US1528090A

US1528090A - Emergency exit for passenger-carrying bodies

Info

Publication number: US1528090A
Application number: US707479A
Authority: US
Inventors: George W Tracy
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1924-04-18
Filing date: 1924-04-18
Publication date: 1925-03-03
Anticipated expiration: 1942-03-03

Description

Mar. 3, 1925.

- 1,528,090 Haw. TRACY .BlBnenNcY fixn' FOR-"PASSENGER CARRYING BODIES Filed A ril -1s,'1924 2 Sheets-She et 1 Mar 3. 1925; v 1,528,090.

' Y G. w. TRACY EMERGENCY EXIT FOR PASSENGER CARRYING BODIE Filed April 18, 1 24 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IZ-TII I: 5

a Mm

Patented Mar. 3, 1925 PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE W. TRACY, 0F JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY.

EMERGENCY EXIT FOR PASSENGER-CARRYIEG BODIES.

Application filed. April 18, 1924. Serial No. 707,479.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, GEORGE 'W. TRACY, a citizen of the United States of- America, and resident of Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Emergency Exits for Passenger- Carrying Bodies, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in land vehicles, bodies and vtops, and particularly to the sub-class bodies thereunder.

It is an object'o-f this invention to produce an emergency exit for passenger vehicles such as motor busses, tramway cars and the like which provides a ramp especially those that have closed doors for the admission and discharge of passengers, since the operating mechanism of such doors is liable to become jammed or impaired when accident occurs as in collisions and the like, or the mecha-' nism may become inoperative on account of wear or the breaking of parts under normal use.

When doors ordinarily employed in passenger busses' or cars become impaired and especially when the impairment is due to accident, passengers become excited and panicky sometimes to a degree where they injure one another in their effort to escape and there is no natural pathof exit.

It is an object of this invention to produce an emergency exit, preferably at a pointremote from the usual admission and exit doors in order that the emergency exit shall not be liable to damage-from the same cause that effects the regular doors or their operatingmechanisms, and therefore, in so far as the invention is used in connection with motor busses and tramway cars that are operated by a single employee, the emergency exit is preferably located at the rear of the body or in a position remote from that where the passengers enter and leave a bus or car.

It is furthermore an object of this invention to produce a closure for an emergency exit which will have an exterior surface finished to simulate the sheathing or external surface .of the car body in order that the pressure of the closure will not change the symmetry or ornamental scheme of the external surface of the body.

It is a further object of this invention to produce an emergency exit opening with a closure or door therefor mounted to oscillate vertically and having its hinge'or support at the bottom, the said closure being capable of swinging outwardly until its normal top end encounters the roadbed or earth near which the vehicle is resting. Thus the door or closure would form an inclined way on which passenger's escaping. from the vehicle might pass without liability to accident.

It is a still further object of this invention to produce a door. having a mounting of the character indicated, associated with a mov able sill or shield which guards the joint or space'between the door and its frame, a condition which lessens the liability of the passengers tripping in their hasty exit from the body, and the said sill'is associated with novel means by which the upper surface thereof is elevated as it moves from inoperative to its operative position.

It is furthermore an object of this invention to provide means for holding the door or closure in its normal position, and in supplying mechanism for operating the said means from remote points, as, for instance, from the operators seat, or from a station accessible to passengers, either or both of whom may release the said means to permit the closure to swing outwardly as heretofore described; and it is furthermore an object to provide kick springs which will have the dual function of maintaining a tension or pressure on the closure to prevent rattling of the said closure or its retaining means, and to impart motion to the closure when re leased in order that the closure will be forced to an open position automatically.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in the details of construction, and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter more fully set forth and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will i be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this application wherein like characters'denote correspond ing parts in the several views, and in which Figure 1 illustrates a view in side elevae tion of therear portion of a passenger carrying body; a

Figure 2 illustrates a longitudinal sectional view of a door in open position with parts associated with it in elevation,

Figure 3 illustrates a rear elevation of the said body;

Figure l illustrates a sectional view of the rear door; and

Figure 5 illustrates a sectional view of the rear door and the door frame.

In these drawings, 10 denotes a body in which the passengers may ride, here conven tionally shown as the body of an automobile or motor bus, although it is the intention of the inventor to have the device applicable to tramway or railway cars and therefore he does not wish to be limited with respect to its use by anything contained in the specification.

In the present embodiment of the invention, the rear end of the body has a door case 11 or a frame corresponding to a door case generally in its construction, and the side members or studs 12 have apertures or seats 13,, and the upper member i l of the case has an aperture 15, which. apertures constitute sockets or clearances for the reception of door retaining bolts or latches, as will presently appear.

The door, in the present embodiment of the invention, is connected to a sill or other structure 16 of the body frame by hinges 17 so connected to the sill and the bottom rail 18 ot the door as to permit the door to swing outwardly.

As here illustrated, the door frame has

stiles

19 and 20, the bottom rail 18 and top rail 21. A middle rail 22 extends between the stiles and may be anchored to them in any appropriate way, and a. latch anchoring rail 23 also has its ends secured to the said stiles.

Latch

bolts

24, 25 and 26 are guided to project beyond the stiles and the top rail in positions to enter the recesses or seats hereto'fore mentioned as being formed in the door case, that is to say, the bolts or latches 24c and 25 enter the seats 13 and the bolt 26 enters the seat 15. The bolt-s are projected and retracted simultaneously by reason of the tact that they are connected to a plate 27 that is mounted on a pivot 28 anchored to the door. The plate has a stem or arm 29 extending beyond the point of attachment of the bolt or latch 26, and the said arm has a spring 30 connected to it, which spring has its opposite end anchored to the top rail of the door and operative to exert a pull on the arm in a direction to oscillate the plate for projecting the bolts.

