CURRENT COLLECTOR, CONDUCTOR LINE AND CONDUCTOR LINE SYSTEM

Abstract

A current collector has a sliding contact for making electrical contact with a conductor profile of a conductor line and an antenna for insertion into a longitudinal slot, running in a longitudinal direction of the conductor line. The sliding contact and the antenna can be moved jointly towards the conductor profile in a feed direction by a feed device of the current collector. A conductor line has a conductor profile running in a longitudinal direction, having an elongate cavity and a longitudinal slot adjoining the cavity and running in the longitudinal direction. The conductor profile has at least one sliding contact groove for the sliding contact of the current collector. The antenna is mounted on the current collector so as to be moveable with respect to the sliding contact in the feed direction, and the conductor profile has at least one spacer slide surface running in the longitudinal direction, for a spacer slide of the current collector.

Claims

1-18. (canceled)

19. A current collector having at least one sliding contact for making electrical contact with a conductor profile of a conductor line and at least one antenna for engaging in a longitudinal slot of the conductor profile, the longitudinal slot running in a longitudinal direction of the conductor line, wherein the at least one sliding contact and the at least one antenna are able to be jointly moved towards the conductor profile in a feed direction by means of a feed device of the current collector, wherein the at least one antenna is movably mounted on the current collector in the feed direction relative to the at least one sliding contact.

20. The current collector of claim 19, wherein the at least one antenna is disposed in an antenna holder which is able to move in the feed direction relative to the at least one sliding contact.

21. The current collector of claim 20, wherein at least one spacer slide for sliding or rolling along the conductor profile is disposed on the antenna holder.

22. The current collector of claim 21, wherein the at least one space slide comprises two spacer slides arranged on opposite sides along sides of the at least one antenna.

23. The current collector of claim 22, wherein the spacer slides have slanted front faces.

24. The current collector of claim 20, wherein at least one compensating element is disposed between the at least one sliding contact and the at least one antenna, and wherein the at least one compensating element presses the antenna in the feed direction towards the conductor line.

25. The current collector of claim 24, wherein the at least one sliding contact is disposed in a sliding contact carrier, wherein the at least one compensating element is arranged between the sliding contact carrier and the at least one antenna and/or the antenna holder.

26. The current collector of claim 24, wherein the at least one compensating element comprises at least one elastic compensating element and/or a compensating spring.

27. The current collector of claim 19, wherein, on deflection of the at least one sliding contact from a contact position on the conductor profile in the feed direction away from the conductor profile, the feed device exerts a restoring force on the at least one sliding contact in the feed direction towards the conductor profile.

28. The current collector of claim 27, wherein the feed device comprises a spring arm.

29. The current collector of claim 19, wherein the at least one antenna, at least in the area intended for engaging in the longitudinal slot, is surrounded by an electrically insulating protective sleeve.

30. The current collector of claim 19, wherein the feed direction runs at right angles to the traversing plane of the current collector, and wherein the traversing plane extends along the longitudinal direction.

31. A conductor line with a conductor profile that extends in a longitudinal direction with an elongated cavity and an adjoining longitudinal slot that extends in the longitudinal direction, wherein the conductor profile has at least one sliding contact groove for at least one sliding contact of a current collector of an electrical load able to be moved along the conductor line, wherein the conductor profile has at least one spacer slide surface that extends in the longitudinal direction for at least one spacer slide of the current collector.

32. The conductor line of claim 31, wherein the at least one spacer slide surface comprises two spacer slide surfaces arranged on opposite sides along the sides of the longitudinal slot.

33. The conductor line of claim 32, wherein the spacer slide surfaces extend at an oblique angle away from the longitudinal slot.

34. The conductor line of claim 31, wherein the cavity and the longitudinal slot form a slotted waveguide.

35. A conductor line system with a conductor line that extends in a longitudinal direction with an elongated cavity and an adjoining longitudinal slot that extends in the longitudinal direction and with a current collector with at least one antenna for engaging in the longitudinal slot and at least one sliding contact for making electrical contact with the conductor profile, wherein the at least one sliding contact and the at least one antenna are able to be jointly moved towards the conductor profile in a feed direction by means of a feed device of the current collector, wherein the at least one antenna is movably mounted on the current collector in the feed direction relative to the at least one sliding contact.

36. The conductor line system of claim 35, wherein the conductor line is configured as in claim 31.

Description

[0018] The invention will be described below based on detailed embodiment examples with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawing show:

[0019] FIG. 1 a front view of a section of a conductor line system according to the present invention;

[0020] FIG. 2 a side view of the conductor line system shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the left;

[0021] FIG. 3 a cross-sectional view of the conductor line system through line B-B shown in FIG. 2;

[0022] FIG. 4 a cross-sectional view of the conductor line system through line A-A shown in FIG. 1.

[0023] FIG. 1 shows a front view of a section of a conductor line system 1 according to the invention with a conductor line 2 extending in a longitudinal direction L, on which conductor line electrical loads, for example, a container crane, can be moved in the longitudinal direction L in a manner known in the art. These electrical loads are supplied with electrical energy via phase conductor profiles not shown in the drawings, with the invention being principally usable with such a phase conductor profile.

[0024] An elongated, electrically conductive grounding conductor profile 3 shown in the drawings serves to connect the electrical load of the conductor line system 1. The grounding conductor profile 3 forms an essentially T-shaped slotted waveguide 4 having a cavity 5 intended for data transmission, which cavity, in the drawings, merges into a downwardly open longitudinal slot 6. However, the grounding conductor profile 3 can also be used with a longitudinal slot 6 that opens to the side.

[0025] In the drawing, the grounding conductor profile 3 and the slotted waveguide 4 are integrally made in one piece from the same material and thus form an assembly, which thereby simplifies construction and installation. However, the grounding conductor profile 3 and the slotted waveguide 4 can also be separate components and/or be made from different materials to form separate parts or an assembly. The grounding conductor profile 3 and the slotted waveguide 4 are made of an electrically conductive material or are coated with an electrically conductive coating. In particular, the inside surface of the slotted waveguide 4 can be coated with an electrically conductive coating. The slotted waveguide 4 can also have a different suitable cross section.

[0026] Disposed on the side adjoining the longitudinal slot 6, the grounding conductor profile 3 further has longitudinal crosspieces 7, 7′ on both sides in which sliding contact grooves 8, 8′ running in the longitudinal direction L at a distance from the longitudinal slot 6 are disposed. Disposed directly along the outer longitudinal edges of the longitudinal slot 6 are outwardly slanted spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′.

[0027] On the electrical load (not shown in the drawings), a current collector 10 is disposed in a manner known in the art, which current collector has two sliding contacts 12, 12′ contained in a sliding contact carrier 11. The sliding contacts 12, 12′ are disposed parallel to the longitudinal direction L off-center of the sliding contact carrier 11 and their free wedge-shaped ends engage in the sliding contact grooves 8 and 8′. However, instead of the wedge-shaped configuration, different cross sections of sliding contact grooves 8, 8′ and sliding contacts 12, 12′ can be used.

[0028] The current collector 10 is continuously pressed in the direction of the conductor line 2 by a feed device known in the art (not shown in the drawings) so as to ensure reliable contact between the sliding contact grooves 8, 8′ and the sliding contacts 12, 12′. Worn sliding contacts 12, 12′ can be moved away from the conductor line 2 via the feed device or by other means.

[0029] An electrically conductive antenna 13 of the current collector 10 extends through the longitudinal slot 6 into the cavity 5 of the slotted waveguide 4. As is clearly shown in FIG. 4, the antenna 13 is surrounded by an insulating protective sleeve 14 so as to avoid electrical contact between the antenna 13 and the slotted waveguide 4. On the side facing away from the conductor line 2, the antenna 13 further has an antenna socket 15 for plugging in an antenna plug 16 of an antenna line 17. The antenna line 17 extends through a through opening 18 of the current collector 10 to the electrical load and the controller thereof.

[0030] To prevent the antenna 13 from being pushed by the current collector 10 deeper and deeper into the cavity 5 of the slotted waveguide 4 with steadily increasing wear of the sliding contacts 12, 12′, the antenna 13 is disposed in an antenna holder 20, which is movable relative to the sliding contact carrier 11 in a feed direction Z to the conductor line 2. The antenna holder 20 also comprises the protective sleeve 14.

[0031] The antenna holder 20 comprises two spring blocks 20, 20′ which are disposed in the longitudinal direction L upstream and downstream of the antenna 13 and which, on the side facing away from the conductor line 2, have each a spring seat 21, 21′ in the form of a depression. One end of a compensating spring 22, 22′, here configured in the form of a helical spring, is inserted into each of the spring seats 21, 21′, while the respective other end of the compensating springs 22, 22′ is inserted into each sleeve-shaped spring seat 23, 23′ on the sliding contact carrier 11. However, the spring seats 21, 21′ and 23, 23′ can also be differently configured, for example, in the form of mandrels, onto which the ends of the compensating springs 22, 22′ are placed. However, other types of compensating spring 22, 22′ can also be used. Where appropriate, only one compensating spring may be provided.

[0032] The antenna holder 19 further comprises two spacer elements which are disposed transverse relative to the longitudinal direction L and the feed direction Z, i.e., in the transverse direction Q, and configured in the form of spacer slides 24, 24′, and which slide along the spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′. The spacer slides 24, 24′ preferably have an as smooth as possible sliding surface abutting the spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′ and can, for example, be coated with, or be completely made of, a low-friction material, for example, PTFE, a ceramic material, metal alloys known in the art, etc. The spacer slides 24, 24′ can preferably also be made of a wear-resistant material so as to delay any further penetration of the antenna 13 into the cavity 5 due to wear of the spacer slides 24, 24′ for as long as possible. Similarly, it is possible for the spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′ to be coated with, or to be made of, a smoothly sliding, low-friction and/or wear-resistant material.

