An Improved Anti-friction Guide for Ropes used for Tying Horses in Stables and for other purposes.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Feb., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Mar., 1898-Accepted, 28th May, 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Anti-friction Guide for Ropes used for Tying Horses in
Stables and for other purposes.
I, CHARLES WILLIAM DAWSON, of Thorncliffe Iron Works, near Sheffield, in
the County of York, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
-
This invention relates more especially to guides through which is passed the
rope or cord used for tying horses in stables, the improved guide being so con-
structed that the rope or cord passes through it with very little friction, in whatever
direction or angle the strain upon the rope is exerted, whilst the guide is simple,
cheap, easily fixed and used, and not likely to get out of order.
For the purpose of tying up a horse in a stall, a strap is ordinarily used running
between two rollers fixed below the front edge of the manger or trough, and passing
over a pulley at the back, a weight being suspended to its end, so that the strap
is always kept sufficiently tight. In this method of arrangement, however, if
the horse drags his head sideways, the edges of the strap are liable to jam against
the guide rollers, and it does not work easily but is liable to rubbing and injury.
My present invention has for its object a novel method of making the guide so
that the cord or rope, used instead of a strap, runs through it with little or no
friction, and may be diverted in any direction after leaving the guide.
I take a frame or socket, preferably of metal, which I screw or otherwise fix
upon the outer side of the front roll of the manger, a circular opening of consider-
ably larger diameter than the cord or rope to be used being made in the front of
the bracket, and a corresponding hole being made through the back of the roll on
the manger. The hole in the bracket is countersunk and curved outward at its
edges, and the edges of the other hole are rounded to prevent injurious rubbing of
the rope which passes through it. The inner face of the socket is flat, and has an
annular groove or recess round it concentric with the hole, and a separate plate or
cover is screwed against this inner face, having a central hole corresponding with
that in the socket, and having also an annular groove or recess round it, the shape
of the two grooves or recesses being such that when the plate or cover is screwed
to the socket, the recesses form an annular channel circular in cross section, but
open for somewhat less than half its circumference on the inner side. The
inner part of the socket, in which the channel for the balls is formed, and which
has the cover screwed to it, passes through an opening of sufficient size in the
outer side of the roll on the manger. In the channel formed as described I insert
before the plate
or cover is screwed on-a sufficient number of balls of metal,
glass, porcelain, or other sufficiently hard and durable material, but preferably of
glass, which fit loosely so that they can turn freely in the channel whilst nearly
but not quite touching each other, so that together they form a ring of balls each
turning perfectly freely, and leaving a central space between them through which
the cord or rope passes.
The balls form, therefore, a guide for the flexible cord or rope, which passes

page_text: between them with little friction as the balls are free to turn, whilst the shape of
the outer central hole in the socket allows the rope to be diverted in any direction
at a wide angle, without preventing its easy and frictionless passage through the
guide. The outer end is attached to the horse's head, and the inner end passing
back and over a pulley carries a sufficient weight, as in the ordinary arrangement
first described. The details of construction may be varied more or less as may be
found desirable.
The improved anti-friction rope guide may be applied to many other purposes as
well as to tying horses in stables. For instance, it may be applied to blocks to or
from which ropes have to be conducted for the purpose of raising weights, or for
other purposes on board ships.
1000
An Improved Anti-friction Guide for Ropes used for Tying Horses in
Stables and for other purposes.
I, CHARLES WILLIAM DAWSON, of Thorncliffe Iron Works, near Sheffield, in
the County of York, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement, and accompanying drawing, that
is to say:-
My invention relates more especially to guides through which is passed a rope or
cord used for tying horses in stables, the improved guide being so constructed
that the rope or cord passes through it with very little friction, in whatever
direction or angle the strain upon the rope is exerted, whilst the guide is simple,
cheap, easily fixed and used, and not likely to get out of order.
For the purpose of tying up a horse in a stall, a strap is ordinarily used running
between two rollers fixed below the front edge of the manger or trough, and passing
over a pulley at the back, a weight being suspended to its end, so that the strap
is always kept sufficiently tight. In this method of arrangement, however, if the
horse drags his head sideways, the edges of the strap are liable to jam against the
guide rollers, and it does not work easily but is liable to rubbing and injury.
My present invention has for its object a novel method of making the guide so
that the cord or rope, which is used instead of a strap, runs through it with little
or no friction, and may be diverted in any direction after leaving the guide.
The accompanying drawing is in illustration of my invention.
Figure 1 is a front view of the improved guide;
Figure 2 is a side view, showing in section the front of the manger to which it
is attached;
Figure 3 is a similar view, but showing the guide in section;
Figure 4 is a back view of the guide; and Figure 5 shows the arrangement of
the entire apparatus, upon a smaller scale.
In order to put my invention in operation, I take a frame or socket a, prefer-
ably of metal, which I screw by the flange o or otherwise fix upon the outer side
of the front roll 6 of the manger, a circular opening c of considerably larger
diameter than the cord or rope d to be used, being made in the front of the frame
or socket a, and a corresponding hole e being made through the back of the roll on
the manger. The hole through the socket is countersunk and curved outward at
its edges, and the edges of the other hole e are also rounded to prevent injurious

page_text: rubbing of the rope which passes through it. The inner face of the socket a is
flat, and has an annular groove or recess f round it concentric with the hole C, and
a separate plate or cover g is screwed against this inner face, having a central hole h
corresponding with that in the socket, and having also an annular groove or
recess i round it, the shape of the two grooves or recesses f and i being such that
when the plate or cover g is screwed to the socket, the recesses form an annular
channel circular in cross section, but open for somewhat less than half its circum-
ference on the inner side. The inner part of the socket, in which the channel
described (which receives antifriction balls) is formed, and which has the cover g
screwed to it, passes through an opening of sufficient size in the outer side of the
roll on the manger. In the channel formed as described I insert-before the
plate or cover is screwed on-a sufficient number of balls & of metal, glass, porce-
lain, or other sufficiently hard and durable material, but preferably of glass, which
fit loosely so that they can turn freely in the channel whilst nearly but not quite
touching each other, and together they form a ring of balls each turning perfectly
freely, and leaving a central space between them through which the cord or rope d
passes.
The balls form, therefore, a guide for the flexible cord or rope d, which passes
between them with little friction as the balls are free to turn, whilst the shape of
the outer central hole c in the socket allows the rope to be diverted in any direction
at a wide angle, without preventing its easy and frictionless passage though the
guide. The outer end of the cord or rope is attached at to the horse's head, and
the inner end passing back and over a pulley m carries a sufficient weight n, as
in the ordinary arrangement first mentioned. The details of construction, the
proportion of the parts, the materials used, and the number and size of the balls
used, may be varied more or less as may be found desirable.
The bracket containing the guide may, evidently, be attached to flat surfaces
instead of to the curved roll, and it may be arranged in any desired position.
The improved anti-friction rope guide may be applied to many other purposes
as well as to tying horses in stables. For instance, it may be applied to blocks
to or from which ropes have to be conducted for the purpose of raising weights,
or for other purposes, on board ships, or in other places.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
The improved anti-friction guide, consisting of a socket containing an annular
recess f, a separate plate or cover g fixed upon the socket and containing a similar
annular recess i, anti-friction balls k, fitting freely in the annular recesses f and i
and central openings c and h rounded at their edges, in the socket and the cover y
respectively substantially as and for the purposes described, and illustrated.
EDWARDS & Co.,
65 and 66, Chancery Lane, London, Agents for the Applicant.