Mechanism for high speed linear payout of mono-filament strand
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
InventorScott B. Millett
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A mechanism for dispensing a mono-filament strand, particularly adaptable r high speed strand dispensing, has an inner guide and an outer guide shaped so as to pay out or dispense the mono-filament strand, such as a fiber optic cable, between two objects moving relative to each other or one object moving relative to the other. The inner and outer guides define cooperating surfaces of revolution, curved surfaces, and points of inflection between straight and curved surfaces that provide for strand pay out in which the strand or fiber does not contact or slide off a bobbin or over the inner guide so as to create bending stresses or angular accelerations that exceed the known physical limits of the strand or fiber material.
Claims23
A mechanism for guiding pay out of a monofilament strand, comprising:
- a bobbin for receiving a mono-filament strand wound on the bobbin in a helix, the bobbin having a longitudinal axis;
- outer guide means including an inward facing guide surface for guiding the mono-filament as it leaves the bobbin, the outer guide means further including a mono-filament strand pay out outlet;
- and
- inner guide means cooperating with the outer guide means and having an outward facing guide surface including a surface of revolution about the longitudinal bobbin axis for guiding the mono-filament strand as it leaves the bobbin between the inner guide means and the outer guide means, and through the pay out outlet, whereby the mono-filament strand pay out occurs such that the mono-filament strand does not contact or slide along any surface with a radius which would permit sharp bend radii in the mono-filament strand sufficiently to produce bending stresses and angular accelerations exceeding known material limits of the mono-filament strand, wherein the surface of revolution comprises:
- an arc on the outward facing surface of the inner guide means extending into a recessed end of the bobbin at an end nearest the outlet, the end of the bobbin receiving the adjacent arc portion of the surface of revolution;
- and
- the arc extending to a tangent point on an imaginary line spaced from the outer surface of the outer layer of mono-filament strand wound on the bobbin.
A mechanism for dispensing a fiber optic cable between two objects experiencing relative movement, the mechanism comprising:
- a bobbin, the bobbin having a longitudinal axis through the bobbin center;
- a length of fiber optic cable for providing a data link between a first object and a second object, at least a portion of the length of fiber optic cable wound in a helical pattern on the bobbin;
- outer guide means including an inward facing guide surface for guiding the fiber optic cable as it leaves the bobbin, the outer guide means further including a fiber optic cable pay out outlet;
- and
- inner guide means cooperating with the outer guide means and having an outward facing guide surface including a surface of revolution about the longitudinal bobbin axis for guiding the fiber optic cable as it leaves the bobbin between the inner guide means and the outer guide means, and through the pay out outlet, whereby the fiber optic cable pay out occurs such that the fiber optic cable does not contact or slide along any surface with a radius which would permit sharp bend radii in the fiber optic cable sufficient to produce bending stresses and angular accelerations exceeding known material limits of fiber optic cable suitable for use as a data link;
- the bobbin at an end nearest the pay out outlet, receiving the adjacent arc portion of the surface of revolution;
- and
- the arc remaining tangent to an imaginary line spaced from the outer surface of the outer layer of mono-filament strand wound on the bobbin, the arc spaced at the tangent point an optimum distance from the outer layer of the fiber optic cable helix wound on the bobbin.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.