WO2001082434A1

WO2001082434A1 - Cable drum with extensible cable sections

Info

Publication number: WO2001082434A1
Application number: PCT/EP2001/004410
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lothar Müller
Original assignee: Mueller Lothar
Priority date: 2000-04-19
Filing date: 2001-04-18
Publication date: 2001-11-01
Also published as: DE10019459C1; AU2001260222A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a cable drum with at least two cable rollers for reeling up the pertaining cable sections. The inventive cable drum is further characterized in that (a) the two cable rollers (3a, 3b) are identical and independent of each other in terms of build-up and functions, and (b) every cable roller (3a, 3b) is associated with a flat spiral spring (15a, 15b) whose axis (21a, 21b) is off-set with respect to the axis (22a, 22b) of the pertaining cable roller (3a, 3b). The inventive cable drum further comprises (c) one brake mechanism for every cable roller (3a, 3b) for the reeling-up movement of the cable roller (3a, 3b), and (d) a locking device for every cable roller (3a, 3b) for locking the cable roller (3a, 3b), and is further characterized in that (e) the ends (9a, 9b) of the cable sections (6a, 6b) are electrically connected to one another via an intermediate cable (23).

Description

Description Cable drum with extendable cable sections

The invention relates to a cable drum with pull-out cable sections, with a housing that has at least one. Has cable entry opening, with at least two cable reels arranged in the housing, with springs by means of which the cable reels can be set in rotation for winding up the associated cable sections, with at least two cable sections which can be wound onto the cable reels and each have an electrical connecting element * at their free end, and with an electrical connection between the other ends of the cable sections.

In private and commercial areas, it has long been known to operate special tools and devices electrically. These are, for example, drilling machines, grinding machines, saws and machines for screwing and unscrewing screws and nuts, as well as other aids such as lighting, heating and pumps, e.g. B. for water or the provision of a working medium, such as compressed air for pneumatically driven tools or a pressurized hydraulic oil for hydraulically operated tools. A power supply connection is usually required as the power source for such tools. In any case, this applies to more powerful tools, ^* for which a battery is not sufficient as an energy source. Often, operating such tools and aids is only necessary temporarily for assembly or repair work, so that a permanently installed power supply does not make sense.

Since the corresponding connection point of the power network is often not in the immediate vicinity of the location where the tool or auxiliary device is to be operated, the length of the connecting cable attached to it is often not sufficient. Therefore, this cable must be supplemented with an extension cable. - Depending on the purpose and type of the closing tools or aids sometimes make a cable extension with an electrical coupling or with an electrical connector at the end of the cable necessary.

Therefore, it is very desirable to have a cable reel that is so versatile that it can handle all situations in practice, i. H. in particular, that the cable reel allows both cable ends, of which one end normally has an electrical plug and the other end an electrical coupling, to be set independently of one another to different lengths.

Such a cable drum is known for example from DE 29813079 Ul. A two-sided cable drum is described therein, which has two covers, each of which is provided with a center shaft, the two center shafts being axially connected to one another. Two cable wheels and coaxial two spiral springs are arranged on the center shafts. A cable is wound on each cable wheel, with a module connector at its free end and the other end attached to the corresponding cable wheel. The two cable wheels are equipped with clamping devices that are separated from each other by a cover plate. The clamping devices are connected on the one hand to the cables mentioned. On the other hand, one of the clamping devices has contacts which lead through the said cover plate to the other clamping device.

The known cable drum is very complicated in its individual parts, which can also be seen from the drawings of the document. This leads to a high level of technical complexity and correspondingly high production costs for the known cable drum. In addition, nothing is provided in the known cable drum in order to limit the speed of rotation of the cable wheels generated by the spiral springs when winding the cable and to fix the length of a partially unwound cable section.

Furthermore, from DE 19737424 Cl a tool case with two cable reels and an associated cable winding device is known. The cables on the two reels are electrically connected to each other. The tool case naturally serves primarily to accommodate a tool, in particular an electrically operated tool, in the case. The cable reel contained therein or the two cable reels at the same time have the purpose of always providing an extension cable for the use of the tool mentioned. In the publication, however, there is no information about how the cable reel or the two cable reels should be designed in detail.

The invention has for its object to provide a cable drum that is relatively simple and can therefore be manufactured without extraordinary technical effort and thus inexpensively. Furthermore, a unwound cable section of the desired length should be lockable in the cable reel. For safety reasons, it should also be ruled out that when the cable is spring-assisted, the winding speed becomes too high, so that no dangerous skidding movement of the cable end occurs.

