US580961A - Fire-escape - Google Patents

Description

\No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

HQ STEIMANN.

FIRE ESCAPE.

0. 589961. PatentedAgg/a 2o, 1897. E113. y -Zxf wf i 10a-'Im me;

UNITED STATES PATENT EETQE.

HENRY STEIMANN, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

FIRE-ESCAPE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 580,961, dated .April 20, 1897. Application filed May 22,1896. Serial No. 592,576. (No model.)

T0 cir/ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY STEIMANN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fire-Escapes; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for its objectv to provide an improved fire-escape.

To this end my invention comprises the novel `devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described, and defined in the claims.

In my invention I employ a bracket or headpiece, a reel or windlass mounted on said bracket, a friction device for limiting the speed of the unwinding movement of said reel, and a cable wound on said reel and provided at its free end with a hook or grapple adapted for application to a window-sill or other suitable portion of the building from which a person wishes to descend.

The friction device for controlling the unwinding movement of the reel is preferably in the form of a sliding friction-clutch, which is operated by the hand-controlled clamp, and the reel-cable above referred to is preferably in the form of a metallic tape or spring-steel ribbon.

The device which is to hold the person is secured to the bracket or head-piece and may take various forms, but is preferably in the form of a body-loop or body-strap.

' The hook or grapple at the free end of the cable or tape is preferably provided with a tripping or releasing lever, which has a flexible connection adapted to be extended to the ground and by means of which said trip-lever may be actuated to release said hook or grapple from its hold on the support to which it has been attached. This releasing device above described is a valuable adjunct to the fire-escape in that it enables the same to be readily removed from the building after it has done'its work, and thus to save the same from destruction with the burning building. In the preferred form of 4my nre-escape the cable or flexible connection from the trip-lever is also wound in a sheave portion, which is either formed on or secured with the main reel or windlass above described. In this case, however, the trip-lever cable is given a sufcient amount of slack, so that when the main or supporting cable or tape is drawn taut by the weight of the person descending the trip-lever will not be rendered operative.

My invention also comprises other novel features of construction which will also be hereinafter described, and defined in the claims.

The preferred form of my invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein, like letters referring to like parts throughout the several views- Figure l is aview in perspective with some parts broken away, showing my improved fire-escape in working position. Fig. 2 is a view, partly in section with some parts broken away, showing the hook at the free end of the main or supporting` cable and the trip-lever for releasing the same, said parts being shown as just released from the window-sill. Fig. 3 is a vertical central section taken substantially on the line X3 X3 of Fig. 4L. Fig. 4 is a vertical transverse section taken on the line X4 X4 of Fig. 3, some parts being broken away. Fig. 5 is a transverse vertical section taken through a portion of the device substantially on the line X5 Xi of Fig. 3; and Fig. 6 is a plan view, with some parts broken away, showing the spindle on which the reel and frictional clutch are mounted, together with a handpiece by means of which the friction-clutch is controlled.

a indicates the sill of the window of a building to which the fire-escape is applied and from which the same is suspended.

As shown, the bracket or head-piece is formed by a pair of side pieces ZJ and ZJ', which are rigidly connected at their ends by means of a pair of tie-bolts b2 b3. As shown, the upper tie-bolt h2 is held in place by suitable nuts h4, while the lower bolt b3, which, by the way, is shown as hollow and of considerably greater diameter than the bolt b2, is secured in place by having its ends riveted.

In suitable seats formed in the central hub portions b5 h6 of the side pieces b and b is rigidly secured a spindle c c. At one end the spindle c c is provided with a head which bears against the outer face of the hub be, and at its other end is provided with a key c?,

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which lits a suitable seat in the hub 1f and prevents the spindle from turning, while at its extreme outer portion the spindle is screwthreaded and provided with a nut e3.

