Photoelectric hybrid spring cable and preparation method thereof

Abstract

The invention discloses a photoelectric hybrid spring cable and a preparation method thereof. The photoelectric hybrid spring cable comprises a cable main body with a spiral structure, the cable main body comprises an outer sheath and a stranded wire group arranged in the outer sheath and wrapped by the outer sheath, the stranded wire group comprises optical fiber sub-wires and conductive sub-wires, and the spiral direction of the spiral structure is opposite to the stranding direction of the stranded wire group. The photoelectric hybrid spring cable has excellent flexibility and self-tidying characteristic, occupies a small area when in use, is not easy to knot and disorder, and effectively reduces the use risk of an instrument.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present invention relate to the field of cables. More specifically, the present invention relates to an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable and a preparation method thereof. Background Art

[0002] With the advancement of science and technology and the deepening of its application, application scenarios such as laser medical treatment or laser processing, where the length of use varies greatly and the use position is flexible and changeable, have put forward higher requirements on the flexibility and adaptability of optoelectronic hybrid cables. In these application scenarios, optoelectronic hybrid cables need to have sufficient length and connect the light moving parts of the instrument (such as laser treatment handpieces) to the bulky fixed parts of the instrument (such as laser treatment mainframes) to ensure that the moving parts can move freely relative to the fixed parts under the control of users or machines and achieve the expected functions (such as treatment).

[0003] Then, the existing optoelectronic hybrid cable is mainly composed of a twisted wire group and an outer sheath covering the twisted wire group. It has almost no excellent elasticity and self-organization properties, which means that it has to be too long in order to adapt to the aforementioned scenarios. This method not only occupies a large area, but is also prone to confusion and tangling during use, increasing the risk of using the instrument. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to solve one or more of the technical problems mentioned above, the present invention provides a photoelectric hybrid spring cable and a preparation method thereof, which has excellent elasticity and self-organizing properties, occupies a small area when in use, is not easy to get tangled and messy, and effectively reduces the risk of using the instrument.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable, comprising a cable body having a spiral structure, wherein the cable body comprises an outer sheath and a twisted wire group arranged in and wrapped by the outer sheath, wherein the twisted wire group comprises optical fiber sub-wires and conductive sub-wires, wherein the spiral direction of the spiral structure is opposite to the twist direction of the twisted wire group.

[0006] Further, the number of the optical fiber sub-wire is one, the number of the conductive sub-wires is multiple, the optical fiber sub-wire comprises an optical fiber, and the multiple conductive sub-wires are wound together on the optical fiber along a predetermined twisting direction.

[0007] Furthermore, the number of the optical fiber sub-wires is one or more, the number of the conductive sub-wires is multiple, and all the optical fiber sub-wires and all the conductive sub-wires are twisted together along a predetermined twisting direction.

[0008] Furthermore, the twisted wire group also includes a reinforcing wire twisted together with the optical fiber sub-wire and the conductive sub-wire, and the ductility of the reinforcing wire is lower than the ductility of the optical fiber sub-wire and the ductility of the conductive sub-wire; the screening strength of the optical fiber reaches 200kpsi.

[0009] Furthermore, the conductive sub-wire includes at least one copper wire and an insulating layer covering all the copper wires; the number of copper wires wrapped by the insulating layer is multiple, and the multiple copper wires are twisted into a copper wire group, and the twisting direction of the copper wire group is opposite to the spiral direction of the spiral structure; the reinforcing wire is the same length as the conductive sub-wire.

[0010] Furthermore, the twisted wire group is formed by twisting the optical fiber sub-wires and the conductive sub-wires arranged in a regular manner along a first rotation direction; and the cable body with the spiral structure is obtained by winding the cable body of a predetermined length on a jig rod along a first rotation direction, baking the jig rod wrapped with the cable body to shape and cool it, and reversing the cable body in the opposite direction of the first rotation direction.

[0011] According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for preparing an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable, comprising the following steps: manufacturing and obtaining a cable body, the cable body comprising an outer sheath and a twisted wire group arranged in and wrapped by the outer sheath, wherein the twisted wire group comprises optical fiber sub-wires and conductive sub-wires; manufacturing a spiral structure on the cable body, wherein the spiral direction of the spiral structure is opposite to the twist direction of the twisted wire group.

