SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR FORMING A CABLE
Systems and methods are provided for forming a cable. In one embodiment, a system for forming a cable comprises a non-driven roll station having a plurality of rolls for forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a first layer of the cable. Movement of the plurality of rolls of the non-driven roll station occurs passively during travel of the one or more strands associated with the first layer of the cable. The system further comprises a driven roll station having a plurality of rolls for forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a second layer of the cable. The plurality of rolls of the driven roll station are actively driven to effect movement and speed of the one or more strands associated with the second layer of the cable.
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This invention claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/486,753, entitled “Systems and Methods for Forming a Cable,” filed Apr. 18, 2017, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUNDThe present embodiments relate generally to systems and methods for forming a cable in an improved manner.
Roll formed cables may be formed using a variety of techniques. In some exemplary methods and configurations, wires of the cable may implement a central strand surrounded by one or more helically layered strands. The cable may be made by twisting the strands of each layer about the central strand with a wire twisting machine. For example, the central strand may be surrounded by a second layer comprising four to eight helically formed strands, which in turn may be surrounded by a third layer comprising around 10 to 14 helically formed strands. The number of layers may vary, in addition to the number of strands per layer, depending on the particular application and size of the cable being manufactured.
Moreover, in various configurations, a single central strand may be omitted. In such embodiment, for example, the innermost layer may comprises two to four strands that have cross-sectional shapes that when disposed adjacent to one another will form a configuration similar to a single circular strand.
In general, when the strands of the second layer of the cable are helically wrapped around the first layer, the strands of the second layer will travel a greater distance, relative to the strands (or single strand) of the first layer, for any given longitudinal length of the cable. Forming the first and second layers on common forming rolls at the same wire travel speed may require equipment or methods that adjust travel speed to ensure the strands of the second layer can travel the greater helical distance and properly be disposed about the first layer.
Further, while forming the first and second layers on common forming rolls may provide some space efficiencies, the cross-sectional shapes of one layer cannot be modified independently. In other words, if it becomes desirable to change the cross-sectional shape for strands of one of the first layer or the second layer, then an entire new set of forming rolls may be required to accommodate such change.
SUMMARYIn one embodiment, a system for forming a cable comprises a non-driven roll station having a plurality of rolls for forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a first layer of the cable. Movement of the plurality of rolls of the non-driven roll station occurs passively during travel of the one or more strands associated with the first layer of the cable. The system further comprises a driven roll station having a plurality of rolls for forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a second layer of the cable. The plurality of rolls of the driven roll station are actively driven to effect movement and speed of the one or more strands associated with the second layer of the cable.
In one embodiment, the first layer of the cable may be disposed radially inward relative to the second layer. The driven roll station may be disposed upstream relative to the non-driven roll station. The driven roll station may comprise a through hole for travel of the one or more strands associated with the first layer of the cable.
The one or more strands associated with the first layer may exit the non-driven roll station at a different speed relative to which the one or more strands associated with the second layer exit the driven roll station. In one example, the one or more strands associated with the first layer may exit the non-driven roll station at a slower speed relative to which the one or more strands associated with the second layer exit the driven roll station.
The system may further comprise a lay plate having a plurality of recesses and a plurality of roller guides, wherein each of the plurality of recesses houses a corresponding roller guide, wherein each of the strands of the second layer of the cable are guided around a respective roller guide. The lay plate may comprise a central aperture, disposed radially inwardly relative to the plurality of roller guides, wherein the one or more strands of the first layer are guided through the central aperture. The non-driven roll station may comprise a housing that is coupled to the lay plate. A first closing die may be disposed downstream of the non-driven roll station, wherein the first closing die is coupled to the lay plate using a mounting bracket, wherein the one or more strands associated with the first layer are passed through the first closing die.
A common closing die may be disposed downstream of the non-driven roll station, wherein the one or more strands associated with both the first and the second layers are passed through the common closing die.
Other systems, methods, features and advantages of the invention will be, or will become, apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features and advantages be within the scope of the invention, and be encompassed by the following claims.
The invention can be better understood with reference to the following drawings and description. The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. Moreover, in the figures, like referenced numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the different views.
