JP2007515918A - Alignment tool - Google Patents

Abstract

  A tool for aligning a plurality of flexible elongated items is disclosed. The tool has first and second frame members positioned apart from each other. A plurality of cross members extend between the frame members. The crosspieces are spaced apart from one another and define a plurality of openings for receiving elongated items. The frame member is angularly adjustable relative to the elongated member about an axis parallel to one of the cross members so as to change the apparent size of the opening to accommodate the varying thickness of the elongated member. is there. The tool guides the elongate member as it is fed from the supply so that the elongate members are ordered one by one as the elongate member is pulled through the opening.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a tool for aligning flexible elongated items drawn from a supply.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the laying of communication lines, such as fiber optic networks or conventional copper lines and power cables, the lines or power cables may be dampened, soiled, eroded, corroded, attacked by animals and other hazards. It is often convenient to place it underground in a conduit that is isolated and protected from it. Conduit transport communication lines, etc. can have very long journeys, points separated along their lengths, for example, network components such as amplifiers or transformers, or services such as power or communications Access is only possible to locations connected to facilities that provide

  Because of the limited accessibility to the conduit, the circuit must be pulled through the conduit from one access point to another. Initially, it is advantageous to install a plurality of flexible protective tubular sleeves within the conduit. The sleeve is preferably a fabric of polymeric material having sufficient tensile strength to withstand the stresses encountered when pulled through a long conduit during installation. The sleeve is also preferably abrasion resistant to withstand any friction that occurs during installation between the sleeve and the conduit and other sleeves or lines within the conduit. Each sleeve has a pre-positioned pull cord within its bore. For example, if it is desired to install a fiber optic cable, the cable is attached to one end of the pull cord and the other end of the pull cord is drawn through a sleeve in the conduit. The sleeve protects the cable in the conduit from wear when the cable or circuit is installed, and further helps to organize the space in the conduit.

  It is convenient to install three to four sleeves in the conduit at the same time. Sleeves are provided from supply reels and are attached to each other at one end. This end is drawn through the conduit. However, because the sleeve is flexible and pulled from the spool, it can sometimes be twisted, kinked, entangled, or otherwise misaligned. It is desirable to order a number of sleeves one by one when pulling through the conduit to maintain space and keep the tension of tension as low as possible, no matter how crowded the conduit. Knots, twists, kinks, entanglements and other defects that can be formed during pulling can occupy other available space and should be avoided as they can increase the trouble during pulling. The increased hindrance can lead to excessive stress on the sleeve, which can cause the sleeve to come off. This is particularly inconvenient for long pulls because the sleeve is withdrawn from the conduit and must be re-tensioned afterwards.

  During installation of a protective sleeve within a conduit, it is desirable to prevent misalignment such as entanglement, twisting, kinking and other defects.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a tool for aligning a plurality of flexible elongated items drawn from a supply. The tool includes a body defining a plurality of openings adjacent to each other. The opening receives an elongated item that is pulled through the tool. The body is angularly adjustable relative to the elongated item about an axis that extends laterally across the elongated item. By adjusting the angle of the main body, the apparent size of the opening is changed to accommodate elongated items with varying thickness. The body guides and aligns the elongated items as they are pulled through the opening.

  In one embodiment, the body includes a plate having a plurality of openings disposed adjacent to each other.

  In another embodiment, the tool includes first and second elongate frame members positioned spaced apart from each other. A plurality of elongate cross members engage the first frame member and the second frame member and extend therebetween. The crosspieces are spaced apart from one another and define a plurality of openings for receiving elongated items. The frame member is angularly adjustable relative to the elongate item about an axis parallel to one of the cross members so as to accommodate the elongate item of varying thickness by changing the apparent size of the opening. is there. As the elongate item is withdrawn through the opening, the crosspiece and frame member guide and align the elongate item with each other.

The invention also relates to a method of positioning a plurality of elongated items in a conduit. The method is
(A) positioning a tool near the inlet of the conduit, the tool defining a plurality of openings for receiving and aligning elongated items;
(B) passing a plurality of elongated items through the opening;
(C) withdrawing the elongated item through the tool and the conduit, and the items that have passed through the opening are aligned with each other;
(D) adjusting the azimuthal angle between the tool and the elongate item, thereby changing the apparent size of the opening occluded by the elongate item to accommodate items of varying thickness .

