Improvements in Articulated Link Connections applicable to Doors, Shutters, Crane Jibs, or other Objects for Facilitating the Easy Motion thereof.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Oct., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 19th July, 1892-Accepted, 20th Aug., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Articulated Link Connections applicable to Doors,
Shutters, Crane Jibs, or other Objects for Facilitating the Easy
Motion thereof.
I, GUSTAVE EMILE BERTHIER, of 16, Rue Drouot, Paris, France, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to an improved construction of articulated link connections
which allow of the ready lateral displacement of an object in parallel or angular
positions, in such manner that, in case of parallel movement, there is no longi-
tudinal shifting of the object in the direction at right angles to its parallel motion.
For this purpose according to one arrangement, two objects, of which one is
fixed while the other is required to move parallel to or from the first one, (or both
may be moveable to or from each other) have pivotted to them rods or links in
such manner, that the one rod has its one end pivotted to the one object while its
other end can slide, with or without a roller, in a slot or groove on the other object,
which in its turn has one end of a second rod pivotted to it, which crosses the
first rod and slides with its other end in a slot or groove of the first object.
Thus assuming the objects to be doors or shutters, the one can be moved to or
from the other in parallel positions or they can both be moved to or from each
other, or two moveable doors can be connected by two sets of such rods to two
fixed jambs, so that the doors can be slid in parallel positions to and from each
other, thereby closing or opening the passage between them.
According to another arrangement when the said rods are not of great length
the middle of each rod is connected by a pivotted link to the object with which
its one end has a sliding connection, so that when the objects are moved so far
apart that the rods form a considerable angle with the slots, the sliding, end is
assisted in its sliding motion by the action of the said link; the middle pivots of
the links may be connected together by a vertical rod. Or there may be one pair
of rods having their ends connected as first described, and pivotted at the middle
to the middle of a vertical rod the ends of which are connected by toggle links to
the two objects.
When two sliding doors or shutters are arranged to move to and from each
other with either of the above guiding connections, the sliding backward or forward
of the one door is made to produce the simultaneous movement of the other door,
by connecting them at top respectively to opposite sides of a horizontal endless
cord or chain passing round pullies.
Or the opening and closing of the doors or shutters may be effected by exerting
a pull at the one or the other side of the said cord, which may either be endless, or
may have two free ends with pulls for operating it.
According to another application of the above described pivotted links or rods,
I make one rod constitute the jib of a crane, to the centre of which jib is pivotted
one end of a rod the other end of which is pivotted to the top of the crane post.
The lower end of the jib carries a roller or wheel which bears against a vertical
groove on the crane post. The lower end of the jib is connected to a part of an
endless cord or chain extending from the upper to the lower end of the crane post,
where it passes over rollers or pitch wheels. The one or other of the said pullies
or pitch wheels being rotated in one direction or the other by any suitable gear,
the endless cord or chain, in travelling, will cause the lower end of the jib to
travel either upward or downward along the post, so that by the before described
articulated connection of the middle of the jib to the top of the crane post, its free

page_text: end will, in the one case, be made to project farther outward or, in the other case,
to move inward towards the post.
Dated thi 11
1001
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Articulated Link Connections_applicable to Doors,
Shutters, Crane Jibs, or other Objects for Facilitating the Easy
Motion thereof.
I, GUSTAVE EMILE BERTHIER of 16 Rue Drouot, Paris, France, 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:-
This invention relates to an improved construction of articulated link connections
which allow of the ready lateral displacement of an object in parallel or angular
positions, in such manner that, in case of parallel movement, there is no longitudinal
shifting of the object in the direction at right angles to its parallel motion.
For this purpose according to one arrangement two objects, of which one is fixed
while the other is required to move parallel to or from the first one, (or both may
be moveable to or from each other) have pivotted to them rods or links in such
manner, that the one rod has its one end pivotted to the one object while its other
end can slide, with or without a roller, in a slot or groove on the other object,
which in its turn has one end of a second rod pivotted to it, which crosses the first
rod and slides with its other end in a slot or groove of the first object.
Thus assuming the objects to be doors or shutters, the one can be moved to or
from the other in parallel positions or they can both be moved to or from each
other or two moveable doors can be connected by two sets of such rods to two
fixed jambs, so that the doors can be slid in parallel positions to and from each
other, thereby closing or opening the passage between them.
According to another application of the above described pivotted links or rods,
I make one rod constitute the jib of a crane, to the centre of which jib is pivotted
one end of a rod the other end of which is pivotted to the top of the crane post.
The lower end of the jib carries a roller or wheel which bears against a vertical
groove on the crane post.
In order that my said invention may be readily understood, I have shewn on
the accompanying drawings by way of example, several applications thereof to
doors and to cranes.
Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 shew the application of the articulated link connections to
the working of sliding doors; Fig. 5 shews a separate view to a larger scale of the
details of the simplest form of construction. Figs. 6 to 11 shew the application
of the invention to cranes.
