MHW Magazine News and stories from the Materials Handling Industry
Two years ago KABELSCHLEPP GmbH of Wenden presented the EasyTrax plastic cable carrier with intelligent 2-shot technology. The cable carrier meanwhile has stood the test of time in diverse applications. Now, as a result of customer-specific modifications, additional versions are available. They were presented by KABELSCHLEPP as Specials 2010 at Hannover Trade Fair.
More efficient, more powerful and more compact designs – the state of the art is perpetually under development in all industrial sectors. That also applies to cable carriers on machines and systems. The R&D departments of manufacturers are constantly producing new solutions. The best measure of a company’s ability to perform is its flexibility with respect to customized versions. Both with the basic product portfolio and the production capacities, and especially based on decades of engineering and application expertise, KABELSCHLEPP is well positioned in this regard. The full service provider offers standard products off the shelf or customized solutions made to specifications, both simple and complex, in one-off or large-batch production – and always with the special needs of the customer in mind.
With the Specials 2010 KABELSCHLEPP presented individual customer solutions in addition to the current product portfolio at this year’s Hannover Trade Fair. The products presented will include both new developments and improvements on existing solutions, as well as industry-specific special versions. They represent the company’s present focus of activities: to achieve a suitable, economical and reliable solution for every application – and therefore to implement decades of technological expertise for a fast time-to-market factor.
When things get tight
The EasyTrax 0320 was modified, for example, for one customer in the dentistry sector. Modern medical treatment chairs – such as those used by doctors specializing in other fields – feature numerous electronic adjustments with extensive power requirements for the servomotor. In this case, the required cable management had to be accommodated within a very small space, inside a 180° rotating base. KABELSCHLEPP implemented a solution using KR/RKR reverse bend radii chain links: The reverse bend radii provide the required flexibility. The 2-shot chain construction with a hard cable carrier body and flexible crossbars provides high torsional rigidity and extremely fast cable installation. The interior is designed with smooth edges to protect the cables. Dividers keep the cables in the cable carrier on the side of the treatment chair in position. Another important factor in this application was to keep the noise level to a minimum; this is ensured by the integrated noise damping system.
Good things come in small packages
The very small and cost-effective EasyTrax 0115 was developed for a reliable cable solution in the fast-moving components of a vending machine.
The customer required a time-saving and cost-effective cable installation; other factors that had to be taken into account included a relatively long travel length and extremely limited space. A high-end 2-shot cable carrier would have resulted in unnecessarily high costs for this application. KABELSCHLEPP manufactured the chain links from a tribologically optimized material, which also contributed to a low noise level and long service life. The construction enables extremely long bend radii, so that the cable carrier easily fits into the available space in the vending machine. The special advantage of EasyTrax – the fast cable installation – was also retained in this development. Pre-assembled cables can be installed easily and quickly. Since the crossbars do not swivel into the interior, the cable carrier features very high cavity utilization.
The two additional EasyTrax versions are predestined for other diverse automation applications.
