Title: Raceway line puller and method of using same
Abstract: An apparatus for pulling line through a raceway includes a plurality of interconnected retainer portions and an attachment portion. The plurality of interconnected retainer portions each has a one-way locking passage through the plurality of interconnected retainer portions that are adapted to retain the line. Further, the attachment portion is positioned on an end of the plurality of interconnected retainer portions.
Patent Number: 6,991,220 Issued on 01/31/2006 to Rivers, et al.
| Inventors:
|
Rivers; Paul Brent (Cullman, AL);
Diggle, III; Frederick James (Birmingham, AL)
|
| Assignee:
|
BellSouth Intellectual Property Corporation (Wilmington, DE)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
777919 |
| Filed:
|
February 12, 2004 |
| Current U.S. Class: |
254/134.3FT; 254/134.3R |
| Current Intern'l Class: |
B65H 59/00 (20060101) |
| Field of Search: |
254/1343 FT,134.3,134.4,134.5
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Other References
New Tech Industries, Inc., "Fish Tape and Push Pull Rods", webpages, May 17,
2004, http://www.newtechindustries.com/newtech/access/page38d.htm.
TWAcomm.com, "Greenlee 30596—Junior Basket Type Pulling Grip", webpages,
May 17, 2004, http://www.twacomm.com/Catalog/Model—30596.htm?SID=NRGND
. . . .
U.S. Appl. No. 10/777,413, filed Feb. 12, 2004.
U.S. Appl. No. 10/777,404, filed Feb. 12, 2004.
|
Primary Examiner: Wilson; Lee D.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Lee & Hayes, PLLC
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An apparatus for pulling line through a raceway, the apparatus comprising:
a plurality of interconnected retainer portions each having a one-way locking
passage therethrough adapted to retain the line, at least one of the interconnected
retainer portions further having a convex upper edge about an entrance to the one-way
locking passage; and
an attachment portion positioned on an end of the plurality of interconnected
retainer portions.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of interconnected retainer
portions is sized to fit within the raceway.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of interconnected retainer
portions forms a single body.
4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the single body is flexible.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of interconnected retainer
portions has a planar lower edge at an exit of the one-way locking passage.
6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one-way locking passages are positioned
parallel to one another.
7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one one-way locking passage of
the plurality of interconnected retainer portions has the line positioned therethrough
and retained.
8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the line is releasably secured to other
interconnected retainer portions than the interconnected retainer portion retaining
the line.
9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein an entrance to the one-way locking passages
faces toward a trailing end of the plurality of interconnected retainer portions.
10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one-way locking passages are sized
to received the line.
11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein hinges connect the plurality of interconnected
retainer portions to one another.
12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the binges are positioned between the
plurality of interconnected retainer portions at the base of the plurality of interconnected
retainer portions.
13. An apparatus for pulling line through a raceway, the apparatus comprising:
a plurality of interconnected retainer portions each having a one-way locking
passage therethrough adapted to retain the line, the one-way locking passages being
positioned parallel to one another; and
an attachment portion positioned on an end of the plurality of interconnected
retainer portions.
14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the one-way locking passages are sized
to receive the line.
15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the interconnected retainer portions are
sized to fit within the raceway.
16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the attachment portion is sized to fit
within the raceway.
17. An apparatus for pulling line through a raceway, the apparatus comprising:
a plurality of interconnected retainer portions each having a one-way locking
passage therethrough adapted to retain the line, the plurality of interconnected
retainer portions being connected to one another by hinges: and
an attachment portion positioned on an end of the plurality of interconnected
retainer portions.
18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the hinges are positioned between the
plurality of interconnected retainer portions at the base of the plurality of interconnected
retainer portions.
Description
BACKGROUND
The subject invention generally and in various embodiments relates to devices
and methods for pulling one or more lines or wires, and more particularly to an
apparatus and methods for pulling one or more lines or wires through raceways.
Electricians and/or technicians are often required to install a run
of one or more lines or wires (e.g., electrical or communication wire) through
lengths of raceways. Raceways may include conduits, ducts and other enclosed channels.
