US2379553A

US2379553A - Working platform for elevator hoistways

Info

Publication number: US2379553A
Application number: US547725A
Authority: US
Inventors: Tilton Russell George
Original assignee: Otis Elevator Co
Current assignee: Otis Elevator Co
Priority date: 1944-08-02
Filing date: 1944-08-02
Publication date: 1945-07-03
Anticipated expiration: 1962-07-03

Description

Y July 3, 1945. R. G. TILTQN WORKING PLATFORM FOR ELEVATOR HOISTWAYS Filed Aug. 2, 1944 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 mi.' N

lNvENTOR Y E N R o w A July 3, 1945; R. G.' TlLToN 2,379,553

WORKING PLATFORM FOR ELEVAIOR HOISTWAY Filed Aug. 2, 1944 3 sheets-sheet 2 llo no /ED 88\ M215/ a M Q INVENTOR ATTORNEY July 3, 1945. R. G'. TILTON WORKING PLATFORM FOR ELEVATOR HOISTWAYS 'Filed Aug. 2, 1944 3 sheets-sheet s ENTOR ATTORNEY g Patented July'3, 19.45

UNITED srrg'rlasg PATENT o1-FICE WORKING PLATFORM 'Fon ELEvA'roa f HoIsTWAYs Russell George Tilton, Mountain Lakes, N. J., las.- signor to Otis Elevator Company, NewA York,

N. Y., a corporation of New Jerseyy t Application August 2, 1944, Serial No. 547,725

7 claims. (C1. 304-29) is especially directed to temporary hoistway working platforms' o f this character.v Y

Owing to the diferent sizes of elevator hoistways andto lthe fact that elevator installations are made at widely separated points, it has been the'practice to construct these platforms to fit the particular jobs'.A This is expensive and it is desirable that such expense be kept at a minimum. Also it is important that such working platforms be safe.

One feature of the invention resides in sup- Lporting framework for a working platform which is adjustable to accommodate -different size hoistways. s

` Anotherfeature of the invention resides in supporting framework for a working platform which automatically locks the platform against descent.

' Other features and Vz'aJdv'ar'itages ofthe invention will become apparent from the following `description and'appended claims.,

1n carrying out the invention according to the preferred arrangement, the supporting 'framework for the platform comprises a pair oflevers pivotally joined at their centers to form anex-` pansible X frame'. The guide shoes for-'guiding the platform on the elevator car guide rails are carried by the X frame. These guide shoes are elongated and are secured to the ends Vof the levers of the X frame. The connections aty one end of the frame are pivotalwhile theconnections at the other end are slidable to enable the supporting framework to be adjusted to fit `hoistways of different widths. The floors of the platforms are fabricated on the jobs or in the Shop to fit the particular hoistways. Brace rods are carried by the X frame at the front and back. A safety device is carried by the framework which acts automatically to engage the rails and thus support the platform. To lower the platform this safety device is released. Block and tackle may be provided for raising land lowering theY platform and a canopy may be `provided to protect the workmen against objects falling in the hoistway.

In the drawings: l Figure l'is a front view'of a temporary working platform embodying the invention, mounted on the lowermost guide rail sections; 4

Figure 2' is a view in section taken along the line 2-2 of Figure l;

' Figure 3 is avview ofthe elevator hoistway e illustrating mechanism for manipulating the platform; n

Figure 4 is a detail with parts omitted illustrating one of the safety brakes applied to a guide rail, as viewedtoward one side of the rail;y

Figure 5 is a view in section taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 4; and

`Figure 6 is a front view of the supporting framework 'illustrating a step in mounting the framework on the guide: rails.

Referring mst-"to 'Figures 1 and 2, `the 'suppcrting framework for the -working platform comprises an expansible vX frame formed of a pair of levers I0 and "II pivotally' mounted at they middle on a king pin I2.` Each Alever comprises ,a pair of boards I3`and I4, those for lever I0 being inside those for lever I'I. Each lever has a pair of metal plates I5 at its center on opposite sides thereof., those for lever I0 being on the inside o f the frame and those for lever II being on the outside of the frame. These plates serve as bearing supports for'the king pin. Secured to the ends of the'levers are a pair of elongated wooden stiles I6 and Il, one on each side of the'frame. These stiles have elongated grooves I8 (see Figure 5) in their outer faces which nt rather loosely over the -i -guide railsZlly and 2|' for the elevator carA and act as guide shoes to guide the working platform in its movement in the hoistway. Each" guide shoe isprovided at itslower end withya pair of metal plates 22, one oneach side thereof, secured thereto as by bolts. Eachfo'f the boards I,3 and I4 of each lever I0 and I Ihas secured to the lower end thereof a metal Aplate 23. The lower ends of the levers are pivotally secured to the lower ends of the guide shoes by pivot bolts 2li extending

