US1512004A - Yielding-arch construction - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 14 1924.

E. P. STEVENS YIELDING ARCH CONSTRUCTION Filed April 28 192 1 jwawr r Patented Oct. 14, 1924.

UNITED STATES j 1,512ee4' PATENT OFFICE.

ENOQH P. STEVENS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS; MARY ANN STEVENS EXECUTBIX OF SAID ENOCH P. STEVENS, DECEASED.

"YIELDING-ARCH CONSTRUCTION.

Application filed April 28, 1921. Serial No. 465,161.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it'known that I, ENOCH P. STEVENS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Morgan Park, Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Yielding-Arch Constructions, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the construction of brick arches for use in furnaces or other situations where the arch is subjected to great heat, and has for its primary object to provide means for suspending bricks in an arch in a manner to permit them to yield under expansion and contraction incident to the wide range of temperature changes to I which the arch is subjected.

One feature of the invention consists in providing a yielding abutment for the arch and vertlcal suspension for the bricks that form thearch, of such character that thearch is not dependent upon its abutment for u sustention. M

Another feature consists in providing hanging means for the arch which will provide direct suspension forv every brick in a row and support the -bricks of such row in the form of an arc of the arch; this end being attained through means of a plurality of hangers arranged in a series extending in the direction of the row of bricks, and each constructed to embrace a plurality of the bricks in the row.

A further feature consists in constructing the hanger with an engaging head adapted to engage the bricks (preferably by embracing undercut portions thereof) and a suspending member which is angul arly yielding relatively to the engaging head so that the head may conform ,to the series of bricks which it engages, and the suspending member may extend therefrom to the superstructure from which the arch is hung; said suspending member being also preferably adjustable on the head transversely to the 'directionof suspension in order to facilitate its attachment to the superstructure.

A further feature relates to an improved construction of hook upon the upper end of the suspending member through which the latter may engage the superstructure.

Another feature which is peculiar to one embodiment of the engaging head consists in making it in the form of a gripping clip eluding all of the features above enumerated, is shown by way of illustration in the accompanying drawings, in which Figures 1 and 2 are vertical sections through a portion of an arch embodying the subject-matter of the present invention, the

sections being taken in two planes at right angles to each other, Figure 2 being a view taken along the planes marked by the line 2-2 Figure 3 is a detail view of the resilient clip and bricks attached thereto; and

igure 4 is a detailed view of a modified construction of resilient arch abutment.

1 represents hanger-supported bricks which are preferably arranged, as shown in Figure 2, in rows spaced apart appropriately to receive and support intermediate rows of bricks 2 between them. Each brick 1 is constructed with a head 3 formed with recesses that develop shoulders by which the brick may be su ported.

5 represents a c ip having a body portion 5 and claws 5 formed thereon in position to engage beneath the shoulders 4 and thereby grip the brick. While" the clip for many of the purposes of my invention andwithout detracting from a full realization of some of the features thereof, he made of rigid form, the body 5 thereof, and if desired the claws 5 thereof as well, may be made of material havin such inherent resiliency as will adapt t e clip to yieldingly press against a brick and thereby prevent chipping or spalling of individual bricks under their tendency to expand unequally or to twist or turn as a result of distortionvof the arch; and such resiliency also exists to a degree that will permit v the clip to snap over the head 3 of a brick the brick to or removing it 5 may,

it acomplete hanger, a feature of the pref ferred embodiment of my invention consists in suspending the clip by means of a rod 6 I rection of such row.

having a headed end 6 engaged with the body 5 of the clip in a manner to render the suspending member 'angularly flexible with relation to this clip, and this rod has its upper end secured in a hook 7, preferably with adjustment as by means of an ordinary nut which adapts the rod to engage a superstructure 8. In addition to angular adjustability ofsuspending rod 6 in the clip 5, said rod is preferably adjust-able bodily in the plane of the body of the clip through means of a slot- 5 formed in the clip, and said 'slot may be made the means of convenient assembly of the suspending rod and clip and constructing the slot with an enlargement at one end as shown.

As shown in Figure 2, the clip 5 assumes a substantial angle to the vertical direction v of support, and for that reason the rod 6 is displaced sufliciently fromthe geometrical centerof the clip to bring it more nearly over the center of gravity of the brick.

As shown in Figure 1, bricks 1 are relatively of short dimension in the longitudi nal direction of the row in'which they are placed and the clip 5 is sufiiciently long in such direction to embrace a group of such bricks, preferably four in number, the rod 6 being, however, in a transverse plane of the clip that lies intermediate of its two ends, in order to balancethe load lengthwise of the row. While each clip has a dimension which permits it to embrace a plurality of bricks in the hanger supported row, each brick in said row is directly supported by a hanger. The hangers are arranged in a series extending in the di- In order that the arch may be expanded freely under the high temperature to which it is subjected Without impairment of its support, at least one abutment of the arch is rendered resilient, and to this end, a steel strap 9 is extended across the abutment ends of the rows of bricks, and supported at suitable ihtervals bythe shoe 10 on the rod 11, which is longitudinally sustained by spring 12- in housin 13.v The number of spring supports emp oyed for this purpose will be varied at will. As suggested by dotted lines in Figure 2, the present ilf lustration employs one of said spring supports for each row 'of hanger-supported bricks. Any suitable form of subdivided material X may be em loyed for making a gas tight closure at t e end of thearch without interfering with expansion and contraction of the arch.

