SE1550563A1

SE1550563A1 - Wedge comprising a handle

Info

Publication number: SE1550563A1
Application number: SE1550563A
Authority: SE
Inventors: Milton Stefan
Original assignee: Roxtec Ab
Priority date: 2015-05-04
Filing date: 2015-05-04
Publication date: 2016-11-05
Also published as: SE538955C2; WO2016178622A1

Abstract

ll ABSTRACTThe present invention concerns a wedge for a lead-through system, whichwedge has a handle (5, 30, 31, 34). The wedge and one or more modules receivingcables, pipes or wires are to be placed inside a frame. The handle (5, 30, 31, 34) of the wedge is accessible from one side of the frame with the wedge placed inside the frame. The handle (5) comprises one or more tag holders (26). To be published with Fig. 5

Description

WEDGE COMPRISING A HANDLE Technical FieldThe present invention concerns a wedge for a lead-through system, which wedge comprises a handle.

Prior Art The present invention is mainly intended for a lead-through system comprisinga frame, a number of modules, stay plates and a wedge. The modules, stay plates andthe wedge are placed inside the frame. The modules are made of a compressiblematerial and each module is to receive a cable, pipe or wire. The function of the stayplates is to hinder the modules from going out of the frame in use. The wedge is acompression means which is to compress the modules in order for them to seal inwardlyagainst the pipe, cable or wire and outwardly against other modules, stay plates and/orthe frame, depending on the placement inside the frame.

Lead-through systems of this kind are used in many different environments,such as for cabinets, technical shelters, junction boxes and machines and also decks andbulkheads of ships. They are used in different industrial environments, such asautomotive, telecom, power generation and distribution as well as marine and offshore.They may have to seal against ﬂuid, gas, fire, rodents, terrnites, dust, moisture etc.

In one wedge according to prior art (WO 96/11353), the wedge is movedbetween a non-compression state and a compression state by means of two screws,whereby each screw has threads with opposite pitches. The screws are connected to twowedge elements, which are moved towards each other if the screws are tumed in a firstdirection and away from each other if the screws are tumed in the opposite direction.The threads of the screws are in mesh with threads of the wedge elements, whereby thethreads of one of the wedge elements are in mesh with threads of a first pitch of thescrews and the threads of the other wedge element are in mesh with threads of anopposite pitch of the screws. Two further wedge elements are placed on sloping surfaceson opposite sides of the two first wedge elements, whereby the two further wedgeelements will be moved towards and away from each other depending on the movement of the two first wedge elements. When the two further wedge elements are moved away from each other the thickness of the wedge increases, giving a compression force whenplaced inside the frame.

Wedges of prior art are often cumbersome to place inside the frame and towithdraw from the frame. The wedge is norrnally the last part to be placed inside aframe at installation. When and if a cable, wire or pipe is to be replaced, inserted orremoved from the lead-through transition, the wedge is often taken out from the frame.In the prior art it is known to provide a special tool to withdraw a wedge from within aframe. Such a tool often uses openings for compression screws, which means that thecompression screws have to be removed before such a tool can be used.

In order to be able to identify specific installation and possibly connect them toa specific material batch, a specific manufacturing facility etc. it is common to mark different parts. One type of such marking is to use so-called RFID tags. Such tags should be placed in relatively protected positions and as free of disturbances as possible.

Summa In view of the above, one object of the present invention is to provide a compression wedge that is relatively easy to insert into and remove from within a frame.

Another object is to accomplish a suitable placement for tags, such as RFIDtags. Such tags should be placed in a relatively protected position. Furthermore, thefunction of the tags should not be compromised by the material of surrounding parts.

According to one aspect of the present invention a handle is provided for awedge of a lead-through system for cables, pipes or wires. The lead-through systemfurther comprises a frame and one or more modules. The wedge and the one or moremodules are placed inside the frame. The modules are to receive the cables, pipes orwires. The thickness of the wedge is adjustable to compress the modules inside theframe. The wedge has a handle, which handle is accessible from one side of the framewith the wedge placed inside the frame.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be obvious to aperson skilled in the art when reading the detailed description below of at present preferred embodiments.