A fish tape is commonly sent through the raceway for installing the run of lines
or wires. Often, a first line or wire is folded about a tab at an end of the fish
tape and taped to itself on the other side where it is doubled over. Then, if necessary,
additional lines or wires are taped flush along the first line or wire. The fish
tape is then pulled back out of the raceway with the lines or wires attached, with
the intent to install the line or wire with the fish tape being removed. This places
a tremendous amount of tension on the first line or wire where additional lines
or wire are attached. Often the raceway will have angled bends (e.g., 90 degree
bends, etc.) and may already have runs of line or wire inside the raceway. With
this tension of the first line or wire carrying the additional lines or wires and
the possible obstacles, the first line or wire may often pull away from the tab
of the fish tape. Further, it is sometimes a challenge to circumvent the obstacles
and deviations in the raceway without having lines or wires pull away from the
first line or wire due to the lack of strength in the flush securing of the additional
lines or wires to the first line or wire.
SUMMARY
Various embodiments of the present invention include an apparatus for pulling
line through a raceway. The apparatus includes a plurality of interconnected retainer
portions and an attachment portion. The plurality of interconnected retainer portions
each has a one-way locking passage through the plurality of interconnected retainer
portions that are adapted to retain the line. Further, the attachment portion is
positioned on an end of the plurality of interconnected retainer portions.
Various embodiments of the present invention also include a method of pulling
line through a raceway. The method includes pushing the line through a one-way
locking passage housed in a retainer and attaching an attachment portion of the
retainer to an end of a fish tape. The method further includes pulling the fish
tape through the raceway.
Other systems, methods, and/or products according to embodiments will be or
become apparent to one with skill in the art upon review of the following drawings
and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods,
and/or products be included within this description, be within the scope of the
present invention, and be protected by the accompanying claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In the accompanying Figures, there are shown various embodiments of the present
invention wherein like reference numerals are employed to designate like parts
and wherein:
FIG. 1 is a side view of a line pulling apparatus according to various embodiments
of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a top view of the line pulling apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a rear view of the line pulling apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the line pulling apparatus of FIG. 2 taken
along the line 4—4;
FIG. 4A is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 4;
FIG. 4B is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 4;
FIG. 5 is a top view of a line pulling apparatus according to various embodiments
of the present;
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the line pulling apparatus of FIG. 5 taken
along the line 5—5;
FIG. 7 is a rear view of the line pulling apparatus of FIG. 5;
FIG. 8 is the line pulling apparatus of FIG. 1 having lines attached and positioned
in a raceway shown in cross-section; and
FIG. 9 the line pulling apparatus of FIG. 1 having a portion of a line attached.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring now to the drawings for the purpose of illustrating the invention
and not for the purpose of limiting the same, it is to be understood that standard
components or features that are within the purview of an artisan of ordinary skill
and do not contribute to the understanding of the various embodiments of the invention
are omitted from the drawings to enhance clarity. In addition, it will be appreciated
that the characterizations of various components and orientations described herein
as being "vertical" or "horizontal", "right" or "left", "side", "top", "bottom",
"upper" or "lower" are relative characterizations only based upon the particular
position or orientation of a given component for a particular application.
FIGS. 1-4 depict various embodiments of a line puller
10 that generally
can be employed by a user, such as a technician (not shown) for example. The line
puller
10 can be used to pull a line
800, or more than one line
800,
through a raceway
900, as shown in FIG. 8. The raceway
900 may be,
for example, a conduit, duct, enclosed channel, etc. The line puller
10
has an attachment portion
20 positioned on an end
12 of interconnected
retainer portions
30. The interconnected retainer portions
30 have
one-way locking passages
33 through the interconnected retainer portions
30 that are adapted to retain the line
800. Multiple one-way locking
passages
33 are provided through the interconnected retainer portions
30.
