Patent ID: 8500056
Filing Date: 2013-08-06
Classification: B65H

Abstract:
1. A self-compensating tension control device for regulating the payout of filamentary material from a spool, comprising: a fixed support; a spindle assembly carried by said fixed support, said spindle assembly rotatably carrying the spool of filamentary material; a mechanism coupling said fixed support to said spindle assembly to allow said spindle assembly to move substantially horizontally and linearly depending upon a tension force applied to the filamentary material, in opposition to a biasing force, which causes said spindle assembly to linearly move in relation to said fixed support; and an eddy current braking system comprising a conductive member rotatable with said spindle assembly and a magnetic member carried by said fixed support, said spindle assembly and conductive member moving linearly toward a side-by-side relationship with said magnetic member when the tension force applied to the filamentary material is reduced and unable to overcome the biasing force, and wherein payout of the filamentary material at a regulated rate occurs when the biasing force is balanced with the tension force.