Barrel for Storing Conductors and Method of Use

Abstract

A wire feeding barrel configured to reduce the risk of damage to the wire posed by a looping wire as the wire is pulled from the barrel and methods for using the same are disclosed herein. The wire feeding barrel may comprise an outer barrel for storing at least one wire and an extension member or attachment configured to extend from and/or be affixed at an opening of the outer barrel from which the wire is fed. The extension member or attachment may be configured to prevent the wire from looping as the wire is fed from the outer barrel. In some embodiments, the wire may include sequential footage markers configured to indicate a length of wire pulled from the wire feeding barrel and/or a length of wire remaining in the wire feeding barrel.

Description

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present invention relates to a barrel for storing or transporting wires and, more particularly, to a barrel for storing conductors to reduce the risk of damage to the wire and a likelihood of tangles when pulling the conductors at a job site.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Barrels (or other containers) are frequently used to store various types of wires, such as conductors and/or other similar materials. Wire feeding guides are frequently used on such barrels to feed the wires from the barrel into, for example, a destination point (such as a conduit at a job site) or another container for storage or transport. However, the wire has a tendency to get caught or looped when the wire is pulled or fed from the barrel. For example, a “looping wire” may be formed when feeding/pulling the wire from the wire barrel due to various characteristics of the wire or the manner in which it is stored in the barrel, such as its flexibility, diameter, elongation, lay length in the case of stranded wires, the radius at which the wire is put into the barrel, and/or other characteristics of the wire or the manner in which it is stored. Such a looping wire can exert extreme stress on the wire and, in some cases, even cause the wire to break. Wire feeding guides are used to control the looping wire that forms when wire is fed from the barrel in order to minimize any damage resulting from wire tangling. When a looping wire forms within or adjacent to the wire barrel, the looping wire, caused by material characteristics and/or diameter of the wire, may exert a force on the wire that causes the wire to move across an upper surface of the wire barrel and become misaligned with the wire feed guide.

To ensure a wire is properly aligned for feeding through a wire feed guide and that there are no looping or tangling wires, an operator must typically monitor the feeding of the wire from the barrel throughout the process. Conventional operation for feeding wire from a wire barrel can result in the wire looping/tangling from the wire barrel. This can result in a substantial loss of operation time due to the time required to monitor and address issues with the wire within, or as it is pulled from, the barrel. There is a need for an improved wire feeding guides or apparatus that may reduce the risk of damage to the wire and a likelihood of tangles, while also enabling a wire to be pulled or fed from a barrel used to store and/or transport the wire with greater speed and/or efficiency.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of this disclosure relate to a barrel for storing conductors (or other wires) configured to reduce the risk of damage to the wire posed by a looping wire as the wire is pulled from the barrel. In various embodiments, a wire feeding barrel is disclosed comprising an outer barrel for storing at least one wire and an extension member or attachment configured to extend from and/or be affixed at an opening of the outer barrel from which the wire is fed. In various embodiments, the extension member or attachment may be configured to prevent the wire from looping as the wire is fed from the outer barrel. In various embodiments, the wire feeding barrel may also include a wire exiting guide that is affixed at the opening of the outer barrel and configured to guide a wire stored within the outer barrel as the wire is fed from the outer barrel. In such embodiments, the extension member or attachment may be configured to prevent the wire stored within the outer barrel from looping between the opening of the outer barrel and a ring of the wire exiting guide through which the wire is fed (or pulled). In various embodiments, the wire may include sequential footage markers configured to indicate a length of wire pulled from the wire feeding barrel and/or a length of wire remaining in the wire feeding barrel.

According to one aspect of the invention, the wire feeding barrel may include an extension member comprising an inner tube affixed to the outer barrel and an extending member configured to extend from the inner tube. In various embodiments, the inner tube may be included within a cavity of the outer barrel. In various embodiments, the extending member is configured to extend beyond the opening of the outer barrel on a top side of the outer barrel. In some embodiments, the extending member may be configured to retract entirely the outer barrel. In some embodiments, the extending member may comprise a first portion and one or more additional portions telescopingly engaged with the first portion. In various embodiments, the extending member may be slidably movable with respect to the inner tube (and the outer barrel) between an open (or extended) position and a closed (or retracted) position. In some embodiments, the extending member may be stored within the outer barrel when in a retracted position. In some embodiments, the extending member consists of a corrugated cardboard composite material.

