CA1079912A - Cable cleaning unit - Google Patents
Cable cleaning unitInfo
- Publication number
- CA1079912A CA1079912A CA306,413A CA306413A CA1079912A CA 1079912 A CA1079912 A CA 1079912A CA 306413 A CA306413 A CA 306413A CA 1079912 A CA1079912 A CA 1079912A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- cable
- nozzle
- chamber
- unit
- cleaning unit
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Classifications
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- D—TEXTILES; PAPER
- D07—ROPES; CABLES OTHER THAN ELECTRIC
- D07B—ROPES OR CABLES IN GENERAL
- D07B2501/00—Application field
- D07B2501/20—Application field related to ropes or cables
- D07B2501/2015—Construction industries
- D07B2501/203—Bridges
-
- D—TEXTILES; PAPER
- D07—ROPES; CABLES OTHER THAN ELECTRIC
- D07B—ROPES OR CABLES IN GENERAL
- D07B7/00—Details of, or auxiliary devices incorporated in, rope- or cable-making machines; Auxiliary apparatus associated with such machines
- D07B7/02—Machine details; Auxiliary devices
- D07B7/12—Machine details; Auxiliary devices for softening, lubricating or impregnating ropes, cables, or component strands thereof
Landscapes
- Cleaning In General (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE.
A cable cleaning unit comprising a chamber adapted to surround a section of the cable to be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located within the chamber through which jets of high pressure fluid are directed onto the surface of the cable and mechanism for withdrawing fluid from the chamber. A traction unit for moving the cleaning unit along the cable to be cleaned is also disclosed.
A cable cleaning unit comprising a chamber adapted to surround a section of the cable to be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located within the chamber through which jets of high pressure fluid are directed onto the surface of the cable and mechanism for withdrawing fluid from the chamber. A traction unit for moving the cleaning unit along the cable to be cleaned is also disclosed.
Description
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION.
All cable cleaning units at present in use utilise brushes which brush the external rust and scale and caked external lubricant from the cable. Because such units are bulky it is necessary that the cleaning operation be carried out at ground level which means that the cable must be first removed from the equipment and then replaced.
OBJEC~ OF INVENTION.
The object of the present invention is to provide a cable cleaning unit which does not require the use of brushes, which can be used for cleaning the cable in situ and which ensures that the strands of the cable are adequately lub-ricated.
. ., - ~ It is also an object of the invention to provide a traction ~ unit for moving the cleaning unit or other cable treatment g equipment along a cable.
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All cable cleaning units at present in use utilise brushes which brush the external rust and scale and caked external lubricant from the cable. Because such units are bulky it is necessary that the cleaning operation be carried out at ground level which means that the cable must be first removed from the equipment and then replaced.
OBJEC~ OF INVENTION.
The object of the present invention is to provide a cable cleaning unit which does not require the use of brushes, which can be used for cleaning the cable in situ and which ensures that the strands of the cable are adequately lub-ricated.
. ., - ~ It is also an object of the invention to provide a traction ~ unit for moving the cleaning unit or other cable treatment g equipment along a cable.
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DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION.
In one form the invention resides in a cable cleaning unit comprising a chamber adapted to surround a section of the cable to be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located within the chamber through which jets of high pressure fluid are directed onto the surface of the cable, said jets being arranged so that they strike the surface of the cable at an angle inclined to the longitudinal axis of the cable being cleaned and are deflected from the surface of the cable in the direction of travel of the cable cleaning unit, the portion of the chamber receiving the deflected jets being arcuate so as to direct the fluid with dirt and other matter entrained therein away from the surface of the cable, and means for withdrawing fluid from the chamber.
. In a further form of the invention there is provided a cable cleaning unit comprising a chamber adapted to surround a section of cable to be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located within the chamberj for directing jets of high press-ure fluid onto the surface of the cable and means for with-drawing fluid from the chamber.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention there is provided a cable cleaning unit comprising an annular nozzle chamber for surrounding a section of cable to be cleaned, a plurality of nozzles within the chamber for directing jets of high pressure oil onto the surface of the cable at an .
j acute angle and a spin-off chamber for receiving oil and impurities from the cable, said spin-off chamber having a plurality of turbo-vanes for directing the oil and impurities to an outlet from the unit.