Brief Description of the Drawings The present invention will be described further below by way of example andwith reference to the enclosed drawings. In the drawings: Fig. l is a front view of a lead-through system of prior art, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a compression wedge of the present invention,which could be used in a systern according to Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is a perspective view corresponding with Fig. 2, with parts removed, Fig. 4 is a side view of the wedge of Fig. 2, Fig. 5 is a plan view of the wedge of Figs. 2 and 4, Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the wedge along the line A-A in Fig. 5, with thewedge in a non-compressing state, Fig. 7 is a sectional view of the wedge along the line A-A in Fig. 5, with thewedge in a compressing state, Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a screw forrning a part of the wedge of Figs. 2-7, Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a socket forrning a part of the wedge of Figs. 2- Fig. 10 is a sectional view of the socket of Fig. 9, Fig. 11 is a plan view of a locking ring, to be used with the socket of Figs. 9and 10, and Figs. 12-14 are perspective views of wedges having handles of different embodiments.

Detailed Description of Embodiments The wedge of the present invention is intended for use in a lead-through systemas exemplified in Fig. 1. The exact form of the different parts of the lead-throughsystem may vary. In the shown embodiment a frame 101 receives a number of modules102. The frame 101 is to be placed in a transition, such as a wall, roof or floor, and eachmodule 102 is to receive a cable, wire or pipe. To assist in holding the modules 102 inplace inside the frame 101 a number of stay plates 103 are arranged between each rowof modules 102 inside the frame 101. The stay plates 103 are arranged moveable inlongitudinal direction inside the frame 101, i.e. up and down as shown in Fig. 1. Awedge 104 according to prior art is placed at one inner end of the frame 101, with a stayplate 103 between the wedge 104 and the adjacent row of modules. The prior art wedge104 is a compression unit and by means of screws 105 the wedge 104 can be expandedinside the frame 101. The expansion of the wedge 104 will act on the modules 102inside the frame 101, whereby the modules 102 will be pressed against each other,against the stay plates 103, against the inner sides of the frame 101 and/or against anycable etc. received inside a module 102, depending on the placement of respectivemodule 102.

The wedge of the present invention comprises a first wedge element 1, asecond wedge element 2, a third wedge element 3 and a fourth wedge element 4. Thewedge further comprises a handle 5, a screw 6, a socket 7 and a nut 8.

The first wedge element 1 has a core 9 of a harder material than thesurrounding material. In the same way the second wedge element 2 has a core 10 ofharder material, the third wedge element 3 has a core 11 of harder material and thefourth wedge element 4 has a core 12 of harder material. The wedge elements 1, 2, 3, 4are made of the same material and the core 9, 10, 11, 12 of each wedge element 1, 2, 3,4 is made of the same material. Each wedge element 1, 2, 3, 4 is made of an elastic,compressible rubber material and the core 9, 10, 11, 12 of each wedge element 1, 2, 3, 4is made of a composite material . The core 9, 10, 11, 12 of respective wedge element 1,2, 3, 4 is made to be strong enough to withstand the expected forces without beingcompressed.

In other embodiments one or more of the wedge elements 1, 2, 3, 4 are madesolely of a compressible material, such as rubber. In one embodiment only the firstwedge element 1 has a core 9 of harder material. In a further embodiment both the firstand the second wedge elements 1, 2 have a core 9, 10 of harder material, while the thirdand fourth wedge elements 3, 4 are made solely of a rubber material. In still a furtherembodiment all the wedge elements 1, 2, 3, 4 are made solely of a rubber material.

The first and second wedge elements 1, 2 are arranged in line with each otherand moveable towards and away from each other. The third and fourth wedge elements3, 4 are placed above each other and moveable towards and away from each other. Thethird and fourth wedge elements 3, 4 are placed between the first and second wedgeelements 1, 2. The first wedge element 1 abuts the third wedge element 3 and the fourthwedge element 4 along sloped surfaces. The second wedge element 2 abuts the thirdwedge element 3 and the fourth wedge element 4 along sloped surfaces. The wedgeelements 1, 2, 3, 4 and their co-operating sloped surfaces are arranged in such a waythat when the first wedge element 1 and the second wedge element 2 are moved towardeach other the third wedge element 3 and the fourth wedge element 4 are moved awayfrom each other. Correspondingly, when the first wedge element 1 and the secondwedge element 2 are moved away from each other the third wedge element 3 and thefourth wedge element 4 are allowed to move toward each other. The first wedgeelement 1 and the second wedge element 2 each have a through opening. Said through openings are placed in line with each other in the assembled wedge.

