WO2011088613A1

WO2011088613A1 - Housing, optical module including housing and method of assembling optical module

Info

Publication number: WO2011088613A1
Application number: PCT/CN2010/070289
Authority: WO
Inventors: Bin Liu; Xin Liu
Original assignee: Century Man Comm. Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2010-01-20
Filing date: 2010-01-20
Publication date: 2011-07-28

Abstract

An optical module includes a housing (100) for receiving an optical component. The housing (100) includes a main housing (101) and a cover (102). The main housing (101) includes a front wall (103), a rear wall (104), a first transverse wall (105), a second transverse wall (106), and a bottom wall (107). The front wall (103) includes at least one cable entry (108) for at least one first protective tube passing through. Each protective tube is fixed through the front wall (103) and configured for receiving one first fiber optic cable of the optical component. The main housing (101) includes at least one cable exit module (109) detachably received by at least one opening (110) through the front wall (103), each cable exit module (109) has a front panel (112) with at least two holes (111) for at least two second protective tubes passing through. Each second protective tube is fixed through the cable exit module (109) and configured for receiving one second fiber optic cable of the optical component. A method of mounting the optical component into the housing is also disclosed.

Description

HOUSING, OPTICAL MODULE INCLUDING HOUSING AND METHOD OF

ASSEMBLING OPTICAL MODULE

Technical field

The present invention relates to fiber optic telecommunications equipment. More specifically, the present invention relates to a fiber optic module designed for high density applications.

Background of the invention

In telecommunications industry, the demand for high capacity is growing rapidly. This demand is being met in part by the increasing use of fiber optic transmission equipment. Even though fiber optic equipment allows higher transmission speed than traditional copper transmission equipment, the demand requires even higher levels of fiber density. This has led to the development of high-density fiber handling equipment. A fiber optic splitter is an important element of passive equipment in fiber optic communications. It is desirable to develop fiber optic splitters with high density and low volume.

Summary of the invention

The present invention proposes a housing for receiving an optical component to provide a high density optical module, especially a high density fiber optic splitter module. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a housing for receiving an optical component including a main body and at least one first fiber optic cable and a plurality of second fiber optic cables, the at least one first fiber optic cable extending from a first end of the main body, the plurality of second fiber optic cables extending from a second end of the main body opposite the first end, comprising: a main housing including a front wall, a rear wall, a first transverse wall, a second transverse wall, and a bottom wall, which cooperatively define an interior; and a cover for mounting to the main housing for closing off the interior of the main housing; the front wall including at least one cable entry, each of which for a first protective tube passing through, the protective tube fixed through the front wall and for receiving one first fiber optic cable; the main housing including at least one cable exit module detachably received by at least one opening through the front wail, each cable exit module having a front panel with at least two holes, each hole for a second protective tube passing through, the second protective tube fixed through the cable exit module and for receiving one second fiber optic cable, the cable exit module further including a bottom panel and two side panels respectively located on two side ends of the bottom panel; wherein each side wall of the opening includes two side grooves, each side panel of the cable exit module including two protuberances for mating with the two side grooves.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an optical module, comprising a housing as aforementioned; at least one first protective tube, each of which passing through one cable entry of the housing and fixed through the front wall; a plurality of second protective tubes, each of which passing through one hole of one cable exit module of the housing and fixed through the cable exit module; and an optical component including a main body and at least one first fiber optic cable and a plurality of second fiber optic cables, the main body of the optical component mounted in the interior of the housing, each of the at least one first fiber optic cable extending from a first end of the main body and received by one first protective tube fixed through the front wall of the housing, each of the plurality of second fiber optic cables extending from a second end of the main body opposite the first end and received by one second protective tube fixed through one cable exit module of the housing.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method of assembling an optical module as aforementioned, comprising the following steps: putting each of the at least one first protective tube through one cable entry through the front wall of the main housing and fixing each first protective tube on the front wall of the main housing; putting each of a plurality second protective tube through one hole of a cable exit module and fixing each second protective tube on the cable exit module; mounting the main body of the optical component into the main housing; inserting each of the at least one first fiber optic cable into one first protective tube fixed through the front wall of the main housing; inserting each second fiber optic cable into one second protective tube fixed through the at least one cable exit module; mounting the at least one cable exit module into the opening through the front wall of the main housing; and mounting the cover to the main housing for closing off the interior of the main housing.

