Metal reel for holding coils of wire, constructed from a number of radial "U" shaped spokes welded to the inner side of two circular rims

Abstract

 The present invention concerns a metal reel (1) for holding coils of wire constructed of a number of ′U′ shaped radial spokes (1a) made of metal rod, the ends of whose parallel arms are welded to the internal circumferences of two identical rims (1b) that are also made of metal rod, in such a way that the aforementioned arms are on the same plane as the respective rim (1b) to which they are welded.

Description

[0001] The object of the present patent application is a reel for holding coils of metal wire, constructed by arc-welding pre-formed elements made from metal rod together once they have been suitably shaped and poritioned.

[0002] Reels constructed from a number of suitably shaped and welded metal rods forming a skeleton like reel are currently already on the market. These reels consist of a central hub and two circular side pieces that hold the coil of wire wound around the hub of the reel in place.

[0003] The biggest problem involved in the constuction of these arc-welded iron-rod reels is the difficulty in keeping within the narrow construction tolerances required for the internal diameter and the perfect circularity of the central hub.

[0004] The perfect construction of the hub is in fact of primary importance to the correct formation of the coil of wire it is to hold. The individual loops of wire must be placed one beside the other and one above the other in an orderly fashion to avoid the the wire jamming and consquently breaking, a dangerous occurance, when the wire is unwound from the reel.

[0005] It is worth remembering that these reels are designed to be placed on horizontal-axis adaptor drums on special machines that are capable of automatically winding or unwinding coils of wire.

[0006] It can thus be seen why the hub of these reels must fit over the drive drum of these machines without there being any degree of play, as were the two items not precisly coupled together, the hub would inevitably rotate in an eccentric fashion in respect of the drum, and consequently, wire would be irregularly wound onto the reel about which it is being coiled.

[0007] The scope of the present invention is that of finding a new and advantageous method for combining the various shaped metal rod elements that form the skeleton of a reel, so that all these elements can be simultaneously arc-welded under optimum conditions for the extremely precise construction of the reel in question, with reference to the internal diameter of the central hub and its perfect circularity.

[0008] According to the invention, reels are formed of two identical rings made of metal rod, that are placed in a parallel and co-axial position and connected together by a number of transverse radial spokes, each consisting of a metal rod that has been bent into a 'U' shape, whose vertical arms are welded by their ends to the two aforementioned rims, thus forming, together with the aforementioned radial arms, the two sides that hold the coil of wire in place.

[0009] The central hub is shaped like a circular cage whose bars are formed by the central sections of each of the radial. 'U' shaped rods, or spokes.

[0010] The particular way in which the spokes are placed against and welded to the two rims allows all the small but inevitable imprecisions in the shape and size of the side rims and transverse spokes to be compensated for.

[0011] This result is achieved through the use of a simple item of equipment, consisting of a support drum for the transverse spokes. The central sections of the spokes fit precisely into corresponding grooves in the external cylindrical surface of the drum, which is placed between two circular plates whose edges support and hold the two rims to be welded to the series of transverse spokes.

[0012] Each of the two plates has radial grooves corresponding to each of the spokes to be welded, so that the vertical arms of the spokes fit into the centre of these grooves where they can easily be reached and gripped by one of the vice-shaped electrodes on the welding machine. The other electrode on the machine presses against the external edge of the rim, in correspondence with the contact point between the spoke and the rim.

[0013] All the spokes are welded at the same time. The centripetal pressure exerted by the external electrodes not only ensures the rim is held in shape and position, but also presses the radial spokes against the central drum, so that at the moment the spokes are welded, their central sections are all placed and held against the same cylindrical surface.

[0014] With reels manufactured according to the invention, it is possible to keep the circularity and size of the central hub to within very fine tolerances, as the rims are welded to the spokes whilst the spokes are subject to centripetal pressure from the electrodes on the welding machine. The welding machine consists of a ring-shaped series of pairs of electrodes that simultaneously operate on all the points to be welded, and hold the radial arms of the spokes near their ends whilst pressing the external rim against the ends of the aforementioned arms.

[0015] For greater clarity, the part of the description that follows refers to the attached drawings, which are for the sole purpose of illustrating the invention and do not limit it in any way, in which:

• Figure 1 is an axonometric view of a reel according to the invention;

[0016] With reference to the aforementioned figure, the model according to the invention consists of a reel for cables (1), constructed of several pieces of pre-formed and suitably shaped iron rod that are arc-welded together

[0017] In particular, a number of identical transverse spokes (1a) are used to construct the reel, each of which is made from a length of metal rod bent into a 'U' shape.

[0018] The central horizontal transverse sections of these spokes form the hub of the reel, around which the coils of wire to be held are wound, and the regularly spaced radial arms of these spokes (1a) form the sides that hold the coils of wire in place.

[0019] The ends of the two vertical arms of each of the spokes (1a) are welded to two identical ring-shaped rims (1b) also made from bent metal rod, that function as elements that connect the series of radial spokes (1a).

[0020] The special feature of the model according to the invention consists of the fact that the ends of the vertical arms on each spoke (1a) are pressed against the internal circumferences of the two rims (1b) in such a way that these arms are held on the same plane as the respective rim (1b) to which they are welded.

[0021] The fact that they are held on the same plane is the necessary condition for achieving the above mentioned advantages, in terms of extreme precision of construction with reference to the internal diameter of the hub and its perfect circularity.

Claims

1) Metal reel for wire coils constructed of a number of radial 'U' shaped spokes welded to the internal face of two parallel rims of the type that comprises a series of radial transverse spokes (1a) each formed from a length of metal rod bent into a 'U' shape whose parallel arms are welded to two identical rims (1b) that are also made of bent metal rod, characterized by the fact that the ends of the parallel arms of the spokes (1a) are placed against and welded to the internal circumference of the two rims (1b) in such a way that, in practice, the aforementioned arms are held on the same plane as the respective rim (1b) to which they are welded.

Drawing