Products Home / Optomechanical Components / Optical Cage Systems / Cage System Construction / Cage System AdaptersCage System Adapters
- Adapters Allow Different Sizes of Cage Systems to be Integrated
- 16 mm to 30 mm and 30 mm to 60 mm Adapters Available
LCP33
30 mm to 60 mm Cage Plate Adapter, 0.5" Thick
SP15
30 mm to 16 mm Cage Adapter
Cage System Size Adapters Allow
Cage Systems to be Converted
Between 16 mm, 30 mm, and
60 mm Rod Spacings
Application Idea
LCP4S
30 mm to 60 mm Cage Plate Adapter, 0.16" Thick
LCP6X
30 mm to 60 mm Cage Plate Adapter, 0.24" Thick
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| Cage System Size Adapters |
|---|
| In-Line Cage Plates |
| Orthogonal Adapters |
| Drop-In 30 mm to 60 mm |
Features
- Switch Between Cage Sizes with Adapters
- Options Available with 8-32 (M4) Tapped Holes for Post Mounting
The adapters sold below offer a way to switch between 16 mm and 30 mm cage systems or 30 mm and 60 mm cage systems. The SP15, SP05/M, LCP6X, and LCP33(/M) adapters each have eight through holes for cage rods, which are secured in the plate using setscrews. The LCP4S has four outer through holes for 60 mm cage rods, which are secured with setscrews, and four inner counterbored holes for 30 mm cage compatibility. We also offer orthogonal cage system size adapters.
Cage System Overview
The Cage Assembly System provides a convenient way to construct large optomechanical systems with an established line of precision-machined building blocks designed for high flexibility and accurate alignment.
16 mm, 30 mm, and 60 mm Cage System Standards
Thorlabs offers three standards defined by the center-to-center spacing of the cage assembly rods (see image below). The 16 mm cage, 30 mm cage, and 60 mm cage standards are designed to accomodate Ø1/2", Ø1", and Ø2" optics, respectively. Specialized cage plates that allow smaller optics to be directly inserted into our larger cage systems are also available.
Standard Threads
The flexibility of our Cage Assembly System stems from well-defined mounting and thread standards designed to directly interface with a wide range of specialized products. The three most prevalent thread standards are our SM05 Series (0.535"-40 thread), SM1 Series (1.035"-40 thread), and SM2 Series (2.035"-40 thread), all of which were defined to house the industry's most common optic sizes. Essential building blocks, such as our popular lens tubes, directly interface to these standards.
An example of the standard cage plate measurements determining cage system compatibility.
| Standard Cage System Measurements | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Cage System | 16 mm | 30 mm | 60 mm |
| Thread Series | SM05 | SM1 | SM2 |
| Rod to Rod Spacing | 16 mm (0.63") | 30 mm (1.18") | 60 mm (2.36") |
| Total Length | 25 mm (0.98") | 41 mm (1.60") | 71.1 mm (2.8") |
| Cage Components | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cage Rods | 16 mm | These rods are used to connect cage plates, optic mounts, and other components in the cage system. The SR Series Cage Rods are compatible with our 16 mm cage systems, while the 30 mm and 60 mm cage systems use ER Series Cage Rods. |
| 30 mm | ||
| 60 mm | ||
| Cage Plates | 16 mm | These serve as the basic building blocks for a cage system. They may have SM-threaded central bores, smooth bores sized for industry standard optics or to accommodate the outer profile of our SM Series Lens Tubes, or specialized bores for other components such as our FiberPorts. |
| 30 mm | ||
| 60 mm | ||
| Optic Mounts | 16 mm | Thorlabs offers fixed, kinematic, rotation, and translation mounts specifically designed for our Cage Systems. |
| 30 mm | ||
| 60 mm | ||
| Cage Cubes | 16 mm | These cubes are useful for housing larger optical components, such as prisms or mirrors, or optics that need to sit at an angle to the beam path, such as beamsplitters. Our cage cubes are available empty or with pre-mounted optics. |
| 30 mm | ||
| 60 mm | ||
| Post and Breadboard Mounts and Adapters | Mounting options for cage systems can be found on our Cage System Construction pages. Cage Systems can be mounted either parallel or perpendicular to the table surface. | |
| Size Adapters | Cage System Size Adapters can be used to integrate components from different cage system and threading standards. | |
| Specialized Components | Thorlabs also produces specialized cage components, such as Filter Wheels, a HeNe Laser Mount, and a FiberPort Cage Plate Adapter, allowing a wide range of our products to be integrated into cage-mounted optical systems. Explore our Cage Systems Visual Navigation Guide to see the full range of Thorlabs' cage components. | |
| Posted Comments: | |
tilman.schmoll
(posted 2014-07-24 15:50:42.98) Could you please tell me what the distance between the center of the SM1 hole and the surface of the #8-32 mounting hole is?
