US3908988A - Diving towers - Google Patents

Abstract

This invention concerns a diving tower, adjustable in height and operated by means of a hydraulic ram assembly, said ram assembly being powered by pressurized fluid within annular chambers of compression which vary the height of the diving board. The said annular chambers of compression are formed by the space between two coaxial cylinders, or a plurality of coaxial cylinders, of different diameters, and thus, permit a reduction in the surface areas to which the hydraulic force is applied while at the same time permitting the selection of larger cylinder diameters as needed for rigid cylindrical lifting rams. Since the active surface areas are the top annular areas and not the cylinder areas, the size of the said cylinders may be increased in order to present a greater bending moment without requiring additional fluid to maintain a reasonable operating speed. A platform for the diving tower is attached to the lifting ram cylinder, and a fulcrum roller is supported by a sliding frame engaged on dovetail tracks, said dovetail tracks being fastened to said platform. Said sliding frame, in order to permit variations in the location of the fulcrum point of the diving board, is positioned by means of a standard hydraulic cylinder. A special ladder is attached to the platform and said ladder is composed of two uprights with removable, lift-out steps. Said steps are supported by the uprights without being permanently fixed and are free to slide and lift out of grooves made within said uprights in order to avoid accidental injuries or damage to the said ladder. A counterweight is located at the back end of said platform and reacts against the diver''s downward push that would otherwise cause an excessive bending stress to the lifting rams. A protective cage is also added around the ladder, below ground level, and inside said cage a set of guide rollers or cushions is fixed to act as guides for the ladder uprights which may be moved up or down, and also to absorb a shock or force in any direction other than the one in which the lifting rams and the ladder have to move.

Description

States Patent 1191 Avon 1 1 DIVING TOWERS [76] Inventor: Urbain Avon, 5671 des Plaines Ave., 410, Montreal, Quebec, Canada [22] Filed: May 5, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 140,330

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Oct, 7, 1970 Canada 095091 [52] U.S. Cl. 272/66; 92/52; 92/53; 254/93 R [51] Int. Cl. A63B 5/10 [58] Field of Search 272/66, 69, 57 R, l C;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,032,708 3/1936 Mallon 272/1 C 2,356,899 8/1944 Stutter.... 92/108 2,666,417 l/l954 Harsch.... 92/107 X 2,961,837 11/1960 Suderow 254/93 R X 2,975,857 3/1961 Suroff et al 182/166 3,092,383 6/1963 Dunn 272/66 3,276,547 10/1966 Muller et al. 254/93 R X 3,279,755 10/1966 Notenboom et a1. 254/93 R 3,372,927 3/1968 Rude 272/66 3,563,540 2/1971 Hopfeld. 272/66 3,622,124 ll/l97l Sidles 254/93 R FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 407,093 lO/l970 Australia 254/93 R 1,511,338 12/1967 France 272/66 726,891 10/1942 Germany 272/66 646,883 ll/l950 United Kingdom..... 272/66 154,965 7/1943 Netherlands 272/66 644,774 7/1962 Canada 272/66 784,510 5/1968 Canada.. 92/108 1,511,338 12/1967 France 272/66 Primary E.raminerRichard J. Apley 5 7 ABSTRACT This invention concerns a diving tower, adjustable in height and operated by means of a hydraulic ram assembly, said ram assembly being powered by pressurized fluid within annular chambers of compression which vary the height of the diving board. The said annular chambers of compression are formed by the space between two coaxial cylinders, or a plurality of coaxial cylinders, of different diameters, and thus, permit a reduction in the surface areas to which the hydraulic force is applied while at the same time permitting the selection of larger cylinder diameters as needed for rigid cylindrical lifting rams. Since the active surface areas are the top annular areas and not the cylinder areas, the size of the said cylinders may be increased in order to present a greater bending moment without requiring additional fluid to maintain a reasonable operating speed. A platform for the diving tower is attached to the lifting ram cylinder, and a fulcrum roller is supported by a sliding frame engaged on dovetail tracks, said dovetail tracks being fastened to said platform. Said sliding frame, in order to permit variations in the location of the fulcrum point of the diving board, is positioned by means of a standard hydraulic cylinder. A special ladder is attached to the platform and said ladder is composed of two uprights with removable, lift-out steps. Said steps are supported by the uprights without being permanently fixed and are free to slide and lift out of grooves made within said uprights in order to avoid accidental injuries or damage to the said ladder. A counterweight is located at the back end of said platform and reacts against the divers downward push that would otherwise cause an excessive bending stress to the lifting rams. A protective cage is also added around the ladder, below ground level, and inside said cage a set of guide rollers or cushions is fixed to act as guides for the ladder uprights which may be moved up or down, and also to absorb a shock or force in any direction other than the one in which the lifting rams and the ladder have to move.

