WO2005123567A2

WO2005123567A2 - Winch with means to obtain even winding

Info

Publication number: WO2005123567A2
Application number: PCT/IT2005/000331
Authority: WO
Inventors: Fabio Perini
Original assignee: Perini Navi S.P.A.
Priority date: 2004-06-15
Filing date: 2005-06-10
Publication date: 2005-12-29
Also published as: WO2005123567A3; ITFI20040138A1

Abstract

The winch has a drum (11) with a helical seat (25) in which the turns of the cable (C) are arranged. A guide member (31) engages with a helical boss (27) of the drum, so that rotation of the drum directly controls movement of the guide member of the cable (C) parallel to the axis (A-A) of the drum of the winch.

Description

"WINCH WITH MEANS TO OBTAIN EVEN WINDING" DESCRIPTION Technical Field The present invention relates to improvements to winches and in particular, although not exclusively, to winches for nautical use, such as those employed to wind and unwind the ropes and sheets of sails. More specifically, the present invention relates to winches of the type known as "anti-overlap", in which members are provided to obtain even winding of the turns of cable about the drum of the winch. Prior Art In some types of winch it is necessary to guarantee that the helical turns of cable which is wound on the rotating drum are arranged evenly and adjacent to one another to avoid problems during operation. This requirement is particularly felt in winches for nautical use, normally used to wind and unwind ropes or sheets, for example to control the sails in sailing boats. Various devices have been produced to facilitate correct winding, in adjacent helical turns of ropes, sheets or cables in general, to be wound on rotating drums of winches. Winches provided with these devices are commonly known as anti-overlap winches. Examples of devices used to facilitate the even forming of helical turns on the drum are described in the United States patents n.4.819.912, n.6.073.917, n.6.578.823. A device, which is used to facilitate even forming of compact turns on a rotating drum of a winch is also described in US patent n.5.002.238. Boats produced by the holder of the present patent application are provided with winches to wind sail sheets, in which the drum is connected, by means of a gear transmission, to a threaded bar which controls movement of a guide member parallel to the winding drum. Therefore, by means of gears and worms, rotation of the drum indirectly controls the translation motion of the guide member of the cable. These devices only partly satisfy the need for even winding and, moreover, are particularly complex and cumbersome and, therefore, often not suitable to be employed in the field of sailing. Objects and summary of the invention The object of the present invention is to produce an anti-overlap winch, i.e. a winch provided with a guide member of the cable to form adjacent even helical turns on the drum, which entirely or in part overcomes the drawbacks of prior art. More specifically, the object of a particular embodiment of the invention is to obtain an anti-overlap winch, which is more efficient, more reliable and more compact than conventional devices. Within the scope of the present description and of the appended claims reference will generically be made to a cable, this term being intended as any elongated element destined to be wound or unwound with respect to a rotating drum of a winch. This cable can be formed of a rope, of a line of a boat, of a sheet of a sail or of any elongated element, made of any material, which requires to be wound in even turns about the drum of a winch. In substance, in order to overcome or decrease the drawbacks of conventional devices, according to the invention a winch is provided to wind a cable or the like, comprising a drum rotating about an axis of rotation and a guide member of the cable to form adjacent helical turns on said drum, in which characteristically the guide member and the drum are connected directly to each other, so that rotation of the drum causes direct movement of the guide member parallel to the axis of rotation of the drum. According to a practical embodiment of the invention the guide member of the cable is engaged with a helical boss integral with said drum and consequently rotating therewith, which defines a seat to receive the helical turns of the cable, with an arrangement whereby rotation of the drum causes, through engaging between the helical boss and the guide member, a movement of the guide member parallel to the axis of the drum. Movement is in one direction or the other, according to the direction of rotation of the drum, so that the cable guided by the guide member correctly follows the course of the helical housing or seat provided on the drum, thereby obtaining efficient and even winding. In substance, according to one aspect of the invention the direct connection between the rotating drum and the guide member of the cable is advantageously a screw-female screw type connection, where the male thread is preferably produced on the drum and simultaneously forms a seat for helical winding of the cable, while the female thread is produced on the guide member of the cable. According to a possible embodiment, the seat for winding the cable about the drum is composed of a helical groove delimited laterally by the helical boss extending on the surface of the drum and engaging said guide member. Preferably, the guide member is composed of an element, which surrounds the drum entirely. Advantageously, it can include a helical groove formed by a plurality of turns, in which the same number of turns of the annular boss of the rotating drum engages. The guide member can advantageously comprise an inlet passage for the cable, for example constituted by a through hole, which exits on an internal surface of the guide member, produced inside which is the helical groove which engages with the annular boss of the drum. Passage of the cable is substantially approximately tangent to the helical seat on the rotating drum. The distance between the base of the helical seat of the drum and the surface of the guide member on which the helical groove is produced is advantageously approximately the same as, or slightly greater than the diameter of the cable, e.g. greater than this by approximately half a millimeter. This guarantees that the helical turns of the cable are laid correctly on the base of the helical seat, giving rise to perfectly even winding. The guide member of the cable can in turn be guided by one or more guide columns or bars extending at the side of the drum of the winch and parallel to the axis of rotation thereof. The ends of the guides can be joined to one another by a plate or other joining element. In this case, the guide member has through holes with which it engages with the guide bars or columns. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that said drum has, at an end thereof, a seat with a ring to clamp the end of the cable. The winch can be manual, with a handle for operation. However, according to a preferred embodiment it is motorized, with an electric motor or the like. According to the rotation speed in play, the motor can be combined with a reducer. The motor and/or the reducer can be housed entirely or in part inside the drum of the winch. Further advantageous characteristics and embodiments of the winch according to the invention are indicated in the appended dependent claims and shall be described in greater detail with reference to a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention. Brief description of the drawings The invention shall be better understood by following the description and accompanying drawing, which shows a practical non-limiting example of said finding. In the drawing: Figure 1 shows a view with removed and sectioned parts of a winch according to the invention; Figure 2 shows a front view according to ll-ll in Figure 1 ; and Figure 3 shows an enlarged view of a longitudinal section of the reciprocal engaging area between the guide member and the grooves and helical bosses of the rotating drum of the winch. Detailed description of an embodiment With reference to the accompanying figures, a description is provided of a winch particularly suitable for nautical use, for example for winding and unwinding a sheet for moving a sail. With specific reference to Figure 1 , connected to a support generically indicated with 1 is a supporting plate 3, fixed to which is a motor 5 to operate the winch, indicated as a whole with 7. The output shaft 5A of the motor 5 transmits motion to a reducer 9 housed inside a rotating drum, generically indicated with 11 , of the winch 7. The axis of rotation of the drum 11 is indicated with A-A. Coupled to the output shaft 13 of the reducer 9, by means of a grooved coupling, is a flange 15, fixed to which, by means of screws 17, is the drum 11 , which is thus supported by the shaft 13 and receives motion therefrom. Interiorly, the drum 11 has an annular groove 19 housed inside which are balls 21 which constitute rolling bodies for radial support of the drum on an annular boss 23 integral with the plate 3. The outer surface of the rotating drum 11 is provided with a helical seat