can the #8-32 mounting hole be used in conjunction with 1" pedestal pillar post? I.e. is there enough surface area between the two arms?
Thank you!
Tilman myanakas
(posted 2014-07-25 09:48:41.0) Response from Mike at Thorlabs: Thank you for your feedback. The distance between the center of the SM1 tapped hole and 8-32 mounting hole is 0.8" (20.32 mm). There is not enough surface area around the 8-32 tapped hole for 1" diameter posts. We have updated the website to include this information. Javier
(posted 2010-06-10 15:17:42.0) Response from Javier at Thorlabs to jc7: we may be able to offer this as a special item. I will contact you with more information. jc7
(posted 2010-06-10 12:57:34.0) For the 30 mm to 60 mm Cage Plate Adapter (LCP02), is it possible to include a Nylon-Tipped Thumbscrew to fix Ø1" optics instead of SM1 threads? Thanks, James apalmentieri
(posted 2009-12-15 12:08:16.0) A response from Adam at Thorlabs: If we were to open up the radius on the CP02B to clear the lens tube cover it would still make contact with the middle screw with the use of either an English or metric screw. Unfortunately, we cannot make this change. bowen
(posted 2009-12-11 17:51:48.0) You make a plastic tube to fit over SM1 lens tubes. That tube does not fit with the CP02B. You should modify the CP02B so there is no interference. |
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Coupled 16 mm and 30 mm Cage Assemblies
- Couples 16 mm to 30 mm Cage Systems
- Accepts ER and SR Series Rods
- Four 0.05" Hex, 4-40 Locking Screws for SR Series Rods
- Four 5/64" Hex, M4 x 0.7 (SP15) or 0.05" Hex, 4-40 (SP05/M) Locking Screws for ER Series Rods
- Tapped with Our Standard SM05 Thread (0.535"-40)
- 8-32 (M4 x 0.7) Tapped Hole for Mounting to Ø1/2" Posts
The SP15 (SP05/M) cage plate provides a convenient means for coupling 16 mm and 30 mm cage assemblies (see image to the right). The Ø4 mm SR rod and Ø6 mm ER rod holes are each accompanied by a side-located locking setscrew. The SP15 (SP05/M) cage plate has an 8-32 (M4 x 0.7) tapped hole for post-mounting and a centered SM05 (0.535"-40) threaded bore (SM05RR retaining rings sold separately). This cage plate offers tight tolerances on the cage rod holes to ensure that both the 30 mm and 16 mm cage segments are centered around the central SM05 bore.
Additionally, two of these cage plates can be used to support a 16 mm cage subassembly that can slide along the 30 mm cage rods as a single optomechanical unit (see the image to the left).
Thorlabs also offers the CP32(/M) cage plate for mounting Ø1/2" optics or lens tubes to 30 mm cage systems.
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LCP4S Adapter Mounted to
Quantalux® sCMOS Camera for
Compatibility with 60 mm Cage Components. Note the LCP4S adapter has counterbored holes for 30 mm cage compatibility and through holes for 60 mm cage compatibility.
