Introduction This invention relates to a holder and more particularly to a holder and dispenser for a windable material such as electrical cables, wires, ropes and the like.

Background of the Invention Flexible elongate objects such as ropes, electrical cables, wires, hoses and the like are frequently supplied and used in a wound form e.g. on reels around which the rope, electrical cable or wire is wound. For example, during the electrical wiring of a premises electrical cable is frequently pulled as required by an electrician from a reel during the wiring process. However, whe unwinding electrical cables from a reel, the pulling action results in the reel itself being pulled and becoming displaced to create a potential obstruction. Alternatively, the reel can become caught or entangled in adjacent objects when displaced thereby preventing further removal of cable and disrupting the wiring process.

Moreover, where such reels for electrical cables are manufactured from cardboard or similar materials, the ends of the reels can rot and disintegrate— particularly when used in a damp or wet environment such as outdoors or on building sites. It is also known for flexible elongate objects such as ropes, electrical cables, wires, hoses and the like to be supplied as a coil tightly wrapped in a bag or plastics cover without the use of a reel. Before use, the bag or plastics cover is cut to access the flexible object. However, in the absence of a reel or holder, the coiled elongate object can quickly lose its form, become entangled and create an obstruction.

In an attempt to address the problems outlined above, it is known to use (reel) stands made up of a frame having a raised axle on which the reel or coiled elongate flexible elongate object itself can be wound so that the reel or elongate object rotates about the axle when pulled by a user. However, such stands are bulky and cumbersome to use - especially in confined spaces. In addition, such stands also suffer from the drawback that the stand itself can become displaced when the windable material is pulled thereby creating an obstruction as before. Summary of the Invention

According to the invention there is provided a holder for a windable material comprising:

a base;

a spool mountable on the base for receiving the windable material, and a hub on the base on which the holder can spin.

Preferably, the hub comprises a removable hub. More preferably, the removable hub is mounted on the base at a hub connector. Suitably, the hub connector comprises a push-fit mechanism.

Alternatively, the hub comprises an integral hub on the base. Preferably, the hub comprises an apical tip.

Suitably, the base comprises a disc-shaped base. Alternatively, the base comprises a dish-shaped base. Preferably, the holder further comprises a brake for slowing spinning of the holder. More preferably, the brake comprises a ridge on the base. Most preferably, the ridge comprises a radial ridge on the base.

Optionally, the spool comprises a sprung spool. Preferably, the sprung spool comprises at least one flexible finger extending from the spool towards the base.

More preferably, the sprung spool comprises three flexible fingers extending from the spool towards the base. Alternatively, the sprung spool comprises at least one flexible flange extending from the spool. Suitably, the at least one flexible flange comprises a curved flexible flange.

Preferably, the holder further comprises a centring body on the base for centring the windable material on the base. More preferably, the centring body comprises a centring cone. Most preferably, the centring cone comprises a substantially frustoconical centring cone surrounding the spool. Preferably, the spool is mounted on the base at a spool mounting. More preferably, the spool mounting comprises a reversibly openable spool mounting. Most preferably, the reversibly openable spool mounting comprises a gland connector. Alternatively, the reversibly openable spool mounting comprises a screw connector. Alternatively, the reversibly openable spool mounting comprises a bolt.

Preferably, the holder further comprises a cover mountable on the spool. More preferably, the cover is mounted on the spool at a cover mounting. Most preferably, the cover mounting comprises a gland connector. Alternatively, the cover mounting comprises a screw. Alternatively, the cover mounting comprises a bolt.

Preferably, the holder comprises a cable holder. More preferably, the holder comprises an electric cable holder. Alternatively, the holder comprises a wire holder. Preferably, the holder comprises an electric wire holder.

Alternatively, the holder comprises a rope holder. Alternatively, the holder comprises a hose holder. Alternatively, the holder comprises a yar holder. Alternatively, the holder comprises a filament holder.

