US3226090A

US3226090A - Materials handling arrangement

Info

Publication number: US3226090A
Application number: US288699A
Authority: US
Inventors: Wilmer J E Sauerbrey
Original assignee: Aircraft Armaments Inc
Current assignee: Textron Systems Corp
Priority date: 1963-06-18
Filing date: 1963-06-18
Publication date: 1965-12-28
Anticipated expiration: 1982-12-28

Description

Dec. 28, 1965 w. J. E. SAUERBREY 3,226,090

MATERIALS HANDLING ARRANGEMENT 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 18, 1963 WILMER J. E. SAUERBREY //VVE/V7'0f? Dec. 28, 965 w. J. E. SAUERBREY 3,226,090

MATERIALS HANDLING ARRANGEMENT Filed June 18, 1965 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 3

Fl G. 4 mm J. 5

Dec. 28, 1965 w. J. E. SAUERBREY 3,226,090

MATERIALS HANDLING ARRANGEMENT 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed June 18, 1963 arr/765 F G. 6 WILMER d. E.

United States Patent 3,226,090 MATERIALS HANDLING ARRANGEMENT Wilmer J. E. Sauerbrey, Towson, Mi, assignor to Aircraft Armaments, Ine., Cockeysviile, Md., a corporation of Maryland Filed June 18, 1963, Ser. No. 288,699 7 Claims. (Cl. 254-196) This invention relates to a materials handling arrangement, and more particularly to a hoist arrangement having improved cable guiding means which enable side pull to be exerted on the cable during take-up or let-off of the cable from the hoist drum.

In the prior practice of lifting loads through the employment of a cable hoist a substantial problem has existed in the proper laying of the cable on the cable storage drum when side pulling forces are exerted on the cable, or, in other words, when forces are exerted on the cable which have a component extending along the direction of the axis of the cable storage drum. While it has been common practice to employ cable drums with grooved storage surfaces thereon to aid in seating of the cable, and various guiding arrangements have been employed in an attempt to properly guide the cable into the correct portion of the storage groove on the drum, such have not been entirely satisfactory for various reasons, including overcomplexity and unreliability. It is accordingly an object and feature of the present invention to provide improved cable hoist arrangement incorporating a cable guiding means which enables the exertion of side or axial forces to be exerted on the cable during takeup. or let-off of the cable, and which is simple, positive in action and easily adaptable to various conventional hoist arrangements employing grooved cable storage drums.

Still other objects, features and attendant advantages will become apparent to one skilled in the art from a reading of the following detailed description of one preferred illustrative embodiment constructed according to the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying L drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a schematic perspective view of a hoist arrangement incorporating the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary view in perspective of a portion of the cable storage drum and one cable guide assembly.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged view in perspective, partially cut away for clarity, of the cable guide assembly of FIG- URE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a section view of a portion of the cable drum and guide arrangement at the position of one of the groove-riding guide wheels.

FIGURES 5 and 6 are schematic illustrations of one of the cable guiding assemblies illustrating the guiding operation thereof on the cable storage drum.

Referring now in detail to the figures of the drawing, in the illustrative embodiment a cable hoist 11 is suspended for transversing movement in a conventional manner as by support wheels 15 riding on one or more support rails 13. The cable hoist includes a frame 17 on which is rotatably mounted a cable storage drum 19, a drive motor 21 and an interconnecting gear train generally indicated at 23. The drive motor 21 is preferably of the reverse drive type, although the gear train 23 may be used for reversal of direction of rotation of the drum 19, if desired. Suitable switch controls (not shown) of conventional type may be provided for the drive motor 21 in order to effect let-off and take-up rotation of the drum 19.

In this embodiment the cable storage drum 19 has two oppositely inclined helical cable guiding storage grooves, 25, 27, a cable 29 being suitably anchored at its opposite 3,226,990 Patented Dec. 28, 1965 ends adjacent the outboard ends of the

storage grooves

25 and 27, as by passage of the cable through an aperture in each of the respective outboard ends of the grooves and clamping of the cable within the interior surface of the drum.

The cable 29 is wound about the respective opposite

helical grooves

25 and 27 and extends through a load block 31 having suitable guide sheaves for enabling ease of movement of the cable through the load block, and carrying a load hook 31a. The cable 29 is also carried about an idler sheave 33 suitably mounted on the frame 17 in order to provide equalization of the load on the two end segments 29a and 29b of the cable.

