Methods and apparatus for fiber-optic modules with shielded housing/covers having mixed finger types

Abstract

A fiber-optic module having a housing/shielding unit and a module chassis frame having optical, electrical and electro-optical components. The housing/shielding unit functions both as a protective outer housing and an electromagnetic shield. The housing/shielding unit includes forward fingers and backward fingers. The forward fingers provide an EMI seal around an opening in a bezel, face-plate, back-plate, wall, or panel of a host system and thereby can ground the housing/shielding unit to a chassis ground. The backward fingers can contact host tabs of the host system and can also thereby ground the housing/shielding unit to a chassis ground. The module chassis frame may be formed of a conductive material and can be grounded as well through a host system faceplate or otherwise to the chassis ground.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A fiber-optic module comprising: 
 a module chassis frame having optical, electrical, and opto-electronic components affixed therein, the optical, electrical, and opto-electronic components to process optical and electrical signals; and    a housing/shielding unit around the module chassis frame, the housing/shielding unit having a frontal opening to accept a fiber-optic cable connector, the housing/shielding unit is conductive and has one or more forward fingers and one or more backward fingers near an edge of the frontal opening to ground the housing/shielding unit and to provide an electromagnetic interference (EMI) seal around an opening in a bezel.    
     
     
         2 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the housing/shielding unit includes a front portion and a back portion.  
 
     
     
         3 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the housing/shielding unit protects the optical, electrical, and opto-electronic components and shields electromagnetic radiation.  
 
     
     
         4 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers couple to a backside surface of the faceplate near the opening, and  
 the one or more backward fingers couple to one or more host tabs of the bezel.  
 
     
     
         5 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers curve outward and forward from the edge of the frontal opening.  
 
     
     
         6 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the one or more backward fingers lift up from one or more surfaces of the housing/shielding unit and extend away from the edge of the frontal opening.  
 
     
     
         7 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the housing/shielding unit is metal, plated plastic, or conductive plastic.  
 
     
     
         8 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the module chassis frame is non-conductive and includes a pin to mount the fiber optic module to a host printed circuit board.  
 
     
     
         9 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the optical, electrical, and opto-electronic components include a transmitter subassembly and a receiver subassembly to transceive optical signals over a duplex optical fiber ribbon and the fiber optic module is a fiber-optic transceiver module.  
 
     
     
         10 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 8  wherein, 
 the fiber optic module includes a duplex SC optical connector and the fiber-optic module is a 1×9 fiber optic module.  
 
     
     
         11 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 at least one forward finger of the one or more forward fingers extends from a right side and a left side of the housing/shielding unit, and  
 at least one backward finger of the one or more backward fingers extends from a top side of the housing/shielding unit.  
 
     
     
         12 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 at least one forward finger of the one or more forward fingers extends from a right side and a left side of the housing/shielding unit, and  
 at least one backward finger of the one or more backward fingers extends from a bottom side of the housing/shielding unit.  
 
     
     
         13 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 at least one forward finger of the one or more forward fingers extends from a right side and a left side of the housing/shielding unit, and  
 at least one backward finger of the one or more backward fingers extends from a top side and a bottom side of the housing/shielding unit.  
 
     
     
         14 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 at least one backward finger of the one or more backward fingers extends from a right side and a left side of the housing/shielding unit, and  
 at least one forward finger of the one or more forward fingers extends from a top side of the housing/shielding unit.  
 
     
     
         15 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 at least one backward finger of the one or more backward fingers extends from a right side and a left side of the housing/shielding unit, and  
 at least one forward finger of the one or more forward fingers extends from a top side and a bottom side of the housing/shielding unit.  
 
     
     
         16 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the one or more fingers are equally sized and equally spaced around each side around a perimeter of the housing/shielding unit.  
 
     
     
         17 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1 , wherein 
 the housing/shielding unit further has 
 a pair of bottom side flaps, and  
 a strap and a septum coupled to the strap,  
 the strap wrapping around a part of the frontal opening and the module chassis frame, the septum to couple to the pair of bottom side flaps, the strap and the septum to hold the module chassis frame and the housing/shielding unit together.  
   
     
     
         18 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 1  wherein, 
 the housing/shielding unit is an external electromagnetic shield and the fiber-optic module further has an internal electromagnetic shield coupled to the housing/shielding unit.  
 
