Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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CABLE CARRIER
This invention relates to cable carriers.
For the laying of electrical and
telecommunications cable throughout a factory location,
cable carriers commonly referred to as "ladder racks" are
universally used. Such ladder racks are made in units of
about 10 ft lengths and comprise two longitudinal side
members held apart by laterally extending spaced-apart
parallel supports which are welded at their ends to the
1o side members to give a ladder-like appearance. A ladder
rack unit is a pre-finished construction before being
raised above head height into a horizontal cable support
position. With a finished weight of approximately 70 lbs
such a unit is rather difficult to be handled and secured
in position by one person. Thus, there is a weight problem
concerned with installation of ladder racks as more than
one person is normally required for installation purposes.
Since its conception, many years ago, the ladder rack has
been adapted for different types of cable support usage
2o which requires the addition of specialized features to the
racks without any clear thought having been given to
minimization of weight in the racks or to simplifying
design to assist in installation of the racks.
The present invention seeks to provide a cable
carrier unit which provides the functional requirements of
a ladder rack unit and which is easy to install while
minimizing the weight problems.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a
cable carrier unit comprising a rigid elongate spine, at
least one spine holding member, the spine detachably
mountable to the holding member, and at least one cable
support member detachably mountable to the spine and having
a cable support surface element to extend across and
laterally beyond each side of the spine, and the support
member also having two upwardly extending cable side
supports spaced-apart along the support surface element.
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With the above carrier unit according to the
invention, because the spine holding member and the cable
support member are detachable, it is possible to assemble
the carrier unit in any desired location within a building
by locating the carrier unit parts individually in position
and then securing them together. With this type of
arrangement, clearly it is preferable to initially locate
the spine holding member in a position supported from a
building structure, then to locate the spine in position to
to the holding member followed by the location of the cable
support member on the spine itself. Dependent upon the
location of spines to the placed end-to-end in series and
then secured to one another, it may be found that two spine
holding members may be required for any particular spine to
support it. Hence, as the carrier unit is not pre-
assembled before location in its desired position, then it
is easier to handle particularly by a single person who is
capable of lifting the parts of the carrier unit into
position. Minimization of weight is of course a prime
2o consideration for the carrier unit construction and for
this particular purpose the rigid elongate spine is
preferably of tubular construction. The spine also
preferably has on its outer surface a plurality of
longitudinal grooves for location of holding means for
holding the spine holding member and the cable support
member in position in any desired location longitudinally
of the spine.
As the holding member or members are intended to
support the weight of the spine, then each holding member
3o preferably comprises an upwardly open channel for receiving
the spine within the channel with the weight of the spine
supported by the base of the channel. Each cable support
member may also comprise an inverted U-shaped channel for
straddling the spine with the sides of the channel
extending downwardly on each side of the spine so that the
spine carries the cable support member and transmits the
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weight of any cable onto the spine holding members.
Separate support means may be provided for supporting
elongate signal transmission means other than cable to be
supported directly by the cable support elements, such
~5 signal transmission means possibly being in the form of
smaller and lighter cables such as optical cables or
optical cable units containing fibers. This support means
is preferably in the form of a trough which is locatable in
an upwardly open position extending from and secured to
io spaced-apart cable support members positioned along the
spine.
The invention also includes a cable carrier
comprising a plurality of rigid elongate spines locatable
in end-to-end series along a desired path of the carrier; a
15 plurality of spine holding members, the spines being
detachably mountable to the holding members with the
holding members disposed in spaced positions along the
desired path; a plurality of cable support members
detachably mountable in spaced-apart positions along the
2o series of spines, each cable support member having a cable
support surface element to extend across and laterally
beyond each side of the spines, and each support member
also having two upwardly extending cable side supports
spaced-apart along the support surface element.
25 Embodiments of the invention will now be
described, by way of example, with reference to the
accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 relates to a first embodiment and is an
isometric view of a rigid elongate spine of a cable carrier
3o unit according to the embodiment;
Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along
line II-II in Figure 1 and to a larger scale
Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1 of a spine
holding member of the carrier unit:
35 Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 1 of a cable
support member of the carrier unit:
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Figure 5 is an isometric view to smaller scale of
part of a cable carrier of the first embodiment;
Figure 6 is an isometric view of part of a cable
carrier according to a second embodiment;
Figure 7 is a view similar to Figure 1 of a
support means of the carrier unit;
Figure 8 is a view similar to Figure 5 of part of
a cable carrier according to a third embodiment; and
Figure 9 is an isometric view of part of a cable
1o carrier according to a fourth embodiment.
As shown in Figure 1, a rigid elongate spine 10
for a cable carrier unit may be of any desired length, i.e.
between 6 ft and 10 ft in length and is of tubular
construction and comprises two sides each of which is
formed by two channels 12, each channel having two sides 14
and the two channels being secured together side-by-side
with adjacent sides 14 riveted together and with the
channels opening sideways of the spine in the same
direction. A free end of each side 14 is turned inwardly
2o as a double flange construction 16 with the free end of
each flange facing inwardly towards the base of its
respective channel as shown by Figure 2. The two pairs of
channels 12 are held apart to form the tubular structure by
top and bottom plates 18 and 20 which are riveted to the
upper and lower sides 14 of the assembled channels 12 on
each side of the spine.
