GB571948A - Improvements in or relating to supports of ropes and cables for aerial ropeways or the like - Google Patents

Abstract

571,948. Suspension bridges. HOLMAN, H. Sept. 28, 1943, No. 15930. Convention date, Oct. 1, 1942. [Class 20 (i)] [Also in Groups XXX and XXXIV] The supporting rope of an aerial ropeway, as distinct from the travelling rope, or of a suspension bridge is carried by a shoe sliding on a curved support carried on a trestle or tower, the ends of the shoe projecting on both sides of the support sufficiently to support the rope equally during idle times as well as when the rope moves slightly due to load or temperature changes. The shoe, Fig. 4, may consist of a series of linked members 9 grooved to receive the rope and having a central rib 13 to take between the flanges of rollers 8 mounted in a piece 6 recessed into a saddle 1a pivoted at 4a to a tower. The roller axles are seated in recesses provided along a curved path or the roller flanges are of varying sizes to provide a curved path. The end shoes may each carry a stop pin 21 which engages a notch in the saddle to prevent overrunning. The curved path may have a uniform curvature or be formed by parts of different radius. The flanges of the rollers 8 and their spindles may rotate in an oil bath formed by the recess 5 for the piece 6, and this recess may have a sump 48, Fig. 19, having an overflow pipe 46 with outlet 47 above the normal oil level 45 so that rain-water collecting in the sump will be forced out by the pressure of the oil above it. The shoes may carry shields 49, Fig. 20 with ends 51 extending beyond the sides 52 of the sump, adjacent shields being overlapped and grooved. The shoes may be connected by hinge joints or they may be secured to a flexible steel strip. The spindles of the rollers may be mounted in ball bearings or recesses lined with anti-friction material. The end shoes may be supported by arms which engage the rope just below its highest point so as to leave a clear trackway.