The invention solves this problem by a cable drum of the type mentioned at the outset, which is characterized in that

(a) the cable reels are identical and independent of one another at least in substantial parts of their mechanical structure and mechanical functions, (b) the spring assigned to each cable reel is designed as a band spring which, in its rest position, is wound up in the form of a spiral, the axis of which is offset from the axis of the associated cable reel,

(c) a braking mechanism is provided for each cable reel to slow down the rotary movement of the cable reel caused by the band spring when the associated cable section is being wound up,

(d) a locking mechanism is provided for each cable reel for locking the cable reel in a desired rotational position or the associated cable section with a desired extended cable section length, and

(e) the aforementioned other ends of the cable sections are electrically connected to one another using at least one intermediate cable.

A major advantage of the cable drum according to the invention is that the cable reels and the parts assigned to them (e.g. the spring, brake and locking mechanism and the electrical components) are identical in their mechanical structure or at least in substantial parts thereof , This means that the same or largely the same components can be used for all cable reels a cable drum. This increases the number of identical components and the manufacturing costs per component are reduced. The matching components of the cable reels also allow these reels to be preassembled separately from one another and possibly also at different locations before the final assembly of the finished cable reel. Furthermore, a smaller spare parts store is sufficient for repairs of the cable drums, because certain parts of the different cable reels are identical. The correspondence of the cable reels and the parts assigned to them also leads to an agreement of their mechanical functions, which are independent of one another. An advantage of this is that in the event of a mechanical malfunction on a cable reel, e.g. B. in the event of a blockage of the rotating mechanism, the other or the other cable reels remain fully functional.

In the cable drum according to the invention, it is also advantageous that the spring assigned to each cable drum is designed as a band spring which, in its rest position, is wound in the form of a spiral, the axis of which is offset from the axis of the associated cable reel. This means that the ribbon spring is not wound around one and the same axis, as in the prior art according to DE 29813079 Ul, both in the relaxed rest position and in the tensioned state (with the cable section pulled out), but in both cases largely around two different axes is. One of these is the axis of rotation of the cable reel (when the spring is tensioned, i.e. when the cable section is pulled out), and the other is the offset axis of the spring spiral (when the spring is relaxed, i.e. when the cable section is wound up). The mutual displacement of the two axes results in a greater extension of the band spring between them and thus an increased spring force. This means that when using the same springs in the prior art according to DE 29813079 Ul and in the invention, the latter produces a stronger spring tension, which can be used, for example, to wind up a longer cable section.

The cable drum according to the invention is equipped on each of the cable reels with a braking mechanism, by means of which the speed of the winding of the corresponding cable section caused by the band spring is limited to the associated cable reel. This is a important advantage over cable drums without such a braking mechanism, because without it the end of an extended cable section provided with an electrical plug or with an electrical coupling can lead to an uncontrolled and thus dangerous skidding of the cable end during winding due to the unchecked spring force.

For the handling of the cable drum in practice, it is also an advantage that each cable reel has a locking mechanism for the cable reel or for the extended cable section. This prevents undesired tensioning or retraction of the extended cable section due to the restoring force of the band spring.

Finally, in the cable drum according to the invention, the ends of the respective cable sections fastened to the cable reels are electrically connected to one another. A simple intermediate cable is sufficient for this.

The cable drum according to the invention is extremely versatile due to the independently adjustable lengths of the cable sections. This not only applies to hobbyists and applications such as B. in the camping area, but also for professional companies, such as auto repair shops. In all cases, the cable drum can also be permanently installed on a wall, a vehicle, a boat or other equipment if required

(If necessary, also removable), so that one or more of the cable sections can then optionally be pulled out to the desired length at the same time.

The cable drum according to the invention is preferably with two

Cable reels equipped. However, it is also possible and more advantageous for certain purposes to combine three, four or even more cable reels in one cable drum. This multiplies the possible electrical connections accordingly.

It is preferred that at least one cable lead-through opening (or openings) on the cable drum according to the invention can be closed by at least one closure flap

(are), with the flap closed

Connection elements are located at the free ends of the cable section within the cable drum housing. This embodiment has the advantage that the connection elements when not in use, for.

B. from mechanical damage, contamination or

Protected by splash water.

