Knockdown Reel

Abstract

A knockdown reel for winding and unwinding strand material is formed in two interfitting parts. Each part includes a hollow cylindrical barrel segment having a radial head on its outer end. A plurality of radially spaced fingers are mounted on the inside of the barrel segment extending axially therefrom in a direction away from the head. The two barrel segments are interfittable with the fingers of each projecting into the other, and with the ends of the barrel segments abutting to form a continuous barrel. The two parts are maintained in their assembled condition by frictional engagement of the fingers with the barrel segment inner surfaces, by welding, or by means of an adhesive.

Parent Case Text

This application is a continuation-in-part of the patent application of George C. Anderson, Ser. No. 22,592, filed Mar. 25, 1970 for Knockdown Reel, now abandoned.

Description

This invention relates to knockdown reels of the class employed for winding and unwinding strand material, particularly wire, cord, string, tape, rope and the like.

In the flexible strand material industry, it is usual practice for the manufacturer of such materials to purchase reels or spools of varying size. The spools are placed on winding machines and the strand material wound upon them. After having passed through the usual commercial channels, the filled reels are employed as dispensing reels by the consumer.

It is the general purpose of the present invention to provide a reel or spool suitable for the foregoing application which has the following advantages:

Inexpensively manufactured from molded plastic;

Manufactured in two identical parts which may be shipped and stored in a knockdown condition;

Readily assembled without loss of operator's time at the reel-filling station;

Straight and true in the assembled condition;

In the assembled condition strong enough to resist effectively the torque applied by winding machines;

Moldable from plastic without interfering ridges or creases;

Nestable and stackable for storage and transportation;

Readily produceable in various sizes and designs;

By the application of a simple insert, expandable to form a reel of a desired increased capacity.

The manner in which the foregoing and other objects of the invention are accomplished will be apparent from the accompanying specification and claims considered together with the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a separated, perspective view of the reel of the invention, illustrating the manner of assembly of its two identical component parts;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of one of the component parts of the reel; and

FIG. 3 is a partial, separated view of a modified form of the reel which includes an optionally used insert for the purpose of increasing the capacity of the reel to a desired value.

In its broad aspect, the knockdown reel of my invention comprises two interfitting parts which may be identical and each of which comprises a hollow, cylindrical barrel segment and a plurality of radially spaced fingers. The barrel segment has a radial head on its outer end. The fingers are mounted on the inside of the barrel segment and extend axially therefrom in a direction away from the head. The two parts are interfittable with the fingers of each projecting into the barrel segment of the other. The two parts are held in their assembled relation by frictional engagement with the barrel segments, by the application of adhesive, by welding, or by combinations of these methods. The reel thus may be manufactured of molded plastic in two identical parts which may be nested and stacked for transportation and storage, and assembled at the reel filling station.

Considering the foregoing in greater detail and with particular reference to the drawings:

The knockdown reel of my invention includes two interfitting parts indicated generally at 10. These may be identical in dimensions and contour. They may be made of any suitable structural material such as plastic, cardboard, wood or metal. Preferably they are made from molded plastic. When this is the case, the identical construction of the two parts is of significant advantage since it makes possible the use of a single, relatively inexpensive, mold and molding machine.

Each reel part 10 basically comprises a barrel segment 12 and an outer head 14.

The barrel segment normally constitutes half the overall width of the reel. It is hollow to provide an inner surface divided into two sections: an outer section 16 of enlarged internal diameter, and an inner section 18 of more restricted internal diameter.

Head 14 is arranged substantially at right angles to the axis of barrel segment 12. It comprises a web 20 and an outer stiffening flange 22. Ribbing may be provided externally as required further to stiffen and strengthen the head construction.

Means are provided for interfitting the two parts of the reel. Such means basically comprise fingers projecting axially from one part into the hollow barrel segment of the other, thus enabling interfitting of the two parts.

To this end there are provided a plurality of fingers 24 preferably in the form of flat fins arranged radially and spaced substantially equidistant from each other.

Fingers 24 outline a circle, the exterior diameter "c" of which is substantially equal to, or slightly greater than, the inner diameter "b" of barrel section 18. This creates a frictional engagement between these two elements when the two parts of the reel are interfitted.

However, the diameter "c" is somewhat less than the internal diameter "a" of section 16 of the barrel segment. This makes possible nesting of the two reel parts in their knockdown storage and transportation condition.

To facilitate interfitting of the two reel parts, the outer leading edges 26 of fins 24 are tapered or radiused so that the fingers may be readily guided into and inserted into the barrel segments.

The finger assembly is strengthened and its frictional engagement augmented by providing a central hollow core 28. This is coaxial with barrel segment 12. It preferably has a length which is the same as the length of section 18 of the latter. It serves several functions.

First, it serves as a support for the inner margins of fingers 24, thereby strengthening the assembly. Second, it serves as a stop for the fingers when the two reel parts are in their nesting, storage position. Third, it materially increases the frictional effect when the two reel parts are interfitted. This effect is augmented by forming the outer surface of core 28 with a slight taper and the lower inner margins of fingers 24 straight, so that a wedge is created.