In various embodiments, the interconnected retainer portions
30 form a
single body
70. As shown, the body
70 includes the end
12,
the interconnected retainer portions
30 and a trailing end
14. The
interconnected retainer portions
30 are sized to fit within the raceway
900 as shown in FIG. 8. Further, the body
70 is flexible between
the interconnected retainer portions
30 allowing the body
70 to negotiate
bends and other obstacles within the raceway
900. In addition, the one-way
locking passages
33 are positioned parallel to one another and have an entrance
37 that generally faces toward the trailing end
14. Such a configuration
lends to allowing the interconnected retainer portions
30 to bypass obstacles
in the raceway
900 as the one-way locking passages
33 open toward
the trailing end
14. Thus, the interconnected retainer portions
30
are able to negotiate a multitude of obstacles due to the flexibility of the interconnected
retainer portions
30 while securing the line
800, or more than one
line
800, in the one-way locking passages
33.
FIG. 3 shows the interconnected retainer portions
30 having convex upper
edges
32. As shown, the convex upper edges
32 are positioned about
the entrances
37 of the one-way locking passages
33. In addition,
the interconnected retainer portions
30 have planar lower edges
34
at exits
39 of the one way-locking passages
33.
As can be seen in FIGS. 4-4B, the one-way locking passages
33 are sized
to receive the line
800. Alternatively, the one-way locking passage
33
may be sized to fit other shaped line for a different application. As the line
800 is received in the one one-way locking passage
33, it is retained
from backing out of the one-way locking passage
33 by teeth
35. The
teeth
35 define the inside of the one-way locking passage
33 and
are positioned to receive the line
800 while preventing the removal of the
line
800 through the entrance
37. Thus, when the line
800
is pushed into the one-way locking passage
33 through the entrance
37,
the teeth
35 lock the line
800 in position in one direction preventing
the line
800 from returning out of the entrance
37.
In various embodiments, the attachment portion
20 is an aperture
24.
As shown in the drawings, the aperture
24 is positioned at the end
12
of the interconnected retainer portions
30. The attachment portion
20
can be releasably attached to an end
707 of a fish tape
700 as illustrated
in FIG. 8. Thus, the attachment portion
20 is adapted to releasably attach
to the end
707 of the fish tape
700 for pulling the line
800
through the raceway
900.
As shown, the interconnected retainer portions
30 allow the weight of
each
line
800 attached to the line puller
10 to be transferred directly
to the fish tape
700. Thus, no one line
800 is additionally burdened
with additional weight from additional lines
800 being attached. See FIG.
8. As such, the interconnected retainer portions
30 may be constructed from
different materials having a sufficient tensile strength to carry multiple lines
800 such as, for example, metals, polymeric materials, etc. Thus, the line
puller
10 generally is formed such that the line puller
10 is capable
of carrying multiple lines
800.
FIGS. 5-7 illustrate various embodiments of a line puller
110 that generally
can be employed to pull a line
800, or more than one line
800, through
a raceway (not shown) in a similar manner as that shown in FIG. 8. The line puller
110 has an attachment portion
120 positioned on an end
112
of the interconnected retainer portions
130. In addition, the interconnected
retainer portions
130 have one-way locking passages
133 through the
interconnected retainer portions
130 that are adapted to retain the line
800. As shown, multiple one-way locking passages
133 are provided
through the interconnected retainer portions
130 for multiple lines
800.
In various embodiments, the interconnected retainer portions
130 are connected
to one another by hinges
177 at a base
134 between retainer portions
130. As shown, the hinges
177 connect the end
112, the interconnected
retainer portions
130 and a trailing end
114. The interconnected
retainer portions
130 are sized to fit within the raceway (not shown), in
a similar manner as that shown in FIG. 8. Further, the hinges
177 provide
pivoting flexibility between the interconnected retainer portions
130 allowing
the line puller
110 to negotiate bends and other obstacles within the raceway.
In addition, the one-way locking passages
133 are positioned parallel to
one another and have an entrance
137 that generally faces toward the trailing
end
114. Such a configuration provides the interconnected retainer portions
130 the ability to bypass obstacles in the raceway as the one-way locking
passages
133 open toward the trailing end
114. Thus, the interconnected
retainer portions
130 are able to negotiate a multitude of obstacles due
to the pivoting flexibility of the interconnected retainer portions
130
while securing the line
800, or more than one line
800, in the interconnected
retainer portions
130.