Under the effect of heat the dimensions of the bricks change materially and in ordinary constructions as now! known and used said bricks tend to spall. or sluif off,

which action is materially increased by reason. of the fact that saidbricks are subjected to heavy stresses which are unequally distributed. In the ordinary constructions the bricks are quickly destroyed. According to th present invention, the resilient abutment of the arch permits the bricks to expand and contract along the arc" of the arch. Destructive stresses are avoided and the spallingor' slulfing above referred to are eliminated. The bricks are supported from above and only enough pressure is required laterally of the bricks to maintain same in contact with one another.

When the bricks begin to vcontract and recede due to age and the terrific treatment to which they are subjected in heating and cooling, according to constructions as now commonly known and used, cracks occur and the arch frequentlycollapses. According to the present invention this contraction of the individual brickswis followed up I I able to hold the nose brick inwardl i as 3 well as upwardly, and extended beyon the hook 7 a distance sufiicient to receive a spring 15 which permitsthe rod to yield to movements of the portion of the arch formed by the nose bricks. The nose bricks 14 will be of greater thickness than the bricks 1 and there may be a 7, for each nose brick.-

hanger 5, 6,

With the combination of features as above described, an arch construction is provided which is of a highly yielding nature, and subject to minimum breakage of constituent bricks; at the same, time the bricks are firmly supported in a manner which renders them readily removable and replaceable with minimum disturbance of adjacentbricks. I

Instead of the direct thrust arrangement of resilient abutment for the arch shown in Figure 1, a lever 11 (Figure 4) may be employed with similar effect, with a fulcrum 11 and a spring 1:2 in a housing 13 acting vertically upon the'lever from a point that is shielded from the heat of the furnace. The lever 11 is formed to convert vertical movement of the spring into horizontal movement at the bar 9;, In i this arrangement the bricks 1 will be suspended by hangers 5, 6, in arching position independently of the arch abutments.

I claim:

1. In a furnace arch, a row of bricksarranged in an arc of the arch, a plurality of brick-grippin members arranged in a series extending in t c direction of the arc and engagin a plurality of the bricks in the row; each firick being engaged by one of said gripping members, a supporting structure above the row of bricks, and suspending members between said supporti structure and the respective gripping mem rs, varyg in length and positioning the bricks in the arc.

2. An .arch construction comprising a row of bricks, a series of hangers for said bricks affording vertical support to the bricks and positioning them in an arc of the arch, and resilient means at an end of said row pressing the bricks together to maintain them in contact with one another during expansion and contraction.

3. In an arch construction, a rowof bricks, hangers for said bricks supporting them in an arc of the arch, each brick being supported b a hanger, and each hanger engaging a p urality of bricks, and a'resilient abutment for said row of bricks adapted to press them together to maintain them in contact with one another during expansion and contraction.

4. In arch construction, a row of bricks, an abutment for said row having resiliency in the longitudinal direction thereof,'and a brick-gripping hanger for the bricks in said a row sustaining vertical load of and yielding relatively to said bricks without releasing their support thereof.

5. In a brick arch construction, hangers for the bricks comprising brick-engaging members and suspending rods passing through said brick engaging members and having headed ends through which they sustain the brick-engaging members with angular adjustment.

6. In a brick arch construction, a hanger comprising a brick-engaging member, and

a suspending rod therefor; said brick-engag ing member having a slot extending transversely to the direction of suspension; and said rod having a headed end engaging .in said slot.

7. In arch construction, a hanger for the bricks of an arch, comprising an embracing yoke fashioned to provide opposing gripping claws, and a suspending rod extending from said yoke intermediate of said claws,

said yoke being mounted to swing in all directions on said suspending rod.

8. An arch construction comprisin a row of bricks arrange in an are, means or supporting same from above, and yielding means at the end of said row for maintaining said bricks in contact with one another duringnexpansion and contraction.

9. arch construction comprising a row of bricks arranged in an arc, angularly movable means for supporting same from above, and yielding means at the end of said row for maintaining said bricks in contact with one another during expansion and contraction.

10. Top wall construction comprising bricks, means for supporting same from above, and yielding abutment means exerting pressure laterally of said bricks for maintaining said bricks in contact with one another during expansion and contraction.

11. In arch construction, a hanger for the bricks of an arch, comprising an embracing yoke fashioned to provide opposing grip ping claws, and having inherent resiliency that permits the claws to separate in passing a brick to and from gripped relation there to, and resilient means for maintaining said bricks in lateral contact with one another.

12. In arch construction, a row of bricks an abutment for said row having resiliency in the longitudinal direction thereof, and

hangers for bricks in saidrow comprising clips fashioned to griothe bricks, and having inherent resiliency in the direction of impingement against the bricks.-

13. In arch construction, a row of bricks, and ban ers for said bricks having clips fashione to grip the bricks in the transverse direction of the row, and having inherent resiliency in the direction of gripping impingement against the bricks; the dimension of a clip in the longitudinal directionof the row being suflicient toembrace a plurality of bricks in the row.

14. In arch construction, bricks having oppositely presented recesses, and hangers for said bricks including in their construction clips having gripping jaws adapted to enter said 'recesses and embrace the bricks; said jaws having resilienc in the direction of impingement against t e bricks andresilient means exerting lateral pressure against said bricks to maintain same in engagement with one another.

15. In arch construction, a nose supporting superstructure, a hanger for said brick comprising a clip gripping the brick, and a rod extending upwardly and inwardly from said clip and having anchorage on the superstructure which is resilient longitudinally of the rod.

S1gned at Chicago, Illinois, this 23rd day of April, 1921. Y

I ENOCH P. STEVENS.

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