3 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures I US. Patfint S ept. 30,1975 Sheet 2 of4 3,908,988

Fig. 6

US. Patent Sept. 30,1975 Sheet 3 of4 3,908,988

DIVING TOWERS DESCRIPTION The present invention is about an adjustable'diving tower whose lifting assembly is composed of hydraulic cylinder rams, actuated by means of pressu ri'zed fluid within annular .chambersof compression, which vary the height of the diving board.

Diving boards of adjustable height have already been constructed in the past, but these were operated either by a regular jack screw or by a hydraulic ball screw, or else by a piston whose entire cross sectionarea was used to operate the lift. In the latter, the said crosssection area required a large flow of hydraulic fluid and an oversized pump in order to obtain a reasonable operation speed.

In one prior art deviceregarding adjustable diving towers Mr. Antonius Wilhelmus Notermans, of the Netherlands, Pat. No. 54965, presentsa frame supporting the diving board, said diving board being lifted along said tower by means of a cable, said ,cablerolling on a drum actuated by a motor or operated by hand. In this same prior art device, a counterweight is also used, but only to counterbalance the weight of the diving board frame being lifted. By contrast, in my present invention the lift is operated by a hydraulic lifting ram assembly instead of a cable, and the counterweight is not used at all to counterbalance the weight of the lifting frame and diving board, but to compensate for the downward push of the diver when he jumps from the diving board. I

SUMMARY OF TI-IEINVENTION Reference to Drawings The inventive idea which this new article embodies, and the way it overcomes the difficulties and inconveniences of previous devices or proposalsis to'use at least one, or a plurality of annular chambers of compression. v

In the drawings which illustrate embodiments of my invention:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view, partly in section, of the adjustable diving tower; I

FIG. 2 is a front elevation view, partlyin section, showing (a) theplatform fixed at the top end of the cylinder rarn, (b) the sliding frame supporting the fulcrum adjustment roller, together with (c thedovetail tracks which support the sliding frame, and finally (d) the two guard rails;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of one of the twominiature control valves, as set inside one of the, two guard rails;

FIG. 4 is a partial side view of the special ladder with lift-out steps, one of the two uprights being sectioned and one of the steps being omitted to show clearly the I grooves in which the ends of the steps rest over the bot- FIG. 7 is'a schematic view of two alternative assem-,

blies, (a),one for a remote control unit to operate the lifting mechanism, and (b) one for flexible hoses used as pressurized fluid lines;

is-a schematic view of the standard pressurization unit and 'its connections to thesupply and return- 1 DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION FIG. 1 shows the annular chambers of compression 6 forming the creative idea of this invention. The said annular chambers of compression, existing between cylinders 2 and 3 and between cylinders 8 and '2 are closed at their lower-end by seal rings 5 attached tothe inner'wall of the external cylinders 2 and 8 of saidannular chambers, said seal rings 5 forming the bottom of each annular chamber of compression. The upper end of same annular chambers of compression 6 is closed by seal rings 7 attached to the external wall of the inner cylinders 2 and 3 of each annular chamber of compression 6, and said inner cylinders 2 and 3 are used as two telescoping rams to move the diving board platform 12 up and down, said platform supporting the diving board 17. The diameters of the different cylinders 2, 3, and 8 forming this lifting unit may be as large as necessary to ensure rigidity without thereby requiring, due to their respective diameters, a large flow of pressurized fluid, since the working cross section area is the area of the annular chambers of compression 6, equaling the differential of the cylinder areas, and may be kept constantQThe upward movement of said cylinders 3 and 2 is limited by stop rings 9 attached at the upper end of the inner wall of the external cylinders 2 and 8 of each annular chamber of compression 6. A protective shield 1 is attachedto the lower endof the outer cylinder 8 in order to avoid any foreign matter entering from underneath. The pressurized fluid flows to or from the annular chambers of compression within a slave tube 29 attached to the inner wall of the interior cylinder 3, and fixed at the inlet orifice 30 which pierces through said cylinder 3 just underneath said upper seal ring 7 which is attached to said sylinder 3. Another inlet orifice 33 pierces through the middle cylinder2 just underneath the upper seal ring'7 which is attached to said middle cylinder 2. l

