GB2201305A - Cable clamp - Google Patents

Abstract

The cable clamp comprises cable clamping members (2 and 2'), each defining a cable receiving recess (14). A resiliently extensible, cable gripping strap (8) spans each recess (14) and is fixed to one side thereof, being free to slide on the other side of the recess (14), until just before the clamping members (2 and 2') have been fully closed about a cable (C) and latched in their-closed position by latch members (36, 38). Just before the clamping members (2 and 2') reach their fully closed position, teeth (48 and 52) on the straps (8) interengage so that the straps (8) can no longer slide and so expand to accommodate the cable (C). <IMAGE>

Description

CABLE CLAMP This invention relates to a cable clamp comprising a pair of cable clamping members each defining a cable receiving recess and means for securing the clamping members together about the periphery of a cable extending through the cable receiving recesses and about which the cable clamping members have been brought together, to clamp said cable.

The invention is intended to provide such a cable clamp which can be used with cables of a substantial range of cable gauges, which will securely clamp smaller gauge cables and will not damage larger gauge cables or be subjected to undesirably high stresses when used with therewith.

According to the invention, each cable clamping member is provided with a resiliently extensible cable gripping strap, one end portion of which is secured to said member at one side of the cable receiving recess thereof and which strap bridges, or can be flexed so as to bridge, said recess, means being provided for fixing the strap of each cable clamping member at the other side of the cable receiving recess thereof when the cable clamping members have been secured together about the periphery of a cable embraced between said strap, the straps, when bridging the recesses, being capable of slipping relative to the cable clamping members until the cable clamping members have been brought together about the cable to a predetermined extent.

Since the straps can slip relative to the cable clamping members before they have been secured together, the straps will not until then, bear taughtly against the cable, and will thereafter stretch to accommodate the cable.

The said fixing means may comprise teeth on said straps, which teeth interengage just before the clamping members have been secured together.

In order to ensure that the straps are prevented from slipping before the cable clamping members have been brought together to the extent that they are secured together, the other end portion of each strap may be tiltable towards the one end portion of the other strap by engagement between the straps, to cause said teeth to engage.

Each strap may be free excepting at said one end portion which is fixed at said one side of the recess, the strap being capable of being folded over into a channel in the respective clamping member so as to span the recess, and latch means being provided on the strap for retaining it in its folded over position.

The straps may be identical, each strap having at one end a row of raised teeth for cooperation with a row of recessed teeth at the other end of the other strap.

The securing means may comprise interengaging latch arms and latching projections on the clamping members, these being provided on each side of each cable receiving recess.

For the accommodating the largest gauge cables, each clamping member may define a space extending about its recess and communicating therewith for receiving the respective strap.

The invention also relates to a clamping member for a cable clamp according to the invention.

For a better understanding of the invention and to show how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way of example to the accompanying drawings in which: FIGURE 1 is an isometric view of a cable clamp prior to its preparation for use; FIGURE 2 is a similar view to that of Figure 1 but showing the cable clamp when it has been prepared for use; and FIGURES 3 and 4 are plan views, with parts omitted, illustrating two stages in the use of the cable clamp.

As shown in Figure 1, the cable clamp consists of a pair of cable clamping members 2 and 2', respectively, comprising molded, one piece, plastics frames 4 and 4', respectively. Those parts of the clamping members 2 and 2', which are identical, will, in the following description, bear the same reference numerals. The members 2 and 2' are formed integrally with attachment clamps 6 (onty part of each of which is shown) for attaching the members 2 and 2' to respective mating electrical connectors (not shown). Each member 2 comprises a cable gripping strap 8 which is resiliently extensible and is made for example of a robust plastics material, for example nylon.

Each frame 4 and 4' comprises parallel plates 10 and 12; and 10' and 12', respectively, which are connected together centrally by, and are thus bridged, a by semicircular, cross section wall 13 in the form of a half cylinder which defines a cable receiving recess 14, the said plates also being connected together by a pair of forward walls 16 which are proximate to the forward edges 18 and 20, respectively, of the plates 10 and 12 and lie on either side of the recess 14 in tangential relationship with the wall 13. The internal periphery of each wall 13 defines a semicircular strap receiving groove 22 extending about the periphery of the recess 14 and communicating therewith.

Rudimentary forward portions 24 and 26 of the plates 10 and 12 and 10' and 12', respectively, cooperate with the walls 16, to define strap receiving channels 28 disposed on either side of the recess 14 and being tangential with the groove 22. Thus each channel 28, which is open at both ends, communicates with an end 30 of the semicircular recess 14. The plate 10 of the frame 4 is formed with a notch 32 on either side of the recess 14, which notch opens into the forward edge 18 of the plate 10.

Each notch 32 is spanned by a latching projection 36 at its forward end. The plate 12 is formed with identical notches 32, and latching projections (not shown) which are identical with the latching projections 36. The frame 4' differs from the frame 4 in that its plates 10' and 12', instead of being formed with the notches 32, are each provided with a pair of latch arms 38 (only one pair of which is shown), one on each side of the recess 14 of the frame 4', and which project beyond the forward edges of the plates 10' and 12' thereof, each for latching engagement with a respective latching projection 36 of the frame 4.

