FR3067339A1 - MULTIPLE SPOOL - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a multiple reel (1) for flexible and elongated products, in particular for rods / pulling needles, as well as a method for its production and its use. Said reel (1) comprises an axle or axle (8) on which are rotated one or more hubs (9) carrying at least two pods (10) for receiving and retaining, while facilitating its reeling, the needle or ring (2) able to wind up / unwind in its nacelle (10). Use for the unwinding of rods / needles, or other flexible and elongated products, wound on said reel, in particular for the pulling of optical fiber cables, electric cables, or other types of cables, when installing them in ducts, ducts, double-bulkheads, or other spaces where they are to be introduced.

Description

MULTIPLE FEEDER, METHOD FOR THE PRODUCTION THEREOF AND THE USE THEREOF

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of reels of pulling needles used during the installation of optical fiber cables, electric cables, coaxial cables, and other cables and flexible and elongated products. Such reels are used in numerous applications, in particular for pulling cables or optical fibers during the installation of these in conduits, technical sheaths, double partitions, or other difficult configurations.

TECHNOLOGICAL BACKGROUND

The windings of rods which, according to their material, their dimensions and their destinations are made of resinated glass fiber, metal rod, or other, with in most cases a drawing needle or even simply a needle in the fields concerned. additional surface coating intended to optimize its coefficient of friction and to facilitate its use, by making it more convenient to push and / or pull it in the pipe.

As well for its storage as for its transport and / or its use on site, said needle is conventionally packaged on a reel dedicated to a type of needle.

A person skilled in the art has thus become accustomed to constituting windings of specific needles, to storing and transporting them as required, and then to unrolling, from a reel specifically loaded for this purpose, the needles intended to an appropriate installation in a dedicated pipe. It is then always necessary to change the reel when moving from one needle to another needle having different specifications, therefore stored / transported on reels specific to each.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

We have now designed multiple reels or advantageously multi-size reels, capable of providing in the same set and for use on the same site or on remote sites, but from a single reel, at least two, and preferably three or more, needles of different diameters, lengths, materials and / or destinations, without any discomfort and with certain advantages. In fact, it is now possible to gain in particular in terms of storage space, in volume of reels transported and in practicality of use, both for winding and unwinding and vice versa, as well as in overall cost, a double reel sizes proving to be more economical than two conventional reels.

It has thus been found that a reel according to the present invention makes it possible to fulfill all the desired functions of conventional reels, by adding greater practicality and making it possible to reduce the number of reels to load with needles, to transport and to handle on site, and without contradicting in the least the proven methods of use for all these stages, therefore requiring no significant additional training.

The dispenser according to the present invention has also been found not to have the drawback which it was legitimate to think of, namely a risk of entanglement of needles between them during storage of the needles, their transport and / or their progress. Said reel is essentially characterized in that it comprises, in the longitudinal direction of its axis or axle, several successive windings of needles, on a common hub or on their own hub, while said windings can advantageously be different in terms of of the material, the diameter and / or the length of each, with a preference for two or three different contiguous windings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be better understood, and other objectives, advantages and characteristics thereof will appear more clearly, in the light of the detailed description below of the preferred embodiments, given for purely illustrative and in no way limitative, while that are annexed to said description of the plates of illustrative figures, comprising photos in which:

Figure 1 shows a side view of a conventional reel with wheels, comprising a needle;

Figure 2 shows a side view of a conventional reel without wheels, comprising a needle;

Figure 3 shows a side view of a reel according to the invention, comprising two concentric needles in the same plane;

4 shows a side view, in perspective, of a reel according to the invention, designed in thick tube, comprising two concentric needles in the same vertical plane;

5 shows a partial view of three quarters face, of a reel according to the invention, placed on its base and having two concentric needles in the same vertical plane.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention summarized above is a reel 1 for pulling needles used during the installation of optical fiber cables, and other cables and flexible and elongated products, wound on such a device having the function of a reel of such products flexible and elongated here generically called: needles or rods in the illustrative application considered), said reel comprising a base 3 allowing it to be placed on the ground, and optionally an axle 4 comprising wheels 5 at its ends or near these, as well as a handling handle 6. This base 3 for dispenser has in practice a substantially rectangular shape, each of the two opposite sides of which is surmounted by a linkage in the form of a triangle secured to said base. Said triangles are detachably connected, at their apex opposite the plane of the rectangular base 3, by an axis or axle on which the hub (s) 9 carrying the linkage come into rotation forming what is commonly called a nacelle 10 intended to receive and retain, while facilitating its unwinding, the needle or rod 2 to be wound / unwound as desired.