Detailed Description of Embodiments FIG. 1 illustrates an installation operation in which a number of protective sleeves 10 are pulled from a supply such as one or more spools 12 and pulled through a conduit 14. Each sleeve 10 is biased to a flat collapsed configuration so as to minimize the space it occupies in the conduit 14 and to be as unobtrusive as possible. This effectively uses the limited space in the conduit 14 to pull the sleeve through the conduit so that it does not cause significant stress on the sleeve and in some cases leave them separated. Keep the pulling force required for as low as possible. Once fiber optic cables, copper telephone lines, or power cables are positioned within the conduit 14, each sleeve 10 has a pull cord therein to facilitate drawing them through the sleeve. The sleeve 10 is freely expanded to accommodate a cable or wire positioned therein.

For efficiency and convenience, the sleeves are pulled out simultaneously by attaching multiple sleeves 10 together at one end and pulling them together through the conduit 14. Due to the method of winding the sleeve around the spool 12, sometimes one sleeve 10 will sag while the other sleeve 10 remains taut. The sagging sleeve (s) can be twisted, kinked, or entangled so that it can be displaced into the conduit 14 relative to the taut sleeve. Using pull cords, it is difficult and sometimes impossible to pull optical fiber, copper wire or power cable through a twisted, intertwined or twisted sleeve, so the misalignment between sleeves 10 when installed in conduit 14 Should be avoided. Furthermore, the misaligned sleeve occupies more space than the aligned sleeve, further hindering pulling, thereby resulting in higher stress on the sleeve. An alignment tool 18 is used to prevent misalignment of the sleeve 10 as it enters the conduit 14. Tool 18 is positioned between spool 12 and conduit 14 at a location generally proximate to the conduit. As will be described in detail below, the sleeve is continuously fed through the alignment tool 18, which may cause any twisting, kinking, entanglement or other between the sleeves 10 before the sleeve 10 enters the conduit. Remove misalignment.

  An embodiment of the alignment tool 18 is shown in detail in FIG. The tool 18 has a pair of frame members 20 and 22 positioned spaced apart from each other. Preferably, the frame members 20 and 22 are substantially coplanar and parallel to each other such that the distance 24 therebetween is substantially equal to the width of the widest portion of the item being withdrawn. It is separated. In this example, the sleeves 10 shown in dotted lines are all equal in width, but the tool 18 can be used for items of different widths. A plurality of cross members 26 are engaged with the frame members 20 and 22. A crosspiece 26 extends between the two frame members 20 and 22 and defines a plurality of openings 28 for receiving the sleeve 10. Preferably, at least three openings 28 are defined between the frame members 20 and 22.

  If multiple sleeves are pulled simultaneously through the conduit, the ends of the sleeves are joined together. Thus, to allow the sleeve 10 to pass through the opening 28 of the tool 18 without accessing the free end of the sleeve 10, one of the frame members, such as 20, is removed from the cross member 26 and into the opening 28. It is convenient to provide a function for providing access. One way to do this is to attach all of the cross members 26 fixedly to the frame member 22 and releasably attach to the frame member 20. This can be done in a number of ways, for example, by welding or gluing a cross member to the frame member 22 and attaching it to the frame member 20 using a screw fastener or a quick release detent mechanism.

  In practice, the above configuration is a two-piece tool. This is inconvenient for field use because one of the frame members 20 or 22 can be lost separately from the other. Therefore, the tool embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 and described below does not suffer from this disadvantage and is preferred.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in this preferred embodiment, all but one of the cross members 26 are fixedly attached to the frame member 22. One cross member shown by 26a is fixedly attached to the frame member 20 and releasably attached to the frame member 22. The mounting of the cross member 26 a to the frame member 22 is preferably performed by attaching the screw shaft 30 to the end of the cross member 26 a that engages with the frame member 22. The screw shaft 30 extends outwardly through the frame member 22 and is engaged by an adapted screw nut 32 having a knurled knob 34 to facilitate manual rotation of the nut. As shown in FIG. 2, when the nut 32 is tightened, the nut 32 presses the frame member 22 and is fixedly attached to the frame member 20, so that the frame member is pulled and held to engage with the cross member 26. Combine.

