting element and a light receiving element for performing optical-electrical conversion to perform communication through an optical fiber.

One such optical transceiver includes an optical unit including a light emitting element and a light receiving element, the optical unit being contained in a housing and configured to be removably received in a case mounted on a substrate. The housing has an electrical connector connected to the substrate so that the optical transceiver inserted into the housing has its connection terminals connectable to the electrical connector of the case. The optical transceiver thus constructed converts optical signals transmitted to and from the optical fiber into electrical signals transmitted to and from the substrate, which in turn enables optical communication.

However, if the optical transceiver is withdrawn from the cassette during operation, the communication apparatus including the optical transceiver may malfunction, needless to say, communication is interrupted halfway. For this reason, the optical transceiver must be firmly fixed within the case at least during its operation.

In recent years, industry standardization organizations have developed a standard called MSA (multi source Agreement) for SFP (Small Form-factor pluggable) transceivers, for example, for making optical transceivers provided by various companies compatible with each other. The MSA defines the shape and size of the SFP transceiver and the case for housing the SFP transceiver. According to the SFP MSA standard, a protruding latch (positive latch) is formed on the bottom surface of the optical transceiver, while the cassette is provided with a spring plate formed with a retaining hole for receiving the latch so that when the optical transceiver is inserted into the cassette, the latch of the optical transceiver can engage the retaining hole of the cassette, thereby locking the optical transceiver into the cassette. On the other hand, in order to remove the optical transceiver from the cassette, all-round means must be used to release the catch from the retaining hole of the spring plate, thereby unlocking the optical transceiver from the cassette.

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a conventional optical transceiver disclosed in U.S. patent application No.6,434,015 in a bottom-up state.

The conventional optical transceiver shown in fig. 1 includes: a housing 101 for accommodating the light emitting element and the light receiving element and formed with a detent 114; and an ejector 170 for removing the pawl 114 from the magazine holding aperture (not shown). The ejector 170 is positioned in the ejector web in the bottom 111 of the housing 101 so that the recess in the pusher plate 179 at the end of the ejector 170 enables the leading end of the ejector 170 to extend from within the ejector web to adjacent the catch 114. When the front end of the ejector 170 is protruded, the latch 114 of the optical transceiver is held in the holding hole of the reed of the cassette. The spring is flexed to release the pawl 114 from being held by the holding aperture.

Therefore, the optical transceiver can be withdrawn from the housing by pushing the push plate 179 in the direction indicated by the arrow a in fig. 1 so that the front end thereof protrudes to the vicinity of the pawl 114, and by releasing the pawl 114 from the state of being held by the holding hole formed by the spring plate passing through the cassette body.

However, SFP optical transceivers conforming to the MSA standard have a height of about 10mm and a width of about 14mm, i.e., the SFP optical transceivers themselves are small in size, so that the ejector 170 (see fig. 1) provided in such small optical transceivers must be a miniature component. For this purpose, the pusher 179 of the ejector 170 shown in fig. 1 must be pressed down with a fingertip (nail tip in some cases). However, when the optical transceiver is mounted in the cassette, there is almost no gap between the substrate on which the cassette is mounted and the bottom surface of the optical transceiver, so that the finger tips cannot successfully reach the push plate 179 of the ejector 170, and thus difficulty is encountered in performing an operation of unlocking the optical transceiver from the cassette.

Likewise, the optical transceiver shown in fig. 1 is withdrawn from the cassette in the direction indicated by arrow B, which is opposite to the direction in which the ejector 170 is pushed in (the direction indicated by arrow a). In other words, the conventional optical transceiver includes an unlocking operation and a removal of the optical transceiver from the cassette body in directions opposite to each other, so that these operations must be performed independently of each other. Finally, in order to remove the optical transceiver from the cassette body after unlocking the optical transceiver, it takes a long time and many operations are performed, which is disadvantageous.

Disclosure of Invention

It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical module that can be easily released from a locked state in which a catch is held in a holding hole and allows a user to perform an unlocking operation and an operation for removing the optical module from a cassette body by separate operations.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an optical module of the present invention includes: a housing for accommodating an element for performing optical communication, the housing having a connection port connected to a connector connected to an optical cable and having a catch held in a holding hole formed through a spring plate possessed by a box body for accommodating the housing, the connection port being located on a front end face of the housing; and an operating lever for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole leaves the pawl, wherein the operating lever includes: a shaft pivotally supported on the housing; a tongue provided at one side of the shaft; and an actuator disposed on an opposite side of the shaft with respect to the tongue, the lever being configured to pivot about the shaft in response to movement of the tongue toward the housing, so that the actuator presses the spring plate to bend in the direction, and when the connector is connected to the connection port, the tongue abuts the connector before the tongue abuts the housing to prevent the actuator from moving to a position where the holding hole is away from the detent.

