US1383252A - Coupling means for releasably suspending a mass - Google Patents

Description

v a. A. 'WEARHA'M, comma MEANS FOR mummy SUSPENYDING Amss. APPLICATION.HLZEDIFEBQ'ID. 192.l,

I I. I

' Patented June 28-, 1921-.

UNITED STATES,

PATENT OFFICE.

GORDON AUGUSTUS WEARHAM, or LoN'noN, ENGLAND.

COUPLING MEANS FOR RELEASlALBLY SUSPENDING- A MASS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented e 28 Application filed February 10, 1921. Serial No. 443,952.

T 0 all whom it may concern 7 Be it known that I, GORDON AUeUsrUs VVEARHAM, a subject of the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and he land, and residing at Myrtle Lodge, 159 Lewisham road, London, S. E. 13, England, have invented new; and useful Improvements in or Relating to Coupling Means for Beleasably Suspending aMass, (for which I have filed application in England, Sept. 26,

' 1919, No. 23,67 8,) of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object the rapid and easy release of a suspended mass with a minimum expenditure of force, such force being independent of the weight to be re: leased, or proportional to only a very small fraction thereof, and relates to apparatus in which the suspension hook is pivoted in a i bent or projection is frame or housing in such manner that a mass suspended therefrom tends to rock saidihook about its pivotal axis to release said mass,

said hook being formed with a nose adapted to bear, when a massis suspended from it, against'the adja'centend of a detent, pivotally mounted onan arm. According to this invention the arm is pivoted in said frame on an axis in line or nearly in line with the point of contact ofthe hook and the detent and with the pivot of the detent while a to be engaged by a trigger lever, the arrangement'being such that whena mass is suspended from the hook, the mouth of the latter is closed and the direction of the thrust of the nose of the hook against, the

. natively,

detent coincides or nearly coincides withthe line joining the pivots of the detent and the arm, so that whatever the weight suspended, no stress 'due thereto or only so small a stress as maygbe desired, is transmitted to the trigger lever. Means may be provided for automatically throwing the pivot of the detent-or of the arm out of the aforesaid alinement when the bent of the detent is disengaged from the trigger-lever. Alterthesaid automatic means may be dispensed with if the pivots of the detent and the arm be slightly out of line with the point of contact of the detent and: the nose of-the hook, and the parts so located that the suspended weight tending to turn the hook tends also to movethe detent and the arm to permit it suspended mass; the said movement being prevented by a trigger lever.

provided and adapted to turnso as to release the" Further, the extent to which the two pivots and the point of contact between the l detent and the nose of the hook are out of line may be regulated by making thetrig ger adjustable in position, so'that as small a fractionas may be desired of the force due to the weight to bereleased is transmitted to the trigger.

One form of apparatus'constructed inaccordance with this invention will be olel scribed with reference to the accompanying drawlngs of which Figure'l 1s a sectional ele:

vation on the crooked line A A Fig. 2,a1id Fig. 2 1s a plan with the uppermost distance pieces and tie rods omitted;

A hook a from which the massto be re placed may be suspended, is pivotally mounted 011 a spindle b in a frame or =housing constituted by a pair of plates o 0 connected by distance pieces (Z and tie rods e. The pivot of the hook at is so placed adacent the portion f thereof that amass suspended from the'portion f tends' to rock the hook a about its pivot b to such aneX- tent as to releasesaich mass. Atits top,

the hook is formed withawnoseg adapted to bearagainst theadjacent end h of a detent 17' be engaged by the nose g of atrigger r pi'v otally mounted on a spindle s passing through the plates 0 0 and thetail of the said trigger?" is bifurcated as at t and engages peripheral grooves 10 in the rod 4) of a piston w of a pneumaticcylinder 50 carried by said plates 0 c, said piston 1.0 being pressed by a sprlng y against the end of the'cylmder 00 so as to prevent oscillation of: the trigger a" and consequent premature release of the mass due tovibration, while for the same purpose a stop pin a is disposed between theplates c 0 and above the detent j to prevent the latter from rising above its normal position.

A spring 12 bears against apin' 13attached to thQ SlClIG plates 0 cand'agairista pin 14 attached to the armmm, and consequently until the latter is permitted to turn.

slightly from its normal. position this arm and the detent" fare turned counter clock wise by the force exerted by the nose 9 of the hook a on the end it of the detent j, and so permit the hook a -to turn to release the suspended mass. V

The a'rmmam has lugs 11 which, when a massis being. suspended on the hook a are struck bythe suspension eye ofthe mass so as to move the arm m m into the position shown in thedrawings. The said movement of the armim m also causes the detent 'j to engage the nose 9 ofthe hook a and the trigger r so that the parts of the device are automatically set in operative position by the action of attaching the mass to the hook. The side plates '00 are preferably formed as at 10 so as to prevent the suspension eye of the mass from escaping from'the. hookIa 11 place of or in addition to the spring 12, the trigger 1" may be provided with a projec tion 16 adapted to strike the .arm m' m or the detent 7', when the trigger 1" is operated" m from its normal' and so-move the arm m position. i q

Alternatively, if the pivot 70 of the detent j be slightly below the position shown in the drawings,.that-is to say, below the line through the'pivotn and the point of contact between the nose 9 and the end it of the:

detent; j, the pressure of thenose g on the end kwill tend to move the arm .m m so as to release the suspended mass.

