U.S. patent number 3,916,925 [Application Number 05/443,325] was granted by the patent office on 1975-11-04 for cable cleaning units.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Phido (Wire Services) Co., Ltd. Invention is credited to Desmond George Crump.
United States Patent |
3,916,925 |
Crump |
November 4, 1975 |
Cable cleaning units
Abstract
A cable cleaning unit comprising a chamber adapted to surround a
section of the cable to be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located
within the chamber through which jets of high pressure fluid are
directed onto the surface of the cable and mechanism for
withdrawing fluid from the chamber.
Inventors: |
Crump; Desmond George (Wembley
Downs, AU) |
Assignee: |
Phido (Wire Services) Co., Ltd
(N/A)
|
Family
ID: |
23760348 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/443,325 |
Filed: |
February 19, 1974 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
134/172;
118/DIG.11; 118/307; 134/183; 134/199; 184/15.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
D02J
7/00 (20130101); Y10S 118/11 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
D02J
7/00 (20060101); B08B 003/02 () |
Field of
Search: |
;134/64,172,173,122,182,183,199 ;118/DIG.11,DIG.22,307,325
;184/15R,15A,15B |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Bleutge; Robert L.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Linton; Ulle C.
Claims
I claim:
1. A cable cleaning unit comprising a chamber adapted to surround a
section of the cable to be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located
within the chamber through which jets of high pressure fluid are
directed onto the surface of the cable, said outlets being arranged
so that said jets strike the surface of of the cable at an angle
inclined to the longitudinal axis of the cable being cleaned and
are deflected from the surface of the cable in the direction of
travel of the cable cleaning unit, the portion of the chamber
receiving the deflected jets being arcuate so as to direct the
fluid with dirt and other matter entrained therein away from the
surface of the cable, and means for withdrawing fluid from the
chamber.
2. A cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein a manifold
having at least one outlet, said arcuate portion of the chamber is
provided with a plurality of openings connected to said manifold
and said chamber has at least one second outlet remote from said
arcuate portion.
3. A cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein a tongue or
lip projects into said chamber to prevent used fluid with entrained
solid matter from falling back onto and interfering with the action
of said jets.
4. A cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein seals are
provided at each end of said body.
5. A cable cleaning unit as claimed in claim 4 wherein the rear
face of said seals at the forward end of said body are connected to
passages which connect to said manifold and means are provided for
compressing said seals.
Description
This invention relates to cable cleaning units.
All cable cleaning units at present in use utilise brushes which
brush the external rust and scale and caked external lubricant from
the cable. Because such units are bulky it is necessary that the
cleaning operation be carried out at ground level which means that
the cable must be first removed from the equipment and then
replaced.
The object of the present invention is to provide a cable cleaning
unit which does not require the use of brushes and which can be
used for cleaning the cable in situ.
In one form the invention resides in a cable cleaning unit
comprising a chamber adapted to surround a section of the cable to
be cleaned, a plurality of outlets located within the chamber
through which jets of high pressure fluid are directed onto the
surface of the cable said jets being arranged so that they strike
the surface of the cable at an angle inclined to the longitudinal
axis of the cable being cleaned and are deflected from the surface
of the cable in the direction of travel of the cable cleaning unit,
the portion of the chamber receiving the deflected jets being
arcuate so as to direct the fluid with dirt and other matter
entrained therein away from the surface of the cable and means for
withdrawing fluid from the chamber.
The invention will be better understood by reference to the
following description of one specific embodiment shown in the
accompanying drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a sectional view of the cleaning unit;
FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of the various components
of a complete cleaning system;
FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of a self propelled unit
incorporating the cleaning unit of FIG. 1; and
FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic representation showing the self propelled
unit cleaning a cable in situ.
As shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings a more or less cylindrical body
11 is divided into two halves so that it can be fitted around a
cable 12. In the assembled position the body is provided with an
annular chamber 13. Each end of the body is provided with resilient
seals 14. The seals at the forward end of the body are compressed
by means of a plate 14a mounted on the end of a threaded member 14b
projecting through the body and the rear faces of said seals are
connected to passages 15 which connect to a manifold 16 which is
provided with outlets 17 adapted to be connected to a suction line.
The forward end of the chamber 13 which receives the jets of fluid
deflected from the surface of the cable is arcuate so that the
fluid with dirt entrained therein is directed away from the cable.
The arcuate portion of the chamber is connected to the manifold 16
through holes or openings 18 whilst the other end of the chamber is
provided with outlets 19 which are also connected to the suction
line. The centrifugal force acting on the fluid as it moves around
the arcuate portion of the chamber ensures that a large proportion
thereof passes through the openings 18 to ensure that it cannot
return to the vicinity of the cable to interfere with the cleaning
action of the jets.
A manifold 20 is provided with inlets 21 and is connected through
passages 22 to a series of nozzles 23 arranged around the cable
within the chamber and adapted to direct jets of fluid onto the
surface of the portion of the cable within the chamber. Any
suitable fluid may be used but it is preferable to use the
lubricant preparation normally used for lubricating cables. The
fluid is at a pressure of the order of 4000-5000 p.s.i. The jets
impinging on the cable remove all extraneous matter from the
surface of the cable. The lubricant also penetrates the cable to
the core. The tongue or lip 24 projecting into the chamber prevents
the used fluid with entrained solid matter from falling back onto
and interfering with the action of the jets issuing from nozzles
23.
As shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings the used fluid is carried
through the line 31 by means of a pump 32 and discharged into a
settling tank 33 fitted with baffles 34. The fluid is then passed
through filters 35 to a clean oil reservoir 36. A pump 37 draws oil
from the clean oil reservoir 36 and passes it through filters 39
and 40 and oil cooler 41 to a high pressure pump 42. The high
pressure oil is fed through line 43 to the inlets 21 of the
cleaning unit. Some of the high pressure oil is by-passed through a
reducing valve 44 to a hydraulic motor 45 of a traction unit 46
coupled to the cable cleaning unit.
The design of the cleaning unit is such that it is relatively
lightweight and of compact size so that it can be fitted to cables
in situ and drawn along the cables. Such a system is illustrated in
FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings. The cable cleaning unit A is coupled
to a traction unit 46 mounted on a cable C supporting a tower T.
The components for cleaning and supplying the oil to the traction
unit and cable cleaning unit are housed in a platform P suspended
from a cable running assembly X which is mounted on the cable C.
The platform is provided with an operators cabin OC.
In use the complete unit is drawn to the top of the cable C and
then travels down to the ground under the control of an operator to
clean the cable.
In an alternative arrangement the components of the system for
supplying oil to the traction unit 46 and the cable cleaning unit A
is mounted on a transportable or mobile platform at ground level
and the oil supplied through long high pressure hoses.
* * * * *