In practice, the reel 1 advantageously further comprises a tubular rod 11 secured to the axis 8 and perpendicular to the plane of the base 3 and ending at its upper end 12 by a handle 6 making it possible to facilitate movement and the portage.

As a variant, the reel 1 can have for base 3 a simple bent tube of larger diameter 13, the first end of which is located towards the center of one of the longest sides of the rectangle forming the base 3, while by a clearance of successive curvatures (shown in FIG. 4) suitable the ascending rod 11 is formed after an antepenultimate curvature and ends after an ultimate curvature by a handle 6.

As regards the central part of the reel 1, it comprises the axis or axle 8 carrying at least one hub 9, free to rotate. Said axis or axle 8 can be permanently fixed to the upper ends of each triangle 7, but it is advantageously removable or at least detachable from at least one of the two triangles 7 or from the rising rod of the large diameter bent tube 13 of the variant embodiment shown in FIG. 4. It can also consist of two coaxial hubs, mounted end to end on the same axle or axle 8, and optionally separated from each other, at one or both of their ends, by one or more flanges 14 promoting, if necessary, the maintenance of the needle windings inside their storage nacelle 10.

The reel can in practice be produced not only in metal tube, but also in plastic or other suitable materials to be resistant in their current use.

In its most standard embodiment, the device 1 according to the invention comprises a combination of two or more of two nacelles 10 receiving needles or rods 2 for reels, secured to a single hub 9 or two or more of two hubs 9 coaxial with or without link between them, mobile (s) in rotation around the axis 8 of the reel.

The nacelles are in practice made up of thin metal rods, bent and welded so as to form a tree structure (for example, six rods oriented respectively so as to each form an angle of about 60 degrees with the next one) around a suitable hub , while the free ends of these rods are curved or curved to form claws conventionally adapted to retain windings of needles or rods.

When using such a multiple dispenser, only one needle is used in practice, barring exceptions. The needle or needles which are not used then in no way prevent the use without discomfort of the one which is, the needles passing through their respective output / guide rings. And even in the field of use, only the needle used passes through its exit / guide ring, while the end of the other needle (s) has its free end carefully stored in its own nacelle, inside the reel.

As regards, moreover, the dependence or not of the nacelles between them, it is very possible to make them independent by suitable conventional means, such as independent hubs possibly provided with separation flanges, but the simplest and most economical. is that they are united.

To produce such a multiple reel, a process is implemented according to which a conventional or improved reel is introduced on axis 8:

• successively the hub of each of the two or more of two nacelles previously loaded with the respective needles which are intended for them, in an order which may be a function of the needs and / or preferences specific to each case; or • as a variant, a hub is made to slide on the axis 8 common to two or more than two nacelles, themselves loaded with the desired quantity of needles, advantageously at least two types of different specifications.

The invention also relates to the use of a reel according to the present invention for the unwinding of rods / needles, or other flexible and elongated products, wound on said reel, in particular for the drawing of optical fiber cables, cables electrical, or other types of cables, when installing these in conduits, technical sheaths, double partitions, or other spaces where they must be introduced.

The dispenser according to the invention is thus a structured assembly providing several needles on a single multiple dispenser, in which each nacelle / needle plays a role while the others remain in a waiting situation and are thus in no way disruptive, while this are the reciprocal or successive phases of use which control the moment when a needle is rewound to come in turn to standby in favor of another needle chosen to be the one that takes place in its place.