In Figs. 1 and 5, A represents the door provided on the outer edge with a metal
plate a, to which are fixed by screws or otherwise, single or double eyes a¹ a¹¹, and
the slotted guide g; to the eye a¹ is fixed one end of a link B formed of a single
or double bar, by preference made of a form of equal strength throughout as
shewn, the other end being provided with a roller b which runs in the slotted
guide 9 similar to the guide 9, fixed on a metal plate c which is secured to the jamb
of the door housing. In the double eye a¹ is pivotted one end d of a single
link D, the other end d of which is connected to the link B¹ between the two
plates forming the same; this link is similar to B and carries at one end a roller b
similar to the roller b of B and running in the slotted guide g; at the other end B¹
is pivotted to a single eye ¹ fixed to the metal plate c, which also carries a
double eye c¹ similar to a", to which is pivotted the one end e of a link E similar
to the link D, the other end e¹ of which is pivotted to a pin between the two plates
of the link B.

page_text: The door A is consequently connected to the jamb on the one hand at c¹ by the
link E connected to the door by means of the link B, and on the other hand at cll
by the link B' to which is fixed the link D connected to the door at all; the
pivotted connections c¹ a¹, c" a" always remain respectively at the same height,
and the points e' d' which are exactly at the middle of the links B B' alone move
downwards when the door is being moved towards the jamb, as shewn by the dotted
lines Fig. 5.
In order to render the motion of the rollers in their guides g g smooth, it
is advisable to arrange a system of lubrication, either by means of an oil cap as
at upper part of 9, or by forming a receptacle for oil at the bottom of the guide
as at lower part of g¹.
For regulating the position of the door as to height in the case of settlement
of the frame work, I provide a regulating device whereby the eye all can be raised
at will, and consequently also the link D, which device may consist, as shewn on
the drawing, of a screw a carried by a fixed lug on the door, and by means of
which the plate of the eye a", and consequently the link D, can be raised.
The door is mounted in the same manner in Figs. 1 and 5, the position of the
slotted guides being simply reversed and the pivots d¹ and e' being connected by a
rod Z in Fig. 1.
Fig. 2 shews a front elevation of the application of the system of pivotted links
to a large sliding door with two wings A B, each of which folds in two parts a a'.
Only the door A is shewn on the drawing, the door B and its mechanism being
precisely the same as A. In this case, each wing A, B being of considerable
weight, the mechanism supporting the same is doubled, there being two sets of
pivotted cross links, C, D, placed parallel to each other, the liuks C having their
two fixed pivots c at the top, and their slotted guides c' at bottom, while the
links D have the corresponding parts d d' in reversed positions.
This construction of doors with folding wings enables them to be made with a
much smaller travel of the mechanism for opening and closing than would be the
case without such arrangement.
Figs. 3 and 4 shew an elevation and sectional plan of a construction of door
with a single wing of large size, more particularly applicable in cases where for
certain reasons, the door requires to be placed at the end of a wall or partition,
and where for this reason it is not possible to arrange it to open partly to the left
and partly to the right.
The door G requires in this case to be supported by two distinct sets of links gg',
one on each side of the door, having their points of support 1, 2, on the partition
or frame-work into which the door slides.
In this case the system of links is caused, on sliding the door in and out, to move
from the one side of the vertical axis X Y to the other side thereof the lower
ends of the links being made to work in the guide slots as shewn. The action
will be readily understood on reference to the drawings.
Figs. 6 to 11 shew, as already stated, the application of the invention to the
working of the jib of a crane.
The characteristic feature of this application consists in so connecting the jib to
the crane post by a pivotted link connected to its middle and by a vertically
sliding connection at its lower end, that the jib is always supported in a state of
equilibrium by its link, while the angle which it forms with the crane post is
regulated by moving the lower end up or down, such lower end being provided with
a roller which rolls upon a guide rail on the post. From this construction it
follows that the upper end of the jib always remains at the same level into whatever
angular position it may be moved.
Fig. 6 shews a side elevation of one arrangement, Fig: 7 shews a separate side
view of the pivotted crane post; Fig. 8 shews a separate front view of the jib,
and Fig. 9 shews a cross section of the crane post and guide rail on line a-
Fig. 6.
The crane consists of a post B swivelling at its lower end on a step bearing,

page_text: while its upper end is supported by a collar bearing C fixed to a wall or other
support. The post is made of sufficient transverse strength, either by an I iron
bearer as shewn at D or by trussing or otherwise, to withstand the variable
lateral thrusts put upon it by the jib G. On the upper end of the post E is
fitted a strap between the ends of which is pivotted the upper end of a link F,
the lower end of which is pivotted to the middle of the jib G, which is trussed
either by a tie rod g or otherwise for affording it the requisite strength against
transverse strains, and which is here shewn consisting of two parallel bars suitably
connected together. The lower end of the jib is provided with a roller H which
runs in a guide rail h fixed on the side of the post B, which rail may either be
of a trough shape as shewn, or of other form.