[0012] Furthermore, the step of manufacturing and obtaining the cable body includes: at least twisting the regularly arranged optical fiber sub-wires and the conductive sub-wires into the twisted wire group along a first rotation direction; and manufacturing the outer sheath of the twisted wire group wrapped outside the twisted wire group. Among them, the step of manufacturing a spiral structure on the cable body includes: winding the cable body on a jig rod along a first rotation direction, wherein the first rotation direction is the same as the twisting direction of the twisted wire group; baking and shaping the jig rod wrapped with the cable body under predetermined baking conditions; cooling the baked and shaped cable body to room temperature; and, after cooling, removing the cable body from the jig rod in the opposite direction of the first rotation direction, and obtaining a cable body with the spiral structure.

[0013] Furthermore, the step of manufacturing and obtaining the cable body includes: twisting a plurality of copper wires into a copper wire group along a first rotation direction; and manufacturing an insulating layer wrapping the copper wire group outside the copper wire group to obtain the conductive sub-wire.

[0014] Furthermore, the predetermined baking conditions include a baking temperature and a baking time, wherein the baking temperature is less than or equal to 110°C, and the baking time is less than or equal to 60 minutes. The baking temperature is 90°C-110°C, and the baking time is related to the cable body diameter. When the cable body diameter is greater than 6mm, the baking time is greater than 30min and less than 60min; when the cable body diameter is less than 6mm, the baking time is greater than 15min and less than 30min.

[0015] In the above-provided optoelectronic hybrid spring cable and the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable prepared by the preparation method thereof, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable adopts a twisted wire group having optical fiber sub-wires and conductive sub-wires, and the cable body has a spiral structure, so that it not only has comprehensive functions such as high-speed and low-speed simultaneous data transmission and power supply, but also is endowed with excellent elasticity and self-organization characteristics to ensure that the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable takes into account the advantages of small footprint, not easy to be knotted and not easy to be messed up when being used, which can effectively reduce the use risk of the instrument. In addition, since the spiral direction of the spiral structure is opposite to the twist direction of the twisted wire group, its service life can be significantly improved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] By reading the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings, the above and other objects, features and advantages of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention will become readily understood. In the accompanying drawings, several embodiments of the present invention are shown in an exemplary and non-limiting manner, and the same or corresponding reference numerals represent the same or corresponding parts, wherein:

[0017] Figure 1 A three-dimensional diagram of an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A partial cross-sectional view of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable shown;

[0019] Figure 3 Shows Figure 1 A cross section of an example of an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is shown;

[0020] Figure 4 Shows Figure 1 A cross section of another example of an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is shown;

[0021] Figure 5 Shows Figure 1 A cross section of yet another example of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is shown;

[0022] Figure 6 Shows Figure 1 A cross section of yet another example of an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is shown.

[0023] Explanation of the reference numerals: 1. cable body; 1a. spiral structure; 1b. first connecting section; 1c. second connecting section; 11. outer sheath; 12. twisted wire group; 121. optical fiber sub-wire; 1211. optical fiber; 1212. outer sheath; 122. conductive sub-wire; 1221. copper wire; 1222. insulating layer; 123. reinforcing wire; 124. tensile core. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, rather than all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 1 A three-dimensional diagram of an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 for Figure 1 The partial cross-sectional view of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is shown in FIG. Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, an embodiment of the present invention provides an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable. The optoelectronic hybrid spring cable includes a cable body 1 having a spiral structure 1a. In terms of appearance, the cable body 1 includes, in addition to the spiral structure 1a, a first connecting segment 1b and a second connecting segment 1c connected to both ends of the spiral structure 1a, respectively, wherein the first connecting segment 1b and the second connecting segment 1c can be arranged to face each other (see Figure 1 ), can also be arranged to face each other, or arranged in other ways. In terms of composition, the cable body 1 includes an outer sheath 11 and a twisted wire group 12 arranged in and wrapped by the outer sheath 11. Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the twisted wire group 12 includes at least one optical fiber sub-wire 121 and at least one conductive sub-wire 122. Each optical fiber sub-wire 121 is used to transmit optical signals to achieve the purpose of high-speed data transmission. The conductive sub-wire 122 is used to transmit electrical energy to achieve power supply, or to transmit electrical signals to achieve low-speed data transmission. When the number of the conductive sub-wires 122 is multiple, all of the multiple conductive sub-wires 122 can transmit electrical energy or electrical signals, or one part of the conductive sub-wires 122 is used to transmit electrical signals and another part of the conductive sub-wires 122 is used to transmit electrical energy.