Also, according to another aspect of the present invention, the optical module of the present invention has an unlocking member for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole formed through the spring plate possessed by the case body is released from the catch of the optical module, wherein the optical module is configured such that the unlocking member bends the spring plate when the case and the unlocking member are held together, so that the holding hole holding the catch is away from the catch.

The unlocking member may include a lever having a shaft pivotably supported on the housing, a tongue provided on one side of the shaft, and an actuator provided on an opposite side of the shaft with respect to the tongue, wherein the lever may be configured to pivot about the shaft in response to the tongue moving toward the housing so that the actuator presses the spring to bend in the direction, and the housing and the tongue may be held together as the tongue moves closer to the housing.

In the optical module of the present invention, when the tongue of the lever is moved toward the housing, the actuator of the lever bends the spring plate so that the holding hole in which the latch is held can be separated from the latch. Thus, by holding the case and the tongue of the lever together, the tongue of the lever being close to the case, the holding of the detent by the holding hole can be released, and subsequently, by pulling out the case, the optical module can be withdrawn from the case while the case and the tongue are still held. In this way, the optical module of the present invention allows the user to easily release the holding of the detent by the holding hole only by moving the tongue of the lever toward the housing, and also allows the user to withdraw the optical module from the case only by a simple operation of pulling out the housing while the user still holds the housing and the tongue of the lever together.

Also, the pawl and the lever may be disposed on the same surface of the housing that is formed with the lever stop surface against which the tongue abuts, and the lever may be configured to move the actuator to a position in which the retaining hole is away from the pawl when the tongue abuts the lever stop surface.

Furthermore, the housing may include a connection port on a front face thereof for connection with a connector connected to the cable, and the lever is configured such that when the connector is connected with the connection port, the tongue begins to abut the connector as the tongue moves toward the housing, thereby preventing the actuator from moving to a position where the retaining hole is away from the detent. Due to the above configuration, the user is prevented from inadvertently operating the lever to move the holding hole away from the latch, and the connector is connected to the connection port of the housing. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the user from withdrawing the optical module from the cassette during communication with the connector connected to the housing, thereby preventing communication from being interrupted halfway and the optical module from malfunctioning.

The pawl and lever may be disposed on the bottom surface of the housing and the tongue may have a weight greater than the weight of the actuator. Generally, the cassette is horizontally mounted on the base plate so that the optical module is horizontally accommodated in the cassette. Therefore, when the optical module is accommodated in the case, the lever is in a posture horizontal to the housing, in which the tongue is dropped and the actuator is raised. This posture prevents the actuator of the joystick from abutting the reed when the optical module is inserted into the cassette.

The optical module further includes a pushing member for pushing the lever in a direction in which the tongue moves away from the housing, wherein the lever maintains a posture horizontal to the housing regardless of a posture taken by the optical module, thereby making it possible to prevent the actuator of the lever from abutting against the spring plate when the optical module is inserted into the housing.

The optical module accommodated in the case may be withdrawn from the case in a forward direction of the front end surface of the housing, wherein the operating lever is movable within a range of an area in front of the front end surface of the housing. Further, the lever is movable within a range of a region defined by an extension of the top surface of the housing toward the front end surface of the housing and an extension of the bottom surface of the housing toward the front end surface of the housing.

In order to mount a plurality of optical modules in the apparatus, when the movable range of the joystick exceeds the area in front of the front end surface of the housing in consideration of the movable range of the joystick, a wide interval must be secured, so that the optical modules cannot be mounted at high density. However, when the movable range of the joystick is limited within the above-described region in front of the housing, it is not necessary to consider the movable range of the joystick when the optical module is mounted in the apparatus, thereby making it possible to arrange the optical modules at narrower intervals, thereby mounting a plurality of optical modules in the apparatus at higher density.

The present invention also provides an optical module comprising: a housing for accommodating an element for performing optical communication, the housing having a connection port connected to a connector connected to an optical cable and having a catch held in a holding hole formed through a spring plate possessed by a box body for accommodating the housing, the connection port being located on a front end face of the housing; and an unlocking member including a lever connected to a bottom surface of the housing for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole leaves the pawl, the lever including a shaft pivotably supported on the housing, a tongue provided on one side of the shaft, and an actuator provided on an opposite side of the shaft with respect to the tongue, wherein the optical module is configured such that when the unlocking member and the spring plate are held together, the unlocking member bends the spring plate so that the holding hole holding the pawl leaves the pawl, and when the connector is connected to the connection port, the tongue abuts the connector before the tongue abuts the housing to prevent the actuator from moving to a position in which the holding hole leaves the pawl.

