US2303123A

US2303123A - Method of handling articles

Info

Publication number: US2303123A
Application number: US333077A
Authority: US
Inventors: Vaughn L Johannessen
Original assignee: Western Electric Co Inc
Current assignee: AT&T Corp
Priority date: 1940-05-03
Filing date: 1940-05-03
Publication date: 1942-11-24
Anticipated expiration: 1959-11-24

Description

V. L. JOHANNESSEN METHOD OF HANDLING ARTICLES Nov. 24, 1942.

Filed May 3, 1940 FIG. I

FIG. 5

INVEN TOR l! L. JOHA NNESSEN A T TORNEY Patented Nov. 24, 1942 METHOD OF HANDLING ARTICLES Vaughn L. J ohannessen, Oranford, N. 1., assignor to Western Electric Company, Incorporated, New York,-N. Y., a corporation or New York Application May 3, 1940, Serial No. 333,077

6 Claims.

This invention relates to a method of handlin articles, and more particularly to a method of creating a seamless sheath of felted fibrous insulating material on electrically conductive strands.

In the manufacture of insulated electrical conductor strands, particularly such as the wires used in multi-conductor electrical cables for telephone use, there have recently been developed methods and apparatus for sheathing metal wire with a continuous seamless covering of paper created substantially in situ on the wire. A suitable apparatus for this purpose is disclosed and described in detail in U. S. Patent 1,615,394 of January 25, 1927, to J. S. Little. In the apparatus there disclosed pulpous material, e. g. paper stock, is caused to form a flat narrow-ribbon of wet, felted fibres about a wire core substantially in the center of the ribbon as formed. The ribbon is folded into a cylinder about the core and compacted and integrated into a substantially seamless sheath about the core. In doing this, the pulp is deposited, to form a ribbon, between parallel. deckles, on a foraminous drum, the wire core being laid on the partially formed ribbon and the rest of the ribbon deposited thereover. The flat, wet, pulp ribbon containing the core runs from the drum between a pair of endless belts of felt or the like absorptive material, held together by suitable guide rolls and travelling with the ribbon and its core pressed between them to absorb a portion ofthe water contained in the wet pulp ribbon and in some degree to compact and integrate together the ribbon.

An object of the present invention is to simplify the construction, maintenance and operation of apparatus such as described, by dispensing with one of the two felt belts, and thereby also with the need for means to drive and support the second belt and to maintain it in the necessarily close alignment and synchronism with its companion belt.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved method of handling the wet, newly formed ribbon of pulp containing a wire core to remove a considerable portion of the'liquid therefrom without injury to the felting of the fibres of the ribbon.

With the above and other objects, the invention may be embodied in a method of removing moisture from articles of wet porous material which comprises steps of applying a plurality of wet porous articles in mutually spaced relation to one surface of a sheet of porous absorptive maabove.

terial, removing moisture substantially only from the portions of the sheet between the articles, and subsequently removing moisture from the articles by capillary absorption into the partially dried portions of the sheet.

Other objects and features of the invention will appear from the following detailed description of one embodiment thereof, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which the same reference numerals are applied to identical parts in the several figures and in which Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view in side elevation of a portion of an apparatus constructed to carry out the method of the invention for forming a seamless sheath of fibrous insulating material upon a wire core;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary detailed transverse section of the foraminous drum;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged horizontal central section of the suction roll;

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a section on the line '55 of Fig. 4;

. Fig. 6 is a section on the line-66 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. '7 is a partial view similar to Fig. 1 of a modified form..

As herein disclosed, only so much of the apparatus is shown and described as is required for a clear understanding of the present invention. For a detailed disclosure and description of the construction and mode of operation generally and for matters not specifically disclosed herein, reference may be had to U. S. Patent 1,615,394 cited The reference numerals herein employed are the same as or related to those of the cited patent.

In the apparatus disclosed here wires 69 to be coated are drawn by means (not shown) through the apparatus from supplies (not shown), and pass over guide sheaves H and under a foraminous drum I 6 partially submerged in a vat or tank 5!! filled with suitable paper stock. The drum has circumferential deckles between which the pulp from the stock is deposited in ribbons. After each ribbon 13- has been partially formed on the down running side of the drum, one of the wires '69 is laid thereon and continues around the drum therewith while the rest of the ribbon is formed.

