Abstract:
A high-rise escape device includes a handgrip forming a first channel, and a handle pivoted to the handgrip and rotatable with respect to the handgrip between a locked position and a released position. The handle forming a second channel, which forms, together with the first open channel, a gap having a predetermined size to define a passage for the rope with a predetermined friction induced between the channels and the rope when the handle is at the locked position. An emergency escape system includes a rope extending from a high-rise building to the ground with a buffering member slidably fit over the rope. The escape device is coupled to the rope by pinching the rope between the first and second channels. A belt surrounds and secures a user to the escape device, whereby the user is allowed to slide down along the rope with a controlled speed for safely reaching the ground.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The present invention relates generally to an emergency escape device for high-rise buildings.  
         [0003]     2. Prior Arts  
         [0004]     Emergency escape device is one the most important apparatus that a high-rise building must equip. It allows users to escape out of the high-rise building and reach ground safely in case of emergency, such as earthquake and fire catastrophe. However, it is criticized as the complicated structure and operation though the conventional device may effectively rescue people from the high-rise building.  
       SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION  
       [0005]     An objective of the present invention is to provide an emergency escape device having simplified structure and minimal training ready to operate.  
         [0006]     Another objective of the present invention is to provide an emergency escape device that allows people to be conveyed from a high-rise building down to the ground with controlled speed so as to enhance operation safety.  
         [0007]     A further objective of the present invention is to provide an emergency escape device that allows a user to set a predetermined friction between the device and a rope along which the user is to slide down from a substantial height down to the ground in advance whereby the sliding speed of the escape device can be immediately set in an emergency situation.  
         [0008]     A further objective of the present invention is to provide an emergency escape device, which allows the user to manually control the sliding speed by hand moving a movable part with respect to a stationary part during the process of sliding down along a rope.  
         [0009]     A further objective of the present invention is to provide an emergency escape device, which allows for a preset sliding movement of the emergency escape device along a rope and also an adjustment of the sliding movement during the process of sliding.  
         [0010]     Yet a further objective of the present invention is to provide an emergency escape device that comprises a ready-to-release locking device, allowing the user to readily release and/or couple the escape device from/to a rope along which the user may slide down from a high-rise building for rescue.  
         [0011]     A further objective of the present invention is to provide an emergency escape system comprising a rope connecting between a high-rise building and the ground with a buffering device sliding fit over the rope and an escape device as described to cooperate with and slide down along the rope for high-rise emergency rescues. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]      FIG. 1  is an exploded view of an escape device constructed in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the escape device in a released condition;  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the escape device in a locked condition, together with a belt that secures a person attached to the escape device;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is a bottom view of the escape device in the locked condition;  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is a side elevational view of the escape device in the locked condition;  
         [0017]      FIG. 6  is an exploded view of a locking device for securing the escape device in the locked condition;  
         [0018]      FIG. 7  is a side elevational view of the locking device;  
         [0019]      FIG. 8  is a schematic view demonstrating coupling of the belt that secures a person to the escape device with a buckle; and  
         [0020]      FIG. 9  is a schematic view illustrating a high-rise emergency escape system incorporating the escape device of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0021]     With reference to the drawings and in particular to  FIGS. 1-5 , a high-rise emergency escape device constructed in accordance with the present invention comprises a stationary handgrip  1  and a movable handle  2  pivoted to the handgrip  1  by a pivot  21  whereby the a gripping gap through which a rope  4  extends is adjustable by rotation of the movable handle  2  with respect to the handgrip  1  to control friction between the escape device and the rope  4  and thus controlling the speed of a person carried by the escape device sliding down along a rope  4 .  
         [0022]     The stationary handgrip  1  comprises a flat elongate body  100  having a first end forming a J-shaped hook  13  defining a rope channel  130  and an opposite second end forming a buckle hole  11  with which a buckle  51  (see  FIG. 3 ) may engage. A finger opening  12  is defined at one longitudinal edge of the elongate body  100  for the extension of a user&#39;s finger (not shown) in holding the escape device.  
