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GB2373493A - Reel - Google Patents

Reel Download PDF

Info

Publication number
GB2373493A
GB2373493A GB0106910A GB0106910A GB2373493A GB 2373493 A GB2373493 A GB 2373493A GB 0106910 A GB0106910 A GB 0106910A GB 0106910 A GB0106910 A GB 0106910A GB 2373493 A GB2373493 A GB 2373493A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
fibre
drum
reel
housing
cover
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
GB0106910A
Other versions
GB0106910D0 (en
Inventor
Christian Dudley Deas
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
EUROPLUS SERVICES Ltd
Original Assignee
EUROPLUS SERVICES Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by EUROPLUS SERVICES Ltd filed Critical EUROPLUS SERVICES Ltd
Priority to GB0106910A priority Critical patent/GB2373493A/en
Publication of GB0106910D0 publication Critical patent/GB0106910D0/en
Publication of GB2373493A publication Critical patent/GB2373493A/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
    • B65H75/00—Storing webs, tapes, or filamentary material, e.g. on reels
    • B65H75/02—Cores, formers, supports, or holders for coiled, wound, or folded material, e.g. reels, spindles, bobbins, cop tubes, cans, mandrels or chucks
    • B65H75/34—Cores, formers, supports, or holders for coiled, wound, or folded material, e.g. reels, spindles, bobbins, cop tubes, cans, mandrels or chucks specially adapted or mounted for storing and repeatedly paying-out and re-storing lengths of material provided for particular purposes, e.g. anchored hoses, power cables
    • B65H75/38—Cores, formers, supports, or holders for coiled, wound, or folded material, e.g. reels, spindles, bobbins, cop tubes, cans, mandrels or chucks specially adapted or mounted for storing and repeatedly paying-out and re-storing lengths of material provided for particular purposes, e.g. anchored hoses, power cables involving the use of a core or former internal to, and supporting, a stored package of material
    • B65H75/40—Cores, formers, supports, or holders for coiled, wound, or folded material, e.g. reels, spindles, bobbins, cop tubes, cans, mandrels or chucks specially adapted or mounted for storing and repeatedly paying-out and re-storing lengths of material provided for particular purposes, e.g. anchored hoses, power cables involving the use of a core or former internal to, and supporting, a stored package of material mobile or transportable
    • B65H75/406—Cores, formers, supports, or holders for coiled, wound, or folded material, e.g. reels, spindles, bobbins, cop tubes, cans, mandrels or chucks specially adapted or mounted for storing and repeatedly paying-out and re-storing lengths of material provided for particular purposes, e.g. anchored hoses, power cables involving the use of a core or former internal to, and supporting, a stored package of material mobile or transportable hand-held during use
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
    • B65H49/00—Unwinding or paying-out filamentary material; Supporting, storing or transporting packages from which filamentary material is to be withdrawn or paid-out
    • B65H49/18—Methods or apparatus in which packages rotate
    • B65H49/20—Package-supporting devices
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
    • B65H75/00—Storing webs, tapes, or filamentary material, e.g. on reels
    • B65H75/02—Cores, formers, supports, or holders for coiled, wound, or folded material, e.g. reels, spindles, bobbins, cop tubes, cans, mandrels or chucks
    • B65H75/34—Cores, formers, supports, or holders for coiled, wound, or folded material, e.g. reels, spindles, bobbins, cop tubes, cans, mandrels or chucks specially adapted or mounted for storing and repeatedly paying-out and re-storing lengths of material provided for particular purposes, e.g. anchored hoses, power cables
    • B65H75/38—Cores, formers, supports, or holders for coiled, wound, or folded material, e.g. reels, spindles, bobbins, cop tubes, cans, mandrels or chucks specially adapted or mounted for storing and repeatedly paying-out and re-storing lengths of material provided for particular purposes, e.g. anchored hoses, power cables involving the use of a core or former internal to, and supporting, a stored package of material
    • B65H75/44—Constructional details
    • B65H75/4402—Guiding arrangements to control paying-out and re-storing of the material
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G02—OPTICS
    • G02B—OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS
    • G02B6/00—Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings
    • G02B6/44—Mechanical structures for providing tensile strength and external protection for fibres, e.g. optical transmission cables
    • G02B6/4439—Auxiliary devices
    • G02B6/4457—Bobbins; Reels
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
    • B65H2701/00—Handled material; Storage means
    • B65H2701/50—Storage means for webs, tapes, or filamentary material
    • B65H2701/51—Cores or reels characterised by the material
    • B65H2701/512—Cores or reels characterised by the material moulded
    • B65H2701/5122—Plastics

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Optics & Photonics (AREA)
  • Storage Of Web-Like Or Filamentary Materials (AREA)

Abstract

A reel comprises a drum 10 mounted for rotation within a housing 12, and having outer and inner storage channels for receiving filamentary material, eg optical fibre. A wall 54 of the drum is interrupted at 58 to allow the material to pass between the inner and outer storage channels, and means are provided within the housing to guide the material onto and away from the outer storage channel. As described the drum defines an inner storage compartment for the material and has a cover 14 with finger holes 24 to facilitate rotation of the drum. The guide means comprises a channel in the housing and a cooperating channel-section cover pivotally attached to the housing. All parts may be plastics mouldings.