In a method of releasing an optical module from a locked state with a case housing the optical module according to the present invention, the optical module includes: a housing for accommodating an element for performing optical communication, the housing having a connection port connected to a connector connected to an optical cable and a latch held in a holding hole, the connection port being located on a front end face of the housing, the holding hole being formed through a spring plate possessed by a box body for accommodating the housing; and an operating lever for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole leaves the pawl, the operating lever including: a shaft pivotally supported on the housing; a tongue provided at one side of the shaft; and an actuator disposed on an opposite side of the shaft relative to the tongue, the tongue abutting the connector before the tongue abuts the housing when the connector is connected to the connection port to prevent the lever from moving to a position where the retaining hole is away from the detent, the method comprising the steps of: moving the tongue toward the housing; pivoting the lever about the axis such that the actuator presses the reed to bend the reed in the direction; and releasing the holding hole in which the pawl is held from the pawl.

In another method of releasing an optical module from a locked state with a cassette according to the present invention, the optical module includes: a housing for accommodating an element for performing optical communication, the housing having a connection port connected to a connector connected to an optical cable and a latch held in a holding hole, the connection port being located on a front end face of the housing, the holding hole being formed through a spring plate possessed by a box body for accommodating the housing; and an unlocking member including a lever attached to a bottom surface of the housing for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole leaves the pawl, wherein the lever includes a shaft pivotably supported on the housing, a tongue provided on one side of the shaft, and an actuator provided on an opposite side of the shaft with respect to the tongue, the optical module is configured such that when the unlocking member and the spring plate are held together, the unlocking member bends the spring plate so that the holding hole holding the pawl leaves the pawl, and when the connector is connected to the connection port, the tongue abuts the connector before the tongue abuts the housing to prevent the actuator from moving to a position in which the holding hole leaves the pawl, the method comprising the steps of: (a) holding the housing and the unlocking member together; (b) bending the spring using the unlocking member; and (c) releasing the holding hole in which the pawl is held from the pawl.

The unlocking member may have a lever including a shaft pivotably supported on the housing, a tongue provided on one side of the shaft, and an actuator provided on an opposite side of the shaft with respect to the tongue. Wherein the step of holding the housing and the unlocking member together may comprise holding the housing and the unlocking member together with a spring adjacent the housing. Also, the step of bending the spring with the unlocking member may include pivoting the lever such that the actuator presses the spring to bend in the direction.

According to the method of the present invention, the user can easily release the holding of the pawl by the holding hole only by moving the tongue of the lever toward the housing, and also can withdraw the optical module from the case only by a simple operation of pulling out the housing while the user holds the housing and the tongue of the lever together.

Drawings

The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description made with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate examples of the present invention. Wherein, in the drawings:

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a conventional optical transceiver in a bottom-up position;

fig. 2A to 2C show illustrations of a first embodiment of an optical module according to the invention;

3A-3C show illustrations of the joystick of FIGS. 2A-2C;

fig. 4 illustrates a bottom perspective view of how the optical module shown in fig. 2A-2C is inserted into a cassette body;

FIG. 5 shows a view of the housing with the latch received in the cassette retaining aperture;

FIG. 6 shows a view of the housing releasing the catch from the retaining aperture of the housing;

FIG. 7 is a diagram depicting how the housing and lever are retained when the housing is withdrawn from the cartridge;

fig. 8A to 8C are diagrams describing a series of operations for withdrawing the optical module and the like shown in fig. 2A to 2C from the cassette body;

fig. 9 shows a diagram of a second embodiment of an optical module according to the invention;

FIGS. 10A through 10C show a graphical representation of the joystick shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 shows the view of the optical module shown in FIG. 9 when the latch of the housing is released from the retention aperture of the cassette;

fig. 12A to 12C show diagrams of a joystick in a third embodiment of an optical module according to the present invention;

FIGS. 13A-13C illustrate an exemplary modified view of the joystick shown in FIGS. 12A-12C;

fig. 14A to 14C show diagrams of another exemplary modification of the joystick shown in fig. 12A to 12C.

Detailed Description

(first embodiment)

Fig. 2A to 2C show illustrations of a first embodiment of an optical module according to the present invention, in which fig. 2A is a top view, fig. 2B is a front view, and fig. 3C is a bottom view of the optical module. Fig. 3A to 3C show illustrations of the joystick in fig. 2A and 2C, in which fig. 3A is a left side view, fig. 3B is a front view, and fig. 3C is a bottom view of the joystick.

As shown in fig. 2A to 2C, the optical module of the present embodiment includes: a housing 1, the housing 1 defining the shape of an optical module; and an operating lever 4 connected to the bottom of the housing 1 near the front end surface. An optical unit including a light emitting element and a light receiving element, such as a Laser Diode (LD) and a Photodiode (PD), is accommodated in the housing 1. The housing 1 also has a connection terminal provided on a rear end face thereof (a right end face as shown in fig. 2A to 2C) for connection to an electrical connector within the case 10 (see fig. 4) when the housing 1 is inserted into the case 10, which will be described later.

