Patent Application
20250151225
The invention relates to a vented pedestal housing having an identification placard for above ground applications used in various industries.
Pedestal housings used in “outside plant” infrastructure for communications and utility companies often house active electronic components which generate heat. The temperature inside the housing increases above ambient conditions due to the heat generated from the active components as well as direct and indirect solar exposure and radiant heat from other objects around the housing. The increase in the internal temperature of the housing transfers heat to the electronic components with adverse consequences. These components tend to fail at shorter and shorter intervals with increases in temperature or operate at reduced rates. As communications companies increase data rates to customers, more active electronics are placed in the outside infrastructure and the higher data rates typically require active components that generate more heat and are more prone to temperature induced failures. There have been many attempts to mitigate the heat buildup with side venting and fans to help remove heated air from inside the housing with various degrees of success. However, the drive to more powerful electronics has created a need for better solutions to the total heating problem.
Prior solutions utilized an additional plastic part over the top of the pedestal known as an attic to improve the looks and strength of larger pedestals. It had the additional effect of adding a layer of plastic and airspace, with venting, to the upper portion of the pedestal. In the early days of cable taps and amplifiers this helped with heat load but as power levels increased and electronic components became more sensitive to temperature increases, a layer of fiberglass insulation was added to reduce heat transfer from the attic to the inside of the housing. Over the last several years the industry reached a point where those measures were no longer effective by themselves. The next phase involved much greater venting in the sides of the pedestal as well as large vent holes in the top of the pedestal but underneath the attic for weather protection. Additionally, the holes under the attic were designed to allow for direct attachment of cooling fans in extreme conditions. However, the use of fans introduced its own set of problems as they had to be powered, which increased the power transmission requirements to the pedestal, and they introduced electronic noise into the system. They were also prone to failure, which necessitated replacement and additional maintenance costs. These changes reduced the heat buildup inside the housing but were still inadequate and the use of fans was not an acceptable long-term solution.
Previously, pedestal housings have been produced with owner or industry information molded onto an upper surface of the pedestal. Molding information limits the ability to redirect product to different users or build a generic inventory to be labeled prior to delivery. Consequently, because pedestal housings are utilized across many industries and customers, manufacturers produced the pedestal housings without customer or industry specific identification. Once the pedestal housing was sold to the end customer and placed into service an identification placard was positioned thereon. Typically, the identification placard is a tag having a post which was then positioned within a hole located through the upper surface of the pedestal and a fastener was positioned on the post from the bottom surface of the upper surface to retain the tag on the pedestal housing.
A problem with this type of placard is it prevented venting out of the top surface of the pedestal. Therefore, a need exists for an improved pedestal housing design which incorporates an identification placard having the ability to vent out of the top surface of the pedestal housing.
The present invention is a pedestal housing for active electronic components which generate heat having an identification placard system designed to provide airway venting out of the top surface of the pedestal housing. The housing upper surface includes spaced ridges in which an identification placard is positioned. The housing upper surface has a hole extending therethrough for receipt of a post of the identification placard. The hole includes lobed sections spaced around the post for air passage out of the pedestal. A circumferential raised ring is positioned on the upper surface around the hole having air grooves extending to the lobed sections for passage of air exiting through the lobed sections. The exiting air then passes through openings between the spaced ridges to atmosphere. The present invention includes a fastening system for the identification placard to the pedestal housing comprising a threaded nut for engaging a threaded post, or a retaining ring or a tube and screw for an unthreaded post.
An advantage of the present invention is that it allows manufacturers, distributors, or customers to stock a common vented pedestal and then be able to add customer or specific industry identification placards. These and other aspects of the present invention will be more clearly understood by reference to the following detailed description and drawings.
The present invention includes a fastening system for the identification placard to the pedestal housing comprising a threaded nut 30 for engaging a threaded post 22. Nut 30 has a lip 32 wherein air from within the pedestal housing can escape between the lip and an inside surface 34 of the upper surface and into the lobed sections of hole 20.
The identification placard 14, 40, 50 has identifying indicia 62 on its surface, such as owner or other industry specific information. An indexing feature 64 extends from a lower surface of the placard for receipt within a bore 66 on the upper surface of the housing. The indexing feature and the bore align to one another to properly index the placard when installed into the housing.
The pedestal housing typically is made from thermoplastic materials injection molding, blow molding, rotational molding, vacuum molding, and other non-commercially available methods. The present invention is designed for airflow management.
Although the present invention has been described and illustrated with respect to a vented pedestal housing, it is to be understood that other applications of the inventive concepts are also possible such as with fiber closures, grade level boxes and vaults where airflow management is necessary. Although the present invention has been disclosed and illustrated with respect to various embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that changes and modifications can be made therein which are within the full intended scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.
