RACK board – sistem de montaj vertical în cabinete RACK

In September 2018, the management of DIPOL set the following task for the company’s Technical Department: Due to the fact that RACK cabinets have become a standard for communication installations in buildings, it is necessary to develop a system for mounting TERRA multiswitch equipment in RACK cabinets. Engineers from the DIPOL’s technical department have developed the integrated solution for mounting various devices on the surfaces of vertical planes in RACK cabinets for a month. The RACK board solution was ready to be presented to the public at Energetab 2018 trade fair. The solution met with enthusiastic reception from the installers who visited our stand.

The RACK board vertical assembly system is ideal for installing multiswitches, signal amplifiers, splitters etc. in RACK cabinets. The elements of the multiswitch system mounted on ZMB-1-800 panels located on the sides of the cabinet can feed up to 256 subscriber outlets.

RACK board allows installers to make use both of the front and side surfaces of 19″ RACK cabinets, which are accessible after dismantling the side walls. The solution enables unprecedented volume filling factor of the cabinets, while maintaining good access to all signal distribution devices, with proper ventilation, connection transparency, application of patch panels to connect all inbound and outbound cables. All the features make it easy for technicians to diagnose the network during operation.

Below we present various possibilities of mounting devices in RACK cabinets. We do not suggest a specific solution. In every case, the main indications should always be the compliance with standards, requirements for each device, and assembly convenience.

Main features of the RACK BOARD vertical mounting system:

• Predefined installation sets for individual equipment configurations enable simple and quick assembly.

• RACK board mounting panels allow for installing the equipment items and cables so that the components are placed in a clear and aesthetic way. The highly professional solution ensures that the longer cables are hidden in the middle part of the cabinet, whereas the connections and the devices are easily available (in opposite to placing such devices horizontally). This improves the equipment cooling and facilitates measurement and adjustment procedures.

• The RACK board system is a universal solution – originally dedicated for Terra equipment, it can be easily adopted for use in GSM (repeaters), network (routers and switches) and other applications.

• Because every device in the RACK board system is placed vertically and it does not adhere to any other device or element of the RACK cabinet, it is naturally cooled by the air circulation inside the cabinet.

• Each device has its own mounting panel and the spaces between devices allow for easy wiring.

• Hardware components of RACK board system:
• ZMB series – side assembly components for installing on the side surfaces of large standing cabinets. Currently, we offer panels for mounting in 800 x 600 cabinets.
• ZMC series – front assembly components that can be installed together with ZMB panels.
• ZMD series – front assembly components for hanging or standing cabinets (cannot be used with ZMB series due to 19” width).

• With the RACK board system the installer can make use not only of the front of a RACK cabinet (rails with 19″ spacing) but also of the side spaces – the access to those devices is obtained by dismantling side walls of the RACK. The ZMB side assembly is mounted (on the left and/or right side) to the front and rear RACK rail. Currently we offer the ZMB-1-800 assembly for 600×800 mm standing RACK cabinets.

• The installer can use ZMC front-mount assemblies in several versions. They allow for installing in the front part of the cabinet both the 19’’ standard devices but also other equipment mounted on the EURO TH35 rail or on vertical planes..

• The elements of the RACK board system are mounted to RACK rails with the included M6 screws and caged nuts.

• The elements of the RACK board system are made of hard aluminum sheets PA11 (DIN, ISO: AlMg3), powder painted in RAL9004 color. If the prepared mounting holes do not fit the mounted equipment, it is easy to drill new ones.

• ZMD front assembly components are dedicated for hanging or standing cabinets (cannot be used with ZMB series due to 19” width).

• The cables providing signals from antennas are connected to the patch panel with F connectors which, via bridges, transmits the signals to a next patch panel and the required devices. By taking the connection bridges, the installer/technician can measure the input signal in any path.

• All outbound cables are also connected to panels with F connectors. Each connector can be marked with the number of the corresponding apartment, which helps to perform diagnostics of the whole distribution network, beginning with the measurements of the output signals.

Side assembly component ZMB-1-800 R77105 is used for mounting devices vertically. The component is mounted on the front and rear RACK rail (left or right). Suitable for mounting in standing 600 x 800 mm RACK cabinets with removable side walls – it provides free access to installed devices. We recommend to use it in 32U R912013 and 42U R912014 RACK cabinets.

Side assembly component ZMB-1-800 R77105 for 800 x 600 standing cabinet

The assembly panel is made of PA11 aluminum sheet (1.5 mm thick) with size of 200 x 530 mm. The panel has four mounting holes with 6 mm diameter (180 x 120 mm spacing) dedicated for Terra multiswitches MV-532L R70732, MV-932L R70882. The kit includes four M5x10 machine screws with nuts. In the case of using other multiswitches, one has to drill the appropriate holes.

The ZMB panels should be mounted with 70 – 150 mm vertical spacing (so, the modules should be installed every 6U – 8U) in order to ensure good wiring conditions. For example, a 32-output multiswitch for two satellite positions needs as many as 41 cable connections, and the minimum bending radius of the TRISET-113 E1015_500 cable is 35 mm (in the case of such fixed connections).

Mounting the ZMB-1-800 assembly to the RACK rail

The ZMB-1-800 R77105 side assembly is pre-assembled, the angle brackets are attached to the panel with screws. The screw connections should be loosened to adjust the spacing between the brackets so that they match the span of the front and rear rail of the cabinet. The assembly provides 22 mm adjustment range. The maximum span is 570 mm, which corresponds with the maximum span of the front and rear RACK rails in a standing cabinet with a depth of 800 mm. The brackets should be screwed to the RACK rails at the selected level of the cabinet, using the caged nuts included in the ZMB set.

