US2026656A - Sluice weir - Google Patents

Description

7, 1 K. sci-ION SLUICE WEIR Fil ed Aug. 24, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet. l

INVENTOR KARL 5CH8N ATTORNEY I u n I I I I I n I I K; SCHQN SLUICE WEIR Jan. 7, 1936.

' Filed Aug. 24, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.3

mveilron KARL SCH 0N ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 7, 1936 UNITED STATES maest- PATENT OFFICE SLUICE WEIR Karl Schiin, Wurzburg, Germany, assignor to firm Fried. Krupp Grusonwerk Aktiengesellschaft, Magdeburg-Buckau, Germany Application August 24, 1934, Serial No. 741,244 In Germany August 30, 1933 3 Claims.

, capable of being lifted and lowered in order to control the collection and discharge of the dammed up water.

The gist of this invention and the advantages obtained will be better understood by first critically reviewing one of the most salient structural features of up-to-date sluice weirs for damming up water, which consists therein, that sluice 15 gates and the accessorial structures of the weir proper, its bank work and sill should be so designed, that the sluice gate can be wholly or partly lowered from its normal operative, i. e. closed position to a lower level'for cleaning pur- 20 poses, namely withthe object of allowing a limited quantity of the dammed up water to pass over the immersed top edge of the sluice, in

order to carry off drift ice, brush wood, or other undesirable objects floating on the water, which 25 are liable to block the sluice and to choke its moveable parts. 7 r

As a rule with sluices of this design the said cleaning operation can be carried out with a relatively small quantityof water, which is of im- 30 lportance during dry and cold seasons and in the many cases, where the dammed upwater must be economized with all the year round, every drop being needed for the turbines of an electric power'station, or for irrigation, navigation and 35 other purposes.

In a prior United States patent of mine No. 1,985,872, I have shown sluices of the roller type,

ofthe sliding and the swinging type, which are 40 cooperatively associated witha base plate or carrier of special design, on which the sluice rests while being in its normal operative position, and,

which is tiltably arranged in front of a stepped portion of the sill in such manner, that bytilting and incidentally withdrawing said base plate underneath the sluice the latter can be bodily lowered from its normal into an abnormally low position for the purpose indicated.

Other publications dealing with sluice gate structures, which are capable of being bodily lowered as a whole from their normal operative position to a deeper level, so that the dammed up water will run over the top edge or crest'of the sluice includeUnited States Patent 1,951,704 to. 55, Nordin and German Patent 571,562 to Krupp.

It has also been proposed to build sluice gates of the roller type, which are composed of two water retaining members-an upper and a lower one-hinged together, of which-while the sluice is in its normal operative position-the upper member is raised but can be swung around its ivots downwardly with the result, that the stowed up water will flow over its top edge.

However sluices of this design, viz. composed of two water retaining members, which are 10 known for instance from my United States Patent 1,926,819 and from United States Patent 1,922,097 to Kersting, are rather costly to build and are structurally complicated, because they require a separate mechanism for raising and lowering the said hinged upper member alone, and also require another packing member at the hinge in addition to that at the base of the sluice.

The primary object of this invention isto provide a sluice of the sliding type and of improved construction, so designed that the total costs of erecting, operating and maintaining in proper working order a sluice weir of the improved design concerned are considerably reduced when 7 compared with sluice weirs of known design.

More especially the-invention aims at so re; designing the sluice and the structural elements of the weir proper and the bank work cooperatively associated with the sluice, that the latter can be safely operated in all climates and all seasons of the year and in flood ways of widely different nature in as much, as the number of moveable partssuch as pivots, hinges, links, tooth gears, etc., immersed in the water and being liable to be choked and becoming inoperable through ice, brush wood, sand, mud, etc.--has been brought down to a minimum.

In connection therewith the invention aimslast not leastat so designing the sluice, that its principal packing member, attached at the base of the sluice and resting on the sill, when the sluice is in its normal position will remain in its place, while the sluice is moved intoan abnormally low position; the objects being to maintain a permanent contact and a constant tight fit of the principal packing member at the base of the sluice with the opposed face of the sill, and to prevent the production of a gap between the sill and the sluice and the intrusion of rubble stones, branched pieces of timber, wreckage, ice and like obstructions thereinto, which would cause leakages and ultimately render the sluice inoperable.