Referring to
It will be appreciated that the cable 10 having layers 12, 14, 16 and 18 is only one of many exemplary cables that may be formed using the system 20 described below. In various alternatives within the scope of the present embodiments, each individual layer 12, 14, 16 and 18 may comprises greater or fewer than the number of strands depicted in
Moreover, the cross-sectional area of each of the individual strands may be selected depending on a particular desired shape or application of the cable 10. In the example of
As will be explained further below, the strands 14a-14i of the second layer 14 are helically wrapped around the strands 12a-12c of the first layer 12. Therefore, the strands 14a-14i travel a greater distance, relative to the strands 12a-12c, for any given longitudinal length of the cable 10. In other words, because the strands 14a-14i of the second layer 14 are disposed radially outward relative to the strands 12a-12c, the helical path spanning a wider radial distance is a longer path over the same actual longitudinal distance. Similarly, the strands of the third layer 16 are helically wrapped around the strands 14a-14i of the second layer 14, and the strands of the third layer 16 travel a greater distance relative to the strands 14a-14i for any given longitudinal length of the cable 10. Further, the strands of the fourth layer 18 are helically wrapped around the strands of the third layer 16, and the strands of the fourth layer 18 travel a greater distance relative to the strands of the third layer 16 for any given longitudinal length of the cable 10. The system 20 provides a novel approach to ensure smooth formation of such cable under these considerations.
Referring to
For illustrative purposes, it may be noted that in
In the example of
Referring to
Further details of the first roll 32 of the first forming station 30 are shown in
In one embodiment, the second roll 38 may comprise generally symmetrical features relative to the first roll 32 (with a potential exception being different groove shapes to provide variable inner and outer cross-sections of a given strand). The second roll 38 may be disposed vertically beneath the first roll 32 within the driven roll station 30, as shown in
For example, a previously unformed wire strand 14a of the second layer 14 may be fed through the driven roll station 30 in the upstream to downstream direction, and as the strand 14a passes through a given forming groove 34 of the rolls 32 and 38, the cross-sectional shape of the strand 14a as shown in
In the embodiment of
The strands 12a-12c of the first layer 12 of the cable 10 may be passed through the through hole formed by the through channels 35 in the first and second rolls 32 and 38. In other words, cross-sectional shapes of the strands 12a-12c are not formed as the strands pass within the through channel 35. As will be explained below, instead of being formed by the rolls 32 and 38 of the driven roll station 30, the strands 12a-12c of the first layer 12 are formed at the non-driven roll station 50, thereby providing advantages for the present system.
Referring to
The second roll 58 may comprise generally symmetrical features relative to the first roll 52 (with a potential exception being different groove shapes to provide variable inner and outer cross-sections of a given strand), and may be disposed adjacent to the first roll 52 within the non-driven roll station 50, as shown in
For example, a previously unformed wire strand 12a of the first layer 12 may be fed through the non-driven roll station 50 in the upstream to downstream direction, and as the strand 12a passes through the grooves 54a of the rolls 52 and 58, the cross-sectional shape of the strand 12a as shown in
As noted above, the non-driven roll station 50 does not have a motor or other actuator disposed within or adjacent the station itself, which differs from driven roll station 30. Therefore, the non-driven roll station 50 may comprise a significantly reduced profile relative to the driven roll station 30. The forces required to pull the strands 12a-12c through the grooves within the rolls 52 and 58 of the non-driven roll station 50 may be provided by downstream equipment that exerts a relatively high pulling force upon the strands, taking into account friction that is expected during the forming process.
