US1810960A

US1810960A - Elevator construction

Info

Publication number: US1810960A
Application number: US490427A
Authority: US
Inventors: Hall Harry Edward
Original assignee: Otis Elevator Co
Current assignee: Otis Elevator Co
Priority date: 1930-10-22
Filing date: 1930-10-22
Publication date: 1931-06-23
Anticipated expiration: 1948-06-23

Description

2 sheets-sheet 1 F'la H. E. HALL ELEvAToR CONSTRUCTION File Oct. 22, 1930 June 23, 1931.

H11/W1 WM Hwef INVENTOR l H AT1-owner June 23, 1931. H, E, HALL 1,810,960

' ELEVATOR CONSTRUCTION Filed Oct. 22, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheetv 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented June 23a i931 UNITED lerares renew PATENT HARRY EDWARD HALL, GF ENGLEVD, NEW JERSEY, .ASSEGNOR T0 GTS ElEVATOR COMPANY, OF ATE-XV YRK, E. Y., A CORPORf-TION OF NEW JERSEY ELEVATOR CONSTRUCTION Application filed etooer 22, 1930. ySerial No. 490,427.

y cable or the like, to a limited portion of the' hatchway.-A This restricts the amount of swinging motion of the depending flexible members7 thereby preventing entanglement of these members with objects disposed withinor protruding into the elevator .hatchway Such arrangement is useful in elevator installations on shipboard, wherein considerable swaying of the cables is likely to occurv due to the pitch and roll of the ship, and

in installations wherein a plurality of ele? vater cars are arranged in the same hatch way so that the travellingr cable of one car must pass another car. t is also useful in installations wherein the hatchway is exposed, thus subjecting the travelling cable to the air currents which traverse the hatclr way.

A suitable chute for Vconiining the travel# ling cable is one in the form of a solid walled sheath extending vertically of the hatchway and having a central Vslot throughout its length. The sheath is preferably shallow and wide with fa junction box arranged at one side thereof to Vsuspend the hatchway end of the cable from a point remote from the central slot. The other end of the travelling cable depends from a support fixed to the elevator car and extends .through the slot to the centerl of the chute and thence to a point near the opposite side of the chute from the hatchway junction box.

The present invention is directed to preventing the elevator travelling cable or similar flexible member from gettingout of the chute through the slot.

The invention is useful, for example, in high rise installations which necessitate long travelling cables and in installations subject to air currents in which perforated or openworlr chutes are provided to reduce the wind resistance offered by the chutethereby subjecting the cables to air currents.

One feature of the invention is to provide guard means for the slot of the chute for retaining the travelling cable in the chute.

Another feature is the provision of a plu-y rality of guards for the slot arranged at intervals along the chute.

A third feature resides in the provision of guard means `for the slot which do not' restrict the vertical movement of the traveling cable.

Other features and advantages will be apparent fromthe following description and y appended claims. 1 f f F or the purpose of illustrating the genus of the invention typical concrete embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is a diagrammatic representation of a portion of an-elevator hatchway with an elevator .car therein; j y AFigu'reQ is a top plan vieweof the apparatus shown in Figure l;

Figure 3 'fis an enlarged horizontal section, illustrating the arrangement of vgue-afd means for the slotfof thetraveling cable chute;

`Figure 4l is an elevational detail of another form of guard means;

Figure 5 is .an yelevational Vdetail of still another form of guard means; and

Figure 6 is a top plan kdetail of partsy shownl in Figure 5.

Referring tothe drawings7 the elevator carl() is provided vwith rails for guiding it during its travel up and down the hatchway 13. The travelling cable 12 whichV contains conducting wires leading to and from the elevator car is illustrated as a single cable CLI `Way to enclose the cable.

but it is to be understood that several cables maybe provided, depending upon the requirements of the particular' installation. This cable is usually connected to a junction box 14 on the bottom of the elevator car. A conduit 15 leads from the junction box 14 to the car switch or other control or signal mechanism in the car. This Conduit Contains conducting Wires joined to the travelling cable conducting Wires at the junction box 14. rIhe other terminal of the travelling cable is at a junction box 17 secured to a side Wall of the hatchWay 13, usually at the approximate center of the vertical travel of the car. Cable 12 is suspended at junction box 17 in such manner as to take the load off the conducting Wires. A conduit 11, illustrated as leading from the junction box 17, is indicative of the connection from the travelling cable to the control or signal apparatus outside the car.

