BOX-LIKE DISPENSER WITH A SUPPORTING DEVICE FOR A REEL WITH A WOUND-ON ELECTRICAL CORD OR SIMILAR ROPE-LIKE ELEMENT, WHICH CAN BE UNREELED FROM THE DISPENSER

Abstract: A box-like dispenser (10) comprises an internal axle (34, 36, 24, 36a, 34a) for the rotational support of a drum-like reel (12, 14, 14a, 22, 22a), for positioning inside the box-like dispenser (10), for wound-on electrical cord, which may be passed out through an opening (20) of the dispenser box (10). To ensure easy insertion of a reel, there have been fitted, in the area of two openings (32) in opposite dispenser box walls (10a), end pieces (34, 36; 34a, 36a), each comprising an annular/sleeve-shaped body (34, 34a) with a radial outward annular flange (36, 36a), and capable of being connected to one another by means of an intermediate, tubular axle (24) for the formation of a through axle (34, 36, 24, 36a, 34a).

Description: BOX-LIKE DISPENSER WITH A SUPPORTING DEVICE FOR A REEL WITH A WOUND-ON ELECTRICAL CORD OR SIMILAR ROPE-LIKE ELEMENT, WHICH CAN BE UNREELED FROM THE DISPENSER This invention relates to a box-like dispenser with a sup- porting device for the rotational support of a reel with a wound-on, electrical cord, which can be unreeled from the dispenser, so that the unreeling of the cord causes a corresponding rotation of the reel with the coil of cord in the supporting device of the dispenser. Besides electrical cords such a box-like dispenser with supporting device may be suitable for any kind of orderly positioning of rope-like elements, such as pliable, flexible hoses, cables, lines etc. in the form of a roll wound about a reel . The roll/coil of cord represents a compact storing of the cord and enables an orderly, controlled unreeling of the cord whenever a further length of cord is needed. Dispensers of the initially mentioned kind are known from earlier, the state of the art being elucidated, for example, through NO 179940 and US 3150769, 4010914, 4077586, 5267705 and 5261625. NO 179940 discloses a dispenser in the form of a parallelepi- pedic box of cardboard or similar inexpensive, relatively consistent material with a dispensing opening for an electrical cord, which is wound on the tubular core of a drum-shaped reel, that can be rotationally positioned by the tubular core on an axle, which can be secured to opposite walls of the box. By this known dispenser, the axle - for the insertion of the cord drum - may be detachably connected to the walls of the box, and this has led to a special configuration of the ends of the axle and the cooperating securing portion in the adjacent side wall . Additionally, in this known dispenser, the axle must have a polygonal, suitably triangular, cross-section. This is of advantage with respect to the mutual releasable connection of the axle end and the adjacent side wall of the box, and likewise with respect to the insignificant, rotational surface of contact with the cord drum. US patent document No. 3150769 discloses a box-like dispenser for a roll with a wound-on electrical cord/cable, rope, hose or similar, comprising a supporting device, which allows rotation of the cord drum inside the box during unreeling of the cord through a hole in the box. For the insertion/replacing of the drum with the wound-on cord etc. several operational steps are required, as a plurality of loose parts are involved. In this known box-like, cord-reel -receiving/supporting dispenser which has a complex constructional configuration, the operations for the insertion or the replacing of the drum are too laborious and time-consuming. US patent No. 4077586 discloses a box-like dispenser, which is completely without an axle of its own. A reel/drum with a wound-on cord or similar pliable/flexible rope-like element may be placed loose m the dispenser box, but the orderly, controlled support of the cord drum and dispensing of the cord, are not achieved, as with the box-like dispenser, according to NO 179940 and US 3150769, which exhibit, however, the defects, drawbacks and limitation of application as indicated above. Therefore, the object of the present invention has been to eliminate or reduce, to a considerable extent, these defects and drawbacks of known techniques, and thus provide, through simple and inexpensive means, a box- like dispenser with a supporting device of the kind m question, which allows, due to its rational and convenient configuration and structure, a simple and quick insertion or replacing of the roll/reel/drum with the cord or similar wound thereon, while maintaining the established advantages of known techniques, such as an orderly and controlled supporting of the cord drum or dispensing of the cord. In a box-like dispenser of the kind indicated m the preamble of the following claim 1, this object has been realised essentially by the dispenser's additionally exhibiting the characterizing features comprised by the characterizing part of claim 1. The axle of the box-like dispenser, externally on which a drum-shaped