US2307277A - Wire support - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 5, 1943'. E. 1.. KLI NGEL 2,307,277

WIRE SUPPORT Filed June a, 1941 Edward L. mingel Patented Jan. 5, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WIRE SUPPORT Edward L. Klingel, St. Paul, Minn.

Application June 6, 1941, Serial No. 396,807

8 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in wire supports particularly, though not exclusively, for use in the telephone industry.

In making telephone service connections, parallel drop-wire, so-called, is commonly employed and in the use of such Wire, it is desirable to provide supports therefor which have insulating properties rendering them incapable of shorting the companion conduits of the parallel wire, should they become exposed through their insulating coverings.

It is further desirable to provide supports, as above, which, by virtue of their construction, prevent the slippage of the supported wire relative thereto, whereby the costly use of tie-wires for such purpose is avoided and, likewise, the accompanying danger of shorting the companion conduits of the parallel wire by the tie-wire as a result of the one cutting through the insulating covering of the other.

In accord with said disiderata, it is an object of my present invention to provide a simple, durable, compact, relatively inexpensive and sightly wire support, in itself an electrical insulator, adapted readily to be installed on a building, pole or other support and to which a wire, with all undue slack eliminated therefrom, may be quickly and easily attached securely against slippage, without the use of an additional tiewire or the like.

Other objects of the invention reside in the novel combination and arrangement of parts and in. the details of construction hereinafter illustrated and/or described.

In the drawing, Fig. 1 is a perspective View of a wire support constructed in embodiment of my present invention; Fig. 2 is a front view of the support shown in Fig. 1; Figs. 3 and 4 are top and bottom views, respectively, of said support as shown in said Fig. 1; Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are sectional views taken, respectively, as on the line -5 of Fig. 2, the line 6-6 of Fig. 5, and the line 1-1 of said Fig. 2.

Reference being had to the accompanying drawing, wherein similar reference characters are employed throughout the several views to designate similar portions of the illustrated wire support, it will be seen that said support is of unitary formation including a body or back Ill,

wings I I issuing forwardly from said body at the sides thereof, and a front bar l2 connecting the wings II together. Constructed of suitable material, preferably porcelain or other electrical insulating material, the support is formed with two bores I3 therein extending through the wings II and body I6 thereof, said bores being countersunk at the forward faces of the wings I I. These bores I3 are provided to receive anchoring screws (not shown) for securing the wire support to a wall, post or other supporting object with the body Ill backed against the same.

The front bar I2, together with the immediately contiguous portions of the wings II and the corresponding portion of the body I0, form an eye a, the eye-opening in said eye being designated by the reference numeral I4. Offset from the eye a is a knob I 5 issuing forwardly from the body I0, said knob being sector-shaped in crosssection transversely of its axis. Said axis of said knob I5 and the axis of the eye a intersect at right angles to each other, said knob being symmetrically fanned out from the eye a, the far side of the knob I5 relative to said eye being the arcuate side of said knob. Said arcuate side of the knob I5 overreaches the sides of the eyeopening I4 and is formed with a groove I5 therein flatly to receive a parallel drop-wire as shown in Fig. 5, such wire being designated by the letter 73. This groove I6 is V-shaped in transverse cross-section to provide a grip along its side walls upon the wire received within the groove, whereby any tendency of such Wire to slip or creep along the knob I5 Within said groove I6 is resisted. Further resisting any tendency of the Wire to slip or creep along said groove I6 are a plurality of anti-creeping ribs or fins I'I formed on the side walls of the groove transversely thereof. These ribs I'I, biting into the insulating covering of the drop-wire, augment the anticreeping action of the side walls of the groove per se.

The eye-opening I4 is elongated axially thereof and laterally thereof, as well, said eye-opening at each end thereof being outwardly flared sidewise of the support, the end of said eyeopening opposite the knob I5 being also outwardly flared forwardly. This flaring of said eyeopening I4 presents rounded, wire-engaging surfaces of substantial radii of curvature, whereby F sharp bending of a wire at the eye a of the support is 'avoided.

With the wire support secured to a supporting object, the wire to be attached to said support is looped to form a bight. This bight is threaded through the eye-opening I4 toward and past the knob l5 where the loop is expanded to receive one hand of the installer. Using this hand to manipulate the loop, the installer works the wire b through the support, into and out of the eye a thereof, While using the other hand to take up the existing slack in the lead-in portion 2) of the wire. With such slack eliminated to the extent desired, the take-01f portion b of the wire is drawn taut to bring the loop 22 into conformity with the arcuate side of the knob l lodging said loop in the groove is with its edges gripped by the side walls of said groove and indented by the anti-creeping ribs ll thereon.