Description

Fibre Reel This invention relates to a reel for storing optical fibre, in a compact, accessible manner while maintaining the fibre safe against damage and respecting the minimum bend radius of the fibre.
One piece winding reels are known. These reels have a circular outer fibre storage channel onto which fibre can be wound and retained. Fibre can be wound onto or off the reel by physically rotating the entire reel, or by removing the fibre laterally from the channel.
According to the invention, there is provided a fibre reel comprising a drum mounted for rotation within a housing, with the drum having an outer fibre storage channel and an inner fibre storage channel, with a wall of the drum being interrupted to allow fibre to pass between the inner and outer storage channels, and means within the housing to guide fibre onto and off from the outer storage channel.
The drum is preferably freely rotatable within the housing. The drum can be turned to wind fibre up onto the reel. To unwind fibre from the reel, the fibre can be pulled through the housing fibre guide which will cause the drum to rotate.
The ability to wind and unwind fibre to or from a reel without having to lay each turn manually into a channel offers great advantages in handling optical fibre.
The drum is preferably freely rotatable within the housing. The inner fibre storage channel has a cover, and the cover is non-rotatably mounted on the drum, and has means, such as holes through the cover, by which it can be gripped to rotate the cover and the drum together relative to the housing.
The inner fibre storage channel which is located within a central region of the drum can also provides a storage chamber.
The housing preferably has a central boss on which the drum can rotate, the central boss also having means by which the reel can be mounted to an external structure.
The housing can also have a peripheral, cylindrical wall which bounds the outer storage channel, with a fibre exit path being provided in a tangential extension of the peripheral wall. The fibre exit path can be closed by a gate which can be opened to allow fibre to be placed on the reel, and then closed, and the gate can be moulded in one piece with the housing and be connected thereto by a live membrane hinge.
The housing, the drum and the cover are preferably three separate plastics mouldings, which snap fit together.
The invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 is an exploded view of a fibre reel according to the invention ; Figure 2 shows the reel of Figure 1 assembled, but with a fibre entry gate opened; Figure 3 is a perspective view of a housing component of the reel of Figures 1 and 2;
1 Figure 4 is a perspective view of a drum component of the reel of Figures 1 and 2; Figure 5 is a side view of the drum component of Figure 4; Figure 6 is a perspective view of a cover component of the reel of Figures 1 and 2; and Figure 7 is a side view of the cover component of Figure 6.
Figure 1 shows a reel with the parts separated, for ease of explanation. The reel comprises a drum 10, a housing 12 and a cover 14. When these parts are assembled (and they are shown assembled in Figure 2) the parts engage with one another in the area of a central aperture 16.
When the components are assembled, a collar 18 on the drum 10 is able to rotate freely on a boss 20 on the housing 12. The cover 14 has a collar 22 which fits around the
collar 18. There is an interference fit between the collars 22 and 18, so that the cover 14 rotates with the drum. The cover 14 has thumbholes 24, and the user can use these thumbholes to obtain a purchase on the cover 14 to rotate the cover and, with it, the drum 10. The drum then rotates relative to the housing 12.
Figure 3 shows the housing 12 in more detail. On one external edge the housing has a moulded in dovetail tongue 26 to enable the housing to be mounted in a rack, alongside other similar reels. The housing has a flat base 28 and a peripheral wall 30. The wall 30 is interrupted at 32 and in this region there is a tangential guide slot 34 through which fibre can leave the housing.
It will be seen that this slot 34 is defined between two walls 36 and 38, and can be closed by a hinged gate 40 which is connected to the wall 30 by a live membrane hinge at 42. The gate 40 has a small upstanding lip 44 to enable the gate to be gripped and opened and closed. On the inside of the gate is a groove (not shown) which clips onto a rib 46 on the side of the wall 38, to retain the gate in its closed position.
It will be seen that both the slot 34 and the gate 40 have radiused mouth portions at 48 to reduce the risk of a fibre being sharply bent as it leaves the slot 34.
At the centre of the wall 28 is an upstanding boss 20 of somewhat complex shape. First of all the boss 20 has to provide a support on which the drum 10 can rotate, and
