US830944A - Slack-cable stop for elevators. - Google Patents

Description

v v PATENTED SEPT, 11., 1906. J. J. WESTBROOKi SLACK CABLE STOP FOR ELEVATORS.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 4. 1906.

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[NVENTOR N0- 830,944. 4 PATENTED SEPT. 11, 1906. J. J. WESTBROOK.

SLACK CABLE STOP FOR ELEVATORS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 4. 1906.

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PATE'NTBD SEPT. 11, 1906.

J. J. WESTBROOK. SLACK CABLE STOP FOR ELEVATORS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 4. 1906,

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UNITED STATES PATENT QFFIGE.

SLACK-CABLE STOP FOR ELEVATORS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 11, 1906.

Application filed May 4, 1906. Serial No. 315,197.

To H/ZZ whom it 7nay concern.-

Be it known that I, J OHN J. WEs'rBRooK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Danville, in the county of Pittsylvania and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Slack-Cable Stops for Elevators; 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 consist in the novel features hereinafter described, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one form in which I have contemplated embodying my invention, and said invention is fully disclosed in the following description and claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 repre-' sents a side elevation of a winding mechanism for elevators embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken transversely of the drum-shaft in rear of the flier-wheel, as indicated by line 2 2 in Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the mechanism. Fig. 4 is a sectional view on line 4 4 of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a sectional view on line 5 5 of Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail of the slack-cable-operated lever, the clutch-operating lever, and the operating-spring for the latter.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple and eflicient mechanism for stopping the elevator-operating mechanism in case the car or the counterweight in its descent encounters an obstacle which arrests it. The result of the stoppage of the car is that the supporting cable or cables will continue to unwind if the operating mechanism be not thrown out of operation, and should the weight of the car overcome the obstruction and fall the shock would in most cases break the cable and cause the car to plunge to the bottom of the shaft.

By my invention I provide a construction by means of which the operating mechanism will be stopped almost instantly in case the downward movement of the car is arrested or in case for any other reason the suspendingcable becomes slack, and the mechanism is so constructed that it can be readily adapted to drums of different diameters or width of face and applied to different types of elevators having a winding-drum without altering the main elements of the mechanism, as will hereinafter more fully appear.

In the drawings I have shown a belt-driven Fig. 2,) mounted on shaft B and engaging a' worm E, (also indicated in Fig. 2 in dotted l1nes,) mounted on the driving-shaft F, which is mounted in suitable bearings provided in the casting and is provided with three pulleys F F F The central pulley F is fast on the shaft, and the two other pulleys are loose and are adapted to be driven in opposite directions by belts which may be shifted onto the fast pulley to drive the apparatus in either direction.

The beltshipping apparatus comprises a flier-wheel G, mounted loosely on the drum-shaft B and provided on its outer face with oppositely-disposed studs (or frictionrolls) g, engaging slots in brackets h h, secured, respectively, to sliding shipper-bars H H. The bar H carries a belt-shipper k for pulley F, and the bar H carries a beltshipper 72,3 for pulley F. It will thus be seen that the movement of the flier-wheel in either direction will operate one of the beltshippers and start the mechanism in one direction, and the movement of the flier-wheel back to the position shown in Fig. 1, which I will term median position, will throw whichever belt was upon the fast pulley back upon its loose pulley and stop the apparatus. The operation of the flier-wheel also throws into and out of operation a brake mechanism to secure a prompt stopping of the mechanism and prevent it from continuing its operation by inertia. The driving-shaft F is provided with a brake-wheel F, around which is a brake-band L, operatively connected to the brake-lever M, which is pivoted near one end at m to the casing and is provided at its opposite or outer end with a weight M, tending to apply the brake.

N is a brake-controlling lever pivoted near its center at n to the casing C and having its upper end connected by a link n to the brake-lever M at m and its lower end provided with a friction-rolln which engages a cam G, forming part of or connected operatively with the flier-wheel G.- This cam has a recess g, which engages the roll 12 when the flier-wheel is in its median position, thus allowing the weight M on brake: lever M to apply the brake. When the flierwheel is turned in either direction, the roller 12, rides up a cam-grade, thus lifting the brakelever M and releasing the brake.

The flier-wheel is provided with a yoke G for guidin a traveling block 9 on a threaded portion of the drum-shaft, and upon said threaded portion are clamped the usual automatic stops 9 g for throwing the flier-wheel when the elevator-car reaches the top or bottom of the shaft.

The flier-wheel or some part conrocted therewith (in this instance the cam G) is provided with a clutch member, (indicated at g,) and a movable clutch member 9 is arranged adjacent thereto 'and is preferably mounted on a spline, or feather on the shaft B.

0 represents a pivoted clutch-operating lever provided at its upper end with a yoke 0,

engaging the movable clutch member g and provided adjacent to its lower end with a spring 0, which tends to throw the movable clutch member into engagement with the clutch member carried by the flier-wheel. This spring is connected to an adjustable screw-hook 0 or other device by means of which its tension may be adjusted.

