IMPROVED UP-AND-DOWN PULLEY DEVICE FOR LIGHTING EQUIPMENT

Abstract: An improved up-and-down pulley (1) is described for lighting apparatus, characterised in that it comprises a braking group constituted by a toothed braking wheel (9) held firmly between threaded connecting means (11) coupled to the central rotation pin (5) of the drum for winding the suspension cable (27) of the up-and-down pulley and a threaded ring lock nut (10) screwed onto said connecting means (11), which together with its lock nut (10) has threading in an opposite direction to that of the rotation of the drum (4) during the descent of the cable (27), maintaining said toothed braking wheel (9) always constricted and under friction, thus self-regulating it during use, compensating for any slack forming with time. The up-and-down pulley also has a considerable number of other improvements which make it more economical, easier to assemble, of longer duration, and of a uniform quality in mass production.

Description: IMPROVED UP-AND-DOWN PULLEY DEVICE FOR LIGHTING EQUIPMENT This invention refers to an improved up-and-down pulley device for lighting equipment and comprises a series of innovative elements with respect to previous devices al ready on the market, improving the functioning and structure as well as its external shape. The number of components has been reduced with the advantage of a simpler functioning with a longer duration and a lower production cost. The most important substantial improvement brought to the up-and-down pulley according to this invention consists of the frictional principle, which is completely new in its appl ication based on an automatic regulation which maintains the friction constant during use, so that this invention can be defined as an automatic up-and-down pulley for l ighting equipment as its natural field of application, without however excluding the possibility of using the up-and-down pulley in other sectors, such as for example to suspend utensils and apparatus along industrial assembly and working 1 i nes . The compactness of the external structure puts the up- and-down pulley according to this invention amongst the smallest and most compact mechanisms currently on the market, together with a very pleasing appearance. The part assembling system, which is extremely simplified, constitutes another characteristic. Groups of components may be preassembled without modifying or impairing the finished product. The preassembly may be manual or mechanized and the resulting finished product is always the same and of strictly uniform quality. The materials used for the components of this invention may all consist of plastics which greatly reduces the production cost and guarantees consistency in the product's characteristics. This improved up-and-down pulley in practice can also take different forms which nonetheless come within the scope of this invention without exceptions. A detailed description of this invention is reported hereinafter purely as a non-limiting example, made with reference to various figures in the appended sheets of illustrative drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a partially sectional view of the invention as a whole in which its various components are represented schematically; Figure 2 shows a sectional and detailed view of the up-and-down pulley showing its various components precisely; Figure 3 shows an exploded sectional view of the up- and-down pulley and its components; Figure 4 shows in detail the various projections of the left external casing, highlighting the innovative characteristics; Figure 5 shows the various projections of the right external casing in detail , highl ighting the innovative characteristics; Figure 6 shows a transverse sectional view and a plan view of the wire rewinding and spring holding drum with the four coupl ing seats in the form of a dove tail provided for allowing assembl ing with the element shown in figure 8 comprising the ratchets and furthermore functioning as a beat to the said drum; Figure 7 shows an enlarged plan view of the lower part of the drum shown in Figure 6 showing the internal system of attachment of the free return spring and the external one for the suspension wire; Figure 8 shows a transverse sectional view and a plan view of the element which functions as the shoulder of the drum and which comprises the ratchets of engagement with the brake and the dove-tail joints necessary for assembly with the drum of Figure 6. Figure 9 shows a plan view of the toothed braking wheel ; Figure 10 shows a schematic plan view of the drum in Figure 6 assembled with the element comprising the ratchets of Figure 7 and the toothed braking wheel of Figure 9; Figures 11-12 show in various views the innovative connection element hanging the up-and-down pulley to the ceiling in the double version with a connection hole or with two holes; Figure 13 shows a schematic view of the connection element of Figures 11-12 attached to the up-and-down pulley; Figure 14 shows a sectional view of the cable covering element which is screwed to the lower threaded part of the half bodies of the up-and-down pulley and above the connecting element 51 which is used to contain and hide the upper and lower end parts of the coiled electric cable; Figure 15 shows a sectional view and a front view of the double threaded female connecting device which, used in substitution of the means in figures 11-12, allows connection of the up-and-down pulley to the ceiling; Figure 16 shows a general view of the up-and-down pulley set up with the external elements of Figures 14 and 15 described above; and Figure 17 shows a partially sectional view of the innovative connecting means which allows contemporaneous coupling and constriction of the coiled electric cable and thus its locking. Now making reference to various figures of the appended drawings, one must above all point out that the two casings of the up-and-down pulley were called left 2 and right 3, referring to their pos tion illustrated in the drawings, but could also be described as front and back or vice versa. This improved up-and-down pulley 1 comprises two casings 2, 3 left and right which when joined enclose the cable