US1557309A - Electromechanical interlock - Google Patents

Description

Oct- 13 c. NORTON ELECTROMECHANI CAL INTERLOCK ori inal Filed s- 2, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet ,1

INVENTOR CMQW/ Nor/0n: BY v ATTORNEY Patented @ct. l3,

CLIFFORD NORTON, F NEW YORK, N. 51., ASSIGNOR T0 GRAI-IAIVT &. NORTON GUINIPANY, 0F NEW YORK, N. Y., A. CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

ELECTROIVIECHANICAL INTERLOCK.

original application filed August 2, 1923, Serial No. 655,175.

Divided and this application filed January 10, 1925.. Serial- No. 1,569. I

My invention relates to a door closing and opening apparatus of the class wherein a pair of toggle arms or levers or other devices are employed for moving a door such as an elevator door or elevator well door from open to closed position and vice versa by the use of applied manual or other power.

This application is a division of applicants co-pending application Serial No. 655,175, filed August 2, 1923.

The invention is designed to provide for the opening and closing of an elevator well door by the use of magnetic means on the car in such manner that while the car is running the door operating apparatus will be locked against operation and whereby the operation of the car by electric or similar power is rendered impossible when the door has been opened.

The invention as embodied in the special apparatus herein described is particularly useful in connection with electric pushbutton systems of elevator control and operation and the invention will therefore be described as applied to that use.

The invention consists essentially in the combination with the door opening and closing mechanism of a latch which serves to lock a member thereof in the door closed position of the parts, a power controlling switch consisting of a circuit-closer and breaker controlling the application of the electric power employed to'move the elevator in any of the well known ways, and operating means for actuating the latch and switch simultaneously to free the door opening and closing mechanism when the door is to be opened and at the same time renderi-ng it impossible to move the elevator car, said operating means being operable from the car when it is at a landing through the operation of a device magnetically controlled on the car.

lift

The invention consistsalso in the par ticular combinations of devices and details of construction hereinafter more particular ly described and then specified in the claim.

Fig. 1 is a general side elevation of the door operating mechanism, latch and switch in one of the forms that my invention may take.

Fig. 2 is an edge .view of the same and shows in addition the means on the car employed in combination therewith, the car being shown with its floor level with the landing floor.

Fig. 3 shows in detail the toggle arm catch and the actuating switch in enlarged view.

1 indicates an elevator well door which 'may be of the sliding type. The door closnected together as at 3 and as well understood in the art. The levers of the toggle arm system may be arranged with relation to one another sons to permit the joint of the toggle to be broken by moving the door, or they may be so arranged with relation to one another that the arms will lie in the same line intersecting'the toggle joint and so that they will in effect operate to lock the door against movement by an extraneous force applied to the door and until the toggle is broken by power applied to one ofthe members thereof. It is therefore to be un derstood that the toggle may be operated in any of the ways well understood in the art. i

As indicated,a handle i may be provided to break the toggle for the purpose of open ing the door or said toggle may be operated by means of a cylinder connected there with as well understood in the art. lln the case of the latter device the power may be normal position shown.

pneumatic or other power or may be power stored in a spring acting on a piston within the cylinder 5 when the handle 4 or other device is used to apply power in the opening of the door.

The device here shown is of the general type described in the Norton Patent No. 1,124,941, dated January 12, 1915, embody ing in addition to the spring a suitable liquid check or dashpot at its lower end which comes into action when the spring operates to close the door. The device 5, however, is to be understood as being merely illustrative of any means for applying pneumatic or other power in the opening or closing movement or both, said device being suitably connected to the lever arm 2 by a pivota-l or other connection.

Applied to some part of the door opening and closing mechanism, as for instance, to an arm 2 of the toggle, is a catch or locking device indicated at 7 and shown for illustration as a latch or lever. Said latch is pivotally mounted at 8 on a fixed support such as the wallof the elevator shaft or studding and at its free end is a locking shoulder 7' adapted to rest upon and lockingly engage a stud or arm 8' carried by the toggle arm 2. Obviously said latch operates to prevent the arm 2 from swinging upward in the arc of a circle which it must do in order that the toggle may carry the door 1 back from the closed position indicated in Fig. 1 and in the direction of the arrow 9 in order to open the door. Gravity or a spring may serve to normally hold or assist in holding the lockin catch 7 in the en, however, said catch is raised to free the arm-2' the latter may swing upwardly in the door opening movement.