As shown in
Referring to
In one example, the guide segment 73 comprises a generally circular shape having a front surface 74, a rear surface 75, and a central aperture 79. The first and second flanged regions 61a and 61b of the housing assembly 60 of the non-driven roll station 50 may be mounted to opposing regions of the front surface 74 of the guide segment 73 of the lay plate 70, as best seen in
In this manner, the first and second rolls 52 and 58 of the non-driven roll station 50 may be positioned within the central aperture 79 of the lay plate 70. Further, an entrance location 59 disposed between the first and second rolls 52 and 58, which is adapted to received the strands 12a-12c of the first layer 12, may be positioned generally at the center of the aperture 79 of the lay plate 70, as depicted in
A plurality of recesses 76 may be formed in the guide segment 73 between the front and rear surfaces 74 and 75, as best seen in
The roller guides 77 may comprise a concave outer surface that accommodates a portion of the strands 14a-14i of the second layer 14. As seen in
In the example of
It is noted that the recesses 76 and roller guides 77 are not disposed evenly around the circumference of the lay plate 70 in
Referring still to
The strands 14a-14i of the second layer 14, which pass around the guide rollers 77 of the lay plate 70, travel around the exterior surface of the first closing die 80, and meet up with the to strands 12a-12c of the first layer 12 at the common closing die 90, as depicted in
Referring to
Advantageously, the present embodiments are capable of forming a cable 10 without requiring a driven roll station 30 corresponding to each layer of the cable 10. While the strands of the second layer 14 are formed using the driven roll station 30, the strands of the first layer 12 are formed using the non-driven roll station 50. This has the advantage of reducing the overall footprint of the system 20 by providing fewer large driven roll stations 30.
Moreover, when the non-driven roll station 50 forming the first layer 12 is secured within the lay plate 70, which also serves to guide and orient the second layer 14, the overall footprint of the system 20 may be consolidated further by grouping components at the same location. While in this example the non-driven roll station 50 is shown secured to the lay plate 70, it will be appreciated that non-driven roll station 50 may be disposed at a stand-alone location relative to the lay plate 70, may be disposed within a dedicated passage formed in the driven roll station 30, or may be disposed upstream relative to the driven roll station 30, while achieving the same significant advantages.
As a further advantage, the present embodiments allow for individual control of speed of the layers 12 and 14 of the cable 10. As noted above, the strands 14a-14i of the second layer travel a greater distance, relative to the strands 12a-12c, for any given longitudinal length of the cable 10. Since the driven roll station 30 and the non-driven roll station 50 are separate and distinct, the strands 12a-12c of the first layer 12 may be passed through the non-driven roll station at a first speed that is less than a second speed at which the strands 14a-14i of the second layer 14 are passed through the driven roll station 30. Such different forming speeds would not be possible if both the first and second layers 12 and 14 were formed on common rolls. This achieves a significant advantage in that the strands of the second layer 14 may travel the greater distance helically at the greater speed, relative to the strands of the first layer 12.
As a further advantage, the present embodiments allow for individual control of gaps at the different roll stations 30 and 50, to accommodate an array of cross-sectional shapes of the layers 12 and 14 of the cable 10. When two layers of a cable are formed simultaneously using the same forming rolls, the cross-sectional shapes of one layer cannot be modified independently, i.e., an entire new set of forming rolls is required. With the present embodiments, independent control of roll gap is available to modify shapes for the first and second layers 12 and 14 separate of one another, simply by changing the roll gaps at the station 50 or the station 30, respectively.
As noted above, in alternative embodiments, the cable 10 may comprise any number of layers, and each layer may comprise any number of strands, without departing from the principles of the present embodiments. Moreover, while it has generally been described that the strands 12a-12c of the first layer 12 have been formed by the non-driven roll station 50, and the strands 14a-14i of the second layer 14 have been formed by the driven roll station 30, in alternative embodiment the strands of the first layer 12 may be formed by a driven roll station while the strands of the second layer 14 may be formed by a non-driven roll station.
Finally, an optional wire break detector 99, shown in
While various embodiments of the invention have been described, the invention is not to be restricted except in light of the attached claims and their equivalents. Moreover, the advantages described herein are not necessarily the only advantages of the invention and it is not necessarily expected that every embodiment of the invention will achieve all of the advantages described.
Claims
1. A system for forming a cable, the system comprising:
- a non-driven roll station having a plurality of rolls for forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a first layer of the cable,
- wherein movement of the plurality of rolls of the non-driven roll station occurs passively during travel of the one or more strands associated with the first layer of the cable; and
- a driven roll station having a plurality of rolls for forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a second layer of the cable,
- wherein the plurality of rolls of the driven roll station are actively driven to effect movement and speed of the one or more strands associated with the second layer of the cable.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first layer of the cable is disposed radially inward relative to the second layer.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the driven roll station is disposed upstream relative to the non-driven roll station.