winding and spring winding drum 4, the central pin 5 onto which the spring 6 is fixed, element 7 functioning as beat to drum 4 and comprising ratchets 8 of connection to the toothed braking wheel 9, threaded lock nut 10 screwing onto the corresponding connecting means 11 centrally coupled to part 12 of pin 5. In more detail and with reference to Figures 4 and 5, the two casings 2, 3 respectively comprise the two seats 13 built in for the lodging of respective pins 14 which function as a spigot for the coupling of the same and a shoulder for cable guiding rivet 22 for insertion into the appropriate axial seat 16. In the end part 17 opposite pin seats 13, a pin 18 is provided in left casing 2, said pin has a stopping cog 19 coupling with hole 20 in right casing 3 as far as the release counter-seat 21. As shown by the general drawing of Figs. 1 and 2 together, the two casings 2, 3 remain coupled on one side by means of the release pin 18 and on the other by means of the threaded ring nut 15 or smooth ring nut 112, which snaps into place on the undercut 104, and which obviously locks the lower parts of the two half bodies 2, 3 together (Figure 2). The nut 15 has special recesses 114 which constrict and thus lock the coiled cable 110 coming out laterally from the upper part of the up-and-down pulley before its connection with the cable 111, coming from the ceiling. This locking determines the total security of the electric connection during working of the up-and-down pulley and the movement of the coiled cable 24. The ring nut 15, in addition has an external threading 113 which permits the screwing on of the ceiling rose with a threaded coupling. The ring nut 112 has the same characte istics as the preceding one without the threaded part. It is used when the rose utilised does not have a threaded coupling but one applying friction to the cable covering of Fig. 14. Going into more detail on the internal components highlighted in the exploded view of Figure 3, the cable rewinding and spring winding drum 4 is constituted by a cylindrical body 25 with containing flange 26 of the nylon cable 27 inside which it is wound and a flat part 28 on which the following are provided: a) the seats of the female dove tail joint 29; b) the spigot hole 30 for coupling with central pin 5. The flange 26, as shown in Figure 7, has two shaped seats 31 for the automatic anchorage of end holding knot of the suspension cable while in the internal diameter of the body 25, a suitably shaped double seat 33 is provided which permits the automatic coupling of the holding hook 34 of the load of the free return spring 6. The opposite part of the spring 35 however is inserted in notch 36 made in the lower part of central pin 5. This double coupling allows the loading and unloading of the spring both in the preloading setting up stage and during normal use. On the upper part of drum 4, a flat element 7 is coupled by means of male dove tail joints 37, said flat element in addition to functioning as a beat to flange 26 also comprises ratchets 8 which lock into the teeth of the braking wheel 9 and pulls it during the phase of descent while they are disengaged during the return and rewinding of the cable. All this is clearly shown in figures 8, 9, 10 from which one can clearly see that there are four coupling points during the pulling and they a r e suitable to guarantee maximum resistance to the effort even under considerable loads. The unwinding of the suspension cable 27 during the descent is anti-clockwise, whereas the re-winding, in the case of release, is clockwise. In this second case the teeth 8 of the toothed ring nut 7 pass above the brake teeth 9 at an inclined plane and are totally disengaged allowing the re-winding of the suspension cable 27 on the body of drum 4. More precisely this invention is innovative because due to the ant -cl ockwise movement of the descent of the suspension cable 27 to which the illuminating body is attached, the threaded connecting means 11 and the ring nut 10, also threaded and housed with its head 38 in the appropriate seat 39 owing to the clockwise direction of their threading always tend to maintain the toothed wheel 9 compressed and under friction thus self-regulat ng it during use. For this reason the up-and-down pulley will never lose its functionality with the passing of time and with use of the components given that the parts always tend to grasp the toothed braking wheel 9. The efficacy of this invention is not lessened by inverting the direction of descent of the suspension wire and thus the unwinding of the drum to a clockwise direction and the direction of the threading of the parts 10 and 11 to anti-cl ockwise. The efficacy of this invention is not lessened either if washers of any material are inserted in the friction points on the inside of the toothed wheel 9 where this is in contact with the ring nut 10. The threaded ring nut 10 is formed by a head 38 of hexagonal type, though not necessarily, and is housed after the first dynamo etr al 1 y calibrated screwing in the relevant seat 39 in left casing 2. Some further components described hereinbelow emphasize the versatility of the invention and its simple arrangement even more. Figures 11-12-13-15 show the possible ways for suspending the up-and-down pulley from the ceiling according to the demands and regulations required in various countri es . The hook 40-41 is applied by snapping onto the head 42 of the up-and-down pulley inserting the stem 43 into the sl it 44 made in casings 2,3 until the connection of the stem to pin 18. Simultaneously the collar 46 surrounds the head of the up and down pulley and is in the safety position under the stop profile 47. Thus the setting up of these elements is by a snap action for the undercut of the elements 43 and 46 with respect to their reference points. The above mentioned hooks have one or two holes 48 to ensure the connection of the up-and down pulley to any ceiling and with any height of ceiling rose. The tubular element 23 of Fig. 14 is screwed indifferently to the lower threaded part 107 of the half body of the up-and-down pulley and above to the threading 108 of the connecting element 17. In substitution of the