With the housing, optical module and method provided in the present invention, a high density optical module, such like a high density optical splitter, is achieved and the second fiber optic cables of the optical module are easily managed by using the detachable cable exit module.

Brief description of the drawings

The above and other objects, characteristics and merits of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exploded view of a housing for receiving an optical component showing the interior features of the housing according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the housing in FIG. 1 with the cover mounted to the main housing;

FIG. 3 is front view of the housing in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a left side view of the housing in FIG. 2; FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the housing in FIG 2;

FIG. 6 is a rear view of the housing in FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of a cable exit module according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a front view of the cable exit module in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a left side view of the cable exit module in FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a rear view of the cable exit module in FIG. 7;

FIG. 11 is a top view of the cable exit module in FIG. 7;

FIG. 12 is a bottom view of the cable exit module in FIG. 7;

FIG 13 is a front perspective view of a cable exit module with a plurality of second protective tubes;

FIG. 14(a) is a rear perspective view of a cable exit module according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14(b) is a rear perspective view of a cable exit module according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a front perspective view of the main housing in FIG 1 ;

FIG. 16 is a rear perspective view of the main housing in FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 17 is a top view of the main housing in FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 18 is a front view of the main housing in FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 19 is a left side view of the main housing in FIG 1 ;

FIG. 20 is a schematic view of the clamp holding the main body of an optical component with a relatively small size; FIG. 21 is a schematic view of the clamp holding the main body of an optical component with a relatively large size;

FIG. 22 is a front perspective view of a fixture with three housings shown in FIG. 2 mounted thereon;

FIG. 23 is a perspective view of an optical component to be received by the housing shown in FIG. 1 ;

FIG 24 is a perspective view of an optical module comprising a housing shown in FIG. 1 and an optical component mounted within the housing with the cover removed;

FIG. 25 is a top view of the optical module in FIG. 24;

FIG 26 is a flowchart of assembling an optical module as shown in FIG.

24;

wherein same or analogous reference numerals are used to represent same or analogous step features/devices (modules) throughout the figures.

Detailed description of the embodiments

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention are described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIGS. 1 to 6 show a housing 100 for receiving an optical component 230, a schematic view of which is shown in FIG. 23.

Referring to FIG. 23, the optical component 230 includes a main body 231 and two first fiber optic cables 232 and a plurality of second fiber optic cables 233. The first fiber optic cables 232 extend from a first end 234 of the main body 231. The plurality of second fiber optic cables 233 extend from a second end 235 of the main body 231 opposite the first end 234. The plurality of second cables 233 are compacted together into a fiber optic ribbon 236 adjacent to the second end 235 of the main body 231, and then separated into a plurality of single cables 233. In one embodiment, the first and the second fiber optic cables are coated fibers (bare fibers) with a diameter of 250 Mm.

In one embodiment, the optical component 230 can be a fiber optic splitter that splits a single incoming signal into a plurality of same outgoing signals. Alternatively, the first fiber optic cable 232 can be a multi-strand optic fiber cable with a plurality of strands of optic fiber and the optical component 230 can be a fanout to separate the individual strands into each of a plurality of second fiber optic cables.

FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of a housing 100 for receiving an optical component 230 showing the interior features of the housing 100. The housing 100 includes a main housing 101 and a cover 102 for mounting to the main housing 101 for closing off the interior 190 of the main housing 101 defined by a front wall 103, a rear wall 104, a first transverse wall 105, a second transverse wall 106 and a bottom wall 107.

