US1587301A - Bench-sheet-storage platform - Google Patents

Description

June 1,1926. 1,587,301

w. 1.. HANLEY, JR

BENCH SHEET STORAGE PLATFORM Filed June 9, 1925 l a'tented June l,

WILLIAM LEE I-IANLEY, $3., 01"! BRADFORD, PENNSYLVANIA.

BENCH-5HEETSTORAGE PLATFORM.

Application filed June 9, 1925.

My invention consists in the novel features hereinafter described, reference being had to the accompanying drawing which illustrates one embodiment of the inven- 5 tion, selected by me for purposes of illus tration, and the said invention is fully dis closed in' the following description and claims.

The object of my invention is to provide a platform for the transfer of large quantit'ies of brick or other ceramic ware, and especially brick, from one point to another by means of a suitable crane or other traveling hoist. Heretofore these platforms have usually been constructed of three separate plates, a horizontal bottom plate and two vertical end plates, fastened together at the two corners of the device, the verti cal end plates being provided with an e traneous device secured thereto, for engaging a suitable crane hook or lifting chains.

In practice it has been found that this general type of construction is unsatisfactory. These platforms carry an enormous load, approximately 4,000 pounds, the weight of which is applied directly to the horizontal or bottom plate and transmitted to the vertical end plates and to the lifting devices connected therewith, and it has been found in practice that platforms made in this manner are constantly breaking and yielding atthecorners, in some instances shearing or breaking the connecting bolts or rivets and in some instances shearing or breaking the bolts or rivets connecting the elevating devices or handles to the vertical plates, so that the platforms constructed in the old manner have been found to be very insecure. As they are intended to convey their lead of bricks or other articles through the air, frequently over apparatus and workmen, the failure of these devices isvery apt to be accompanied by serious loss and in some instances, physical injury. His

struction of these platforms all danger of their breakingor becoming separated or detached from the elevating and conveying hoist or crane, must be eliminated.

.According to my invention, 1 form the main body of the platform of a single sheet of wrought iron or steel, of suitable thickness, the central portion of the sheet constituting the horizontal portion of the plat form, and the end portions of the sheet being bent perpendicularly thereto and formtherefore highly important that in the con-- Serial No. 35,881.

ing integral end plates. lthe word integral as used in this specification and in the following claims is used in the limited sense as meaning, in fact, that the parts so referred to are laterally formed from one continuous and unitary piece of material. I prefer to reinforce this integral structure by means of horizontal and vertical. braces connected together and also united by welding or otherwise, to the horizontal and vertical portions respectively, of the said integral sheet, where such reinforcements are found to be necessary and desirable, and I also prefer to provide the vertical end members with hook engaging apertures formed by cutting away portions of the said me .nbers to, form apertures to receive the crane hooks or other lifting mechanism, so that there is no extraneous or separately formed handle or other lifting means con nected with said platform, upon the connecting bolts or'rivets of which the safety of the load depends.

It is particularly convenient to employ these platforms for the transfer of bricks from the sorting table of a brick kiln to shipping and storing points, and as it is frequently desirable to shift these platforms on the sorting table, I conveniently provide the horizontal plate portion or member, with braces having horizontally disposed flanges at their lower edges or sides, to engage supporting rollers provided on the bench, or other stationary support. This is preferable to providing the plat form itself with wheels or rollers which would add to the weight of the same and in all probability weaken its structure.

In the accompanying drawings,

Fig. 1 is a perspective View of one of my improved bench sheet storage platforms, embodying the-preferred formof my invention, and illustrating in connection therewith a stationary platform with supporting rollers and one form of lifting mechanism which I conveniently employ in connection therewith.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the platform and supporting bench.

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the same, the supporting bench being illustrated in sections.

Referring to the form of my invention illustrated in the accompanying drawing, 1 represents a single unitary integral sheet of wrought iron or steel, of the proper thickness, as for example, three-sixteenths of an inch, the central portion thereof forming the horizontal supporting member, 2, and the end portions forming the vertically disposed end members, 3 and 4:, connected to the horizontal member at the angular bends indicated at 5 and 6. The bottom member. 2, is preferably reinforced by a plurality of longitudinally disposed channel bars, indicated at 7-7, two being shown, which are preterably connected to the bottom member, 2, by welding one flange, as 7 of each channel bar thereto, preferably by the use of an electric welding machine or spot welder. The other flange, 7', of the channel bar will form a horizontal roller engaging surface below the platform, as indicated in the drawing, to engage rollers, 20, for example, supported in the frame of a platform indicated at 21, and forming a part of the sorting bench, for example, or other supporting device. 'llhe rollers, 20, may be formed separately, as 1n dicated in the drawing, and mounted on a shaft, 22, each roller being provided with a flange, 23, to prevent the platform running off laterally, or the rollers, 20-20, may be formed as a single roller extending entirely across between the supporting portions, 21, of the frame, as may be found most desirable.