Conversion of the tool 18 between the closed configuration shown in FIG. 2 and the open configuration shown in FIG. 3 is accomplished by manually loosening the nut 32 using the knob 34. Thereby, the frame member 20 is moved away from the frame member 22, and can be detached from the cross member 26 other than the cross member 26a fixedly mounted. The frame member 20 can then be rotated about the cross member 26 a relative to the frame member 22 to provide free access to the opening 28. This position of the frame member 20 is shown in FIG. When the sleeve 10 is passed through the opening 28, the tool 10 rotates the frame member 20 to be parallel to the frame member 22, engages the frame member 20 with the cross member 26, and tightens the nut 32. It can be returned to a closed configuration. In order to facilitate the engagement of the cross member 26 with the frame member 20, a plurality of holes 36 are spaced apart along the length direction of the frame member, and the interval of the holes 36 corresponds to the interval of the cross member 26. To do.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the tool 18 has a pair of handles 38 and 40 to provide a grip area that allows manual control of the tool. Preferably, handles 38 and 40 are attached to each frame member 20 and 22 via reverse bends 38a and 40a, respectively. The reverse bend allows the handles 38 and 40 to be angularly oriented relative to the frame members 20 and 22.

  Preferably, the tool 18 includes a pair of stabilizer bars 41 and 43. The bar 41 extends between the handle 38 and the frame member 20, and the bar 43 extends between the handle 40 and the frame member 22. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the stabilizer bar facilitates attaching the tool 18 to a support means, such as a transverse bar 45, which can be attached to the stabilizer bar and reverse bends 38a and 40a of the handles 38 and 40. It passes through the aperture defined between. FIG. 2B shows a stabilizer bar that provides an attachment for attachment of the tool to the column 47. By using such an attachment, the operator's fatigue when it is necessary to pull it long can be reduced.

  The use of the tool 18 to align the sleeve 10 pulled from the supply and pulled into the conduit is shown in FIGS. As shown in FIG. 4, the sleeve 10 is pulled through the opening 28 defined by the cross member 26 in the direction indicated by the arrow 42. The angle between the frame member 20 or 22 and the sleeve 10, measured by the angle 44, indicating the orientation of the tool 18 changes the apparent size of the opening 28 relative to the thickness of the sleeve 10 and the handle 38 and 40 manually adjusted. Typically, as described above, because the sleeve 10 is biased to have a flat configuration, the tilt angle 44 is relatively acute so as to provide the sleeve 10 with a small apparent opening 28. This causes the cross member 26 and frame members 20 and 22 to act as guides and engage the sleeve 10 to straighten any twists, kinks and entanglements so that the sleeve 10 can be aligned with each other before entering the conduit. Is possible. However, in some cases, the thickness of the sleeve 10 varies as illustrated by the bulge 46. The bulges 46 may be caused, for example, by pull cord joints positioned within each sleeve 10, but the joints require knots that appear as bulges in the sleeve thickness. To accommodate this bulge, the tool 18 is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow 48 shown in FIG. 5, so that, as viewed from the sleeve 10, the apparent size of the opening 28 is when the azimuth angle 44 is more acute. Bigger than. By rotating the tool 18, the bulge 46 can pass through the opening 28. As the bulge passes, the tool 18 can be rotated back to the sharper angle 44 shown in FIG. 4 until the next bulge 46 approaches.

  When the tool 18 is positioned such that the handles 38 and 40 are positioned above the sleeve 10 and the reverse bends 38a and 40a are tilted in the direction of the movement 42 of the sleeve 10 (see FIG. 4), the bulge 46 becomes a crosspiece 26, the natural rotational movement of the tool 18 that occurs when it encounters 26 is in the direction of arrow 48 (see FIG. 5) and tilts to increase the azimuth angle 44, so that the apparent size of the opening 28 is reduced. Increasing and allowing the bulge 46 to pass. Reversing either the direction of movement 42 or the azimuth angle 44 causes contact between the bulge 46 and the cross member 26 and tilts the tool 18 in a direction that reduces the apparent size of the opening 28. , Thereby catching the tool on the sleeve 10. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, it is desirable to avoid this situation by proper use of the tool 18.

