US2175748A

US2175748A - Rescue apparatus

Info

Publication number: US2175748A
Application number: US170902A
Authority: US
Inventors: John S Dunn
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1937-10-25
Filing date: 1937-10-25
Publication date: 1939-10-10
Anticipated expiration: 1956-10-10

Description

Oct. 10, 1939. J. s. DUNN '2,175,748 n RESCUE APPARATUS Filed Oct. 25, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet l F l Ei. wucmccm rI. DUNN @Hoa/MAM@ n* om, 1o, 1939. J. s. DUNN 2,175,748

` RESCUE APPARATUS Filed Oct. 25, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 *di s. D UNN Patented Oct. 1Q, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention appertains to rescue apparatus or life saving appliances, and more especially, to a means by which persons may be safely and expeditiously lowered from a burning building 5 or ship, or in fact, transported from any zone of danger to a zone of comparative safety.

Generally speaking, the invention embraces a novel carrier or conveyance having provision for elevating and/ or lowering the same, and to which a person may be secured to facilitate a rescue of such person.

A further object of the invention is to provide a carrier having the form of a compact and light Weight platform to which the person to be rescued may be quickly and safely secured so as to permit raising or lowering of such person in a substantially vertical position, and also permitting transportation of such person in a substantially horizontal position or otherwise. In other words, the carrier serves not only as a means for elevating or lowering the person to be rescued, but also as a stretcher which can be used in the conventional manner without necessitating transfer of the person from the carrier to another carrying means.

A still further object of the inventionis to provide a carrier which is so constructed as to minimize injury to the person being rescued orv otherwise transported thereby, and to this end, suitable means is provided to securely fasten the person to the carrier in a manner which will not only prevent the person from becoming detached therefrom during handlingrofY the carrier, but also which will not aggravate or cause additional injury in case such person should be suffering from an injured or broken limb.

Still another object of the invention is to construct the carrier in such manner as to facilitate lowering of the same down the side of a building or ship, or down a ladder, and prevent the carrier from catching or hanging on projections such as cornices, window sills and the like, or in the case oi'4 a ladder, on the rounds of the ladder.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will be hereinafter described and the novel features thereof defined by the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan View of a carrier constructed according to the invention;

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional View, taken approximately on the line 2 2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view, taken approximately on the line 3 3 of Figure l;

Figure 4 is a view in side elevation illustrating one manner of use of the carrier, such as where the carrier is placed on a ladder and lowered down over the rounds thereof; and

Figure 5 is a view more or less in perspective, illustrating a still further manner of use of the 5 carrier, wherein the same is being lowered in a substantially vertical position directly down the side of a building.

Like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several figures of the draw- 10 ings.

Referring to Figures 1 to 3, inclusive, I generally designates the carrier body which may be constructed of any suitable material, preferably of light weight, such as wood, composition, metal, or the like. As shown in the drawings, the body l is composed of contiguous longitudinal wood strips secured together by means of transverse ribs 2, much in the same manner as a conventional toboggan, thus forming a substantially rigid unit. One end of the body I is curved to one side of the plane of the body, as at 3, for a purpose which will hereinafter become more apparent. Mounted at suitable intervals along the body I, there is a plurality of transversely eX- tending strapsA, preferably of metal construction, which are kbent outwardly away from the body I at their opposite extremities, as at 5, and are formed to receive longitudinal side rails 6, there being one side rail at each side of the body.

At the end of the body` I opposite to the curved end 3there is provided a hanger 1 of substantially U-shaped form. The two arms 8 of the hanger are recessed in the upper sides of the two ribs 2 nearest this end ofthe body I, so as to lie intermediate these ribs and the transverse straps or irons 4, which extend across the upper faces of these ribs. Suitable fastening means, such as rivets or bolts k9, serve to secure the hanger l to the irons 4 and ribs 2. At the outer extremity of the hanger l, there is provided an aperture or ring lil for receiving a rope II, cable or other suitable equivalent means for suspending and manipulating the carrier in a substantially vertical position, as shown in Figures 4 and 5. At the curved end 3 of the carrier body i there is preferably provided one or more, preferably two, eyes or rings I2, to which guy ropes I3 may be secured, as shown in Figure 5. I4 55 designates a cover member which may be composed of a sheet of composition, pressed board or the like, applied over the ribs 2 and transverse irons 4 to provide a smooth surface or bed against which a person to be rescued or carried by the carrier may be laid and supported in reasonable comfort.