Front assembly component ZMC-1

The ZMC-1 R77210 component is a EURO TH35 rail with a length of 380 mm, receding by 100 mm in relation to the front of the RACK cabinet. The element is made of hard aluminum (PA11) sheet with 2 mm thickness. The maximum allowable load, with evenly distributed devices, is 12 kg. The kit includes four caged nuts for mounting the element in the cabinet.

Example application of the ZMC-1 component of the RACK board system

The ZMC-1 R77210 component is dedicated for mounting devices on EURO TH35 rail. Some examples: TERRA channel amplifiers, transmodulators, channel converters, thermostats.

Front assembly component ZMC-2

The ZMC-2 R77220 component is used in a situation where, next to a few devices (length of the TH35 rail is 190 mm) mounted on the EURO rail, other devices should be mounted vertically. The component has a width of 180 mm and a height of 170 mm. It is made of hard PA11 aluminum sheet with a thickness of 1.5 mm. Thanks to this, it has sufficient stiffness and at the same time the material allows for easy drilling of the necessary assembly holes. The vertical panel of the ZMC-2 assembly has two holes for keystone modules. ZMC-2 can be loaded with evenly distributed devices with a total weight of 12 kg. The kit includes four caged nuts for mounting the component in the cabinet.

Example application of the ZMC-2 component of the RACK board system

For example, the ZMC-2 component can be used for mounting TERRA at440 R82511, TERRA ma400 R82520 and DR-60-12 R82532 devices on the EURO TH35 rail, and two optical receivers TERRA OR501W QUATRO A9877 on the vertical panel, which are connected via optical patch cords with keystone sockets.

Front assembly component ZMC-3

Aside a short (190 mm) EURO rail, the ZMC-3 R77230 component has a panel with 12 holes for keystone modules. This arrangement gives the possibility of better space management in the RACK cabinet when only few devices should be mounted on the EURO rail, whereas it is necessary to mount up to 12 keystone modules, e.g. of various types.

Example application of the ZMC-3 component of the RACK board system

Front assembly component ZMC-4

The ZMC-4 R77240 panel has a 380×170 mm panel retracted by 100 mm from the front of the RACK cabinet. The panel is made of hard PA11 aluminum sheet with a thickness of 1.5 mm. Thanks to this, it has sufficient rigidity and at the same time aluminum allows for easy drilling of the necessary assembly holes. The kit includes four caged nuts for mounting the component in the cabinet.

Example application of the ZMC-4 component of the RACK board system

Front assembly component ZMD-1

Front assembly component ZMD-1 R77311 is composed of two elements. It has holes dedicated for mounting TERRA MR-xxx multiswitches (spacing of holes: height 120 mm, width 100/140/180 mm). The set includes M5x10 screws and nuts needed for mounting. The vertical spacing of the elements is chosen so that the cables connected to the multiswitch input connectors have enough space to maintain the minimum bending radius. It is even possible to install Signal R48602 surge protectors. The set includes eight screws with caged nuts, used to assemble the unit in the cabinet.

Terra MR-932 multiswitch mounted on the ZMD-1 component of the ++RACK board+++ system

Front assembly component ZMD-2

Front assembly component ZMD-2 R77322 is composed of two elements. It is used to mount the devices vertically, 100 mm behind the front RACK 19 „rails. This is a universal model. The holes needed to assemble a device should be drilled according to needs. The set includes eight screws with caged nuts used to assemble the elements in the cabinet.

Example application of the ZMD-2 front assembly component in the RACK board system

Front assembly component ZMD-35: EURO TH35 430 mm rail

The ZMD-35 R77335 component is a EURO TH35 rail with length of 430 mm recessed by 100 mm from the front of the RACK cabinet. The component is made of hard PA11 aluminum sheet with thickness of 2 mm. The ZMD-35 can be loaded with evenly distributed devices with a total weight of 12 kg. The set includes four screws with caged nuts used to assemble the elements in the cabinet.

The signal cables from the antennas (both satellite and terrestrial) are connected from the rear, through the R48602 surge protectors, to the F connectors on the 19″ patch panel. Each front F connector is connected by through the R82540 bridge with the corresponding F connector of the next patch panel, from which the signal is applied to the devices located in the cabinet (to the first splitter or amplifier). The use of the bridges makes it very easy to measure the input signals. The technician can just pull the bridge to access any F connector with the input signal.

The organization of inbound cables from antennas

To employ the surge protectors to the F connectors of the patch panel connector, the F-f/ F-f adapters should be replaced with longer ones sold as E80380. This professional adapters, in addition to the guaranteed attenuation and matching parameters, have thread lengths of 14 mm, which ensures passage through the patch panel and effective screwing on of the surge protectors.

R48602 surge protector mounted on the R9120312 patch panel after replacing the F/F adapter to the longer E80380 item.

Each output from the multiswitch is connected to the assigned subscriber’s F-f connector on a patch panel. This ensures, as in the case of signal cables from antennas, the separation of the core building installation from the devices in the cabinet and the internal wiring of the cabinet. This practice is enforced by the EN50173 standard to create a structured cabling interface for testing the installation.

All output signals to be distributed to subscribers are available on the sockets of the patch panel

The R912024 horizontal cable organizers maintain the minimum bending radius of cables fed to the patch panel from the front of the cabinet. F patch panels and organizers are grouped in threes – this ensures optimal bending conditions of the cables.