It is an important feature of the invention that an improved cable guide assembly 35 is provided, there being two of these cable guide assemblies 35 of mirror image construction in the preferred illustrative embodiment in order to facilitate let-01f and take-up of the two opposite ends 29a, 29b of the cable. In the illustrative embodiment the cable guide assembly 35 takes the form of two ring plates 37 which surround and are spaced from the grooved storage surface of the drum 19. The two ring plates 37 carry groove-riding guide wheels 39 therebetween which guide wheels serve to rotatably suspend the ring plates 37 in spaced circumferential relation about the

cable storage grooves

25 and 27 respectively of the drum- 19 and to prevent, in cooperation with the grooves any undesired canting and loss of guiding registry by the cable guide assembly. Suitable anti-friction radial force bearings 41, such as roller bearings, and thrust bearings 41:: may be mounted in and between the ring plates 37 for free anti-friction mounting of the guide wheels 39 and supporting shaft thereof. The guide wheels 39, thrust bearings 41a and side spacer 42 also serve as spacers for the ring plates 37, although additional spacers 43, secured as by rivets or bolts between the ring plates, may be provided if desired in order to provide additional stability.

The ring plates 37 have formed thereon a projection 37a between which projections are rotatably mounted two pairs of spaced

guide rollers

45, 47. The axis of each of the guide rollers 45 is normal to the axis of the guide rollers 47, thereby providing for directional guiding action between the

rollers

45, 47 and the cable 29 which extends therethrough between the cable drum 19 and the load block 31.

There are preferably three spaced apart groove-riding guide wheels 39 in order to provide a desirable three-point suspension of the cable guide assembly, although it will be apparent that more guide wheels may be employed if desired. It is necessary that the cable guide assembly be held against any substantial lateral movement at all points about its circumferential extent, and to this end it is desirable that the guide wheels engage closely within the respective helical grooves of the storage drum 19. As will be noted from the drawings, each of the guide wheels is preferably otf-center, as by use of spacers 42, with respect to the central plane of the cable guide assembly by an amount equal to one cable storage groove, thereby enabling the cable to be guided onto and from the respective groove by the

guide rollers

45 and 47 which preferably are disposed to provide a laterally centered guideway for the cable. It will also be noted that the guideway provided by the disposition of the guide rollers is substantially tangential to the cable storage groove surface cable guide assemblies 35 is freely rotatably suspended about and in the respective storage groove surface and is prevented from canting or moving out of registry with the respective helical storage groove by the close riding engagement of the guide wheels 39 in the groove. Thus, lateral side forces may be exerted on the cable either during windup or withdrawal of the cable from the stor age groove, without disturbing the lay of the cable in the groove. Also, as seen from FIGURE 5, the cable guide assemblies 35 tend to follow the direction of tangential pull of the cable from the drum, by rotating about the drum surface to thereby self-maintain the

guide rollers

45 and 47 such that the cable is at all times substantially tangentially withdrawn from and wound on to the drum 19.

While the invention has been described with respect to a single illustrative preferred embodiment, it will appear to those skilled in the art that various improvements and modifications may be made without departing from the scope and theory of the invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited by the construction of the illustrative embodiment but only by the scope of the appended claims.

That which is claimed is:

1. A cable hoist arrangement comprising a cable drum having two sets of oppositely inclined helical cable storage grooves formed on its surface, a drive motor for said drum and having its drive axis parallel to and laterally spaced to one side of the axis of rotation of said drum, gear means disposed at one end of said motor and drum and connecting said motor in driving relation to said drum, a cable anchored at its opposite ends to said drum for take-up and storage in said cable grooves, a load block suspended and carried by said cable, an idler sheave carried adjacent said drive motor and drum, said cable being suspended at its center section by said idler sheave for equalizing of action on said cable, two cable guide assemblies each carried solely by said drum in a respective one of said grooves and being free to movably rotate about the axis of said drum, each of said cable guides having a main body portion encircling said drum and a plurality of circumferentially spaced groove-riding rollers mounted on said main body portion and riding in its respective said groove for combined anti-friction support of said cable guide assembly on said drum and lateral positioning and stability of said cable guide assernibly within its said groove, and tangential and lateral cable engaging and guiding means on said main body portion substantially tangentially disposed away from a point of departure and arrival of the cable from and onto said drum for guiding said cable both tangentially and laterally as it moves onto and from said drum and rotationally following movement of said cable guide assemblies about said drum as a function of tangential direction of cable pull.