According to another aspect of the invention, wire feeding barrel may include one or more devices configured to deliver pre-programmed control operations at one of the sequential footage markings. In some embodiments, the pre-programmed control operations may include at least one of cutting and stripping the wire at one of the sequential footage markings. In various embodiments, the wire feeding barrel may be configured to provide access via both ends of the barrel and/or to both ends of the wire. In some embodiments, wire feeding barrel may be configured to store multiple-conductor wires.

According to another aspect of the invention, methods for using an wire feeding barrel to provide a wire are described herein. In various embodiments, such methods may include extending a extending member away from the inner tube. The wire may then be fed using the extending member into a destination point from the wire feeding barrel. Subsequently, the wire may be monitored at the extending member from the extendable wire feeding barrel in order to determine whether a looping wire forms at any point as the wire is fed from the extendable wire feeding barrel. If it determined that a looping wire forms or is forming (or that there is tangling problem or some other issue), the extending member may be adjusted accordingly.

These and other objects, features, and characteristics of the systems and/or methods disclosed herein, as well as the methods of operation and functions of the related elements of structure and the combination thereof, will become more apparent upon consideration of the following description and the appended claims with reference to the accompanying drawings, all of which form a part of this specification, wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding parts in the various figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. As used in the specification and in the claims, the singular form of “a”, “an”, and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is illustrated by way of example and not limited in the accompanying figures in which like reference numerals indicate similar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 depicts a perspective view of an example extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein;

FIG. 2A depicts a perspective view of an example extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein;

FIGS. 2B-D depict various cross-sectional views of an example extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein;

FIG. 3 depicts a cross-sectional view of an example extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein;

FIGS. 4A-B depict other cross-sectional views of an example extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein;

FIGS. 5A-C depict various views of an example extendable insert, according to one or more aspects described herein;

FIG. 6 depicts a flow diagram of an example method for using an extendable wire feeding barrel mounted to a wire barrel without removing the extendable wire feeding barrel from the wire barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein;

FIG. 7A depicts a perspective view of an example wire with sequential footage markings for use with an extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein; and

FIG. 7B depicts a perspective view of an example multiple-conductor wire with sequential footage markings for use with an extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein.

These drawings are provided for purposes of illustration only and merely depict typical or example embodiments. These drawings are provided to facilitate the reader's understanding and shall not be considered limiting of the breadth, scope, or applicability of the disclosure. For clarity and ease of illustration, these drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description of various examples of the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustration various example structures, systems, and steps in which aspects of the invention may be practiced. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the invention may be employed and the present invention is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. It is to be understood that other specific arrangements of parts, structures, example devices, systems, and steps may be utilized, and structural and functional modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Also, while the terms “top,” “bottom,” “front,” “back,” “side,” and the like may be used in this specification to describe various example features and elements of the invention, these terms are used herein as a matter of convenience, e.g., based on the example orientations shown in the figures. Nothing in this specification should be construed as requiring a specific three-dimensional orientation of structures in order to fall within the scope of this invention.

The invention described herein relates to an extendable wire feeding barrel and methods of using an extendable wire feeding barrel that prevents a wire from moving across and keeps the wire moving in a similar manner without looping until it reaches to within a desired proximity of a top of a wire exiting guide 300. FIG. 1 depicts a perspective view of extendable wire feeding barrel 100, according to one or more aspects described herein. Although referred to herein simply as “wire” for convenience, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be used to store various types of wire or similar materials and feed the same using the techniques described herein. For example, in various implementations, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be used to store and feed both bare and insulated wires, welding wire, optic fiber, low voltage wire, cords, MC wire, non-metal wire such as fiber or string, and/or other products having a similar shape. In an example implementation, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be used to store and feed conductor wire. In some embodiments, single wires (or conductors) may be stored and fed from extendable wire feeding barrel 100. In other embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be used to stored and feed multiple wires (or conductors). In various embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may include an outer barrel 120, an extension member 130, a wire exiting guide 300, and/or one or more other components. In various embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be configured to allow improved control of a wire feeding process without monitoring a feeding wire when the wire is fed into the destination point (e.g., conduit at the job site) from a wire barrel. Accordingly, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be designed to reduce the likelihood of tangles and any associated damage therefrom, thereby minimizing the time, cost, and energy needed at the job site.