Provision is made for increasing the length of the barrel in order to increase the capacity of the reel to a desired value. This is accomplished by including in the reel assembly a reel expansion insert indicated generally at 30 of FIG. 3.

Reel expansion insert 30 includes a hollow barrel segment 18a, a hollow core segment 28a, and a plurality of connecting fins or fingers 24a.

Barrel segment 18a has the same outer diameter and the same inner diameter "b" as do barrel segments 18 of which it is a continuation in the assembled condition of the reel. It has a length determined by the desired capacity of the reel.

Core segment 28a has a diameter equal to that of core segments 28 of which it is a continuation. Its length is preferably substantially equal to the length of barrel segment 18 with which it is concentric.

Fins or fingers 24a having radiused edges 26a are mounted between barrel segment 18a and core segment 28a. They define a circle the diameter of which is substantially equal to diameter "c" of FIG. 2. Their length is such that they project axially outwardly from both ends of the insert by a distance substantially equal, on each side, to the extent of projection of fins 24 from barrel segment 18.

Thus in the use of the reel, fingers 24 may be inserted within section 16 of the barrel to stack the reel parts during transportation and storage. However, when it is desired to use the reel, the two parts are arranged facing each other and interfitted with the fingers of one inserted inside the barrel of the other. The arrangement of the fingers relative to the barrel makes this possible even though the two parts are identical, i.e., no lefts or rights.

In the event that it is desired to increase the capacity of the reel, an insert 30 of selected barrel length is interposed between the two reel parts with its fingers 24a interfitted with fingers 24 of the latter.

The parts then are pressed together, radiused corners 26, 26a guiding the fingers smoothly into the interior of the barrel segments. The outer edges of fingers 24, 24a frictionally engage the inner surfaces 18, 18a of the barrel segments while the inner edges of the fingers frictionally engage the outer surfaces of core member 28, 28a. The friction thus generated may be sufficient to hold the parts together during the contemplated use. However, if it is desired to strengthen the union of the two parts, this may be accomplished by gluing them together, by ultrasonic sealing, or by welding.

The assembly of the parts requires but a moment and may be accomplished by the operator at the reel winding station during the interval provided during the winding of an assembled reel. In their assembled condition, the reel is straight and true so that it does not wobble on the winding and unwinding machinery. Its inner surfaces are free from projections which might snag the strand material. Its strength is adequate to withstand the torque of the winding machinery even though the latter is applied to one side only of the reel.

This strength is gained not only by the frictional and adhesive effects, but also by the fact that the flat, fin-like fingers 24 bear against each other and reinforce each other, resisting the applied torque. All of these features are obtained, furthermore, by the provision of a reel which may be manufactured inexpensively in two identical parts by simple molding techniques.

Claims

Having thus described my invention in preferred embodiments, I claim:

1. A reel formed in two interfitting parts each comprising:

a. a hollow, cylindrical, barrel segment having inner and outer end sections,

b. a radial head on the outer end section of the barrel segment, and

c. a plurality of circumferentially spaced fingers mounted on the inside of the inner section of the barrel segment and having portions thereof projecting axially from the inner end of the barrel segment, said projecting portions of the fingers outlining a circle,

d. the inner end section of the barrel segment having an internal diameter less than the diameter of said outlining circle for frictionally engaging the projecting portions of the fingers in the assembled use position of the reel, and the outer end section of the barrel segment having an internal diameter greater than the diameter of said outlining circle for freely receiving the projecting portions of the fingers in the knockdown, nesting, storage position of the reel,

e. the two barrel segments being interfittable with the fingers of one projecting inside the other and the inner ends of the two barrel segments in substantially abutting relationship to each other, thereby forming a continuous barrel in the assembled reel.

2. The reel of claim 1 including a third interfitting part comprising:

f. a third hollow, cylindrical barrel segment of predetermined length, and

g. a plurality of circumferentially spaced fingers mounted on the inside of the third barrel segment and having portions of said fingers extending axially from both ends of the third barrel segment, said projecting portions of the fingers outlining a circle having the same diameter as the circle outlined by the first-named projecting finger portions,

h. the projecting portions of the fingers of the third barrel segment being interfittable with the fingers of the first-named barrel segments with the ends of all of the barrel segments in substantially abutting relation to each other.

3. The reel of claim 1 wherein the fingers comprise a plurality of flat, fin-like projections arranged radially and spaced substantially equidistant from each other.

4. The reel of claim 1 wherein the fingers comprise a plurality of flat, fin-like projections, the leading ends of which are tapered to form guiding surfaces facilitating the interfitting of the two parts in the assembly of the reel.

5. The reel of claim 1 wherein the two parts are identical in structure and dimensions.

6. The reel of claim 1 wherein the two parts comprise structurally and dimensionally identical parts of molded plastic.

7. The reel of claim 1 including a central core coaxial with the barrel segment, the projecting fingers frictionally interengaging the inner surface of the inner section of the barrel segment and the outer surface of the core.

8. The knockdown reel of claim 7 wherein the outer peripheral surface of the core is tapered and the inner surfaces of the projecting portions of the fingers which engage it are planar, thereby increasing the frictional engagement of these two elements when the two parts are assembled.