Strain relief members for cables and methods for making the same
AssigneeApple Inc.
InventorsJohn B. Ardisana, Edward Sihaan, Eric Jol
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Aesthetically pleasing strain-relief members for cables and methods for making the same are disclosed. The strain-relief members are constructed to have one or more tuning members that provide selective strain relief for the cable. Each tuning member can vary the wall thickness of the strain relief member, and depending on several factors such as how many tuning members are present, their shape, and their positions within the strain-relief member, the strain-relief member can be specifically tailored to meet desired strain relief characteristics.
Claims44
A cable strain-relief member comprising:
- a housing engagement member;
- and
- a strain-relief part that extends away from the housing engagement member, the strain-relief part comprising:
- an outer surface that defines an outer dimension of the strain-relief part, wherein the outer surface comprises a smooth and continuous shape;
- a cable receiving passage extending from a first end of the strain-relief part that is away from the housing engagement member to a second end of the strain-relief part that is proximate to the housing engagement member;
- and
- an inner wall defining dimensions of the cable receiving passage, the inner wall comprising at least one tuning member that defines a flex characteristic of the strain-relief part, wherein:
- the at least one tuning member comprises a plurality of tuning members;
- the plurality of tuning members comprises:
- a first tuning member proximate the first end of the strain-relief part;
- a second tuning member proximate the second end of the strain-relief part;
- and
- a third tuning member between the first tuning member and the second tuning member;
- at least one of the width and the depth of the third tuning member is greater than at least one of the width and the depth of the second tuning member;
- and
- at least one of the width and the depth of the first tuning member is greater than at least one of the width and the depth of the third tuning member.
A cable strain-relief part comprising:
- a wall, wherein:
- an outer wall surface of the wall comprises a smooth and continuous shape;
- an inner wall surface of the wall defines a cable receiving passage extending along a length of the wall from a first end of the wall to a second end of the wall;
- and
- the inner wall surface comprises at least three tuning members that vary a flex characteristic of the strain-relief part along the length of the wall, wherein the amount of space between a first set of adjacent tuning members of the at least three tuning members is different than the amount of space between a second set of adjacent tuning members of the at least three tuning members.
A cable strain-relief comprising:
- a wall extending between a first wall end and a second wall end, the wall comprising:
- an outer wall surface that comprises an uninterrupted cylindrical shape;
- and
- an inner wall surface that defines a cable receiving passage, wherein the inner wall surface comprises at least three tuning members that change a flex characteristic of the cable strain-relief along the length of the wall, and wherein at least one of the following is true:
- the amount of space between a first set of adjacent tuning members of the at least three tuning members is different than the amount of space between a second set of adjacent tuning members of the at least three tuning members;
- and
- a first tuning member of the at least three tuning members has different dimensions than a second tuning member of the at least three tuning members.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.