25 with a base, the cross section of which has a substantially arc of circumference shaped profile with a radius corresponding to the radius of the cable C which must be wound on or unwound on and from the drum 11. The helical seat 25 is defined by a helical boss 27. The helical boss 27 engages (for approximately three-four turns) in a helical groove 29 (see in particular Fig. 3) produced on the cylindrical internal surface of a guide member 31 , which entirely surrounds the rotating drum 11 of the winch 7. The guide member 31 has a limited height with respect to the axial extension of the drum 11 , and in substance the height thereof corresponds to approximately three-four times the dimension in an axial direction of the seat 25. In practice, the rotating drum 11 and the guide member 31 engage one inside the other with a screw-female screw coupling, where the thread of the screw is represented by the annular boss 27 and the thread of the female screw is represented by the groove 29 of the member 31. With rotation of the drum 11 the guide member 31 is made to slide parallel to the axis A-A of rotation of the drum 11 , moving outside said drum. Therefore, rotation of the motor 5 causes both rotation of the drum to wind or unwind the cable, and traverse movement in an axial direction of the guide member 31. The direction of said second movement depends on the direction of rotation of the winch. In its movement along the axis A-A, the guide member 31 is in turn guided by guide columns 35 rigidly connected to the plate 3. The example shown (see in particular Figure 2) is provided with 3 columns 35 arranged equidistant from one another about the axis A-A of the winch. The guide member 31 has three through holes 37 (Figure 1) through which the guide columns 35 extend. The ends of the columns 35 opposite the plate 3 are joined to one another by a connection member 39 composed, in the example shown, by a triangular plate. The guide member 31 has a passage 41 constituted by a through hole with a flared mouth 41A through which the cable C passes to be alternately wound about or unwound from the drum 11 of the winch 7. Orientation of the through hole 41 is essentially tangent to the base surface of the helical seat 25 of the rotating drum 11 and to the substantially cylindrical surface 30 (Figure 3) of the guide member 31 , in which the helical groove 29 is produced. With this arrangement the cable C which passes through the passage 41 is guided inside the helical seat 25 of the drum 11 on which it winds or from which it unwinds and is pushed into the base of the seat 25 by the substantially cylindrical surface 30 of the guide member, thanks to the fact that the distance between the base of the seat 25 and the surface 30 is only slightly greater (i.e. 0.5 mm greater) than the diameter of the cable. The initial end of the cable C is blocked in an annular housing produced on the head or front surface of the drum 11 by means of a clamp ring 47 engaged at the front of said drum by clamping screws 49. Operation of the device described is as follows. With reference to Figure 1 , the position that the guide member 31 takes when the cable C is practically completely unwound from the drum 11 of the winch 7 is indicated with broken lines. To rewind the cable C, the drum 11 is made to rotate by the motor 5. The cable C is withdrawn in the helical seat 25 of the drum and simultaneously the helical boss 27, being engaged in the helical groove 29 of the guide member 31 , causes movement parallel to the axis A-A of the guide member 31 to take it, when completely wound, to the position shown with the solid lines in Figure 1. In the drawing, the turns of the cable C about the drum 11 are omitted for greater clarity of representation. Operations to unwind the cable C from the drum 11 take place in reverse order. It is understood that the drawing purely shows an example given only by way of a practical embodiment of the invention, which may vary in forms and arrangements without however departing from the scope of the concept on which the invention is based. Any reference numbers in the appended claims are provided purely for the purpose of facilitating the reading thereof in the light of the description hereinbefore and of the accompanying drawings, but do not in any way limit the scope of protection defined by the claims.