The vertical members, 3 and 4:, of the platform, are preferably reinforced by structural iron pieces, and for this purpose I prefer to use angle bars, as indicated at 8-t, one flange, 8, of each angle bar being secured to the vertical member, preferably by welding, and the other flange extending sub stantially at right angles thereto, The end portions of the channel bars, '7, project slightly beyond the ends of the bottom member, 2, as indicated at 7, and the angle bars, 8, are so disposed with respect to the channel bars, as to permit the lower ends of the angle bars to be connected to the projecting ends of the channel bars, by welding or by means of bolts or rivets. In the present instance l have shown gusset plates indicated at 99, interposed between the projecting face of each angle bar and a vertical face of the projecting portion, 7, of the adjacent channel bar, and secured to both bars by rivets indicated at 10, and I have found that this is a very satisfactory construction. i prefer to make the projecting portions, 7, of the channel bars, long enough to receive a plurality of rivets connecting them to the adjacent gusset plate and the lower end of the angle bar, preferably carried down far enough below the upper edge of the channel bar so that I may employ a plurality of rivets passing through the gusset plate and the angle bar, at least one of said rivets extending through the channel bar, gusset plate and angle bar, and thus not only uniting them firmly, but also bracing them against any tendency on the part of the upper end portions of the vertical members, 3 and l, to spread.

The vertical members, 23 and l, are preferably provided adjacent to the upper ends, with lifting apertures indicated at ll, formed by pui'iching or cutting portions of the metal plate, 1, away, and in order to insure a complete distribution of the strain to all portions of the vertical members, 3 and l, I. prefer to reinforce the upper edge thereof. by welding along the upper edge of each of said vertic 1 members, and -l-, on the inner face thereof, a horizontal reii'iforcing bar, 12, located above the slot or aperture, ll. the crane hook, and securely welded the The said bar, 12, may extend the entire width of the member, 3 or ii, along the upper edge thereof, or it may be of less than its entire width, as preferred.

My improved platform is preferably handled by means of the lifting device illustrated in Fig. l, which. comprises a horizontal bar, 30, provided centrally with a lifting hook or eye, 31, and at each of its ends a lifting hook, 232, pivoted at 33, to the rod, Ill), and provided with a hook )ortion, 3- adapted to enter the slots or lifting apertures, ll, of the vertical members, 8 and a, by slig rtly swinging the hooks outwardly, and said hooks are preferably provided with inclined surfaces, 35, to engage the upper edges of the vertical members, 3 and l, to facilitate the engagement of the hooks with the slots or lifting apertures, 11. A convenient manner of using these platforms is to support a plurality of the same on the sorting bench of a brick kiln, for example, to which the fired bricks are brought after they leave the kiln, and the bricks are then sorted, those of a single grade being piled neatly in a single platform until the same is loaded. A suitable form of traveling hoist, as a crane or monorail, is conveniently employed for elevating and transporting the loaded and empty platforms, and is provided with the lifting device illustrated in Fig. l, to engage the platforms and carry the bricks to a point where they are to be unloaded therefrom, for shipment or storage. lVhile this is a convenient manner of using the platforms, it is to be understood that they may be used for other articles than brick and in other ways and for other purposes than those herein indicated, and for any purpose for which their use may be found to be advantageous within the spirit of my invention.

It will be seen that when this bench sheet storage platform is loaded and is lifted from the supporting bench by a suitable hoisting and transporting mechanism, the weight of the load will be uniformly distributed over every portion of the bottom or horizontal member, 2, and will be transmitted uniformly to all portions of the vertical end members, 3 and 4, so that there is no tendency whatever, and practically no possibility of the separation of the horizontal bottom member and the vertical end members, as such separation would involve the absolute tearing apart or splitting apart of the material of the integral sheet, 1, which forms the bottom and end members. The structural iron work to fit the horizontal channel bars and vertical angle bars, stillens the horizontal bottom member and vertical end members and prevents them from becoming bent, and adds to the strength of the entire structure. It is to be noted that there are no bolt holes extending through the plate member at any point in my preferred construction, and as the'lifting hooks engage apertures in the vertical end members, 3, i, of the integral sheet, 1, from which all three members are formed, there is practically no danger of the load being dropped or spilled in hoisting and transporting these loaded platforms.

