US2317459A - Folding fire-escape ladder - Google Patents

Description

April 1943. c. J. HILLENBRAND 2,317,459

FOLDING FIRE-ES CAPE LADDER Filed April 22, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTQR Cal'l JHi/lenbrahd April 1943- c. J. HILLENBRAND 7,

. FOLDING, FIRE-ESCAPE LADDER Filed April 22, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l 3.

. VJ 1zr INVENTOR Carl J. Hil/en brand Patented Apr. 27, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFlCE FOLDING FIRE-ESCAPE LADDER Carl J. Hillenbrand, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application April 22, 1941, Serial No. 389,723

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a safety ladder adapted to be installed in residences to permit safe egress of the occupants from the upper floors in case of fire and, in particular, to a fire escape of the folding ladder type.

Numerous devices have been proposed heretofore to permit occupants of dwelling houses to descend in safety from the upper floors thereof in case a fire prevents use of the stairway. For various reasons, however, none of these devices, so far as I am aware, has been used to any extent. I have invented a novel form of folding fire-escape ladder which is compact enough to be stowed in a small space but is strong enough when unfolded to permit anyone to descend safely to the ground from the window of an upper floor of a house or other building.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, I provide a plurality of ladder sections, each comprising spaced side rails and a tread bar extending transversely therebetween. The ladder sections are hinged together end to end in such fashion that they may be folded fiat against each other. By this construction, a ladder of considerable length when folded, occupies but a relatively small space. The ladder is preferably kept in a suitable cabinet under a bedroom window, for example. In case of fire, the occupant of the room has merely to open the cabinet in which the ladder is kept and throw it out of the window, whereupon it unfolds automatically, the upper end being permanently secured to the building, preferably inside the cabinet.

Further novel features and advantages of the invention will become apparent during the following detailed description which refers to the accompanying drawings illustrating the preferred embodiment. In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a partial section through the wall of a dwelling showing the device of my invention suspended therefrom in position for use;

Figure 2 is a partial elevation of the inner surface of the building wall showing the cabinet in which the ladder is kept when not in use;

Figure 3 is an elevation showing the ladder sections extended in position for use;

Figure 4 is a side elevation showing the ladder sections folded together; Figure 5 is a partial elevation of one of the side rails of a ladder section, showing a spacing finger pivoted thereto;

Figure 6 is a side elevation of the parts shown in Figure 5;

Figure '7 is a partial elevation of the upper end of the ladder;

Figure 8 is a sectional view along the line VIIIVIII of Figure '7 Figure 9 is a partial elevation showing a side rail and one end of the tread bar secured thereto;

Figure 1G is a sectional view taken along the line XX of Figure 9;

Figure 11 is an elevation of the hinge joint connecting adjacent ladder sections; and

Figure 12 is a sectional View taken along the line XII-XII of Figure 11.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, my invention comprises a ladder it made up of a plurality of sections 1 l connected by hinge joints E2. The ladder may be made in any convenient length depending on the building in which it is installed, but ordinarily is of a length sufiicient to reach from the second floor window sill of an average dwelling to a point adjacent the ground. The individual sections H may also be of any suitable length, but are preferably short enough to be stowed vertically below a window sill. The ladder sections may conveniently have a length twice the spacing between adjacent tread bars hereinafter described.

As illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the ladder of my invention is adapted to be disposed in a storage cabinet i3 located adjacent a window M in a building, one wall of which is indicated at 15 and the floors at Hi and H. The cabinet has doors l8 and a hinged lid I9 whereby the ladder, when folded as illustrated in Figure 4, may readily be thrown out the window whereupon it automatically unfolds by gravity into condition for immediate use, as illustrated in Figure 1. When in this position, the ladder is suspended by chains 28, one end of each of which is secured to a screw eye 2!. The other end of each chain is secured to the top of the ladder in any convenient manner.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 3 through 12, each section I i of the ladder I0 comprises spaced side rails 22 and a tread bar 23 extending from one side rail to the other and rigidly secured thereto as by rivets 24. The top and bottom sections H have additional tread bars 25 secured to the upper and lower ends thereof respectively. The side rails 22 are preferably flat bars of light metal such as aluminum having a width several times their thickness and disposed with their width in the general plane of the ladder section. The tread bars 23 and 25 are of angle section as shown in Figures 8 and 10, each having a horizontal flange and a vertical flange. The vertical flange is secured flat-wise against the side rails 22, the horizontal flange being notched at the ends of the bar to permit this.