         [0023]     The flat body  100  has opposite first and second major faces  10 ,  10   a . A first pulley  15  is mounted to the first face  10  of the handgrip  1  at a position closed to the hook  13  so that the first pulley  15  substantially aligns with the rope channel  130  for smoothly guiding the rope  4  into the rope channel  130 . In the embodiment illustrated, the first pulley  15  is fixed to the handgrip  1  by a first pulley holder  14 , which comprises a lying-down U-shaped member having two spaced limbs connected by a bottom. The bottom is fixed to the first major face  10  of the handgrip  1  by any suitable means, such as bolts, rivet, and welding. The first pulley  15  is rotatably supported between the limbs of the U-shape of the first pulley holder  14 . Preferably, the rotational axis of the first pulley  15  is substantially parallel to the first major face  10  of the handgrip body  100 .  
         [0024]     A through hole  16  is defined in an end portion of the J-shaped hook  13  for the extension of the pivot  21 .  
         [0025]     The movable handle  2  comprises two spaced plates  240  defining an interior space  24  therebetween, which rotatably receives therein the thickness  101  of the handgrip  1 , which is the dimension between the major faces  10 ,  10   a  of the handgrip  1 . In other words, when the handgrip  1  is received in the movable handle  2 , the major faces  10 ,  10   a  of the handgrip  1  are in surface contact with inner surfaces of the plates  240  of the handle  2 , yet with a certain clearance therebetween to allow for rotation of the handle  2  with respect to the handgrip  1 . Aligned through holes  26  are defined in the plates  240  closed to a first end of the handle  2  for the extension of the pivot  21 . The pivot  21  thus extends through both the through holes  26  of the handle  2  and the through hole  16  of the handgrip  1  to pivot the first end of the handle  2  to the first end of the handgrip  1 , which leaves an opposite end of the handle  2  rotatable between locked and released positions, which will be further described  
         [0026]     On an outer surface  20  of one of the plates  240  of the handle  2 , a second pulley  23  is fixed whereby the second pulley  23  and the first pulley  15  are located on opposite sides of the escape device. The second pulley  23  is fixed to the plate  240  by a second pulley holder  22 , which, similar to the first pulley holder  14 , has a U-shaped configuration with a bottom fixed to the plate  240  by suitable means, such as bolt, rivet, and welding and two limbs rotatably supporting the second pulley  23  therebetween. The second pulley  23  is provided to guide the rope  4  out of the rope channel  130 . Preferably, the first and second pulley  15 ,  23  are arranged to guide the rope  4  through the escape device in an S-shape as particularly shown in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0027]     A concave recess  25  is defined in the first end of plates  240  of the handle  2  to function as a guide channel for the rope  4 . The guide channel  25  corresponds in position to the rope channel  130  of the hook  13  of the handgrip body  10 . The guide channel  25  and the rope channel  130  cooperate with each other to form a passage for the rope  4 . Due to the rotatability of the handle  2  with respect to the handgrip  1 , the relative position of the guide channel  25  with respect to the rope channel  130  is changeable, which leads to adjustability of the cross-sectional dimension of the rope passage. In other words, the rope  4  may be subject to different magnitude of gripping force applied thereto by the rope channel  130  and the guide channel  25 , rendering different friction between the rope  4  and the escape device. This allows a user to control sliding speed along the rope  4 , which will be further described.  
         [0028]     Also referring to  FIGS. 6 and 7 , a locking device is provided to secure the handle  2  at a predetermined position (the locked position) with respect to the handgrip  1 , which means a fixed spatial relationship between the rope channel  130  and the guide channel  25  and thus a fixed friction and sliding speed between the escape device and the rope  4 . The locking device comprises a movable body  31  that is movably attached to one of the plates  240  of the handle  2  and an adjustable pin  32  extending from the movable body  31 . The locking device further comprises a locking tab  171  fixed to the major face  10  of the handgrip body  100 . The pin  32  has a free end engageable with the locking tab  171 , which secures the handle  2  in the locked position with respect to the handgrip  1 . In other words, the handle  2  is prevented from moving away from the handgrip  1  (moving from the locked position to the released position) when the pin  32  engages the locking tab  171 , thereby ensuring a predetermined friction between the escape device and the rope  4 .  