The invention also extends to the use of a holder and dispenser as hereinbefore defined for holding and dispensing an electrical cable or wire. The holder for windable, coiled or wound materials required to be paid out from the holder serves to protect the windable materials, reels, cables, wires and the like mounted on the holder from damage and moisture while the holder is also compact and easy to store in a space saving manner. Windable materials can be simply paid out or pulled from the holder by a user while the holder functions like a spinning top by spinning on its hub and remaining in place - i.e. the holder does not travel undesirably across the surface on which it is placed and spins and remains in place during unwinding operations. Accordingly, the holder 1 does not create an obstruction in use. Moreover, the holder is also provided with a brake in the form of an outer radial ridge on the base of the holder to slow spinning of the holder on the hub when a user ceases to pull on the windable material. The radial ridge serves to contact the surface on which the holder is spun to quickly halt the spinning and keep the holder in the desired location i.e. the brake also serves to prevent the holder from travelling undesirably across the surface on which it is placed.

The holder of the invention can be used with all forms of windable materials whether supplied on a reel or not while the holder has particular utility with electrical cables, wires and the like. In particular, the holder can be safely used during wiring operations on building sites and, by being compact and remaining stationary during and after use, does not present on obstruction.

If desired, the holder can also be used in combination with known stands although it is envisaged that the holder will find particular utility as a standalone device. Brief Description of the Drawings

The invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view from above and one side of a first embodiment of a holder cum dispenser for a windable material in accordance with the invention in which the holder is a reel holder for an electrical cable reel mounted on the spool of the holder;

Figure 2 is a perspective view from above and one side of the reel holder of Figure 1 with the top cover removed;

Figure 3 is a perspective view from above and one side of the reel holder of Figure 1 with the electrical cable reel removed for clarity;

Figure 4 is a perspective view from above and one side of the reel holder of Figure 3 with the top cover removed; Figure 5 is a combined side elevation and partial cross^sectional view (in broken lines) of the reel holder of Figure 1 showing the projecting hub on the base of reel holder on which the reel holder can spin or pivot;

Figure 6 is a combined side elevation and partial cross-sectional view (in broken lines) of the reel holder of Figure 5 with the to cover removed; Figure 7 is a combined side elevation and partial cross-sectional view (in broken lines) of the reel holder with the electrical cable reel removed for clarity to more clearly show the gland connector at the base;

Figure 8 is a side elevation of the reel holder with the top cover and the electrical cable reel removed;

Figure 9 is a side elevation of a second embodiment of a holder cum dispenser for a windable material in accordance with the invention in which the holder is a holder for an electrical cable in coiled form without a reel which is mounted on the spool of the holder and is held in place and centred on a centring cone on the internal face of the base and in which the external face of the base is shaped to define an integral hub on which the holder can spin or pivot;

Figure 10 is a perspective view from above and one side of a third

embodiment of the holder of the invention having the detachable hub of Figures 1 to 8 (shown in broken lines) and the centring cone of Figure 9 with the windable material omitted for clarity;

Figure 11 is a perspective view from above and one side of the holder of Figure 10 with the top cover removed;

Figure 12 is a perspective view from below and one side of a simplified fourth embodiment of the holder of the invention in the form of a reel holder for small reels in which the spool of the reel holder is a spring-like or sprung spool made up of three flexible fingers;

Figure 13 is a perspective view from above and one side of the reel holder of Figure 12;

Figure 14 is a side elevation of the reel holder of Figure 12;

Figure 15 is a top plan view of the reel holder of Figure 12;

Figure 16 is a perspective view from above and one side of a fifth

embodiment of the holder of the invention in which the three flexible fingers of the spool of Figure 12 are replaced by a plurality of spoke-like flexible flanges for receiving a reel;

Figure 17 is a side elevation of the holder of Figure 16, and

Figure 18 is a plan view from above of the holder of Figure 16.

Detailed Description of the Invention

As shown in Figures 1 to 8 of the accompanying drawings a first embodiment of a holder and dispenser for a windable material such as electrical cables, wires, ropes and the like is generally indicated by the reference numeral 1. In the present embodiment, the holder 1 is adapted for and described for use with an electrical cable 2 on a reel 3. However, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art and as discussed further below, the holder 1 is suitable for use with a variety of elongate objects such as electrical cables and wires, rope, yarn, hoses and the like whether on a reel 3 or not. Accordingly, the invention should not be construed as being limited to a holder and dispenser 1 for use with electrical cables 2 only.

