A thin-wall copper ribbon splicing process for non-repeater submarine cable

Abstract

The present invention discloses a connection process for thin-walled copper tapes of submarine optical cables without repeaters, which includes the following steps: preparation, cutting, pretreatment, overlapping, welding, leveling, trimming and annealing. Under the protection of inert gas, an annealing device is used to heat-treat the overlapping area. By the above method, the connection process for thin-walled copper tapes of submarine optical cables without repeaters described in the present invention is easy to operate, and the online tape connection success rate reaches over ninety-eight percent, ensuring the tape connection strength and reliability, making the overlapping area have the same width and thickness as the first thin-walled copper tape, which is beneficial for the overlapping area to maintain the same comprehensive mechanical properties and electrical properties as the first thin-walled copper tape.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of the production of non-relay submarine optical cables, and in particular to a connection process for thin-walled copper tapes used in non-relay submarine optical cables. Background Art

[0002] Submarine optical cables are divided into two major series products: with relay and without relay. Among them, in the structure of non-relay submarine optical cables, a layer of thin-walled copper tape is required to be used as a conductor and fault detection in the operation of the submarine cable system. Non-relay series submarine optical cables are generally laid on the seabed hundreds of meters away from the continental shelf of the shore, and are subject to the harsh environmental tests of the sea conditions. Therefore, submarine optical cable products require extremely high reliability and quality.

[0003] Any structural unit in the structure of non-relay submarine optical cables must operate reliably for more than 25 years. Therefore, in the process of manufacturing non-relay submarine optical cables, each process must be refined to ensure that the product quality reaches the best. Among them, the longitudinal wrapping process of the copper tape is a key process.

[0004] In the process of the longitudinal wrapping process of the metal tape for the production of non-relay submarine optical cables, wrapping the thin-walled metal tape is a precise special process. Among them, reliable online tape connection during the production process is a process problem that must be solved: that is, without slowing down the production speed, the process operations of storing the metal tape, welding the metal tape, and normally releasing the tape are completed in sequence. Within a short storage tape length, a high-quality tape connection process must be completed without fail, and this process places certain requirements on the skills of personnel.

[0005] When producing short-length submarine optical cable products, the risks are correspondingly reduced a lot. However, when continuously producing ultra-long non-relay submarine optical cables nearly 100 kilometers long, the risks suddenly increase. The length of a single thin-walled copper tape is limited and needs to be connected. During the production process of ultra-long non-relay submarine optical cable products, there are often dozens of tape connection points for thin-walled copper tapes. If there is any mistake by personnel or the tape connection device, the thin-walled copper tape in the product will break, and a continuous and stable conductor structure of nearly 100 kilometers cannot be formed. Generally, after the thin-walled copper tape in the submarine optical cable breaks, it can only be processed in sections and downgraded, resulting in significant losses.

[0006] At present, in order to weld the thin-walled copper tape within a limited time, the tape connection steps have been reduced in the industry. Only ensuring that the copper tapes can be joined together and ensuring a certain tape connection strength at the tape connection point, so that it will not break when passing through the longitudinal wrapping die. Since the thin-walled copper tape generally uses resistance lap welding, the contact resistance at the lap joint is relatively large, and the cumulative effect causes a certain increase in the DC resistance of the overall copper tape, resulting in the electrical performance indicators of the submarine optical cable often being at the critical value. During the long working life of the non-relay submarine optical cable, the deterioration of the electrical performance will cause the fault detection and positioning error to exceed the standard, thus increasing the cost of maintenance and emergency repair of faults and bringing obvious potential hazards to the product quality. Summary of the Invention

[0007] The main technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a splicing process for thin-walled copper tapes used in non-relay submarine optical cables, which can achieve rapid splicing of thin-walled copper tapes, improve the splicing strength, and control the contact resistance at the overlapping part.

[0008] To solve the above technical problem, a technical solution adopted by the present invention is: to provide a splicing process for thin-walled copper tapes used in non-relay submarine optical cables, including the following steps:

[0009] Preparation: Prepare the first thin-walled copper tape and the second thin-walled copper tape to be spliced, and find the ends of the first thin-walled copper tape and the second thin-walled copper tape that need to be spliced.

[0010] Cutting: Cut the ends of the first thin-walled copper tape and the second thin-walled copper tape that need to be spliced to form corresponding bevel angles, and the angle is 40 - 50 degrees.