For example, but without this being limiting, it is possible to combine on the same reel according to the invention, according to needs and / or preferences:

• either two or more of two nacelles provided with their respective needle windings, so that said nacelles are concentric and on the same median transverse plane, and in this case the diameters of the needle windings decrease from the outside towards therein;

• or two or more of two nacelles provided with their respective needle windings, concentric but offset with respect to each other along the carrier axis, so that their median transverse planes are offset and parallel.

More concretely, there exist in the technique different diameters of needles, ranging from a few millimeters to a few centimeters, and different lengths of needles.

As non-limiting examples, we can cite:

diameter of 3 mm diameter of 4 mm diameter of 4.5 mm diameter of 7 mm diameter of 9 mm diameter of 11 mm par par par par par per m in length 40 m in length 60 m in length 100 m in length 150 m in length 300 m in length

In the uses according to the present invention, the multiple reel can thus contain, advantageously but without being limiting, several groups of needles, such as for example:

• a reel containing a needle 3 mm in diameter by 30 m in length + a needle of 4.5 mm in diameter by 60 m in length;

• a reel containing a needle 4.5 mm in diameter by 60 m in length + a needle of 7 mm in diameter by 100 m in length;

• a reel containing a needle 9 mm in diameter by 150 m in length + a needle of 11 mm in diameter by 300 m in length; or • a reel containing 3 needles: a needle of 3 mm in diameter by 30 m in length + a needle of 4.5 mm in diameter by 60 m in length + a needle of 7 mm in diameter by 100 m in length.

In all these configurations, the user optimizes his work, as well as his needs in place and in materials. By sharing the dispenser 1 in this way, in practice it only needs one dispenser for 2 or 3 needles. However, the cost of such a reel, although slightly higher than that of a simple reel according to the prior art, is generally more economical, because it amortizes on 2 needles. In other words, a multiple or multi-size dispenser according to the invention is more economical than two conventional dispensers.

Claims (8)

1. Reel (1) for flexible and elongated products (2), in particular those called rods / pulling needles, said reel comprising a base (3) allowing it to be placed on the ground, and optionally an axle (4) comprising wheels (5), as well as an operating handle (6), characterized in that it comprises an axle or axle (8) on which come one or more hubs (9) carrying at least two nacelles (10) intended to receive and retain, while facilitating its unwinding, the needle or rod (2) capable of being wound / unwound in its nacelle (10). 2. Reel according to claim 1, characterized in that it has for base (3) a simple bent tube (13), the first end of which is located towards the center of one of the longest sides of the rectangle forming the base (3), while by a set of successive curvatures, the ascending tubular rod (11) is formed after an antepenultimate curvature and ends after an ultimate curvature by a handle (6). 3. Reel according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the central part of the reel (1) comprises said axis or axle (8) carrying at least one hub (9) free to rotate, while said axis or axle (8) is either fixed permanently to the upper ends of triangles (7), or removable or at least detachable from at least one of the two triangles (7) or from the rising rod of the bent tube (13). 4. Reel according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the hub (9) consists of two coaxial hubs, mounted end to end on the same axis or axle (8), and optionally separate one on the other, at one or both of their ends, by one or more flanges (14). 5. Reel according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it comprises a combination of two or more than two pods (10) receiving needles or rods (2) for reels, secured to a single hub (9) or two or more than two coaxial hubs (9) with or without link between them, mobile (s) rotating around the axis (8) of the reel. 6. Reel according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, when using the multiple reel (1), only the needle used passes through its own output ring / guide, and the or needles that are not used pass through their respective rings 5 outlet / guide, while the end of said unused needles is in its own basket, inside said reel. 7. Method for the production of a multiple reel (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that one introduces on the axis (8) of said reel: 10 • successively the hub (9) of each of the two or more of two nacelles (10) previously loaded with the respective needles (2) which are intended for them; or • as a variant, a hub (9) is made to slide on the axis (8) common to two or more of two nacelles (10), themselves responsible for the quantity 15 desired needles (2), advantageously at least two different types of specifications. 8. Use of a reel according to any one of claims 1 to 6 for the unwinding of rods / pulling needles, wound on said reel, in particular for drawing optical fiber cables, cables 20 electrical, or any other type of cable when installing these in conduits, technical sheaths, double partitions, or other difficult configurations.