The side rails of the top section H may conveniently have slots 26 therein to receive the ends of the supporting chains 20..

The lower ends of the side rails 22 (except those of the bottom ladder section) are notched and bent back on themselves forming spaced eyes 21. The upper ends of the side rails (except those of the top ladder section) are cut away and similarly bent back, forming eyes 28 adapted to fit between the spaced eyes 27. A hinge rod 29 ex tends through the alined eyes 2! and 28 of adjacent ladder sections. The rod may have a head at one end and a hole drilled through the other end to receive a cotter pin. Instead of a solid rod 29, however, I may use a tubular rod. In any event, the rod serves a dual purpose. In the first place, it provides a pivotal connection between adjacent ladder sections. In the second place, th hinge rod serves as a tread bar, in the same manner as the bars 23 and 25.

It will be apparent that the construction thus far described permits the ladder sections to be folded flat against each other as shown in Figure 51 so as to require a minimum of storage space.

I also provide means for preventing the ladder, when suspended, from swinging so close to the building wall as to make it difiicult for the user to secure a footing on the tread bars While de scending the ladder. For this purpose, I employ spacing fingers 30 positioned at suitable intervals along the length of the ladder. The fingers 38 are preferably pivoted on pins 3| extending across slots 32 formed in the side rails 22. The fingers 30 normally lie flat against the side rails as shown in Figure 6. When the ladder is in use, however, the fingers fall by gravity to the position shown in chain lines in Figure 6 so as to en gage the building wall as shown in Figure 1 and prevent the ladder from swinging close to the wall under the weight of a person descending the ladder, which might make it difiicult for him to descend in safety. In order to accommodate the fingers 30 in their folded position, the side rails 22 of adjacent ladder sections are displaced slightly from their original plane as shown at 33. This provides a pocket to receive the fingers so that the latter do not increase the overall thickness of the ladder when folded.

The manner of using the ladder of my invention requires little or no additional explanation. As already stated, the ladder is normally in folded position as shown in Figure 4 and is disposed in the storage cabinet l3. It will be understood, of course, that the supporting chains 20 are permanently connected to the ladder and to the screw eye 2| or other suitable form of anchorage so that it is unnecessary for the user, in case of emergency, to make any connections or adjustments. In case a fire develops which makes egress by the stairs dangerous or impossible, it is only necessary for an occupant on the upper floor of a house to open the cabinet and throw the ladder out of the window. This is a simple matter and within the physical capacity of even a small child because of the relatively light weight of the ladder which results from the use of a strong light metal such as aluminum or its alloys in the construction of the ladder sections and other parts. When the ladder has been thrown out, it unfolds automatically and immediately assumes the suspended position shown in Figure l, whereupon the occupant may descend in safety to the ground.

It will be apparent that the invention is characterized by numerous advantages over folding fire-escape ladders as previously known. Many of these advantages have already been mentioned. In sum, I have provided a strong, light-weight ladder which is relatively inexpensive and is foolproof in operation. It requires but a small storage space and when once installed, is immediately accessible at any time upon the occurrence of an emergency, without requiring any upkeep or maintenance. The parts of the ladder are not subject to deterioration and the device is always ready for use even though it has remained unused for a long period.

Although I have illustrated and described but a preferred form of the invention, it will be recognized that changes in the design or arrangement may be made without departin from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

In a fire escape ladder, a plurality of sections each including a pair of flat side rails having a width several times their thickness, spaced apart With their greater dimension lying in a common plane, and a tread bar extending transversely from one rail to the other with its ends engaging the rails fiatwise and secured thereto, said sections being disposed end to end, and hinged together, certain of said sections having fiat spacing fingers disposed parallel to the side rails thereof, pivoted thereto and adapted to swing by gravity to extended position so as to engage a wall to space the ladder therefrom when it is suspended alongside the wall, the side rails of the sections adjacent those having the spacing fingers pivoted thereto, being displaced out of said plane in a direction normal to the Width of the rails providing spaces for said fingers between adjacent sections when folded so the rails thereof lie fiatwise together.

CARL J. HILLENBRAND.

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