which retains the drum against axial movement. The drum will therefore snap on to the boss 20, over resilient tongues 50 and the external diameter of the boss will be slightly less than the internal diameter of the collar 18.
The internal diameter of the boss 20 should also be capable of locking onto an external mounting fixture, such as a standard sized mounting post.
I The drum component 10 is shown in more detail in Figures 4 and 5. The drum has two cheeks 52 which define between them a channel 54, the base of which is formed by a circumferential wall 56. Many turns of fibre can be wound in the channel 54, and the radius of the wall 56 will be such that the fibre is not bent by more than its minimum bending radius.
The wall 56 is interrupted at one point 58, and at this point there is communication between the channel 54 and an internal space 60 in the drum. Further fibre can be wound in this internal space. Fibre tends to spring outwardly and try to re-attain a straight configuration, and turns of fibre within the space 60 will be retained beneath tongues 62 which extend from the wall 56 into the space.
The base of the open space 60 is formed by a continuous wall, but this wall is interrupted at 64 beneath the tongues 62, to enable the tongues 62 to be moulded in a conventional moulding process.
The inner edge of the space 60 is defined by the collar
18.
It will also be noted from Figure 4 that one of the walls 52 (the one uppermost in Figure 4) has a tangential interruption at 66 which communicates with the interruption 58 in the wall 56.
Finally, the cover 14 is shown in Figures 6 and 7. The cover is continuous apart from the aperture 16 at the centre and the thumbholes 24. When in position it closes the internal space 60 in the drum. The underside of the cover has integrally moulded lugs 68 which are arranged in pairs and which, when the cover is in place, engage either side of the tongues 62 to ensure that rotation of the cover results in rotation of the drum 10.
The manner of operation of the reel will now be described.
In use, before fibre is wound on the reel, the drum 10 is snap-fitted onto the boss 20 of the housing 12 and the drum is rotated so that the interruptions 58,66 register with the interrupted outer wall 32 of the housing 12. The gate 40 is opened and placed in the position shown in Figure 3.
In this position, a length of fibre can be introduced into the reel. The fibre will be placed through the interruption 58,66 with a short length (perhaps 300 to 500 mm) on the inside of the reel. That short length will then be coiled up and positioned behind the tongues 62.
The part of the fibre on the outside of the drum will then be introduced into the slot 36 and the gate 40 closed. The cover 14 will then be placed on top of the drum 10. By using the thumbholes 24, the drum can be rotated to draw the fibre from outside onto the reel where it will lie in the channel 54, and the whole length of fibre can be wound up onto the reel.
The fibre will then be totally contained within the reel but can be drawn off from the reel by pulling the end of the fibre exposed at the mouth of the slit 36. Pulling the fibre will rotate the drum 10 to draw fibre off from the reel.
If the end of the fibre within the space 60 is fitted with a terminal fitting, that terminal fitting may be also housed within the space 60.
The cover 14 should be easy to remove. Removal of the cover will be required when it is necessary to access the end of the fibre or a component on the end of the fibre, in the space 60. The cover should however be replaced before the fibre is rewound onto the reel. The cover can be a push fit onto the drum, or there could be a positive locking feature.
Instead of the thumbholes 24, the cover 14 could have a larger diameter so that it extends beyond the outer wall 30 of the housing 12, and the user can then use the outer edge of the cover to rotate the cover to turn the drum.
Possibly in this scenario the outer edge of the cover could have knurling or serrations to improve contact. All the components will preferably be moulded from plastics materials, with three separate mouldings being required. All components may be moulded from the same plastics or may be moulded from different plastics materials. The plastics used can be UL rated flame retardant nylon, electrostatic discharge compliant polypropylene or (where soldering is going to take place in proximity to the reel), a high temperature resistant plastics such as Arnitel).
The reel allows fibre to be neatly stored and to be unwound and rewound as required. The reel can be used for the transportation of components and fibre between assembly areas, or as a means of shipping fibre to a customer. It can be used as a variable length jumper or could be permanently mounted on a circuit board. A number of reels could be mounted side by side. The diameter of the reels can vary depending upon the minimum bend radius of the fibre to be wound.