[0026] The optoelectronic hybrid spring cable adopts a twisted wire group 12 having an optical fiber sub-wire 121 and a conductive sub-wire 122, and the cable body 1 has a spiral structure 1a, which ensures that the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable not only has comprehensive functions such as high-speed and low-speed simultaneous data transmission and power supply, but also is endowed with excellent elasticity and self-organizing characteristics (i.e., automatic contraction of the spiral structure 1a), so that the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable can have the advantages of small footprint, not easy to get tangled and not easy to get confused when used, and effectively reduce the risk of instrument use.

[0027] In this embodiment, the cross section of the twisted wire group 12 is preferably a perfect circle. When the cross section of the twisted wire group 12 is approximately a perfect circle, the diameters of the optical fiber sub-wires 121 and the conductive sub-wires 122 in the twisted wire group 12 are the same or similar, which is beneficial to improving the elasticity and self-organizing properties of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable. In addition, this is also beneficial for the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable to be uniformly stressed as a whole when in use, thereby increasing the service life of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable.

[0028] In this embodiment, the radius of the helical structure 1a is greater than or equal to the minimum bending radius of the optical fiber sub-line 121, which can effectively avoid the signal attenuation or breakage of the optical fiber 1211 caused by excessive deformation of the optical fiber sub-line 121 during bending. At the same time, the radius of the helical structure 1a (i.e., half of the outer diameter of the helical structure 1a) is preferably less than or equal to 4 times the radius of the cable body 1 (i.e., the cross-sectional radius), so as to effectively avoid the risk of serious uncontrolled deformation such as collapse of the helical structure 1a when stretched and / or suspended in the air.

[0029] As an example, the outer sheath 11 includes at least one layer structure, and at least one layer structure preferably includes a thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer rubber layer. The thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer rubber layer is made of thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer rubber (full name: Thermoplastic Polyurethane, abbreviated as TPU in English). TPU has the characteristics of rapid recovery in a short time, high mechanical strength, and good wear resistance. The outer sheath 11 can provide good protection for the twisted wire group 12 and provide a certain degree of reinforcement for the elastic deformation of the spiral structure 1a. Since the spiral structure 1a is heated and set, the deformation temperature of TPU is higher than the baking temperature. Using TPU as the outer sheath 11 can ensure the integrity of the cable body 1, especially the spiral structure 1a during the molding process.

[0030] As an example, the optical fiber sub-line 121 includes at least an optical fiber 1211 for transmitting an optical signal, and may also include an outer sheath 1212 wrapped around the optical fiber 1211. The outer sheath 1212 is made of fluoroplastics, which have a high melting point and good mechanical properties, and can ensure the structural integrity during the formation of the spiral structure 1a, and safely and reliably protect the optical fiber 1211. Preferably, the optical fiber 1211 is a high-strength optical fiber with a screening strength of 200kpsi. The high-strength optical fiber can not only better withstand the mechanical stress of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable during dynamic use such as frequent bending and stretching, effectively avoid the risk of breaking or performance degradation of the optical fiber 1211, but also ensure the long-term stability and high quality of data transmission. More preferably, the optical fiber sub-line 121 is selected so that when its bending diameter is less than or equal to 3 times the diameter of the cable body 1, the attenuation intensity of its optical fiber 1211 is less than or equal to 0.1db. Since the bending radius of the optical fiber sub-line 121 is less than or equal to 3 times the diameter of the cable body 1 when it is used, it can be ensured that the optical fiber sub-line 121 can transmit optical signals efficiently and at high speed.

