IE86824B1 - Cable support bracket, cable assembly and attachment method - Google Patents

Abstract

A cable support bracket is provided for use on support structures having one or more existing cable fixtures. The cable support bracket includes: a base plate defining an open-ended slot at one end thereof, the open-ended slot being configured for receiving a first part of cable fixture attached to a support structure; a pair of feet extending from a first side of the base plate for engagement with the support structure; and at least one wing extending from the base plate towards an opposite second side thereof, the wing being configured for supporting a cable. A cable assembly including the cable support bracket and a method of attaching a cable to a support structure are also provided. <Figure 4>

Description

Field of the Invention This invention relates to a cable bracket for attaching a cable to a utility pole.

It has been developed primarily for reducing the time and cost involved in installing fibre optic cables.

Background of the Invention Wire-based telecommunications network are ubiquitous across the world. Traditional wire-based telecommunications networks are based on copper cables for transmission of data signals. Copper cables support traditional telephone communications and relatively low-speed internet communications. However, with increasing demands for high-speed internet communications and high bandwidths, many countries are upgrading traditional copper cable networks to fibre optic cable networks, which enable much higher speeds and bandwidths.

Upgrading to fibre optic cables is necessarily a costly process. Aside from the cost of the fibre optic cables themselves, a major cost of upgrading networks is the manpower required to install the new cables.

In some regions, fibre optic cables are buried underground. Burying fibre optic cables is advantageous, because it protects them from damage. In other regions, burying fibre optic cables is impractical or uneconomic, and the cables must be attached to conventional overground utility poles, which already carry copper cables. Cable congestion on utility poles is often problematic so the installation of new fibre optics may be difficult. Notwithstanding the difficulties of cable congestion on utility poles, fibre optic cables are relatively less robust and lighter than copper cables. Therefore, it is highly recommended that fibre optic cables be installed relatively higher than traditional copper cables on utility poles. By installing sensitive fibre optic cables above more robust copper cables, the fibre optics cables receive a degree of protection from, for example, high vehicles.

However, a further problem exists insofar as utility poles have a maximum height at which cable support brackets can be attached. In order to maintain the integrity of the utility pole, it is recommended that bracket fasteners should be fixed at no less than about 300 mm from the top of the pole. In most cases, the uppermost available position on a utility pole has already been taken by a traditional copper cable support bracket. Therefore, in order to install a new fibre optic cable support bracket at the recommended uppermost position, it is necessary to rearrange the existing copper cable support brackets so as to create space for the new fibre optic cable support bracket. This is necessarily a time-consuming process for telecommunications engineers. It is estimated that a telecommunications engineer typically spends at least 30 minutes rearranging existing support brackets on utility poles in order to make space for a fibre optic support bracket at the recommended uppermost position. With many thousands of utility poles in many countries requiring such an upgrade, the cost of installing fibre optics cables is consequently very high.

It would therefore be desirable to attach fibre optic cables to utility poles with less time and costs than conventional methods.

Summary of the Invention In a first aspect, there is provided a cable support bracket having at least one fastener aperture defined therein, the cable support bracket comprising: a base plate defining an open-ended slot at one end thereof, the open-ended slot being configured for receiving a first part of a cable fixture attached to a support structure; a pair of feet extending from a first side of the base plate for engagement with the support structure; and at least one wing extending from the base plate towards an opposite second side thereof, the at least one wing being configured for supporting a cable.

The cable support bracket according to the first aspect advantageously enables fibre optic cables to be retrofitted onto utility poles having existing conventional cable fixtures without installing new load-bearing bolts and without removal and/or rearrangement of any existing cable support brackets. In particular, the open-ended slot is configured to be slidingly seated on part of a load-bearing bolt (first fastener) of an existing cable fixture, such that the load-bearing bolt bears the weight of both the existing relatively heavy copper cable and a new relatively lighter fibre optic cable. Therefore, the cable support bracket according to the first aspect obviates the need for a new load-bearing bolt to be installed on the utility pole.

Preferably, the pair of feet define a recess therebetween for complementarity receiving a second part of the existing cable fixture. The recess preferably conforms to the profile of the second part of the existing cable fixture.

Preferably, the at least one wing defines a respective wing opening for receiving a cable or a cable retainer therethrough.

