Patent GB-190700208-A (GB)
Title: Improvements relating to Suspended Rope Railways or Tramways.
Inventor: MEERZA HOZOOR
Filed: 1907-01-03
Granted: 1907-07-11
Abstract: 208. Meerza, H. Jan. 3. R op e railways and tramways; rope grips; points and switches.-The t r a c k rope of a rope railway terminates at one end in a steel rod which is attached to an end support by means of a screw and nut, the other end passing over a pulley and carrying a weight. The end supports may be constructed as described in Specification No. 18,064, A.D. 1905, or at a junction as shown in Fig. 9. The cable a passes over a pulley b<2> in a short rigid r a i l b<1>, and is drawn aside and held by the weight d, or by the screw and nut described above. Two rails b<3>, b<4> are supported by hangers from beams b<5> fixed to the uprights b<6>. These rails are hinged at b<7> so that their outer ends, which are supported by a beam b<51> capable of sliding on the up. rights b<61>, may be brought separately into contiguity with the rail b<1>, and locked by a latch b<8> engaging notches in the rails. Two of these supports may be used to form loop lines. The intermediate s u pports each carry a casting e<1>, Fig. 2, grooved to take the cable and having projections e<2> to engage notches g<3> in the carriage wheels g. The bottom surface has a ridge to fit the groove in the wheels h. To increase the grip of the wheels, clips f are mounted on the cable, and are made of two semicylindrical, externally screw-threaded parts f<1>, Fig. 6, having grooves on their inner surfaces corresponding to the rope strands ; or these surfaces may be merely roughened, or made smooth and provided with suitable packing. The two parts have bevelled ends and are clamped to the cable by two compound nuts, each consisting of two parts f<2>, f<3>. The part f is cylindrical and the part f<3> conical; each has a gap to allow of its beiug slipped over the cable, the gap being filled up afterwards by a projection f<4> on the other part. Pins f are also provided which engage holes f<6> . Between the two nuts is mounted a split collar f<7> free to turn, and having an annular flange f<9> engaging grooves in the nuts f<2> This collar has preferably diametrically-opposite conical pins f<10>. The upper carriage wheels g have grooves curved alternately to accommodate the rope and the clips f, as shown by the lines g<1>, g<2>, Fig. 4. At the deeper parts, the sides are notched, as at g<3>, to engage the conical pins f<10>. The lower wheels are similarly constructed, but may have in addition flanges h<1>. The wheel g may also have an annular packing of wood or leather. The carriage consists of a frame i carrying the wheels g. The wheels h are carried by the longer arms k of two levers pivoted at k<1>, the shorter arms m being connected by links l to the rod k<2>, which may be raised or lowered by the spring treadle k<3>. The upper wheels are propelled from the motor-driven pulley n by the belt n<1>, and the pulleys h are also driven from the pulley n through an intermediate pulley by the belts n<2>, o<1>. This arrangement prevents slackening of the belt when the wheels h are lowered. Additional drive may be obtained by providing a second rope s, against which turns a wheel driven by the belt n<3>, guide pulleys t, operated by a screw-spindle t<1> pressing the rope into contact when required. The carriage may have a forwardly-projecting arm q to turu the pins f<10> into the horizontal position as the carriage approaches. Where no clipsf are used, the modified carriage shown in Figs. 10 and 11 may be employed. This has only one lower wheel h, which is raised or lowered by means of a weighted rod k<2>. The brake consists of two pairs of shoes r, attached to levers r<1> pivoted to the frame, and operated by nuts on a right and left hand screw spindle r<3> turned by worm gear r<4> on the spindle r<5>.