Unlatching mechanism for an optical transceiver

1. An optical transceiver for insertion into a mounting cage, of the type including at least one spring finger extending into engagement with at least one abutment surface on the optical transceiver, comprising:

at least one optical sub-assembly for converting an optical signal into an electrical signal or for converting an electrical signal into an optical signal;

a housing for supporting each optical sub-assembly;

at least one optical connector port for receiving an optical fiber;

an electrical connector for transmitting electrical signals to and from each optical sub-assembly;

a sliding member reciprocatable on said housing between a latched and an unlatched position;

at least one camming member extending from said sliding member;

a bail handle pivotally mounted on said housing and engaged with said sliding member;

whereby rotation of said bail handle reciprocates said sliding member causing said camming member to disengage each spring finger from each abutment surface enabling the optical transceiver to be removed from the mounting cage.

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the bail handle includes an arcuate portion; and wherein the sliding member includes a projection, around which the arcuate portion extends; whereby force applied to rotate said bail handle is transferred from the arcuate portion to the projection, thereby reciprocating said sliding member.

3. The device according to claim 2 , wherein the bail handle includes a pair of 90° bends therein forming a pair of bearing shafts, which define an axis of rotation of the bail handle.

4. The device according to claim 1 , further comprising a return spring extending between the housing and the sliding member for biasing the sliding member into the latched position.

5. The device according to claim 4 , wherein the return spring is comprised of a Y-shaped spring member, with one arm of the spring member for contacting the sliding member and one arm for contacting the housing.

6. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the sliding member comprises first and second sliding arms and a cross brace extending between the first and second sliding arms.

7. The device according to claim 6 , further comprising first and second channels, in opposite sides of the housing, for receiving the first and second sliding arms, respectively, flush with the sides of the housing, facilitating easy insertion and withdrawal of the housing from the mounting cage.

8. The device according to claim 7 , wherein the at least one abutment surface comprises first and second abutment surfaces at the end of the first and second channels, respectively; wherein the at least one spring finger comprises first and second spring fingers extending from opposite sides of the cage; and wherein each of the first and second sliding arms includes a bent portion for extending inwardly from the sides of the housing enabling the first and second spring fingers to engage the first and second abutment surfaces, respectively.

9. The device according to claim 8 , wherein the at least one camming member comprises first and second camming members extending from the first and second sliding arms, respectively; and wherein the first and second camming members extend from the bent portions.

10. The device according to claim 6 , further comprising a return spring extending between the housing and the sliding member for biasing the sliding member into the latched position.

11. The device according to claim 10 , wherein the return spring extends from the cross brace into contact with the housing.

12. The device according to claim 11 , wherein the return spring is comprised of a Y-shaped spring member, with one arm of the spring member for contacting the cross brace and one arm for contacting the housing.

13. The device according to claim 6 , wherein the bail handle includes first and second arcuate sections; wherein the first sliding arm includes a first projections, and the second sliding arms includes a second projection; and wherein the first and second arcuate sections extend around the first and second projections, respectively; whereby force applied to rotate said bail handle is transferred from the first and second arcuate sections to the first and second projections, thereby reciprocating said sliding member.

14. The device according to claim 6 , wherein the bail handle includes a pair of 90° bends therein forming a pair of bearing shafts, which define an axis of rotation of the bail handle.

15. An unlatching mechanism for an opto-electronic device, of the type which is mountable in a cage attached to a circuit board in a host device, the cage having at least one spring finger for extending into contact with an abutment surface on a housing of the opto-electronic device, the unlatching mechanism comprising:

a sliding member reciprocatable on the housing between a latched and an unlatched position;

at least one camming member extending from said sliding member;

a bail handle pivotally mounted on the housing and engaged with said sliding member;

whereby rotation of said bail handle reciprocates said sliding member causing said camming member to disengage each spring finger from each abutment surface enabling the opto-electronic device to be removed from the cage.

16. The mechanism according to claim 15 , wherein the bail handle includes an arcuate portion; and wherein the sliding member includes a projection, around which the arcuate portion extends; whereby force applied to rotate said bail handle is transferred from the arcuate portion to the projection, thereby reciprocating said sliding member.

17. The mechanism according to claim 15 , further comprising a return spring extending between the housing and the sliding member for biasing the sliding member into the latched position.

18. The mechanism according to claim 16 , wherein the return spring is comprised of a Y-shaped spring member, with one arm of the spring member for contacting the sliding member and one arm for contacting the housing.

19. The mechanism according to claim 15 , wherein the sliding member comprises first and second sliding arms and a cross brace extending between the first and second sliding arms.

20. The device according to claim 15 , wherein the bail handle includes a pair of 90° bends therein forming a pair of bearing shafts, which define an axis of rotation of the bail handle.