The main housing 101 includes at least one cable entry 108 through the front wall 103, each of which for one first protective tube 310 passing through (see FIGS. 24 and 25). The first protective tube 310 is fixed through the front wall 103 and is configured to receive one first fiber optic cable 232 of the optical component 230.

In FIGS. 1 to 3, the front wall 103 includes two cable entries 108 in the case that the optical component 230 has two first fiber optic cables, one for normal use, the other one for backup, as shown in FIG. 23. If the optical component 230 has only one first fiber optic cable, one cable entry 108 through the front wall 103 is enough.

In FIG.1, the front wall 103 defines a recess 118 where the cable entries 108 go through. The first protective tubes 310 are fixed in place by filling the recess 118 with silica gel. In another embodiment, the first protective tubes 310 can be fixed in place by filling the gap between the cable entries 108 and the first protective tubes 310 with silica gel. It is to be understood that the first protective tubes 310 can be fixed in place by other means, such as adhesive tape or a fastening structure etc.

Usually, the inner diameter of the first protective tube 310 is larger than the diameter of the first fiber optic cable 232, i.e. the first fiber optic cable 232 is inserted into the first protective tube 310 with a clearance fit. In one embodiment, the inner diameter of the first protective tube 310 is 500 μπι and the diameter of the first fiber optic cable 232 is 250 μιη. In one embodiment, the outer diameter of the first protective tube is 2 mm.

Still referring to FIG.1, the main housing 101 includes at least one cable exit module 109 detachably received by an opening 110 through the front wall 103. Each cable exit module 109 has a front panel 112 with at least two holes 111. Each hole 111 is configured to accommodate one second protective tube 320 (see FIGS. 13, 24 and 25). Each second protective tube 320 is fixed through the cable exit module 109 and configured to receive one of the plurality of second fiber optic cables 233. The second protective tubes 320 can be fixed through the cable exit module 109 by silica gel, adhesive tape or a fastening structure etc. In one embodiment, the second protective tubes 320 can be fixed in place by filling the gap between the holes 111 and the second protective tubes 320 with silica gel. The cost of fixing the second protective tubes 320 in place with silica gel is low. Usually, the inner diameter of the second protective tube 320 is larger than the diameter of the second fiber optic cable 233, i.e. the second fiber optic cable 233 is inserted into the second protective tube with a clearance fit. In one embodiment, the inner diameter of the second protective tube 320 is 500 Hm and the diameter of the second fiber optic cable 233 is 250 Hm.

In FIGS. 1 to 3, each cable exit module 109 includes eight holes 111 through the front panel 112. Two openings 110 are located on the front wall 103 of the main housing 101. Each opening 110 can receive two cable exit modules 109.

To preserve the density of the housing 100, the cable exit module 109 should be designed as small as possible. Due to the frangibility of fiber optic cable, small cable exit module 109 integrally formed on the front wall 103 makes it difficult to mount the optical component 230 in the housing 100, especially make it difficult to insert each of the second fiber optic cables 233 into the second protective tube 320 through the holes 111 on the cable exit module 109. Therefore the cable exit module 109 of the present invention is designed to be detachably received by the opening 110 through the front wall 103 to facilitate mounting of the optical component 230. The method of mounting the optical component 230 in the housing 100 will be described in further detail below.