The screw 6 of the wedge is placed in the through openings of the first wedgeelement 1 and the second wedge element 2, respectively. The end of the screw 6 placedinside the second wedge element 2 has an outer thread 13. The opposite end of thescrew 6, i.e. the end placed at the first wedge element 1, has also an outer thread 14.

The socket 7 of the wedge has a tubular part 15 and forrns a nut 16 at one endopposite the tubular part 15. A ﬂange 17 is forrned between the tubular part 15 and thenut 16, which ﬂange 17 projects outwardly around the circumference of the tubular part15 and is perpendicular to the tubular part 15. The socket 7 is made in one piece. Agroove 18 is arranged on the outside of the tubular part 15, which groove 18 goes allaround the circumference of the tubular part 15. The groove 18 is placed at a shortdistance from the ﬂange 17 of the socket 7. The socket 7 has a through opening 19.

The handle 5 is integrated with the core 9 of the first wedge element 1 in theshow embodiment. The handle 5 comprises an arc 20, an attachment plate 21 and twostruts 22, 23, extending between the arc 20 and the attachment plate 21. The attachmentplate 21 abuts the outer softer material of the first wedge element 1 and extends over thetotal width of the wedge. The arc 20 is placed at opposite ends of the attachment plate21 and goes via two bent parts over into a straight part. The straight part of the arc 20 isplaced at a distance from the attachment plate 21 and is parallel with the attachmentplate 21. The straight part of the arc 20 has a through opening 24 placed in the centre ofsaid straight part. Also the attachment plate 21 has a through opening 25 placed in linewith the through opening of the arc 20. The struts 22, 23 are placed at a distance fromeach other on opposite sides of the through openings 24, 25 of the arc 20 and theattachment plate 21, respectively. The distance between the struts 22, 23 should be atleast big enough to give room for the socket 7. Furthermore, the attachment plate 21 hastag holders 26 placed on the side facing away from the first wedge element 1. As shownin Fig. 4 the wedge has chamfers 27 around the edges at the outer end of the secondwedge element 2, in order to facilitate insertion of the wedge into a frame. Norrnally allof the handle 5 and the core 9 of the first wedge element 1 are made in one piece. Thehandle 5 is placed to be accessible from one side of the frame, when the wedge is placedinside the frame.

For the embodiments where the first wedge element 1 is made solely of arubber material, the attachment plate 21 of the handle 5 is attached to the first wedge element 1 by means of an adhesive.

The third and fourth wedge elements 3, 4 are connected to each other by meansof two spring arrangements. By means of said spring arrangements the third and fourthwedge elements 3, 4 will be urged in a direction towards each other.

A tag 28, such as a RFID tag, can be placed in one of the tag holders 26 of thehandle 5. Due to the arc 20 of the handle 5 the tag 28 is relatively well protected. To notrisk disturbing the function of the tag 28 the handle 5 is made in a suitable compositematerial having no metal causing disturbance to the tag 28.

In the shown embodiment the nut 8 is held firrnly inside the second wedgeelement 2 and is hindered from doing any axial or rotational movements in relation tothe second wedge element 2. One end of the screw 6 is inserted into the nut 8. Thescrew 6 is screwed into an inner opening of the nut 8, by means of co-operation betweenthe thread l3 of the screw 6 and the thread of the inner opening of the nut 8. The end ofthe screw 6 is locked from rotating inside the threaded opening of the nut 8 by means ofa thread-locking ﬂuid or threadlocker.

As stated above the screw 6 goes through a through opening of the first wedgeelement l. In the assembled condition of the wedge the screw 6 goes between the thirdwedge element 3 and the fourth wedge element 4, respectively.

