Patent Number: 061371149
Section: abstract

An irradiation apparatus has at least one exchangeable radiation source that may be moved by means of a transport cable between at least one rest position and at least one irradiation position and a long-distance transport container for radiation sources to be exchanged. In order to reduce the danger of control errors, the rest position is located inside the long-distance transport container and the transport container forms or may form an integral part of the irradiation apparatus. For that purpose, interface elements are provided on the transport container and other parts of the irradiation apparatus. By winding and unwinding the transport cable on and from a feeding drum with a cable-receiving groove at least partially covered by a pressing strip, particularly thin transport cables may be used, so that the width of the pressing strip substantially corresponds to the width of the cable-receiving groove. The pressing strip is helically wound in the cable-receiving groove around the feeding drum, in the axial or radial direction with respect to the feeding drum, and the cable-receiving groove is thus covered in a substantially uninterrupted manner. Means for lifting, preferably also for deflecting and lowering again the pressing strip, may be moved along the transport cable in relation to the feeding drum in order to let free an output joint for the transport cable from the feeding drum.