As shown in the drawings, the holder 1 is made up of discs or dish=like base 4 having a centrally located hollow cylindrical spool 5 upstanding therefrom and a disc- or dish-like cover 6 mounted towards the opposite end of the spool 5. The reel 3 is rotatably mounted on the spool 5 between the base 4 and the cover 6.

The base 4 is provided with a centrally and axially located external hub 7 which projects outwards from the base 4 on which the base 4, and hence the holder 1 , can spin or pivot on a surface such as a floor. In the present embodiment, the hub 7 is convexly or dome-shaped and is removably detachable from the base 4. This shall be explained more fully below.

The base 4 is made up of a circular dish or disc 8 having an outer rim 9 and a centrally located opening 10 through which the cylindrical spool 5 can be inserted in the base 4. The disc 8 is shaped and contoured about the centrally located opening 10 to define a concave hollow 11 about the centrally located opening 10 in the disc 8 and an annular or radial ridge 12 between the concave hollow 11 and the rim 9. The radial ridge 12 encircles the hub 7 on the base 4 and serves as a brake to slow spinning of the holder 1 following pulling of the electrical cable 2 from the holder 1. The holder 1 also rests on the radial ridge 12 when not being spun. This shall be explained more fully below.

The cylindrical spool 5 is reversibly attached to the base 4 at the opening 10 via a spool mounting in the form of a manually adjustable gland connector 13. The gland connector 13 is of generally conventional construction and is made up of an end nut 14 at the opening 10 on the outer surface of the disc 8 and a cylindrical gland body 15, a sealing insert 16, a clamping ring 17 and a sealing nut 18 on the spool 5 adjacent the internal surface of the dish 8 of the base 4.

The hub 7 is made up of a domed or outwardly curved hub head 19 having a hub neck 20 extending therefrom which is insertable in the cylindrical spool 5. The hub 7 is reversibly connected to the spool 5 by a hub connector in the form of a push fit mechanism made up of circumferentially projecting ridges 21 on the hub neck 20.

The hub 7 can be removed from the holder 1 by loosening the gland connector 13 so that the spool 5 can be slid through the gland connector 13 to urge or push the hub 7 from the spool 5. The cylindrical spool 5 can then be used as an axle to mount the holder 1 on a conventional stand if desired.

The disc- or dish- like cover 6 is similar in construction to the base A and, like the base 4, the cover 6 is reversibly attached to the spool 5 by a cover mounting in the form of a manually adjustable gland connector 22. In use, the cover 6 of the holder 1 of the invention is removed via the manually adjustable gland connector 22 and the reel 3 bearing electrical cable 2 is placed over the exposed spool 5 (see Figure 4) to rest on the base 4 as shown in Figures 2 and 6.

The cover 6 is then placed over the spool 5 to bear against the reel 3 and hold the reel 3 in place between the base 4 and the cover 6. The cover 6 is then secured in position by tightening the cover gland connector 22 to grip the reel 3 between the base 4 and the cover 6 as shown in Figures 1 and 5.

A user then simply pulls or draws on the electrical cable 2 to rotate or spin the holder 1 on the hu 7 and pay out electrical cable 2 from the reel 3 as required. As the hub 7 (and the spool 5 which is contiguous with the hub 7) is centrally and axially positioned on the base 4, the holder 1 therefore spins on the hub 7, like a spinning top, due to inertia! forces generated by the pulling action of the user on the electrical cable 2 so that the holder 1 spins on the hub 7 in substantially the same spatial location and position while the cable 2 is being dispensed.

Following removal of the inertial forces i.e. when a user ceases pulling on the electrical cable 2, spinning of the holder 1 on the hub 7 is slowed so that the holder 1 tilts or falls to one side onto the radial ridge 12 and the surface on which the holder is placed and becomes stationary. The radial ridge 12 therefore also functions as a brake to slow rotation or spinning of the holder 1. Figure 9 shows a side elevation of a second embodiment of the holder 1 of the invention broadly similar in construction to the holder 1 of Figures 1 to 8. Like numerals indicate like parts. However, in the present embodiment, the spool 5 is threaded as indicated by the reference numeral 23 towards the cover 6 and the cover gland connector 22 is replaced by a nut 24 engageable with the thread 23 to secure the cover 6 to the spool 5 at the thread 23.