reel with a wound-on cord etc. may be rotation- ally supported, is fixed to opposite side walls of the box by means of loose end pieces, which may possibly - m an embodi- ment without a proper through tubular axle - be formed of the supporting device of the box-like dispenser, for the rotational positioning of the drum-shaped reel with a wound-on cord etc . However, a through axle of tubular shape will be preferred with respect to the construction of the dispenser box for bracing and reinforcing purposes. The axle or at least its opposite end portions, is/are preferably formed with a tubular cross-section, for elastic, profiled end-pieces of plastic to be clicked into place therein. Each end-piece preferably has the form of an annular/sleeve-shaped body with a radial outward annular flange at one axial end. The axially innermost surface of this annular end flange is meant to rest supportmgly against the outside surface of the adjacent outer side wall of the box. The hollow core of a cord drum/reel with its limiting side walls at the ends and with a cord wound on the core between the side walls, and the, m this reel-insertion situation, loose axle of the box-like dispenser are inserted one into the other, so that the dispenser axle which has a smaller outer diameter than the inner diameter of the drum, will become positioned inside the hollow core of the drum/reel. In a preferred embodiment the drum-like reel is mounted inside the dispenser box, by means of the axle of the latter, in the central area of two through mounting holes formed in opposite sidewalls of the box. Thus, the drum conveniently consists of a tubular core/reel, on which is mounted, at either axial end, a slipped-on drum side wall in the shape of a circular disc with a central circular opening for the passing of the tubular core. These drum parts are held together by means of end plugs, one at either end. The complete drum has an axial length which is a bit smaller than the distance between the inner wall surfaces of said two opposite side walls of the box. In a particular embodiment, the axial length of the support axle may correspond to the distance between the internal wall surfaces of said opposite side walls of the box, which will thus rest against the edge surfaces of the axle end, whereas the outward annular flanges of the end plugs will rest, by their axially inner side surfaces, against the outer wall surfaces of said side walls of the box, whereas their axial annular/sleeve-shaped parts engage an axle end portion each. The smallest internal diameter of the drum-like reel, corresponding to the diameter of the openings of the end pieces, thereby exceeds the outer diameter of the support axle, which ensures the rotatability of the spool with the electrical cord wound thereon, relative to the support axle, and thus relative to the box. In this preferred embodiment of the box-like dispenser, the annular end flanges of the end plugs are the only portions that are to be positioned externally to the walls of the dis- penser. A non-limiting example of the present, preferred embodiment of the box-like dispenser is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 shows a perspective split view of a box-like dispenser and a drum- like reel for an electrical cord to be wound thereon; Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of a fully assembled box-like dispenser with a piece of the electrical cord passed out through a dispensing opening of the box-like dispenser; Fig. 3 shows, on a larger scale, a section III - III in Fig. 2 ; and Fig. 4 is a view of a detail in Fig. 3, on a larger scale, and shows the left-hand portion of Fig. 3. In the figures of the drawings the reference numeral 10 indi- cates a box in the shape of a parallelepiped, which forms a box-like dispenser, known in itself, for receiving in its interior, and rotationally supporting a drum-shaped reel comprising a tubular core 12 with laterally limiting walls 14, 14a in the form of circular discs mounted thereon. This drum-shaped reel will normally have an electrical cord 16 wound thereon, Fig. 2, which cord 16 is passed out through the dispenser opening 20 of the dispenser box 10. In the embodiment shown, end plugs 22, 22a, which may possibly be profiled axially, ensure the connection of the core 12 and the drum side walls 14, 14a. In the embodiment shown, each of the end plugs 22, 22a has the form of an axial annular/sleeve-shaped portion formed for insertion into the end portions of the tubular core 12 of the reel . This engagement may be based on a press fit or a circumferential barb 26 which can engage the material of the tubular wall of the reel core 12 , Fig . 