Winding device for winding up and unwinding a tube, cable or hose

• US 5,332,171 A
• Filed: 03/13/1992
• Issued: 07/26/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/1991
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Josef Steff
• Original Assignee: Josef Steff
• Inventors: Steff, Josef
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dowling, William C.
• Application Number:
  US07/852,623
• Time in Patent Office: 865 Days
• Field of Search: 242/107.1, 242/107.11, 242/107.12, 242/107.5, 242/107.6, 242/107.7, 242/54 R, 242/101.1, 242/86.6, 191/12.2 R
• US Class Current: 242/378
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/18 Cables specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 75/38 involving the use of a core or former internal to, and supporting, a stored package of material
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 75/4449 Arrangements or adaptations to avoid movable contacts or rotary couplings, e.g. by the use of an expansion chamber for a lenght of the cord or hose
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 75/4471 Housing enclosing the reel
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 11/02 using take-up reel or drum
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

A winding device for winding up and unwinding a cable, tube or hose which comprises a cable, tube or hose section which can be wound on and unwound from the outer circumference, a cable, tube or hose section which is guided out of a hub and which does not turn with the rotatable drum and a spiral compensation length in the interstice between the rotating drum and the hub.

The compensation length is supported on a supporting disc comprising an outer supporting ring which turns with the rotatable drum and an inner supporting disc between the outer supporting ring and the hub which does not turn with the rotatable drum. Furthermore, the hub is axially subdivided into two hub parts which can be displaced relative to each other and which can be firmly joined by means of a detachable locking device. When the locking device is open, a hub part linked with a turning spring can be turned relative to the hub part linked with the compensation length of the cable, tube or hose in order to pre-span the spring as desired. The two hub parts are then firmly interlocked by means of the locking device when the desired pre-tension has been set by the corresponding turning position.

Claims

1. A winding device for winding and unwinding a cable comprising:

(a) a rotatable drum in the form of a hollow cylinder around an outer circumference of which a pull-out length of the cable can be wound or unwound therefrom, by turning the rotatable drum;

(b) a hub arranged within the rotatable drum which does not turn with the rotatable drum during the winding and unwinding process;

(c) a supporting disc device which supports the cable and extends radially between the hub and the rotatable drum;

(d) a turning drive for turning the rotatable drum at least in the winding direction, wherein a cable end at the hub side is guided out of the winding device and a part of the cable is spirally arranged in a radial interstice between the rotatable drum and the hub and is supported by the supporting disc device, said part of the cable allowing a pull-out length of the cable to be wound and unwound despite a relative turning of the rotatable drum relative to the cable end at the hub side;

(e) wherein the supporting disc device is provided with at least one inner supporting disc arranged concentrically around the hub, independent of rotation of the rotatable drum and an outer supporting ring which is arranged concentrically around the inner supporting disc and turns with rotatable drum; and

(f) wherein the inner supporting disc is freely rotatable relative to the hub and relative to the rotatable drum.

2. A winding device of claim 1, wherein the radial width of the outer supporting ring equals approximately the radial width of the cable when the maximum possible cable length is spirally wound around the circumference of the rotatable drum and the remaining radial width is covered by the inner supporting disc.

3. A winding device of claim 1, wherein the inner supporting disc is composed of several concentric inner supporting rings which are freely rotatable relative to the hub, to the rotatable drum and to each other.

4. A winding device of claim 1, wherein the drive is affected by an electric motor.

5. A winding device of claim 1, wherein the drive is effected by a spiral spring, which is spanned when the length of the cable is unwound from the outer circumference of the rotatable drum.

6. A winding device of claim 1, wherein a stop is provided which can be released to counteract the drive.

7. A winding device of claim 1, wherein the winding device is provided with a horizontal cable coil, and the supporting disc device is formed by a horizontal supporting disc with an inner supporting disc and an outer supporting ring on which the wound up cable rests.

8. A winding device of claim 1, wherein the winding device is provided with a vertical cable coil, and the cable is spirally arranged between two vertical supporting discs with one inner supporting disc and one outer supporting ring each.

9. A winding device according to claim 1, having a drive in the form of a spring which is spanned by the unwinding process and which effects a drive in the winding up direction, wherein a ring chamber between the hub and the circumference of the rotatable drum is subdivided into two axially separate accommodation chambers, one for the spring and one for the cable coil, by the supporting disc device and wherein the spring is connected to the hub at one end and to the circumference of the rotatable drum at the other end, and further wherein the hub is axially subdivided in accordance with the two accommodation chambers, in such a way that the part of the hub which is connected with the spring accommodation chamber and to which one end of the spring is attached, can be turned relative to the part of the hub connected to the accommodation chamber for the cable coil, and that a detachable locking device is provided to achieve a firm interlocking of both hub parts with each other in one of several different, selectable turning positions relative to each other.

10. A winding device of claim 9, wherein one of the two hub parts is provided with at least one bolt insertion opening parallel to the hub axis and the other hub part is provided with numerous bolt insertion openings evenly distributed around the hub axis, wherein a relative turn of both hub parts to each other causes at least one bolt insertion opening in one hub part to be aligned flush with one of the bolt insertion openings in the other hub part so that a locking bolt can be pushed through the aligned bolt insertion openings of both hub parts to achieve a firm interlocking effect.

11. A winding device of claim 9, wherein the winding device is accommodated in a housing and that the part of the hub connected with the spring is equipped with an area which protrudes from the housing and to which a tool can be applied and that the locking device can be actuated from outside of the housing.