In one preferred embodiment, the at least one wing comprises a pair of opposed planar wings extending substantially perpendicularly with respect to a plane of the base plate, each planar wing defining a respective wing opening, and the wing openings being substantially aligned with each other. In this embodiment, the cable may either be threaded through the aligned wing openings, or attached to the planar wings using cable retainers) looped through the wing opening(s).

In another preferred embodiment, the at least one wing comprises a scroll wing extending from a plane of the base plate. This embodiment advantageously maximizes the stability of the wing against tensioning of the cable.

Preferably, at least one fastener aperture is defined in the base plate.

The second part of the existing cable fixture may be secured to the support structure via a second fastener, such as a coach screw. By positioning the fastener opening defined in the base plate with a corresponding fastener opening of the existing cable fixture, a single coach screw may be used to secure both the cable support bracket and the existing cable fixture to the support structure (e.g utility pole). In this way, the cable support bracket according to this preferred embodiment avoids any additional damage to the utility pole during installation and, significantly, the integrity of the uppermost part of the utility pole is maintained. As will be appreciated from the foregoing, installation of fibre optic cables whilst maintaining the integrity of the uppermost portions of utility poles and without requiring rearrangement of existing cable fixtures is a significant advantage of the present invention.

Alternatively, or additionally, each foot may define a respective fastener aperture (e.g. slot), and the fastener apertures of the feet are aligned for receiving a fastening band, such as a metal band, looped around the utility pole. In this alternative embodiment, damage to the utility pole is still avoided and, advantageously, there is no requirement for alignment of fastener apertures on two different brackets during installation.

In a second aspect, there is provided a cable assembly comprising: a support structure; a first cable fixture fastened to the support structure, the first cable fixture comprising a first bracket supporting a first cable, and first and second fasteners securing the first bracket to the support structure; and a second cable fixture fastened to the support structure, the second cable fixture comprising a second bracket supporting a second cable and a third fastener securing the second bracket to the support structure, the second bracket being the cable support bracket as described above, wherein: the second cable is supported by the at least one wing; the open-ended slot receives part of the first fastener; and the pair of feet accommodate part of the first bracket therebetween.

Preferably, the support structure is a utility pole or telecommunications pole.

The cable assembly according to the second aspect defines a typical use case of the cable support bracket described above.

Preferably, the second cable fixture is relatively higher than the first cable fixture. With the second cable fixture supporting a fibre optic cable and the first cable fixture supporting a conventional copper cable, this is the recommended arrangement for installation of new fibre optic cables onto utility poles.

Preferably, the first fastener is a load-bearing bolt extending through a diameter of the pole. The load-bearing bolt may be adapted to bear loads of at least 400 kg, at least 450 kg or at least 500 kg.

Preferably, the first bracket comprises a J-hook. J-hook brackets are used in many countries for supporting conventional copper cables and the present invention is advantageously adapted to complement this type of bracket.

Preferably, the first cable is heavier than the second cable. As foreshadowed above, the present invention is particularly useful for installation of fibre optic cables on utility poles having existing copper telecommunications cable(s). However, it will be appreciated that the present invention is not so limited in scope and may be used to install any type of new cable where it is desirable to position the new cable above an existing cable without further damage to a support structure.

Preferably, the second and third fasteners are a same common fastener (e.g. a coach screw) which is received through the fastener aperture of the base plate and an aligned fastener aperture of the second bracket. As described above, alignment of these fastener apertures enables a single coach screw to secure the first and second brackets in position, thereby avoiding damage to the utility pole during installation.

In the embodiment of the cable support bracket having the planar wings, a sleeve grommet preferably extends between the wing openings, and the second cable is positioned within a longitudinal bore of the sleeve grommet. In this embodiment, the second cable (e.g. fibre optic cable) is threaded through both wing openings and the sleeve grommet protects the second cable from potentially damaging contact with the planar wings.

Alternatively, the second cable may be supported by one or more cable retainers secured thereto, each cable retainer being attached to one or both of the planar wings, and typically received through one or both of the wing openings. Cable retainers may be attached to the second cable by, for example, twisting. Each cable retainer may comprise a loop section (e.g. carabiner), which is received through one or both wing openings. Suitable cable retainer arrangements will be well known to the person skilled in the art.

In the embodiment of the cable support bracket having the scroll wing, the second cable is preferably supported by one or more cable retainers secured to the second cable, and each cable retainer has a loop section attached to the scroll wing. A cable retainer may be attached to the scroll wing by hanging the loop section from the scroll wing or by receiving the loop section through a wing opening defined in the scroll wing. If a pair of cable retainers are employed, each cable retainer may be looped through the same wing opening and tensioned in opposite directions.

