DRAIN CLEANING CABLE

• US 20180369883A1
• Filed: 06/21/2018
• Published: 12/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Milwaukee Electric Tool Corporation (Techtronic Industries Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Milwaukee Electric Tool Corporation (Techtronic Industries Company Limited)
• Inventors: Kehoe, Sean T., Miller, Justin
• Granted Patent: US 11,168,468 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 9/0436 provided with mechanical cleaning tools, e.g. scrapers, with or without additional fluid jets B08B9/045, B08B9/047 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 9/045 the cleaning devices being rotated while moved , e.g. flexible rotating shaft or "snake"B08B9/047 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E03C 1/302 using devices moved through the pipes and simultaneously rotated by means of a cable or rods E03F9/005
• CPC Class Codes: E03F 9/002 Cleaning sewer pipes by mechanical means combined with flushing E03F9/00
• CPC Class Codes: E03F 9/005 Apparatus for simultaneously pushing and rotating a cleaning device carried by the leading end of a cable or an assembly of rods

Abstract

A drain cleaning cable for use with a drain cleaner. The drain cleaning cable includes an inner core having a first end and a second end, and an outer wire concentrically surrounding the inner core, where the outer wire is helically wound in a first direction to form a plurality of consecutive coils, and where the outer wire has a first end and a second end. A first connector engages with the first end of the inner core and the first end of the outer wire, where the first connector is configured to attach the drain cleaning cable to a drain cleaning element. The second end of the inner core and the second end of the outer wire are received within the drain cleaner.

Claims

1. A drain cleaning cable for use with a drain cleaner, the drain cleaning cable comprising:

an inner core having a first end and a second end;

an outer wire concentrically surrounding the inner core, the outer wire helically wound in a first direction to form a plurality of consecutive coils, the outer wire having a first end and a second end; and

a first connector engaging with the first end of the inner core and the first end of the outer wire, wherein the first connector is configured to attach the drain cleaning cable to a drain cleaning element, and

wherein the second end of the inner core and the second end of the outer wire are received within the drain cleaner.

2. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein the inner core includes an inner wire is helically wound in a second direction to form a plurality of consecutive coils, wherein the second direction is opposite to the first direction.

3. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein the first connector includes a cylindrical body and a connecting element, the cylindrical body configured to receive the first end of the inner core and the first end of the outer wire.

4. The drain cleaning cable of claim 3, wherein the cylindrical body forms a bore, and wherein the inner core is received within the bore.

5. The drain cleaning cable of claim 4, wherein the outer wire wraps around an outer circumference of the cylindrical body.

6. The drain cleaning cable of claim 3, wherein at least one of the first wire and the outer wire is threadably engaged with the cylindrical body of the first connector.

7. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, further comprising a second connector engaging with the second end of the inner core and the second end of the outer wire.

8. The drain cleaning cable of claim 7, wherein the first connector includes a female connecting element and the second connector includes a male connecting element.

9. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first wire and the outer wire is coupled to the first connector by a method selected from the group consisting of crimping, staking, welding, and brazing.

10. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein the first connector includes a sleeve crimped to the first end of the inner core, and wherein the sleeve abuts a narrow portion of the outer wire.

11. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein at least one of the inner core and the outer wire has an open wind in which a gap exists between consecutive coils of the respective wire.

12. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein the inner core weighs between 2 and 10 pounds and the outer wire weighs between 15 and 30 pounds.

13. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein the outer wire is configured to collapse onto the inner core.

14. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein the inner core includes an inner wire that is helically wound to have a pitch of between 2 and 8 mm and has a wind gap of between 1 and 5 mm, and wherein the outer wire has a pitch of between 6 and 12 mm and has a wind gap between 2 and 7 mm.

15. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein the inner core has a spring rate of between 0.5 and 1.5 N/mm and a torsion rate of between 20 and 75 N-mm/rev for a 50 foot cable, and wherein the outer wire has a spring rate of between 1.0 and 1.4 N/mm and a torsion rate of between 425 and 475 N-mm/rev for a 50 foot cable.

16. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein at least one of the inner core and the outer wire is heat treated.

17. The drain cleaning cable of claim 1, wherein the inner core is composed of at least one of nylon and high density polyethylene, and wherein the outer wire is composed of at least one of the materials included in the list consisting of steel, copper, aluminum, alloys, and brass.

18. A drain cleaning cable for use with a drain cleaner, the drain cleaning cable comprising:

a wire helically wound to form a plurality of consecutive coils, the wire including a first end having a working implement configured to break up a drain clog and a second end configured to be received within the drain cleaner, the wire having an outer wall defining an outer diameter and an inner wall defining an inner diameter, the wire having a solid section between the inner wall and the outer wall and a hollow section radially inward of the inner wall.

19. The drain cleaning cable of claim 18, wherein the inner diameter is between 10% and 90% of the outer diameter.

20. The drain cleaning cable of claim 19, wherein the inner diameter is between 25% and 75% of the outer diameter.

21. The drain cleaning cable of claim 18, wherein a weight of the drain cleaning cable is less than 30 pounds.

22. A drain cleaning cable for use with a drain cleaner including a rotatable drum, the drain cleaning cable comprising:

a wire helically wound to form a plurality of consecutive coils, the wire including a first end having a first working implement configured to break up a drain clog and a second end having a second working implement configured to break up a drain clog,

wherein the drain cleaning cable is adjustable between a first orientation and a second orientation, wherein in the first orientation the first working implement is configured to be inserted into a drain and the second working implement is configured to be received within the rotatable drum of the drain cleaner, and wherein in the second orientation the first working implement is configured to be received within the rotatable drum of the drain cleaner and the second working implement is configure to be inserted into a drain.

23. The drain cleaning cable of claim 22, wherein the first working implement and the second working implement are the same type of working implements

24. The drain cleaning cable of claim 22, wherein at least one of the first working implement and the second working implement is removably coupled to the drain cleaning cable.