FIGS. 7 to 12 illustrate one cable exit module 109 according to one embodiment of the present invention. The cable exit module 109 has a front panel 112 with eight holes 111 arranged in four columns 704 to accommodate eight second protective tubes 320. Advantageously, the distance from the centre of a hole 111-1 to an adjacent hole 111-2 (see FIG. 8) is less than one and a half times of the outer diameter of one second protective tube 320. In one embodiment, the outer diameter of one second protective tube is 2 mm. The distance from the centre of a hole l l l-l to the centre of an adjacent hole 111-2 is one and a quarter times of the diameter of the second protective tube 320. In the FIGS. 1, 7, 8 and 13, the hole 111 is a regular octagon in shape. In another embodiment, the shape of the hole 111 can be square or round. It is to be understood that the shape of the hole can be of various types, and is not limited to the shapes mentioned above. Optionally, the cable exit module 109 can further include an integrally formed holder 701 below the holes 111 and extending towards the interior 190 of the housing 100 for supporting the second fiber optic cables 233 received by the second protective tube 320 fixed through the holes 111, as shown in FIG 7. Referring to FIG 7, the holder 701 includes a bottom panel 706 and two side panels 707 respectively located on two side ends of the bottom panel 706, which makes the insertion and the fixing of the protective tube 320 easy. A plurality of grooves 702 are formed on the surface of the bottom panel 706 for mating with the second protective tubes 320. Silica gel can be applied to fix the second protective tubes 320 in the grooves 702. The holder 701 can further include a plurality of bulkheads 703 fixed on the bottom panel 706 for separating second fiber optic cables 233 passing each column 704 of holes 111. In one embodiment, each bulkhead 703 is located between two grooves 702.

On each of the two side panels 707 are two protuberances 705 for mating with two side grooves 113 formed on one of the two opposing side walls 119 of the opening 110 (see FIGS. 1), which makes the mounting of the cable exit module 109 to the opening 110 through the front wall 103 easy and the cost is low. It is to be noted that a plurality of ways can be used to mount the cable exit module 109 into the opening 110 through the front wall 103 of the main housing 101. The protuberances 705 and side grooves 113 are only for purpose of illustration and the number of protuberances 705 and side grooves 113 is not limited.

The cable exit module 109 can be mounted upside down, as shown in FIGS. 1, 15 and 16. In case of such situation, the second fiber optic cables 233 passing through the holes 111 can be supported by the bottom of the front wall 103 or by the holder of another cable exit module mounted below.

It is to be noted that holder 701 shown in FIGS. 7 to 12 is for purpose of illustration only. The holder 701 can be of various shapes. For example, the holder 701 can be a mere bottom panel 706. The shape of the bottom panel 706 can be flat or curved, as shown in FIGS. 14(a) and 14(b).

It is to be noted that the four cable exit modules 109 shown in FIG. 1 can be formed integrally as one cable exit module. The total number of holes 111 on the cable exit modules 109 can vary depending on different capacity demands and each cable exit module 109 can have different number of holes depending on different design strategy, such as easy management of cables etc.

FIGS. 15 to 19 show the main housing 101 according to one embodiment of the present invention. In one embodiment, the main housing 101 shown in FIGS. 15 to 19 is a one-piece housing. Referring to FIG. 15 which shows a perspective view of the main housing 101 , adjacent to the first transverse wall 105 is an integrally formed clamp 114 located on the bottom wall 107. The clamp 114 and the first transverse wall 105 define a recess 115 for holding the main body 231 of the optical component 230, as shown in FIGS. 24 and 25. The clamp 114 includes two flexible cantilever arms 116 respectively located on two ends 117 of the clamp 114 and extending toward the first transverse wall 105 for holding the main body 231 of the optical component 230 with different size, as shown in FIGS. 20 and 21. FIG. 20 shows a schematic view of the clamp 114 holding the main body 231 of an optical component 230 with a relatively small size. FIG. 21 shows a schematic view of the clamp 231 holding the main body 231 of an optical component 230 with a relatively large size. It can be seen that the cantilever arms 116 is deformed to hold the large sized main body 231.

Still referring to FIGS. 15 to 19, inside the interior 190 of the main housing 101 are two cable management structures located on the bottom wall 107 of the main housing 101, a first cable management structure for guiding at least one first fiber optic cable 232 extending between the at least one cable entry 108 and the main body 231 of the optical component 230, and a second cable management structure for guiding the plurality of second fiber optic cables 233 extending between the main body 231 of the optical component 230 and the at least one cable exit module 1 9.