The housing 1 also has two connection ports 2a, 2b open on its front face for connection with connectors (not shown) for optical cables. The connectors of the optical cables can be connected to the optical module by inserting the connectors of the optical cables into the connection ports 2a, 2 b. Of these two connection ports 2a, 2b, an input connection port 2a is provided for a connector connecting an optical cable that applies an optical signal to the optical module, and an output connection port 2b is provided for a connector transmitting an optical signal from the optical module to an outside connection optical cable.

Although the present embodiment shows an optical module used in transmission/reception of optical signals, the optical module according to the present invention also includes an optical module used for any one of optical signal transmission, reception, and transmission/reception. There is no limitation on the number of connection ports formed on the front end surface of the housing 1.

On the bottom surface of the housing 1, the latch 3 is formed such that the latch 3 fits into the holding hole 11a of the housing 10 when the housing 1 is inserted into the box 10 (see fig. 4). A recess 6 is formed around the detent 3 on the bottom surface of the housing 1 for receiving the actuator 4c of the lever 4.

Referring now to fig. 3A to 3C, the joystick 4 includes: a tongue 4a serving as a point of application of force when the user moves the lever 4 with a finger; a shaft 4b serving as a fulcrum supported by the housing 1; and an actuator 4c serving as a load center for pushing down the reed 11, which will be described later. A plurality of narrow grooves may be formed on the bottom surface of the tongue 4a to serve as a slip prevention when a user touches the tongue 4a with a finger. The actuator 4c has a front end formed in a saw-tooth shape, surrounding three sides of the pawl 3 when the lever 4 is attached to the housing 1. The operating lever 4 in this embodiment is designed such that the part containing the tongue 4a from the shaft 4b is heavier than the part containing the actuator 4 c.

For example, the lever 4 may be manufactured by injection molding or die casting or the like so that the tongue 4a, the shaft 4b, and the actuator 4c are integrally formed. A material suitable for manufacturing the lever 4 may be a resin such as PPS (polyphenylene sulfide), or a metal such as zinc aluminum, or the like.

Referring again to fig. 2B and 2C, the shaft 4B of the operating lever 4 is pivotably supported by a shaft presser foot 5 provided on the bottom surface of the housing 1. This allows the lever 4 to pivot about the shaft 4 b.

Fig. 4 illustrates a perspective view of the optical module shown in fig. 2A to 2C as viewed from the bottom when the optical module is inserted into the housing.

As shown in fig. 4, the reed 11 is attached to the bottom surface of the case 10 for housing the optical module. The spring plate 11 is formed with a holding hole 11a for holding the catch 3 of the housing 1 therein. The holding hole 11a is provided at a position where the latch 3 is held when the housing 1 is fully inserted in the box body 10.

The case 10 placed on a substrate (not shown) has an electrical connector (not shown) connected to the substrate on the rear end portion inside the case 10. Such an electrical connector is connected with a connector (not shown) provided on the rear end face of the housing 1 when the housing 1 is fully inserted in the box body 10.

The case 10 may be made by bending a plate made of metal such as stainless steel. Also, the case 1 may be made by bending a plate made of metal such as stainless steel. In addition, the case 1 may be formed by molding using a resin such as PPS (polyphenylene sulfide), or by die casting using a metal such as zinc, aluminum, or the like, as in the case with the lever 4.

Fig. 5 shows a view of the latch 3 of the housing 1 held by the holding hole 11a of the case body 10, and fig. 6 shows a view of the latch 3 released from the holding of the holding hole 11 a. It can be seen that fig. 5 and 6 depict perspective views of some of the elements.

As shown in fig. 5, when the latch 3 of the housing 1 is held by the holding hole 11a of the case 1, the optical module is completely accommodated in the case 10.

The case 10 is generally horizontally mounted on a substrate so that the optical module is accommodated in the case 10 in a horizontal posture. As described above, since the lever 4 is designed so that the portion containing the tongue 4a from the shaft 4b is heavier than the portion containing the actuator 4c, when the optical module is accommodated in the case 10, the lever 4 takes a posture horizontal to the housing 1, the tongue 4a falls and the actuator 4c rises, as shown in fig. 5. In this example, the actuator 4C of the lever 4 is fitted in the recess 6 (see fig. 2C and 4) formed on the bottom surface of the housing 1 so as not to abut on the reed 11.