The jib can be maintained in perfect equilibrium by connecting it by means of
an endless chain A to a counter weight L, the chain being attached to the jib at g².
By means of this arrangement the up and down motion of the roller H is rendered
perfectly smooth and easy, so that the angle of the jib can be readily altered to
suit the requirements, the upper end M of the jib being always maintained at the
same height.
To the upper end M is connected the hauling tackle of the crane, the chains or
ropes of which can either be worked by hand or by suitable gear on the crane post,
which may also actuate the chain A for raising or lowering the jib G.
Figs. 10 and 11 shew a side view and front view of a modified construction of
crane which renders the system applicable to cranes of great power, and affords
facilities for causing the jib to overhang either the one or the other side of the
crane post.
In Fig. 10 the pit of the crane post is shewn in section as is also the care in
Fig. 11, which shews the jib raised to the vertical position. The post is formed of
two vertical side cheeks 1, 2, suitably connected together at their upper and lower
ends, and fixed at bottom to a base provided with rollers 4 whereby it can be turned
round the central vertical axis. The side cheeks have downward extensions 5
fixed thereto passing down to the bottom of the pit where they are connected
together by a cross piece 6, the middle of which is provided with a pivot 7
turning in a step bearing in the bottom of the pit 4¹. The downward extensions 5
are formed with vertical guide slots in which run the rollers 8 carried by the
lower end of the jib 9. The jib is formed of two parallel cheeks suitably con-
nected together at 10 and trussed as before, and is supported at its middle by a
double link or arm 11 pivotted at 10¹ to an axis which connects the upper parts of
the side cheeks 1, 2. The arm 11 is extended at 12, beyond the pivot, so as to
form a counterweight and at the same time to carry a toothed sector 13 gearing
with a pinion 14 mounted on an axis 15 carried by upward extensions of the
cheeks 1, 2, the sector and pinion serving, as will be presently explained, for effecting
the motion of the jib 9.
On one side of the framing of the crane is arranged a platform 16 for working
two cranks of which one, 17, actuates by means of a chain and pullies 18, 18 the
pinion 14 of the toothed sector 13, while the crank 19 serves to actuate by means
of a chain and pullies 20, 20, the hauling tackle 21 at the end of the jib.
The apparatus acts as follows.
Assuming that a load is to be raised on the left hand side of the crane at Fig. 10
and is to be moved over and deposited on the right hand side, the crank 17 is
rotated so as to actuate the toothed sector 13 and thus bring the jib 9 from a
vertical position to the requisite angular position on the left hand side, such as that
shewn, overhanging the load, to which the hauling tackle is then attached; the
crank 19 is then rotated so as to haul upon the chain passing over the guide
pulley 20 to the hauling tackle 21, and thus to raise the load sufficiently off the
ground. The jib is then again raised by the crank 17 until it is situated, together
with the load suspended from it, vertically between the cheeks 1, 2, of the crane ;
on continuing the motion of the crank 17, the jib together with its load is caused to
pass over to the right hand side of the cheeks 1, 2, to the required angle for bringing

page_text: the load over the place where it is to be deposited, and it is then lowered by
turning the crank 19.
If on the other hand, the load is too bulky to pass through between the
cheeks 1, 2, then the jib 9 is only raised to a position as near to the cheeks
as the load will permit, and the entire crane is then rotated on the rollers 4, 4,
round the pivot 7, until the jib is brought to the other side.
It will be readily understood that the crane may be variously modified in con-
struction in applying my said invention thereto, and instead of being worked by
hand, it can be operated by a steam or other motive power engine, which may be
mounted on the platform, and thus impart thereto increased stability.
The distance apart of the cheeks 1, 2, may of course be varied to suit the
description of loads to be raised and lowered by the crane.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The herein described articulated link-connections for doors, shutters, cranes
and the like, wherein the moving part is connected to a fixed part by means of a
system of pivotted links, so arranged with sliding connections at one end that the
other attachment thereof always travels in the same horizontal line, suitable
means being provided for lubricating the sliding connections substantially as set
forth.
2. The construction of articulated link connections for sliding doors, shutters
arranged and operating substantially as described with reference to Figs. 1 to 5 of
the drawings.
3. An improved construction of cranes with articulated link connections, wherein,
a link pivotted to the upper end of the crane post has its other end pivotted to the
middle of the jib, whose lower end can slide vertically in guides on the post, so
that the angle of the jib is adjusted by raising or lowering its lower end, the power
for this purpose being applied either to such lower end, or to the link connecting it
to the upper end of the post, substantially as described.
4. The construction of articulated link connections for cranes arranged and
operating substantially as described with reference to Figures 6 to 9 of the
drawings.
5. The construction of articulated link connections for cranes arranged and
operating substantially as described with reference to Figs. 10 and 11 of the
drawings.
Dated this 19th day of July 1892.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.