Further according to the present invention there is provided a traction unit comprising a pair of pulley wheels forming between them a gap for a cable, and means for driving at least one of the pulley wheels to drive the traction unit ,,! along a cable. The traction unit is preferably provided with two pairs of pulley wheels.
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The various features of the invention will be better understood by reference to the following description of the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings wherein~
Fig. 1 is a sectional view of one embodiment of the cleaning unit;
- Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of the - various components of a complete cleaning system;
Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of a self propelled unit incorporating the cl-eanirlg unit of Fig. l;
Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic representation showing the self propelled unit cleaning a cable in situ;
Fig. 5 shows an interior view of a second embodiment of the invention, with two halves of the unit hinged apart; -_4_ ,. . .
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Fig. 6 shows an exterior view of the Unit of Fig. 5;
Fig. 7 shows a plan view of nozzle adjusting plates for the unit of Fig. 5;
Fig. 8 shows a plan view of a nozzle head;
Fig. 9 shows a cross-sectional elevation of the nozzle head;
Fig. 10 is an end elevation of the traction unit;
Fig. 11 is a section on line 11-11 of Fig. 10;
Fig. 12 is a section on line 12-12 of Fig. ll and Fig. 13 is a perspective view of the unit positioned .~
on a length of cable.
In the embodiment shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings a more or less cylindrical body 11 is divided into two halves so that it can be fitted around a cable 12. In the assembled pos-ition the body is provided with an annular chamber 13.
Each end of the body is provided with resilient seals 14.
The seals at the forward end of the body are compressed by means of a plate 14a mounted on the end of a threaded member 14b projecting through the body and the rear faces of said seals are connected to passages 15 which connect to a manifold 16 which is provided with outlets 17 adapted to be connected to a suction line. The forward end of the chamber 13 which receives the jets of fluid deflected from the surface of the cable is arcuate so that the fluid with dirt entrained therein is directed away from the cable.
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~he arcuate portion of the chamber is connected to the manifold 16 through holes or openings 18 whilst the other end of the chamber is provided with outlets 19 which are also connected to the suction line. The centrifugal force acting on the fluid as it moves around the arcuate portion of the chamber ensures that a large proportion thereof --passes through the openings 18 to ensure that it cannot return to the vicinity of the cable to interfere with the cleaning action of the jets.
A manifold 20 is provided with inlets 21 and is connected through passages 22 to a series of nozzles 23 arranged around the cable within the chamber and adapted to direct jets of fluid onto the surface of the portion of the cable within the chamber. -Any suitable fluid may be used but it is preferable to use the lubricant preparation normally used for lubricating cables. The fluid is at a pressure of the order of 4000-5000 p.s.i. The jets impinging on the cable remove all extraneous matter from the~ surface of the cable.
The l~bricant also penetrates the cable to the core. The .
tongue or lip 24 projecting into the chamber prevents the used fluid with entrained solid matter from falling back onto and interfering with the action of the jets issuing from nozzles 23.
As shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings the used fluid is carried through the line 31 by means of a pump 32 and discharged into a settling tank 33 fitted with baffles 34.
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The fluid is then passed through filters 35 to a clean oil reservoir 36. A pump 37 draws oil from the clean oil res-ervoir 36 and passes it through filters 39 and 40 and oil cooler 41 to ahigh pressure pump 42. The high pressure oil is fed through line 43 to the inlets 21 of the cleaning unit. Some of the high pressure oil is by-passed through a reducing valve 44 to a hydraulic motor 45 of a traction unit 46 coupled to the cable cleaning unit.
The design of the cleaning unit is such that it is relatively light weight and of compact size so that it can be fitted to cables in situ and drawn along the cables. Such a system is illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawings.
The cable cleaning unit A is coupled to a traction unit 46 mounted on a cable C supporting a tower T. The components for cleaning and supplying the oil to the traction unit and cable cleaning unit are housed in a platform P sus-pended from a cable running assembly X which is mounted on the cable C. The platform is provided with an operators cabin OC.