6 and 7 show another embodiment 50 of an alignment tool according to the present invention. The tool 50 preferably includes a body in the form of a plate 52 having a plurality of openings 54 for receiving the sleeve 10 shown in dotted lines. The plate 52 has additional openings 56 positioned along opposing edges and sized to allow the plate to be manually held during sleeve installation. Similar to the eighteenth embodiment described above, the plate 52 can be oriented angularly with respect to the sleeve to change the apparent size of the opening 54 to accommodate the thickness of the sleeve 10.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the portion 58 of the plate 52 allows removal of that portion, thereby providing access to the opening 54 and passing the sleeve 10 through the opening without accessing the free end of the sleeve 10. Can be attached to the plate by a hinge 60 that allows

  The alignment tool described above facilitates the installation of a protective sleeve within the conduit work and ensures efficient use of the space within the conduit.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of an elongated protective sleeve that is drawn into a conduit. It is a front view of the alignment tool by this invention. It is a figure which shows the alignment tool used with a horizontal bar. It is a figure which shows the alignment tool attached to a support support | pillar. It is a front view of the open structure of the alignment tool shown in FIG. It is a side view of the use condition of the alignment tool of FIG. It is a side view of the use condition of the alignment tool of FIG. FIG. 6 is a front view of an alternative embodiment of an alignment tool according to the present invention. FIG. 6 is a front view of an alternative embodiment of an alignment tool according to the present invention.

Claims (20)

A tool for aligning a plurality of flexible elongated items drawn from a supply, the tool comprising:
First and second elongated frame members positioned spaced apart from each other;
A plurality of elongate cross members extending between and held in a fixed relationship with the first frame member and the second frame member, wherein the cross members are positioned apart from each other; Defining a plurality of apertures for receiving the elongate items therethrough, wherein the frame member accommodates the elongate items having a thickness that varies by changing the apparent size of the apertures; An item is adjustable angularly about an axis parallel to one of the crosspieces so that the elongated members are neatly lined up one after the other after the elongated members are pulled through the opening. A plurality of elongate cross members, wherein the cross members and the frame member guide and align the elongate items with each other;
Including tools.   The tool of claim 1, wherein the crosspiece defines at least three of the openings.   The tool of claim 1, wherein the frame members are oriented substantially parallel to each other.   The tool of claim 1, wherein the crosspieces are oriented substantially parallel to each other.   The tool according to claim 4, wherein each of the cross members is oriented at a right angle to the frame member.   The tool of claim 1, further comprising a handle attached to one of the frame members.   7. The handle according to claim 6, wherein the handle includes an elongated leg attached to the one frame member, and a reverse bent portion that couples the handle to the one frame member, and the handle extends in a longitudinal direction of the frame member. The listed tool.   8. The bar of claim 7, further comprising a bar extending between the handle and the one frame member, the handle defining an opening for receiving support therethrough for supporting the tool. tool.   The tool of claim 8, further comprising a rod insertable through the opening between the bar and the handle to support the tool.   The tool of claim 7, wherein the legs are oriented angularly relative to the one frame member.   The tool of claim 6 further comprising a second handle attached to the other of the frame members.   The plurality of cross members are fixedly attached to the first frame member and releasably attached to the second frame member, whereby the cross members can be detached from the second frame member. The tool of claim 1, wherein the elongated item is allowed to be positioned in the opening between the cross members when an end of the elongated item is not accessible. One of the cross members is fixedly attached to the second frame member and releasably attached to the first frame member, and the one cross member releasably holds the one cross member. 13. A tool according to claim 12, including a fastener that can be coupled to the first frame member for doing so. The closure is positioned at an end of the one cross member and extends through the first frame member;
A holding nut capable of being screwed with the screw shaft, wherein the holding nut presses the first frame member when screwed with the screw shaft to hold the cross member engaged with the frame member;
The tool of claim 13 comprising:   The tool of claim 1, wherein the frame members are spaced such that the opening has a width substantially equal to the width of the widest portion of the elongated item.   A tool for aligning a plurality of flexible elongate items pulled from a supply, the tool comprising a plurality of adjacent openings for receiving the elongate items pulled therethrough A body defining the opening, wherein the body is transverse to the elongate item relative to the elongate item to change the apparent size of the opening to accommodate changes in the thickness of the elongate item. A tool that is angularly adjustable about a directionally extending axis, wherein the body guides and aligns the elongated items with each other as the elongated items are withdrawn through the opening.   The tool of claim 16, wherein the opening and the elongated item have substantially equal widths. A method of positioning a plurality of elongated items in a conduit, the method comprising:
Positioning a tool near the inlet of the conduit, the tool defining a plurality of openings for receiving and aligning the elongated item;
Passing the plurality of elongated items through the opening;
Simultaneously withdrawing the elongated item through the tool and the conduit, the items being aligned with each other as they pass through the opening;
Method.   The method of claim 18, further comprising adjusting an azimuth angle between the tool and the elongate item, thereby changing the apparent size of an opening occluded by the elongate item.   19. The method of claim 18, further comprising passing an elongated item through each one of the openings.

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