Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
  • H02G—INSTALLATION OF ELECTRIC CABLES OR LINES, OR OF COMBINED OPTICAL AND ELECTRIC CABLES OR LINES
  • H02G3/00—Installations of electric cables or lines or protective tubing therefor in or on buildings, equivalent structures or vehicles
  • H02G3/02—Details
  • H02G3/04—Protective tubing or conduits, e.g. cable ladders or cable troughs
  • H02G3/0406—Details thereof
  • H02G3/0418—Covers or lids; Their fastenings
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
  • H02G—INSTALLATION OF ELECTRIC CABLES OR LINES, OR OF COMBINED OPTICAL AND ELECTRIC CABLES OR LINES
  • H02G3/00—Installations of electric cables or lines or protective tubing therefor in or on buildings, equivalent structures or vehicles
  • H02G3/02—Details
  • H02G3/06—Joints for connecting lengths of protective tubing or channels, to each other or to casings, e.g. to distribution boxes; Ensuring electrical continuity in the joint
  • H02G3/0608—Joints for connecting non cylindrical conduits, e.g. channels

Definitions

• the present invention applies to the field of cable tray assemblies, the cables can carry strong or weak currents.
• a cable tray assembly of the type comprising a body closed by at least first and second cover members provided with adjacent longitudinal ends.
• a length will be defined as a dimension measured in the longitudinal direction.
• the body and the cover elements of an assembly such as above provide effective mechanical protection of the cables housed in the assembly.
• the adjacent ends of the cover elements are abutted edge to edge in such a way that the abutment edges form, in the assembly containing the cables, transverse slots with respect to the path of the cables which strongly limit the protection. against an electromagnetic field pulse.
• FR-A-2 692 731 and US-A-2005/0087358 each propose a cable tray assembly provided with metal means forming a Faraday cage.
• these sets are complex and relatively difficult to mount.
• the object of the invention is to provide a cable-structure assembly of simple structure, providing effective protection of the cables with respect in particular to high electromagnetic disturbances.
• the subject of the invention is a cable tray assembly, of the type comprising a metal body closed by at least first and second metal cover elements provided with adjacent longitudinal ends, characterized in that the adjacent end of the first cover member covers the adjacent end of the second cover member such that the adjacent ends of the first and second cover members are provided with cover surfaces creating a baffle effect to attenuate the penetration of an electromagnetic field into the body.
• the baffle effect is obtained by imposing a length of the overlapping surfaces relative to the spacing between these overlapping surfaces.
• the skilled person can therefore choose the length of the overlapping surfaces depending on the attenuation he wishes to obtain.
• the desired attenuation can preferably be at least 10 dB.
• any longitudinal slots (parallel to the general direction of the path of the cables in the cable tray assembly) generally do not interfere with the protection of the cables against an electromagnetic field, this in contrast to the transverse slots.
• the removal of the transverse slots by covering the joining ends of the cover elements is sufficient to increase very significantly the electromagnetic protection provided by the cable tray assembly.
• the possibility of leaving longitudinal slots, particularly between the body and the cover elements simplifies the structure of the cable tray assembly of the invention.
• the structure of the lid elements of the assembly according to the invention is very simple and can easily be adapted to a conventional assembly body forming a cable tray.
• the adjacent end of the first cover member has a generally U-shaped shape, so as to comprise a core connecting two wings, and, wherein the adjacent end of the second cover member has a generally planar shape to be nested under the web of the adjacent first end and between the wings of the adjacent first end;
• the covering surfaces each have a substantially constant width over their entire length, this length being at least equal to 6% of this width, this length being for example equal to 5 cm for a width of between 6 and 61 cm;
• the cover elements are manufactured in sheet blanks, preferably made of aluminum, with a thickness of less than or equal to 1 mm, preferably equal to 0.5 mm;
• the assembly comprises at least one metal clip forming a clamping clip of a cover member on the body, the clip having first and second gripping ends in contact with the body and
• the invention further relates to a metal cover member for closing a metal body of a cable tray assembly, characterized in that it is intended to form a cable tray assembly according to the invention.
• the invention also relates to a method for manufacturing and mounting a cable tray assembly, the assembly being of the type comprising a metal body closed by at least first and second metal cover elements provided with longitudinal ends. adjacent, the method being of the type in which the lid members are made to predetermined dimensions, characterized in that: - a cable tray assembly is manufactured in which the lid elements are made of thick sheet metal blanks; less than or equal to 1 mm, preferably equal to 0.5 mm, so that each lid member is formed in a sheet blank that can be sheared with a hand-held portable tool by a user, and - when in assembling the assembly, the dimensions of at least one cover element are adapted by shearing this cover element. -AT-