[0011] Pretreatment: Clean the coating layers at the ends of the first thin-walled copper tape and the second thin-walled copper tape that need to be spliced, and remove a section of the film.

[0012] Overlapping: Overlap the ends of the first thin-walled copper tape and the second thin-walled copper tape that need to be spliced in an up-and-down overlapping manner, and the length of the overlapping area is 5 - 7 mm.

[0013] Welding: Use a resistance welding device to apply pressure and perform sequential spot welding on the overlapping area to achieve fusion welding of the overlapping part.

[0014] Leveling: Use a pneumatic hammer to evenly hammer the welding area so that the thickness of the overlapping area is the same as that of the first thin-walled copper tape.

[0015] Trimming: Use a cutting tool to cut off the overflow parts on both sides of the overlapping area after leveling to ensure that the width of the overlapping area is the same as that of the first thin-walled copper tape.

[0016] Annealing: Under the protection of an inert gas, use an annealing device to heat-treat the overlapping area, connect the positive and negative electrodes of the annealing device to both sides of the overlapping area, then pass a direct current of 10 - 100 mA, heat for 5 - 8 s, and then cool down.

[0017] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, during on-line splicing, the first thin-walled copper tape runs normally. In the preparation step, a storage device is used to store 150 - 250 meters of the first thin-walled copper tape.

[0018] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in the cutting step, the ends of the first thin-walled copper tape and the second thin-walled copper tape that need to be spliced are stacked flat up and down, and then a cutting tool is used for synchronous cutting.

[0019] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in the pretreatment step, the coating layers at the corresponding ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip are uniformly burned by the flame of a pure alcohol lamp. After removing the corresponding thin films, they are polished with a metallographic fine sandpaper and then wiped clean.

[0020] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in the annealing step, a transparent cover is used to enclose the overlapping area, and an inert gas is input into the transparent cover, and the flow rate of the inert gas is 5-20 ml / s.

[0021] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip have the same specifications. The width of the first thin-walled copper strip is 17-27 mm, and the thickness of the first thin-walled copper strip is 0.1-0.3 mm.

[0022] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the resistance welding equipment includes a pair of tungsten electrodes and a cylinder for driving the tungsten electrodes to expand and contract.

[0023] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in the annealing step, the cooling duration is 5-10 s, and the protection of the inert gas is maintained during the cooling process.

[0024] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: A thin-walled copper strip connection process for a non-relay submarine optical cable pointed out by the present invention realizes the fusion welding of the overlapping part through cutting, pretreatment, overlapping and welding, ensuring the connection strength and reliability. The overlapping area is processed by leveling, trimming and annealing to ensure the same width and thickness as the first thin-walled copper strip in the overlapping area, which is beneficial for the overlapping area to maintain the same comprehensive mechanical properties and electrical properties as the first thin-walled copper strip. The same tensile strength, elongation rate and DC resistivity ensure the stability and reliability after being coated and formed in the non-relay submarine optical cable. The operation is simple, the online connection success rate reaches more than 98%, the labor intensity of personnel operation is low, and the connection quality is also guaranteed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for the description of the embodiments. Obviously, the following drawings are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings, where:

[0026] Figure 1 is a top view of a preferred embodiment of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip in a thin-walled copper strip connection process for a non-relay submarine optical cable of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 2 is Figure 1Top view of the first thin-wall copper strip and the second thin-wall copper strip during the cutting process;

[0028] Figure 3 is Figure 2 Top view of the first thin-wall copper strip and the second thin-wall copper strip after pretreatment in

[0029] Figure 4 is Figure 3 Schematic structural diagram of the first thin-wall copper strip and the second thin-wall copper strip after overlapping in

[0030] Figure 5 is Figure 4 Front view of the first thin-wall copper strip and the second thin-wall copper strip during the welding process in

[0031] Figure 6 is Figure 5 Front view of the first thin-wall copper strip and the second thin-wall copper strip during the leveling process in

[0032] Figure 7 is Figure 6 Top view of the first thin-wall copper strip and the second thin-wall copper strip during the edge trimming process in

[0033] Figure 8 is Figure 6 Top view of the first thin-wall copper strip and the second thin-wall copper strip during the annealing process in Specific embodiments

[0034] Next, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0035] After in-depth understanding of the longitudinal coating requirements of the thin-wall copper strip: that is, the thin-wall copper strip tightly coats the optical unit of the steel pipe, the coating at the overlapping part needs to be tightly fitted, without irregular flanging and lotus leaf-shaped edges, the thickness of the welding joint of the resistance welding is basically the same as that of the body, the width and thickness of the thin-wall copper strip are controlled within the tolerance range, and the tensile strength and elongation of the welding joint of the thin-wall copper strip are also required to be basically the same as those of the body.