In addition, the removable hub 7 is omitted and the base 4 is convexly dome-shaped to define an integral hub 7 in the form of a central apical tip 25 on the convexly contoured base 4 indicated by the reference numeral 26 on which the holder 1 can spin or pivot as previously described. Moreover, in the present embodiment, the holder 1 is adapted for use with windable materials not supplied on a reel, e.g.

supplied in a coiled form in packaging such as a bag or tightly wrapped in plastics, by the inclusion of an internal raised centring body 27 surrounding the spool 5 on the base 4 for centring and holding the coiled windable material on the base 4 once the windable material has been released from its packaging. In the present

embodiment, the centring body 27 is a substantially frustoconical centring cone 28 on the base 4 although, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the centring body 27 can have other shapes and configurations as required.

Figures 10 and 1 show a third embodiment of the holder of the invention having the removable hub 7 of Figures 1 to 8 (shown in broken lines) and the frustoconical centring cone 28 of Figure 9. Like numerals indicate like parts. In the present embodiment, the gland connector 13 is housed in a hollow 29 defined in the frustoconical centring cone 28 while the removable hub 7 projects through the opening 10 in the base 4 from beneath the frustoconical centring cone 28.

Figures 12 to 14 show a simplified fourth embodiment of the holder 1 of the invention in the form of a reel holder 1 for small reels of windable material in which the spool 5 of the reel holder 1 is a spring-like or sprung spool 5 and the disc-like cover 6 of the previous embodiments is dispensed with. Like numerals indicate like parts. As shown in the drawings, the holder 1 has a substantially flat disc-like base 4 provided with a downwardly protruding fixed hub 7. The hub 7 is domed or convexly shaped and sized so that the holder 1 can spin in situ on the apical tip 25 of the hub 7.

The sprung spool 5 is made up of a central tube 30 mounted on and upstanding from the base 4 having three splayed elongate flexible fingers 31 extending from the free end 32 of the central tube 30 towards the base 4. The flexible fingers 31 are equally circumferentially spaced about the central tube 30 and can flex inwards and outwards towards the central tube 30 so that when a reel bearing a windable material is inserted over the central tube 30, the flexible fingers 31 are urged towards the central tube 30 and biased against the reel to hold the reel in place on the holder 1. The reel can then be replaced if desired by simply pulling a reel on the central tube 30 from the central tube 30.

Figures 16 to 18 show a fifth embodiment of the holder 1 of the invention broadly similar to the holder described in Figures 12 to 15 but in which the three flexible fingers of the sprung spool 5 in Figures 12 to 15 are replaced by a plurality of flexible flanges 33 for receiving a reel. Like numerals indicate like parts. More particularly, in the present embodiment, the holder 1 is made up of a flat disc-like base 4 having the central tube 30 upstanding therefrom with the flexible flanges 33 extending laterally and peripherally outwards from the central tube 30. The flexible flanges 33 are curved when viewed from above to resemble curved spokes 34 for receiving a reel. As with the holder 1 of Figures 12 to 15, a reel can be simply urged over the flexible flanges 33 of the sprung spool 5 to be held in place by the flanges 33 on the base 4. The reel can then be removed as required. The holder 1 of the invention can be manufactured from any suitable material as required such as plastics e.g. polyethylene or metal e.g. stainless steel. The holder 1 can also be manufactured in various sizes as required.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the holder 1 of the invention is suitable for use with all elongate windable objects and materials although it is of particular utility in the electrical industry. As indicated above, the holder 1 of the invention 1 can be used with elongate windable materials on reels 3 which can be reversibly mounted on the holder 1 as required so that the holder 1 is re-usable as required. Alternatively, the holder 1 can be used with elongate windable materials which can be wound directly onto the spool 5. In the latter format, the holder 1 could be disposable i.e. serve as a combined reel 3 and holder 1.