In a third aspect, there is provided a method of attaching a second cable to a support structure having an existing first cable fixture secured thereto, the first cable fixture comprising a first bracket supporting a first cable, a first load-bearing fastener securing the first bracket to the support structure and a second fastener securing the first bracket to the support structure, the method comprising the steps of: positioning a second bracket relative to the support structure and the first bracket, the second bracket being the cable support bracket as described above, wherein the first fastener is received in the open-ended slot and part of the first bracket is received between the pair of feet; securing the second bracket to the support structure using a third fastener, and supporting a second cable using the at least one wing of the second bracket.

In a preferred aspect, the method according to the third aspect advantageously reduces installation times of fibre optic cables. Typically, installation times are reduced from about 30 minutes to less than 5 minutes or less than 2 minutes. Such a reduction in the labour time spent on each utility pole advantageously provides a very significant reduction in the overall cost of installing fibre optic cable networks.

In one preferred embodiment, the method comprises the steps of: removing the second fastener from the first bracket; aligning the fastener aperture of the second bracket with a fastener aperture of the first bracket, and fastening both the first and second brackets using a third fastener (which may be the removed second fastener or a replacement fastener) received through the aligned fastener apertures.

In an alternative embodiment, the third fastener is a fastening band receiving through aligned fastener apertures defined in the feet of the second bracket.

In respect of the embodiment of the cable support bracket having planar wings, the step of supporting the second cable may comprise threading the second cable through the aligned wing openings, in which case a sleeve grommet is typically inserted subsequently through the wing openings such that the second cable is positioned within a longitudinal bore of the sleeve grommet. Typically, the sleeve grommet has a longitudinal slit enabling the second cable to be received within its bore.

Alternatively, the step of supporting the second cable may comprise attaching one or more cable retainers to the second cable and looping part of each cable retainer through one or more wing openings, which may be defined in either the planar wings or the scroll wing as described above.

Brief Description of the Drawings Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view a typical prior art cable fixture; Figure 2 is a side view of the cable fixture shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a front view of the cable fixture shown in Figure 1; Figure 4 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the cable support bracket according to the present invention; Figure 5 is a perspective view of a cable assembly according to one embodiment the present invention; Figure 6 is a side view of the cable assembly shown in Figure 5; Figure 7 is a front view of the cable assembly shown in Figure 5; Figure 8 is a perspective view of a cable assembly according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention; Figure 9 is a side view of the cable assembly shown in Figure 8 ; Figure 10 is a front view of the cable assembly shown in Figure 8; and Figure 11 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the cable support bracket according to the present invention.

Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments Referring to Figures 1 to 3, there is a shown a first cable fixture 1, as conventionally used in the prior art, for attaching a copper cable 3 to a utility pole 5. For the sake of clarity, only an uppermost portion of the utility pole 5 is shown in Figures 1 to 3.

The first cable fixture 1 comprises a J-hook bracket 7 which is fixed to the utility pole 5 by means of a bolt 9 passing through opposed portions of the J-hook bracket. The bolt 9 extends through a diameter of the utility pole 5 and is secured by means of nut 10 and brace plate 11. The bolt and J-hook bracket arrangement is strong enough to bear loads of about 400 to 450 kg, which is more than sufficient to bear the weight of the copper cable 3. The copper cable 3 is attached to the bolt 9 and J-hook bracket 7 via a conventional support bracket assembly 13 suspended from a sleeve portion 14 of the bolt 9. Details of the support bracket assembly 13 are not germane to the present invention and, in the interests of brevity, will not be described further herein.

The J-hook bracket 7 comprises a planar back plate 15 engaged with the utility pole 5. The back plate 15 has a lower bolt aperture for receiving the bolt 9 and an upper screw aperture for receiving a coach screw 17. The coach screw 17 essentially holds the J-hook bracket 7 in a substantially vertical orientation, whilst the bolt 9 bears the load of the copper cable 3.

The skilled person will appreciate that the first cable fixture 1 shown in Figures 1 to 3 is used in many countries (e.g. Ireland, UK etc.) for attachment of conventional copper telecommunications cables 3 to utility poles 5.

Turning now to Figure 4, there is shown a cable support bracket 20 according to one embodiment of the present invention. The cable support bracket 20 comprises an elongate base plate 22 defining an open-ended slot 24 at one end thereof and fastener apertures 26A and 26B defined therein. The open-ended slot 24 is configured for receiving part of a cable fixture, specifically part of the bolt 9, as will be described in more detail below.

