Improvements relating to Suspension Devices, Chiefly Designed for Electric Incandescent Lamps.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Nov., 1892-Accepted, 31st Dec., 1892
COMPLETE
SPECIFICATION.
Improvements relating to Suspension Devices, Chiefly Designed for
Electric Incandescent Lamps.
We, STEPHEN PORTER of Bunker Hill Street, Charlestown, Machinist, and
JOHN ROBERT WHITE of 12 Carson Street, Boston, Stevedore, both in the
County of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, United States of America, 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 has for its object to provide simple and efficient means for
taking up any desired portion of a flexible support used to suspend an article
from a fixed point overhead, so that said article may be suspended at any desired
height, the invention being particularly intended for use in connection with flexible
electric conductors which are used to support pendant incandescent lamps.
means
The invention consists as a whole in a spool or reel, adapted to be engaged with
the flexible support, so that, when rotated in one direction, it will accumulate
portions of the support upon its periphery; and, when rotated in the opposite
direction, will give out portions of the flexible support from its periphery
for automatically rotating said spool, to cause it to wind up or accumulate the
flexible support; and a frictional brake or retarding device which is separable
from the flexible support, and is adapted to act on the same in such manner as
that the weight of the article suspended will prevent the rotation of the spool
when the article is allowed to hang in its natural position and act by gravitation
on the support, the arrangement being such that a movement or change of position
of the retarding device will separate it from the support and thus remove the
friction therefrom and allow the spool to take up or give out any desired portion of
the same, thus adjusting the article suspended by the support.
The invention also consists in certain details and incidental improvements, all of
which we will now proceed to describe and claim.
Of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this Specification :
Figure 1, represents a side elevation of the improved suspension device.
Fig. 2, represents a top view of the same.
Fig. 3, represents a section on line 33 of Fig. 1.
Fig. 4, represents a section on line 44 of Fig. 2.
Fig. 5, represents a side view showing a modification.
Fig. 6, represents a section of line 66 of Fig. 5.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the figs.
In reference to Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4, A represents a spool which is provided with
trunnions A' A' which are journalled in bearings formed in a case B which is
preferably formed to entirely enclose the spool. The case is provided on opposite
sides of the spool with orifices that are surrounded by ears or flanges C' C'.
a
D represents a flexible cord which may be a conducting wire such as is used to
suspend an incandescent electric lamp, and to supply the current thereto. Said
cord is attached to a suitable overhead support, and is engaged at a point
below said support with the spool A preferably by being inserted in
slot A2 formed in said spool, a part of the cord being below, and a part
above the spool. E represents a spiral spring, one end of which is attached
at E to the casing B, and the other end at E to the spool A, or one of
the trunnions thereof. The spring exerts a constant pressure upon the spool, so
that the spool constantly tends to wind the cord upon itself in a manner which will
be readily understood.
It will be seen by reference to Figs. 1 and 4 that the openings are arranged so
that when the device hangs in its natural position, and is subject to the weight of

page_text: :
the lamp or other article suspended from the cord, the portions of the cord near
the spool are deflected and held in loops or bights by their contact with the walls
of the openings CC, said walls constituting brakes or bearings which exert
sufficient friction on the cord to prevent the spool from being rotated by its spring.
Hence when the cord and the device supported thereby hang naturally there is no
rotary motion of the spool. When however, the casing or holder B is turned so
that the cord can pass directly from the spool in both directions without frictional
contact with said bearings the spring is free to assert itself and rotate the spool.
The operator is therefore enabled to readily raise or lower the suspended article
by either permitting the spool to rotate as described, or by forcibly bearing down
upon the casing thus causing the spool to give out the cord against the force of
the spring.
The spool is provided with an orifice A4, and the casing is provided with a
corresponding orifice B', said orifices being adapted to receive a
pin inserted in
them both for the purpose of preventing the rotation of the spool when the cord is
being adjusted upon the spool. The casing B is preferably made in two parts
connected by screws Be Be so that the casing can readily be opened to permit
access from the spool.
The invention is not limited to the construction above described. In Figs. 5
and 6 I show a modification in which the spool A is mounted to rotate loosely
upon a stud B' affixed to a stud B. Another stud B is affixed to the opposite
end of said stud. The spool is provided with cord-receiving slots B0 B. The
spring E is in this case attached at one end to the spool, and the other end to the
stud B7. The brakes or bearings which deflect the cord and exert friction
thereon are in this case composed of bars B12 B12 affixed to arms B13 B13 which
are rigidly attached to the heads B8 B, said bars being arranged to deflect the
cord and produce the same result as the bearings formed on the walls of the
openings CC in the construction shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is: :-
1st. A suspension device, comprising a spool adapted to be engaged with a cord
and provided with a spring exerting a constant pull on the cord in the direction
required to wind the same upon the spool, and a support for the spool provided
with bearings for the cord located at opposite sides of the periphery of the spool
and in close proximity thereto, said bearings being rigidly connected with each
other and arranged to bear upon and form bends or bights in the cord and prevent
the taking-up action of the constantly-pulling spring when the support is in its
normal position, and to let out said bights and permit the taking-up action of the
spring when the support is moved from its normal position, the action of the
spring being opposed only by the friction of the cord on said bearings, so that
when the bearings are displaced the spring is free to act, as set forth.
2nd. In a suspension device the combination of a spool adapted to be engaged
with a cord, a case enclosing said spool and provided with cord receiving
apertures at opposite sides of the spool, and a spring exerting a constant pressure
on the spool in the direction required to wind the cord upon the spool the walls
for said apertures constituting bearings for the cord arranged to form bends or
bights in the cord and prevent the taking-up action of the spring when the
support is in its normal position, as set forth.
Dated this 90th dox of October 1900
STEPHEN PORTER.
JOHN ROBERT WHITE.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicants.