#468: Jackshield

Imagine a piece of delicate electronic equipment, which would be guaranteed to be fragile and vulnerable to dirt, yet which is then expected to be routinely forced through holes in plasterboard and along dust filled gaps between walls and floors.

Even though lots of kit is now wirelessly connected, the humble RJ-45 plug is still the lynchpin in many networks. Think about how long it takes to get one of these square-headed guys from A to B, only for it then to be found to be broken -mechanically or electrically, or both.

Today’s invention is a cap which fits over such a connector and which streamlines its passage through tight holes. This is made in a tough, flexible polymer and takes the shape of a long, thin tapering ‘nose’ with a low-friction coating. There would be a loop at the end of the nose to which a cable can be attached for dragging the cable behind it. The RJ-45 plug is sealed tightly within the nose, so that dust is excluded and the retaining tab can’t be broken off in transit.