Extension member 130 may be configured to minimize potential damage to wire stored in extendable wire feeding barrel 100 by controlling where kinks or twists occur in a wire (e.g., where between a top side of outer barrel 120 and wire exiting guide 300 or after passing through wire exiting guide 300). In many respects, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 and extension member 130 are configured to delay position at which kinks or twists occur in a wire being fed from extendable wire feeding barrel 100 to minimize damage to the wire. In various embodiments, extension member 130 may comprise an attachment affixed or positioned on top of or over the outside of a top side of outer barrel 120. For example, extension member 130 may comprise an attachment positioned proximate to an opening of outer barrel 120 at a top side of outer barrel 120 and configured to facilitate feeding wire via the opening of outer barrel 120. In various embodiments, extension member 130 may comprise or include an inner tube 132 from which an extending member 134 may extend from within outer barrel 120 via the opening of outer barrel 120 at a top side of outer barrel 120. In various embodiments, inner tube 132 may be included within a cavity of outer barrel 120. In various embodiments, extending member 134 may be configured to extend beyond an opening of the outer barrel on a top side of the outer barrel.

For example, FIG. 2A depicts a perspective view of extendable wire feeding barrel 100 with an extension member 130 in a retracted position within outer barrel 120, according to one or more aspects described herein. In various embodiments, extension member 130 may be mated to and received within an opening of outer barrel 120. As depicted in FIG. 2A, in various embodiments, extension member 130 may comprise an inner tube 132 and an extending member 134 that extends upwards from the inner tube 132. For example, as depicted in FIG. 2A, extending member 134 may be configured to telescopingly extend away from inner tube 132 along an axis (“A”) perpendicular to a bottom surface of the outer barrel 120. In various embodiments, extension member 130 may be slidably movable with respect to inner tube 132 (and outer barrel 120) between an open (or extended) position (when the wire is pulled or in use) and a closed (or retracted) position (when the wire barrel is not in use). In various embodiments, extending member 134 may be configured to retract entirely within the outer barrel 120. Thus, when in a retracted position, extending member 134 may be configured to be stored within outer barrel 120 (e.g., when a lid is placed on outer barrel 120 or outer barrel 120 is otherwise sealed). In various embodiments, extension member 130 and/or any of its components may have a circular shape, a rounded shape, a hexagonal shape, a multi-sided tube (e.g., a 10-sided tube), and/or any other shape without departing from the scope of the present invention.

In some embodiments, the extending member 134 may be integrated into the inner tube 132 of the extension member 130 to allow improved control of a wire feeding process without monitoring a feeding wire when the wire is fed into the destination point (e.g., conduit at the job site) from a wire barrel.

In various embodiments, outer barrel 120 of extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be substantially cylindrical with a base portion at the bottom. As described herein, in various embodiments, outer barrel 120 may include at least side walls 122 and a base portion 124. In various embodiments, inner tube 132 may be affixed to the base portion 124 of the outer barrel 120 in any configuration now known or future developed without departing from the scope of the invention described herein.

In various embodiments, when extending member 134 extends away from inner tube 132 along an axis (“A”) perpendicular to a bottom surface of the outer barrel 120, extending member 134 prevents a wire from moving across and keeps the wire moving in a similar manner without looping until it reaches to within a desired proximity of a top of a wire exiting guide 300. In order to control the looping wire that forms when wire is fed from the barrel, in various embodiments, extending member 134 may extend away from inner tube 132 with an angle θ) along an axis (“A”) perpendicular to a top surface 126 of the outer barrel 120. For example, FIGS. 2B-D depict various cross-sectional views of extendable wire feeding barrel 100, according to one or more aspects described herein. In some embodiments, as depicted in FIG. 2B, extending member 134 may extend away from inner tube 132 perpendicular to a top surface 126 of the outer barrel 120. In other embodiments, as depicted in FIG. 2C, extending member 134 may extend away from inner tube 132 inwardly towards an axis (“A”). In alternative embodiments, as depicted in FIG. 2D, extending member 134 may extend away from inner tube 132 outwardly, i.e., away from an axis (“A”).