29 indicates the casing of an interlockin switch of any desired type or form applie to act on an operating or controlling circuit of the motive power by which the car is moved in such a manner that in one position of the switch -the car may be moved by manual or automatic control while in the other position the apparatus is rendered inoperative to move the car. ;The manner of connecting a switch having this function into the circuits is well understood in the art and need not be further particularly described. Circuit wires for said switch are indicated at 10, 10'. The operating member of said switch, which member may be of any desired form or form suited to the type of switch employed, is indicated at 12.

In the present instance I have shown my invention as carried out by the use of a type of switch substantially like that de-.

scribed in my application for patent filed February 2, 1923, Serial No. 616,485, and having two spring-pressed circuit closing members 11, 11 which normally tend to engage one another and close the circuit of 10, 10. A reciprocating bar or block of insulating material like bakeli-te or other suitable material c'onstitutes the operating member 12 and is mounted in position between the circuit closing arms 11, 11 and is adapted to be forced between and separate said arms to break the circuit. In the nor mal position or circuit closing position said block or bar 12 occupies the position indicated in full lines in Fig. 3. Said block or other operating member of the switch is attached to link 12' and said link is preferably joined to the latch or an arm 14 extending therefrom by means adjustable if desired longitudinally to adjust the throw of the parts as indicated at 13. When it is desired to operate the toggle arms to open the door it is necessary to lift the latch 7 and in so doing the switch is operated to break the interlocking control circuit, thereby stopping or rendering it impossible to further operate the car by its motive power. A bar or rod 6 suitably guided and working vertically in guides on the side of the elevator well opening operatively engages with the latch and power controlllng switch in any desired way as for instance by means of a toe or head 6* adapted to engage and lift the latch when the rod is lifted. The switch may be simultaneously operated through any suitable means, as for instance the inter-connecting link 12 between the switch and the latch already referred to.

The bar 6 may be lifted by means of the bell crank lever 17 the horizontal member of which is connected to the bar while the depending vertical member thereof protrudes into position to be thrust sidewise by the cam or actuator 15 having a vertically elongated engaging surface adapted to be thrust sidewise against the vertical arm of the bell crank when the car is level with the landing, said actuating member being properly mounted and guided on the car. The position of said actuating member 15 is controlled by magnetic means on the car con sisting, for instance, of an electric motor 25 which, when energized, operates a drum 26 which winds'up a cord or chain connected with the cam and with a rod 27 that in the winding movement stores power in a compressible spring 28, as clearly indicated. While the magnetic device is energized the cam 15 is held retracted or in ino rative position but whenthe car reaches t e floor level a change of circuit condition, autosidewise thereby, through the intermediate devices already described, bringing about slmultaneous operation of the latch and of the power controlling switch so that the door operating mechanism is free from the action of the latch and the door may then be opened.

In this movement the pin or dog 8' moves under and supports the latch so that it may not drop back into locking position until the door is again closed. The action of freein the latch, however, is accompanied by sim taneous action on the interlocking switch that, beingjthrown, operates as before described to render the movement of the elevator away from the landing impossible, it being now im ossi'ble to apply the motive power to the e evator.

When howeverv it is desired or permissible to move the car away from the landing, the magnetic device 25 is energized thus withdrawing the operating 'cam or member 15 from engagement with the bell crank so that the bar 6 or other operating member acting on the latch and switch may drop. This allows the latch 7 and the interlocking or power controlling switch to resume normal position on closure ofthe door, the operating mechanism therefor being thereafter locked and held until again freed by the action of the cam device 15 operating to raise the latch.

As will be seen, the ofiice of the electric motor 25 which is normall energized while the car is moving, is' tohold the cam-or other operating device in inoperative position by electromagnetic action and to freethe same for operation by the spring or other device when the car vis at the selected landing, through interruption of the cha'rgin circuit of the electromagnet by any desire means, automatic or otherwise, the means usually employed in the operatio'lli ofa push-button system of elevator contro A It is-to be understood that. the structure disclosed is merely illustrative and that the applicant is entitled to equivalents sodong. as they fall Within the scope of the subjectmatter claimed. 7 j

What I claim as my invention is 1-- The combination with door opening and closing mechanism adapted to be controlled from an elevator car, of alatch engaging and holding a member thereoffin door-clos i position, operating 'means or operatin siii d latch to free said mechanism, sai means including a cam slidably supported for: right line movement transverse to the path of'movement of said car, spring means or moving said cam into position to free said latch, a rotary electric motor, a com necting member for operativel joining said cam and motor whe'rebysaid draw said cam latch.

. Signed at New York in the county of New York and State of New York this 9th day of January A, D. 1925. Y

a CLIFFORD-NORTON.-

motor may. directly away from said as for instance by

Images