I prefer to employ the form of lifting device indicated in Fig. 1, or its equivalent, in which the hooks are suspended pivotally and vertically from a horizontal lifting bar to which the crane or other hoisting means is connected, so that the lifting action on the platform is perfectly vertical and there is no tendency to draw the upper ends of the vertical end members, 3 and 4, toward each other in lifting and transporting a load.

hat I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A device of the kind described, comprising a unitary wrought metal plate, having the central portion disposed horizon tally to form the bottom member, integral end portions of the same plate being bent perpendicularly to the plane of the bottom member, to form integral, rigidly maintained end members, said end members being provided with means for engaging lifting means, whereby the entire weight of the load is distributed to and upon the various portions of the same integral plate.

2. A device of the kind described, comprising a unitary wrought metal plate, having the central portion disposed horizontally to form the bottom member, integral end portions of the same plate being bent perpendicularly to the plane of the bottom member, to form integral, rigidly maintained end members, said end. members being provided with lifting apertures to engage lifting means and with transverse reinforcing bars located above said apertures and united to the end members to distribute the strain of the load from the lifting hooks laterally of said end members, and assist in distributing the entire weight of the load to and upon the various portions of the said integral plate.

3. A device of the kind described, comprising a unitary wrought metal plate having the central portion disposed horizontally to form the bottom member, integral end portions of the same plate being bent perpendicularly to the plane of the bottom member to form integral, rigidly maintained end members, and reinforcing and stiffening devices engaging the exterior faces of the bottom and end members for reinforcing the device and holding the end members perpendicular to the bottom without obstructing the space between said end members.

4. A device of the kind described, comprising a single integral plate of sheet metal, the central portion of which forms a horizontal bottom or supporting member, the end portions of said plate being bent substantially perpendicularly to the bottom member and forming vertically disposed end members, said bottom member being provided eXteriorly with longitudinally disposed stiffening bars secured thereto, and said end members being provided with stiffening bars secured thereto and to the stiifening bars of the bottom member.

5. A device of the kind described, comprising a unitary integral plate of sheet metal, the central portion of said plate forming ahorizontal bottom or supporting member, the end portions of said plate being bent substantially perpendicularly to said bottom member and provided with means for detachably engaging a lifting mechanism, brace bars extending longitudinally along the bottom of said bottom member and welded thereto, stiffening bars eXtend- 7. A device of the kind described, comprising a unitary integral plate having its central portion forming a horizontal bottom member and its end portions bent substantially perpendicularly to the bottom member and forming vertically disposed end members. horizontal stiffening bars secured to said bottom member below the same and having their lower edges provided with roller engagin faces, said stiffening bars having portions projecting beyond the ends of the horizontal bottom member, and vertical stiff ening members secured to each of said end portions, and having the lower ends secured to the projecting portions of said horizontal stifi'en'ing bars.

8. A device of the kind described, comprising a unitary integral plate having its central portion forming a horizontal bottom member and its end portions bent substantially perpendicularly to the bottom me1nber and torn'iing vertically disposed end members, horizontal stiffening bars secured to said bottom member below the same and having projecting portions at each end of said bottom member, vertically disposed stitlening bars secured to each of said end members and extending downward past the projecting ends of the horizontal stiffening bars, gusset plates interposed between the overlapping portions of said horizontal and vertical stifiening bars, and united to both of said bars.

9. A device of the kind described, comprising a unitary integral plate having its central portion forming a horizontal bottom member and its end portions bent substantially perpendicularly to the bottom member and forming vertically disposed end members, horizontal stiffening bars secured to said bottom member below the same and having projecting portions at each end of said bottom member, vertically disposed stiil ening bars secured to each of said end members and extending downward past the projecting ends of the horizontal stiffening bars gusset plates interposed between the overlapping portions of said horizontal and vertical stiffening bars, each of said gusset plates being connected to the adjacent vertical stiffening bar and horizontal stiffening bar by rivets, and certain of said rivets passing through the said stiilening bars and gusset plate.

10. A device of the kind described, CODI- prising a unitary integral plate having its central portion forming a horizontal bottom member, its end portions bent substantially perpendicularly to the bottom member and forming vertically disposed end members, horizontal stiffening bars having horizontal flanges engaging the exterior of said bottom member, and welded thereto, said stiil'ening bars having portions projecting at each end of the bottom membeix vertically disposed stiii'ening bars having flanges engaging the exterior of each of said vertical end members and welded thereto said vertical sti'liening bars having projecting portions at their lower ends overla iiping adjacent projecting portions ot said horizontal stiffening bars, gusset plates transposed between the adjacent ends of the horizontal and vertical stiflening bars and united to both of the same, said end members being provided each with an aperture formed therein adjacent to its upper edge to receive detachably a lifting device.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature.

WlLLl'Alil LEE HANLEY, J a.

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