A special, mobile ladder assembly, ,FIG. land FIG. 4, is fixed at the back end of the platform 12, said platform moving up and down with the cylinder rams 2 and 3. Both ends 37 of each step 22 of said mobile ladder assembly rest on the bottom face 35 of grooves 23, said grooves 23,being. part of each upright 21, and said step ends 37 are free to slide and lift out of said grooves 23 when said step comes in contact with a foot or any object placed underneath said step while the ladder assembly moves downward together with the platform 12 to which said ladderassembly is attached.

A good .diver may develop a downward push equaling many times his own weight .when he jumps from the I diving board. In previousart devices the torque which of the platform, opposed to the ,diver, firmly to the ground. In my'invention, the platform 12 moves upand i downand it is. obvious thatsaid platform cannot be fixed to the ground; so, in order to overcome said torque the .backend of said pIatforrnis formed by.

means of a heavy plate 20 which together with the ladder assembly form a counterweight located behind the supporting ram in order to partially compensate for the divers downward push. The lower part of the mobile ladder is surrounded, below ground level 31, by means of a cage 25 mounted on a structural steel support 28. Said structural steel support is welded or bolted together to form an angle iron assembly 28, or equivalent, and is used as a base member fixed to the lower end of the outer cylinder 8, said lower end being embedded in a concrete foundation block 32. Said cage 25 is equipped with a detachable cover 24 for servicing, and within said cage, rollers 26 or cushions are mounted on same structural steel support 28 in order to stop the ladder assembly and platform 12 from moving in any direction other than the one in which the lifting ram is moved.

A standard pressurization unit 39 FIG. 1 and FIG. 8, motor energized, is located away from the diving tower. Two pressurized fluid lines, one for the supply 40 and one for the return 31, connect said unit to the diving tower. Said fluid lines are made of materials having electrical insulation properties to avoid any electric charge being carried to the diving tower. The connections for said pressurized fluid lines to the diving tower are made near ground level 31, inside the cage 25 through pipes 27. Said pipes 27 are connected at their other ends to two seamless tubes 42 near the bottom of the outer cylinder protective shield I. Said seamless tubes 42 are fixed to the outer cylinder protective shield 1 and form the lower members of two telescoping fluid assemblies wherein seal blocks 4 slide over said seamless tubes 42. Said seal blocks 4 are fixed to upper members or pipes 43 leading to the main lifting valve 10. Said main lifting valve is hydraulically operated. Two auxiliary fluid lines 11, one for the supply and one for the return, are connected to said pipes 43 near said main valve 10 and feed a miniature control valve 14 which actuates the main lifting valve 10 by means of hydraulic fluid lines 46. Two other auxiliary fluid lines 44 are also connected in a similar way to feed a second miniature control valve 14 which actuates the fulcrum adjustment cylinder 18, described hereafter, by means of hydraulic fluid lines 45. These two said control valves 14 are located separately in each of the two guard rails 19 where they can be manually operated with control levers 38.

The platform 12 is attached to the lifting ram assembly at the top end of the inner cylinder ram 3 by means of a bolted adapter ring 36. The said fulcrum adjustment cylinder 18, refered to herebefore, is fixed on top of said platform 12 to drive and firmly position a sliding frame 16, guided and retained by dovetail tracks 13 fastened to the platform 12. The fulcrum location of the diving board 17 is varied by means of a roller supported and positioned by said sliding frame 16.

An alternative to the telescoping fluid assemblies previously described is shown in FIG. 7 wherein said seamless tubes 42 are connected by means of flexible hoses 47 to the auxiliary fluid lines 44 of the miniature control valve 14 which actuates the fulcrum adjustment cylinder 18. Another alternative arrangement is also shown in FIG. 7, wherein a manually controlled main valve 48 operating the lifting assembly is located at a distance from the diving tower and out of reach of the divers. The inlet orifice 34, for the fluid coming from the pressurization unit, pierces through the outer cylinder 8 and is located just over the lower seal ring 5 of the annular chamber of compression 6 formed between cylinders 2 and 8. The previous inlet orifice 30 shown in FIG. 1 is omitted in said alternative arrangement, and the two telescoping feed assemblies, supply and return, with seal blocks 4 as shown in FIG. 1, or the alternative flexible hoses 47 shown in this same FIG. 7 will serve only the supply and return lines of the miniature control valve 14 actuating the fulcrum adjustment cylinder 18. The other control valve 14 and the main valve 10 are herein omitted and replaced by said manually controlled main valve 48.

