Center Feed Cable Spool With Rotatable Guide
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing telecommunications cable spools lack efficient mechanisms for storing, paying-out, and reeling-in cables without tangling or kinking, and often require rotary unions, which can be complex and cumbersome.
Innovation Solution
A cable spool assembly with a rotatable cable guide that transforms winding and unwinding motions into axial twist, allowing for compact storage and deployment without the need for rotary unions, using a spool with a wrapping area and a guide member that smoothly transitions the cable between storage and deployment configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a traditional spool design with circumferential cable wrapping is used, then cable storage is compact, but cable deployment causes tangling and kinking
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional cable wrapping approach by using a center feed configuration where the cable enters at the center of the spool and wraps outward, rather than the conventional method of wrapping from the outer circumference inward. This inversion transforms the winding motion into axial twist, preventing tangling and kinking during deployment while maintaining compact storage
2Ease of operation
If rotary unions are used to enable spool rotation, then cable deployment is enabled, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the rotary union component from the system by implementing a center feed spool design that naturally enables rotation without requiring complex rotary sealing mechanisms. The cable guide member and center feed configuration allow the spool to rotate freely as cable is deployed, removing the need for rotary unions and significantly simplifying the overall device structure
3Quantity of substance
If cable is wrapped circumferentially on the spool, then storage density is high, but cable route transitions cause kinking
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a cable guide member as an intermediary component that mediates the transition of the cable from the center feed position to the circumferential wrapping path. This guide member ensures smooth cable routing and transitions, preventing kinking and maintaining cable integrity while enabling high-density circumferential storage on the spool
Data Source
AI summary
A telecommunications cable spool for storing, paying-out, and reeling-in a telecommunications cable includes a spool, an axis of rotation, and a rotatable cable guide mounted about the axis. The spool defines a wrapping area that receives a plurality of wraps of the cable and defines a circumference. The axis passes through the spool within the circumference. The guide defines a rotating cable guide path with a first end adjacent the wrapping area and a second end positioned near the axis. The first end of the path is oriented at least partially tangential to the circumference, and the second end of the path is oriented at least partially aligned with the axis. The cable is routed along a cable route that extends between first and second ends with a storage portion between the ends of the route. The route includes a transitional portion along the guide path between the storage portion and the second end of the route. A portion of the transitional portion is routed through a center of the storage portion. A deployed portion of the cable is paid-out from the second end of the cable route.