Braided Cable Machine Tool Dynamic Strand Guidance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional machine braiding techniques for cable assemblies result in inconsistencies in wire angle, percent coverage, and density, making it difficult to produce a consistent and aesthetically pleasing braided exterior, while attempts to improve consistency often decrease production throughput.
Innovation Solution
A modified machine tool with multiple bobbins and arms that follow a periodic pattern to guide strands, allowing for a 1×1−2 braided pattern, and a fixture to reduce tension on the braided outer layer, ensuring a consistent and visually appealing finish.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If machine modifications are adopted to increase consistency of manufacture, then manufacturing precision is improved, but productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The machine tool employs dynamic adjustment mechanisms that allow real-time modification of braid parameters during operation. The system can adaptively control wire feeding rates, braiding angles, and tension forces to maintain consistent manufacturing quality without requiring reduced production speed. This dynamic control enables the system to optimize parameters on-the-fly, resolving the contradiction between precision and productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention implements comprehensive parameter control including wire angle, percent coverage, and density as adjustable variables. By systematically managing these parameters through automated feedback loops and precise actuation systems, the machine maintains high manufacturing consistency while operating at optimal production throughput. The parameter changes principle allows the system to find and maintain optimal operating points that satisfy both precision and productivity requirements.
2Productivity
If traditional machine braiding tools are used, then productivity is maintained, but manufacturing precision deteriorates with inconsistencies in wire angle, percent coverage, and density
Solution Approach 1:
The machine tool incorporates feedback mechanisms that continuously monitor braiding parameters such as wire angle, percent coverage, and density during operation. Sensors detect deviations from target values and automatically adjust feeding rates, tension, and braiding patterns to correct inconsistencies. This closed-loop feedback system maintains high manufacturing precision while preserving production throughput by enabling real-time quality control without manual intervention or speed reduction.
Data Source
AI summary
This application relates to cable assemblies with an outer (exterior) layer formed from braiding materials together. To achieve a desired pattern, a machine tool forming the outer layer undergoes several modifications. For a machine tool with two tracks (e.g., inner and outer track) with multiple carriers of material to be braided, each carrier position may include multiple bobbins, with each bobbin carrying a spool/coil of the material. During a braiding operation performed by the machine tool, each track rotates in opposite directions. Moreover, some bobbins include an arm that guides the material in a particular manner. For example, during rotation of the track, the arm provides a swinging motion, causing the material carried by the arm to move in a periodic (e.g., sinusoidal) motion. An additional track may be used to guide the arms.