When the tongue 4a is lifted from the state shown in fig. 5, the lever 4 is rotated about the shaft 4b until the top surface of the tongue 4a abuts on the lever stopper surface 1a formed on the front portion of the bottom surface of the housing 1, as shown in fig. 6, so that the actuator 4c protrudes from the recess 6 on the bottom surface of the housing 1, thereby moving the holding hole 11a of the reed 11 to a position where the holding hole 11 is apart from the pawl 3. Subsequently, the actuator 4c pushes down the spring plate 11 of the case 10 to bend it, and the holding hole 11a in which the pawl 3 is held is separated from the pawl 3, thereby releasing the pawl 3 from the holding of the holding hole 11 a. Thus, in this state, the housing can be withdrawn from the case 10 to be removed.

When the cable connector is in connection with the connection ports 2a, 2b, if the lever 4 is lifted, the tongue 4a abuts the connector before it abuts the lever stop surface 1 a. Therefore, the actuator 4c will not move to a position where the holding hole 11a of the reed 11 is away from the pawl 3. Therefore, with this structure, when the connector is in connection with the connection ports 2a, 2b of the housing 1, it is possible to prevent the user from inadvertently operating the lever 4 so that the holding hole 11a is away from the pawl 3. It is therefore possible to prevent the user from withdrawing the optical module from the cassette 10 during communication with the connector connected to the housing 1, thereby preventing communication from being interrupted halfway and the optical module from malfunctioning.

Referring now to fig. 7, an example of how the housing 1 and the operating lever 4 are held when the housing 1 is withdrawn from the case 10 will be described.

As shown in fig. 7, in order to hold the housing 1 in the present embodiment, the user preferably holds the housing 1 together with the tongue 4a while the bottom surface of the tongue 4a of the lever 4 is supported by the thumb, pushing down the top surface of the housing 1 in the front part having the mark. In this way, the housing 1 and the operating lever 4 can be held firmly together, while the tongue 4a of the operating lever 4 abuts against the lever stop surface 1a of the housing 1. Therefore, since the housing 1 is withdrawn from the case 1 during the period in which the entire housing 1 is supported in a stable manner, no unintended external force is applied to the housing and the case 10, which would cause damage when the housing 1 is withdrawn.

In this embodiment, the operating lever 4 is made movable within a range indicated by "α" in fig. 6 in a region in front of the front end surface of the housing 1 and in a region between an extension of the top surface of the housing 1 in front of the front end surface and an extension of the bottom surface of the housing 1 in front of the front end surface (a range indicated by "β" in fig. 6).

If the movable range of the joystick exceeds the β region in front of the front end surface of the housing 1, when a plurality of optical elements are mounted in a single device, the optical modules must be disposed at a wide pitch in consideration of the movable range of the joystick 4, so that the optical modules cannot be mounted at high density. However, when the movable range of the joystick 4 is limited in the β region in front of the housing 1, the movable range of the joystick 4 does not have to be considered when mounting the optical module in the apparatus, thereby making it possible to arrange the optical modules at a narrow pitch, thereby mounting a plurality of optical modules in the apparatus at a high density.

Next, a series of operations of withdrawing the above optical module from the cassette 10 will be described with reference to fig. 8A to 8C.

Fig. 8A shows the housing 1 of the optical module accommodated in the cassette 10, in which the latch 3 located on the bottom surface of the housing 1 is held by the holding hole 11 a. The joystick 4 is sequentially held in a horizontal posture with its actuator 4C accommodated in a recess 6 (see fig. 2C) on the bottom surface of the housing 1.

When the tongue 4a of the lever 4 is lifted from the illustrated state until the tongue 4a abuts the lever stop surface 1a, as shown in fig. 4B, the lever 4 pivots about the shaft 4B, so that the actuator 4c protrudes from the recess 6 of the housing 1 and pushes down the spring plate 11 of the case 10 to bend it. Thus, the holding hole 11a is away from the pawl 3 of the housing 1, thereby releasing the holding of the pawl 3 by the holding hole 11 a.

Then, since the tongue 4a of the lever 4 is held in abutment with the lever stopper surface 1a, the optical module can be removed from the case body 10 when the housing 1 is withdrawn in the direction indicated by the arrow in fig. 8C.

When the housing 1 is withdrawn from the case 10, the actuator 4c of the lever 4 pushes the reed 11 aside from the pawl 3 so that the pawl 3 does not fit the holding hole 11a again when the housing 1 is withdrawn from the case 10. Also, after the housing 1 has been completely withdrawn from the case 10, as shown in fig. 8c, since the actuator 4c and the pawl 3 are removed from the front end of the reed 11, the reed 11 returns to its original position by its restoring force.