To confine the travelling `cable to a limited portion of the hatchway 13, vertical sheath or chute 18 is provided inthe hatch- This chute 18 is refcrably constructed of fairly heavy gauge metal, is made shallow and Wide as illustrated in Fig. 3 and is` secured at intervals to the lhatchvvay Wall in any suitable manner. It is provided with a central opening 2O extending vertically throughout its length and the edges 21 of the chute bordering the opening 20 are preferably rolled. The chute may be of open Work or perforated construction, for example in installations VWhere the hatchway is exposed, to'reduce the Wind resistance offered by the chute. r

Junction box 17 is arranged atV one side of the chute to suspend .the fixed end of the travelling cable at a point remote from the slot 20. The other end of the travelling cable is supported fromthe elevator car in such manner as to cause the cable to depend into the chute at the other side thereof. This support may be in the form' of a pipe7 bracket or any other suitable means. In

Figures 1, 2 and 3 a pipe, designated 22q has been shown.A This pipe isk supported from the bottom of the car andis provided with a right angle bend as .illustrated in FiguresV This Yarrangement causes the bightv of the` cable to traverse the slot 20fat all times.

To prevent the travelling cable or any porf tion thereof from getting out of the chute through slot 20, a number ofguards 23 are provided at intervals along the slot. In the embodimentv shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3, each of the guards, designated 23, comprises a lever 24 pivoted at its center to the chute 18 in such a manner as to cause one end of the lever to traverse the opening 2O of the chute. The lever is mounted to rotate freely on a pin 25 Which extends outwardly from a mounting plate 26hsecured to the chute adjacentthe slot 20. lVashcrs 27 are disposed between the lever and plate to space the lever but a slight distance from the rolled edges 21 of the chute so as to prevent the travelling. cable from leaving the chute. The lever 24 may be maintained in a horizontal position by any suitable means. As illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 3 this means is a centering Weight 28 depending from the pivot pin 25 and secured tothe lever 24 at right angles to its length. During the operation of the elevator car, the support 22 for the travelling cable engages the respective levers 24 rotating them to a position to uncover the slot, thereby permitting the support to pass by the guard. As soon as the support has passed a guard, the centering Weight 28 for ,the guard returns the guard lever to a horizontal position. Stops in the form` of screws or pins 29 are secured, to each mounting plate 26 above and below the pivot pin 25 to'limit the rotation of lever 24. l

Referring to Figure 4 of the drawings, another form of guard is shown. This guard is also in the form-*of a lever, designated 30. This lever ispivoted to the chute 18 soA as to traverse the slot 2O in the same manner as before. Lever 30 is biased into horizontal slot-traversing position by centering springs 31 each of Which engages the free end of the lever and a lug on the chute. AThe travelling cable support 22 is adapted to brush this lef ver to one side during the travel of the car in either direction, and springs 31 return these levers to their normal positions after the support passes the guard. Lever 30 is preferably constructed of aluminum or some Y light alloy and its mass reduced as much as possible. This diminishes itsinertia sothat very little noise will result from impacts of the support 22 and the levers.