[0031] As an example, the conductive sub-wire 122 includes at least one copper wire 1221 and an insulating layer 1222 covering all the copper wires 1221. The insulating layer 1222 is made of fluoroplastics, which is a sheath material with a high melting point and good mechanical properties. It can not only ensure that the spiral structure 1a is not invariant during the formation process, but also be used to safely and reliably protect at least one copper wire 1221 and improve the mechanical properties of at least one copper wire 1221. Preferably, the number of copper wires 1221 wrapped by the insulating layer 1222 is multiple, and the multiple copper wires 1221 are formed into a copper wire group by twisting. The copper wire group can improve the conductive properties and anti-interference ability of the conductive sub-wire 122, and can also improve its toughness, elasticity and durability. Through the experimental verification mentioned below, in the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable, if the twist direction of the copper wire group is opposite to the spiral direction of the spiral structure 1a, the elasticity, self-organizing properties and service life of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable can be further enhanced. It can be understood that when the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is repeatedly stretched, the twisting direction of the copper wire group is opposite to the rotation direction of the spiral structure 1a, so the torque of the spring wire is opposite to the torque direction of the copper wire group, reducing the deformation of the copper wire group during use, thereby improving the quality and service life of the final cable.

[0032] Preferably, the copper wire 1221 can be selected from bare copper, tinned soft round copper wire or silver-plated soft round copper wire. Tinned soft round copper wire has the advantages of strong signal transmission stability and low price. Silver-plated soft round copper wire has good thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, welding performance, good ductility, and the silver layer has high corrosion resistance. Among bare copper, tinned soft round copper wire and silver-plated soft round copper wire, although the price of silver-plated soft round copper wire is relatively high, it has good oxidation resistance, is easy to weld, and has the best conductivity. Under the same performance requirements, the diameter of the silver-plated soft round copper wire is the smallest, which can reduce the diameter of the cable. Therefore, the silver-plated soft round copper wire is the best choice for the copper wire 1221.

[0033] Next, combine Figures 3 to 6 The specific structure of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is described in detail. Figure 3 As shown, the twisted wire group 12 includes a tensile core 124 in addition to one or more optical fiber sub-wires 121 and a plurality of conductive sub-wires 122. The tensile core 124 can be made of tensile materials such as aramid with a fineness greater than or equal to 250 deniers to increase the risk of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable being torn and broken during use. During the twisting process, all optical fiber sub-wires 121 and all conductive sub-wires 122 can be wound together on the tensile core 124 along a predetermined twisting direction, thereby obtaining an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable with better comprehensive performance, that is, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable not only has better elasticity and better self-organization properties, but also its tensile strength can be significantly increased. As a preferred example, the optical fiber sub-wire 121 includes an optical fiber 1211 and an outer sheath 1212 wrapped outside the optical fiber 1211. The outer sheath 1212 can be made of fluoroplastics, which have a high melting point and good mechanical properties, and can ensure the structural integrity during the formation of the spiral structure 1a, and provide safe and reliable protection for the optical fiber 1211.

[0034] like Figure 4 As shown, the twisted wire group 12 includes an optical fiber sub-wire 121 and a plurality of conductive sub-wires 122, wherein the optical fiber sub-wire 121 includes an optical fiber 1211 and an outer sheath 1212 wrapped around the optical fiber 1211. The plurality of conductive sub-wires 122 are wound together on the optical fiber sub-wire 121 along a predetermined twisting direction (i.e., the optical fiber sub-wire 121 does not participate in the twisting), thereby obtaining an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable with better comprehensive performance but a thinner wire diameter (e.g., more than 3.0 mm but not more than 6.5 mm), that is, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable not only has excellent elasticity, better self-organizing properties and longer service life, but also its wire diameter can be made thinner.

[0035] like Figure 5As shown, the twisted wire group 12 includes one or more optical fiber sub-wires 121 and a plurality of conductive sub-wires 122, and the optical fiber sub-wire 121 includes an outer sheath 1212 wrapped around an optical fiber 1211. All optical fiber sub-wires 121 and all conductive sub-wires 122 are twisted together along a predetermined twisting direction, that is, the sub-wires at the center position are sometimes optical fiber sub-wires 121 and sometimes conductive sub-wires 122 in the overall extension direction of the twisted wire group 12, thereby obtaining an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable with better comprehensive performance but a thinner wire diameter (for example, more than 3.0 mm but not more than 6.5 mm), that is, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable not only has excellent elasticity, better self-organizing properties and longer service life, but also its wire diameter can be made thinner.