In use the complete unit is drawn to the top of the cable C and then travels down to the ground under the control of an operator to clean the cable.
In an alternative arrangement the components of the system for supplying oil to the traction unit 46 and the cable cleaning unit A is mounted on a transportable or :
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mobile platform at ground level and the oil supplied through long high pressure hoses.
In the embodiment shown in Figure 5 the unit comprises two semi-cylindrical housing parts 54 and 54A hinged together by hinge 55. Each housing part con-tains one half of an annular inlet chamber 57 containing six nozzles 58.
Each nozzle has an oval pinhole 58A and a line drawn through the centre of the pinhole normal to the plane of the hole meets the axis of the unit at an acute angle, preferably of 60. As shown in Figures 8 and 9 the nozzle pinhole is surrounded by an elongated groove 58B so that oil emitted from the pinhole fans out. The distance of the nozzle pin-holes 58A from a cable passing through a unit is preferably 1 to lz inches.
When the two parts of the housing are closed and h eld together by clips 59 the h ousing has a frusto-conical leading end, i.e. the relative movement between cable to be cleaned and the unit is that the cable enters the unit at its narrow end and comes out.-downstream at the other.end of the unit.
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. Referring again to Figure 5 a spin-off chamber 60 is provided upstream of the inlet chamber 57. The spin-off chamber 60 contains a plurality of turbo-vanes 62 leading to a common outlet manifold 63. The curvature of the vanes 62 is preferably the known optimum for turbo-blades and ., ': ' ... . .
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the downstream end wall of the chamber 60 is suitably angled.
The upstream end wall of the chamber 60 is formed by one side of a plastics locating member 64. ~ocating members 64 and 65 retain a semi-circular brush element 66. A similar brush element 67 is retained by locating members 68 and 69 downstream of the chamber 60.
The nozzles 58 are mounted on nozzle bodies 70 which are slidable on conduits extending radially from the nozzle bodies to an inlet manifold. Between the chamber 60 and locating member 68 there is provided a cam plate 71 (~igure 7) having cam slots 72. Through the cam slots there extend bolts which are screwed into the nozzle bodies. Each bolt carries a slidable collet having an axial portion to slide in a cam and an integral radially extending collar. A
spring is retained between the head of the bolt and the collar on the side of the cam plate remote from the nozzle body to urge the collar into engagement with the cam plate.
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When the cam plates are rotated the nozzle bodies are moved radially towards or away from the axis of the unit.
The brush elements 66 and 67 may be made of nylon but are preferably made of pure bristle which has better wear and flexibility. When the brushes are closed around the cable they act as seals at each end of the unit and the brush elements 67 also act as lubricating wipers. The cleaning .:
unit can preferably accommodate cables of from 2 inch to ,. , _g_ ,.
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DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION.
In one form the invention resides in a cable cleaning unit comprising a chamber adapted to surround a section of the cable to be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located within the chamber through which jets of high pressure fluid are directed onto the surface of the cable, said jets being arranged so that they strike the surface of the cable at an angle inclined to the longitudinal axis of the cable being cleaned and are deflected from the surface of the cable in the direction of travel of the cable cleaning unit, the portion of the chamber receiving the deflected jets being arcuate so as to direct the fluid with dirt and other matter entrained therein away from the surface of the cable, and means for withdrawing fluid from the chamber.
. In a further form of the invention there is provided a cable cleaning unit comprising a chamber adapted to surround a section of cable to be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located within the chamberj for directing jets of high press-ure fluid onto the surface of the cable and means for with-drawing fluid from the chamber.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention there is provided a cable cleaning unit comprising an annular nozzle chamber for surrounding a section of cable to be cleaned, a plurality of nozzles within the chamber for directing jets of high pressure oil onto the surface of the cable at an .
j acute angle and a spin-off chamber for receiving oil and impurities from the cable, said spin-off chamber having a plurality of turbo-vanes for directing the oil and impurities to an outlet from the unit.
Further according to the present invention there is provided a traction unit comprising a pair of pulley wheels forming between them a gap for a cable, and means for driving at least one of the pulley wheels to drive the traction unit ,,! along a cable. The traction unit is preferably provided with two pairs of pulley wheels.