• the method according to the invention facilitates the assembly of the cable tray assembly. Indeed, during assembly of the assembly, it is generally appropriate to adjust the dimensions of some of the lid elements to take into account the specific dimensions of the cable tray.
• the lid elements being made of a relatively thin sheet blank, it is easy to adapt their length (by shortening) by shearing them. Shearing, performed by an operator using a hand-held portable tool, causes almost no dust which allows to mount the cable tray assembly in a very clean environment without harming this cleanliness.
• FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a first section of a cable tray assembly according to the invention
• Figure 2 is a detail view of the circled portion II of Figure 1
• Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1 of a second section of the cable tray assembly according to the invention
• FIG. 4 is a detailed view of the circled portion IV of FIG.
• FIGS. 1 and 3 show two sections 12A, 12B of an assembly 12 forming a cable tray according to the invention.
• the assembly 12 comprises a conventional metal body 14 of generally U-shaped shape, for example steel.
• the body 14 comprises various conventional elements 16 to 20, U-shaped, provided with adjacent longitudinal ends interconnected by conventional means 22.
• the body 14 comprises conventional means 24 for guiding the cables.
• This cover 26 comprises several metal elements arranged longitudinally one after the other. These cover elements are manufactured in sheet blanks, preferably aluminum, with a thickness of less than or equal to 1 mm, preferably equal to 0.5 mm.
• the body 14 and the cover 26 provide mechanical and electromagnetic protection for the cables intended to be housed in the assembly 12.
• the cover 26 includes at least first 28 and second 30 metal cover members.
• the first cover member 28 includes a female longitudinal end 28A adjacent a first male longitudinal end 30A of the second cover member 30.
• the first lid member 28 also includes a male longitudinal end 28B adjacent to a corresponding female end of another not shown lid member.
• the second cover member 30 also includes a second male longitudinal end 30B adjacent to a corresponding female longitudinal end of another not shown cover member.
• the first cover member 28 has a generally u-shaped straight profile. The side edges of the first cover member 28 are parallel to each other.
• the first cover member 28 comprises a core 28C connecting two wings 28D.
• the female end 28A of the first cover member 28 has a generally U-shaped profile formed by the core 28C and the two wings 28D.
• the male end 28B of the first cover member 28 is formed by an end of the core 28C extending longitudinally beyond the longitudinal ends of the wings 28D.
• the core 28C of the cover element 28 is intended to be placed on the free ends of the wings of the body 14 so that the wings 28D of the element 28 partially cover the wings of the body 14.
• the second lid member 30 has a generally planar shape delimited by curved lateral edges around an imaginary axis T1 perpendicular to the general direction of the cable path and the plane of the sheet.
• the first male end 30A of the second cover member 30 therefore has a generally planar shape intended to be fitted under the core 28C of the female end 28A and between the flanges 28D of this female end 28A.
• the female end 28A of the first cover member 28 covers the first male end 30A of the second cover member 30, so that these ends 28A, 30A are provided with cover surfaces SF, SM creating a baffle effect attenuating the penetration of an electromagnetic field into the body 14 (see Figures 1 and 2).
• These cover surfaces SF, SM can be, at least locally, in electrical contact with each other. However, the contact between the cover surfaces SF, SM is not necessary for the efficiency of the baffle effect.
• the covering surfaces SF, SM each have a substantially constant width over their entire length.
• the length of the covering surfaces SF, SM is at least equal to 6% of this width.
• an effective attenuation of the penetration of the electromagnetic field (attenuation of at least 1 OdB) can be obtained with a length L of the covering surfaces SF, SM at less than 5 cm (see Figure 2).
• the second element 30 is intended to be placed on the free ends of the wings of the body 14.
• the male ends of the cover elements are delimited by longitudinal edges forming slight recesses in width D with respect to the longitudinal edges of the cover elements.
• the 12B of the assembly 12 forming a cable tray comprises an element 32 having a generally curved shape about an imaginary axis T2 perpendicular to the general direction of the cable path and parallel to the plane of the sheet in which is formed this element.
• the cover member 32 comprises two male longitudinal ends 32A, 32B.
• the body 14 is covered with a coating electrically insulating the body, such as a paint or varnish.
• metal clips 34 forming clamps such as that shown in FIGS. 4 to 6. These clips 34 serve to tighten a lid element, for example a profiled element. U such that the element 28, on the body 14. In Figure 4, the clip 34 is shown during assembly on the assembly 12 forming cable tray.