[0036] like Figure 6 As shown, the twisted wire group 12 includes an optical fiber sub-wire 121 and a plurality of conductive sub-wires 122, the optical fiber sub-wire 121 only includes an optical fiber 1211, and the plurality of conductive sub-wires 122 are wound together on the optical fiber 1211 (the optical fiber sub-wire 121 does not participate in the twisting) along a predetermined twisting direction, thereby obtaining an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable with better comprehensive performance and the thinnest wire diameter (especially the diameter exceeds 2.0 mm but does not exceed 3.0 mm), that is, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable not only has excellent elasticity and better self-organizing properties, but also its wire diameter can be minimized. It can be understood that the optical fiber 1211 includes a core, a cladding and a coating layer, wherein the core and the cladding are made of silicon dioxide with a high melting point, and the coating layer is composed of a polymer with a melting point of 200°C to 300°C. The temperature at which the spiral structure 1a is baked and fixed is lower than the melting point of the optical fiber 1211. The twisted wire group composed of the optical fiber sub-wire 121 only including the optical fiber 1211 and the plurality of conductive sub-wires 122 can also meet the molding conditions of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable.

[0037] In this embodiment, if Figures 3 to 6 As shown, the twisted wire group 12 may also include a reinforcing wire 123 twisted together with the optical fiber sub-wire 121 and the conductive sub-wire 122. The reinforcing wire 123 may be made of aramid having a fineness greater than or equal to 250 deniers. However, since the ductility of the reinforcing wire 123 is lower than the ductility of the optical fiber sub-wire 121 and the ductility of the conductive sub-wire 122, the reinforcing wire 123 can effectively enhance the overall strength and tensile strength of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable, especially the twisted wire group 12, so that the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable can better maintain the stability and integrity of its own structure when subjected to external forces, while avoiding the performance degradation or damage of the optical fiber sub-wire 121 and the conductive sub-wire 122 due to excessive stretching.

[0038] In this embodiment, the number of the reinforcing wires 123 can be selected to be one or more, and when there are multiple reinforcing wires 123, the reinforcing wires 123 are symmetrically distributed in the twisted wire group 12 to improve the comprehensive performance of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable, especially the overall strength and tensile strength of the twisted wire group 12. Preferably, the length of the reinforcing wire 123 is approximately the same as that of the conductive sub-wire 122, so that the reinforcing wire 123 can bear more of the tensile force of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable when it is stretched.

[0039] In this embodiment, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable may further include connectors (not shown) provided at both ends of the cable body 1 and having an optoelectronic conversion module, wherein the connector may be a plug or a socket. Thus, the convenience of using the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable may be improved, and even the installation and maintenance work may be simplified.

[0040] Next, a preparation method of the above-mentioned optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is introduced, which mainly includes a wire making step and a molding step.

[0041] The wire making step includes manufacturing and obtaining a cable body 1, and the cable body 1 includes an outer sheath 11 and a twisted wire group 12 disposed in and wrapped by the outer sheath 11, wherein the twisted wire group 12 includes an optical fiber sub-wire 121 and a conductive sub-wire 122. As an example, the wire making step may specifically include preparing at least one optical fiber sub-wire 121, at least one conductive sub-wire 122, at least one reinforcing wire 123 (if any) and a tensile core 124 (if any), arranging them regularly and twisting them into a twisted wire group 12 in a first rotation direction (such as left-handed) by a twisting machine, and then manufacturing the outer sheath 11 of the wrapped twisted wire group 12 outside the twisted wire group 12 by an extruder.

[0042] Preferably, the wire making step may further include a step of making the conductive sub-wire 122 , namely twisting a plurality of copper wires 1221 into a copper wire group along a first rotation direction; and making an insulating layer 1222 wrapping the copper wire group outside the copper wire group to obtain the conductive sub-wire 122 .

