tank, the rotation is released. Any residual rotation is easily 

 absorbed by the cable. 



On the other hand, a double-armored cable may possess enough rota- 

 tional resistance that during loading the cable will not lav flatly on 

 the bottom of the tank. As the cable is forced down to form a fake, 

 the rotation creeps to the adjoining colls. When the cable is taken 

 out of the tank, another rotation redistribution takes nlace. Sometimes 

 a local concentration of rotation occurs, and results in the formation 

 of kinks which cannot be relieved without cutting and splicing. This 

 phenomenon resembles the tangling of a long length of cheap grade garden 

 hose. Another factor which contributes to kinking is the coiling pro- 

 cedure. For tight packing, it is necessary to coil the cable from the 

 tank core to the wall and back to the core again. When the cable is 

 being payed out from the tank wall toward the center core, the double- 

 armored cable has a great tendency to stick to the next coil of cable; 

 both are pulled up together. The result is a kink. 



Bulky in-line packages often cause handling problems. Their large 

 circumferential frictional resistance stops the propagation creeping 

 cable rotation causing local concentration of toraue and encouraging kink 

 formation. The cable section with such packages should be stored in a 

 separate box adjacent to the tank. The tank is a good storage vessel 

 provided the cable can satisfactorily tolerate the amount of rotation 

 imposed on it during loading. The above comments about cable tanks also 

 apply to the coiling of cables into tubes, pans, and flatbeds. 



Cable reels may be mounted on a horizontal shaft or a vertical shaft. 

 The horizontal reel is most common. If a traction winch or linear puller 

 is not to be used, the cable is generally wound on the drum in tension for 

 tight packing so that during payout the high tension cable from load will 

 not cut into the soft layer of cable causing severe cable damage. The 

 advantage of using a reel is that no rotation is induced during loading 

 and payout. The cable is torque-free coming out of the drum if it was 

 loaded torque-free. The main disadvantage of a reel is probably its 

 limitation on handling long length large-diameter (over 2 inches) cable. 

 Large drums and winches are available off the shelf and have been used by 

 the mining industry. However, the space and weight requirements for the 

 winch system and the power plant are a problen for shipboard use. The 

 weight of the cable and winch on the deck will affect the stability of a 

 small ship. 



Another serious disadvantage of a reel is the difficulty encountered 

 when in-line packages are used, as would be the case with most undersea 

 sensor array systems. The winding of the cable with in-line packages is 

 difficult to avoid. For better winding, a third flange may be inserted 

 in the drum to divide the cable from the packages. However, cross laying 

 of the cable still cannot be totally avoided. In some systems, in-line 

 hard wire connected packages may be replaced by quick-attachment induc- 

 tively connected packages. The packages can be attached around the cable 

 just before it enters the water. For large size double-armored cables 

 with long lay length, the minimum bend radius has to be so large that 

 winch size required becomes too large to be practical. In this case, a 

 drum on a vertical axis may be used. However, such an arrangement has a 

 disadvantage; cable turns frequently drop toward the lower flange causing 



38 