In some embodiments, in order to control the looping wire that forms when wire is fed from the barrel and provide conductors with a pre-determined or pulling/payout away from barrel, extending member 134 may be made of material that provides pre-determined payout characteristics (for example, pulling tension of 12 lbs.). In some embodiments, extending member 134 may be a corrugated sheet. For example, extending member 134 may be a corrugated cardboard composite used in various packaging applications. In other embodiments, extending member 134 may comprise a substantially planar sheet having a length, a width and an exterior surface pattern 138 disposed therein. For example, the exterior surface pattern 138 including grooves alternating with flat portion may be provided on a sheet material to help increase/decrease friction with the extending member 134 until it reaches to within a desired proximity of a top of a wire exiting guide 300. In alternative embodiments, extending member 134 may be similar material, e.g., fiber or polymeric material, of the outer barrel 120.

FIG. 3 depicts a cross-sectional view of extendable wire feeding barrel 100 of FIG. 1. In various embodiments, an interior of extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may have a circular shape (e.g., when viewed from a vertical cross-sectional view shown in FIG. 3). In other embodiments, however, the interior of extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be a non-circular, rectangular, polygonal, triangular, oval, or any other combination of appropriate shapes without departing from the scope of the invention described herein.

In various embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may include a wire exiting guide 300 (as also shown in FIG. 1) that may be selectively attached to a top side of outer barrel 120 using one or more mounting fasteners 302. The wire exiting guide 300 may be configured to include supporting legs 303 and a wire path through ring 304. For example, FIG. 3 depicts an embodiment of extendable wire feeding barrel 100 in which a tripod 303 may be attached to outer barrel 120 using three supporting legs 303a, 303b, and 303c and three mounting fasteners 302a 302b, and 302c. In various embodiments, supporting legs 303 may be of any appropriate shape, size, type, or configuration, whereby it may extend at an appropriate height or an angle. It is to be understood, however, that the one or more mounting fasteners 302 may comprise one or more screws, bolts, and/or any other type of fastener now known or future developed without departing from the scope of the invention described herein.

FIGS. 4A-B depict other cross-sectional views of an example extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein. As depicted in FIG. 4A, in various embodiments, extending member 134 may be configured to telescopingly extend away from inner tube 132 along an axis (“A”) perpendicular to a bottom surface of the outer barrel 120. In various embodiments, extension member 130 may be slidably movable with respect to outer barrel 120 between an open (or extended) position (when the wire is pulled or in use) and a closed (or retracted) position (when the wire barrel is not in use).

As depicted in FIG. 4B, in some embodiments, extending member 134 may include a first portion (e.g., a first tube) and a second portion (e.g., a second tube) that may be telescopingly engaged with the first portion. A telescoping mechanism may be operatively coupled with the first and second portions, wherein the telescoping mechanism telescopingly positions the first portion relative to the second portion. The first portion and second portion may be adjustable relative to one another between a retracted position and an extended portion.

In other embodiments, extending member 134 may include any suitable number of portions. In various embodiments, extending member 134 may include a first portion and two or more portions that may be telescopingly engaged with the first portion. For example, as depicted in FIG. 4B, the extending member 134 may include five extending members 134 including 134a, 134b, 134c, 134d, and 134e. In some embodiments, the extending member 134 may be equally spaced apart in length. In other embodiments, the extending member 134 may be spaced differently apart in length. A telescoping mechanism may be operatively coupled with the first and the two or more portions, wherein the telescoping mechanism telescopingly positions the first portion relative to the two or more portions. The first portion and the two or more portions may be adjustable relative to themselves between a retracted position and an extended portion.

In various embodiments, extending member 134 may be of any appropriate shape, size, type or configuration, whereby it may extend at an appropriate height between closed/retracted position and fully extended position. By way of a non-limiting example, the extending member 134 may extend from a top portion of the inner tube 132 towards a wire path through ring 304 (shown in FIG. 3) of a wire exiting guide 300 at an appropriate height, such as, by way of a non-limiting example, between 1 and 30 inches relative to the top portion of the inner tube 132. Although, the present teachings are not limited to these angles. The teachings contemplate any appropriate height in length.

In various embodiments, when the wire barrel is not in use, extending member 134 may be configured to be collapsible or reduced in length, so that extending member 134 may be stored back within the inner tube 132 as shown in FIG. 4A. In various embodiments, extending member 134 may be extended and retracted between the open (or extended) position (when the wire is pulled or in use) and the closed (or retracted) position (when the wire barrel is not in use) manually.