2. A cable hoist arrangement comprising a supporting frame, a cable drum carried by said frame and having a helical cable receiving groove formed thereon, a drive motor for said drum, and a cable guide carried solely by said drum and being free to movably rotate about the axis of said drum, said cable guide having a main body portion encircling said drum and a plurality of circumferentially spaced groove-riding rollers mounted on said main body portion and riding in said groove for combined anti-friction support of said cable guide on said drum and lateral positioning and stability of said cable guide within said groove, and tangential and lateral cable engaging and guiding means on said main body portion substantially tangentially disposed away from a point of departure and arrival of the cable from and onto said drum for guiding said cable both tangentially and laterally as it moves onto and from said drum and rotationally following movement of said cable guide assemblies about said drum as a function of tangential direction of cable pull.

3. An arrangement according to claim 2 wherein said tangential and lateral cable engaging and guiding means comprises two pairs of guide rollers set in paired relation transversely to one another and spaced apart to form a cable opening therebetween, the longitudinal center line of said cable opening between said guide rollers extending generally tangential to the grooved surface of said drum and to one lateral side of said groove-riding rollers.

4. An arrangement according to claim 3 wherein said main body portion comprises two laterally spaced rings encircling said drum, lateral spacers disposed between said rings, means connecting said rings together in laterally spaced relation, said groove-riding rollers being guide wheels disposed in circumferentially spaced relation between said rings and having their annular groove-riding rim portion closer to one of said rings than the other by an amount which is a multiple of the width of said groove.

5. An arrangement according to claim 4 wherein said guide wheels are at least three in number and provide a three-point suspension for said ring on said drum.

6. For use with a cable take-up and let-off arrangement having a cable drum with a helical cable storage groove formed thereon, the improvement comprising a cable guide adapted to be carried solely by said drum and free to movably rotate about the axis of said drum, said cable guide having a main ring body portion adapted to encircle said drum and a plurality of circumferentially spaced groove-riding rollers mounted on and projecting radially inward from said main ring body portion and adapted to ride in close fitting relation within said groove for combined anti-friction support of said cable guide on said drum and lateral positioning and stability of said cable guide along said groove, and tangential and lateral cable engaging and guiding means on said main ring body portion substantially tangentially disposed away from a point of departure and arrival of the cable from and onto said drum for guiding said cable both tangentially and laterally as it moves onto and from said drum and rotationally following movement of said cable guide assemblies about said drum as a function of tangential direction of cable pull.

7. The improvement according to claim 6 wherein said tangential and lateral cable engaging and guiding means comprises two pairs of guide rollers set in paired relation transversely to one another and spaced apart to form a cable opening therebetween, the longitudinal center line of said cable opening between said guide rollers being generally tangential to the groove surface of said drum and to one lateral side of said groove-riding rollers.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 521,480 6/1894 Sharp 254-186 1,701,017 2/1929 Shepard 254-186 2,255,314 9/1941 Graham 254 2,525,402 10/1950 Dehn 254187 2,534,726 12/1950 Moore 254-487 2,868,504 1/1959 Minty 254-186 FOREIGN PATENTS 749,557 5/ 1933 France. 800,244 10/ 1950 Germany.

SAMUEL F. COLEMAN, Primary Examiner,

Claims

2. A CABLE HOIST ARRANGEMENT COMPRISING A SUPPORTING FRAME, A CABLE DRUM CARRIED BY SAID FRAME AND HAVING A HELICAL CABLE RECEIVING GROOVE FORMED THEREON, A DRIVE MOTOR FOR SAID DRUM, AND A CABLE GUIDE CARRIED SOLELY BY SAID DRUM AND BEING FREE TO MOVABLE ROTATE ABOUT THE AXIS OF SAID DRUM, SAID CABLE GUIDE HAVING A MAIN BODY PORTION ENCIRCLING SAID DRUM AND A PLURALITY OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED GROOVE-RIDING ROLLERS MOUNTED ON SAID MAIN BODY PORTION AND RIDING IN SAID GROOVE FOR COMBINED ANTI-FRICTION SUPPORT OF SAID CABLE GUIDE ON SAID DRUM AND LATERAL POSITIONING AND STABILITY OF SAID CABLE GUIDE WHEN SAID GROOVE, SAND TANGENTIAL AND LATERAL CABLE ENGAGING AND GUIDING MEANS ON SAID MAIN BODY PORTION SUBATNTIALLY TANGENTIALLY DISPOSED AWAY FROM A POINT OF DEPARTURE AND ARRIVAL OF THE CABLE FROM AND ONTO SAID DRUM FOR GUIDING SAID CABLE BOTH TANGENTIALLY AND LATERALLY AS IT MOVES ONTO AND FORM SAID DRUM AND ROTATIONALLY FOLLOWING MOVEMENT OF SAID CABLE GUIDE ASSEMBLIES ABOUT SAID DRUM AS A FUNCTION OF TANGEINTIAL DIRECTION OF CABLE PULL.