4. Of course, the drum-shaped reel 12, 14, 14a, 22, 22a for the reeling/unreeling of electrical cord 16 may have another convenient configuration, provided that the reel body is suit- able for receiving a cord etc. in the shape of a roll, and for being rotationally supported inside the box-like dispenser 10. A tubular, straight axle 24, which is loose prior to the assembling, is formed and sized for extending, with a tolerance 28 in the radial direction, through a bore 30 of the tubular reel core 12, and so that the end surfaces of the axle 24 abut the inner surfaces of the opposite side walls 10a of the box. In the assembling the axle 24 is thus inserted into the bore 30 of the drum-shaped reel 12, said bore 30 having its smallest diameter in the areas of the end plugs 22, 22a, so that axially, at either end of this assembly 12, 14, 14a, 22, 22a, 24, the axle 24 projects slightly from the outer surfaces of the radial outward annular flanges of the end plugs 22, 22a. In this condition said assembly is lowered into the dispenser box 10 or is inserted into the box, said box being turned on its side, for instance, until the opposite ends of the axle 24 are in the areas of their respective through openings 32, 32a in said opposite box walls 10a. With the axle 24 m this position of assembly, two end pieces 34, 34a are fitted into the ends of the axle 24. Either end piece 34, 34a has an axially directed annular/sleeve- shaped portion, which may possibly extend by its outer surface coni- cally tapering towards its free end, the opposite end being provided with a radially projecting, annular flange 36, 36a. The annular/sleeve-shaped portion of either end piece 34, 34a may have, m the same manner as the end plugs 22, 22a, an outer circumferential barb 38 formed to be pressed into the adjacent material of the tubular wall of the axle 24. Otherwise, the outer diameter of the annular/sleeve-shaped portions of the end pieces 34, 34a is sized to correspond to the diameters of the axle bore 24b and the box openings 32, 32a to establish a press fit. If the through support axle 24 is omitted, so that the two conical end pieces 34, 34a alone form the support axle, rota- tability must be provided between the end pieces 34, 34a and the drum-shaped reel 12 , 14 , 14a, 22 , 22a, which may, m one embodiment, glide rotationally on the exterior of the end pieces 34, 34a, with their common axis, and intermediate imaginary axis extension as the axis of rotation, whereas the end pieces are fixed m their respective openings 32, 32a m the box wall . However, the embodiment illustrated m the drawings, with the through axle 24 fixed by means of end pieces 36, 36a will be preferred because of its bracing and reinforcing function m relation to the dispenser box 10.

Claims: C L A I M S 1. A box-like dispenser (10) with a supporting device comprising an axle, for the rotational support of a drumlike reel (12,14,14a, 22,22a), that can be positioned therein and that may have an electrical cord (16) , flexible hoses, cables or similar wound thereon, in which the box-like dispenser (10) has at least one dispensing opening (20) for electrical cord (16) etc. to be pulled out in an orderly manner, by concurrent rotation of the drum-like reel (12,14,14a, 22,22a) inside the box-like dispenser (10) , c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that said axle is formed by two coaxial end pieces (34,36 and 34a, 36a), together forming a non-through axle, and comprising an annular/sleeve-shaped body (34, 34a) each, with a radial outward annular flange (36, 36a) at the one, in the position of use axially outer, end, and that each of these end pieces (34,36 and 34a, 36a) has a correspondingly shaped mounting opening (32, 32a) arranged thereto, in either of the two oppo- site dispenser box walls (10a) , and that said drum-like reel (12,14,14a, 22,22a) is rotationally supported, directly or indirectly, on said non-through axle (34, 36, 34a, 36a) . 2. A box-like dispenser according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that each of said end pieces (34,36; 34a, 36a) is inserted into a coaxial tubular intermediate axle (24), so that the end pieces (34,36; 34a, 36a) and the intermediate axle (24) form a through axle connected to opposite box sidewalls (10a) . 3. A box-like dispenser according to claim 1 or 2 , c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that in the position of use, the inner surface of the radial outward annular flange (36, 36a) of each of said end pieces (34,36; 34a, 36a) abuts the external surface of each of said opposite box walls (10a) . 4. A box-like dispenser according to claim 2 or 3 , c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that, in the position of use, the axial end surface of said intermediate axle (24) abuts the internal surface of each of said opposite box walls (10a) . 5. A box-like dispenser according to any one of the preceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that the annular/sleeve-shaped body of each end piece (34,36; 34a, 36a) is formed externally with at least one circumferential, possibly interrupted, barb-like portion (38) .

Inventors: JOHNSEN JAN K, JOHNSEN, JAN, K.
Applicants: JOHNSEN JAN K, TEC CON AS, JOHNSEN, JAN, K., TEC-CON AS
Application year: 2000
Main classification: B65H75
IPC codes: B65H49