Flexible Cable Insulation with Integrated Crush Resistance
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Metal-clad cables with metal sheaths face challenges in structural integrity due to crushing forces during manufacturing, storage, and installation, leading to increased costs and material waste from the need for binders and Teflon wraps during termination.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a strength enhancer like silicone oil or erucamide into the conductor insulation, which increases crush resistance without the need for a binder/cover, ensuring compliance with performance criteria such as UL 1569, and enhancing abrasion resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If binders and Teflon wraps are used around conductors, then structural integrity and abrasion resistance are improved, but manufacturing cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the functions of conductor insulation, strength enhancement, and abrasion resistance into a single integrated insulation layer. This eliminates the need for separate binders and Teflon wraps, reducing structural complexity while maintaining protective functions through the incorporation of strength enhancers directly within the insulation material.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials by incorporating strength enhancers (such as silicone oil, erucamide, or other polymeric materials) within the conductor insulation. This creates a composite structure that provides both electrical insulation and mechanical strength, replacing multiple separate components with a single composite material solution.
2Strength
If binders and Teflon wraps are applied to conductors, then crush resistance is improved, but manufacturing cost and material waste increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the protective functions into the insulation layer itself, eliminating excess materials that would otherwise be wasted during termination. The integrated structure means no separate binders or wraps need to be cut or peeled away, reducing material waste.
Solution Approach 2:
The insulation layer serves multiple functions simultaneously - electrical insulation, mechanical strength, and abrasion resistance - without requiring additional protective layers. This self-sufficient design eliminates the need for extra materials that would be wasted during installation and termination.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If multiple protective layers are added around conductors, then abrasion resistance is improved, but ease of manufacture and installation deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines abrasion resistance properties directly into the conductor insulation through the use of strength enhancers. This eliminates the need for separate Teflon wraps or other protective coatings, simplifying the manufacturing process while maintaining abrasion resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates abrasion-resistant properties into the composite insulation material itself, rather than applying separate protective layers. This integrated approach simplifies manufacturing by reducing the number of production steps and materials handling required.
Data Source
AI summary
In an electrical cable of the type having an outer sheath enclosing a conductor assembly comprising a plurality of insulated conductors disposed within a binder, the binder having a crush resistance for protecting the insulated conductors, an improvement in which a strength enhancer is applied such that the binder can be removed without decreasing a crush resistance of the electrical cable.