elements of Figs 11 and 12, one may use a female connecting means with double threading 49 which equally allows the hooking of the up-and-down pulley to the ceiling. As shown in fact in Fig. 15 and Fig. 16, the threaded part 100 is screwed to the upper threaded part of the external half-bodies of the up-and-down pulley and is blocked by means of the tranverse stop dowel 102. A threaded tube screwed in the threaded part 101 and stopped with dowel 102 allows all the up-and-down pulleys to be attached to a suitable system using a plate and lock nut. The connecting means 51, shown in Fig. 17, allows the simultaneous housing and constriction and thus blocking in the operation of the coiled electric cable 50 by means of the two arms 53-54 and the coupling to the lighting part by means of a threaded stem which is screwed in the threaded cavity 52 and is stopped with the stop dowel 103. Finally an element 105 can be fitted in a suitable external seat 106 of the right half-body 3, a terminal board 109 can be joined to the former for the connection of the electric wire of the coiled cable 110 with the upper one 111 coming from the ceiling. As one can clearly deduce from the preceding description, this improved up-and-down pulley 1 may be considered as the most technically advanced and able to offer the right solution in each of its fields of application. Naturally, in the executive phase, modifications, variations, additions and/or substitutions of elements can be brought to this invention, without modifying its spirit, object or scope of protection, as is also defined in the appended claims.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. Improved up-and-down pulley for lighting equipment and the like, characterized in that it comprises a braking group constituted by a toothed braking wheel held firmly between threaded connecting means coupled to the central 5 rotation pin of the suspension cable winding drum and a threaded ring lock nut screwed onto said connecting means and stably housed in the relevant seat, which together with its lock nut has threading in an opposite direction to that of the rotation of the drum during the descent of the cable, ^n maintaining said toothed braking wheel always constricted and under friction, compensating any slack forming with time and thus sel f-regul ating it during use. 2. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, characterized in that, in addition to the seat for the 5 attachment of the suspension cable, the cable winding drum has one or more internal peripheral seats which allow automatic linking of the external end of the blade spring for rewinding of the cable, simplifying the setting up and preloading and guaranteeing the re-connect on even in the 0 case of accidental disengagement from one of the aforementioned seats. 3. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, character zed in that the drum is formed from two elements which can be coupled by means of dove tailed connecting elements, forming the two containing shoulders for the suspension cable which wind around the central cyl indrical part of the same. 4. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, characterized in that the upper part of the drum thus formed also comprises the ratchets which lock into the teeth of the braking wheel and pull it during the movement in descent while they disengage during the rewinding of the suspension cabl e . 5. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, characterized in that, for their coupl ing, the two casings have one or two pins with free connection on one side and a cyl indrical element on the other side with a pawl suitable for connection by a snap action to the respective female counter-seat. 6. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, characterized in that it has a central half-body on both casings in which the two pins for coupl ing between the two casings are housed and which at the same time function as a shoulder for the cable-guiding rivet. 7. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a particular suspension hook which can be appl ied by a snap action on the head of the up-and-down pulley and is suitable to connect and hook the joining pin from the coupl ing of the two cases with its hooking stem which is inserted through a corresponding slit. 8. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 7, characterized in that said hooks have one or two holes which allow the attachment to be adapted to any ceiling and with any ceiling rose height. 9. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a double threaded female connection element which, when the first is screwed into the threaded part of the upper core of the half-bodies of the up-and-down pulleys and the second to a connection stem, allows connection to systems using suspension with a plate and lock nut. 10. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a hooking element which being suitably shaped, allows the contemporaneous constriction and locking of the coiled electric cable by means of two arms and the coupling of the illuminating part by means of a threaded stem which is screwed into a cavity of said element. 11. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, character zed in that it also comprises an element with two shaped tabs which externally snap onto the right half-body, and which can house a terminal connection board for the electric feeding cables coming from the ceiling and the coiled cable of the up-and-down pulley. 12. Up-and-down pulley according to claim 1, characterized in that it also comprises a ring nut with notches either externally threaded or otherwise, with an undercut of connecting means for the locking of the half- bodies with particular shaping for the locking of the electric cable, and also with an external threading for the attachment of a screw on ceiling rose. 13. Improved up-and-down pulley for lighting equipment, as described previously and as illustrated in the various figures in the appended sheets of illustrative drawings, for the above specified objects.

Inventors: GAETA MARCO, GAETA, MARCO
Applicants: GAETA MARCO, GAETA, MARCO
Application year: 1992
Main classification: F21V21
IPC codes: F21V21