As shown, the reel or windlass d is provided with two peripheral channels or sheave portions d and d?, adapted to receive, respectively, the main or suspending cable or tape and the trip-lever cable oreonneetion. This reel d is loosely mounted on the red uced portion e of the spindle c c and is provided on its right face with a V-shaped annular groove d3 and on its left face with a hub d4, which bears against the inner face of the side piece ZJ when pressed by the friction-clutch.

f indicates the main or supporting cable in the form of a steel tape, which is adapted to be wound in the groove or sheave portion d' ofthe reel d. One end of this tapefis secured to the reel d by some suitable means, (not showin) and to the free end of the saine is secured a hook or grapple f. As shown, the stem end of this hook f' is provided with a soeketf, into which the free end of the tape 2 5 f, together with the clamping-plate f3, is inserted, and the parts are thus held together by means of clamp-screws f", which work through said socket f2 and impinge on said platefs.

Referring new tothe friction-clutch device, g indicates a sliding cap or plate, the hub of which is mounted on the portion c' of the fixed spindle e c. This cap or plate g is thus mounted for sliding, but fixed against rotary motion on the spindle-section e by means of a key g', which is passed diam etrieally through the longitudinally-elongated slot e'1 in said spindlesection c' and engages suitable seats g2 in the hub of said cap g with its extended ends. Secured to the inner face of this sliding cap g, by means of screws g1", is an annular facing g", of wood, which in cross-section is V-shaped, corresponding to and adapted for engagement with the V-shaped groove d3 in the face of the reel d.

The frietional action of the friction-clutch just described is controlled by means of a screw h, which works through the end of the shaft-section e' centrally thereof and is adapted to impinge on the central portion of the key g. The outer end of this screw 7L is provided with a knurled head 7L', adapted to be gripped by the operators hand. It will thus be seen that by screwing in on the screw-rod 7L the friction-clutch may be forced inward, so that the annular facing g4 will frietionally engage the groove d3 in the reel d, and that the intensity of this frietional engagement may thereby be varied at will, so as to vary the speed at which the rider will descend.

The threaded portion of the spindle-section e' andthe adjacent portion of the brackethub D are provided with coincident slots h2, which extend on a line corresponding to the thread of the screw-bolt 72 and said screwbolt 7L is provided with a radialiy-projecting pin h3, which works in said coincident slots.

These coincident slots h2 have such length, that, in coperation with the pin h3, they will permit the screw 7L to be turned inward to such an extent that the friction-clutch will be forced against the reel with a strong enough friction to stop the movement of the reel when the person is descending on the device, but will serve as a stop to prevent said screw h from being turned outward suiciently to permit the friction of the friction-clutch on the reel from being entirely relieved. This latter feature is, as will later more clearly appear, very important, as it serves to prevent the too-rapid descent of the person using the lire-escape.

On the lower tie-bolt b3 of the bracket or head-block is mounted a yoke 7s, which, as shown, is provided with a handpieee 7c and an intermediate cross-piece 7a2, over which is passed a body-strap m.

The tripping or releasing device shown comprises a tripping or releasing lever p, pivoted at one end to the hook f' at a point a short distance inward ol' the point of said hook and a light cable or flexible connection 1)',attaehed to the free end of said trip-lever 2a. The lower end of the cable or connection p is secured by some suitable means (not shown) to the reel d and is wound in the groove or sheave portion d2 of said reel. It will be noted that both of the cables f and p' are, when the device is in working position, adapted to engage and run over the doublegrooved antit'rietion-sleeve 197, loosely journaled on the upper bracket tie-rod b2. It will also be noted that the tripping or releasing lever p is provided with stop-pin p2, which is adapted to engage the hook j, and thereby to limit the movement of said lever in both directions. It will also be noted, by reference to Fig. 2, that when the tripping-lever is moved into its tripping or releasing position the point of the hook f will be withdrawn from the support to which it is attached and rendered inoperative by said lever.

On the hub d* of the windlass d is rigidly secured a small spur-gear s. In the bracketpiece l), just below the hub if, is mounted, with freedom for both endwise and rotary movements, a short shaft s, provided on its inner end with a spur-pinion .s2 and on its outer end with a crank-lever s3. The pinion s2 is adapted, when moved inward, to engage the gear s on the reel-hub (Z4, but is normally held out of engagement therewith by means of a spring s1, coiled on the shaft s between the crank-arm s3 and the plate b.