A belt Ii preferably of felt, having absorptive roll; 99 and 99. Thence the belt returns deviously through washing, rinsing and drying means tion shown in Figs. 1 and 5. However, according to the requirements of a given set of circumstances (ribbon thicknesses, spacing of ribbons the rolls I99 and 9| to and through the squeeze rolls 99 and 95. Emerging from these the wire and its enveloping ribbon part company with the belt and pass off upwardly for further treatment while the belt turns downwardly to return to the drum I9.

An essential general feature of the present invention resides in the structure and effect of the suction roll I99 and its associated elements, as shown in detail in Figs. 4, 5 and 6. The body of this roll is a foraminous hollow cylinder I9I, preferably a substantial self-sustaining continuous cylindrical sheet of metal formed with numerous radial perforations I92, and rigidly mounted on heads I 99 which are joumalled in stationary standards or supports I 99 to be rotatable therein and to be driven, if desired, as by a gear I95 by any suitable means (not shown).

A coaxial shaft I99 is iournalled inside of the body.I9l to be stationary while the body rotates around it and is held stationary by a collar I91 keyed thereto and having an integral upstanding lever arm I99 provided with an arcuate slot I99 through which a clamp screw I99 passesinto the left hand standard I99 whereby the stationary shaft I99 may be angularly adjusted about its axis. The shaft I99 is formed within the roll body I9I with two radially spaced outwardly extending fins or walls I9l defining between them a V-shaped or sector-shaped suction box closed at each end by a transverse wall I92. The four walls I9I, I9I, I92 and I92 extend out nearly to the inner surface of the cylinder body I9l and each is provided with a sealing member I99 carried in a suitable recess in the outer edge of the wall and of some material such as vulcanized fiber adapted to make a suitable sliding fit against the inner surface of the cylinder. The shaft I99 is hollow from its left hand end (Fig. 4) to a point past its center and its bore communicates by way of a radial slot I94 with the interior of the suction box. Air or a mixture of air and water may be exhausted from the suction box through the hollow shaft by any suitable means (not shown).

Two close-fitting slidable transverse walls I95 and I99 are located in the suction box to be adjustable longitudinally thereof. Each is provided with a suitable sealing member I93 like those carried by the end walls I92 of the box. A threaded rod I91, joumalled in the walls I92 and provided with a squared head I99, passes through a correspondingly threaded bore in the wall I95 and a smooth bore in the wall I99, and thus may be used to adjust the position of the wall I95 in the box without disturbing the wall I99. A similar rod I99 analogously arranged serves to adjust the wall I95.

In operation a plurality of strands arranged parallel to each other and spaced suitably apart, travel over the sheaves II .and down under the revolving drum I9. They leave the drum a little beyond the top of its periphery, each encased in a flat, soft wet ribbon of felted paper pulp, adherent to and travelling with the under side of the belt I5 to and around the suction roll I99. Ordinarily the suction box is about in the posion the belt, age of the belt and its consequent porosity, and the like) the effectiveness of the suction may be increased or diminished by tilting the box more or less to the left or right from the position shown in Fig. l where there is leakage of air into the box over the right hand wall since the belt has left the roll before reaching this wall.

The wet pulp ribbons, each containing a wire core approximately in its center, are spaced side by side along the length of the roll with the belt between them and the roll as best shown in Fig. 4. The exhaustion of air from the suction box tends to draw water from the wet belt substantially uniformly over its width as it passes over the box, and also to suck water through the porous belt from the wet ribbons on its outer face. If the suction effect is strong enough, however, to accomplish this it is found that air also is drawn through the pulp ribbons with sufficient force to inter-mat fibers of the ribbon with the substance of the belt making it difllcult to remove the ribbon whole and cleanly from the belt at 95, and also air thus sucked through the ribbon tends to disintegrate the felting of the fibers of the ribbon.

-If the suction effect is suitably adjusted, roughly by varying the power used to exhaust from the suction box and accurately by adjusting the position of the box, a condition may be arrived at and substantially continuously maintained, in which the suction will be eflective to remove water by direct sucking from those portions of the belt which are not covered by ribbons, and yet will not draw directly through the belt plus the ribbons and so will neither disturb the material of the ribbons directly nor cause them to mat into the belt. After the belt leaves the suction roll, the relatively dry parts of the belt between and more or less under the edges of the ribbons absorb water from the ribbons by capillary attraction to such an extent that the ribbons are dry enough to be self sustainingly coherent when removed at 99 from the support of the belt.