throughfthe plates

22 and 23. Each guide shoe is also provided at its upper end with a pair Aof metalplates 25, one on each side thereof,'secured thereto as by bolts. Each of boards I3 and I4 n of each lever I0 and II has'secured to the upper end thereof a metal plate 26. The upper ends of the levers are slidably secured to the lguide shoes by bolts 21 carried by plates 2B and extending through aligned elongated slots 28 in plates `25. The X -fram'e is locked in expandedposition with respect to the guide shoes. This is effected for end eyeletsof the secondarybraces.

each side of theframe by a threaded rod 3U pivotally supported by bolt 21 and carrying adjustable clamping nuts 3l. These nuts seat in an aperture formed in a metal angle member 32 and having a side opening to admit the rod. This angle member is secured to a metal channel member 33 in turn secured to the back of the guide shoe as by the bolts securing plates to the shoe.

The floor is of wood and is illustrated as comprising a pair of jOists 35 joined by

stringers

36 and 31. A working surface 38 which may be made of plywood is mounted on the stringers 31. The joists rest on the top of plates 25. Another metal channel member 40 is secured to the back of each guide shoe as by the bolts securing plates 25 to the shoe. The upper ends of these channels extend above the guideA shoes. The floor is secured to the guide shoes as by bolts 4| extending through the upper ends of the channelsand the joists 35.

The front and back of theiioor are braced by means of main braces extending from the corners ofthe iioor'to the lower-ends of the guide shoes. These braces lare kin the form of metal pipes with their ends .attened and drilled to form eyelets. Each of plates 22 hasa ange 46 extending outwardly therefrom atright angles. The lower ends .of the'main braces are secured to these Iianges as by bolts 41 extending through thelower end eyelets. The upper ends of the braces are secured to joists 35 as by bolts 48 extending through the upper endeyelets. `Additional bracing is provided by secondary braces or tie rods 58. These braces'also are in the form of metal pipes with their ends flattened andA drilled to'form v eyelets. The secondary braces are secured at their :lower ends to the lower ends of the main braces as by bolts 5| extending through the lower Sleeves 52 are slidably mounted on the main braces-and at their upper ends thesecondary braces are secured to these sleeves as .by set screws :53 extending throughthe upper end eyelets ofthe secondary braces fand threaded apertures iny the sleeves-to engagethe main fbraces. The secondaryvbraces are -held together at the point of vcrossingas by Uclamps 54.

The Iplatform is automatically locked against descent'bymeans of safety brakes, onefor each Yguide rail. Various Ytori-ns of safety brakes may befemployed, Vone which has been foundsatisfactory being illustrated in Figures 4 and v5. This brake comprises a brake Ablock BD secured as by screws Bil-between and to'plates22 at the lower ends thereof. The blockhas a straight sided face `ISI `for'engaging one side ofthe guide rail and a ;bevel portion -62 facing but spaced from the other sideof the guide rail. A roller B3is positioned between-the bevel-portion BZ'andthe guide rail and is rotatably mounted on apin 64 caryrledzbyra-supporting plate 65. Thisplate is bent Vat right angles at its'upper end-and has a spindle v86 secured thereto and extending upwardly therefrom. The spindle extends throughan aperture 61 inthe horizontal arm of an angle 68 secured lthespindle and supporting plate to bias theroller into position wedged between bevel portion 62 of ythe safety blockiand the'guide rail. Thus both brake shoesare normally applied tothe guide rail to lock the platform against descent.

l'bottom of the safety block and acts to force the roller away from the raillwhen the plate is pushed downwardly by the bell crank. The bell crank is pivotally mounted on a pivot bolt mounted on the right hand plate 22 of Figure 5. The other arm 8l of the bell crank is provided with an aperture in its outer end to which an operating chain 82 is secured.

v Referring to Figure l, operating chain 82 is illustrated as a one-piece chain extending from the'operating arm of the bell crank of the safety brake on one side ofthe frame to the operating arm of the bell crank of the safety .brake on the other-side of the frame. Thischainis led through pipes..83 carried by the lower arms of the X frame and terminating near the pivot point of the frame. The middle portion of the chain above the pipes 83`runs over the pulley wheel of a pulley block 84. The pulley block is connected to an operating ring 85 above the floor by a chain' 86 which extends through `an ,aperture 8'! in the oor.