Suitable means is preferably provided to enable a person to be securely fastened to the carrier, and for this purpose there is provided a two-piece band or strap I5, one piece of which is fastened to one of the side rails 6, and the other piece of which is fastened to the other side rail. The inner extremities of the two-piece band may be adjustably fastened together by means of the buckle straps I6, as will be obvious from reference to Figure 1. The band I is preferably positioned at such point intermediate the ends of the carrier body I that it will pass across the chest of the person lying on the carrier, and just below the arm pits. Another band I1, generally similar to band I5, is preferably provided and positioned so as to pass across the persons body at about the knees. This band I'I may be adjusted by means of the buckle straps I8. Intermediate the bands I5 and II, there is preferably provided a pair of crotch straps I9 and 20. The outer ends of these straps I9 and 20 are respectively fastened to the side rails 6, and the inner ends are provided with loops so as to enable the persons legs to be passed through the loops so as to be embraced thereby, as best shown in Figure 4. The advantage of the crotch straps I9 and 20 lies in supporting the Weight of the person largely on the straps when the person is secured to the carrier and the carrier is suspended in a substantially vertical position, as shown in Figures 4 and 5. When the crotch straps are snugly adjusted to fit up into the crotch, the person cannot slide longitudinally on the carrier towards the curved end 3, which will hereinafter be referred to as the foot end. This is especially important in cases Where the person being rescued is unconscious and would therefore be unable to brace his feet against the curved end 3, and more especially, if the person should have a broken or otherwise' injured leg, it would be very undesirable to place any Weight on the injured member through engagement of his foot with the curved end. For these reasons and others, the person is preferably strapped to the carrier with his feet disposed in spaced relation to the curved end 3, and the crotch straps I9, 2U effectively serve to maintain this spaced relationship irrespective of the position of the carrier.

As a further aid in securing the person to the carrier, especially in cases where the person may be so severely injured or frightened as to be violent, the straps 2l, one connected to each side rail 5, may be availed of to strap the persons arms closely to his sides or against the side rails. Instead of connecting the variousrstraps to the side rails 6, they may be suitably connected directly to the carrier body I, near the margins thereof.

Referring to Figure 4, the carrier I is illustrated in one of its typical uses of which it is capable. As shown, it is assumed that the person being rescued has been cut off from escape from a burning building, such as has been generally designated by the reference character 22, and has been injured so that he is unable to descend from the building by means of a ladder or other- Wise. Under these circumstances, a rescue can be quickly effected by raising the ladder 23 to a Window near the point where the injured person is trapped, or to the roof, and taking the carrier I up the ladder to facilitate lowering the person to the'ground or to a lower level of safety. To accomplish this, the person is strapped to the carrier I by means of the bands and straps previously described, and the carrier, with the person strapped thereon, may be lowered down the ladder under the control of the suspension rope or cable II. The carrier will readily slide down over the rounds 24 of the ladder, and the curved foot end 3 of the carrier will serve to prevent the lower end of the carrier from catching or hanging on the rounds. The carrier preferably has a width slightly less than the width of the ladder so that the side rails 25 of the ladder will constitute guideways for the carrier and prevent the carrier from sliding off the ladder as it is lowered.

In Figure 5, the lowering operation of the carrier with the rescued person strapped thereto is performed in much the same manner as described in connection with Figure 4, excepting that instead of lowering the carrier down the ladder 23, the carrier is lowered directly down the face of the building 22. In this case, guy ropes I3, fastened to the foot-end of the carrier I, are preferably utilized to prevent the carrier from swinging or otherwise tilting to an undesired position. The curved foot-end 3 effectively serves to prevent the carrier from catching on window sills, cornices, or other projections on the face of the building when the type of use shown in Figure 5 is resorted to, and also guards the feet of the person being rescued.

Of course, instead of lowering the carrier to effect a rescue of the person secured thereto, the carrier may be elevated or raised to a higher level if such is preferred. This condition would be encountered in transferring injured persons from one ship to another at sea, in which case, the carrier would be lowered from the deck of one ship intoa small boat to convey the person to the other ship, and when the latter is reached, the carrier would be elevated up the side of the latter ship, all without necessitating removal of the person from the carrier, and with a maximum degree of safety.