Claims

Claims 1. A winch for winding a cable or the like (C), comprising a drum (11) rotating about an axis of rotation (A-A) and a guide member (31) of the cable (C) to form adjacent helical turns on said drum, characterized in that said guide member and said drum are directly connected to each other, rotation of the drum causing movement of the guide member parallel to the axis of rotation of the drum.

2. Winch as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that said drum (11) and said guide member (32) are connected to each other by a screw-female screw coupling (27, 29).

3. Winch as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the male thread of said coupling is produced on the drum and defines a helical seat (25) for the turns of the cable (C), while the female thread (29) is produced on the guide member (31).

4. Winch as claimed in claim 1 , 2 or 3, characterized in that said guide member is engaged with a helical boss (27) integral with said drum (11) and defining a helical seat (25) to receive the helical turns of said cable, rotation of the drum causing movement of said guide member (31) parallel to the axis of the drum.

5. Winch as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that said seat is composed of a helical groove delimited laterally by said helical boss (27) extending on the surface of the drum, the annular boss engaging said guide member.

6. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that said guide member extends about said rotating drum (11) surrounding it entirely.

7. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that said guide member (31) comprises a passage (41) for entry of the cable (C).

8. Winch as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that said passage

(41) for entry of the cable is produced as a through hole in said guide member.

9. Winch as claimed in claim 7 or 8, characterized in that said passage has a flared mouth (41 A) for said cable.

10. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that said guide member (31) has a helical groove (29) engaging with said helical boss (27) of the drum, said groove (29) forming one or more helical turns extending about the axis of rotation (A-A) of the rotating drum (11).

11. Winch as claimed in at least claims 7 and 10, characterized in that said passage (41) for entry of the cable (C) exits between two adjacent helical turns formed by said groove (29) in the guide member.

12. Winch as claimed in claim 10 or 11 , characterized in that a surface (30) to contain the cable wound in the helical seat (25) of the drum (11) is defined between at least two turns formed by said groove (29) in the guide member (31).

13. Winch as claimed in claim 12, characterized in that the distance between the base of the winding seat of the cable on said drum and said containing surface (30) is slightly greater than the diameter of the cable.

14. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that said passage (41) is substantially tangent to the helical seat (25) of said rotating drum.

15. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized by at least a sliding guide (35) of said guide member, extending parallel to the axis of rotation (A-A) of the drum (11).

16. Winch as claimed in claim 15, characterized in that it comprises at least three sliding guides (35) arranged about the axis (A-A) of the rotating drum (11).

17. Winch as claimed in claim 16, characterized in that said guides are arranged equidistant from one another about the rotating drum (11 ).

18. Winch as claimed in claim 16 or 17, characterized in that said sliding guides (35) extend from a support (3) on which said rotating drum is supported and extend beyond said drum, the ends opposite the support being joined to one another by a connection member (39).

19. Winch as claimed in claim 18, characterized in that said connection member is a plate.

20. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that said drum (11) has, at one end thereof, a clamp ring (47) of the end of the cable.

21. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that it is motorized.

22. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that it comprises a reducer (9).

23. Winch as claimed in claim 22, characterized in that said reducer is housed in said rotating drum (11).

24. Winch as claimed in one or more of the previous claims, characterized in that said rotating drum (11) is supported at one end thereof by an internal motor shaft (13).

25. Winch as claimed in claim 23 and 24, characterized in that said internal motor shaft (13) which supports the drum is the output shaft of said reducer (9) housed inside the drum.

26. Winch as claimed in claim 24 or 25, characterized in that at the opposite end from the one by which it is supported, by means of said motor shaft (13), the rotating drum is supported idle by an annular boss (23) through the interposition of rolling bodies (19).