[0043] The forming step mainly includes manufacturing a spiral structure 1a on the cable body 1, wherein the spiral direction of the spiral structure 1a is opposite to the twist direction of the twisted wire group 12. As an example, the forming step specifically includes: winding the cable body 1 on the jig rod along a first rotation direction (such as left rotation); baking and shaping the jig rod with the cable body 1 wrapped around it under predetermined baking conditions; cooling the baked and shaped cable body 1 to room temperature; after cooling, removing the cable body 1 from the jig rod along a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction (i.e., reverse operation), and finally obtaining an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable with a spiral structure 1a. As another example, the forming step specifically includes: winding the cable body 1 on the jig rod along the second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction (i.e., reverse operation); baking and shaping the jig rod wrapped with the cable body 1 under predetermined baking conditions; cooling the baked and shaped cable body 1 to room temperature; after cooling, removing the cable body 1 from the jig rod along the first rotation direction and winding it on other rods at the same time (i.e., reverse operation), and then removing the cable body 1 from the other rods along the second rotation direction (secondary reverse operation), and finally obtaining an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable with a spiral structure 1a. It is understandable that the diameter of the jig rod is the same as the inner diameter of the spiral structure 1a.

[0044] In one embodiment, the step of winding the cable body 1 around the jig rod specifically includes: placing the cable body 1 in the wire feeder, and when the cable body 1 rotates around the jig rod, the wire feeder releases the cable body 1 at a fixed speed V1; releasing the first connecting segment 1b of the designed length, fixing the cable body on the jig rod, at this time, the position of the fixed point is the starting point of the spiral structure 1a, in order to avoid the first connecting segment 1b affecting the quality of the spiral structure 1a in the subsequent process, the first connecting segment 1b can also be fixed on the jig rod; the jig rod rotates along the first rotation direction at an angular velocity W1, and the wire feeder moves along the axial direction of the jig rod at a speed V1, driving the cable at a speed V2 Along the axial movement perpendicular to the jig rod, the speeds of V1 and W1 are matched. Specifically, V1 is equal to the product of W1 and the outer diameter of the spiral structure 1a, so as to ensure that the spiral structure 1a is closely arranged on the jig rod, and V2 is greater than or equal to V1. Specifically, V2 is slightly greater than V1, so as to ensure that the quality of the spiral structure 1a is not reduced due to traction during the process of winding the jig rod; when the wire feeder moves along the axis and obtains the spiral structure 1a of the designed length, the wire feeder stops moving and the jig rod stops rotating; the spiral structure 1a of the designed length is fixed on the jig rod; the wire feeder moves a certain distance along the axial direction to obtain the second connecting segment 1c of the designed length, and the cable body is cut. It can be understood that the order of the first connecting segment 1b or the second connecting segment 1c can be changed.

[0045] In the forming step, the predetermined baking conditions include a baking temperature and a baking time, wherein the baking temperature is less than or equal to 110°C, preferably 90°C-110°C, and the baking time is less than or equal to 60 minutes. It is known through research that the baking time is related to the diameter of the cable body 1. When the diameter of the cable body 1 is greater than 6mm, the baking time is greater than 30min and less than 60min, and the final shape of the cable body 1 is more stable and reliable; when the diameter of the cable body 1 is less than 6mm, the baking time is greater than 15min and less than 30min, and the final shape of the cable body 1 is more stable and reliable. It can be understood that the baking temperature can not only ensure the forming of the spiral structure 1a, but also avoid the deformation of the outer sheath of the copper wire group or the optical fiber caused by excessive heat inside the cable due to too long heating time, resulting in uneven internal structure of the cable when in use, thereby reducing the performance of the cable.

[0046] In the forming step, the step of cooling the baked and shaped cable body 1 to room temperature specifically includes: spraying cooling water to the cable body 1 at an angle to the axial direction of the cable body 1 until it is cooled to room temperature. The cooling water is at an angle to the axial direction of the cable, which can avoid defects caused by the cooling water entering the cable from both ends of the cable body.

[0047] The preparation method realizes the efficient production of optoelectronic hybrid spring cables, improves production efficiency and reduces production costs. In addition, the obtained optoelectronic hybrid spring cable not only has comprehensive functions such as high-speed and low-speed simultaneous data transmission and power supply, but also is endowed with excellent elasticity and self-organization characteristics, so that the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable can take into account the advantages of small footprint, not easy to knot and not easy to mess when being used, and effectively reduce the risk of using the instrument. In addition, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable also has obvious excellent performance in conductive properties and light transmission properties because the spiral direction of the spiral structure 1a is opposite to the twisting direction of the twisted wire group 12, and has a longer service life.

