Spring assemblies with variable flexilibility for use with push-cables and pipe inspection systems

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9477147-B2
Application number	US-201414271255-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 6, 2014
Priority date	May 7, 2013
Publication date	Oct 25, 2016
Grant date	Oct 25, 2016

Abstract

Push-cables and associated apparatus and systems are disclosed. In one embodiment, a push-cable assembly for use with a pipe inspection system may include a push-cable element having a proximal end and a distal end, with a spring assembly having varying flexibility coupled to or near the distal end. The spring assembly may include an outer coiled spring having a proximal and a distal end, and an inner coiled spring nested at least partially within the outer coiled spring. A camera head and/or other elements such as a cutting or jetting apparatus may be coupled at or near the distal end.

First claim

We claim:

1. A push-cable system, comprising:
a push-cable having a proximal end and a distal end; and
a spring assembly coupled to the distal end of the push-cable, comprising:
an outer coiled spring having a proximal end and a distal end; and
an inner coiled spring nested at least partially within the outer coiled spring;
wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes three or more sections, wherein each of the three or more sections have a different flexibility; and/or
wherein the inner coiled spring is shorter than the outer coiled spring and the inner coiled spring is nested within the outer coiled spring at the proximal end of the outer coiled spring.

2. The push-cable system of claim 1 , further comprising an inner spring mounting element disposed within the outer coil spring, the inner spring mounting element including a threaded element shaped to mate with a corresponding coil threading of the inner coiled spring.

3. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein the coils of the inner coiled spring are wound in a direction opposite that of the coils of the outer coiled spring.

4. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes a first section having two or more successive coils in contact with each other and a second section having a gap between two or more successive coils.

5. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring include as one of the three or more sections a section having gaps between successive coils that increase in length.

6. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes a first section as one of the three or more sections having a first gap between two or more successive coils and a second section as another one of the three or more sections having a second gap, different from the first gap, between two or more successive coils.

7. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes a first section as one of the three or more sections of a first material and a second section as another one of the three or more sections of a second material different from the first material.

8. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes a first section as one of the three or more sections having one or more coils of a first coil diameter and a second section as another one of the three or more sections of one or more coils having a second coil diameter different from the first coil diameter.

9. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes as one of the three or more sections a section having successively increasing coil diameters.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes a first section as one of the three or more sections having one or more coils of a first cross-sectional area and a second section as another one of the three or more sections having one or more coils of a second cross-sectional area different from the first cross-sectional area.

11. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes a section as one of the three or more sections having successively increasing coil cross-sectional areas.

12. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring includes a section as one of the three or more sections having successively varying coil cross-sectional shapes.

13. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein the inner coiled spring has a length of less than half the length of the outer coiled spring.

14. The push-cable system of claim 1 , further comprising one or more connecting wires disposed at least partially within the spring assembly.

15. The push-cable system of claim 14 , wherein the connecting wires include signal wires.

16. The push-cable system of claim 1 , further comprising a transmitter element disposed within the outer coiled spring.

17. The push-cable system of claim 16 , wherein the transmitter element is a sonde.

18. The push-cable system of claim 1 , further comprising a camera head coupled to the distal end of the push-cable.

19. The push-cable system of claim 18 , wherein the camera head includes a camera spring threads feature having a threaded element shaped to mate with a corresponding coil threading of the outer coiled spring.

20. The push-cable system of claim 18 , further comprising a camera guide coupled to the camera head.

21. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein the outer coiled spring includes a first section as one of the three or more sections having a first plurality of coils having a first coil diameter and a second, reduced diameter section as another one of the three or more sections having a second plurality of coils with diameters less than the diameter of the first plurality of coils.

22. The push-cable system of claim 1 , wherein a first section of the three or more sections of one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring has a plurality of coils in a closed coil configuration and a second section of the three or more sections of one or both of the inner coiled spring and the outer coiled spring has a plurality of coils in an open coil configuration.

23. A push-cable system, comprising:
a push-cable having a proximal end and a distal end; and
a spring assembly coupled to the distal end of the push-cable, comprising:
an outer coiled spring having a proximal end and a distal end; and
an inner coiled spring nested at least partially within the outer coiled spring;
wherein the outer coiled spring includes a first section having a first plurality of coils having a first coil diameter and a second, reduced diameter section having a second plurality of coils with diameters less than the diameter of the first plurality of coils; and
wherein the reduced diameter section is less than 10 percent of the outer coiled spring length.

24. A push-cable system, comprising:
a push-cable having a proximal end and a distal end; and
a spring assembly coupled to the distal end of the push-cable, comprising:
an outer coiled spring having a proximal end and a distal end; and
an inner coiled spring nested at least partially within the outer coiled spring;
wherein the outer coiled spring includes a first section having a first plurality of coils having a first coil diameter and a second, reduced diameter section having a second plurality of coils with diameters less than the diameter of the first plurality of coils; and
wherein the inner coiled spring has tapered ends such that coils of one or both of the end windings of the inner coiled spring have diameters greater than the diameter of coils central to the inner coiled spring.

25. A push-cable system, comprising:
a push-cable having a proximal end and a distal end; and
a spring assembly coupled to the distal end of the push-cable, comprising:
an outer coiled spring having a proximal end and a distal end; and
an inner coiled spring nested at least partially within the outer coiled spring;
wherein the coils of a first lengthwise section of one or

Assignees

• Chapman Eric M
• Olsson Mark S
• Kleyn James F
• Seescan Inc

Inventors

• Chapman Eric M
• Olsson Mark S
• Kleyn James F

Classifications

• H04N23/50

  Constructional details · CPC title

• E03F7/12 Primary

  Installations enabling inspection personnel to drive along sewer canals · CPC title

• H04N23/555

  for picking-up images in sites, inaccessible due to their dimensions or hazardous conditions, e.g. endoscopes or borescopes · CPC title

• F16C1/10

  Means for transmitting linear movement in a flexible sheathing, e.g. "Bowden-mechanisms" (guiding-sheathings F16C1/26) · CPC title

• H04N2005/2255

  Electricity · mapped topic