[0036] Please refer to Figures 1 to 8 , the embodiments of the present invention include:

[0037] A connection process for a thin-wall copper strip used in a non-relay submarine optical cable, including the following steps:

[0038] Preparation: As Figure 1As shown, prepare the first thin-walled copper strip 1 and the second thin-walled copper strip 2 to be joined, and find the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip that need to be joined. In this embodiment, the first thin-walled copper strip 1 and the second thin-walled copper strip 2 have the same specifications. The width of the first thin-walled copper strip is 17 - 27 mm, and the thickness of the first thin-walled copper strip is 0.1 - 0.3 mm;

[0039] During the production of the non-relay submarine optical cable, the first thin-walled copper strip 1 needs to be longitudinally coated online and joined using the second thin-walled copper strip 2. That is, during online joining, the first thin-walled copper strip 1 runs normally. During the joining process, in order not to affect the normal production of the non-relay submarine optical cable, it is necessary to use a tape storage device to store 150 - 250 meters of the first thin-walled copper strip for buffering;

[0040] Cutting: Cut the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip 1 and the second thin-walled copper strip 2 that need to be joined to form corresponding bevels. As Figure 2 shown, the angle is 40 - 50 degrees, which is convenient for subsequent uniform overlapping, extends the effective overlapping length, and improves the tensile strength after welding;

[0041] In this embodiment, stack the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip 1 and the second thin-walled copper strip 2 that need to be joined flush with each other, and then use a tool for synchronous cutting to ensure the consistency of the bevels at the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip 1 and the second thin-walled copper strip 2;

[0042] Pretreatment: Clean the coating layers at the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip 1 and the second thin-walled copper strip 2 that need to be joined. As Figure 3 shown, remove a section of the film to avoid affecting subsequent welding;

[0043] In this embodiment, the coating layers at the corresponding ends of the first thin-walled copper strip 1 and the second thin-walled copper strip 2 can be evenly burned with the flame of a pure alcohol lamp. After removing the corresponding film, use a metallographic fine sandpaper for polishing, and then wipe and clean it;

[0044] Overlapping: Overlap the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip that need to be joined in an up-and-down overlapping manner. As Figure 4 shown, the length of the overlapping area is 5 - 7 mm, which is convenient for subsequent fusion welding;

[0045] Welding: Use a resistance welding device to apply pressure and perform sequential spot welding on the overlapping area to achieve fusion welding of the overlapping part. As Figure 5 shown, perform dense spot welding along the length direction of the overlapping area to make the overlapping area fully melt, and the welding effect is good;

[0046] In this embodiment, the resistance welding device includes a pair of tungsten electrodes 3 and a cylinder for driving the telescopic movement of the tungsten electrodes. The cylinder is used to drive the movement of the upper and lower tungsten electrodes 3 to achieve pressurization and spot welding of the overlapping area, thereby improving the stability of the welding quality;

[0047] Leveling: Use a pneumatic hammer to evenly hammer the welding area, as Figure 6 shown, so that the thickness of the overlapping area is the same as that of the first thin-walled copper strip;

[0048] Trimming: Use a cutting tool to cut off the overflow parts 4 on both sides after leveling the overlapping area, as Figure 7 shown, to ensure that the width of the overlapping area is the same as that of the first thin-walled copper strip, which is beneficial for the overlapping area to maintain the same comprehensive mechanical properties and electrical properties as the first thin-walled copper strip;

[0049] Annealing: Use a transparent cover 5 to enclose the overlapping area and input an inert gas, such as argon, into the transparent cover 5. The flow rate of the inert gas is 5 - 20 ml / s. The transparent cover 5 can adopt an upper and lower split structure, which is convenient for assembly and internal observation;

[0050] Under the protection of the inert gas, as Figure 8 shown, use an annealing device 7 to heat-treat the overlapping area. Connect the positive and negative electrodes 6 of the annealing device 7 to both sides of the overlapping area, then pass a direct current of 10 - 100 mA and a voltage of 15 - 45 V for heating for 5 - 8 s, and then cool. The cooling time is about 5 - 10 s. Stop the input of the inert gas (keep the input of the inert gas during the cooling process to avoid oxidation of the surface of the thin-walled copper strip when it contacts air). Open the transparent cover 5 and remove the positive and negative electrodes 6 of the annealing device 7 to complete the connection work. The entire connection process takes 3 - 5 minutes.