Further objects of the invention are to so design the sluice gate and its accessorial parts of the weir structure proper, that relatively small and correspondingly cheap hoisting machines need be provided for operating the sluice, and that said hoisting machines can be erected at a relatively low level substantially flush with the upper parts of the sluice gate, when the latter is raised into its uppermost inoperative position, for the purpose of likewise reducing the costs involved in building up those reinforced walls, which enclose the sluice gate at both sides,i. e. of having to build walls of a minimum height.

Other objects of the invention will become incidentally apparent hereinafter to practitioners in this field.

The nature and scope of this invention are brieflyoutlined in the appended claims and will be more fully understood from the following specification taken together with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly in section takenon line IIII of Fig. 2, and showing by way of an example a. sluice weir of improved construction, designed according to this inven tion,

' Fig.2 is a plan view of the sluice weir,

Fig. 3 is a section taken on line IIIIII- I IIIII in Fig. l and seen in the. direction of arrows at, m,

Figs. 4 and 5 are fragmentary side elevations showing sluices designed according to this invention, which are of structurally modified cross-sectional shape,

Figs. 6 and '7 are diagrammatic side elevations of sluices, having actuating arms, which are diii erently arranged relatively to the head and tail water level,

Fig. 8 is a plan, partly in section, of the sluice shown in Fig. '7.

With the objects in view outlined above the sluice weir designed according to this invention comprises the following structures:

1. Reinforced upright walls W, W2 and a. sill S having a substantially horizontal upper face, which'enclose the ficodway at both sides and at the bottom,

2. A sluice G, adapted to slidingly descend in a substantially vertical path of movement from its upper inoperative position, shown in Fig. 1 in "dot and dash lines, into its. normal operative position shown in full lines, so as to rest on the sill S, and being formed at its base with a knife edge bearing downwardly projecting at D from the body of the sluice and being fitted with a packing ledge P3; said knife edge bearing allows of tilting the sluice through a relatively large angle into an abnormally low position, shown in dashlines in Figs. 1, 4-6.

3. Operating means for raising, lowering and tilting-said sluice G in the manner indicated,

4. Guiding means for controlling the movements of said sluice gate and 5. Packing means cooperatively associating said sluice gate G, walls W, W2 and sill S.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in Figsl-S the sluice gate G is of almond or fishlike cross sectional shape and is formed at both ends with heads I0, I2 (Fig. 2, 3) projecting into grooves or recesses, which substantially vertically'extend; in said walls W,'W2.

The afore-said means for raising, lowering and tilting the sluice gate G comprise:

A couple of hoisting machines M mounted on the walls W, W2, eachof which having a sprocket wheel 2!) attached to its main power shaft, ac-' tuating arms A, A2 fixed to the sluice gate G and rearwardly projecting therefrom towards tail water L, and pitched link chains C interengaging by means of sprocket wheels 22, 24 said actuating arms A, A2 and the corresponding sprocket Wheels 20 of the hoisting machines in the manner of chain and sheave multiplying gears.

It should be noted, that by reason of this expedient for raising and lowering the sluice relatively small hoisting machines are needed, the lifting power of which must be calculated only for a small fraction of the total weight of the sluice gate.

The guiding means referred to above for controlling the movements of the sluice gate G comprise two sets of guide tracks T, T2, fixed within said recesses of the walls W, W2 in opposed position to each other and running uprightly from the sill S, and two pairs or sets of guide rollers R, R2 mounted on said heads ID, l2 of the sluice gate G at different levels for cooperation with said,

guide tracks; it should be noted that the upper end if of the track member T is slightly bent rearwardly viz. for the purpose of imparting to the sluice gate G and its actuating arms A, A2 on approaching their uppermost position a slight turn in clockwise direction, (Fig. 1), the ultimate object being to reduce by this expedient the total height of the walls W, W2, on top of which the hoisting machines M, M2 are mounted.

Guide rollers R2 of ample size may be conveniently used for the lower set, larger than those of the upper set R.

The aforesaid packing means of the sluice comprise a couple of relatively thin shields P, P2 arranged at the ends of the sluice gate G and having packing ledges 6, c2 of elastic material such as wood, India rubber etc. attached for engagement with the walls W, W2, and a packing ledge P3 fixed to a dam shield D, which is provided at the base of the sluice gate G for engagement with the sill S; said ledge P3 presents the true pivot around which the sluice gate G swings on being tilted; by the hydrostatic pressure of the water dammed up at the head water level H the packing ledges of said shields P, P2 are forced against the walls W, W2, whereby watertight closures are obtained.