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The various features of the invention will be better understood by reference to the following description of the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings wherein~
Fig. 1 is a sectional view of one embodiment of the cleaning unit;
- Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of the - various components of a complete cleaning system;
Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of a self propelled unit incorporating the cl-eanirlg unit of Fig. l;
Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic representation showing the self propelled unit cleaning a cable in situ;
Fig. 5 shows an interior view of a second embodiment of the invention, with two halves of the unit hinged apart; -_4_ ,. . .
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Fig. 6 shows an exterior view of the Unit of Fig. 5;
Fig. 7 shows a plan view of nozzle adjusting plates for the unit of Fig. 5;
Fig. 8 shows a plan view of a nozzle head;
Fig. 9 shows a cross-sectional elevation of the nozzle head;
Fig. 10 is an end elevation of the traction unit;
Fig. 11 is a section on line 11-11 of Fig. 10;
Fig. 12 is a section on line 12-12 of Fig. ll and Fig. 13 is a perspective view of the unit positioned .~
on a length of cable.
In the embodiment shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings a more or less cylindrical body 11 is divided into two halves so that it can be fitted around a cable 12. In the assembled pos-ition the body is provided with an annular chamber 13.
Each end of the body is provided with resilient seals 14.
The seals at the forward end of the body are compressed by means of a plate 14a mounted on the end of a threaded member 14b projecting through the body and the rear faces of said seals are connected to passages 15 which connect to a manifold 16 which is provided with outlets 17 adapted to be connected to a suction line. The forward end of the chamber 13 which receives the jets of fluid deflected from the surface of the cable is arcuate so that the fluid with dirt entrained therein is directed away from the cable.
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~he arcuate portion of the chamber is connected to the manifold 16 through holes or openings 18 whilst the other end of the chamber is provided with outlets 19 which are also connected to the suction line. The centrifugal force acting on the fluid as it moves around the arcuate portion of the chamber ensures that a large proportion thereof --passes through the openings 18 to ensure that it cannot return to the vicinity of the cable to interfere with the cleaning action of the jets.
A manifold 20 is provided with inlets 21 and is connected through passages 22 to a series of nozzles 23 arranged around the cable within the chamber and adapted to direct jets of fluid onto the surface of the portion of the cable within the chamber. -Any suitable fluid may be used but it is preferable to use the lubricant preparation normally used for lubricating cables. The fluid is at a pressure of the order of 4000-5000 p.s.i. The jets impinging on the cable remove all extraneous matter from the~ surface of the cable.
The l~bricant also penetrates the cable to the core. The .
tongue or lip 24 projecting into the chamber prevents the used fluid with entrained solid matter from falling back onto and interfering with the action of the jets issuing from nozzles 23.
As shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings the used fluid is carried through the line 31 by means of a pump 32 and discharged into a settling tank 33 fitted with baffles 34.
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The fluid is then passed through filters 35 to a clean oil reservoir 36. A pump 37 draws oil from the clean oil res-ervoir 36 and passes it through filters 39 and 40 and oil cooler 41 to ahigh pressure pump 42. The high pressure oil is fed through line 43 to the inlets 21 of the cleaning unit. Some of the high pressure oil is by-passed through a reducing valve 44 to a hydraulic motor 45 of a traction unit 46 coupled to the cable cleaning unit.
The design of the cleaning unit is such that it is relatively light weight and of compact size so that it can be fitted to cables in situ and drawn along the cables. Such a system is illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawings.
The cable cleaning unit A is coupled to a traction unit 46 mounted on a cable C supporting a tower T. The components for cleaning and supplying the oil to the traction unit and cable cleaning unit are housed in a platform P sus-pended from a cable running assembly X which is mounted on the cable C. The platform is provided with an operators cabin OC.
In use the complete unit is drawn to the top of the cable C and then travels down to the ground under the control of an operator to clean the cable.
In an alternative arrangement the components of the system for supplying oil to the traction unit 46 and the cable cleaning unit A is mounted on a transportable or :
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mobile platform at ground level and the oil supplied through long high pressure hoses.