[0051] In summary, a connection process for a thin-walled copper strip used in a non-relay submarine optical cable pointed out by the present invention is simple to operate, enables reliable welding of the thin-walled copper strip, protects the thin-walled copper strip from thermal oxidation in the environment during the connection process, maintains excellent comprehensive mechanical properties and electrical properties, reduces the quality problems of non-relay submarine optical cable products caused by connection, and can be applied to the continuous and reliable connection of thin-walled copper strips of ultra-long non-relay submarine optical cables, avoiding the breakage problems and losses caused by poor joint quality.

[0052] The above are only embodiments of the present invention, and do not limit the patent scope of the present invention accordingly. Any equivalent structural or equivalent process transformation made using the content of the specification of the present invention, or directly or indirectly applied in other related technical fields, shall be similarly included in the patent protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A thin-walled copper tape splicing process for a non-relay submarine optical cable, characterized in that, It includes the following steps: Preparation: Prepare the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip to be joined, and find the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip that need to be joined. Cutting: Cut the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip that need to be joined to form corresponding bevels with an angle of 40 - 50 degrees. Pretreatment: Clean the coating layer on the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip that need to be joined, and remove a section of the film. Lap joint: Overlap the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip that need to be joined in an up-and-down manner, and the length of the lap joint area is 5 - 7 mm. Welding: Use a resistance welding device to apply pressure and perform sequential spot welding on the lap joint area to achieve fusion welding of the lap joint part. Flattening: Use a pneumatic hammer to evenly hammer the welding area so that the thickness of the lap joint area is the same as that of the first thin-walled copper strip. Trimming: Use a cutting tool to cut off the overflow parts on both sides after flattening the lap joint area to ensure that the width of the lap joint area is the same as that of the first thin-walled copper strip. Annealing: Under the protection of an inert gas, use an annealing device to heat-treat the lap joint area. Connect the positive and negative electrodes of the annealing device to both sides of the lap joint area, then pass a direct current of 10 - 100 mA, heat for 5 - 8 s, and then cool.

2. The thin-wall copper tape splicing process for the non-relay submarine optical cable according to claim 1, wherein During online joining, the first thin-walled copper strip runs normally. In the preparation step, a storage device is used to store 150 - 250 meters of the first thin-walled copper strip.

3. The thin-wall copper tape splicing process for non-relay submarine optical cables according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the cutting step, stack the ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip that need to be joined in a flush manner up and down, and then use a tool for synchronous cutting.

4. The thin-wall copper tape splicing process for the relay-free submarine optical cable according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the pretreatment step, evenly burn the coating layers at the corresponding ends of the first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip with the flame of a pure alcohol lamp. After removing the corresponding film, use a metallographic fine sandpaper for polishing, and then wipe and clean it.

5. The thin-walled copper tape splicing process for the repeaterless submarine optical cable according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the annealing step, use a transparent cover to enclose the lap joint area, and input an inert gas into the transparent cover. The flow rate of the inert gas is 5 - 20 ml / s.

6. The thin-walled copper belt connection process for the non-relay submarine optical cable according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first thin-walled copper strip and the second thin-walled copper strip have the same specifications. The width of the first thin-walled copper strip is 17 - 27 mm, and the thickness of the first thin-walled copper strip is 0.1 - 0.3 mm.

7. The thin-walled copper belt connection process for the repeaterless submarine optical cable according to claim 1, wherein, The resistance welding device includes a pair of tungsten electrodes and a cylinder for driving the tungsten electrodes to expand and contract.

8. The thin-wall copper tape connection process for the repeaterless submarine optical cable according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the annealing step, the cooling time is 5 - 10 s, and the protection of the inert gas is maintained during the cooling process.

Images