Cable stranding apparatus employing a hollow-shaft guide member driver

A cable-stranding apparatus for performing SZ-stranding of strand elements about at least one core member, comprising:

• a first guide member configured to be stationary and individually guide the strand elements in a spaced apart configuration and pass the at least one core member;
• at least one motor arranged downstream of the stationary guide member and operatively associated with a guide member driver, the guide member driver being operatively associated with a second guide member, the second guide member being disposed at least partially within the guide member driver so as to rotate with the guide member driver, the second guide member configured to receive and individually guide the strand elements from the stationary guide member and pass the at least one core member;
• and
• at least one controller electrically coupled to the at least one motor and configured to control its rotational speed and direction to SZ-strand the strand elements about the at least one core member to form an SZ-stranded assembly,
• wherein the at least one motor includes a positional counter that provides an electrical signal to the controller that includes rotational information of the corresponding guide member driver.

A cable stranding apparatus for stranding strand elements about at least one core member in an SZ configuration, comprising along an apparatus axis:

• a plurality of motors each having a hollow shaft defined by a central hole aligned with the apparatus axis;
• a plurality of layplates configured to locally spatially separate the individual strand elements, with one of the layplates held stationary upstream of the motors and the remaining layplates respectively held within the motor central holes so as to rotate with the respective hollow shafts;
• a plurality of servo drivers electrically connected one each to a corresponding motor and operable to provide signals thereto to cause the respective hollow shafts to rotate and periodically reverse direction;
• and
• a controller electrically coupled to the servo drivers and configured to provide control signals to at least one of the servo drivers to cause the servo drivers to drive the corresponding motors according to a rotation relationship.