In the embodiment shown in Figure 5 the unit comprises two semi-cylindrical housing parts 54 and 54A hinged together by hinge 55. Each housing part con-tains one half of an annular inlet chamber 57 containing six nozzles 58.
Each nozzle has an oval pinhole 58A and a line drawn through the centre of the pinhole normal to the plane of the hole meets the axis of the unit at an acute angle, preferably of 60. As shown in Figures 8 and 9 the nozzle pinhole is surrounded by an elongated groove 58B so that oil emitted from the pinhole fans out. The distance of the nozzle pin-holes 58A from a cable passing through a unit is preferably 1 to lz inches.
When the two parts of the housing are closed and h eld together by clips 59 the h ousing has a frusto-conical leading end, i.e. the relative movement between cable to be cleaned and the unit is that the cable enters the unit at its narrow end and comes out.-downstream at the other.end of the unit.
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. Referring again to Figure 5 a spin-off chamber 60 is provided upstream of the inlet chamber 57. The spin-off chamber 60 contains a plurality of turbo-vanes 62 leading to a common outlet manifold 63. The curvature of the vanes 62 is preferably the known optimum for turbo-blades and ., ': ' ... . .
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the downstream end wall of the chamber 60 is suitably angled.
The upstream end wall of the chamber 60 is formed by one side of a plastics locating member 64. ~ocating members 64 and 65 retain a semi-circular brush element 66. A similar brush element 67 is retained by locating members 68 and 69 downstream of the chamber 60.
The nozzles 58 are mounted on nozzle bodies 70 which are slidable on conduits extending radially from the nozzle bodies to an inlet manifold. Between the chamber 60 and locating member 68 there is provided a cam plate 71 (~igure 7) having cam slots 72. Through the cam slots there extend bolts which are screwed into the nozzle bodies. Each bolt carries a slidable collet having an axial portion to slide in a cam and an integral radially extending collar. A
spring is retained between the head of the bolt and the collar on the side of the cam plate remote from the nozzle body to urge the collar into engagement with the cam plate.
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When the cam plates are rotated the nozzle bodies are moved radially towards or away from the axis of the unit.
The brush elements 66 and 67 may be made of nylon but are preferably made of pure bristle which has better wear and flexibility. When the brushes are closed around the cable they act as seals at each end of the unit and the brush elements 67 also act as lubricating wipers. The cleaning .:
unit can preferably accommodate cables of from 2 inch to ,. , _g_ ,.
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3 inches diameter, the brush elements being capable of accommodating various sizes of cable. If a specific size of brush is used for a smaller cable it can still be used for larger cables when it has worn.
The housing parts of the cleaning unit are preferably made of aluminium or stainless steel.
In order to clean a cable the cleaning unit is clamped to the cable and moved relative thereto. An engine of for example, 1700 or 2000 cc. drives a hydraulic pump which feeds oil at a pressure of preferably from 2000 to 4000 p.s.i.
and a delivery rate of for example 12 g.p.m. to two inlet manifolds 75. The oil is emitted from the nozzles and full peripheral cleaning coverage is given by the six nozzles and the fan effect of the nozzle openings. Oil and impurities cleaned off the cable are reflected from the cable into the spin-off chamber and are guided by the turbo-vanes 62 to an outlet manifold 76. From the outlet manifold 76 oil and impurities are-fed to a coarse strainer to remove larger impurities and then to a three-stage filter. From the filter, oil and smaller impurities are drawn by a pump and then pumped to a cartridge filter where impurities down to 15 microns are removed. The oil is then returned to a sump where it is again drawn off by the hydraulic pump and fed to the inlet manifolds. The three stage filter has an inlet at its lower end and an outlet at its upper end. Oil is fed , , .
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upwards through the three stages. The preferred cleaning oil is Castrol Hyspin AW~ 46 with additives for anti-foaming and for reducing heat.
The dimensions of the cleaning unit are preferably 18 inches long, 12 inches outside diameter, a nozzle chamber depth of two inches to 5 inches, e.g. three inchesJ and the angle of the wall between the nozzle and spin-off chamber of 45 to 60, e.g. 50, to an axial plane through the unit.