         [0029]     Spaced protrusions  35  are formed on one plate  240  of the handle  2 . Aligned holes  351  are defined in the protrusions  35 . The movable body  31  of the locking device comprises an arm  312  having a free end in which a through hole  313  is defined. A pivot pin  314  extends through both the holes  351  and the hole  313  to rotatably mount the main body  31  to the plate  240  of the handle  2 . A resilient biasing member  34 , such as a spring illustrated in the drawings, is arranged between the movable body  31  and the handle  2  to secure the movable body  31  at an engaging position, while, under the action of a counter force, allowing the movable body  31  to move from the engaging position to a disengaging position. In the embodiment illustrated, the spring  34  has a U-shaped having two limbs each forming a helical portion fit over the pivot pin  314  and a bottom supported on the movable body. Ends of the limbs engage the handle  2  to bias the movable body  31  to the engaging position where the movable body  31  abuts against the handle  2  with the pin  32  engaging the locking tab  171 . By forcibly rotating the main body  31  about the pivot pin  314  in a direction away from the handle  2  and against the spring  34 , the pin  32  is brought away from the locking tab  171  and engagement therebetween is broken to release the handle  2 . This allows the escape device to be removed from the rope  4  or to readjust the friction between the escape device and the rope  4 .  
         [0030]     In the embodiment illustrated, the locking pin  32  comprises a threaded section that engages an inner-threaded hole  311  defined in the movable body  31 . The threading engagement between the pin  32  and the hole  311  allows for adjustment of the relative position of the pin  32  with respect to the main body  31  and thus adjustment of the predetermined locked position of the handle  2  with respect to the handgrip  1 , which in turn allows for adjustment of the friction between the escape device and the rope  4 .  
         [0031]     A nut  33  is selectively mounted in the threaded section of the pin  32 . The nut  33  is abuttingly engageable with the main body  31  to prevent undesired movement of the pin  32  with respect to the main body  31  thereby securing the relative position of the pin  32  and thus the friction between the escape device and the rope  4 .  
         [0032]     A guide plate  17 , functioning as a camming surface, is mounted to the handgrip  1  adjacent to the locking tab  171 . The movable body  31  of the locking device is provided with a camming portion  310 , which, when the movable body  31  is moved from the disengaging position back into the engaging position, is engageable with the guide plate  17  under the action of the biasing force of the spring  34 . The guide plate  17  guides the movable body  31  back into the engaging position by camming engagement between the guide plate  17  and the camming portion  310 .  
         [0033]     It is noted that as best seen in  FIG. 5 , a gap defined by an angle θ is present between the handle  2  and the handgrip  1  when the handle  2  is secured at the locked position by the locking device. Such a gap allows a user to manually and forcibly grip the rope  4  between the rope channel  130  of the handgrip  1  and the guide channel  25  of the handle  2 . Thus, the friction between the escape device and the rope  4  can be selectively adjusted by the hand holding force of the user.  
         [0034]     Also referring to  FIGS. 8 and 9 , a high-rise emergency escape system in accordance with the present invention comprises a rope  4  extending from an emergency escape facility  6  mounted to a high-rise building  900  down to a column  901  fixed to the ground  902  at a distance from the building  900 . Two branch ropes  42  extend from the free end of the main rope  4  and are tightened to the column  901  at different altitudes by for example hooks  43 . A buffering member  41 , such as a spring, a foamed body, and a rubber block, is slidably fit over the main rope  4  and is maintained in position by the branches  42 . Preferably, a predetermined distance L is present between the buffering member  41  and the column  901  and a predetermined height H is present between the buffering member  41  and the ground  902 .  
         [0035]     To operate, the user wraps and secures a belt  5  around his or her waist and couples a buckle  51  fixed at an end of the belt  5  to the buckle hole  11  of the handgrip  1 . The user may then open the movable handle  2  of the escape device of the present invention by releasing the locking device, position the rope  4  in the rope channel  130  of the handgrip  1 , and close and lock the handle  2  whereby the rope  4  is pinched between the handle  2  and the handgrip  1 . The user holds the handgrip  1  and selectively adjusts the friction between the escape device and the rope  4  and then slide down along the rope  4 .  
         [0036]     Once the user approaches the column  901 , the buffering member  41  effectively decelerates the user and protects the user from directly colliding the column  901  and the falling onto the ground  902 . The distance L and the height H ensure that the user does not hit the column  901  or the ground  902 . Once reaching the ground  902 , the user may open the handle  2  and release the escape device from the rope  4  to allow the next user to safely slide down along the rope  4 .  
         [0037]     Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that a variety of modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention which is intended to be defined by the appended claims.