Each strap 8 has qne end portion 40 secured, for example by bonding, to the wall 16 in the channel 28 on one side of the recess 14. In the case of the frame 4, the end portion 40 of the strap 8 is bonded to the right hand, as seen in Figure 1, wall 16 and in the case of the frame 4', said portion 40 is bonded to the left had, as seen in Figure 1, wall 16. Each strap end portion 40 is formed with a rectangular latching opening 42 which communicates with a rectangular, through opening 44 in the wall portion 16, the strap 8 being formed at a position back from the opening 42, with a rectangular latching stud 46 dimensioned to be force fitted into the opening 42 as will be described below.On its opposite face to that on which the projection 46 is formed, each strap 8 is provided with a row of raised teeth 48 at a position approximately opposite to the projection 46, the teeth 48 being inclined in a direction towards the frame 4 or 4' as the case may be. The opposite end portion 52 of each strap 8 is formed on the same face as that on which the raised teeth 48 are formed, with a row of recessed teeth 50 extending from the end of the strap remote from the frame 4 or 4', as the case may be, there towards.

In order to prepare the cable clamp for use, each strap 8 is doubled over at a fold line F (Figure 1) so that the free end portion 52 of the strap 8 is received in the channel 28 on the opposite side of the recess 14 which is thereby spanned by the strap 8 as shown in Figure 2, so that the teeth 48 project outwardly-from one side of the recess 14, and the teeth 50 are exposed on the other side of the recess 14. As the strap 8 is being doubled over, the stud 46 engages in the corresponding opening 42, so that the strap 8 is retained in its doubled over position. Said channel 28 is so dimensioned that the free end portion 52 is slidable there along.

Reference will now be made to Figures 3 and 4, which are diagrammatic, and in which the latch means 36, 38 are not shown. In use of the cable clamp, the clamping members 2 and 2' are brought together about a multistranded electrical cable C, extending, for example, from said mating connectors, until the straps 8 of the clamping members are engaged with the periphery of the cable C as shown in Figure 3. The clamping members 2 and 2' are then fully closed to the position in which they are shown in Figure 4, in which the latch arms 38 latchingly interengage with the latching projections 36 so as to secure the clamping members 2 and 2' firmly together about the cable C.

During the movement of closure of the members 4 and 4', the end portions 52 of the straps 8 slide relative to the members 4 and 4' until at least one of the raised teeth 48 of each strap 8 engages between a pair of the recessed teeth 50 of the other strap 8 (Figure 4). This occurs shortly before the clamping members 2 and 2' have reached their fully closed position, since as shown in Figure 3, the portion 52 of each strap 8 tilts forwardly towards the teeth 48 of the other strap 8 as the straps 8 engage the cable C. After the portions 52 of the straps 8 have thus been prevented from sliding, the straps 8 resiliently extend so as to accommodate themselves to the gauge of the cable C.

The cable C is thereby securely gripped by the straps 8 between which the cable C extends, so that the cable is firmly clamped between the clamping members 2 and 2'.

Where the cable is of a gauge large enough to fill the recesses 14, the straps are accommodated in the grooves 22.

The two frames may, for example, be identical, each being provided with two latch arms and two latching projections.

Claims (12)

CLAIMS:

1. A cable clamp comprising a pair of cable clamping members each defining a cable receiving recess, and means for securing the clamping members together about the periphery of a cable extending through the cable receiving recesses and about which the cable clamping members have been brought together; to clamp said cable, wherein each cable clamping member is provided with a resiliently extensible cable gripping strap, one end portion of which is secured to said clamping member at one side of the cable receiving recess thereof and which strap bridges, or can be flexed so as to bridge, said recess, means being provided for fixing the strap of each cable clamping member at the other side of the cable receiving recess thereof when the cable clamping members have been secured together about the periphery of a cable between said straps, the straps, when bridging the recesses, being capable of slipping relative to the cable clamping members until the cable clamping members have been brought together about the cable to a predetermined extent.

2. A cable clamp as claimed in claim 1, wherein said fixing means comprise cooperating teeth on said straps, which teeth interengage just before the clamping members have been secured together.

3. A cable clamp as claimed in claim 2, wherein the other end portion of each strap is tiltable towards the one end portion of the other strap by engagement between the straps and the cable, to cause said teeth to engage.

4. A cable clamp as claimed in claim 2, wherein raised teeth are provided on said one end portion of each strap, and recessed teeth, between which the raised teeth of the other strap are engageable, are provided on the opposite end portion of each strap.

5. A cable clamp as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein a free end portion of each strap is slidable in a channel defined by the respective clamping member, on said other side of its recess.

6. A cable clamp as claimed in claim 5, wherein each cable clamping member comprises a pair of spaced, superposed, plates bridged by a semi-cylindrical wall defining said recess, said plates being connected together on each side thereof by a further wall, one of which further walls cooperates with said plates to define said channel and the other of which further walls cooperates with said plates to define a further channel receiving said one end portion of the strap.

7. A cable clamp as claimed in claim 6, wherein each recess is semicircular, and each channel is tangential to said recess.

8. A cable clamp as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said means for securing said clamping members together comprises cooperating latch arms and latching projections on the clamping members, which are positioned on either side of said recesses.

9. A cable clamp as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein each strap can be doubled over so as to span the recess of its clamping member, means being provided for retaining the strap in its doubled over position.

10. A cable clamping member for a cable clamp as claimed in any one of the preceding claims.

11. A cable clamp substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

12. A cable clamping member substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.