A pair of feet 28A and 28B extend from a first side of the base plate 24 for engagement with the utility pole 5. Each of the feet 28 A and 28B from a respective longitudinal edge of the base plate 22 and are in an opposed relationship so as to define a recess therebetween. The feet 28A and 28B are substantially parallel with each other and extend substantially perpendicularly with respect to a plane of the base plate 22.

In one embodiment (not shown in Figure 4), the feet may define respective slots, which are aligned with each other for receiving a fastening band. A plurality of aligned slots may be defined for receiving a corresponding plurality of fastening bands. This embodiment provides alternative or additional attachment means for the cable support bracket 20, for example, by looping a metal band around a utility pole and through the aligned slots.

Returning to Figure 4, a pair of planar wings 30A and 30B extend from an opposite second side of the base plate 22; that is, in an opposite direction relative to the feet 28A and 28B. Each of the planar wings 30A and 30B extends from a respective longitudinal edge of the base plate 22 and are in an opposed relationship. The planar wings 30A and 30B are substantially parallel with each other and extend substantially perpendicularly with respect to a plane of the base plate 22.

The planar wings 30A and 30B define respective wing openings 32A and 32B for receiving a cable or a cable retainer therethrough, the wing openings being substantially aligned with each other in a direction parallel with a transverse axis of the base plate 22 and perpendicular to a plane of each wing.

The cable support bracket 20 may be formed of any suitable material, such as metal or plastics. Typically, the cable support bracket 20 is formed of galvanized steel.

Referring to Figures 5 to 7, there is shown a cable assembly 40 according to one preferred embodiment of the invention. The cable assembly 40 comprises the first cable fixture 1, as described in connection with Figures 1 to 3, and a second cable fixture 42, which is comprised of the cable support bracket 20 and a fibre optic cable 44.

The open-ended slot 24 defined in the base plate 22 of the cable support bracket 20 has the sleeve portion 14 of the bolt 9 received therein. Likewise, the recess defined between the feet 28A and 28B of the cable support bracket 20 complements and accommodates part of the back plate 15 of the J-hook bracket 7, such that the cable support bracket is securely fitted onto the first cable fixture 1. Advantageously, with the cable support bracket 20 seated on the load-bearing bolt 9 via the open-ended slot 24, the bolt bears the weight of the cable support bracket and, hence, the fibre optic cable 44 carried by the cable support bracket.

Still referring to Figures 5 to 7, the fastener aperture 26A (shown in Figure 4) of the cable support bracket 20 is positioned to align with the screw aperture of the Jhook bracket 7 when the cable support bracket is seated on the bolt 9. It will be appreciated that a number of fastener apertures 26 may be defined in the base plate 22 in order to provide alignment of one of these apertures with the screw aperture of the J-hook bracket 7. Alternatively, the fastener aperture 26 may take the form of a slot in order to provide a range of suitably aligned configurations.

With the aligned screw aperture of the J-hook bracket 7 and fastener aperture of the cable support bracket 20, the coach screw 17 is advantageously used to fasten both brackets to the utility pole 5.

In the embodiment shown in Figures 5 to 7, the fibre optic cable 44 is threaded through the wing openings 32A and 32B of the cable support bracket 20. The fibre optic cable 44 is held in position with a sleeve grommet 46 extending between the planar wings 30A and 30B and received within each of the wing openings 32A and 32B. The sleeve grommet 46 has a central longitudinal bore 47 dimensioned for receiving the fibre optic cable 44. A longitudinal slit 48 of the sleeve grommet 46 enables the grommet to be fitted in position around the fibre optic cable 44 after threading the cable through the wings openings 32A and 32B. The sleeve grommet 46 is typically formed of a compliant plastics or rubber material and serves to protect the fibre optic cable 44 from, for example, frictional or abrasive contact with circumferential edge portions of the wing openings 32A and 32B.

Turning to Figures 8 to 10, there is shown an alternative cable assembly 50 according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention. The cable assembly 50 is identical in every respect to the cable assembly 40 described above in connection with Figures 4 to 7, with the exception of the arrangement for supporting the fibre optic cable 44 from the planar wings 30A and 30B.

