Coding Band, in Particular for Electric Cables, and Coding Method

The present invention relates to a coding band, in particular for electric cables, and to a coding method.

As is known, in the implementation of electrical systems it is essential that all the used electric cables be identified in relation to a system diagram so as to facilitate their installation and subsequent interventions for maintenance.

Electric cables are currently identified by using insulating sheaths with different colorings or by using codes composed of numerals and/or letters which are printed directly on the insulating sheaths of the cables or are associated with a supporting element which engages the cables to be tagged.

These kinds of coding for electric cables have some disadvantages.

If the cables are identified by means of a different coloring of the insulating sheaths, considerable diversification problems, as well as the need to provide a considerable number of mutually different sheaths, are in fact encountered when the system to be implemented is complicated and is composed of a large number of cables.

Though it allows to differently mark a very large number of cables, coding performed by printing numerals or letters directly on the insulating sheath of the cables requires the adoption of specific machines which affect, even to a considerable extent, the overall production cost of said cables.

If the coding is performed by means of numerals and/or letters inserted in a supporting element, generally constituted by a tubular body which is closed or open along its lateral surface and has at least two openings, one for the cable or cables to be tagged and one for accommodating the code which identifies said cable, the code is composed manually by inserting individual numerals or letters in succession in the adapted opening; said numerals or letters are printed on small cards and are placed mutually adjacent according to tables supplied to the operator. In this case, the correctness of the coding depends entirely upon the ability and accuracy of the operator and in any case requires relatively long times for execution.

In any case, the composition of the code, whether printed directly on the cable or composed manually, requires relatively long times and all the information related to the wiring to be performed (cable cutting and installation) must be found by the operator in appropriate tables.

The aim of the present invention is to solve the above described problems by providing a band for coding electric cables or the like which is capable of making extremely simple and rapid the coding operation and the subsequent cable wiring operations.

Within the scope of this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a band which can be used to code cables with the aid of conventional support elements to be associated with the cables.

Another object of the invention is to provide a band for which the possibility of accidental slippages of the codes off the supporting element can be safely eliminated.

Not least object of the invention is to provide a band which allows an extremely precise coding of the cables, eliminating the possibilities of error in composing said codes.

This aim, these objects and others which will become apparent hereinafter are achieved by a coding band, in particular for electric cables, as defined in the appended main claims.

The characteristics and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the band according to the invention, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view of a band according to the invention, from which a strip is removed;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a strip;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a strip of the kind illustrated in FIG. 2 inserted in a supporting element applied to a cable to be marked;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged transverse sectional view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a portion of the band according to the invention, illustrating a variated embodiment of the strips;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of a strip according to the variated embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5;

FIGS. 7 and 8 are perspective views of a strip of the kind illustrated in FIG. 6 inserted in a supporting element associated with a cable to be tagged; and

FIG. 9 is an enlarged transverse sectional view of the cable and of the supporting element illustrated in FIG. 7.

With reference to the above described figures, the band according to the invention, generally indicated by the reference numeral 1, substantially comprises a ribbon-like element 2, preferably made of synthetic material, which has, proximate to its longitudinal edges, a plurality of uniformly spaced holes 3 which are intended to be engaged by the traction elements of a known computer printer. A plurality of strips 4, 5 is defined on the band 1 by prepunching; said strips extend along a direction which is substantially transverse to the longitudinal extension of the band 1, and delimit regions on which identification codes 6 for the cables 7 to be tagged are printed preferably after the prepunching of the strips.

Said strips 4 and 5 can be individually removed from the band 1 and can be inserted in a channel-like seat 8 defined in supporting elements 9, for example of a known kind, to be applied to the cables 7 to be tagged.

More particularly, the band 1 has, on its side which is intended to be printed with the cable identification codes, an inking in a color which optically contrasts with the color of the ink used to print the identification codes.

Each strip 4, 5 is furthermore provided with means for retaining it inside the seat 8 of the supporting element 9.

Said supporting element 9 may be constituted, as illustrated, by a tubular body made of transparent material, in which the seat 8 intended to accommodate the strip and a passage 10 for the cable 7 to be tagged are defined in a longitudinal direction and are separated by a dividing wall 11.

As seen in FIGS. 4 and 9, the dividing wall 11 thereby defines an internal partition 8a of the seat 8 arranged near the cable 7, and correspondingly the seat 8 has an external partition 8b arranged away from the cable 7 opposite to such internal partition.

The strips 4, 5 conveniently have a first portion 4a, 5a where the codes 6 are to be printed and a second portion 4b, 5b which extends up to a longitudinal end of the strip and is narrower than the first portion 4a, 5a so as to extremely facilitate the insertion of the strip inside the seat 8 until the portion 4a, 5a is moved into said seat.

The means for retaining the strip inside the seat 8 conveniently comprises at least one elastically flexible tooth 12 which protrudes in a transverse direction from at least one of the longitudinal edges of at least the first portion 4a and can elastically engage against the inner surface of the seat 8. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4, a plurality of teeth 12 is provided along the longitudinal edges of the first portion 4a and of the second portion 4b substantially for the entire length of the strip.