In particular, it is useful if a separate flap is provided for each cable section, with two

Cable reels so there are a total of two separate flaps. This results in addition to the aforementioned advantage of

Protection by such a flap the further favorable circumstance that when a flap is opened and the associated cable section is connected to a power supply, increased security is provided when the second cable section is not in use and when the second flap is closed, because the live connection element on the second

Cable section behind the closed flap cannot be touched accidentally.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the cable drum according to the invention, one or more sockets are additionally arranged on the outside of the housing and are electrically connected within the housing to one of the cable sections or the intermediate cable. This increases the versatility of the possible uses of the cable drum because it offers even more connections for electrical plugs than the number of electrical couplings at the cable ends. The invention is explained in more detail below with the aid of the attached drawing figures, in which, by way of example, only two cable reels are arranged in the cable drum. Show it

1 schematically shows a horizontal cross section of a cable drum at the level of the axes of the two cable reels;

2 schematically shows a side view of a cable drum with the housing open and the cable house partially removed, some parts being omitted for a better overview;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a cable drum with two side flaps that are open. and

Fig. 4 is a view similar to that in Fig. 3, but with closed flaps.

In the following, the reference numbers "a" refer to elements of the first cable reel and letter "b" to elements of the second cable reel.

In Fig. 1, a housing 1 of the cable drum according to the invention is indicated by the dashed outer line drawn on three sides. A first cable house 2a and a second cable house 2b are located inside the housing 1 in a mirror-inverted arrangement. Within the first cable house 2a, a first cable reel 3a with a rotating first cable reel axle shaft 4a is arranged on a fixed first cable reel axle bearing 5a.

A first cable section 6a is wound on the first cable reel 3a. Its first free end 7a carries one

Electric plug 8a. The first other end 9a of the first Cable section 6a terminates in three first lead wires (in the case of a three-pole cable), of which only one is provided with the reference number 10a for a better overview in FIG. 1. The first lead wires 10a end in three first sockets, of which only one is also provided with the reference number 11a for the sake of clarity in FIG. 1.

These three first sockets 11a are plugged onto three first sliding contact tongues, of which only one is identified by reference number 12a. The resilient free ends of the first sliding contact tongues 12a are in contact with three first sliding contact rings, only one of which is designated by the reference number 13a.

According to a first embodiment of the invention, the first sliding contact rings 13a have different diameters and are arranged on the cable reel axle bearing 5a concentrically thereto and at an axial distance from one another. The surface of the sliding contact rings 13a has the shape of a flat ring disk, which is arranged perpendicular to the axis of the cable reel axle bearing 5a.

According to a second embodiment of the invention, not shown in the drawing, the sliding contact rings 13a are in the form of three axially spaced cylindrical surface sections of the

Cable reel axle bearing 5a formed, against which the free ends of the sliding contact tongues 12a rest.

The further electrical connection of the sliding contact rings 13a in both embodiments is explained below.

In the first cable house 2a, a first band spring 15a is assigned to the first cable reel 3a and, according to FIG. 1, is largely in its rest position in the form of a first spiral

16a. One end of the first band spring 15a is at the location of the first spiral 16a attached to a first retaining pin 17a on the inner wall of the first cable house 2a. The other end of the first band spring 15a is attached to a first spring shaft 18a of the first cable reel 3a. In Fig. 1 there are only a few first turns 19a of the first band spring 15a on the first spring shaft 18a of the first cable reel 3a. For a better overview in FIG. 1, part of the first section 20a of the band spring 15a between the first spiral 16a and the few first turns 19a on the first spring shaft 18a is omitted.

1 that the first axis 21a of the first spiral 16a of the band spring 15a is offset from the axis 22a of the first cable reel 3a.

The aforementioned structure with respect to the first cable house 2a and the associated aforementioned components is repeated in mirror image for the second cable house 2b and the associated components. The latter are the second cable reel 3b, the second cable reel axle shaft 4b, the second cable reel axle bearing 5b, the second cable section 6b, the second free end 7b of the second cable section 6b, an electric coupling 8b at the second free end 7b of the second cable section 6b, the second other end 9b of the second cable section 6b, the second lead wires 10b at the second other end 9b of the second cable section 6b, the second sockets 11b on the second lead wires 10b, the second sliding contact tongues 12b, the second sliding contact rings 13b, the second contact pins 14b, the second ribbon spring 15b, the second coil spring 16b, the second retaining pin 17b for the second ribbon spring 15b, the second spring shaft 18b on the second cable reel 3b, the few second windings 19b of the second ribbon spring 15b on the second spring shaft 18b, the second section 20b of the second ribbon spring 15b, the second Axis 21b of the second coil spring 16b and the cable reel axis 22b of the second cable reel 3b. The second embodiment of the sliding contact rings 13a described above in connection with the first cable reel 3a in the form of cylindrical surface sections of the cable reel axle bearing 5a is optionally also implemented in a corresponding manner in the second cable reel 3b.