In some embodiments, extending member 134 may be secured in the closed/retracted position (or in the open position) via a biasing component. In various implementations, the biasing component may comprise a spring. For example, the biasing component may comprise a wave spring, a compression force spring, or any other suitable type of spring. In various embodiments, the extending member 134 may include a locking portion configured to receive any appropriate biasing or locking components. In some embodiments, the biasing component may be adjusted to maintain a predetermined maximum and/or minimum length within the wire barrel. In some embodiments, the locking portion of extending member 134 may be mated to biasing or locking components using any appropriate configuration. In some embodiments, extending member 134 may include a groove, notch, or other type of depression, when extendable wire feeding barrel 100 is in a closed/retracted position. In some embodiments, extending member 134 may be secured in the closed/retracted position (or in the open position) via a gasket, a magnet, hook and loop fasteners, and/or other mechanisms used to secure extending member 134 instead of or in addition to the biasing component described herein.

FIGS. 5A-C depict various top views of an example extendable insert, according to one or more aspects described herein. In various embodiments, an extendable insert 200 that may be located proximate or adjacent to the inner tube 132 of the extendable wire feeding barrel 100. As described herein, extendable insert 200 may be configured to allow improved control of a wire feeding process without requiring monitoring of the wire when the wire is fed into the destination point (e.g., a conduit at the job site) from a wire barrel.

In various embodiments, as depicted in FIG. 5A, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may include an extendable insert 200. In some embodiments, the extendable insert 200 may be located proximate or adjacent to the beginning of an top portion 136 of inner tube 132. In various embodiments, the extendable insert 200 may be extending radially and upwardly away from inner tube 132 along a line B-B′ perpendicular to a bottom surface of the outer barrel 120. In some embodiments, extendable insert 200 may be stored within the inner tube 132. In other embodiments, extendable insert 200 may be stored separately.

As depicted in FIG. 5B, in some embodiments, the extendable insert 200a may comprise a frustoconical opening at one or both ends (e.g., the end terminating at the interior cavity of inner tube 132. For example, a diameter 202 of one end of extendable insert 200a may be a different diameter 204 of the other end of extendable insert 200a along a line B-B′. In some embodiments, extendable insert 200a may include a surface profile to enhance the wire feeding from the wire barrel (or container). In such embodiments, the surface profile may prevent a wire from moving across the opening at the top of the barrel and keep the wire moving in a similar manner without looping until it is proximate to a top of a wire exiting guide 300, thereby solving the wire tangling issue that arises when pulling wire from conventional wire barrels (or containers). As depicted in FIG. 5C, in various embodiments, when the wire barrel is not in use, extendable insert 200a may be configured to be collapsible or reduced in length, so that extendable insert 200a may be stored back within the inner tube 132.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a process 600 for using (or testing) an extendable wire feeding barrel, according to one or more aspects described herein. The operations of process 600 presented below are intended to be illustrative and, as such, should not be viewed as limiting. In some implementations, process 600 may be accomplished with one or more additional operations not described, and/or without one or more of the operations discussed. In some implementations, two or more of the operations of process 600 may occur substantially simultaneously. The described operations may be accomplished using some or all of the components described in detail above with respect to extendable wire feeding barrel 100.