To facilitate advancing the bight in a wire past the knob l5, after said bight emerges from the eye-opening M, the end of said knob is beveled to slope forwardly from a point within the eye-opening I4 at the back thereof to the forward arcuate edge of said knob. This beveling of the end of the knob I5 provides a cam surface l8 which is engaged by the wire bight, said cam surface functioning effectively to direct the bight beyond said knob into position where the loop may be readily grasped by the installer, as and for the purpose above indicated. To keep the bight of the wire medially of the cam surface if! as it advances therealong, said surface is made concave from side to side thereof, as best seen in Fig. 7.

The forward flaring of the eye-opening M at the end thereof opposite the knob 15, is more especially pronounced at the sides of said opening, whereby a central divider-rib i9 is provided, said divider-rib being advantageous in assisting the installer to keep the lead-in and take-off reaches of the wire apart.

With the take-off reach of the attached wire secure, said wire will have generally oppositely curved contact with the sides of the eye-opening l4 and the loop of the bight in the wire will have non-creeping engagement with the knob l5 in the roughened V-shaped groove 16 therein. Although readily attached to the wire support, the wire is firmly held thereby, the efiectiveness of the grip between wire and support being such that the wire will break rather than slip or creep in said support, as repeated tests have demonstrated. Due to this extremely effective grip between wire and support, no tie-wire or equivalent adjunct is required in the use of the present invention.

The wings H proper, together with extensions Ila thereon, reinforce the body Iii. Said extensions, between which the knob I5 is disposed, guard said knob both before and after the installation of the wire support. The inner face I lb Thus, each Wing extension I la provides an abutment preventing the spreading of the wire loop and the loosening thereof on the knob l5 whenever such tendency to spread exists as a result of relatively heavy tension on the lead-in reach of the wire and relatively light tension on the take-off reach thereof, or vice versa.

Either end of my wire support, or either side thereof may be uppermost and, if desired, said support may be disposed horizontally on its back, or in any desired angular position between the vertical and the horizontal. The lead-in portion of the supported wire may occupy either side of the support, the opposite side thereof being occupied by the take-off portion of such wire. Ordinarily the take-01f portion of the supported wire will lie approximately in the plane of the body or back ID of the support, but in many installations, the lead-in portion of such wire will be disposed at a substantial angle relative to the plane of the said body Ill. Thus, the device is installed without difficulty to meet any requirement with which the installer is confronted.

Changes in the specific form of my invention, as herein disclosed, may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. A unitary wire support of insulating material consisting of a body adapted to be backed against a supporting object, wings issuing for- Wardly from said body at the sides thereof and reinforcing the same, a front bar connecting said wings together, said body, wings and bar forming an eye for the threaded insertion through its opening of a bight in a wire to be supported, said wings and body having bores therethrough to receive screws for anchoring the support to the supporting object, a knob issuing from said body between said wings and guarded by the latter, said knob being sector-shaped in cross-section transversely of its axis and symmetrically fanned outwardly axially of said eye from a point within the eye-opening, the arcuate portion of the knob at the perimeter thereof overreaching the sides of the eye-opening and providing a bearing for the loop of said bight, said arcuate portion being formed with a groove V-shaped in transverse cross-section to receive the wire of said loop, said groove being toothed at it sides to resist slippage of the wire therealong, the end of said knob being beveled and sloping forwardly from its near side relative to the eye-opening to provide a cam surface to be engaged by and to direct the loop past the knob, said cam surface being concave to guide and keep said loop centered relative to the sides of said knob, said eye-opening being elongated axially thereof and also sidewise toward said wings, both ends of said eye-opening being flared sidewise, the end of the eye-opening opposite said knob being also flared forwardly and predominantly so at either side thereof to provide a medial divider-rib to assist in segregating the two reaches of the bight in the application of the wire to the support, said flaring of said eye-opening presenting rounded, wire-engaging surfaces of substantial radii of curvature to avoid sharp bending of the wire at the eye of the support.

2. A unitary wire support of insulating material consisting of a body adapted .to be backed against and secured to a supporting object, said support including an eye at the front of said body for the threaded insertion through its opening of a bight in a wire to be supported, a knob issuing forwardly from said body, said knob being sector-shaped transversely of its axis and symmetrically fanned outwardly axially of said eye, the arcuate portion of the knob at the perimeter thereof overreaching the sides of the eye-opening and providing a bearing for the loop of. said bight at the far side of the knob relative to the eye, said arcuate portion being grooved to receive the wire of said loop, said groove being toothed to resist slippage of the wire therealong, the end of said knob being beveled and sloping forwardly from a locality substantially in line with the back of the eye-opening to provide a cam surface for directing the loop past the knob after said loop emerges from the eye, said cam surface being concave to center the advancing loop relative to said knob.