- Couples 30 mm and 60 mm Cage Systems
- Accepts ER Series Rods
- Four 4-40 Locking Screws for Securing 60 mm Cage Assemblies
- Counterbore Holes for 30 mm Cage Mounting
- Tapped with Our Standard SM1 Thread (1.035"-40)
- Not Post Mountable
The LCP4S Cage Plate Adapter provides a convenient means for coupling 30 mm and 60 mm cage assemblies via our Ø6 mm ER cage rods. The thin 4 mm (0.16") profile of this adapter is ideal for situations where axial space is limited. The centered SM1 (1.035"-40) tapped hole is compatible with our SM1-threaded lens tubes. Each of the outer through holes for 60 mm cage compatability is accompanied by a side-located locking 4-40 setscrew, which can be secured using a 0.05" (1.3 mm) hex key. The four inner holes for 30 mm cage compatability are counterbored for use with 4-40 x 3/16'' cap screws which are sold separately (SH4S019 recommended). Unlike the LCP33(/M) cage plate adapters, this adapter does not have a tapped hole for post mounting due to the thin profile.
Additionally, this cage plate adapter facilitates the mounting of our compact scientific cameras on 60 mm cage components (see image to the right). For example, our 2CM2 Two-Camera Mount for Microscopes incorporates two LCP4S adapters. The thin profile of the adapter is required to position the image plane of the cameras within the adjustable focus range of the mount.
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LCP6X Adapter Mounted to a
Zelux® CMOS Compact Camera for
Compatibility with 60 mm Cage Components
- Couples 30 mm and 60 mm Cage Systems
- Accepts ER Series Rods
- M4 x 0.7 Locking Screws for Securing 30 mm and 60 mm Cage Assemblies
- Tapped with Our Standard SM1 Thread (1.035"-40)
- Directly Accepts Ø1" Optics up to 0.08" (2 mm) Thick
- Not Post Mountable
The LCP6X Cage Plate Adapter provides a convenient means for coupling 30 mm and 60 mm cage assemblies via our Ø6 mm ER cage rods. The centered SM1-threaded (1.035"-40) hole is compatible with SM1-threaded lens tubes or Ø1" optics up to 0.08" (2 mm) thick (SM1RR retaining rings sold separately). Each cage rod through hole is accompanied by a side-located locking M4 x 0.7 setscrew that can be adjusted using a 5/64" (2 mm) hex key. These setscrews provide improved stability for attaching cage rods compared to the 4-40 setscrews used in the LCP4S cage plate adapter (sold above). Unlike the LCP33(/M) cage plate adapter, this cage plate adapter does not have a tapped hole for post mounting due to the thin profile.
Similar to the LCP4S adapter, the LCP6X adapter can facilitate the mounting of our compact scientific cameras on 60 mm cage components, as seen in the image to the right.
Zoom- Couples 30 mm and 60 mm Cage Systems
- Accepts ER Series Rods
- M4 x 0.7 Locking Setscrews
- Tapped with Our Standard SM1 Thread (1.035"-40)
- Directly Accepts Ø1" Optics up to 0.35" (9 mm) Thick
- 8-32 (M4) Tapped Hole for Mounting to Ø1/2" Posts
The LCP33(/M) Cage Plate provides a convenient means for coupling 30 mm and 60 mm cage assemblies via our Ø6 mm ER cage rods. The centered SM1 (1.035"-40) tapped hole directly accepts optics up to 0.35" (9 mm) thick (SM1RR retaining rings sold separately). Each cage rod through hole in this cage adapter is accompanied by one side-located M4 x 0.7 locking setscrew which can be secured with a 5/64" (2.0 mm) hex key. The LCP33(/M) cage adapter also has an 8-32 (M4) tapped hole for Ø1/2" post mounting. The surface with the 8-32 (M4) tap is not wide enough to support Ø1" posts.
Additionally, two of these cage plates can be used to support a 30 mm cage subassembly that can slide along the 60 mm cage rods as a single optomechanical unit. A 16 mm cage assembly can also be easily integrated by using an SP15 (SP05/M) cage plate adapter.
Cage System Size Adapter Plates