[0048] In this embodiment, when the cable body also includes a first connecting segment 1b and a second connecting segment 1c respectively connected to both sides of the spiral structure 1a' and arranged facing or back to back, the relative direction of the first connecting segment 1b and the second connecting segment 1c when the cable body 1 is wound into the jig rod is opposite to the relative direction when the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is formed and straightened (the spiral structure 1a is in an initial state without being stretched).

[0049] In this embodiment, the preparation method may further include the following steps: assembling connectors with photoelectric conversion modules at both ends of the cable body 1, wherein the connectors may be plugs or sockets. Thus, the convenience of using the photoelectric hybrid spring cable can be improved, and even the installation and maintenance work can be simplified.

[0050] Experimental Description

[0051] Optoelectronic hybrid spring cables (hereinafter referred to as spring cables) with a cross-sectional outer diameter of 2.9 mm prepared by different methods were selected. Each spring cable was divided into three groups. Tension, bending and pullback tests were performed on each group of spring cables, and the average value of the test results was obtained. In the specific preparation method, the spring cables had the same structure, and five samples were obtained by controlling the spiral direction of the copper wire group, the twisted wire group and the spring cable.

[0052] Tensile test: Clamp the two ends of the spring cable (i.e., the ends of the first connecting section 1b and the second connecting section 1c) with a tensile testing machine, apply 120N at a speed of 2N / s, and maintain for 1min to obtain and calculate the resistance change rate and light transmission efficiency of the spring cable.

[0053] Bending test: clamp one end of the spring cable through the bending test machine, and hang a 5N weight on the other end of the spring cable to keep the spring cable in a stretched state, so that the bending test machine can bend the spiral structure 1a of the spring cable by ±90 degrees, repeat 6000 times, and obtain and calculate the resistance change rate and light transmission efficiency of the spring cable;

[0054] The tensile test uses a tensile device to clamp the two ends of the spring cable and stretch the spring cable to 85-90% of its length before the unformed spiral structure 1a. This is repeated 16,000 times to obtain and calculate the resistance change rate and light transmission efficiency of the spring cable.

[0055] Table: Performance results of optoelectronic hybrid spring cables in bending tests

[0056]

[0057]

[0058] Through the above experiments, it is verified that in the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable, if the spiral direction of the spiral structure 1a is set to be opposite to the twist direction of the twisted wire group 12, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is obviously excellent in terms of conductivity and light transmission characteristics, and has better elasticity, self-organization characteristics and longer service life. In addition, if the twist direction of the copper wire group is opposite to the spiral direction of the spiral structure 1a, the elasticity, self-organization characteristics and service life of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable can be further enhanced. It should be noted that during the tensile test of the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable, the structure changes due to the repeated stress on the copper wire inside it. Generally speaking, the copper wire becomes thinner, causing the resistivity to rise, thereby affecting the transmission of electrical signals; for the sample with a light transmission rate of 0%, since the optical fiber has been damaged during the test, the optoelectronic hybrid spring cable is a defective product at this time, and there is no need to continue the resistance test.

[0059] In the above description of the present application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "fixed", "installed", "connected" or "connected" and the like should be understood in a broad sense. For example, with regard to the term "connection", it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral one; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, or it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. Therefore, unless otherwise clearly defined in the present application, those skilled in the art can understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention according to the specific circumstances.

[0060] According to the above description of the present application, those skilled in the art may also understand that the terms used below, such as "inside", "outside", "and the like, indicating the orientation or position relationship, are based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the drawings of the present application, and are only for the purpose of facilitating the explanation of the scheme of the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than explicitly or implicitly indicating that the device or element involved must have the specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, the above-mentioned orientation or position relationship terms cannot be understood or interpreted as limitations on the scheme of the present invention.

[0061] In addition, the terms "first" or "second" used in this application to refer to numbers or ordinals are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as explicitly or implicitly indicating relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one such feature. In the description of this application, the meaning of "plurality" is at least two, such as two, three or more, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0062] Although multiple embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that such embodiments are provided by way of example only. Those skilled in the art may conceive of many changes, modifications, and alternatives without departing from the thought and spirit of the present invention. It should be understood that in the process of practicing the present invention, various alternatives to the embodiments of the present invention described herein may be adopted. The appended claims are intended to define the scope of protection of the present invention, and therefore cover equivalents or alternatives within the scope of these claims.