FIG. 7 shows the interconnected retainer portions
130 having convex upper
edges
132. As shown, the convex upper edges
132 are positioned about
the entrances
137 of the one-way locking passages
133. In addition,
the one-way locking passages
133 are sized to receive the line
800.
Alternatively, the one-way locking passages
133 may be sized to fit other
shaped line for different applications. As the line
800 is received in the
separate one-way locking passages
133, it is retained from backing out of
the one-way locking passages
133 by teeth
135, similar to those illustrated
in FIGS. 4-4B. The teeth
135 define the inside of the one-way locking passages
133 and are positioned to receive the line
800 while preventing the
removal of the line
800 through the entrance
137. Thus, when the
line
800 is pushed into separate one-way locking passages
133 through
the entrance
137, the teeth
135 lock the line
800 in position
in one direction preventing the line
800 from returning out of the entrance
137.
In various embodiments, the attachment portion
120 is an aperture
124.
As shown in the drawings, the aperture
124 is positioned at the end
112
of the interconnected retainer portions
130. Thus, the attachment portion
120 can be releasably attached to an end of a fish tape (not shown), in
a similar manner as that illustrated in FIG. 8, for pulling the line
800
through the raceway (not shown).
The interconnected retainer portions
130 allow the weight of each line
800 attached to the line puller
110 to be transferred directly to
the fish tape (not shown). Thus, no one line
800 is additionally burdened
with additional weight from additional lines being attached. As such, the interconnected
retainer portions
130 may thus be constructed from different materials having
a sufficient tensile strength to carry multiple lines such as, for example, metals,
polymeric materials, etc. Thus, the line puller
110 generally is formed
such that the line puller
110 is capable of carrying multiple lines.
As shown in FIG. 8, the lines
800,
802,
804,
806
are
retained in separate one-way locking passages
33. The lines
800,
802,
804,
806 are pushed through separate one-way locking
passages
33 that are housed in the interconnected retaining portions
30
and thus retained for pulling through the raceway
900. The lines
800,
802,
804,
806 are also secured by tape
600 to each
other near the trailing end
14. Further, the lines
802,
804,
806 may be secured to other interconnected retaining portions
30
by tape
600. However, other ways of securing the lines
800,
802,
804,
806 may be used such as, for example, rubber bands, clips, etc.
In various embodiments, FIG. 8 illustrates the line puller
10 in the raceway
900 as it is pulled in the direction P. As shown, the line puller
10
has the lines
800,
802,
804,
806 retained through separate
one-way locking passages
33 of the interconnected retainer portions
30.
The lines
800,
802,
804,
806 are retained by the line
puller
10 due to the lines
800,
802,
804,
806
being pushed into separate one-way locking passages
33. The line puller
10 is then attached to the end
707 of the fish tape
700 so
that the line puller
10 can pull the lines
800,
802,
804,
806 in the direction P through the raceway
900.
FIG. 9 depicts the removal of the line
800 as it may be accomplished
given the nature of the one-way locking passage
33. To remove the line
800,
the line
800 is severed at
809 before the entrance
37 of the
interconnected retaining portion
30 and then pushed further into the entrance
37. Once an end
808 of the line
800 reaches beyond the planar
lower edges
34, the end
808 may be grasped and pulled out of the
one-way locking passage
33. This will free the line
800 when desired.
As shown in the drawings, the line puller
10 has been depicted as having
generally circular one-way locking passages
33. As well, in one embodiment
the raceway
900 is cylindrical. The one-way locking passages
33 may
be configured in a variety of shapes such that the line puller
10 is capable
of attaching to the configuration of the line
800. Further, the line puller
10 may be configured to permit it to pass through the raceway
900
for which the line puller
10 is shaped to fit within. Other shapes and configurations
of raceways (not shown) may include, but are not limited to ducts, enclosed channels, etc.
Whereas particular embodiments of the invention have been described herein
for the purpose of illustrating the invention and not for the purpose of limiting
the same, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that numerous
variations of the details, materials, configurations and arrangement of parts may
be made within the principle and scope of the invention without departing from
the spirit of the invention. The preceding description, therefore, is not meant
to limit the scope of the invention.
*