The first cable management structure includes a first radius limiter 121 and a second radius limiter 122. Referring to FIGS. 24 and 25, the two first fiber optic cables 232, as they extend from the first end 234 of the main body 231 of the optical component 230, are looped around the first radius limiter 121 and then looped around the second radius limiter 122 before passing through the two cable entries 108. The second fiber optic cables 233 extend from the second end 235 of the main body 231 of the optical component 230 and are looped around the second radius limiter 122 before heading toward cable exit modules 109.

Still referring to FIGS. 15 to 17, optionally, the interior 190 of the main housing 101 also includes four thin walls located on the bottom wall 107 defining two cable guiding channels for receiving second fiber optic cables 233 extending from the second radius limiter 122. The first thin wall 123 and the second thin wall 124 define a first cable guiding channel 125 for receiving one part of the second fiber optic cables 233. The third thin wall 126 and the fourth thin wall 127 define a second cable guiding channel 128 for receiving the other part of the second fiber optic cables 233. The first thin wall 123 and the second transverse wall 106 define a third cable guiding channel 129 for receiving the two first fiber optic cables 232 extending from the first radius limiter 121.

It is to be noted that the routing of the first and the second fiber optic cables within the interior 190 of the main housing 101 is only one example and there are other ways of routing the first and the second fiber optic cables within the interior 190 of the main housing 101.

Referring to FIGS. 15 to 17, the two first fiber optic cables 232 and the second fiber optic cables 233 are prevented from moving upward by a plurality of lugs 130. The lugs 130 can be located on top end of each thin wall 123, 124, 126 and 127. On top end of the second radius limiter 122 are also four lugs 130 for preventing the cables from moving upward. There are also two lugs 130 respectively located on the inner side of the rear wall 104 and the second transverse wall 106. It is to be noted that the location of lugs 130 in FIGS. 15 to 17 are for purpose of illustration only. The lugs 130 can be located at any place where the fiber optic cables pass by.

It is to be noted that the cable guiding channels in FIGS. 15 to 17 are for purpose of illustration only. In one embodiment, only one cable guiding channel is designed for receiving the plurality of second fiber optic cables 233. The plurality of second fiber optic cables 233 can be prevented from moving upward by a cover mounted onto the channel.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 15 to 17, six protrusions 131 are formed on the bottom wall 107 of the main housing 101. In each protrusion is a first fastener hole 132 for receiving a fastener (e.g., a thumbscrew, not shown in the FIGS.) for mounting the cover 102 to the main housing 101. Six corresponding second fastener holes 133 are located through the cover 102, as shown in FIG. 2. In FIGS. 1 and 2 , the first and the second fastener holes 132 and 133 are configured to receive a screw-type fastener. It is to be noted that in other embodiments, other types of fastening structures can be used to mount the cover 102 to the main housing 101.

On the outer surface of each of the first and the second transverse walls 105, 106 is a guide rail 135 for the housing 100 to be slidably received by a fixture 210, as shown in FIG. 22. The fixture 210 accommodates three housings 100. For each housing 100, the fixture 210 has two slots 211 respectively located on inner side of two opposite transverse walls 212, which form two tracks mating with the pair of rails 135.

It will be appreciated that the fixture 210 in FIG. 22 is for purpose of illustration only. The fixture 210 can be designed to accommodate any number of the housings 100. The housing 100 with the optical component 230 mounted thereon can be mounted to any other telecommunication assembly desired.

For easy mounting and withdrawal, the main housing 101 includes at least one handle 141 extending from the front wall 103 toward the outside of the housing 100. In FIGS. 1 to 2 and FIGS. 15 to 17, the main housing 101 includes two handles 141 respectively located two ends of the front wall 103 and extending from the front wall 103 toward the outside of the housing 100. The handles 141 can be integrally formed with the main housing 101, or can be mounted to the front wall 103 of the main housing 101 by a releasable latch or a fastener (not shown in the FIGS.). In addition, the shape of the handles 141 is not limited to the shape shown in the FIGS. 1, 2 and 15 to 17. The handles 141 can be of various shapes for easy holding by a user's hands.

