Flexible Arm Connector for High Voltage Cable Insulator Shield
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cable shields for high voltage cables supported by ceramic insulators fail to effectively adapt to asymmetrical cable arrangements, leading to reduced effectiveness and aesthetic issues when the cable is bent around the insulator neck, as they are designed for symmetrical setups and distort when encountering angled or offset configurations.
Innovation Solution
A plastic shield with pivoting flanges that allow arms to move up to 45 degrees laterally and accommodate vertical offsets, featuring a center section with adaptable arm extensions and a flared design to prevent water ingress, ensuring secure fitting over insulators and cables regardless of asymmetrical or variable positions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a conventional shield with fixed arms is used for symmetrical cable arrangements, then the shield provides adequate coverage for straight cables, but the shield distorts and becomes ineffective when the cable is bent around the insulator neck creating an asymmetrical arrangement
Solution Approach 1:
The shield arms are made dynamic through pivoting flanges that allow the arms to rotate and adjust their angles. This enables the shield to adapt from symmetrical straight-cable configurations to asymmetrical bent-cable configurations, resolving the contradiction between fixed design and variable cable positions.
Solution Approach 2:
The shield is segmented into a center section and multiple independent arms connected by pivoting flanges. This segmentation allows each arm to move independently and adjust to different cable positions, maintaining shield effectiveness across various cable arrangements.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the shield arms are made rigid to maintain structural integrity, then the shield provides stable protection, but the shield cannot adapt to lateral offsets and angled cable positions
Solution Approach 1:
The pivoting flange mechanism introduces controlled dynamics to the shield structure. The arms can rotate at the flange connections to accommodate lateral offsets and angles, while the overall shield maintains structural integrity through its rigid center section and proper arm design.
Solution Approach 2:
The shield design allows parameter changes in arm orientation and position through the pivoting flanges. The arms can change their angular parameters to match different cable positions while maintaining adequate shielding coverage and structural strength.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the shield is designed to cover asymmetrical cable positions, then the shield adapts to bent cables, but the underside of the shield opens up to wind creating large strain on the shield
Solution Approach 1:
The pivoting flanges enable the shield arms to dynamically adjust their angles to follow the cable path. This maintains the shield's aerodynamic profile even in bent configurations, reducing wind exposure on the underside while adapting to asymmetrical cable positions.
4Adaptability or versatility
If a single universal shield design is created to accommodate all cable positions, then the shield can be used in various configurations, but the shield structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The shield is divided into modular segments (center section and multiple arms) connected by pivoting flanges. This segmentation enables universality across different cable configurations while keeping each individual component relatively simple in design.
Solution Approach 2:
The pivoting flange mechanism provides multi-functionality, allowing the same shield design to accommodate both symmetrical straight-cable arrangements and asymmetrical bent-cable arrangements, as well as various lateral offsets, without requiring multiple different shield designs.
Data Source
AI summary
A plastic shield for a cable and insulator is described having a center section for covering the insulator. The center section has an opening at both its ends for the cable. Proximate each opening is a pivotable and bendable flange, where the flange pivots at one end of the flange and freely bends. An arm extends from each of the cable openings of the center section, and each arm covers the cable exiting the center section. Each arm is pivotally attached to the other end of the associated flange. The flange allows its associated arm to be moved over a wide range of horizontal and vertical angles (e.g., up to 45 degrees) and allows the arms to have a variable horizontal and vertical offset relative to the center line of the center section and insulator to accommodate a cable that is offset from the center line.