Rotating Roller Connector for Utility Line Stringing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing connector systems require line workers to detach and reattach rollers to adjust their position, posing safety risks due to proximity to energized conductors during electrical power distribution and transmission line installations.
Innovation Solution
A U-shaped connector with a socket for securing utility line rollers and a pivot mechanism allowing for rotational adjustment without detaching from the base, enabling secure attachment and orientation changes without removing the roller from the base.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the roller is detached and reattached to adjust position, then the roller can be repositioned, but worker safety is compromised due to proximity to energized conductors
Solution Approach 1:
The connector incorporates a rotational joint that allows the roller to be dynamically repositioned while remaining attached to the base. This dynamic adjustment mechanism eliminates the need for detachment and reattachment operations, thereby maintaining worker safety while enabling roller repositioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector is divided into separate functional components: a base portion that attaches to the structure, a rotational joint mechanism, and a roller mounting portion. This segmentation allows independent adjustment of the roller angle while maintaining secure attachment to the base, resolving the contradiction between ease of repositioning and worker safety.
2Manufacturing precision
If the roller angle is corrected after stringing operation starts, then installation accuracy improves, but the process requires removing and reinstalling the conductor
Solution Approach 1:
The rotational joint enables continuous angle adjustment of the roller during the stringing operation without requiring conductor removal. This dynamic adjustment capability allows real-time correction of roller orientation while the conductor remains in place, eliminating time loss and improving installation precision.
3Ease of manufacture
If a fixed connector design is used, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but adaptability to different block styles is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The connector design incorporates universal mounting features and standardized interface elements that enable compatibility with multiple roller and block styles. The rotational joint mechanism and adjustable components allow the same connector design to accommodate various roller configurations, achieving versatility without complicating manufacturing.
Data Source
AI summary
A connector for connecting a roller to a base for extending a conductor over a span for electrical distribution or sub transmission. The connector is configured to work with pre existing or standard rollers such as a Universal Stringing Roller as well as with embodiments of the inventor's SAR roller, disclosed in a contemporaneously filed United States non-provisional patent application. The connector allows for use of a rotating base disclosed in the contemporaneously pending United States patent application that allows for adjustment of the stringing roller without having to disconnect the stringing roller from the base, whereas in prior stringing roller to base configurations the stringing roller was required to be removed from the base, the string roller rotated, and the stringing roller attached to the base at a new position, typically a flange, on the stringing roller.