GRIP

Abstract: A grip comprises a body (1) with an abutment and a suitably spring-loaded clamping jaw (3) which is movable relative to the body and which serves to clamp a rope (4) against the abutment so as to fix the grip in the desired position along the rope. The abutment consists of two thin clips or bands (7, 7') which in their mounted state are spaced apart and are separately applicable to the rope (4) and subsequently connectible with the body on each side of the clamping jaw (3), while completely surrounding the rope.

Description: GRIP Technical field of the invention The present invention relates to a grip comprising a body with an abutment and a suitably spring-loaded clamping jaw which is movable relative to the body and which serves to clamp a rope against the abutment so as t fix said grip in the desired position along the rope. Background of the invention In prior art grips of the type described above, the abutment consists of a hook member of substantially crescent-shaped cross-section, whose two opposite ends ar integrally formed with two separate arms which are, in turn, integrally formed with the body proper and between which the clamping jaw is positioned to press the rope against the concave inner side of the hook member. On application of the grip to the rope, the clamping jaw is moved back to an end position which is maximally spaced from the hook member and in which the distance between th clamping jaw and the hook member is slightly greater than the diameter of the rope, such that the grip can be laterally hooked on to the rope, whereupon a concavely formed front surface of the clamping jaw is pressed against the rope, for example by means of a spring in the body, thereby clamping the rope in the nip between said front surface and the concave inner side of the hook member. To be reliable, this grip must be provided with a amply dimensioned hook member serving as an abutment. In practice, the hook member thus is of a thickness which is considerably greater than half the rope diameter. However this results in the hook member projecting from the rope to a disproportionately great extent so that it strikes against different types of guide wheel included in, for example, ski-lifts and similar ropeways, whereby the guid wheels regularly cause inconvenient rattling noises, in addition to being subjected to wear themselves. Brief description of the inventive idea The present invention aims at eliminating the above- mentioned drawbacks of prior art grips and at providing a grip which operates silently when driving a ropeway, for example a ski-lift, without the demands for reliability being neglected. According to the invention, this is achieved in that the abutment consists of two thin bands of metal which in their mounted state are spaced apart an are separately applicable to the rope, each of said bands having two opposite end portions which are conjointly inserted in a slit formed in the body and which are secured in said slit by a locking means, the two bands being positioned each on one side of the clamping jaw which is movable relative to said body, and at the same time completely surrounding the rope. Since the two bands, in contrast to the hook member in prior art grips, which is open in one direction, com¬ pletely surround the rope, they can be made of a compara- tively very thin material, without the capability of the bands of resisting the compressive force of the clamping jaw being lost. For comparison, it may be mentioned that when tested, steel bands having a thickness of 1.0-1.5 mm appeared to yield a strength which is even higher than th corresponding strength of a hook member of about 8 mm thickness. Further description of prior art US patent 660,395 discloses a grip which per se comprises two band-shaped members which are spaced apart and partly surround the rope. In this grip - which has no kind of movable clamping jaw whatsoever - the individual band member is, however, clamped against the rope by means of pair of nuts which are screwed to threaded, specially designed end portions of the band member and are tightene against the actual body of the grip. However, such clamping nuts can readily, even after a short period of use in the difficult surroundings of a ski-lift, inadvert loosen from their tightened state, and this can be disastrous in precisely ski-lifts. In contrast hereto, th inventive grip provides an absolutely reliable connection with the rope for a long time, in that the suitably spring-loaded clamping jaw which is disposed between the two bands, never runs the risk of coming loose from its rope-clamping state. Brief description of the accompanying drawing In the drawing: Fig. 1 is a partly sectional view of the inventive grip; Fig. 2 is a similar view as seen at an angle of 90° relative to the view in Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is an exploded view of the same grip, during mounting on a rope. Detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention The grip illustrated in the drawing comprises in per se known manner a body which in its entirety is designate 1 and in which at least one spring 2 is arranged for pressing a clamping jaw 3 against a rope or wire desig¬ nated 4. The clamping jaw 3 is detachably mounted at the free end of a shaft 5 which is actuated by the spring 2 i such manner that the clamping jaw normally is kept resili ently pressed against the rope. To remove the grip from the rope 4, the shaft can be withdrawn to a rear end posi tion by compression of the spring 2 by means of a screw mechanism 6. Optional components, such as tow rods of a ski-tow or the like, may be connected to the grip in some suitable manner. Acccording to the invention, two thin clips or bands 7,7' are arranged as abutments, which are separately applicable to the rope 4 and subsequently connectible wit the body 1 on each side of the clamping jaw 3, while com¬ pletely surrounding the rope. More precisely, the two bands 7,7' are preformed such that the main portion thereof constitutes a cylindrical configuration of sub¬ stantially the same diameter as the rope 4. The two opposite end portions of each individual band are con¬ jointly inserted in a slit 8 formed in the body and aresecured therein by suitable locking means. In the embodiment illustrated, the locking means consist of bead or projections 9, e.g. metal rods that are welded to the ends of the bands. The beads are accommodated in a cavity 10 which is formed in the body at a distance from the opening of the slit 8. In this embodiment, both the slit and the cavity 10 are closed on one side by means of an outer end wall 11 ensuring that the band cannot slip out of the slit in the direction away from the body. The grip is mounted on the rope 4 in the following manner. The clamping jaw 3 is removed from the space between the two separate legs 12,12' of the the body 1, and the two bands 7,7' are applied to the rope by snap action. Then, first one band is inserted in the space between the legs 12,12' and its ends are moved laterally into one of the two slits, whereupon the other band is positioned in the space between the legs 12,12' and its ends are moved into the other slit. Subsequently, the clamping jaw 3 is reinserted in the space between the leg 12,12', while the spring 2 is still kept in its compresse state by the screw mechanism 6. After that, the screw mechanism 6 is caused to release the spring 2 to act on the clamping jaw 3 which, in turn, presses the rope 4 against the halves of the annular bands 7,7', which are spaced from the body, while the rope is clamped and the grip is fixed in the desired position along the rope. Feasible modifications of the invention Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiment described above and shown in the drawing. Thus instead of the beads 9 as shown, other locking means can be used for securing the individual abutment bands to the body of the grip. As locking means, use can be made of e.g. screws or screws combined with clamping jaws which clamp the ends of the band against parts of the body. Moreover, the illustrated end walls 11 adjacent to the slits may be dispensed with, so as to render it possible to insert the ends of the bands into the slits from outside, instead of from inside. In this case, the ends o the bands can be secured in the slits by other means, suc as locking pins, screws or the like.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A grip comprising a body (1) with an abutment and a suitably spring-loaded clamping jaw (3) which is movable relative to said body and which serves to clamp a rope (4) against said abutment so as to fix said grip in the ' desired position along the rope, c h a r a c t e r i s ¬ e d in that said abutment consists of two thin bands (7,7') of metal which in their mounted state are spaced apart and are separately applicable to the rope, each of said bands having two opposite end portions which are conjointly inserted in a slit (8) formed in said body (1) and which are secured in said slit by a locking means (9), the two bands being positioned each on one side of said clamping jaw (3) which is movable relative to the body (1), and at the same time completely surrounding the rope. 2. The grip as claimed in claim 1, c h a r a c ¬ t e r i s e d in that said slit (8) widens into a cavity (10) provided within said body (1), and that said locking means consists of a projection (9) -at each of the two opposite ends of the individual band (7,7').

Inventors: SJOESTROEM HARRY, SJOESTROEM, HARRY
Applicants: LIFTBYGGARNA AB
Application year: 1989
Main classification: B61B12
IPC codes: B61B12