In an operation 602, process 600 may include extending an extending member away from inner tube. For example, the extending member may be telescopingly extended away from inner tube along an axis (“A” shown in FIG. 2A) perpendicular to a bottom surface of the outer barrel as described herein. In an operation 604, process 600 may include feeding wire using the extending member into the destination point (e.g., a conduit at the job site) from a wire barrel. In an operation 606, process 600 may include monitoring wire at the extending member from a wire barrel. In some implementations, process 600 may be accomplished with one or more additional operations using a wire 402 including a marker 404a, 404b, or 404c, as discussed further herein with respect to FIG. 7A. For example, as depicted in FIG. 7A, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be used to feed and cut conductor wire at one or more designated points, such as at one of markers 404a, 404b, and 404c. In other implementations, process 600 may include monitoring tension on a designated point of wire 402. For example, process 600 may include detecting tension on a designated point (such as at markers 404a, 404b, or 404c) of wire 402 based on pulling force measured by a tension meter 410. In an operation 608, process 600 may include determining whether looping wire appear at any of the interior cavity located proximate or adjacent to the extending member of the extendable wire feeding barrel. The presence of looping wire formed at any of the interior cavity would indicate that wire is about to tangle at the wire exiting guide. In an operation 610, process 600 may include retracting the extending member back to inner tube when the job is completed based on the determination that there is no tangling problem because no looping wire formed at any of the interior cavity located proximate or adjacent to the extending member of the extendable wire feeding barrel. In an operation 612, process 600 may include adjusting (e.g., increase a height or a length of) the extending member away from inner tube based on the determination that there is a tangling problem (or that wire is about to tangle at the wire exiting guide) because looping wire formed above any of the interior cavity located proximate or adjacent to the extending member of the extendable wire feeding barrel. After each attempt to repair the adjusting (e.g., increase a height or a length of) the extending member, at least operations 606 and 608 may be repeated until no looping wire occurs.

FIG. 7A depicts a perspective view of an example wire 402 with sequential footage markings for use with extendable wire feeding barrel 100, according to one or more aspects described herein. Although referred to herein simply as “wire” for convenience, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be used to store various types of wire that include sequential footage markings (e.g., such as markers 404a, 404b, and 404c) or similar materials and feed the same using the techniques described herein. For example, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be used to store and feed a wire 402 that comprises sequential markers at predefined intervals, such as markers indicating 12,464 feet, 12,465 feet, 12,466 feet, etc., printed on the wire, as depicted in FIG. 7A. In an example implementation, sequential footage markers 404a, 404b, and 404c on wire 402 may allow for quick identification of an accurate length and remaining length of the wire, such that an operator may identify a length of wire on the original reel at a glance, and cut conductor wire at a designated point such as at one of markers 404a, 404b, and 404c. In other example implementations, sequential footage markers 404a, 404b, and 404c on wire 402 may allow for improved wire management such as a precise inventory and/or cost control.

In some embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may further include a wire monitoring system 400 comprising wire 402 including markers 404a, 404b, and 404c and one or more devices or sensors 406 configured to monitor an area surrounding a wire 402, detect markers 404a, 404b, and/or 404c on wire 402, and provide improved wire management. In such embodiments, the one or more devices or sensors 406 of wire monitoring system 400 may be selectively attached to one or more components of an extendable wire feeding barrel 100 at a plurality of locations. In some embodiments, the devices and/or sensors 406 of wire monitoring system 400 may be selectively attached on the barrel to enable wire monitoring system 400 to effectively monitor the area surrounding the wire and detect, for example, sequential footage marker(s) and/or other aspects of the wire, the barrel, or one its components. In other embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may further include one or more devices 408 configured to deliver pre-programmed control operation(s) at a designated point, such as at one of sequential footage markers 404a, 404b, and 404c.

In some embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be configured to allow improved control of a wire cutting process by monitoring a marker of a feeding wire using the one or more devices or sensors 406, when the wire is fed into the destination point (e.g., conduit at the job site) from a wire barrel. For example, wire monitoring system 400 may include one or more vision systems configured to identify a marker on a wire indicating a specific footage (or other measurement), such that one or more pre-programmed control operations (e.g., cutting or stripping sequences and/or parameters) may be automatically initiated by a controller connected to one or more device 408. For example, one or more cutting devices may be configured to automatically cut conductor wire at a designated point, such as at one of markers 404a, 404b, and 404c, according to cutting sequence(s) and/or other parameters provided to the controller. As another example, one or more striping devices may be configured to automatically strip conductor jacket(s) at a designated point, such as at one of markers 404a, 404b, and 404c, according to striping sequence(s) and/or other parameters provided to the controller.

In some embodiments, wire monitoring system 400 may further comprise wire 402 including a marker 404a, 404b, or 404c and one or more measuring devices 410 configured to monitor tension onto a wire 402, detect marker 404a, 404b, or 404c of the wire, and provide improved wire management. For example, wire monitoring system 400 may monitor tension on a designated point (such as marker 404a, 404b, or 404c) of wire 402 based on pulling force (e.g., 37.5 newton) measured by a tension meter 410.