3. A unitary Wire support of insulating mate-.

rial consisting of a body adapted to be backed against and secured to asupporting object, said support including a circumferentially. closed eye at the front of said body for the threaded insertion through its opening of a bight in a wire to be supported, a knob issuing forwardly from said body adjacent said eye and transversely overreaching the sides of the eye-opening, said knob being sector-shaped transversely of its axis and providing a bearing for the loop of said bight at the far s de of the knob relative to the eye, the end of said knob being beveled to slope forwardly from a locality substantially in line with the back of the eye-opening to provide a cam surface for directing the loop past the knob after said loop emerges from the eye.

4. A unitary wire support of insulating material consisting of a body adapted to be backed against and secured to a supporting object, wings issuing forwardly from said body at the sides thereof, a front bar connecting said wings together, said body, wings and bar forming an eye for the threaded insertion through its opening of a bight in a wire to be supported, a knob issuing from said body, the axis thereof being at right angles to and intersecting the axis of said eye, the far side of said knob relative to said eye providing a bearing for the loop of said bight, the eye-opening being elongated axially thereof and also sidewise toward said wings, both ends of said eye-opening being flared sidewise, the end of the eye-opening opposite said knob being also flared forwardly and predominantly so at either sid thereof to provide a medial divider-rib to assist in segregating the two reaches of the bight in the application of the wire to the support, said flaring of said eye-opening presenting rounded, wire-engaging surfaces of substantial radii of curvature to avoid shap bending of the wire at the eye of he support.

5. A unitary wire support of insulating material consisting of a body adapted to be backed against a supporting object, wings issuing forwardly from said body at the sides thereof and reinforcing the same, a front bar connecting said wings together, said body, wings and bar forming a circumferentially closed eye for the threaded insertion through its opening of a bight in a wire to be supported, a knob issuing from said body, said wings having extensions at pposite sides and projecting forwardly of said knob to guard the same, said knob providing a bearing for the loop of said bight and said wing extensions providing abutments to prevent the spreading of the loop about said knob.

6. A unitary wire support of insulating material consisting of a body adapted to be backed against and secured to a supporting object, said support including a circumferentially closed eye of axially elongated formation disposed forwardly of said body for the endwise threaded insertion through its opening of a bight in a wire to be supported, a knob issuing forwardly from said body adjacent one end of said eye and transversely overreaching the sides of the eye-opening, the axis of said knob intersecting the axis of the eye, said knob being sector-shaped in transverse cross-section, its arcuate portion being at the far side thereof relative to the eye, and the dimension of said portion axially of the knob being substantially the same as the diameter of the eye-onening from back to front, said arcuate portion of said knob providing a bearing for the loop of the bight, the medial plane of said bearing transversely of said knob coinciding with the axis of the eye, said eye at the near end thereof relative to said knob being flared forwardly to facilitate the passage of the leading portion of the bight from the eye and past the knob to a position to be looped over said bearing on said knob.

7. A unitary wire support of insulating material consisting of a body adapted to be backed against and secured to a supporting object, wings issuing forwardly from said body at the sides thereof, a front bar connecting said wings together, said body, wings and bar forming a circumferentially closed eye for the threaded insertion through its opening of a bight in a wire to be supported, the eye-opening being elongated axially thereof and also sidewise toward said wings, a knob issuing from said body adjacent said eye, the axis of said knob being at right angles to and intersecting the axis of said eye, the far side of said knob relative to said eye providing a bearing for the loop of said bight, the end of said eye-opening at the far side of the eye relative to said knob being flared sidewise and forwardly to present a rounded, unbroken wire-engaging surface of substantial radius of curvature for contact with the reaches of the wire leading to and taking-oif from said eye in every direction at an angle to the axis of said eye.

8. A unitary wire support of insulating material consisting of a body adapted to be secured to a supporting object, a circumferentially closed eye formed on said body for the endwise threaded insertion therethrough of a bight in a looped portion of a wire to be supported, a knob formed on said body adjacent said eye, the far side of said knob relative to the eye providing a bearing for the loop of said bight, said knob having a cam surface at its end intersected by the axis of the eye and angularly disposed relative thereto to direct the loop beyond the knob for engagement with said bearing thereon.

EDWARD L. KLINGEL.

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