As shown in Figures 8 to 10, the fibre optic cable has a pair of cable retainers 52A and 52B secured thereto via a helically twisted wire (e.g. steel wire). Each of the cable retainers 52A and 52B comprises a respective loop section in the form of carabiners 54A and 54B. Each of the wing openings 32A and 32B receives a respective carabiner 54A and 54B for attachment of the fibre optic cable 44 to the cable support bracket 20. A short catenary section 55 of the fibre optic cable 44 hangs below the planar wings 30A and 30B, but remains well above the height of the copper cable 3. This alternative cable assembly 50 avoids threading the fibre optic cable 44 through the wing openings 32 and enables the cable to be tensioned between utility posts 5; only the short catenary section 55 is untensioned.

In an exemplary embodiment, the fibre optic cable 44 may be tensioned between a pair of utility posts 5, with each of the pair of utility posts utilizing the cable assembly 50 shown in Figures 8 to 10. In between this pair of utility posts 5, the fibre optic cable 44 may be attached to one or more intervening utility posts 5 using the cable assembly 40 shown in Figures 5 to 7. In this way, sufficient tension may be maintained in the fibre optic cable 44.

Each of the cable assemblies 40 and 50 may be assembled in a facile manner from the prior art cable fixture 1 shown in Figures 1 to 3. In order to install the cable support bracket 20, the coach screw 17 is first removed and the cable support bracket is positioned relative to the utility pole 5 and the J-hook bracket 7, such that the bolt 9 is received in the open-ended slot 24 and part of the back plate 15 is complementarity received between the pair of feet 28A and 28B. The cable support bracket 20 is designed such that, in this position, one of the fastener apertures 26 is aligned with the screw aperture corresponding to the removed coach screw 17. Next, the cable support bracket 20 is secured to the utility pole 5 simply by screwing a coach screw through the aligned apertures and into the same coach screw hole in the utility pole. The coach screw used to secure the cable support bracket 20 may either be the removed coach screw 17 or a replacement coach screw (e.g. a replacement coach screw having a slightly longer length and/or diameter than the removed coach screw).

With the cable support bracket 20 secured in position and seated on the bolt 9, the fibre optic cable 44 is attached to the cable support bracket using either of the arrangements described in connection with Figures 5 to 7 or Figures 8 to 10. In the case of the cable assembly 40, the fibre optic cable 44 is threaded through the wing openings 32 and fitted with the sleeve grommet 46. Alternatively, in the case of the cable assembly 50, the fibre optic cable 44 is fitted with one or more of cable retainers 52 which are used to secure the cable to the planar wings 30A and 30B via respective wing opening 32A and 32B.

This method of attaching fibre optic cables 44 to utility poles 5 advantageously simplifies and reduces labour times compared to prior art methods described above. Moreover, this method ensures that fibre optic cables are installed in the recommended uppermost position of utility poles whilst maintaining the integrity of the poles and obviating rearrangement of existing conventional cable fixtures.

With reference to Figure 11, there is shown an alternative cable support bracket 60 according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention. The cable support bracket 60 comprises most of the features of the cable support bracket 20 described above in connection with Figure 4. Accordingly, like reference numerals have been used to identify like features in the cable support brackets 20 and 60. However, instead of having the two planar wings 30A and 30B extending perpendicularly from the base plate 22, the cable support bracket 60 comprises a scroll wing 62 extending from the plane of the base plate. The scroll wing 62 curls away from the base plate and defines a seat portion 64 and a wing opening 32.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the fibre optic cable 44 may be supported by the seat portion 64 of the scroll wing 62, either by resting the cable directly on the seat portion or by attachment to the seat portion using a suitable cable retainer loop.

Alternatively, by analogy with the arrangement shown in Figure 10, the cable retainers 52A and 52B may each be secured to the scroll wing 62 by receiving respective carabiners 54A and 54B (or other loop portions) through the wing opening 32. In this arrangement, it will be appreciated that the scroll wing 62 is less susceptible to deformation or bending under tension than the planar wings 30A and 3 0B described above.

It will, of course, be appreciated that the present invention has been described by way of example only and that modifications of detail may be made within the scope of the invention, which is defined in the accompanying claims.

Claims (24)

1. A cable support bracket having at least one fastener aperture defined therein, the cable support bracket comprising: a base plate defining an open-ended slot at one end thereof, the open-ended slot being configured for receiving a first part of a cable fixture attached to a support structure; a pair of feet extending from a first side of the base plate for engagement with the support structure; and at least one wing extending from the base plate towards an opposite second side thereof, the at least one wing being configured for supporting a cable, wherein the open-ended slot is configured for receiving part of a bolt.