The socket 7 is placed going through the central through opening 24 of the arc20 of the handle 5 and through the central through opening 25 of the attachment plate2l of the handle 5. The end of the screw 6 opposite the nut 8 is received inside thesocket 7, whereby the thread l4 at said end of the screw 6 is received in the thread in thethrough opening 19 of the socket 7. Thus, by means of the thread of respective part theposition of the end of the screw 6 may be varied inside the through opening 19 of thesocket 7. The socket 7 is held at the arc 20 of the handle 5 by means of a locking ring 29being placed in the groove l8 on the outside of the tubular part l5 of the socket 7. Thesocket 7 is held by the locking ring 29 in a rotatable way. The arc 20 is placed betweenthe ﬂange l7 of the socket 7 and the locking ring 29 placed in the groove l8 of thesocket 7. To hold the socket 7 at the handle 5 the distance between the ﬂange l7 and thegroove l8 of the socket 7 should about correspond with the thickness of the arc 20 ofthe handle 5.

In the assembled wedge the screw 6 is held stationary in relation to the secondwedge element 2, without any rotation or axial movement, but may move axially inrelation to the socket 7, and thereby the first wedge element l, by means of rotation for the socket 7 on the screw 6.

In use the wedge is moveable between two extremes. In a first extreme, asshown in Fig. 6, an upper surface of the third wedge element 3 is about ﬂush with anupper surface of the first wedge element 1 and an upper surface of the second wedgeelement 2 and a lower surface of the fourth wedge element 4 is about ﬂush with a lowersurface of the first wedge element 1 and a lower surface of the second wedge element 2.This first extreme of the wedge could be called a ﬂattened out position, as the wedge isas thin as it gets in that position. In said extreme the third and fourth wedge elements 3,4 are abutting or are placed close to the screw 6. In a second extreme, as shown in Fig.7, the first and second wedge elements 1, 2 are moved as close to each other as they canbe moved and the third and fourth wedge elements 3, 4 are moved as far apart from eachother as they can be moved. In the second extreme the wedge is as thick as it gets. Inuse the wedge may assume any position between the extremes, and including saidextremes.

Stop edges of the screw 6, the through opening of the first wedge element 1and the through opening 19 of the socket 7, respectively, co-operate to define the firstand second extremes of the wedge. The stop edges of the screw 6 are formed at oppositeends of the thread 14 placed at the end opposite the nut 8. The stop edges of the throughopening of the first wedge element 1 and the through opening 19 of the socket 7 areformed by means of respective through opening having parts with different innerdiameters. The stop edge of the through opening of the first wedge element 1 definesthe first extreme of the wedge, in co-operation with one of the stop edges of the screw 6.The second extreme of the wedge is defined by co-operation between the other stopedge of the screw 6 and the stop edge of the through opening 19 of the socket 7.

The wedge is norrnally placed inside the frame 101 with the wedge in the firstextreme, whereby no compression force will be exerted on the modules 102 inside theframe 101. When the wedge is in the second extreme it will exert maximal compressionforce on the modules 102 inside the frame 101.

By rotating the socket 7, e. g. by means of a wrench placed on the nut 16 of thesocket 7, in a first direction the wedge will go towards the first extreme and by rotatingthe socket 7 in the opposite direction the wedge will go towards the second extreme. Byrotation of the socket 7 the screw 6 will be moved axially in relation to the socket 7.This relative axial movement between the screw 6 and the socket 7 is given by co-operation between the threads of the screw 6 and the through opening 19 of the socket7. By said relative axial movement between the screw 6 and the socket 7 the first and second wedge elements 1 and 2 are given a corresponding relative axial movement, moving the first and second wedge elements 1, 2 towards or away from each other,depending on the rotational direction of the socket 7. When the first and second wedgeelements 1, 2 are moved towards each other the third and fourth wedge elements 3, 4will be forced away from each other, sliding along the sloped surfaces of the first andsecond wedge elements 1, 2, respectively. When the first and second wedge elements 1,2 are moved away from each other the third and fourth wedge elements 3, 4 are allowedto move toward each other, sliding along the sloped surfaces of the first and secondwedge elements, 1, 2, respectively.

