Patent ID: 7744509

Claim:
An apparatus comprising: a substrate comprising a wall surface with an annular sidewall of a first aperture that extends through the substrate and has a first overall diameter; a rotatable member adjacent the substrate; an elongated member comprising a sidewall which extends adjacent the wall surface to form a first gap therebetween, the elongated member facilitating relative rotation between the substrate and the rotatable member about a central axis along which the elongated member is nominally aligned; and a reinforcement member comprising: a limit surface which comprises an annular sidewall of a second aperture that extends through the reinforcement member and has a second overall diameter less than the first overall diameter, the limit surface extending adjacent the sidewall of the elongated member to form a second gap therebetween, the limit surface configured to reduce mechanical contact between the sidewall of the elongated member and the wall surface of the substrate as a result of mechanical deflection of the elongated member away from the central axis and toward the wall surface during said relative rotation; and a locking feature which engages the substrate to substantially prevent axial displacement of the reinforcement member relative to the substrate so that the wall surface and the limit surface are substantially maintained in a fixed relationship with respect to the central axis; wherein the substrate is characterized as a pole, wherein the reinforcement member is characterized as a spacer sized to nest within said pole, and wherein the elongated member successively and concurrently extends through a first side of the pole, through a first side of the reinforcement member, through a second opposing side of the reinforcement member, and through a second opposing side of the pole.