Keeping Debris Out with Cable Carriers

Cable carriers (also called drag chains, energy chains, or cable chains depending on the manufacturer) are pre-formed, flexible structures that are designed to surround and guide flexible cables, wires, hoses, and other types of support hardware used in machinery.  The primary advantages of cable carriers are that they reduce stress and wear on cables and hoses while preventing entanglement and improving operator safety.  Cable carriers may be used in a variety of arrangements in order to accommodate horizontal, vertical, rotary and three dimensional motion.

Steel cable carriers were originally introduced in the 1950s, however today a variety of options are available.  Polypropylene carriers are often used, due to their lightweight and rust-free nature, although steel carriers can still be found in some industries.  Other advancements – such as Igus Energy Tube – feature a fully-enclosed, articulated design that keeps the enclosed cable free of debris with a 100% chip-proof carrier that can even be used in underwater applications.

Cable carriers are available in many different styles, sizes, and performance levels. These include:

• open
• closed (for protection from debris such as woodchips or metal shavings)
• low noise
• reverse-bending radius applications
• cleanroom compliant
• multi-axis movement
• high load resistant
• chemical-, water-, and temperature-resistant

Most cable carriers have a rectangular cross section, inside which the cables lie. Cross bars along the length of the carrier can be opened from the outside, so that cables can be easily inserted and plugs connected. Many carriers also feature internal separators to keep the cables, hoses, and wires apart from each other. Mounting brackets fix the ends of the carrier to the machine.  Ideally, cable carriers are employed in applications that require the use of highly flexible carriers, wires, and hoses, in order to extend the service life of those components.

Besides only bending in one plane due to the rigid jointed structure, cable carriers also often only permit bending in one direction. In combination with rigid mounting of the ends of the carrier, this can entirely prevent the enclosed cables from flopping in undesired directions and becoming tangled or crushed.  Any process where there is movement that involves the transferral of energy, data, liquids, or gases – including machine tools, cranes, car washes, laboratory equipment, automated warehousing, forklifts, robotics, and drilling rigs – is a prime candidate for cable carriers, as the cost and maintenance savings they present simply cannot be ignored.

http://www.igus.com/

http://www.kabelschlepp.com/

http://www.gortrac.com/

http://www.murrplastik.com/

http://www.directindustry.com/industrial-manufacturer/cable-carrier-60861.html