The two cable houses 2a, 2b and the two cable reels 3a, 3b with the parts assigned to them are independent of one another in their mechanical structure and their mechanical functions.

The cable reels 3a, 3b are electrically connected to one another by an intermediate cable 23. For this purpose (in both of the aforementioned embodiments of the sliding contact rings 13a, 13b), short electrical connections lead from the sliding contact rings 13a, 13b into the inner cavity of the cable reel axle bearing 5a, 5b and end there in contact pins 14a, 14b. Intermediate cable sockets are plugged onto these, of which only one is designated for each cable reel 3a, 3b with the reference number 24a or 24b and which are located at one end of intermediate cable line wires. Of these, only one is provided with the reference number 25a or 25b on each cable reel. The intermediate cable line wires 25a, 25b run in the intermediate cable 23 and electrically connect the cable sections 6a, 6b to one another.

In Fig. 2 the housing 1 is partially shown, in which the first cable house 2a be indet. In addition to the first cable reel 3a, this also shows the position of the first spiral 16a of the first band spring 15a.

In addition, FIG. 2 shows the parts of a braking mechanism for slowing down those caused by the first band spring 15a

Speed of rotation of the cable reel 3a and a Locking mechanism for locking the cable reel 3a in a desired rotational position can be seen. For better clarity, these two mechanisms are not shown in FIG. 1.

2 shows a first embodiment of the braking mechanism for the first cable reel 3a. The mechanism consists essentially of two crescent-like brake shoes 26, 27. Each of these is pivotally attached at one end to a bearing pin 28, 29 fastened to the first cable reel 3a and rotatable together with the cable reel 3a. The pivotably mounted ends of the brake shoes 26, 27 lie radially opposite one another and are each connected to the adjacent free end of the other brake shoe 26, 27 by a coil spring 30, 31 pretensioned in tension. The coil springs 30, 31 cause the braking surfaces 32, 33 on the outside of the brake shoes 26, 27 to be kept away from the counter brake surface 34 on the inside of the housing 1 in the rest position or at only a moderate rotational speed of the first cable reel 3a. A corresponding braking mechanism is provided for the second cable reel 3b.

According to a second embodiment of the brake mechanism, not shown in the drawing, two diametrically opposite recesses are provided on the circumference of the first cable reel 3a, in each of which a brake pad is arranged. This is movable radially.

In the rest position or at only a moderate rotational speed of the first cable reel 3a, its radially outward braking surface lies against the

Counter braking surface 34 of the housing 1 does not or almost without pressure so that the cable reel 3a remains easily rotatable. A corresponding braking mechanism is optionally provided for the second cable reel 3b. FIG. 2 also shows a locking mechanism for locking the first cable reel 3a in a desired rotational position, which corresponds to a desired length of the first cable section 6a pulled out of the housing 1 when the cable drum is used. The locking mechanism consists essentially of a locking lever 35a, which is pivotally mounted at one end on a holding pin 36. A locking roller 37 is rotatably attached to the locking lever 35a. In the rest position of the locking mechanism, the locking roller 37 is in close contact with the first cable roller 3a and prevents undesired rotation of the latter by the action of the band spring 25a (FIG. 1). When the first cable reel 3a is to be rotated, the locking reel 37 is released from the first cable reel 3a by lifting the locking lever 35a and enables its rotation.

Fig. 2 shows only the essential parts in connection with the first cable house 2a and the first cable reel 3a and the associated braking mechanism in its aforementioned first embodiment and the associated locking mechanism. In addition, the cable drum according to the invention also has a corresponding arrangement (not shown in FIG. 2) with a braking and locking mechanism for the second cable house 2b shown in FIG. 1 with the second cable reel 3b.

3 shows a preferred embodiment of the cable drum according to the invention, which has two cable feedthrough openings 38a, 38b in the housing 1, which are equipped with closure flaps 39a, 39b. These are opened in FIG. 3 and in this way partially show the locking levers 35a (for the first cable reel 3a) and 35b (for the second cable reel 3b) arranged in the interior of the housing 1. In addition, the cable drum is equipped with a handle 40 and a recessed grip 41.