Since the actuator 4c of the lever 4 has a rounded front end, even if the actuator 4c protrudes from the bottom surface of the housing 1, the front end of the actuator 4c smoothly moves beyond the front end of the reed 11 when the housing 1 is inserted into the case 10. Therefore, the front end of the actuator 4c will not collide with the reed 11, so that the housing 1 cannot be inserted into the case 10.

As described above, the optical module according to the present embodiment requires only one single operation for a series of operations, i.e., releasing the holding force of the holding hole 11a on the pawl 3 to remove the housing 1 from the case 10, by the simple operation of holding the tongue 4a of the operating lever 4 and the housing 1 together and pushing the front of the housing 1, and thus it is possible to simplify the operation of removing the housing 1 from the case 10.

Also, since the optical module according to the present embodiment is designed to unlock the housing 1 from the case 10 using only the lever as its component, a feature of performing unlocking can be realized with a relatively simple structure having a smaller number of components than the conventional optical module.

Also, since the optical module according to the present embodiment is designed such that the joystick 4 is moved only in the area in front of the housing 1, a plurality of cartridges 10 can be disposed close to each other in the vertical and horizontal directions, thereby making it possible to install a plurality of optical modules in the apparatus with high density.

Also, since the optical module according to the present embodiment is designed such that the spring plate 11 of the case 10 is pushed down by projecting the actuator 4c of the joystick 4 accommodated in the recess 6 of the housing 1, the depth of the recess 6 can be substantially equal to the thickness of the actuator 4 c.

Assuming that the joystick 4 of the present embodiment has the detent 3 formed on the bottom surface of the actuator 4c so that the tongue 4a is pushed down to retract the actuator 4c deeper into the recess 6, thereby unlocking the optical module, the recess 6 has a depth that should be the sum of the thicknesses of the actuator 4c and the actuator 4c retraction stroke. Therefore, in this assumed structure, the recess 6 should be deeper, resulting in a smaller thickness of the portion of the housing 1 forming the recess, eventually reducing the strength of the housing 1.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since the depth of the recess may be substantially equal to the thickness of the actuator 4c, a certain thickness may be secured for the portion of the housing 1 where the recess 6 is formed, so that the strength of the housing 1 is not reduced.

(second embodiment)

Fig. 9 shows a diagram of a second embodiment of an optical module according to the invention. Fig. 10A to 10C show illustrations of the joystick shown in fig. 9, in which fig. 10A is a left side view, fig. 10B is a front view, and fig. 10C is a bottom view of the joystick.

The lever 4' forming part of the optical module according to the present embodiment has a cylindrical recess 4d formed on a surface opposite to the lever stopper surface 1a of the housing 1 when the optical module is accommodated in the housing 1 at a position closer to the tongue 4a from the shaft 4 b. Further, a coil spring 15 is provided between the recess 4d of the operating lever 4' and the housing 1.

Since the remaining structure of the optical module according to the second embodiment is similar to that of the optical module according to the first embodiment shown in fig. 2A to 2C, a detailed description thereof is omitted herein.

Coil spring 15 has one end fitted in recess 4d of operating lever 4 'to abut on the top surface of operating lever 4' and the other end abutting on operating lever stop surface 1a of housing 1. Since the coil spring 15 shown in fig. 9 is slightly compressed, a pushing force is applied to the operating lever 4' in the direction indicated by the arrow in fig. 9.

When the tongue 4a is lifted to pivot the operating lever 4 ', the coil spring 15 is compressed between the recess 4d of the operating lever 4' and the lever stopper surface 1a, as shown in fig. 11. The coil spring 15 used in the present embodiment generates a thrust force sufficient to keep the operating lever 4' in the horizontal posture shown in fig. 9, so that only a slight force is required to compress the coil spring 15. Thus, the user can raise the tongue 4a to the position shown in fig. 11 without actually sensing the repulsive force of the coil spring 15.

According to the optical module of the second embodiment, the coil spring 15 pushes the operating lever 4 'in a direction to move the tongue 4a of the operating lever 4' away from the lever stopper surface 1 a. Therefore, the joystick 4' maintains the position shown in fig. 9 with respect to the housing 1 regardless of the posture taken by the optical module, so that the actuator 4c is still accommodated in the recess 6. Thus, for example, when the optical module is inserted into the case 10, the actuator 4c is prevented from colliding against the spring plate 11 of the case 10, thereby allowing the user to insert the optical module into the case 10 more smoothly.

(third embodiment)

Fig. 12A to 12C are diagrams showing a joystick in a third embodiment of an optical module according to the present invention, in which fig. 12A is a left side view, fig. 12B is a front view, and fig. 12C is a bottom view of the joystick.

The lever 14 shown in fig. 12A to 12C has the tongue 4a of the lever 4 shown in fig. 3A to 3C, and the tongue 4a is hollowed out to leave the outer periphery thereof. Therefore, the weight of the tongue 14a of the lever 14 is reduced due to the hollowed-out interior, as compared with the tongue 4a of the lever 4 shown in fig. 3A to 3C.