The wedge is norrnally inserted into a frame in the ﬂattened out condition,which is the first extreme of the wedge as defined above. The chamfers 27 at the outerend of the second wedge element 2 facilitate insertion of the wedge into the frame. Ifthe wedge is to be removed from the frame the wedge is brought to the first extreme andthen the wedge is drawn out by gripping the handle 5. The handle 5 facilitates generalhandling of the wedge.

The exact from of the handle may vary and in Figs. 12-14 three furtherexamples of embodiments of the handle are indicated.

In the embodiment of Fig. 12 the handle 30 has an arc form with the ends ofthe arc fastened to the first wedge element. The handle 30 is placed close to the socket 7and in contrast to the embodiment described above, there are no struts.

In the embodiment of Fig. 13 the handle 31 has the form of a plate connectedto the first wedge element by means of two struts 32. In the centre of the handle 31 ascrew 33 is received, which screw 33 is used to manipulate the wedge.

In the embodiment of Fig. 14 the handle 34 has the form of a plate. The handle34 has a shaft 35 which is received in a holder 35, fastened to the first wedge element.

The wedge has two screws 37 for manipulation of the wedge.

Claims

1. A wedge of a lead-through system for Cables, pipes or wires, which lead-through system further comprises a frame and one or more modules, wherein the wedgeand the one or more modules are placed inside the frame, wherein the modules are toreceive the cables, pipes or wires and wherein the thickness of the wedge is adjustableto compress the modules inside the frame, characterized in that the wedgecomprises a handle (5, 30, 31, 34), which handle (5, 30, 31, 34) is accessible from oneside of the frame with the wedge placed inside the frame.

2. The wedge of claim 1, wherein the wedge comprises a first wedge element(1) and a second wedge element (2) placed in line with each other and arrangedmoveable towards and away from each other, whereby the handle (5, 30, 31, 34) is fixedto the first wedge element (1).

3. The wedge of claim 2, wherein the handle (5, 30, 31) is made in one piecewith the first wedge element (1).

4. The wedge element of claim 2, wherein the handle (5, 30, 31) is made in onepiece with a core (9) of the first wedge element (1).

5. The wedge of any of the previous claims, wherein the handle (5) comprisesan arc (20) and an attachment plate (21) and wherein the arc (20) goes between twoopposite ends of the attachment plate (21).

6. The wedge of claim 5, wherein a through opening (24) is arranged in thecentre of the arc (20) of the handle (5), which through opening (24) is in line with athrough opening (25) of the attachment plate (21) of the handle (5) and wherein twostruts (22, 23) are placed going between the arc (20) and the attachment plate (21) of thehandle (5) and which struts (22, 23) are placed on opposite sides of the throughopenings (24, 25) of the arc (20) and the attachment plate (21), respectively.

7. The wedge of claim 5 or 6, wherein the attachment plate (21) of the handle(5) comprises one or more tag holders (26).

8. The wedge of claim 7, wherein a RFID tag (28) is placed in at least one ofthe one or more tag holders (26).

9. The wedge of any of the previous claims, wherein the handle (5) is made ofa composite material having no metal component.

10. The wedge of claim 5, wherein the attachment plate (21) of the handle (5)is fastened to the first wedge element (1) by means of an adhesive.

11. 1 1. The wedge of claim 6, wherein a socket (7) is received in the throughopening (24) of the arc (20) and the through opening (25) of the attachment plate (21) lO and wherein the socket (7) has a ﬂange (17) and a groove (18), whereby the arc (20) ofthe handle (5) is held between the ﬂange (17) of the socket (7) and a locking ring (29)placed in the groove (18) of the socket (7).

12. The wedge of claim 7, wherein the first and second wedge elements (1, 2)are moved toward and away from each other by means of rotation of the socket (7) on ascrew (6) which screw (6) is fastened to the second wedge element (2).

13. The wedge of any of the claims 2-12, wherein the second wedge element(2) is chamfered (27) around an outer edge.

14. The wedge of any of the claims 2-13, wherein the wedge comprises a thirdwedge element (3) and a fourth wedge element (4) moveable towards and away fromeach other and which third and fourth wedge elements (3, 4) abuts the first and second wedge elements (1, 2) along sloping surfaces.