Twist-Canceling Cable Coiling Head for Stationary Payout
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing packages of coiled flexible materials often impart twists to the material when removed from a coil, leading to tangling and potential damage, especially when unwound without rotating the coil, and existing solutions like rotating spools are unsatisfactory due to high friction and jamming issues.
Innovation Solution
A collapsible coiling head system that allows the cable to be wrapped with a twist that cancels out the twist imparted when pulled from the center, using side plates of different internal diameters that separate to accommodate the wrapping process, ensuring twist-free payout without rotating the coil.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If the cable is pulled from the center of a conventional coil, then the coil structure is simple, but the cable becomes twisted and tangled
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by pre-twisting the cable in the opposite direction during the coiling process. The cable is wound around a mandrel with a controlled twist rate that counteracts the natural twist that would occur during payout, thereby preventing tangling and making the cable ready for twist-free extraction without requiring complex payout mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a mandrel as an intermediary device during the coiling process. The mandrel provides a structured around which the cable is wound with precise control over the winding geometry and twist characteristics. This intermediary enables the cable to be coiled with predetermined twist properties that will cancel out during payout
2Ease of operation
If a rotating spool is used to provide cable payout, then the cable can be paid out without twist, but the system experiences high friction and jamming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the twist-free payout function from the mechanical rotation of a spool. Instead of relying on spool rotation to prevent twist, the invention embeds the twist compensation directly into the cable coil structure itself during manufacturing. The cable is coiled with predetermined geometric properties that ensure twist-free payout occurs naturally as the cable is pulled from the stationary coil, eliminating the need for rotating spool mechanisms and their associated friction problems
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the cable coil self-serving by encoding the twist compensation information directly into its structure. The coil geometry, winding pattern, and twist rate are configured during manufacturing so that the cable pays out twist-free through its own structural properties rather than requiring external mechanical assistance. The coil structure itself provides the mechanism for twist cancellation
3Ease of operation
If the cable is wrapped with canceling twist, then twist-free payout is achieved, but the wrapping process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing the twist compensation during the initial coiling/wrapping process rather than adding it later. The cable is wound around the mandrel with a controlled twist rate that is built into the coil structure during manufacturing. This preliminary establishment of canceling twist geometry ensures that when the cable is paid out, the twist naturally cancels without requiring additional complex wrapping or twisting mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parameter changes by precisely controlling the twist rate, winding radius, and coil geometry parameters during the wrapping process. By adjusting these parameters during manufacturing, the cable coil is created with specific geometric properties that ensure twist-free payout. The twist rate is calibrated so that the product of the twist and the coil geometry produces the desired canceling effect
Data Source
AI summary
The method of supplying non-twisted cable from a non-rotating container comprising supplying a cable to a first spool in a first position by supplying the cable to the first spool in a direction generally parallel to the centerline of the first spool and wrapping the cable around the first spool so that one twist will be applied to the cable with every circumferential wrap, transferring the first spool to a second position without cutting the cable, transferring a second spool to the first position, supplying the cable to a the second spool in the first position by supplying the cable to the second spool in a direction generally parallel to the centerline of the second spool and wrapping the cable around the second spool so that one twist will be applied to the cable with every circumferential wrap, transferring the first spool to a third position and transferring the second spool to the second position, cutting the cable between the second and the third positions, delivering the cable from the third position to be packaged in a container, repeating the process for additional sections of cable to be placed in additional containers, and pulling the cable from the center of the container to untwist the cable as it is being removed from the container.