US292845A

US292845A - norton

Info

Publication number: US292845A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1884-02-05
Anticipated expiration: 1901-02-05

Description

- y 2 Sheets Sheet 1. L. C. NORTONKZ J. A. SEIEI'KJVIAIV. METHOD OF AUTOMATICALLY OPERATING DOORS AND GATES.

(No Model.)

Patented Feb. .5, 1884.

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N. PETERS. PlmmLillmgmphur. Wnflhing (No Moda 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. L. CQNORTON & J A. SHERMAN. METHOD OI AUT OMATIGALLYOPERATING DOORS AND GATES. No. 292,845.

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UNiTEo STATES PATENT .Orricn.

LEVIS O. NORTON AND JOHN A. SHERMAN, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS;

SAID SHERMAN ASSIGNOR TO SAID NORTON.

"METHOD OF AUTOMATICALLY OPERATING DOORS AND GATES.

SPECIFICATION formin g To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, LEWIS C. NORTON and JOHN A. SHERMAN, both of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Mechanism for Automatically Operating Doors and Gates, of which the following is aspecification.

Our invention is especially adapted for use in operating the outer. doors of fire-engine houses, stables, and the like. It is very desirable, for example, that when a fireengine is about to respond to an alarm of fire there should be as little delay as possible in leaving the engine-house. Heretofore ithasbeen necessary for the doors of the house to be opened and held open by a man detailed for the purpose, who, if his services were to be needed at the fire, must either get there as'best he can or be carried by the engine, which must wait until the house-doors are locked before. being able to pick him up and go on.

Our invention consists, chiefiy,in a combination of mechanism substantially like that described below for automatically operating the doors, whereby after they have been unlocked they will be opened, held open a sufficiently long time to allow the engine, 810., to pass through, and then permitted to close. The mechanism requisite to accomplish this result is as follows: first, a weight or spring by means of which the door may be thrown open second, a latch to which the weight or spring is attached at one end, and means whereby the latch will release the weight or spring after a given time, has elapsed, third, ineans for closing the door when the weight or spring has been'released. It is also desirable to have a suitable latch to lock the door automatically, which must be operated before the above-described mechanism will work.

' Our invention may be practiced in a variety of ways and by means of a variety of kinds of mechanism, in which springs and weights may be interchangeably used to open and close the door, suitable connections being used with each, and springs, air-cushions, or time mechanism of some sort be used to' free the. door at the proper time from the power opening it. The simplest combination of mechanism for attaining the result now known to us is shown in the drawings, in whichof an air-compressing deviceby us. very slight alteration the buffer may of course part of Letters Patent No. 292,845, dated February 5, 1884. Application filed January 5,1883. (No model.)

Figure 1 shows an elevation of a pair of doors adapted to be operated in the desired way. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the line of the top of the doors in Fig. l; and Fig. 3 is a detail, -showing mechanism for releasing the opening mechanism at any desired time after the door has been opened.

A-A are doors hinged to the frame B, as shown. To the upper part of each door is attached a suitable buffer, D, adapted, if properly set,to yield slowly to any pressure brought to bear upon it, and after a proper timeto op-- erate the latch E, so as to free the hinged pin F. Theweight or spring for opening the door is attached by means of a ring, G, to the pin F, so that when the latch is operated the pin will disengage the weight, and the door will then be allowed to close by a spring, H, provided for the purpose. The spring shown is used in connection with a door-check like that described in Letters Patent No. 251,790, this being the best known for the purpose. The buffer shown is adapted to operate by means of compressed air, and it consists of a cylinder in which works a piston, d, packed air-tight in the cylinder. The cylinder-head d is provided with a hole, d, partly filled with a slot ted screw, by turning which the size of the hole is regulated. It is best also to provide a valve, by means of which, when the piston is drawn out so as to set the buffer in the position shown in the drawings, air may be allowed to flow freely into the air-chamber in front of the piston. for our purpose, though not of our joint invention, nor used for the first time in the piston be adapted to operate by means of aliquid instead of air.

J is a latch for automatically locking the door when it shuts.

A detailed description of the operation of our invention embodied as described is as follows: When it is desired to open the doors, the apparatus being in the position shown in the drawings, the cord j, attached to the latch J, is pulled. The doors will open rapidly by means of the weights attached to the rings G until the knobs d of the buffers D strike the wall at (2*. Each buffer yields but slowly to the The valve shown is the simplest Bya force of the weight, (owing to the smallness of the vent (1 by which alone air can escape from in front of the piston,) and finally the crosspin (1", attached to butter-rod d, strikes the latch E, when the pin F is dropped, and letting go the weight allows the doors to be closed by means of the spring H and latched by the latch J, ready to be operated again when the weights have been reattached to the doors and the butters rearranged. In case the doors should shut one over the other, as is generally the case, (see Fig. 2,) the buffers should of course be so timed as to release first the door which should shut first. If desired, a. spring should be used to throw the butter again into its normal position shown in the drawin It is best also to provide suitable springs for the latch E and pin F, in order that they may be normally in the position shown in Fig. 3.

In opening a door we have found it desirable to applya greater force in starting the door than is necessary during the latter part of its motion. One mode of applying such increased force will be seen in Fig. l of the drawings, where K is the floorot' thehouse, below which is suitably suspended the hinged arm L, weight ed near its outer end and adapted to rest upon the weight M,which is attached to the ring G by means of the cord r N is a stop to prevent the arm L from following the weight 11 below a certain point. It wiil be seen that when either door is unlatehed both weights will act upon it until the weighted arm L strikes the stop, after which time the weight M alone will act upon the door.

Instead ofthe arm L, a spring may be used, which shall be compressed until the weighthas dropped a certain distance; or, instead of this arrangement, a double spring may be so arranged that both will bear upon and operate the door until the door has moved a certain distance; but the simplest way of attaining our desired result is that above described.

If desired, the butter may be attached to the door-frame instead of the door; but in any case the parts will be substantially the same. It is apparent, too, thatthe opening-weight must have suliicient force to overcome the spring 11', either by its actual weight or that acquired by leverage resulting from its method of attachment to the door. The weight of the arm L must depend in size upon the kind of spring used to close the door and the various conditions under which the door is hung. It is best, therefore, to make this weightso that it may be varied at pleasure.

\Vhat we claim as our invention is 1. In a door-operating device, the combination,with a door and a suitable stop or wall,

of a weight suitably attached to the door, whereby it may be opened, and a releasing mechanism substantially like that above dcscribed,whereby the said weight at the proper time will be detached from the door, all as and for the purposes set forth.

2. In a door-operating device, the combination of suitable mechanism for opening the door, means whereby such mechanism may be attached to the door, and a buffer adapted to yield slowly to any pressure brought to bear upon it, and at the proper time to operate the attaching mechanism and disconnect the door and opening mechanism, substantially as set forth.

3. The releasing mechanism above described, consisting of a butter provided with a suitable stop, (1", adapted to engage with and operate the latch E, as and for the purposes set forth.

at. In combination with a door, mechanism, substantially as above described, whereby an extra force is applied to the door to overcome its first inertia, for the purposes set forth.

5. In a door-operating device, the hinged weighted arm L and its stop N, in combination with the weight M and suitable means for attachment to the door, substantially as described.

(S. In a, door-operating device, the combination of a suitable weight for openingthe door, the butter 1) and its releasing-latch, and a suitable weight or spring for closing the door, substantially as set forth.

LEW'IS G. NORTON. JOIIX A. SHERMAN.

In presence oi- GEORGE O. G. COALl-J. Jn. F. Bmon.