FIG. 4 shows the cable drum according to FIG. 3 with closed flaps 40, 41.

When the cable drum according to the invention is used in practice, the corresponding locking lever 35a, 35b of the associated cable reel 3a, 3b is released, if appropriate after opening the corresponding closure flap 40, 41. Then the free end 7a, 7b of the desired cable section 6a, 6b with the associated electrical connection element 8a, 8b is gripped and pulled out of the cable house 2a, 2b until the desired length of the cable section 6a, 6b is reached. When the cable reel 3a, 3b rotates, the associated band spring 15a, 15b is wound onto the respective spring shaft 18a, 18b. After pulling out the cable section 6a, 6b to the desired length, the locking lever 35a, 35b is actuated in the sense of blocking the cable reel 3a, 3b. This can also be done automatically when the locking lever 35a, 35b is released by means of an additional spring (not shown) acting on the locking lever.

To rewind the cable section 6a, 6b, the locking lever 35a, 35b is released again. The cable reel 3a, 3b then rotates back again by the force of the band spring 15a, 15b until the cable section 6a, 6b as desired on the

Cable reel 3a, 3b is wound up. In the case of the aforementioned first embodiment of the brake mechanism, the brake shoes 26, 27 rotating with the cable reel 3a, 3b pivot with this winding with increasing

Speed of rotation due to the centrifugal force and at a certain speed set with their braking surface 32,

33 to the counter braking surface 34 of the fixed cable house 2a, 2b. As a result, the cable reel 3a, 3b is braked and an excessive speed is avoided. In the case of the aforementioned second embodiment of the braking mechanism, the brake pads are moved radially outward by the centrifugal force as the speed of rotation of the cable reel 3a, 3b increases and, with increasing pressure, they apply their braking surface to the counter braking surface 34 of the cable house 2a, 2b. The resulting braking effect prevents the cable reel 3a, 3b from becoming too high.

These processes of unrolling and unrolling the cable sections 6a, 6b can be carried out independently of one another with both cable reels 3a, 3b. However, both cable sections 6a, 6b always remain electrically connected to one another via the intermediate cable 23, so that both the first cable section 6a with the electrical connector 8a and the second cable section 6b with the electrical coupling 8b can be adjusted to any length at any time.

Claims

claims

1. Cable drum with pull-out cable sections, with a housing that has at least one cable feed-through opening, with at least two cable reels arranged in the housing, with springs, by means of which the cable reels can be rotated for winding up the associated cable sections, with at least two reels that can be wound onto the cable reels Cable sections, each having an electrical connection element at its free end, and with an electrical connection between the other ends of the cable sections, characterized in that

(a) the two cable reels (3a, 3b) are identical and independent of one another at least in substantial parts of their mechanical structure and in their mechanical functions,

(b) the spring (15a, associated with each cable reel (3a, 3b),

15b) is designed as a band spring, which in its

Rest position in the form of a spiral (16a, 16b) is wound, the axis (21a, 21b) of the axis

(22a, 22b) of the associated cable reel (3a, 3b) is offset,

(c) for each cable reel (3a, 3b) a braking mechanism (26, 27; 28, 29; 30, 31; 32, 33; 34) for slowing down the rotational movement of the cable reel (3a, 15b) caused by the band spring (15a, 15b) 3b) is provided when winding up the associated cable section (6a, 6b),

(d) for each cable reel (3a, 3b) a locking mechanism (35a, 35b; 36; 37) for locking the cable reel

(3a, 3b) in a desired rotational position or the associated cable section (6a, 6b) is provided at a desired length of the extended cable section (6a, 6b) and

(e) the aforementioned other ends (9a, 9b) of the cable sections (6a, 6b) are electrically connected to one another using at least one intermediate cable (23).

2. Cable drum according to claim 1, characterized in that the cable feed-through openings (38a, 38b) can be closed by at least one closure flap (39a, 39b), the connecting elements (8a, 8b) being connected to the free ones when the flap (38a, 39b) is closed Cable section ends (7a, 7b) are inside the housing (1).

3. Cable drum according to claim 2, characterized in that for each cable section (6a, 6b) with connecting element (8a, 8b) a separate flap (39a, 39b) is provided.

4. Cable drum according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it additionally has on the outside of the housing (1) one or more sockets within the housing (1) with one of the cable sections (6a, 6b) or the intermediate cable (23) are electrically connected.

5. Cable drum according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it has two cable reels (3a, 3b).