If a less number of wires is being handled than requires the full effective length of the roll I99, the width of belt exposedto the suction effect of the box may be narrowed as appropriate by adjustment of position of the walls I99 and I99.

In Fig. 7 is disclosed a modified form of the apparatus above described. The foraminous roll I99 of the above arrangement is replaced by a solid roll 9I similar to the other roll 9I An auxiliary belt 299 of woven wire runs over the two rolls 9i and over the top of the suction box I9I located just back of the first roll 9|. The felt belt I9 is supported on this wire mesh belt as the two together pass over the suction box.

While the invention as disclosed and described above is embodied in a method of embedding wires in ribbons of paper pulp, it is not limited to this one particular use but is applicable wherever ribbon-like and fragile strands or other articles of porous material are to be freed of contained liquid without being subjected to possibly harmful or even destructive forces the while.

The embodiment disclosed is illustrative and may be modified and departed from in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as pointed out in and limited only by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A method of removing moisture from articles of wet porous material which comprises steps of applying a plurality of wet porous articles in mutually spaced relation to one surface of a sheet of porous absorptive material, and applying suction to the other surface of the sheet sufliciently severe and for a sufllcient period only to suck moisture from the portions of the sheet between the articles thereon but not sufliciently severe nor for a suilicient period to suck moisture directly from the articles and through the sheet.

2. A method of handling strands of wet porous material to remove moisture therefrom which comprises steps of applying a plurality of wet porous strands in mutually spaced relation to one surface of a sheet of porous absorptive material, and applying suction to the other surface of the sheet sufliciently severe and for a sufficient period only to suck moisture from the portions of the sheet between the strands thereon but not sufllciently severe nor for a suflicient period to suck moisture directly from the strands and through the sheet.

3. A method of removing moisture from articles of wet porous material which comprises steps of applying a plurality of wet porous articles in mutually spaced relation to one surface of a sheet of porous absorptive material, ap-

plying suction to the other surface of the sheet sufiiciently severe and for a suflicient period only to suck moisture from the portions of the sheet between the articles thereon but not sufliciently severe nor for a suflicient period to suck moisture directly from the articles and through the sheet, and removing moisture from the articles after cessation of the suction by the capillary absorption of moisture therefrom into the partially dried portions of the sheet.

4. A method of handling strands of wet porous material to remove moisture therefrom which comprises steps of 'applyinga plurality of wet porous strands in mutually spaced relation to one surface of a sheet of porous absorptive material,

sufliciently severe and for a sufficient period only to suck moisture from the portions of the sheetbetween the strands thereon but not sufliciently severe nor for a suflicient period to suck moisture directly from the strands and through the sheet, and removing moisture from the strands after cessation of the suction by the capillary absorption of moisture therefrom into the partially dried portions of the sheet.

5. A method of removing moisture from articles of wet porous material which comprises steps of applying a plurality of wet porous articles in mutually spaced relation to one surface of 'a sheet of porous absorptive material, applying suction to the other surface of the sheet, adjusting the severity of the suction to be sufliciently severe and for a suflicient period only to suck moisture from the portions of the sheet between the articles thereon but not sufllciently severe nor for a sufficient period to suck moisture directly from the articles and through the sheet, and removing moisture from the articles after cessation of the suction by the capillary absorption of moisture therefrom into the partially dried portions of the sheet.

6. A method of handling strands of wet porous material to remove moisture therefrom which comprises steps of applying a plurality of wet porous strands in mutually spaced relation to one surface of a sheet of porous absorptive material, applying suction to the other surface of the sheet, adjusting the severity of the suction to be sufliciently severe and for a sufllcient period only to suck moisture from the portions of the sheet between the strands thereon but not sumciently severe nor for a suflicient period to suck moisture directly from the strands and through the sheet, and removing moisture from the strands after cessation of the suction by the capillary absorption of moisture therefrom into the partially dried portions of the sheet.

VAUGHN L. JOI-IANNESSEN.

applying suction to the other surface of the sheet