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As shown in Figs. 10 to 13 of the drawings the traction unit comprises a housing 81 having a mouth 82 (see Fig~ 13) so that it can be fitted over a cable 83. One end of the ~, housing is provided with brackets 84 so that cable cleaning and/or oiling equipment can be attached thereto. Two pair of grooved cable engaging rollers 85, 86 and 87, 88 are positioned within the housing, one roller of each pair being disposed on opposite sides of the mouth as is best seen in Fig. 12 of the drawings. Each roller is mounted on a shaft 89, 90, 91 and 92 each end of which is supported in suitable bearings. Each shaft has a sprocket 93, 94, 95 and 96 mounted thereon so that it will rotate with the associated roller, the pairs of sprockets 93 and 95, 94 and 96 each being linked by an endless chain (not shown).
The shafts are supported in plates 97,.98 (see Fig. 12) slidably mounted within the housing and attached to a transverse plate 99, which is attached to the outer end ,.,, , ~
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of a piston rod 100 of a hydraulic ram 101 projecting from the bottom of the housing. The plate 99 is fitted at each end with blocks 102 and 103. The block 102 is slida'oly mounted in a guide recess 104 in an intermediate wall 105 within the housing whilst the block 103 slides in a slot 106 in an outer wall of the housing. The ends of the shafts 89 and 90 are fitted with worm wheels 107, 108 each of which meshes with one section of a pinion 109 rotatably mounted at one side of the housing and driven by a hydraulic motor 110. The section lO9a of the pinion is longer than the other section ïO9b so that irrespective of the position of the shaft 90 the worm wheel 107 will .1.
remain in mesh therewith. The thread on section lO9b is in the opposite direction to the thread on section lO9a so that the grooved cable engaging members 85 and 87 ~,. . .
;'; rotate in the opposite direction to the grooved cable engaging members 86 and 88.
' In operation the hydraulic ram 101 is operated to move the ~- cable engaging members 86 and 88 away from the members 85 !"', ~
and 87 and the unit positioned by entering the -cable through , .
~; the mouth 82. The ram 101 is then reversed so that the ~. .
cable is clamped between the members 85 and 86 and 87 and ` 88. The hydraulic motor is then operated to move the unit ."., ~ along the cable.
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In another embodiment not shown in the drawings a worm gear is centrally mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis in a box type housing which is preferably formed in two halves adapted to be bolted or otherwise fastened together. The thread at one end of the worm is in the opposite direction to the thread at the other end of the worm. One end of the worm is directly coupled to a variable speed hydraulic motor located at one end of the housing.
Four shafts are located in the housing so that they are substantially vertical and pass through openings in the upper face of the housing. Each shaft is supported in suitable slidable bearings and is fitted with a pinion which meshes with the worm. The upper ends of each of the four shafts pass through an arcuate slot in a pressure plate rotatably mounted on the upper face of the housing for rotation about a substantially vertical axis and is fitted with a grooved pulley adapted to engage a cable passing between each pair of shafts substantially at right angles to the axis of the worm.
The pressure plate is coupled to a hydraulic cylinder so that it can be rotated in opposite directions to cause said pulleys to move towards and away from the cable. Preferably the pressure side of the piston of the cylinder is provided with a check valve to hold the piston in the cable engaging position. To release the csble hydraulic n uld is supplied ~ ' ' ' :' ~0799~2 to the opposite side of the piston until the pressure acting thereon is sufficient to overcome the action of the check valve. This enables the traction unit to be lowered slowly from an elevated position if required.
The terms "horizontal" and "vertical" used herein in relation to the traction unit have been used solely to describe the relative positions of the var.ious component and it will be appreciated that in use the positions of such components will vary according to the position of the .~.. I .
traction unit.
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The housing parts of the cleaning unit are preferably made of aluminium or stainless steel.
