Molex Corporation

Elliot A Baines

Augusto P Panella

Jeng-De Lin

Bjarne Frederiksen

Gene Schneider

Philip Rivers

Dennis W Curtis

Scott Adams

An improved patch panel assembly includes a frame and faceplate that mate with a housing, and the housing defines a plurality of individual communication ports. The housing is mounted to the patch panel frame and includes jack openings that accommodate data jacks and circuit board openings that accommodate mating blades of circuit boards. The two sets of openings are separated on the housing by an intervening spacing and interposer terminal sets are provided to electrically interconnect the jacks with circuits on the circuit boards. The patch panel housings may be formed in discrete groupings so that, if desired, the patch panels may have ports that are grouped together by bandwidth, storage capability and the like. Inasmuch as the housings are mounted to the patch panel frames, the jacks and the circuit boards can be easily and individually replaced, repaired or upgraded with similar components without requiring disassembly of the patch panel.

Patch panel frame for circuit board module

A patch panel () for use with infrastructure management systems that utilizes a plurality of cables interconnected to end-user devices and work area outlets, and integrated circuits to monitor the status of these end-user devices and outlets includes a pair of circuit boards. A plurality of connective jacks () are mounted on the first () of the two circuit boards, and are interconnected to other network devices. Wires from the jacks extend to and connect with network devices and the first circuit board has a plurality of first integrated circuits () mounted thereon which monitor the status of the network devices connected to the jacks. The second circuit board () is spaced apart from the first circuit board and it includes a plurality of second integrated circuits () that convey the status information obtained from the network work area outlets on the network to network devices, such as switches and scanners of the network ().

Patch panel assembly for use with data networks

A termination unit () for use with a system that permits the monitoring of a computer network to perform network inventories. The termination unit takes the form of a cap that engages the termination face of a network jack and has a sensing circuit () integrated therewith so that, once engaged with the jack, the sensing circuit is connected to two terminals of the jack. The sensing circuit may include a resistor, capacitor or inductor, any of which provide a known sensing value that is different than a sensed value of an end-user device used on the network, but less than infinity so that the system senses when an end-user device is connected to or disconnected from the network.

Termination cap for use in wired network management system

A structure for use with data network management systems uses a plurality of cables interconnecting patch panels, network devices and end-user devices and further utilizes integrated circuits to monitor the status of these end-user devices. The structure includes respective primary () and secondary () circuit boards. A plurality of connective jacks () are mounted on the primary circuit board and these jacks are interconnected to switches and other patch panels within the network. Wires from the jacks extend to and connect with end-user devices and a secondary circuit board is spaced apart from the primary circuit board so as to define a hollow nest () within the patch panel assembly that houses and protects integrated circuits () and the like.

Growing community of inventors

Naperville, IL, United States of America

Elliot A Baines