`Other -arrangementsof guards may be employed, if desired. Forl example, guards which are noiseless in operation may be provided.v Such guards are particularly suitable for passenger elevator installations. In Figures 5 and 6 a magnetically operated guard is illustrated in which mechanical conposite sides of the slot, as to dispose the rods 33 in the same horizontal plane. are biased into slot covering position by a pair of springs 35 mounted on the rods 33 between the two outside bearing members 3d and stop rings 36 fiXed to said rods to engagel the two inside bearing members 34 when the cams are closed. A pair of elongated plates 37 are Xed to the outside ends of rods 33 at right angles thereto. A pair of magnets 3S are carried by the elevator car and are positioned to attract the plates 37 outwardly as the cable support passes the guard. The plates extend equal distances above and below the rod ends and are of suiiicient length so thatan outward pull exerted on the ends of the plates opens the guard prior to the passage of the travelling cable and its support between the cams. The magnets are laterally'spaced so as to allow a slight clearance between the plates and magnets when theplates arev drawn outwardly to open the guard, as illustrated in-Figure 6. Themagnets 38 are constantly energized during operation of the carto open the guards as the plates 37 come under the influence of the magnets. The two inside bearing members 34may be set to form stops to limit thel outward movement of the cams, rods and plates.

.The guards may be mechanically operated in the event of failure of the mao'nets te withdraw the eams.- To this end tIie cams 32 are in the form of segments and so disposed that the centers of their curved surfaces contact when the guard is closed. This allows the cable and its support Yto wedge the cams to open position and to pass through the guard in either direction. The form of cabler support shown in the first three figures may be employed, but preferably the type shown in Figures 5 and 6 is utilized. This support consists in a plate member 40 having its upper edge secure-d flush with the bottom surface of the elevator car floor by a. right angle bracket or other suitable means. Support plate 40 has a right angle bend ,411 therein and extendsV through slot 20 of chute 18 tothe center of the .chute and thence to a point near the side, as setforth in describing the pipe 22.

Travelling cable 12 is secured tothe bottomY edge of support plate 40 by straps or other suitable fasteners. The upper edge ofsupport 40 is tapered to a narrow 'edge at thev point where the support passes between the guard cams, as shown in VFigure 5, and a guide strap 42 surrounds the support and cable at this point. The guide strap Vis a vlittle widerthan the cams and tapers to a blunt point above and below the travelling cable to fact as a wedge for opening the guard cams in case the magnets are not energized. Y V- Since the attractiveV force exerted by each magnet on a plate varies inversely as the square of the distance between them it may be found desirable to reduce 'theVV air gapA between magnets 38 and plates 37. To this end the throw of plates 37 `may be reduced by inserting a lever system, affording the proper mechanical advantage, between the plate and guard bars to eflect the withdrawalv of said bars. In place 'of the two guard bars illustrated in Eigures 5 and 6, a single sliding bar crossing the slot 20 may be employed in connection with a lever system having .additional levers projecting into the path of the travelling cable support to cause the operation of the lever system and thus withdraw the latch bar in the event of failure of 'the energization of the magnets. y

The arrangements above described are alsosuitable for defining the paths of movement of other flexible members depending from the car or counterWeights-such as, for example, the airhose employed'to conduct air to the gate operating mechanism, compensating'cables depending from the carv and `vcounterweight or other similar members.

As many changes could be made in the abovel construction and many apparently widely differentembodiments of this invention could be'made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained inthe above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted asgillustrative andl not in a limiting sense. Y

Vhat is claimed'is:

- 10o 1. In an elevator installation, a hatchway,

a body adapted to travel up anddown the hatchway, a flexible member attached to said body and depending therefrom into the hatchway, a chute for said flexible member, and means for preventing egress from the chute of any portion of said member withinv the chute.

2. In an elevator installation, a hatchway, an elevator car adapted'to travel up and down in said hatchway, a travelling cable depending from said car. anda wall of said hatchway, a chute forV said travelling cable for confining said-cable to a :limited pei-tien of the hatchway, said chute beingdisposed ..115V

portion of said cable fromswinging out of said chute. through said opening.v

4. In anl elevator installation, a liatcliway, an elevator cai' adapted to travel up and .down in said liatcliway, a travelling cable depending from said car and a Wall of said hatchivay, a chute for said travelling cable disposed along the Wall of said hatchway, said chute having a vertical slot therein,