FIG 26 shows a flowchart of assembling an optical module 240 shown in FIGS. 24 and 25.

Firstly, in step S2601 , putting each of the at least one first protective tube 310 through one cable entry 108 through the front wall 103 of the main housing 101 and fixing each first protective tube 310 through the front wall 103 of the main housing 101, as shown in FIGS. 24 and 25.

Secondly, in step S2602, putting each of a plurality second protective tubes 320 through one hole of a cable exit module 109 and fixing each second protective tube 320 through the cable exit module 109, as shown in FIGS. 13, 24 and 25.

Thirdly, in step S2603, mounting the main body 231 of the optical component 230 into the main housing 101. In one embodiment, the main body 231 of the optical component 230 is held by the clamp 114 located on the bottom wall 107 of the main housing 101, as shown in FIG. 24.

Then, in step S2604, inserting each of the at least one first fiber optic cable 232 into one first protective tube 310 fixed through the front wall 103 of the main housing 101.

In step S2605, inserting each second fiber optic cable 233 into one second protective tube 320 fixed through the at least one cable exit module 109.

In step S2606, mounting the at least one cable exit module 109 into the opening 110 through the front wall 103 of the main housing 101.

In step S2607, mounting the cover 102 to the main housing 101 for closing off the interior 190 of the main housing 101.

Optionally, after step S2604 and S2605, each of the at least one first fiber optic cable 232 inserted into the first protective tube 310 can be terminated with a first connector 330, such as a FC-type or SC-type connector etc. Each of the plurality of second fiber optic cables 233 inserted into the first protective tubes 320 can be terminated with a second connector 340, such as a FC-type or SC-type connector etc. The first connector 330 and the second connector 340 can be of different type or same type. In FIGS. 24 and 25, both the first connector and the second connector are a SC-type connector.

It is to be noted that the sequence shown in FIG. 26 is for purpose of illustration only. There is no sequence limitation among step S2601, step S2602 and step S2603. There is also no sequence limitation between step S2604 and step S2605.

It should be noted that the above-described embodiments is for purpose of illustration only and not to be construed as limitation of the invention. All such modifications which do not depart from the spirit of the invention are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. In the claims, any reference signs placed between parentheses shall not be construed as limiting the claim. The word "comprising" does not exclude the presence of elements or steps not listed in a claim or in the description. The word "a" or "an" preceding an element does not exclude the presence of a plurality of such elements. In the apparatus claims enumerating several units, several of these units can be embodied by one and the same item of hardware or software. The usage of the words first, second and third, et cetera, does not indicate any ordering. These words are to be interpreted as names.

Claims

What is claimed is

1. A housing for receiving an optical component including a main body and at least one first fiber optic cable and a plurality of second fiber optic cables, the at least one first fiber optic cable extending from a first end of the main body, the plurality of second fiber optic cables extending from a second end of the main body opposite the first end, comprising:

a main housing including a front wall, a rear wall, a first transverse wall, a second transverse wall, and a bottom wall, which cooperatively define an interior; and

a cover for mounting to the main housing for closing off the interior of the main housing;

wherein the front wall includes at least one cable entry, each of which for a first protective tube passing through, the protective tube fixed through the front wall and for receiving one of the at least one first fiber optic cable; the main housing including at least one cable exit module detachably received by at least one opening through the front wall, each cable exit module having a front panel with at least two holes, each hole for a second protective tube passing through, the second protective tube fixed through the cable exit module and for receiving one of the plurality of second fiber optic cables, the cable exit module further including a bottom panel and two side panels respectively located on two side ends of the bottom panel; wherein each side wall of the opening includes two side grooves, each side panel of the cable exit module including two protuberances for mating with the two side grooves.