According to the variated embodiment illustrated in the remaining figures, the retention means are advantageously constituted by at least one pair of transverse projections 13 and 14 which are mutually spaced along the longitudinal edges of the first portion 5a. Said projections 13 and 14 define opposite shoulders 13a and 14a which are mutually spaced by an amount which is at least equal to the length of the supporting element 9 so as to limit, by resting against the longitudinal ends of the supporting element 9, the possibility of longitudinal sliding of the strip inside the seat 8.

At least one intermediate projection 15 is advantageously provided between the pair of projections 13 and 14 and defines a pair of shoulders 15a, 15b which respectively face the shoulders 13a and 14a of the projections 13 and 14.

The intermediate projection 15 is conveniently provided when supporting elements 9 with reduced length are used. In this case, the intermediate projection is intended, as illustrated in particular in FIG. 8, to limit the possibility of longitudinal sliding of the strip inside the seat 8 of the supporting element 9, the limited length whereof is substantially equal to, or smaller than, the distance between the shoulders 14a and 15b. In this case, the identification code is printed on the portion 5a between the projections 14 and 15 and the strip is cut between the intermediate projection 15 and the projection 13.

In the illustrated embodiment, the projections 13, 14 and 15 are provided on both longitudinal edges of the portion 5a.

Besides the region occupied by the strips 4 and 5, the band 1 has at least one region 16 which is intended to receive, again by printing, auxiliary information which facilitates the operation of coding and wiring the cables, such as for example the type and name of the system to be installed, the progressive page number, or other information, as will become apparent hereinafter.

The strips 4 or 5 are furthermore mutually spaced along the longitudinal extension of the band 1, and further auxiliary information which further simplifies the coding operations, such as for example the cross section of the cable to be tagged or other, may be printed in the interspace 17 provided between two adjacent strips.

The use of the band according to the invention is as follows.

The band 1 is placed in a peripheral printer of a computer and, using an adapted program, the codes 6 to be used are printed on the strips 4 and 5, and all the auxiliary information is printed in the regions 16 and 17 of the sheet which are intended to receive it. The band can then be divided into individual numbered sheets which are placed in an adapted known tray. Each strip 4, 5 is partially separated from the band 1 at its narrower portion 4b, 5b and inserted in a first end of the seat 8 of the supporting element 9, which is conveniently shorter and has a width which is substantially equal to or slightly greater than the portion 4a, 5a if the teeth 12 or the projections 13, 14 and 15 are ignored. Then, by pulling portion 4b, 5b out from the opposite end of the seat 8, the larger portion 4a, 5a is inserted in the seat 8. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4, during the insertion of the strip inside the seat 8 the teeth 12 of the strip flex so as to allow the insertion of said strip in the seat 8 and elastically engage against the inner surface of said seat 8 so as to effectively prevent the accidental slippage of the strip out of the seat 8. As to the embodiment of FIGS. 5 to 9, the strip 5 is inserted in the seat 8, causing the flexing of the projections 14a and possibly of the intermediate projection 15, if provided. Once the insertion has occurred, the projection 14 protrudes from the opposite longitudinal end of the seat 8 and at least partially recovers, by elasticity, its original arrangement, and limits, together with the projection 13 arranged at the first longitudinal end of the seat 8, the possibility of accidental slippage of the strip out of the seat 8. The longitudinal sliding of the strip is also limited, in this case, by the elastic engagement of the projection 15, if provided, against the inner surface of the seat 8.

The portion 4b, 5b is subsequently folded and reinserted, in the opposite direction with respect to the previous one, in the seat 8 below the portion 4a, 5a so as to further reduce the risk of an accidental slippage of the strip out of the seat 8.

At this point, the supporting elements 9 are ready to be associated with cables 7 which can be easily and exactly identified by using the auxiliary information printed on the band 1.

It should be noted that the strips 4, 5 can be inserted in the seat 8 of the supporting element 9, keeping them coupled to the band 1 at the end of the portion 4a, 5a, and that they can be removed completely from the band 1 only later on, so as to prevent any possibility of error in coding the cables.

In practice it has been observed that the band according to the invention fully achieves the intended aim, since the coding operation is extremely rapid and precise as the codes can be composed by means of a peripheral printer of a computer.

Another advantage is that the accidental slippage of the strips out of the supporting element during the installation and maintenance operations can be surely avoided.

Not least advantage is that of allowing to memorize and repeat the printing of each individual strip with great precision for a practically unlimited number of times, regardless of the ability of the operator; furthermore, the same program used for coding the cables can perform calculations and groupings which are very useful for determining the required amounts of each component correlated to the wiring operations, both in terms of size assignment and of design of the structures involved.

A further advantage is that of providing the operator, together with the codes with which the cables are to be tagged, with several items of information which make the execution of the work extremely fast, since the band may have printed thereon inscriptions chosen by the user, such as the kind and name of the system, the progressive page number, the cross sections and colors of the cables, their path and their cutting length, the kind and size of the terminals and any other distinguishing and necessary information according to the application.

The band according to the invention, as well as the coding method thus conceived, are susceptible to numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept; all the details may furthermore be replaced with technically equivalent elements.

In practice, the materials employed, so long as compatible with the specific use, as well as the dimensions, may be any according to the requirements and to the state of the art.