4. The system of claim 3, wherein the driven roll station comprises a through hole for travel of the one or more strands associated with the first layer of the cable.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more strands associated with the first layer exit the non-driven roll station at a different speed relative to which the one or more strands associated with the second layer exit the driven roll station.
6. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more strands associated with the first layer exit the non-driven roll station at a slower speed relative to which the one or more strands associated with the second layer exit the driven roll station, and
- wherein the first layer of the cable is disposed radially inward relative to the second layer.
7. The system of claim 1, further comprising a lay plate having a plurality of recesses and a plurality of roller guides, wherein each of the plurality of recesses houses a corresponding roller guide, and wherein each of the strands of the second layer of the cable are guided around a respective roller guide.
8. The system of claim 7, wherein the lay plate comprises a central aperture, disposed radially inwardly relative to the plurality of roller guides, and wherein the one or more strands of the first layer are guided through the central aperture.
9. The system of claim 7, wherein the non-driven roll station comprises a housing that is coupled to the lay plate.
10. The system of claim 7, further comprising a first closing die disposed downstream of the non-driven roll station, wherein the first closing die is coupled to the lay plate using a mounting bracket, wherein the one or more strands associated with the first layer are passed through the first closing die.
11. The system of claim 1, further comprising a common closing die disposed downstream of the non-driven roll station, wherein the one or more strands associated with both the first and the second layers are passed through the common closing die.
12. The system of claim 1, where the plurality of rolls of the non-driven roll station can be changed independently of the plurality of rolls of the driven roll station, such that the shapes of the one or more strands associated with the first layer of the cable may be modified without changing the plurality of rolls of the driven roll station.
13. A system for forming a cable, the system comprising:
- a non-driven roll station having a plurality of rolls for forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a first layer of the cable; and
- a driven roll station having a plurality of rolls for forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a second layer of the cable,
- wherein the one or more strands associated with the first layer exit the non-driven roll station at a different speed relative to which the one or more strands associated with the second layer exit the driven roll station.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein movement of the plurality of rolls of the non-driven roll station occurs passively during travel of the one or more strands associated with the first layer of the cable, and wherein the plurality of rolls of the driven roll station are actively driven to effect movement and speed of the one or more strands associated with the second layer of the cable.
15. The system of claim 13, wherein the first layer of the cable is disposed radially inward relative to the second layer, and wherein the one or more strands associated with the first layer exit the non-driven roll station at a slower speed relative to which the one or more strands associated with the second layer exit the driven roll station.
16. The system of claim 13, wherein the driven roll station is disposed upstream relative to the non-driven roll station.
17. The system of claim 13, further comprising a lay plate having a plurality of recesses and a plurality of roller guides, wherein each of the plurality of recesses houses a corresponding roller guide, wherein each of the strands of the second layer of the cable are guided around a respective roller guide.
18. The system of claim 17, wherein the non-driven roll station comprises a housing that is coupled to the lay plate.
19. The system of claim 18, further comprising a common closing die disposed downstream of the non-driven roll station, wherein the one or more strands associated with both the first and the second layers are passed through the common closing die.
20. A method for forming a cable, the method comprising:
- forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a first layer of the cable using a non-driven roll station having a plurality of rolls,
- wherein movement of the plurality of rolls of the non-driven roll station occurs passively during travel of the one or more strands associated with the first layer of the cable; and
- forming a shape of one or more strands associated with a second layer of the cable using a driven roll station having a plurality of rolls,
- wherein the plurality of rolls of the driven roll station are actively driven to effect movement and speed of the one or more strands associated with a second layer of the cable.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 17, 2018
Publication Date: Oct 18, 2018
Applicant: BARTELL MACHINERY SYSTEMS, L.L.C. (ROME, NY)
Inventors: Leonid Rogochevsky (Bradford), Eric Francis Newman (Utica, NY), Donald Locke McIntosh (Clinton, NY)
Application Number: 15/954,844