Since the remaining structure of the optical module according to the third embodiment is similar to that of the optical module according to the first embodiment shown in fig. 3A to 3C, a detailed description thereof is omitted herein.

Since the lever 14 has a hollow tongue 14a having a similar outer shape to the tongue 4a of the lever 4 shown in fig. 3A to 3C, when the lever 14 is raised using a cable connector that remains connected to the connection ports 2a, 2b, the tongue 14a abuts the cable connector before abutting the lever stop surface 1 a. For this reason, the actuator 14 does not move to a position where the holding hole 11a of the reed 11 is away from the latch 3, thereby preventing the user from inadvertently operating the controller 14 to move the holding hole 11a away from the latch 3 while the connector is in connection with the connection ports 2a, 2b of the housing 1.

Fig. 13A to 13C are diagrams showing an exemplary modification of the joystick shown in fig. 12A to 12C, in which fig. 13A is a left side view, fig. 13B is a front view, and fig. 13C is a bottom view of the modified joystick.

The operating lever 24 shown in fig. 13A to 13C does not include a cross bar at the front end of the tongue 14a of the operating lever 14 shown in fig. 12A to 12C. Therefore, the weight of the lever 24 is further reduced as compared with the lever 14 shown in fig. 12A to 12C. Note, however, that unlike the levers 4, 14 shown in fig. 3A-3C and 12A-12C, the tongue 24a does not abut the fiber optic cable connector until it abuts lever stop surface 1a, even when the lever 24 is lifted and the fiber optic cable connector remains connected to the connection ports 2A, 2 b.

Fig. 14A to 14C are diagrams showing another exemplary modification of the joystick shown in fig. 12A to 12C, in which fig. 14A is a left side view, fig. 14B is a front view, and fig. 14C is a bottom view of the modified joystick.

The lever 34 shown in fig. 14A to 14C also does not have a cross bar located on one side of the tongue 14A of the lever 24 shown in fig. 13A to 13C. Therefore, the weight of the operating lever 34 is further reduced as compared with the operating lever 24 shown in fig. 13A to 13C. Note, however, that when the lever 24 is lifted and the cable connector remains connected to the connection ports 2a, 2b, the tongue 34a does not abut the cable connector until it abuts the lever stop surface 1 a.

Each of the lever 14 shown in fig. 12A to 12C, the lever 24 shown in fig. 13A to 13C, and the lever 34 shown in fig. 14A to 14C has a tongue 14A, 24A, 34A, respectively, with a reduced weight, so that the weight ratio of the tongue 14A, 24A, 34A to the actuator 14C, 24C, 34C is not so large that it is more difficult for the tongues 14A, 24A, 34A to fall by their weight when the optical module is placed in a horizontal position. For this reason, in the modified embodiment, the operating lever 14, 24, 34 is preferably formed with a recess in a manner similar to the operating lever shown in fig. 10A to 10C, while a coil spring is provided between the operating lever and the housing 1 so that the operating lever is pushed in a direction to move the tongue away from the operating lever stop surface 1 a.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described using specific terms, such description is for illustrative purposes only, and it is to be understood that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims (16)

1. An optical module, comprising:

a housing for accommodating an element for performing optical communication, the housing having a connection port connected to a connector connected to an optical cable and having a catch held in a holding hole formed through a spring plate possessed by a box body for accommodating the housing, the connection port being located on a front end face of the housing; and

an operating lever for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole is away from the pawl,

wherein the joystick comprises: a shaft pivotally supported on the housing; a tongue provided at one side of the shaft; and an actuator disposed on an opposite side of the shaft relative to the tongue,

the lever is configured to pivot about the shaft in response to movement of the tongue toward the housing such that the actuator presses the spring plate to bend in the direction, and

when the connector is connected to the connection port, the tongue abuts the connector before the tongue abuts the housing to prevent the actuator from moving to a position where the retaining hole is away from the detent.

2. The optical module of claim 1, wherein:

the actuator has a front end formed in a serrated shape to surround three sides of the pawl,

the pawl and the lever are disposed on the same surface of the housing, the surface of the housing being formed with a lever stop surface with which the tongue abuts, an

The lever is configured to move the actuator to a position where the retention aperture is clear of the detent when the tongue comes into abutment with the lever stop surface.

3. The optical module of claim 1, wherein the latch and the lever are disposed on a bottom surface of the housing, the tongue having a weight greater than a weight of the actuator.

4. The optical module of claim 1 further comprising

A pusher for pushing the operating lever in a direction in which the tongue leaves the housing.