FIG. 7B depicts a perspective view of a multiple-conductor wire 412 with sequential footage markings for use with extendable wire feeding barrel 100, according to one or more aspects described herein. In some embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may be configured to store a multiple-conductor wire 412 (including conductors 412a, 412b, 412c, and 412d), in which sequential footage markings 404a, 404b, or 404c may be on one conductor of multiple-conductor wire 412 (e.g., on only conductor 412a, as depicted in FIG. 7B). In other embodiments, sequential footage markings may provided on some but not all of the conductors of a multiple-conductor wire. In other embodiments, sequential footage markings may provided on all of the conductors of a multiple-conductor wire.

In some embodiments, a separator ring 414 may be utilized on one conductor of a multiple-conductor wire (e.g., such as multiple-conductor wire 412) to prevent wire from moving across and keep the wire moving in a similar manner without looping until it reaches to within a desired proximity of a top of a wire exiting guide 300. In such embodiments, methods described herein may further include inserting a separator ring on one conductor of the multiple-conductor wire before (prior to) extending an extending member away from inner tube (e.g., operation 602 in process 600).

In various embodiments, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may store various types of wire or similar materials and provide access to both wire ends using the techniques described herein. For example, in some implementations, extendable wire feeding barrel 100 may provide access via both a top and bottom portion of extendable wire feeding barrel 100.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components set forth herein. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or being carried out in various ways. Variations and modifications of the foregoing are within the scope of the present invention. It should be understood that the invention disclosed and defined herein extends to all alternative combinations of two or more of the individual features mentioned or evident from the text and/or drawings. All of these different combinations constitute various alternative aspects of the present invention. The embodiments described herein explain the best modes known for practicing the invention and will enable others skilled in the art to utilize the invention.

While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by this description.

Claims

1. A wire feeding barrel comprising: an outer barrel for storing at least one wire;an extension member configured to extend from an opening of the outer barrel; anda wire exiting guide affixed at the opening of the outer barrel and configured to guide a wire stored within the outer barrel as the wire is fed from the outer barrel,wherein the extending member prevents the wire from looping as the wire is fed from the outer barrel.

2. The wire feeding barrel of claim 1, wherein the extension member comprises an inner tube affixed to the outer barrel and an extending member configured to extend from the inner tube.

3. The wire feeding barrel of claim 2, wherein the inner tube is included within a cavity of the outer barrel.

4. The wire feeding barrel of claim 2, wherein the extending member is configured to extend beyond the opening of the outer barrel on a top side of the outer barrel.

5. The wire feeding barrel of claim 4, wherein the extending member may be configured to retract entirely within the outer barrel.

6. The wire feeding barrel of claim 2, wherein the extending member comprises a first portion and one or more additional portions telescopingly engaged with the first portion.

7. The wire feeding barrel of claim 1, wherein the extending member prevents the wire stored within the outer barrel from looping between the opening of the outer barrel and a ring of the wire exiting guide.

8. The wire feeding barrel of claim 1, wherein the wire includes sequential footage markers configured to indicate a length of wire pulled from the wire feeding barrel and/or a length of wire remaining in the wire feeding barrel.

9. The wire feeding barrel of claim 1, wherein the extending member is configured to be slidably movable with respect to the inner tube between an extended position and a retracted position.

10. The wire feeding barrel of claim 9, wherein the extending member may be stored within the outer barrel when in a retracted position.

11. The wire feeding barrel of claim 1, wherein the extending member consists of a corrugated cardboard composite material.

12. A wire feeding barrel comprising: an outer barrel for storing at least one wire;an attachment configured to be affixed an opening of the outer barrel;a wire exiting guide affixed at the opening of the outer barrel and configured to guide a wire stored within the outer barrel as the wire is fed from the outer barrel,wherein the attachment prevents the wire from looping as the wire is fed from the outer barrel.

13. The wire feeding barrel of claim 12, wherein the attachment is positioned on top or over a top side of the outer barrel proximate to the opening of the outer barrel.

14. The wire feeding barrel of claim 12, wherein the attachment prevents the wire stored within the outer barrel from looping between the opening of the outer barrel and a ring of the wire exiting guide.

15. The wire feeding barrel of claim 12, wherein the wire includes sequential footage markers configured to indicate a length of wire pulled from the wire feeding barrel and/or a length of wire remaining in the wire feeding barrel.