2. The cable support bracket of claim 1, wherein the pair of feet define a recess therebetween for receiving a second part of the cable fixture.

3. The cable support bracket of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one wing defines a respective wing opening for receiving a cable or a cable retainer therethrough.

4. The cable support bracket of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one wing comprises a pair of opposed planar wings extending substantially perpendicularly with respect to a plane of the base plate, each planar wing defining a respective wing opening, and the wing openings being substantially aligned with each other.

5. The cable support bracket of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the at least one wing is a scroll wing extending from a plane of the base plate.

6. The cable support bracket of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein at least one fastener aperture is defined in the base plate.

7. The cable support bracket of any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein each foot defines a respective fastener aperture, the fastener apertures of the feet being aligned for receiving a fastening band.

8. A cable assembly comprising: a support structure; a first cable fixture fastened to the support structure, the first cable fixture comprising a first bracket supporting a first cable, and first and second fasteners securing the first bracket to the support structure; and a second cable fixture fastened to the support structure, the second cable fixture comprising a second bracket supporting a second cable and a third fastener securing the second bracket to the support structure, the second bracket being the cable support bracket according to any of one claims 1 to 7, wherein: the second cable is supported by the at least one wing; the open-ended slot receives part of the first fastener; and the pair of feet accommodate part of the first bracket therebetween.

9. The cable assembly of claim 8, wherein the support structure is a utility pole or telecommunications pole.

10. The cable assembly of claim 8 or claim 9, wherein the second cable fixture is relatively higher than the first cable fixture.

11. The cable assembly of any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein the first fastener is a load-bearing bolt extending through a diameter of the pole.

12. The cable assembly of any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 6, and the second and third fasteners are a common fastener received through the fastener aperture defined in the base plate and an aligned fastener aperture of the first bracket.

13. The cable assembly of any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 7 and the second and third fasteners are different from each other, the second fastener being received through a fastener aperture of the first bracket, and the third fastener being a fastening band received through the aligned fastener apertures defined in the feet.

14. The cable assembly of any one of claims 8 to 13, wherein the first cable is heavier than the second cable.

15. The cable assembly of any one of claims 8 to 14, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 4, a sleeve grommet extends between the wing openings, and the second cable is positioned within a longitudinal bore of the sleeve grommet.

16. The cable assembly of any one of claims 8 to 14, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 4, the second cable is supported by one or more cable retainers secured to the second cable, and the or each cable retainer is attached one or both of the planar wings.

17. The cable assembly of any one of claims 8 to 14, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 5, the second cable is supported by one or more cable retainers secured to the second cable, and the or each cable retainer has a loop section attached to the scroll wing.

18. A method of attaching a second cable to a support structure having an existing first cable fixture secured thereto, the first cable fixture comprising a first bracket supporting a first cable, a first load-bearing fastener securing the first bracket to the support structure and a second fastener securing the first bracket to the support structure, the method comprising the steps of: positioning a second bracket relative to the support structure and the first bracket, the second bracket being the cable support bracket according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the first fastener is received in the open-ended slot and part of the first bracket is received between the pair of feet; securing the second bracket to the support structure using a third fastener, and supporting a second cable using the at least one wing of the second bracket.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 6 and the method comprises the steps of: removing the second fastener from the first bracket; aligning the fastener aperture of the second bracket with a fastener aperture of the first bracket, and fastening both the first and second brackets using a third fastener received through the aligned fastener apertures.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 7 and the third fastener is a fastening band receiving through the aligned fastener apertures defined in the feet of the second bracket.

21. The method of any one of claims 18 to 20, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 4, and the step of supporting the second cable comprises threading the second cable through the aligned wing openings.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising the step of inserting a sleeve grommet through the aligned wing openings such that the second cable is positioned within a longitudinal bore of the sleeve grommet, wherein the sleeve grommet extends between the planar wings.

23. The method of any one of claims 18 to 20, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with claim 4, and the step of supporting the second cable comprises attachment of one or more cable retainers to one or both of the planar wings, each cable retainer being secured to the second cable.

24. The method of any one of claims 18 to 20, wherein the second bracket is in accordance with the cable support bracket of claim 5, and the step of supporting the second cable comprises attachment of one or more cable retainers to the scroll wing, each cable retainer being secured to the second cable.