     
     
         19 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 18  wherein, 
 the internal electromagnetic shield is a U-plate to provide an EMI seal around an optical connector and deter electromagnetic radiation from leaking out through the frontal opening of the fiber optic module.  
 
     
     
         20 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 19  wherein, 
 the U-plate includes a flap, the flap to couple to the housing/shielding unit to ground the U-plate when the housing/shielding unit is grounded.  
 
     
     
         21 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 17  wherein, 
 the internal electromagnetic shield is a shielding collar around an opto-electronic device to shield it from electromagnetic radiation.  
 
     
     
         22 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 17  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers of the housing/shielding unit are spring loaded to flex into position and couple to a bezel, faceplate, or panel, and  
 the one or more backward fingers are spring loaded to flex into position and couple to one or more host tabs.  
 
     
     
         23 . A method of forming a shielded housing for a fiber-optic module, the method comprising: 
 forming a flat pattern of a front portion of the shielded housing from a sheet of conductive material, the flat pattern including one or more forward fingers and one or more backward fingers;    folding the flat pattern along fold lines to form flaps and sides of the shielded housing; and    bending the flat pattern along bend lines to form the one or more forward fingers and the one or more backward fingers of the shielded housing.    
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 23  further comprising: 
 providing a back portion of the shielding housing to protect components and to shield electromagnetic radiation.  
 
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 23  further comprising: 
 prior to the folding and the bending,  
 placing a flat pattern of a back portion of the shielded housing onto a chassis including an opto-electronic device to process optical and electrical signals, and  
 folding and bending the flat pattern of the back portion around the chassis to partially assemble the chassis and the shielded housing together.  
 
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 23  wherein, 
 the flat pattern of the front portion of the shielded housing further includes 
 a strap and a septum.  
 
 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 23  wherein, 
 the folding and the bending of the flat pattern forms the front portion of the shielded housing including 
 a top side,  
 a left side flap including a left wing flap, and  
 a right side flap including a right wing flap.  
 
 
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 27  wherein, 
 a strap extends from a front edge of the top side at one end,  
 and a septum extends at an opposite end of the strap.  
 
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 27  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers extend from a front edge of the top side and the bottom left side flap, and the bottom right side flap.  
 
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 27  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers extend from a front edge of the left side flap and the right side flap,  
 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 27  wherein, 
 the one or more backward fingers extend backward near a front edge from a surface of the top side.  
 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 27  wherein, 
 the one or more backward fingers extend from a surface of the left side flap and the right side flap.  
 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 23  wherein, 
 the forming of the flat pattern of the front portion of the shielded housing includes 
 etching the sheet of conductive material.  
 
 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 23  wherein, 
 the forming of the flat pattern of the front portion of the shielded housing includes 
 stamping the sheet of conductive material.  
 
 
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 23  wherein, 
 the forming of the flat pattern of the front portion of the shielded housing includes 
 cutting the sheet of conductive material.  
 
 
     
     
         36 . A front portion of a shielded housing formed by the method of  claim 23 .  
     
     
         37 . A method for assembling a fiber optic module comprising: 
 assembling optical, electrical and optical-electrical components into a chassis to form a first subassembly;    forming a back portion of a shielded housing around the first subassembly to form a second subassembly;    storing the second subassembly in inventory waiting for customer orders; and    if a customer order is received, forming a front portion of the shielded housing around the second subassembly in response thereto.    
     
     
         38 . The method of  claim 37  wherein, 
 the front portion of the shielding housing includes one or more forward fingers.  
 
     
     
         39 . The method of  claim 37  wherein, 
 the front portion of the shielding housing includes one or more backward fingers.  
 
     
     
         40 . The method of  claim 37  wherein, 
 the front portion of the shielding housing includes one or more forward fingers and one or more backward fingers.  
 
     
     
         41 . The method of  claim 40  wherein, 
 the forming of the front portion around the second subassembly includes 
 folding a left side wing and a right side wing.  
 
 
     
     
         42 . The method of  claim 41  wherein, 
 the forming of the front portion around the second subassembly further includes 
 folding a strap and a septum, the strap folded across an open end to strap the shielded housing onto the second subassembly, the septum folded into the open end to couple to a bottom side of the shielded housing.  
 