2. A housing according to claim 1, wherein the distance from the centre of a hole to the centre of an adjacent hole is less than one and a half times of the outer diameter of one second protective tube.

3. A housing according to claim 1, wherein the bottom panel includes a plurality of grooves on the surface of the bottom panel for mating with the plurality of second protective tubes.

4. A housing according to claim 1, wherein each cable exit module includes a plurality of bulkheads located on the bottom panel.

5. A housing according to claim 1, further comprising:

an integrally formed clamp located on the bottom wall, the clamp and the first transverse wall defining a recess for holding the main body of optical component.

6. A housing according to claim 5, wherein the clamp includes two flexible cantilever arms respectively located on two ends of the clamp and extending toward the first transverse wall for holding the main body of the optical component with different size.

7. A housing according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first cable management structure located on the bottom wall for guiding the at least one first fiber optic cable extending between the at least one cable entry and the main body of optical component; and

a second cable management structure located on the bottom wall for guiding the plurality of second fiber optic cables extending between the main body of optical component and the at least one cable exit module.

8. A housing according to claim 7, wherein the first cable management structure includes a first radius limiter and a second radius limiter.

9. A housing according to claim 7, wherein the second cable management structure includes a second radius limiter.

10. A housing according to claim 9, wherein the second cable management structure further includes at least one cable guiding channel.

11. A housing according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a pair of guide rails respectively located on the outer surface of the first and the second transverse walls for the housing to be slidably received by a fixture.

12. A housing according to claim 1, further comprising:

at least one handle extending from the front wall toward the outside of the housing.

13. A housing according to claim 1, wherein the front wall includes two openings and the main housing includes four cable exit modules, each opening configured to receive two cable exit modules.

14. A housing according to claim 1, wherein each cable exit module includes eight holes through the front panel.

15. An optical module, comprising:

a housing according to claims 1 to 14;

at least one first protective tube, each of which passing through one cable entry of the housing and fixed through the front wall;

a plurality of second protective tubes, each of which passing through one hole of one cable exit module of the housing and fixed through the cable exit module; and

an optical component including a main body and at least one first fiber optic cable and a plurality of second fiber optic cables, the main body of the optical component mounted in the interior of the housing, each of the at least one first fiber optic cable extending from a first end of the main body and received by one of the at least one first protective tube fixed through the front wall of the housing, each of the plurality of second fiber optic cables extending from a second end of the main body opposite the first end and received by one of the plurality of second protective tubes fixed through one cable exit module of the housing.

16. An optical module according to claim 15, wherein each first fiber optic cable inserted into the first protective tube is terminated with a first connector and each second fiber optic cable inserted into the second protective tube is terminated with a second connector.

17. An optical module according to claim 15, wherein the optical component is an optical splitter splitting a single incoming signal into a plurality of same outgoing signals.

18. A method of assembling an optical module according to claim 16, comprising the following steps:

- putting each first protective tube through one cable entry through the front wall of the main housing and fixing each first protective tube on the front wall of the main housing;

- putting each second protective tube through one hole of the at least one cable exit module and fixing each second protective tube on the cable exit module;

- mounting the main body of the optical component into the main housing;

- inserting each first fiber optic cable into one first protective tube fixed through the front wall of the main housing;

- inserting each second fiber optic cable into one second protective tube fixed through the at least one cable exit module;

- mounting the at least one cable exit module into the opening through the front wall of the main housing; and

- mounting the cover to the main housing for closing off the interior of the main housing.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the step of mounting the main body of the optical component into the main housing comprises:

- mounting the main body of the optical component into the main housing by using the clamp on the bottom wall of the main housing to hold the main body of the optical component.

20. The method according to claim 18, further comprising the following steps:

- terminating each first fiber optic cable inserted into the first protective tube by using a first connector; and

- terminating each second fiber optic cables inserted into the second protective tube by using a second connector.