Claims

1. A photoelectric hybrid spring cable, characterized in that: The invention comprises a cable body with a spiral structure, wherein the cable body comprises an outer sheath and a twisted wire group arranged in and wrapped by the outer sheath, wherein the twisted wire group comprises optical fiber sub-wires and conductive sub-wires, wherein the spiral direction of the spiral structure is opposite to the twist direction of the twisted wire group.

2. The optoelectronic hybrid spring cable according to claim 1, characterized in that: The number of the optical fiber sub-wire is one, the number of the conductive sub-wires is multiple, the optical fiber sub-wire comprises an optical fiber, and the multiple conductive sub-wires are wound together on the optical fiber along a predetermined twisting direction.

3. The optoelectronic hybrid spring cable according to claim 1, characterized in that: The number of the optical fiber sub-wires is one or more, the number of the conductive sub-wires is multiple, and all the optical fiber sub-wires and all the conductive sub-wires are twisted together along a predetermined twisting direction.

4. The optoelectronic hybrid spring cable according to claim 3, characterized in that: The twisted wire group also includes a reinforcing wire twisted together with the optical fiber sub-wire and the conductive sub-wire, and the ductility of the reinforcing wire is lower than the ductility of the optical fiber sub-wire and the ductility of the conductive sub-wire; the screening strength of the optical fiber reaches 200kpsi.

5. The optoelectronic hybrid spring cable according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The conductive sub-wire includes at least one copper wire and an insulating layer wrapped around all the copper wires; there are multiple copper wires wrapped by the insulating layer, and the multiple copper wires are twisted into a copper wire group, and the twisting direction of the copper wire group is opposite to the spiral direction of the spiral structure; the reinforcing wire is the same length as the conductive sub-wire.

6. The optoelectronic hybrid spring cable according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The twisted wire group is formed by twisting the optical fiber sub-wires and the conductive sub-wires in a regularly arranged manner along a first rotation direction; and the cable body with the spiral structure is obtained by winding the cable body of a predetermined length on a jig rod along a first rotation direction, baking the jig rod with the cable body wrapped thereon to shape it and cooling it, and reversing the cable body in the opposite direction of the first rotation direction.

7. A method for preparing an optoelectronic hybrid spring cable, characterized in that: The steps include: Manufacturing and obtaining a cable body, the cable body comprising an outer sheath and a twisted wire group disposed in and wrapped by the outer sheath, wherein the twisted wire group comprises optical fiber sub-wires and conductive sub-wires; and A helical structure is manufactured on the cable body, wherein a helical direction of the helical structure is opposite to a twisting direction of the twisted wire group.

8. The preparation method according to claim 7, characterized in that: The steps of manufacturing and obtaining the cable body include: At least the regularly arranged optical fiber sub-wires and the conductive sub-wires are twisted into the twisted wire group along a first rotation direction; and Manufacturing the outer sheath of the twisted wire group wrapped outside the twisted wire group; The step of manufacturing a spiral structure on the cable body comprises: Winding the cable body on a jig rod along a first rotation direction, wherein the first rotation direction is the same as the twisting direction of the twisted wire group; The jig rod wrapped with the cable body is baked and shaped using a predetermined baking condition; Cooling the baked cable body to room temperature; and After cooling, the cable body is removed from the jig rod in the opposite direction of the first rotation direction to obtain a cable body with the spiral structure.

9. The preparation method according to claim 8, characterized in that: The steps of manufacturing and obtaining the cable body include: twisting a plurality of copper wires into a copper wire group along a first rotation direction; and An insulating layer is manufactured outside the copper wire group to wrap the copper wire group, and the conductive sub-wire is obtained.

10. The preparation method according to claim 8, characterized in that: The predetermined baking conditions include a baking temperature and a baking time, wherein the baking temperature is less than or equal to 110° C., and the baking time is less than or equal to 60 minutes; Among them, the baking temperature is 90°C-110°C, and the baking time is related to the cable body diameter. When the cable body diameter is greater than 6mm, the baking time is greater than 30min and less than 60min; when the cable body diameter is less than 6mm, the baking time is greater than 15min and less than 30min.

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