As shown in Figure 3 a spine holding member 22 for
supporting the channel 10 in a horizontal position
extending across a building above head height, comprises a
3o short upwardly open channel section 24 providing an
attachment region of the holding member. A rigid beam 26
extending transversely beneath the U-shaped channel 24 and
secured thereto provides, at its ends, two carrier support
regions in which two holes 28 are formed for supporting
vertical support rods 30 (see Figure 5) for hanging the
spine holding member from a building structure. Each side
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of the channel 24 is formed with two spaced pairs of holes
25, the holes in each pair vertically aligned for securing
bolts to extend into one or more channels 12 of the spine.
The carrier unit is also equipped with a plurality
of cable support members which are to be assembled onto the
spine 10 when this has been located in its desired
position. As shown by Figure 4, each cable support member
32 comprises a short inverted U-shaped channel 34 for
straddling the spine 10, with sides of the channel
1o extending one down each side of the spine. Each side 36 of
the channel 34 is formed with two holes 38 for location of
securing bolts to extend into one or more of the channels
12 of the spine for holding the cable support member in
position. The cable support member is also provided with a
cable support element and side supports integrally formed
from a single flat bar 38. The bar is bent at two
positions to provide a support surface element 42
straddling the U-shaped channel 34 and two spaced apart
side supports 44 extending upwardly from the ends of the
2o element 42. At each of the bend positions a bite 41 is
provided for strengthening purposes, each bite being formed
by pressing material from the plane of the flat bar.
A cable carrier (Figure 5) to be built extending
along a desired path through a building comprises a
plurality of in-series carrier units 48 each having a spine
10, at least one spine holding member 22 and at least one
cable support member 32. The number of members 22 and 32
for each spine 10 is dependent upon the length of the spine
and the closeness of the next member 22 or 32 along the
3o carrier path. A plurality of spine holding members 22 are
located along the desired path in desired positions apart,
are supported by the support rods 30 (Figure 5) from
suitable parts of the building structure, and are joined
end-to-end by side brackets 46 and securing nut and bolt
assemblies 49. These assemblies 49 incorporate a spring to
hold the nut against the free ends of the two flanges 16
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which face inwardly into the channel 12 within which the
nut is received. The nut has two grooves which are forced
by the spring onto the free ends of the flanges 16 to
prevent nut rotation while the bolt is screwed into
position. The assemblies 49 are suitably manufactured by
Unistrut and are commercially referred to as "spring nuts".
With the holding members 22 loosely located in
position, a plurality of the spines 10 are disposed end-to-
end in series along the carrier path and supported inside
to the U-shaped channels 24 as shown by Figure 5 and the
brackets 46 used to connect the spines. In the case of the
path being curved at any position, then a spine 10 (not
shown) is pre-formed in a suitably curved shape to follow
the desired path at this location. The spines are of
minimum weight, partly because of their tubular
construction, and in lengths of up to 10 ft, are easily
lifted into position inside the U-shaped channels 24 by one
person who is then capable of using nut and bolt assemblies
49 through one or more of the holes 25 in the channels 24
2o to be received within one or more of the channels 12 of the
spines 10 so as to hold them in position.
After the spines 10 have been secured in the
channels 24 and the spine holding members 22 are also
secured in their hanging positions from the building
structure, then a plurality of the cable support members 32
are disposed in desired positions apart along the spine
construction. As shown by Figure 5, this part of the
assembly is effected by causing the U-shaped channels 34 to
straddle the respective spines 10 and again inserting
3o securing bolts 49 through desired holes 38 and into the
channels 12 of the spine.
In this completed assembly, cables 50 may then be
fed along the carrier so as to be supported in spaced
positions by the cable supporting members 32 as shown by
Figure 5.
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In the event that cables tend to droop between the
supporting members 32, possibly because of the amount of
cables, then as shown by Figure 6, then in a second
embodiment a support platform 40 is provided. This
platform extends from member to member 32 and is carried by
and secured to the support surface elements 42.
If it is required for the cable to support other
signal transmission means of smaller cross-section than the
cables 50 and there is reason for this signal transmission
1o means to be held separate from the cables 50, e.g. for ease
of accessibility, then for this purpose, a support means 52
is provided in a third embodiment as shown in Figures 7 and
8. A support means 52 comprises a straight sided trough
with outwardly turned flanges 54 from the free ends of the
sides of the trough. As shown in Figure 8, a trough may be
located to extend between and be supported by the cable
support members 32 and this is made possible by securing
bolts 56 passing through holes 58 in the flanges 54 and
through aligned holes in turned-over ends 62 of the side
2o supports 44 of the members 32. The trough may also be
supported by and riveted to the support elements 42 members
32. As shown by Figure 8, only one trough 52 is included
and this is for the purpose of carrying optical cables or
fibers in tubes (not shown). However, another trough 52
may be located to be supported by the other side supports
44 of the cable support members 32. The trough 52 is
formed at suitable positions with downwardly opening guide
channels 64 (Figure 8) for directing optical cables or
tubes fibers to terminals.
3o As shown by a fourth embodiment (Figure 9), it is
not essential for the spines 10 to require spine holding
members such as members 22 to support them from a ceiling.
In the fourth embodiment, where applicable, spines 10 are
supported upon stanchions 70 and are secured thereto by
holding members in the form of brackets 72 by using nut and
bolt assemblies 49 as in previous embodiments.
2~ ~~81
_8_
As may be seen from the above embodiments, the
cable carrier of the invention is composed of a plurality
of parts which are to be assembled along the intended path
of the cable carrier 46. The design of the spine of each
carrier unit, which is the element of greatest weight, is
such as to minimize that weight for lifting and assembly
purposes while providing required strength and rigidity and
enabling other parts of the unit to be assembled to it. In
addition, a minimal number of parts are required, as shown
to by the various embodiments, to provide all necessary
functions of the carrier.