After the lire-escape has been used and the cables f and p unwound from the reel the cables may be agaim rewound by the device just described simply by pressing inward on the crank-arm s3, so as to engage lthe gears s and s2 and then turning said crank. ln order to permit the rewinding of the cables, as just described, some provision must of course be made for relieving the friction of the clutch 011 the reel during the time of rewinding.

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This might of course be accomplished by making stop-pin h3 in the screw-rod h removable, so that the screw h may be turned outward to an extreme position, and thereby permit the complete disengagement of the friction-clutch from the reel.

It must be obvious from the foregoing description that my improved fire-escape may be quickly and securely applied to almost any sort of a structure from which a person desires to descend-as, for instance, to the sill of a burning building. The person desiring to descend can slip the body-strap m around his body just below the arms. By gripping'the handpiece 7a with one hand he may steady himself and prevent his body from swinging, while by gripping the knurled head h' of the screw-rod h with the other hand he may vary the speed at which he will descend or may may bring the device to a standstill at will.

As already described, the hook or grapplev f may be released from its hold after a person or persons have descended to the ground by means of the tripping or releasing device.

It will be understood, of course, that While VI have described the above device as especially adapted for a fire-escape the same might be used wherever persons may desire to descend from an elevation.

It will also be understood that various alterations in the details of construction above described may be made without departing from the spirit of my inventin.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is as follows:

l. In a fire-escape or similar device, the combination with a bracket or head-piece movable with the person, of a reel or Wind lass mounted. on said bracket, a cable wound on said reel, a friction-clutch working against the face of said reel, a hand-operated screw Working against said friction-clutch, and a stop device which permits a limited rotary movement of said screw, but prevents the same from being released to such an extent that the friction of said clutch on said windlass will be entirely removed, substantially as described.

2. In a nre-escape or similar device, the combination with a bracket or head-piece movable with the person, of a reel or windlass mounted on said bracket, a cable wound on said rcel, and a friction-clutch device involving a friction-head working against said reel,the hand-screw h Working against said friction-head, and the stop-pin h3 carried by said screw h and working in the slot h2, substantially as described.

3. In a fire-escape or similar device, the combination with a bracket or head-piece movable with the person, of a reel or Windlass mounted on said bracket and provided With a pair of peripheral grooves or sheavesurfaces, a main or supporting cable Wound in one of said sheave-surfaces and provided with a hook at its free end, a tripping or releasing lever pivoted to said hook, a iiexible connection from said trip-lever, Wound in the other of said sheave-surfaces, and a friction device for controlling the speed of the unwinding movement of said reel, substantially as described.

4. In a fire-escape or similar device, the combination with a bracket or head-piece movable with the person, of a reel or windlass mounted on said bracket and provided with a pair of peripheral grooves or sheavesurfaces, a main or supporting cable wound in one of said sheave-surfaces and provided with a hook at its free end, a trip or releasing lever pivoted to said hook7 a iieXible connection from said trip-lever Wound in the other of said sheave-surfaces, a friction device for controlling the unwinding movement of said reel, and a winding device for rewinding said cables or flexible connections on said reel, substantially as described.

5. In av fire-escape or similar device, the combination with a bracket or head-piece movable with the person, of the reel or windlass provided with the pair of sheave-surfaces and the V-shaped face-groove, the tapelike suspending cable and the light trippingcable wound on said reel, a hook at the free end of said suspending-cable, a tripping-lever pivoted to said hook and attached to the free end of said tripping-cable, the clutch provided with a Wooden annular facing working in the face-groove of said reel, the hand-op erated screw-rod for setting said clutch, the body-strap carried by said bracket, and the rewindin g device for rewinding said cable on said reel, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

HENRY STEIMANN.

Vitnesses:

JAs. F. WILLIAMSON, F. D. MERCHANT.

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