Cord for anchoring a movable object
A
tether
is a cord, fixture, or flexible attachment that characteristically anchors something movable to something fixed; it also may be used to connect two movable objects, such as an item being
towed
by its tow.
Applications for tethers include:
fall arrest systems
,
lanyards
, balloons, kites,
airborne wind-power systems
,
anchors
, floating water power systems, towing,
animal constraint
,
space walks
,
power kiteing
, and
anti-theft
devices.
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Failure
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Failure modes
for tethers are considered in their design.
[2]
A cord or rope tether may reach its
breaking strength
and fail. Outcomes can include an injury or fatal fall, and damage or loss of life to personnel or bystanders caused by backlash of the ruptured segments.
Failure-prevention may be designed into a tethering system. Some
safety harnesses
are used in combination with a
shock-absorbing
lanyard
, which has break-away stitching designed into it to prevent material failure and regulate
deceleration
, thereby preventing a serious
G-force
injury to the user when the end of the rope is reached.
Designed-to-fail safety links are sometimes used to prevent excessive tension in a tether involved in towing objects, such as
sailplanes
.
A signal tether is a system in which a constant signal designates a positive condition, and its interruption, whether by discontinuation or jamming, conveys a failure. The signal may be electrically generated, or a physical device such as flying a flag.
See also
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References
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External links
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