AReferring to Figures, the platform is raised and lowered by means of block and tackle 88. The upper pulley block Blof thismechanism is secured asby a rope 9| to a cross beam 92 at the top of the hoistway. The `lower pulley block 33 is securedas by a rope. and hook .95 to the 'king pin I2, the rope94 extending through an aperture 96 4inthe oor. An anchor 9T is connected by a chain 98 ,to the king pin l2, the chain passing through an aperture Illin the floor. .A canopy IDI which .may be `in the form fof a frame covered by wire nettingmay be provided for the platformtoprotectthe vworkmen against falling objects.- This canopy is supported by .pipe ystandards -lll2 mounted Vin pipe flanges |03, lone at each corner of the floor. An opening-is Yprovided in the canopy for the tackle.

The supporting framework is adapted to be used over-and over again and on hoistways of different sizes. It maybe keptas one assembled piece ofmechanismin-a collapsed state in which event U clamps 54 are removed and the upper ends of the secondary braces are disconnected from s1eeves`52 to enable the supporting framework to befolded in acompact unit.; or-it may be kept in threefseparate sub-assemblies comprisingas one sub-assembly the folded X frame vand as the other two sub-assemblies the two guideshoes withthe brace rods attached thereto and folded against the shoes.

In installing the working platform, the lowermost sections of the guide rails 2 0 and'2l are first installed. These rails are fastened 4by clips H15 to rail brackets |05 secured .to the hoistway walls or structure, these clips and brackets not being shown in Figure 2. As an aid to understanding'the installing of the supporting framework reference may be had to Figure 6 in which for convenience various partsof the mechanism are not shown. 'Supporting blocks lil'l for the frameworkare placed on the floor H118 of the hoistway adjacent the rails and levelled to'place rtheirupper ends in :horizontal alignment.` 'The supporting framework' in slightly expanded condition and with the threaded rods 30 released as illustrated in Figure 6, is placed in position with one of the guide shoes on lthe guiderail with the safety block 'beneath Vthat guide shoe resting on the top of block |01. In mounting the guide shoe the safety brakeis temporarily The threaded rods 30 are now inserted in the apertures in angles 32 with the lower nuts beguide shoes and rails whereupon the nuts are tightened to lock the X frame in expanded position.

Referring now to Figures l and 2, the fioor is fabricated to fit the hoistway and a canopy if provided -is constructed andmounted thereon. The floor is secured tothe channel members 4U at the upper ends .of the guide shoes. The braces which up to this time have been tiedl to the -guide shoes are now released. Holes'are drilled at the corners of the platform through joists 35 and the upper ends of the main braces are secured to the platform by bolts 48. Several apertures are provided in flanges 46 (see Figure 2) for adjusting the lower ends of the main braces to adjust for hoistways of considerable variation in distance from front-to back. The upper ends ofthe secondary braces are then secured to the main braces and these secondary braces are secured together at their points of crossing by U clamps 54. The chain 8B is now inserted through the aperture 81 formed in the floor of the platform and hooked onto pulley block 84 for the safety operating chain. Referring to Figure 3 upper pulley block 90 of the hoisting block and tackle is secured to the crossbeam at the upper end of the hoistway. Rope 94 is inserted through aperture 96 and hooked onto king pin l2, thus connecting lower pulley block 93 to the king pin. Anchor chain 98 is inserted through aperture and secured at its lowerl end to the king pin. The fall rope of the tackle is then pulled downwardly to lift the platform suiciently for the blocks |01 to be removed and the fall rope is snubbed around the anchor. The platform is held by the safety brakes with the snubbing of the fall rope on the anchor as an added factor of safety.

Itis preferable especially in case of long rail sections, to mount the lowermost rail sections on the two lower brackets and to use the working platform for mounting next brackets and securing the top of the rail sections thereto. To raise the platform, the fall rope of the block and tackle is pulled downwardly until the platform is raised to the desired position and the rope is then resnubbed on anchor 91. The safety brakes release automatically when the platform is raised. The platform is moved upwardly for mounting each succeeding pair of rail brackets and, in instances where the distance between rail brackets is considerable, to enable the next brackets to be installed the platform may be moved into position above the top of the last installed rail sections a distance equal to as much as one half the height f of the guide shoes. Succeeding rail'sectio'ns are joined by fish plates IIU asthese rsections are installed. To lower the platform, the safety brackets are released by pulling up on ririg and the hoisting tackle is let out until the platform reaches the desired position, whereupon'the ring is released to apply the safety brakes and the fall rope is snubbed onto the anchor.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from thescop'ethereof, it is vneath the angles and the nuts adjusted to provide about 1/8" operating clearance between the intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown inthe accompanying draw# ings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