 
     
     
         43 . The method of  claim 37  wherein, 
 the forming of the front portion of the shielded housing around the second subassembly further includes 
 forming a pattern of the front portion of the shielded housing into a sheet of conductive material, the pattern including the one or more fingers near an edge,  
 folding the sheet of conductive material along a plurality fold lines, and  
 bending the one or more fingers into shape.  
 
 
     
     
         44 . A fiber optic module formed by the method of  claim 37 .  
     
     
         45 . A fiber-optic module comprising: 
 a chassis having a pair of optical connector receptacles at one end and a pair of walls coupled to a base at an opposite end, the pair of walls having slots on inside surfaces, the pair of optical connector receptacles having a rectangular opening along the width of the chassis, the base having one or more pin openings;    a printed circuit board coupled into the slots in the pair of walls of the chassis, the printed circuit board having one or more pins in the one or more pin openings in the base of the chassis, the printed circuit board having electrical components to process electrical signals of the one or more pins;    a pair of opto-electronic components having pins coupled to traces of the printed circuit board at an edge, the traces coupled to the one or more pins or the electrical components of the printed circuit board, the pair of opto-electronic components to process electrical and optical signals;    a pair of optical connectors each having an optical port with a lens, a flange, a snap lock clip, a ferrule barrel, and a recess between the optical port and the flange, the pair of optical ports of the pair of optical connectors coupled to the pair of opto-electronic components respectively at one end and each of the snap lock clip and the ferrule barrel inserted into the respective pair of optical connector receptacles of the chassis at an opposite end;    a plate having a pair of u-shaped openings and a flap, the plate inserted into the rectangular opening of the chassis, the u-shaped openings of the plate engaging the recess between the optical port and the flange in each pair of the optical connectors to hold the pair of opto-electronic components and the pair of optical connectors to the chassis;    a first portion of a shielded housing around the chassis to protect the pair of opto-electronic components and the electrical components; and    a second portion of the shielded housing around the chassis coupled to the plate, the second portion of the shielded housing having one or more forward fingers and one or more backward fingers to couple to a panel.    
     
     
         46 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the shielded housing to conduct electromagnetic radiation to ground.  
 
     
     
         47 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, the first portion of the shielded housing to protect the printed circuit board, its electrical components and the pair of opto-electronic devices coupled to the printed circuit board, 
 the second portion of the shielded housing to shield external electrical components from electromagnetic radiation generated by the pair of opto-electronic devices and the electrical components, and  
 the second portion of the shielded housing to shield the pair of opto-electronic devices and the electrical components from electromagnetic radiation generated by external electrical components.  
 
     
     
         48 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  further comprising: 
 a pair of collars around the optical ports of the pair of optical connectors, the pair of collars coupled to the plate to couple to ground, the pair of collars to shield the pair of opto-electronic devices.  
 
     
     
         49 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 48  wherein, 
 the pair of collars to shield the pair of opto-electronic devices from electromagnetic radiation generated by the other to reduce cross-talk.  
 
     
     
         50 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the pair of opto-electronic devices couple to the printed circuit board by coupling pins to traces on a top side and a bottom side of the printed circuit board in a straddle mounted configuration.  
 
     
     
         51 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the chassis is formed of a conductive material to further shield the fiber optic module.  
 
     
     
         52 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 51  wherein, 
 the chassis further has a pair of mounting pins to mount the fiber optic module to a host printed circuit board.  
 
     
     
         53 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the chassis further has a pair of mounting pins coupled to a bottom surface to mount the fiber optic module.  
 
     
     
         54 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the chassis further has a slot between the pair of optical connector receptacles.  
 
     
     
         55 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 54  wherein, 
 the front portion of the shielded housing has a strap at one end and a septum at an opposite end to hold the shielded housing around the chassis coupled, the strap engaged in the slot of the chassis between the pair of optical connector receptacles.  
 
     
     
         56 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the front portion of the shielded housing is an external electromagnetic shield and the plate is an internal electromagnetic shield coupled to the external electromagnetic shield.  
 
     
     
         57 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the pair of optical connectors are SC optical connectors and the fiber-optic module is a 1×9 fiber-optic module.  
 