.the car end of said cable ext-Gliding into said chute .throughsaid slot and said slot extending throughout the path of travelof said carend of the cable, guards disposed at intervals along said slot for preventing any por- .tion of saidcable from swinging out of `said slot, and means actuated in accordance `through said slot to one of the sides of said i With car movement for operating each of said guard means to uncover said slotas the car end of said cable passes that guard means. Y l

5. In an elevator installation, a hatcliivay, an elevatorcar therein, a flexible member hanging in the liatchivay with one endattached to the car and the other end attached to a point in the hatcliivay,'a chute for said flexible member for confining said memberV 6. In an elevator installation, a hatchivay, an elevator car adapted 'to travel up and down in said hatchvvay, aftrafvelling cable depending from said car and a point 0n a Wall of said hatchvvay, a chute for said travelling cable disposed along said Wall of the liatcliway, said chute being flat and Wide Vand having a central slotV extending.

throughout its length for admitting the car end of said cable, asupport for'said car end of the cable extending into said chute chute remote from said slot, means fory supporting the other end of saidl cable from Within said chute at thel opposite -side thereof, a plurality of guards disposed at intervals along said chute, each of said guards being positioned to extend across said slot and being movable out of slot covering position, a part of said support for the car fend of the cable being adapted to move each of said guards out of slot covering position as the carl end of the cable passes sucli guard, and means for returning each guard to, slot covering position after 'the car end of the cable has passed thatguard.

'7.- In an elevator installation, a hatcliway,

a body adapted to travel up andv down in' the hatchway, a flexible member attached to said body and depending therefrom into the hatcliway, a chute for said flexible niember, a slot in said chute extendingV throughout the path of travel of the body-attached end of the flexible member, and a-plurality of levers extending across said slot and disposed at-intervals along said chute for preventing egress from the slot of any portion of said member Within the chute.

8. In an elevator installation, a hatchvvay,

an elevator car adapted to travel up and down in said hatchway, a travellingy cable depending from said car and a Wall of saidhatchivay, a chute for said travelling cable for confining said cable to a limited portion of the hatchway, said chute Y being disposed along said Wall of the hatchway, a "slot in saidl chute extending throughout the path of travel of the car-attached end of said' travelling cable, a plurality of levers pivoted 7 at intervals to said chute and biased into p ositionstraversing said slot to prevent egress from the slot of any portion of said travelling cable Within the chute, and means carried by said car for moving V.each of said leversabout its pivot into position touncover the slot as the car-'attached end of the cable passes that lever.

9. In an elevator installation, a hatchway, an elevator car therein, a flexible member hanging ijn the hatchivay with one end'attached to the car and the other end attached to a point in the, hatchway, a chute for said flexible member 'forconfining said member to a limited portion of said hatehvvay, said chute having a central slot extending throughout its length, aplurality of guards disposed at intervals along said chute and biased into slot covering positions to prevent egress from said chute of any: portion of said flexible member Within said chute, magnetic means carried by said car for retracting said guards out of slot-'covering positions to prevent the car attached end of said A flexible member Vfrom contacting said guards.`

10. In an elevator installation, a hatch- Way, an elevator car therein, a' flexiblemein-- ber hanging in the hatchway. with` one end attachedto theicar and the other end attached to a point in the liatchway, a chute` for said flexibler member for confining said;- member to a limited portion of said hatch? Way, said chute having av central slot ex,-

guards'disposedat intervals along said chute and biased into, slot covering positions to prevent egress from said chute of any portion of said flexible member Within said chute, each of said guards being provided With magnetizable nieans,magnets carried by said ca r for cooperating with magnetiza- .tending throughout its length, a plurality of blemeans of the respective guards to retract said guards out of slot-covering positions to prevent the ear-attached end of said flexible member from contacting said guards and a support for conducting the car-attached end of said flexible member through said slot to a point Within said Chute remote from the slot, said support having a part adapted to move said guards out of slot-covering 10' position in the vevent of failure of said magnets to retract said guards. Y

In testimony whereof7 I have signed my name to this specification. HARRY EDWARD HALL.