I prefer to arrange the packing ledge P3 in such position relatively to the guide rollers R2 of the lower set, that the virtual axis around which said rollers rotate substantially coincides with the line of contact along which the packing ledge P3 engagesthe sill S, and to form the latter with an offset or stepped portion S2 facing tail water L for the purpose of getting rid of undesirable objects, which may otherwise accumulate underneath the sluice, viz. allowing said objects to be washed away and to drop over the edge of said step S2.

Recesses N, N2 may be provided to advantage in the walls W, W2 for accommodating said actuating arms A, A2 and stops or supports N3, on which said arms rest, when the sluice is in its lowest tilted position.

Various other changes and modifications may be conveniently made in the structural details of sl ice weirs having gates of the improved design described hereinbefore, without substantially departing from the spirit and the salient ideas of this invention:

The sluice gate proper-instead of having an,

attached, as seen in Fig. 4,-or may be constructed, as shown in Fig. 5, on the order of a sluice gate of the common sliding type comprising' a substantially flat front plate G5, braced by frame work and being provided with a dam shield D5, upwardly extending from said plate G in inclined position, and a lower dam shield D6, extending downwardly and having attached to it a packing ledge Pl.

Instead of arranging the actuating arms, designated A, A2, A4, A5 in Figs. 1-5, at the rear side of the sluice gate, facing tail water L, said arms designated A6, A1 in Figs. 6 and 7 may be conveniently fixed at the front side of the sluice gates G6, G1, so as to project therefrom towards head water H.

As seen in Fig. 8 the actuating arms A8 of the sluice G8 may be wholly enclosed to advantage within recesses N8 provided in the walls W8, so as to be positively out of contact with any undesirable objects floating cn the head water level,

i by which said arms and the lifting gear attached thereto may be damaged or choked.

What I claim is:-

1. In a sluice weir the combination with a sluice of the type adapted to slidingly descend in a substantially vertical path of movement into its operative position, of upright walls laterally enclosing the sluice, a knife edge bearing formed at the base of the sluice and allowing the latter to be tilted, while resting on said bearing, through a relatively large angle, actuating arms formed at the body of the sluice and projecting therefrom at substantially right angles, and guiding and operating means cooperatively interengaging the ends of the sluice and of the said actuating arms.

2. In a sluice weir the combination with a sluice of the type adapted to slidingly descend in a substantially vertical path of movement into its operative position, of upright walls enclosing the sluice, a knife edge bearing formed at thebase of the sluice and allowing the latter to be tilted, while resting on said bearing, through a relatively large angle, actuating arms formed at the body of the sluice and projecting therefrom at substantially right angles, and guiding and operating means cooperatively interengaging the ends of the sluice and the said actuating arms, said guiding means comprising a primary set of two guide rollers mounted at the lateral ends of the sluice in symmetric position to each other, the central axis interconnecting said rollers sub- 5 stantially coinciding with the virtual line of contact of said knife edge bearing, while the sluice is in its operative position, a secondary set of guide rollers mounted at the sluice at a higher level than those of the primary set, a recess 10 formed in each of said walls and uprightly extending therein, and two guide tracks formed within each of said recesses in opposed position to each other for engagement and cooperation with said guide rollers, so as to support the latter, while the sluice ascends and descends.

3. In a sluice weir the combination with a sluice of the type adapted to slidingly descend in a substantially vertical path of movement into its operative position, of upright walls enclosing the sluice, a knife edge bearing formed at the base of the sluice and allowing the latter to be tilted, while resting on said bearing, through a relatively large angle, actuating arms formed at the body of the sluice and projecting therefrom at substantially right angles, and guiding and operating means cooperatively interengaging the ends of the sluice and the said actuating arms, said guiding means comprising a primary set of two guide rollers mounted at the lateral ends of the sluice in symmetric position to each other, the central axis interconnecting said rollers substantially coinciding with the virtual line of contact of said knife edge bearing, while the sluice is in its operative position, a secondary set of guide 5 rollers mounted at the sluice at a higher level.

than those of the primary set, a recess formed .in each of said walls and uprightly extending therein, and two guide tracks formed within each of said recesses in opposed position to each other for engagement and cooperation with said guide rollers, so as to support the latter, while the sluice ascends and descends, the guide track members adjacent head water being rearwardly bent at their upper ends in the direction of tail water and terminating at a higher level than the opposed guide tracks.

KARL scHbN.

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