In order to clean a cable the cleaning unit is clamped to the cable and moved relative thereto. An engine of for example, 1700 or 2000 cc. drives a hydraulic pump which feeds oil at a pressure of preferably from 2000 to 4000 p.s.i.
and a delivery rate of for example 12 g.p.m. to two inlet manifolds 75. The oil is emitted from the nozzles and full peripheral cleaning coverage is given by the six nozzles and the fan effect of the nozzle openings. Oil and impurities cleaned off the cable are reflected from the cable into the spin-off chamber and are guided by the turbo-vanes 62 to an outlet manifold 76. From the outlet manifold 76 oil and impurities are-fed to a coarse strainer to remove larger impurities and then to a three-stage filter. From the filter, oil and smaller impurities are drawn by a pump and then pumped to a cartridge filter where impurities down to 15 microns are removed. The oil is then returned to a sump where it is again drawn off by the hydraulic pump and fed to the inlet manifolds. The three stage filter has an inlet at its lower end and an outlet at its upper end. Oil is fed , , .
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upwards through the three stages. The preferred cleaning oil is Castrol Hyspin AW~ 46 with additives for anti-foaming and for reducing heat.
The dimensions of the cleaning unit are preferably 18 inches long, 12 inches outside diameter, a nozzle chamber depth of two inches to 5 inches, e.g. three inchesJ and the angle of the wall between the nozzle and spin-off chamber of 45 to 60, e.g. 50, to an axial plane through the unit.
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As shown in Figs. 10 to 13 of the drawings the traction unit comprises a housing 81 having a mouth 82 (see Fig~ 13) so that it can be fitted over a cable 83. One end of the ~, housing is provided with brackets 84 so that cable cleaning and/or oiling equipment can be attached thereto. Two pair of grooved cable engaging rollers 85, 86 and 87, 88 are positioned within the housing, one roller of each pair being disposed on opposite sides of the mouth as is best seen in Fig. 12 of the drawings. Each roller is mounted on a shaft 89, 90, 91 and 92 each end of which is supported in suitable bearings. Each shaft has a sprocket 93, 94, 95 and 96 mounted thereon so that it will rotate with the associated roller, the pairs of sprockets 93 and 95, 94 and 96 each being linked by an endless chain (not shown).
The shafts are supported in plates 97,.98 (see Fig. 12) slidably mounted within the housing and attached to a transverse plate 99, which is attached to the outer end ,.,, , ~
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of a piston rod 100 of a hydraulic ram 101 projecting from the bottom of the housing. The plate 99 is fitted at each end with blocks 102 and 103. The block 102 is slida'oly mounted in a guide recess 104 in an intermediate wall 105 within the housing whilst the block 103 slides in a slot 106 in an outer wall of the housing. The ends of the shafts 89 and 90 are fitted with worm wheels 107, 108 each of which meshes with one section of a pinion 109 rotatably mounted at one side of the housing and driven by a hydraulic motor 110. The section lO9a of the pinion is longer than the other section ïO9b so that irrespective of the position of the shaft 90 the worm wheel 107 will .1.
remain in mesh therewith. The thread on section lO9b is in the opposite direction to the thread on section lO9a so that the grooved cable engaging members 85 and 87 ~,. . .
;'; rotate in the opposite direction to the grooved cable engaging members 86 and 88.
' In operation the hydraulic ram 101 is operated to move the ~- cable engaging members 86 and 88 away from the members 85 !"', ~
and 87 and the unit positioned by entering the -cable through , .
~; the mouth 82. The ram 101 is then reversed so that the ~. .
cable is clamped between the members 85 and 86 and 87 and ` 88. The hydraulic motor is then operated to move the unit ."., ~ along the cable.
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In another embodiment not shown in the drawings a worm gear is centrally mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis in a box type housing which is preferably formed in two halves adapted to be bolted or otherwise fastened together. The thread at one end of the worm is in the opposite direction to the thread at the other end of the worm. One end of the worm is directly coupled to a variable speed hydraulic motor located at one end of the housing.
Four shafts are located in the housing so that they are substantially vertical and pass through openings in the upper face of the housing. Each shaft is supported in suitable slidable bearings and is fitted with a pinion which meshes with the worm. The upper ends of each of the four shafts pass through an arcuate slot in a pressure plate rotatably mounted on the upper face of the housing for rotation about a substantially vertical axis and is fitted with a grooved pulley adapted to engage a cable passing between each pair of shafts substantially at right angles to the axis of the worm.