[0033] The spacer slides 24, 24′ are disposed on both sides of, and preferably symmetrically about, a slot plane or antenna plane which extends along the longitudinal direction L and the feed direction Z as well as through the longitudinal slot 6 or the antenna 13. The front face of the spacer slides 24, 24′ is slanted from the inside surface towards the outside surface so as to improve, in interaction with the complementarily slanted spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′ the centering of the antenna 13 in the longitudinal slot 6, on the one hand, and to reduce the friction generated by the pressure of the spacer slides 24, 24′ exerted on the spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′ by means of the compensating springs 22, 22′, on the other hand.

[0034] In an alternative embodiment of the invention (not shown in the drawings), instead of the two symmetrically configured spacer slides 24, 24′, it is possible to use only a single spacer slide which, in this case, preferably engages in a complementarily configured spacer slide groove.

[0035] This spacer slide groove, where applicable, can be configured similarly to the sliding contact grooves in order to prevent the single spacer slide from popping out of the spacer slide groove. The two spacer slides 24, 24′ shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, however, have the advantage that they ensure the self-centering of the antenna and avoid the risk of the aforementioned popping out.

[0036] As an alternative or in addition, the spacer element can also be configured in the form of a spacer roller or rollers. The spacer rollers can then roll along the slanted spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′, or the spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′ can be completely omitted. Thus, the crosspieces 7, 7′ can form rolling surfaces configured at right angles to the feed direction, along which the rolling surfaces the spacer rollers can roll. Spacer rollers have the advantage that in contrast to the spacer slides 24, 24′, no abrasion caused by the sliding movement is generated.

[0037] In the embodiment example at hand, the antenna holder 19 is movably connected to the sliding contact carrier 11 in the feed direction Z by means of snap-action connections, with, in the case at hand, detent lugs 25, 25′ of the antenna holder 19 engaging in complementary detent openings 26, 26′ which are oriented in the direction Z. In the feed direction, the detent openings 26, 26′ are sufficiently long so that, when the sliding contact carrier 11 moves in the feed direction Z towards the conductor line 2, the detent lugs 25, 25′ are able to evasively move in the opposite direction, with the detent lugs 25, 25′ outwardly bouncing towards the detent openings 26, 26′ ensuring that there is no risk of the antenna holder 19 disengaging from the sliding contact carrier 11.

[0038] As the height of the sliding contacts 12, 12′ decreases in the feed direction Z due to wear, the feed device presses the entire current collector 10 and, in particular, the sliding contact carrier 23, 23′ towards the conductor line 2 against the grounding conductor profile 3 in order to ensure continuous electrical contact between the sliding contact grooves 8, 8′ and the sliding contacts 12, 12′. However, in contrast to the conventional current collectors, the antenna 13 does not move towards the conductor line 2 along with the sliding contacts 12, 12′ and does not penetrate with increasing depth into the cavity 5 but is maintained at the same distance from and in the same position relative to the cavity 5 by means of the spacer slides 24, 24′, and the antenna 13 is mounted so as to be able to move in the feed direction Z relative to the sliding contacts 12, 12′ and the sliding contact carrier 11.

[0039] In this manner, the data transmission properties of the slotted waveguides 4 can be kept essentially constant over a long period of time, and deterioration only occurs after the spacer slide surfaces 9, 9′ and/or the spacer slides 24, 24′have worn down.

LIST OF REFERENCE CHARACTERS

[0040] 1 Conductor line system [0041] 2 Conductor line [0042] 3 Grounding conductor profile [0043] 4 Slotted waveguide [0044] 5 Cavity [0045] 6 Longitudinal slot [0046] 7, 7′ Longitudinal crosspieces [0047] 8, 8′ Sliding contact groove [0048] 9, 9′ Spacer slide surfaces [0049] 10 Current collector [0050] 11 Sliding contact carrier [0051] 12, 12′ Sliding contacts [0052] 13 Antenna [0053] 14 Protective sleeve for the antenna [0054] 15 Antenna socket [0055] 16 Antenna plug [0056] 17 Antenna line [0057] 18 Through opening for the antenna line [0058] 19 Antenna holder [0059] 20, 20′ Spring blocks [0060] 21, 21′ Springs seats for the antenna holder [0061] 22, 22′ Compensating springs for the antenna holder [0062] 23, 23′ Spring seats for the sliding contact carrier [0063] 24, 24′ Spacer slides [0064] 25, 25′ Detent lugs [0065] 26, 26′ Detent openings [0066] L Longitudinal direction of the conductor line [0067] Q Direction transverse relative to the longitudinal direction in the traversing plane [0068] Z Feed direction of the sliding contacts at right angles relative to the traversing plane