Each bolt is further provided with a spring 31 arranged to exert pressure for projecting the bolts and all of the springs are intended to exert force on the bolts, tending to project them and to hold them projected to insure the proper fastening of the door and to serve as retaining devices for the bolts. By reason of the provision of the plurality of springs the retention of the bolts in their projected positions is insured, even though one or two of the springs become impaired.

A rod 32 extends downwardly in the door frame from the arm to which it is connected, and the said rod has a cable 33 connected to it, which cable extends through an aperture 34, in the bottom rail of the door, through a sleeve in the floor of the body, or an ele mentin which the sleeve may be anchored, and the said cable is connected to a rock lever 36 pivotally mounted on a bracket 37 in order that motion of the rock lever will communicate motion to the arm and rotate the plate to retract the bolts. A cable or rod 38 may be connected to the'roc; lever and led to any appropriate station such as the operators seat or stand in order that an operator may manipulate the cable and cause the retraction ot the door retaining bolts. A suitable handle 39 may be pivotally mounted near the drivers seat or stand and the rod or cable connected to it in order that the rod or cable may be manipulated.

A. spring or springs such as 40 may be anchored in the door frame and it'extends vertically thereof when the door is closed. The upper end is anchored, whereas the lower end is connected to a cable 41 that extends through an aperture 42 of the lower rail of the door and through a bushing or sleeve similar to the bushing or sleeve in the floor or in a stationary member of the JOClY, the said cable being anchored to one of the stationary parts of the body, as shown at 4:3. The spring last describedserves as a cushioning means for the door as it swings outwardly and should be strong enough to nearly if not quite counterbalance the weightof the door when it swings outwardly and downwardly. Its purpose is to limit the velocity of descent of the door when it is opened and it serves to prevent injury to the door that might be occasioned by its rapid opening and its weight.

The inner surface of the door is provided with a sheathing lt or finish that may correspond to the interior finish of the body, or it may have a characateristic finish in order that its identity as a door may be well defined. T hat is a matter of ornamentation which the maker or user may determine and follow.

At the lower end of the sheathing, in the present embodiment of the invention, an apron or plate 45 is hinged to it, the said plate being free to move over the surface of the floor of the body or some'support provided for the saidplatev The under surface of the plate is provided with lugs or "feet 16 and these feet rest on the surface of the floor when the door is'open and serve as a bridge for the joint or space between the lower end of the door and the sill or floor of the body when the door is in open position. hen the door is closed, the feet of the plate slide on the surface of the floor and enter inclined grooves 47 formed in the floor, the said grooves producing clearances which permit the inner edge of the plate to lie practically flush with the surface of the floor.

The plate moves under and is concealed by a secondary sill 48 which is held in an inclined position and being practically flush with the upper surface of the floor at its inner edge and which rises gradually to the exit opening and it is practically flush with the plate at its outer edge. By the relation of parts just stated, no shoulders or ledges are presented which would serve to trip passengers passing from the floor of the car to the plate and to the ramp as formed by the door in its inclined position.

I claim: 7

1. A passenger carrying body adapted to be supported on wheels and having an emergency exit opening, a door in said opening, means for holding the door at the bottom to permit it to move outwardly and downwardly whereby its normal upper end may rest on the ground to form a ramp, and an element movable by the door to cover the joint between the normal lower end of the door and its seat.

2. A passenger carrying body adapted to be supported on wheels and having an emergency exit opening, a door in said opening, means for holding the door at the bottom to permit it to move outwardly and downwardly whereby its normal upper end may rest on the ground to form a ramp, an element movable by the door to cover the joint between the normal lower end of the door and its seat, and means for elevating or lowering the element in its movement.

3. A passenger carrying body adapted to be supported on wheels and having an emergency exit opening, a door in said opening, means for holding the door at the bottom to permit it to move outwardly and downwardly whereby its normal upper end may rest on the ground to form a ramp, an

element movable by the door to cover the joint between the normal lower end of the lowering the element in its movement, and a cover for said element when in its inoperative position.

4. A passenger carrying body adapted to be supported 011 wheels and having an emergency exit opening, a door for closing the opening having an external surface simulating the external surface of the body, means for oscillatably holding the door at its bottom to permit its upper end to swing outwardly and downwardly, a plate extending inwardly from the lower edge of the door, means for communicating the motion of the door to the said plate for moving it outwardly as the door swings on its pivot whereby the joint between the lower edge of the door and the seat of the said door is bridged, feet on the lower surface of the plate, a support within the body on which the feet may slide, the said support having grooves with inclined bottom walls in which the feet slide for causing the plate to rise as it moves outwardly and to descend as it moves inwardly, and an inclined cover supported above the said plate.

5. A passenger carrying body adapted to be supported on wheels and having an emergency exit opening, a door for closing the opening having an external surface simulating the external surface of the body, means for oscillatably holding the door at its bottom to permit its upper end to swing outwardly and downwardly, a plate extending inwardly from the lower edge of the door, means for communicating the motion of the door to the said plate for moving it outwardly as the door swings on its pivot whereby the'joint between the lower edge of the door and the seat of the said door is bridged, feet on the lower surface of the plate, a support within the body on which the feet may slide, the said support having grooves with inclined bottom walls in which the feet slide for causing the plate to rise as it moves outwardly and to descend as it, moves inwardly, an inclined cover supported above the said plate, and a kick spring anchored to a stationary part of said body bearing against the door for forcing it outwardly.

GEORGE W. TRACY.