I claim:

1. In combination, a height adjustable diving tower assembly comprising:

a. a diving platform including guard rail means attached thereto and upwardly extending therefrom;

b. a dove-tailed shaped track fixed to the forward portion of the upper surface of said platform, a frame having a correspondingly shaped dove-tailed lower surface slidably mounted on said track and supporting a roller thereon, a hydraulic cylinder fixed to said platform and operatively connected to said frame, a diving board fixed at one end to said platform and with another portion thereof resting atop said roller, said frame, roller, and hydraulic cylinder providing the fulcrum adjustment for said diving board;

c. counterweight means fixed to said one end of said platform in order to compensate for the downward force caused by a dive, said counterweight means including a weight plate and ladder means;

d. a pressurized fluid lifting assembly comprising a first hollow, rigid cylinder attached to the bottom surface of said platform and extending downwardly therefrom, at least one additional rigid cylinder telescopically positioned over and concentrically spaced from said first cylinder, each of said additional cylinders having an annular stop ring fixed to its upper inner surface, a pair of annular seal rings interfitted between adjacent cylinders, each of said pairs comprising an upper seal ring fixed to an innermost adjacent cylinder and a longitudinally spaced apart lower seal ring fixed to an outermost adjacent cylinder, the space between said upper and lower seal rings constituting an annular chamber of compression for receiving pressurized fluid therein, each of said annular chambers of compression being operatively related to each other by openings formed in adjacent cylinders and with one cylinder being imperforate;

e. means providing pressurized fluid to said lifting assembly; and

f. said guard rail means including control valve means for controlling said pressurized fluid means and said hydraulic fulcrum cylinder.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said ladder means include two uprights, each of said uprights having a plurality of spaced apart grooves formed on the inner surface thereof, and steps removably located on said uprights wherein each step has its ends engaging said upright grooves.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said ladder means further includes guides engaging said uprights for preventing lateral movement of said uprights during height adjustment of said diving platform.

Claims (3)

1. In combination, a height adjustable diving tower assembly comprising: a. a diving platform including guard rail means attached thereto and upwardly extending therefrom; b. a dove-tailed shaped track fixed to the forward portion of the upper surface of said platform, a frame having a correspondingly shaped dove-tailed lower surface slidably mounted on said track and supporting a roller thereon, a hydraulic cylinder fixed to said platform and operatively connected to said frame, a diving board fixed at one end to said platform and with another portion thereof resting atop said roller, said frame, roller, and hydraulic cylinder providing the fulcrum adjustment for said diving board; c. counterweight means fixed to said one end of said platform in order to compensate for the downward force caused by a dive, said counterweight means including a weight plate and ladder means; d. a pressurized fluid lifting assembly comprising a first hollow, rigid cylinder attached to the bottom surface of said platform and extending downwardly therefrom, at least one additional rigid cylinder telescopically positioned over and concentrically spaced from said first cylinder, each of said additional cylinders having an annular stop ring fixed to its upper inner surface, a pair of annular seal rings interfitted between adjacent cylinders, each of said pairs comprising an upper seal ring fixed to an innermost adjacent cylinder and a longitudinally spaced apart lower seal ring fixed to an outermost adjacent cylinder, the space between said upper and lower seal rings constituting an annular chamber of compression for receiving pressurized fluid therein, each of said annular chambers of compression being operatively related to each other by openings formed in adjacent cylinders and with one cylinder being imperforate; e. means providing pressurized fluid to said lifting assembly; and f. said guard rail means including control valve means for controlling said pressurized fluid means and said hydraulic fulcrum cylinder.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said ladder means include two uprights, each of said uprights having a plurality of spaced apart grooves formed on the inner surface thereof, and steps removably located on said uprights wherein each step has its ends engaging said upright grooves.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said ladder means further inCludes guides engaging said uprights for preventing lateral movement of said uprights during height adjustment of said diving platform.

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