IMPROVEMENTS IN MINERAL HAULAGE BY ENDLESS WIRE OR OTHER ROPES, AND IN THE CONSTRUCTION OR ARRANGEMENT OF MECHANISM CONNECTED THEREWITH
Year: 1878

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by John Howard Scott, and Frederick
Whittaker Scott, and John Gilmour at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents on the 29th June 1878.
JOHN HOWARD SCOTT and FREDERICK WHITTAKER SCOTT, both of the Firm of
Scott Brothers, of Glasgow and Manchester, Engineers and Wire Rope Manu-
facturers, and JOHN GILMOUR, Engineer to the said Firm. "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MINERAL HAULAGE BY ENDLESS WIRE OR OTHER ROPES, AND IN THE CONSTRUCTION
OR ARRANGEMENT OF MECHANISM CONNECTED THEREWITH."
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This Invenion has reference to improvements in the haulage of mineral waggons,
trucks, tubs, or corvies, by endless wire or other ropes or chains in the under-
ground workings of mines, or it may be on the surface at the pit mouth or other
part where such endless haulage is adopted for the transporting of such mineral
vehicles, and has particular reference to new or improved constructions or arrange-
ments of mechanism for effecting the turning of the angles or corners in quick
curves automatically, and in a more safe, sure, and efficient manner than has
heretofore been attained or practised.
The nature and novelty of the Invention consist in a new or improved con-
struction of V or curved fork gripper, for gripping the wire rope on the upper end of
a slightly cranked or eccentric stem, mounted in an upper and lower socket,
preferably in the middle of one end of the hutch or truck, the upper socket being
made with a slot to allow of the oscillation and turning of the upper eccentric end
of the gripper as it approaches and recedes from the grooved guide wheel of the
wire rope round which the hutch has to turn. This wheel is preferably mounted
over the vehicle on the horizontal plane near the bottom of the V grippers, in a
suitable standard at the corner or angle where the wire rope and hutches have to
turn, the edges of the grooved pulley catching the gripper as it comes forward, and
carries it round by the pressure of the rope on the fork, which as soon as it has passed
a little round the curve, allows the rope to fall into the groove of the pulley again,
and as soon as the gripper has cleared the periphery of the pulley at the departing
side or angle, the rope itself automatically turns the eccentric gripper sufficiently to
haul the hutches by the angular friction within the V forked gripper.

page_text: The curved rails below the wheels of the hutch or truck are made so that the
inside wheel works with its rim on the inner rail right round the curve, with its
flange in a groove between the rail and.the deep guiding feather projecting up from
the inner edge of the broad flat segmental part, while the outer wheel runs with its
flange on the outer curved flat rail to raise the hutch, and assist in its safe turning
round the quick curve and small rope pulley. Thus, the rail proper on which the
rims for the outside wheels of the truck run need not be continued round the curve,
but converge down to and up from the broad segmental flat plate on which the
outer wheels of the truck run, and the flanges of these wheels would be made so
much larger in diameter than the rim of the wheels, that the outside of the trucks
or vehicles would travel so much faster than the inside, that they would be easily
and automatically turned by the rope and gripper round a very small curve and
diameter of pulley, and which by these improvements would be effected in so small
a curve or rope groove pulley as with a radius of 3 feet, when the hutches are
drawn near the centre between the rails, this being preferred. But the trucks
might be drawn by their side when desired, in which case the guide groove pulleys
at the turnings of the rope may be smaller in diameter, and not require to be
mounted over the trucks as described. Thus, by these improvements the mineral
trucks are automatically, and safely, and steadily turned round very quick angles or
curves with and by their endless hauling wire or other ropes without disengaging
the rope from the improved automatic adjusting grippers and trucks, the effecting
of which constitutes the purpose and the advantages of these improvements, besides
saving all the time and trouble heretofore required in disengaging and recoupling
the trucks at all turnings of the hauling rope.