The pressure plate is coupled to a hydraulic cylinder so that it can be rotated in opposite directions to cause said pulleys to move towards and away from the cable. Preferably the pressure side of the piston of the cylinder is provided with a check valve to hold the piston in the cable engaging position. To release the csble hydraulic n uld is supplied ~ ' ' ' :' ~0799~2 to the opposite side of the piston until the pressure acting thereon is sufficient to overcome the action of the check valve. This enables the traction unit to be lowered slowly from an elevated position if required.
The terms "horizontal" and "vertical" used herein in relation to the traction unit have been used solely to describe the relative positions of the var.ious component and it will be appreciated that in use the positions of such components will vary according to the position of the .~.. I .
traction unit.
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Claims (6)
1. A cable cleaning unit comprising an annular nozzle chamber for surrounding a section of cable to be cleaned, a plurality of nozzles within the chamber for directing jets of high pressure oil onto the surface of the cable at an acute angle and a spin-off chamber for receiving oil and impurities from the cable, said spin-off chamber having a plurality of turbo-vanes directing the oil and impurities to an outlet from the unit.
2. A cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein each nozzle has an oval pinhold orifice and the nozzle is so located that a line drawn through the centre of the pinhole normal to the plane of the hole meets the axis of the unit at an acute angle.
3. A cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein each nozzle has an oval pinhole orifice and the nozzle is so located that a line drawn through the centre of the pinhole normal to the plane of the hole meets the axis of the unit at an acute angle of 60°.
4. A cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein each nozzle has an oval pinhole orifice and the nozzle is so located that a line drawn through the centre of the pinhole normal to the plane of the hole meets the axis of the unit at an acute angle and the pinhole is surrounded by an elongated groove so that oil emitted from the pinhole fans out.
5. A cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein the spin-off chamber is provided upstream of the nozzle chamber, the turbo-vanes lead to a common manifold and the downstream wall of the spin-off chamber is suitably angled.
6. Cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein the nozzles are mounted on nozzle bodies slidable on conduits extending radially from the nozzle bodies to an inlet manifold, each nozzle body being connected to a cam slot in a rotatable cam plate.
Priority Applications (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA306,413A CA1079912A (en) | 1975-11-25 | 1978-06-28 | Cable cleaning unit |
| CA322,613A CA1123557A (en) | 1978-06-28 | 1979-02-28 | Cable traction unit |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA240376 | 1975-11-25 | ||
| CA306,413A CA1079912A (en) | 1975-11-25 | 1978-06-28 | Cable cleaning unit |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1079912A true CA1079912A (en) | 1980-06-24 |
Family
ID=25668146
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA306,413A Expired CA1079912A (en) | 1975-11-25 | 1978-06-28 | Cable cleaning unit |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1079912A (en) |
Cited By (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WO2015022068A3 (en) * | 2013-08-15 | 2015-07-30 | Muehlhan Ag | Apparatus for surface treatment of an elongate object |
| CN109396084A (en) * | 2018-11-20 | 2019-03-01 | 四川九洲电器集团有限责任公司 | A kind of optical fiber cleaning device and optical fiber assembling line |
-
1978
- 1978-06-28 CA CA306,413A patent/CA1079912A/en not_active Expired
Cited By (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WO2015022068A3 (en) * | 2013-08-15 | 2015-07-30 | Muehlhan Ag | Apparatus for surface treatment of an elongate object |
| US9649667B2 (en) | 2013-08-15 | 2017-05-16 | Muehlhan Ag | Apparatus for surface treatment of an elongate object |
| CN109396084A (en) * | 2018-11-20 | 2019-03-01 | 四川九洲电器集团有限责任公司 | A kind of optical fiber cleaning device and optical fiber assembling line |
| CN109396084B (en) * | 2018-11-20 | 2024-03-01 | 四川九洲电器集团有限责任公司 | Optical fiber cleaning device and optical fiber assembly line |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKEX | Expiry |