5. The optical module of claim 1, wherein:

the optical module accommodated in the cassette is withdrawn from the cassette in a direction forward of a front end face of the housing, and

the operating lever is movable within a range in a region in front of the front end face of the housing.

6. The optical module of claim 5, wherein:

the lever is movable within a range within an area defined by an extension of the housing top surface in front of the housing front end surface and an extension of the housing bottom surface in front of the housing front end surface.

7. An optical module, comprising:

a housing for accommodating an element for performing optical communication, the housing having a connection port connected to a connector connected to an optical cable and having a catch held in a holding hole formed through a spring plate possessed by a box body for accommodating the housing, the connection port being located on a front end face of the housing; and

an unlocking member including a lever connected to a bottom surface of the housing for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole is away from the pawl, the lever including a shaft pivotably supported on the housing, a tongue provided on one side of the shaft, and an actuator provided on an opposite side of the shaft with respect to the tongue,

wherein the optical module is configured such that when the unlocking member and the spring are held together, the unlocking member bends the spring so that the holding hole holding the catch moves away from the catch; and is

When the connector is connected to the connection port, the tongue abuts the connector before the tongue abuts the housing to prevent the actuator from moving to a position where the retaining hole is away from the detent.

8. The optical module of claim 7, wherein:

the lever is configured to pivot about the shaft in response to movement of the tongue toward the housing such that the actuator presses the spring to bend the spring in a direction in which the retention aperture is away from the detent.

9. The optical module of claim 8, wherein:

the actuator has a front end formed in a serrated shape to surround three sides of the pawl,

the pawl and the lever are disposed on the same surface of the housing,

the surface of the housing is formed with a lever stop surface against which the tongue abuts, an

The lever is configured such that when the tongue comes into abutment with the lever stop surface, the actuator moves to a position where the retaining hole is clear of the detent.

10. The optical module of claim 8, wherein the detent is disposed on the bottom surface of the housing, the tongue having a weight greater than a weight of the actuator.

11. The optical module of claim 8 further comprising

A pusher for pushing the lever in a direction in which the tongue leaves the housing.

12. The optical module of claim 8, wherein:

the optical module accommodated in the cassette is withdrawn from the cassette in a direction forward of a front end face of the housing, and

the operating lever is movable within a range in a region in front of the front end face of the housing.

13. The optical module of claim 12, wherein:

the lever is movable within a range within an area defined by an extension of the housing top surface in front of the housing front end surface and an extension of the housing bottom surface in front of the housing front end surface.

14. A method of releasing an optical module from a locked state with a cassette housing the optical module, the optical module comprising: a housing for accommodating an element for performing optical communication, the housing having a connection port connected to a connector connected to an optical cable and a latch held in a holding hole, the connection port being located on a front end face of the housing, the holding hole being formed through a spring plate possessed by a box body for accommodating the housing; and an operating lever for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole leaves the pawl, the operating lever including: a shaft pivotally supported on the housing; a tongue provided at one side of the shaft; and an actuator disposed on an opposite side of the shaft relative to the tongue, the tongue abutting the connector before the tongue abuts the housing when the connector is connected to the connection port to prevent the lever from moving to a position where the retaining hole is away from the detent, the method comprising the steps of:

moving the tongue toward the housing;

pivoting the lever about the axis such that the actuator presses the reed to bend the reed in the direction; and

releasing the retaining hole in which the latch is retained from the latch.

15. A method of releasing an optical module from a locked state with a cassette housing the optical module, the optical module comprising: a housing for accommodating an element for performing optical communication, the housing having a connection port connected to a connector connected to an optical cable and a latch held in a holding hole, the connection port being located on a front end face of the housing, the holding hole being formed through a spring plate possessed by a box body for accommodating the housing; and an unlocking member including a lever attached to a bottom surface of the housing for bending the spring plate in a direction in which the holding hole leaves the pawl, wherein the lever includes a shaft pivotably supported on the housing, a tongue provided on one side of the shaft, and an actuator provided on an opposite side of the shaft with respect to the tongue, the optical module is configured such that when the unlocking member and the spring plate are held together, the unlocking member bends the spring plate so that the holding hole holding the pawl leaves the pawl, and when the connector is connected to the connection port, the tongue abuts the connector before the tongue abuts the housing to prevent the actuator from moving to a position in which the holding hole leaves the pawl, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) holding the housing and the unlocking member together;

(b) bending the spring using the unlocking member; and

(c) releasing the retaining hole in which the pawl is retained from the pawl.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein:

the actuator has a front end formed in a serrated shape to surround three sides of the pawl,

said step (a) includes holding said housing and said tongue together as said tongue approaches said housing; and

said step (b) includes pivoting said lever about said axis causing said actuator to depress said spring to bend said spring in a direction in which said retention aperture is spaced from said detent.