Claims (11)

  1. Claims 1. A fibre reel comprising a drum mounted for rotation within a housing, with the drum having an outer fibre storage channel and an inner fibre storage channel, with a wall of the drum being interrupted to allow fibre to pass between the inner and outer storage channels, and means within the housing to guide fibre onto and off from the outer storage channel.
  2. 2. A fibre reel as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the drum is freely rotatable within the housing.
  3. 3. A fibre reel as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the inner fibre storage channel has a cover, and the cover is non-rotatably mounted on the drum, and has means by which it can be gripped to rotate the cover and the drum together relative to the housing.
  4. 4. A fibre reel as claimed in Claim 3, wherein the means by which the cover can be gripped comprises holes through the cover.
  5. 5. A fibre reel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the inner fibre storage channel is located within a central region of the drum which also provides a storage chamber.
  6. 6. A fibre reel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the housing has a central boss on which the drum
    can rotate, the central boss also having means by which the reel can be mounted to an external structure.
  7. 7. A fibre reel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the housing has a peripheral, cylindrical wall which bounds the outer storage channel, and a fibre exit path is provided in a tangential extension of the peripheral wall.
  8. 8. A fibre reel as claimed in Claim 7, wherein the fibre exit path is closed by a gate which can be opened to allow fibre to be placed on the reel, and then closed.
  9. 9. A fibre reel as claimed in Claim 8, wherein the gate is moulded in one piece with the housing and is connected thereto by a live membrane hinge.
  10. 10. A fibre reel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the housing is a first plastics moulding and the drum is a second plastics moulding.
  11. 11. A fibre reel substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
GB0106910A 2001-03-19 2001-03-19 Reel Withdrawn GB2373493A (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0106910A GB2373493A (en) 2001-03-19 2001-03-19 Reel

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0106910A GB2373493A (en) 2001-03-19 2001-03-19 Reel

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB0106910D0 GB0106910D0 (en) 2001-05-09
GB2373493A true GB2373493A (en) 2002-09-25

Family

ID=9911133

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GB0106910A Withdrawn GB2373493A (en) 2001-03-19 2001-03-19 Reel

Country Status (1)

Country Link
GB (1) GB2373493A (en)

Cited By (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2008104283A1 (en) * 2007-03-01 2008-09-04 Adc Gmbh Multifibre loose buffer receiving element for a distributing device for optical waveguides
WO2010001155A2 (en) * 2008-07-04 2010-01-07 Tyco Electronics Raychem Bvba Improvements in or relating to optical fibre distribution systems
US8121455B2 (en) 2007-03-01 2012-02-21 Adc Gmbh Carrier system for mounting telecommunication and data technology devices
EP2570835A1 (en) * 2010-07-20 2013-03-20 OFS Fitel, LLC Optical fiber installation at customer premises
WO2016046857A1 (en) 2014-09-22 2016-03-31 Fibernet S.R.L. Mobile housing device for an optical fibre coil and related operating procedure of the mobile device
US10359590B2 (en) 2016-04-04 2019-07-23 Opterna Technology Limited Fiber optic cable deployment assemblies, systems, and methods

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB697640A (en) *
US5332171A (en) * 1991-03-15 1994-07-26 Josef Steff Winding device for winding up and unwinding a tube, cable or hose

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB697640A (en) *
US5332171A (en) * 1991-03-15 1994-07-26 Josef Steff Winding device for winding up and unwinding a tube, cable or hose

Cited By (12)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2008104283A1 (en) * 2007-03-01 2008-09-04 Adc Gmbh Multifibre loose buffer receiving element for a distributing device for optical waveguides
US8121455B2 (en) 2007-03-01 2012-02-21 Adc Gmbh Carrier system for mounting telecommunication and data technology devices
US8280215B2 (en) 2007-03-01 2012-10-02 Adc Gmbh Multifiber loose buffer receiving element for a distributing device for optical waveguides
WO2010001155A2 (en) * 2008-07-04 2010-01-07 Tyco Electronics Raychem Bvba Improvements in or relating to optical fibre distribution systems
WO2010001155A3 (en) * 2008-07-04 2010-03-04 Tyco Electronics Raychem Bvba Optical fibre storeage device
EP2570835A1 (en) * 2010-07-20 2013-03-20 OFS Fitel, LLC Optical fiber installation at customer premises
US8818157B2 (en) 2010-07-20 2014-08-26 Ofs Fitel, Llc Optical fiber or cable storage module for installation at customer premises
US8906178B2 (en) 2010-07-20 2014-12-09 Ofs Fitel, Llc Optical fiber installation at customer premises
WO2016046857A1 (en) 2014-09-22 2016-03-31 Fibernet S.R.L. Mobile housing device for an optical fibre coil and related operating procedure of the mobile device
US10359590B2 (en) 2016-04-04 2019-07-23 Opterna Technology Limited Fiber optic cable deployment assemblies, systems, and methods
US10928602B2 (en) 2016-04-04 2021-02-23 Opterna Am, Inc. Fiber optic cable deployment assemblies, systems, and methods
US11899260B2 (en) 2016-04-04 2024-02-13 Opterna Am, Inc. Fiber optic cable deployment assemblies, systems, and methods

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
GB0106910D0 (en) 2001-05-09

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Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
732E Amendments to the register in respect of changes of name or changes affecting rights (sect. 32/1977)
WAP Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1)