     
     
         58 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers curve outward and forward from the edge.  
 
     
     
         59 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 45  wherein, 
 the one or more backward fingers lift up from one or more surfaces of the shielded housing and extend backward from the edge.  
 
     
     
         60 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 46  wherein, 
 the front portion of the shielded housing is metal, plated plastic, or conductive plastic.  
 
     
     
         61 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 46  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers are equally sized and equally spaced around a portion of the perimeter of the shielded housing.  
 
     
     
         62 . A system for providing electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding, the system comprising: 
 a module chassis frame having a front end and a back end, the front end being hollow to allow for optical, electrical and optical-electrical components to be attached therein, the back end having a pair of separately enclosed compartments, each compartment to house a transmitter subassembly and a receiver subassembly, the transmitter subassembly having a first shielding collar around the transmitter subassembly and the receiver subassembly having a second collar around the receiver subassembly;    a U-plate having a top portion and a bottom portion having a pair of U-shaped openings, the top portion including a flap, the U-plate coupled into a slot of the module chassis frame to hold and shield the transmitter subassembly and the receiver subassembly;    a first portion of an electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding box around the module chassis frame; and    a second portion of an electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding box around the module chassis frame and coupled to the U-plate, the electromagnetic interference shielding box having one or more forward fingers around its perimeter and one or more backward fingers to contact to a host system.    
     
     
         63 . The system of  claim 62  wherein, 
 the EMI shielding box protects components and shield components from electromagnetic radiation.  
 
     
     
         64 . The system of  claim 62  wherein, 
 the module chassis frame is formed of a plastic, a conductive plated plastic, or a metal.  
 
     
     
         65 . The system of  claim 62  wherein, 
 the EMI shielding box is glued to the module chassis frame.  
 
     
     
         66 . The system of  claim 62  wherein, 
 the EMI shielding box is welded to the module chassis frame.  
 
     
     
         67 . The system of  claim 62  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers and the one or more backward fingers contact a host system faceplate of the host system to minimize electromagnetic radiation leaking out of the host system.  
 
     
     
         68 . The system of  claim 62  wherein, 
 the one or more forward fingers contact a backside of the host system faceplate around an opening.  
 
     
     
         69 . The system of  claim 62  wherein, 
 the one or more backward fingers contact a surface of one or more host tabs in the host system faceplate.  
 
     
     
         70 . A fiber-optic module comprising: 
 a means for holding optical, electrical, and opto-electronic components, the optical, electrical, and opto-electronic components to process optical and electrical signals; and    a first portion of a means for shielding and housing the means for holding; and    a second portion of a means for shielding and housing the means for holding, the second portion having a frontal opening to accept a fiber-optic cable connector, the second portion of the means for shielding and housing being conductive and including 
 one or more first finger means near an edge of the frontal opening, the one or more first finger means to provide an EMI seal around an opening in a host system, and  
 one or more second finger means near an edge of the frontal opening, the one or more second finger means to provide an EMI seal around the opening in the host system.  
   
     
     
         71 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the one or more first finger means are forward fingers.  
 
     
     
         72 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the one or more second finger means are backward fingers and contact host tabs of the host system.  
 
     
     
         73 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the first and second portions of the means for shielding and housing to protect components and to shield electromagnetic radiation.  
 
     
     
         74 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the first and second portions of the means for shielding and housing protects the optical, electrical, and opto-electronic components and shields electromagnetic radiation.  
 
     
     
         75 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the first and second portions of the means for shielding and housing when coupled to ground through the one or more first finger means or the one or more second finger means, conducts electromagnetic radiation thereto.  
 
     
     
         76 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the one or more first finger means curve outward and forward from the edge of the frontal opening.  
 
     
     
         77 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the one or more second means lift up from one or more surfaces of the first portion of the shielding and housing means and extend backward from the edge of the frontal opening.  
 
     
     
         78 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the first and second portions of the means for shielding and housing is formed out of one of metal, plated plastic, and conductive plastic.  
 
     
     
         79 . The fiber-optic module of  claim 70  wherein, 
 the optical, electrical, and opto-electronic components include a transmitter subassembly and a receiver subassembly to transceive optical signals over an optical fiber and the fiber optic module is a fiber-optic transceiver module.