The'invention enables 'a heavy mass to be released by a very light pull on the trigger and'is especially adapted for use on air craft for bomb dropping. It will be obas a releasable coupling is not1limited to a suspended mass, but will also serve e. g. as a slip coupling for railway vehicles and for-analogous purposes. I It is obvious that the trigger lever a" may be applied to the arm m m instead of to the detent j.

The parts may be disposed in other ways than that shown in the drawings without departing from the invention; for instance the arm m m'may be pivoted at a point on the side of the pivot of the detent 7' opposlte to that on which is located the nose g of the hook on, the essential featureof the invention being thatthepivots of the arm m m and of the detent j, be in a'li-ne or nearly in a linewith the point of contact between the detent j and the hook at.

Having described myinvention, I declare that what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. .In apparatus-for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with a frame or engaging position and on which the vious that the employment of the invention -.a mass,'the combination with housing, v suspended pivoted to, the housingsoas to adapted to hold the detent in itshook engaging position.

2. In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with a tramefor housing, of a hook from which the mass'is suspended pivoted to the housing so as to.

tend to turn to release the'mass, a detent engaging the said hook adapted to prevent such turning,"an arm pivoted to the frame, on which the detent is adapted to hold the detent in its hookengaging position, and means adapted to disengage the trigger from the detent.

3. In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination witha trame or housing of a hook from which the -mass is suspendedpivoted to the housing so as to 1 tend to'turn to release the mass, a detent engaging thesaid hook adapted to prevent such turning, an arm pivoted to the frame, on which thedetent'is pivoted, the pivots of the detentand of the arm being approx imately in a line with-the ment of the detent and the hook,a'trigger adapted to hold the detent in its hook-- engage thetrigger from the detent.

4; In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with a frame or housing, of a hook from which the mass is suspended pivoted to the housing .so as to tend to turn to release the mass, a detent engaging the-said hook adapted to prevent 105 detent is pivoted, a trigger suchturning, an arm pivoted to theframe,

pivoted, a trigger point of engagemeans adaptedto disii adapted tov hold the detent in its hookengaging position, means 'adaptedfto disengage the trigger 'from thedetent, and means adapted-to :slightly turn the "arm aboutits pivot engaged.

when the trigger is so dis-;'

.5. In apparatus for releasably suspending of a hook from which-the mass is" tend to turn to release the mass, a detent engaging the said hook adapted to prevent such turnin ,an arm pivoted to the frame, on whichth'e detent'is pivoted, theJpivots of the detent and of the arm being approx- -a frame or imately in a line with the point of engage V ment of the detent and adapted tohold the detent in its hook-engaging position, means adapted to disengage the trigger from the detent, and means the hook, a trigger Q adapted "to slightly turn the arm about its 5 pivot when the trigger is so disengaged.

6.- In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with'a frame or housing, of a hook from which the mass is suspended pivoted to the housing so as to tend to turn to release the mass, a detent engaging the said hook adapted to prevent such turning, an arm pivoted to the frame, on Which the detent is pivoted, a trigger adapted to hold the detent in its hook-engaging position, and a projection on the arm adapted to be engaged by the mass when the latter is being attached to the hook, so as to move the arm into the position which it occupies when the mass is retained by the hook.

7 In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with a frame or housing, of a hook from which the mass is suspended pivoted to the housing so as to tend to turn to release the mass, a detent engaging the said hook adapted to prevent such turning, an arm pivoted to the frame, on which the detent is pivoted, the pivots of the detent and of the arm being approximately in a line with the point of engagement of the detent and the hook, a projection on the arm adapted to be engaged by the mass when the latter is being attached to the hook, so as to move the arm into the position which it occupies when the mass is retained by the hook, a trigger adapted to hold the detent in its hook-engaging position, and means adapted to disengage the trigger from the detent.

8. In apparatus for releasably suspending a mass, the combination with a frame or housing, of a hook from'which the mass is suspended pivoted to the housing so as to tend to turn to release the mass, a detent engaging the said hook adapted to prevent such turning, an arm pivoted to the frame, on which the detent is pivoted, the pivots of the detent and of the arm being approximately in a line with the point of engagement of the detent and the hook, a projection on the arm adapted to be engaged by the mass when the latter is being attached to the hook, so as to move the arm into the.

position which it occupies when the mass is retained by the hook, a trigger adapted to hold the detent in its hook-engaging position, means adapted to disengage the trigger from the detent, and means adapted to slightly turn the arm about its pivot when the trigger is so disengaged.

In testimony whereof I have aiiixed my signature.

GORDON AUGUSTUS WEARHAM.

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