l. Supporting framework for a temporary working platform adapted to run on a pair of guide rails in an elevator hoistway comprising; a pair of elongated guide shoes, one for each guide rail; an expansible frame connecting said guide shoes to enable the framework to'y be adjusted to t hoistways of different widths; and meansy for locking the framework virfadjustecl position. p y `r y 2. Supporting framework for a temporary working platform adapted to run on'a pair of guide rails in an elevator hoistway comprising; alpair of guide shoes, one for each guiderail;

means connecting said guide shoes; a safety brake carried by each guide shoe and normally engaging the guide rail to prevent descent of the platform; and means for releasing said safety brakes to enable the yplatform to be lowered.

3. A temporary working platform for operation on a pair of guide rails disposed on opposite sides of an elevator hoistway, said platform having a floor and supporting frame-work therefor comprising; a pair of elongated guide shoes, one for each guide rail; an expansible X frame connecting said guide shoes to enable the framework to span guide rails for hoistways of different widths; means for locking the framework in position spanning the rails; and a safetyl brake carried by each guide shoe biased to normally engage the guide rail. t

4. A temporary working platform for operation on a pair of guide rails oppositely disposed on each side of an elevator hoistway, said platform having a floor and supporting framework therefor comprising; a pair of elongated guide shoes, one for each guide rail; an expansible X frame connecting said guide shoes to enable the upper ends ofsaid guide shoes; braces connecting the lower ends of said guide shoes to the corners of said floor; a safety brake for each guide shoe carried by the lower end thereof and biased normally to engage theguide rail; .and means for manually releasing saidv safety brakes.

5. An elevator hoistway temporary working platform having a floor and supporting framework therefor comprising; a king pin; a pair of crossed levers pivotally mounted at their centers on said king pin f or relative movement to form an expansible X frame; a pair of elongated guide shoes, one for each elevator car guide rail; means .pivotally securing one end of one of said'levers to one end of one of said guide shoes and -pivotally securing the corresponding end of the other of said leversto the corresponding'end of the other -of saidguide shoes; means slidably connecting the other end-of said one lever to the other end end of said one -guide shoe, thereby enabling the framework to span guide rails for hoistways of different widths; and means for lockingthe framework in position vspanning the rails.

-6. An elevator hcistway temporary working platform having a floor and supporting framework therefor comprising; a king `pin; a pair ofl crossed levers pivotaly mounted -at their centers on said king pin for relative movement to form an expansible X frame; a pair of elongated guide shoes, one for each elevator` car guide rail; means pivotally securing the lower end of one of -said levers to the lower end of one of said guide shoes and pivotally securing the lower .end of the other of said levers `to the lower end of the other of said guide shoes; means slidably connecting the ,upper end of said one lever to the upper end of said other guideshoe and s1idably connecting the upper endof said other lever to theupper 4endv of said one guide shoe, thereby enabling the framework to span guide rails for hoistways of different widths; means for locking-the .upper'ends of said levers to the upper .ends of their respective guide shoes to .lock Athe '7. Anfelevator fhoistway temporary working -platform having a -oorand Asupporting framework therefor comprising; a king pin; afpairof crossed levers pivotally mountedV at their-'centers on said king pin for relativemovement to form an expansible X frame; a pair of elongated guide shoes, one for each elevator car guide rail; means pivotally securing the lower end of one of 1 said levers to thelowerfend of one of said guide shoes and pivotallyv securing the lower end of the other of said levers to the lower end ofthe other of said guide shoes; means slidably connecting the upperend of said one `lever to theupper end of said :other guide shoe and slidably connecting the Lipper end of said other lever to the upper end of said one .guide shoe, thereby enabling the .framework to span guide rails for hoistways of diierentiwidths; kmeans for locking the upper ends of said levers to the upper ends of their respective guide shoes to lock the framework in position spanning the rails; means for securing the oor to the upper ends of said guide shoes; braces connecting the lower ends of said guide shoes tothe corner of said oor;

4tie rods cross connecting said braces; a safety brake-for each guide shoe .carried by lthe vlower end thereof to engage theguide rail, eachbrake comprising resilient-meansnormally applyingthe brake to the rail to hold said platform against descent; and means for manually releasing said safety brakes to enable the platform to be lowered. i 4

RUSSELL GEORGE TILTON.