Heretofore, in rescuing injured persons or persons overcome by smoke so that they are unconscious or semi-conscious, the general practice has been to bodily carry the person down a ladder, or place the person on an ordinary stretcher, and, through the aid of men working from two ladders placed near enough together as to permit the men to support the opposite ends of the stretcher, lower the stretcher down in a substantially horizontal position. These practices are very difficult of accomplishment, and are exceedingly hazardous to the rescuers, as Well as to the person or persons being rescued. My invention herein shown and described largely eliminates these hazards, due to the fact that it can be handled with greater ease in effecting a rescue, and with greater facility and comfort to the person being rescued.

After lowering or raising the carrier, as the case may be, to a point of safety, the carrier may be employed as a stretcher to transport the rescued person to a different site. In such use, the side rails 5 may be availed of as lifting and supporting handles. These handles 6 reinforce the carrier I, and together with the reinforcement afforded by the transverse ribs 2 and irons II, maintain the carrier body rigid and resistant to bending or buckling even though the body may be of comparatively light weight construction.

Through reason of the simplicity and compactness of the carrier, the oost of construction CII thereof is quite nominal. It would therefore be perfectly practical to equip each company of a re department with one or more of these carriers so that the same may be available for use whenever the occasion arises. Obviously, the invention is not limited to use in fire departments, but is also adaptable to other emergency uses such as in mines, subways and the like, which will readily be apparent from the foregoing.

While the specic details have been herein shown and described, the invention is not confined thereto as changes and alterations may be made without departing from the spirit thereof as dened by the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A rescue carrier of the class described, comprising an elongated substantially rigid body, ribs extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals and secured thereto, means ad ditional to said ribs and also extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals and having provision at the opposite ends thereof for supporting `a side rail at each side of said body, a side rail secured to said last named means and extending along each side of said body, means for securing a person in a prone position on said body intermediate the side rails aforesaid, means at one end of said body for attaching a rope or the like thereto to permit raising and lowering of said body in a generally vertical direction, and means for securing a guy rope or the like adjacent to the corners of the. body at the end opposite to the rope attaching means aforesaid.

2. A rescue carrier of the class described, comprising an elongated substantially rigid body, ribs extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals and secured thereto, means additional to said ribs and also extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals and having provision at the opposite ends thereof for supporting a side rail at each side of said body, a side rail secured to said last named means and extending along each side of said body, means for securing a person in a prone position on said body intermediate the side rails aforesaid, said last named means including a plurality of adjustable bands extending transversely across the carrier body in spaced relation to each other and a pair of crotch straps respectively secured to opposite sides of said body and forming loops for the reception of the legs of the person to b-e placed on the carrier so as to be received in the crotch of said person, and means at one end of said body for attaching a rope or the like thereto to permit raising and lowering of said body in a generally vertical direction.

3. A rescue carrier of the class described, comprising an elongated substantially rigid body, ribs extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals and secured thereto, means additional to said ribs and also extending trans- -versely across said body at spaced intervals and having provision at the opposite ends thereof for supporting a side rail at each side of said body, a side rail secured to said last named means and extending along each side of said body, means for securing a person in a prone position on said body intermediate the side rails aforesaid, and means at one end of said body for attaching a rope or the like thereto to permit raising and lowering of said body in a generally vertical direction, said last named means comprising a substantially U-shaped hanger, the arms of which substantially overlie one end of the body and are xedly secured thereto.

4. A rescue carrier of the class described, comprising an elongated substantially rigid body, ribs extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals and secured thereto, means additional to said ribs and also extending transversely across said body at spaced intervals and having provision at the opposite ends thereof for supporting a side rail at each side of said body, a side rail secured to said last named means and extending along each side of said body, means for securing a person in a prone position on said body intermediate the side rails aforesaid, means at one end of said body for attaching a rope or the like thereto to permit raising and lowering of said body in a generally vertical direction, and a substantially rigid cover member superposed on said ribs andtransverse side rail supporting means, whereby to provide a. fiat supporting surface.

JOI-IN S. DUNN.