• the clip 34 has a generally clevis shape comprising a core 34C connecting two wings 34D.
• the wings 34D of the clip 34 form first and second nip ends in contact with the body 14 and the cover member 28, respectively.
• a first wing 34D, intended to be in contact with the body 14, comprises claw means intended to scratch and pierce the insulating coating of the body 14, to ensure electrical contact between the clip 34 and the body 14.
• the claw means comprise two claws 36 each formed by a punctured in the flange 34D.
• the wing 34D could have only one claw 36.
• claw means 36 are preferably provided on the two wings 34D of the clip 34, as shown in FIG. 5.
• claw means 36 are preferably provided on the two wings 34D of the clip 34, as shown in FIG. 5.
• 34D in contact with the cover 26 may scratch and drill any electrical insulation coating of the cover 26 to ensure electrical contact between the clip 34 and the cover 26.
• the clip 34 ensures electrical continuity between the body 14 and the cover 26 even if the body 14 or the cover 26 is covered with an insulating coating.
• the clips 34 are made of a material adapted to that of the body 14 or that of the elements of the lid 26, for example steel, in particular spring steel, to avoid undesirable redox effects.
• the lid elements are manufactured to predetermined dimensions.
• all the straight elements 28 intended to form the assembly 12 may have a predetermined length, for example equal to 2.5 m.
• At least one cover element for example the right element 28, must be shortened to adapt it to the specific dimensions of the cable tray.
• the lid members 26 are made of a relatively thin sheet blank, it is easy to adjust the length (by shortening) of a straight member 28 by shearing one of its ends. This shearing can be performed by an operator using a portable hand tool easy to handle. Moreover, shearing causes practically no dust, or no material debris, which makes it possible, if necessary, to respect an environment with very high stress of cleanliness. It is also possible to shear any other element of the lid 26 to fit the specific dimensions of the cable tray.
• the lid members 26 are tightened on the body 14 by means of staples 34. It will be noted that the lid elements having no female end are retained on the body 14 on the one hand, by cooperation of their male ends with the female ends of the adjacent lid members, and on the other hand by the clips 34. An appropriate number of staples 34 are placed on the lid members 26 and the body 14 so as to ensure good mechanical retention of the lid 26 on the body 14.
• cover elements made in sheet blanks between 0.5 and 1 mm thick, provided with cover surfaces SF, SM 5 cm long, have sufficient rigidity for the spacing of the surfaces of SF cover, SM does not exceed about 1 mm, which guarantees an efficient baffle effect.
• the lid elements are even more rigid when they have side wings 28D. Indeed, these wings form stiffening means of the lid elements.
• the bending tends to undesirably widen the longitudinal slots (parallel to the general direction of the cable path) between the body 14 and the cover members having no lateral wings .
• FIG 7 there is shown a cover member 38 having a generally planar and straight shape. The side edges of this cover member 38 converge from a first male end 38A to a second male end 38B.
• FIG. 8 shows a cover element 40 which, unlike the element 38 shown in FIG. 7, comprises two parts 42, 44 with parallel lateral edges interposed between, for the part 42, a first male end 40A and a central portion with converging side edges and, for the portion 44, a second male end 40B and the central portion with converging side edges.
• a lid member 46 generally T-shaped, comprising three male ends 46A, 46B, 46C.
• a cover member 48 generally cross-shaped, comprising four male ends 48A, 48B, 48C, 48D.
• cover surfaces SF, SM create a baffle effect that effectively attenuates the penetration of an electromagnetic field into the body 14, by using cover elements manufactured in a relatively thin sheet metal blank, of easy to adapt length (by shearing them with a hand tool causing almost no dust), the staples 34 forming very simple means opposing the longitudinal bending of the lid elements without side wings.
• the elements of the cover 26 have very simple structures and shapes and are capable of adapting to conventional cable tray bodies, without it being necessary to modify these cable tray bodies.
• the cover elements 26 can be mounted on the cable tray body at the end of the worksite, without producing any dirt. The protection function of the cable tray against electromagnetic impulses can therefore be put in place, at the end of the construction site, in a clean environment, without dirtying this environment.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Architecture (AREA)
• Civil Engineering (AREA)
• Structural Engineering (AREA)
• Details Of Indoor Wiring (AREA)
• Installation Of Indoor Wiring (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=41361304

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

Family Cites Families (8)

• 2009
  • 2009-05-11 FR FR0953089A patent/FR2945386B1/fr not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 2010
  • 2010-05-10 WO PCT/FR2010/050898 patent/WO2010130935A2/fr not_active Ceased
  • 2010-05-10 EP EP10729715A patent/EP2430718A2/de not_active Withdrawn

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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