Adjacent to the lower end of the clutch-lever 0, I provide a trip-lever P, pivoted to a stationary part of the apparatus (in this instance the casingC) and so constructed that the lever O can be moved so as to separate the clutch members 9 g and locked in that position by the trip-lever P. To provide for a practically instantaneous disengagement of the parts 0 and P, I prefer to provide one with a concave socket to engage a convex portion of the other, so that when they have been moved slightly out of engagement the pressure of the spring 0 will cause them to separatequickly. In this instance I have shown the lever 0 provided with an angular projection at its lower end, which carries an adjustable screw 0 .the head of which is recessed or concave, and the end 1) of the triplever P is convex or rounded to engage this recess in the screw 0 The lever P is preferably formed of castiron and is provided at the end opposite that which engages the clutch-lever with a recess 20 to receive a trip-arm P, which I form, preferably, of wrought-iron and which is made to conform to the particular winding-drum with which it is to be used. The trip-arm P has a portion 19 which extends across the lower portion of the face of the drum between the flanges and lies as closely as possible to the cable-coils thereon as is possible without touching them, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

form to suit the particular drum with which it is to be used and then secured to the triplever.

By reference to Fig. 5 it will be seen that should the cable become slack for any reason, as by the arresting of the car in its downward movement, the weight of any slack coil will depress the trip-arm P and instantly disengage the trip-lever P and clutch-operating lever 0, when the spring 0 will cause the clutch-lever to throw in the clutch member 9 and operate the flier-wheel in the direction in which the drum-shaft is moving at the time, thus returning the fiier-wheel to median position, and thereby, as previously described, throwing off the driving-belt to its loose pul- 'ley and allowing the brake to be applied, thus almost instantaneously stopping the mechanism and preventing the unwinding of the cable. After the slack-cable stop mechanism has been operated it is necessary to pull out the lower end of clutch-lever, reverse the travel of the winding mechanism until the slack is taken out of the cable, when the tripthe lever P may be placed in engagement with clutch-lever and will hold it out of operation until the cable again becomes slack. Should the counterweight of the elevator meet any obstruction in its descent or should the triparm P through any cause or by accident hecome disengaged from the clutch-operating lever O, the clutch-lever will be thrown over by spring 0 and operate the belt-shippers, as previously described, or, in other words, this slack-cable-stop mechanism will stop the mechanism when the car is moving either up or down should the trip-arm P be tripped.

While I have shown my invention applied to one form of double belt-elevator-winding ,Inechanism, it may also be used in connection with other forms than that shown, and it can also be used with single belt-winding mechanism and with direct-connected engine-winding mechanisms by simply varying the connections from the flier-wheel which serve to shut off or disconnect the ower. This invention is also applicable to dlectric elevators, in which case the flier-wheel instead of being operatively connected to beltshipping mechanism, as herein shown, is connected with an electric controller for the motor which actuates the winding-drum.

What I claim, and desire .to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a slack-cablestop for elevator mechanism, the combination with the flier-wheel, a clutch mechanism therefor provided with a a spring for moving said movable memberinto operative position and a trip lever havmg a part engaging said clutch-lever, and a part in position to be engaged by a slack portion of the cable, the engaging portions of said trip-lever and clutch-lever being the one convex and the other concave, to form a socket to receive said convex part, substantially as described.

3. In a slack-cable stop for elevator mechanisms, the combination with the flier-wheel, a clutch mechanism therefor provided with a movable member, a clutch-operating lever connected with said movable clutch member, a spring for moving said movable member into operative position and a trip-lever having a part engaging said clutch-lever, and a separate trip-arm having a portion arranged in position to be engaged by a slack portion of the cable, and rigidly secured to said triplever, substantially as described.

4. In a slack-cable stop for elevator mechanisms, the combination with the flier-wheel, a clutch mechanism therefor provided with a movable member, a clutch-operating lever connected with said movable clutch member, a spring for moving said movable member into operative position and a trip-lever having a part engaging said clutch-lever and having a recess in its opposite end, a separate trip-arm having a portion constructed to lie within the flanges of the winding-drum of the elevator mechanism, and having its opposite end secured in the recess in said trip-lever, substantially as described.

. 5. In a slack-cable stop for elevator mechanism, the combination with the flier-wheel, a clutch mechanism therefor provided with a movable member, a clutch-operating lever connected with said movable clutch member, a spring for moving said movable member into operative position and a trip-lever having a part engaging said clutch-lever and a part in position to be engaged by a slack portion of the cable, one of the engaging portions of said trip-lever and clutch-lever being adjustable with respect to the part to which it is secured, substantially as described.

6. In a slack-cable stopfor elevator mech-' anism, the combination with the flier-Wheel, a clutch mechanism therefor, a clutch-operating lever, a spring connected therewith for throwing the clutch mechanism into operative position, said lever being provided with an adjustable screw having a concave seat, a pivoted trip-lever having a convex portion for engaging said concave seat to hold the clutch-lever and clutch out of operative position, said lever being provided with a recess at its other end, and a trip-arm having a part engaging said recess and a part bent to extend across the face of the winding-drum of the elevator mechanism and between the flanges thereof, substantially as described.

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

JOHN J. WESTBROOK. Witnesses:

W. J. WESTBROOK, STANLEY W. ScoTT.

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