Lowering Goods or other Bodies.
Year: 1886

page_text: Lowering Goods or other Bodies.
I AUGUSTE BONNET, Civil Engineer, of Quai de la Tournelle Paris in the Republic
of France do hereby declare the nature of my invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN
SAFETY APPARATUS FOR USE IN RAISING OR LOWERING GOODS OR OTHER BODIES
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :—
The present invention has for its object an improved arrangement adapted to
permit of the instantaneous stoppage and automatic control of the descent of a load
being attained in case of breakage of the suspending means in various kinds of.
apparatus for raising or lowering loads such as goods in packages of various kinds,
industrial products, for minerals, et cetera, by means of linked bands, or chains.
(called in France "chaines de Galle"), or like jointed chains and cables of various
kinds.
The present system of construction is as well adapted for the raising as for
lowering bodies and it is alike automatic in that it operates by the action of the
weight itself and otherwise without the aid of extra mechanism.
Whatever be the particular mode of construction adopted or the materials
employed the principle embodied is as follows. The means of suspension of the
load (chain or cable) passes freely but with very slight play or clearance in the
interior channel which forms a sort of rigid tube the section of which is dependent
upon the section of that connecting means itself.
This state of things lasts so long as the raising or lowering apparatus is in
normal or proper working order but as soon as the chain or cable breaks at any
point of its length the portion of the chain or cable below the point of fracture
bends or takes a series of cross positions upon itself undulating and its parts
coming in contact with or engaging and wedging upon the inner walls or sides of
the rigid tube.
This rigid tube being fixed or resting upon a fixed point at the lower part at the
outlet for the chain the whole constitutes a kind of column forming a support for
the receptacle containing the load or package and hung to the chain.
The descent of the receptacle and of its contents thereby becomes impossible and
hus without employment of springs or other such auxiliary means.

page_text: The accompanying drawing represents an example of the application of the
invention wherein a form of linked chain (chaine de Galle) is supposed to be
employed and the receptacles are intended or supposed to be conveniently attached
at suitable points of this chain in order to be raised or lowered thereby.
In the drawing Figure 1 is a vertical section indicating the linked connection
centrally to which is to be made suitable attachments bearing the load and a portion
of one of the neighbouring links.
Figure 2 is a horizontal section thereof-Figure 3 is a vertical section of the
same shewing a portion of the entire device forming the invention before the
fracture has taken place-Figure 4 is a vertical section of the same portion
supposed to represent the position of things after the fracture has occurred.
In the example shown in this drawing the chain is made up of links a and the
receptacles which hold the load are hung or jointed by the axes b provided with
guiding rollers c at the centre of certain of the links at suitable intervals.
The tube in which the chain thus takes its arrangement is formed by the
U sectioned iron parts d, and by two flat iron plates e rivetted or connected to the
inside of the irons of U section. So long as the apparatus works regularly the chain
passes freely in its tube as shewn in Figure 3, but if a fracture occurs at any point f
for instance the links immediately take the position indicated in Figure 4 and
pack or wedge themselves against the tube walls, under these circumstances the
suspending means sinks down on itself under the action of the weight alone
becomes rigid and itself supports, without the addition of any other means. or
mechanism, the loads which are hung to it and which it thus prevents from
falling.
It is easy to see that the same effect will be produced with chains of very varied
constructions with cables et cetera, and that whatever otherwise the arrangements
as a whole of the raising apparatus and the method of attachment of the loads or
packages in the case of an endless chain, the two parts becoming displaced in the
tubes the loads will be supported and their descent prevented or checked whichever
of the two parts it may be breaks..
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
•
1. In apparatus for lowering or raising articles, the arrangement or combination
of parts adapted to render rigid below the point of fracture the means of
suspension such as a chain cable or other suitable connection so as to support at
the point of attachment the loads, and that automatically under the action of the
weight itself and without the aid of any other accessory mechanism substantially
as set forth.
2. The combination above described of a linked connection or chain and a
containing channel or tube in which it is capable of packing or fixing itself as and
for the purpose herein set forth.