An Improvement in the Manufacture of Wire Ropes, Bands, or Cables.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Feb., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 23rd Oct., 1889-Accepted, 21st Dec., 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improvement in the Manufacture of Wire Ropes, Bands, or
Cables.
I EDWARD ERSKINE BIRD of 28 Honeywell Road, Wandsworth Common in the
County of Surrey, Gentleman do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
Hitherto Wire ropes, bands, or cables, have been made with the Main Cores
either cylindrical, or as nearly cylindrical as possible, and the finished rope, band,
or Cable has also been either cylindrical, or as nearly so as is possible consistent
with its being made up of a number of separate wiros, strands or ropes.
I make the main cores of wire ropes, bands or Cables, in sectional shape as nearly
as possible oblong or elliptical, (more or less flattened) consistent with these cores
being made of wires, strands or ropes.
I then lay or twist the wires, strands or ropes to form the finished rope, band,
or Cable, round this oblong or elliptical core; to the shape of which they conform,
and thus produce a rope, band or cable of a section as nearly as possible oblong or
elliptical (more or less flattened), consistent with the rope band or cable being made
of wires, strands or ropes laid or twisted round a core.
Dated this 10th day of February 1880
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION (AMENDED).
An Improvement in the Manufacture of Wire Ropes, Bands, or
Cables.
I EDWARD ERSKINE BIRD of 28 Honeywell Road, Wandsworth (Common in the
County of Surrey, Gentleman 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 :-
Hitherto wire ropes, bands or cables have usually been made with the main cores
either cylindrical, or as nearly cylindrical as possible, and the finished rope, band, or
cable has also usually been either cylindrical, or as nearly so as is possible consistent
with its being made up of a number of separate wires, strands or ropes.
To carry out my invention I first take two or more wires or strands composed of a
number of wires laid or twisted together and place them side by side parallel to one
another.
I then lay or twist a number of wires or strands of hemp or jute or other like
material round these two or more wires or strands, in a spiral direction, thus binding
the inside wires or strands together and forming a core of elliptical or oblong shape
more or less flattened.
Figures 1 to 4 shew the above described construction of core. Figure 1 shews
a plan & Figure 2 a cross section of a core made of two single wires a. a. laid
side by side and wound round with wire hemp or other material b thus forming
an elliptical or approximately elliptical core. Figure 3 shews a plan & Figure 4 &

page_text: cross section of a coro made of two strands of wires a 1 a 1 wound round with
wire or hemp b.
Sometimes I cover the inside wires or strands with one layer of wire, hemp or
Jute or other like material, and at others I put two layers, or one layer of homp
or Juta or other like material and one layer of wires according to the shape &
size of core I requice.
As a general rule I prefer to use round wires to make these cores, but I can use
wires of other sectional shapes.
I then draw this elliptical or oblong core through a tube, into which it fits tightly,
so made that the major diameter of the tube is in one plane throughout its entire
length; or I pass the elliptical or oblong core through a fixed ring or collar the
interior of which is of the same section as the core which has to pass through it, and
into which ring or collar the core just fits; and a few inches in front of this fixed ring
or collar I mount a pair of metal rollers, one above the other, and with their nxes
parallel to the major diameter of the ring or collar; these rollers are capable of
adjustment so that they squeeze the elliptical core & tend to flatton it as it passes
between them.
The object of passing the core through the tube, or through the ring or collar &
between the rollers, is to correct & remove any tendency, that may have arisen in
the manufacture of it, for the major diameter of the coro to assume at different
places through its length various positions at angles to one another, and to ensure
that the major diameter of the core shall be in one plane throughout its entire
length.
I then lay or twist the ropes, strands or wires to form the finished rope, band, or
cable round the elliptical or oblong core, to the shape of which they conform, thus
producing a rope band or cable of an elliptical or oblong shape (more or less
Hattened), or as nearly so as is consistent with its being made of a number of
wires, strands, or ropes laid or twisted round a core.
When strands of wire are used for making the cores these may be composed of any
number of wires from three upwards & the wires composing them may be twisted
in either direction or the one in one direction & the other in the reverse
direction as may be most convenient at the moment, irrespective of the direction in
which it is intended to lay or twist the finished rope.
The wires either internal or covering, or the wires of which the strands are
composed may be of sections other than round if convenient & the covering wires or
strands may sometimes be laid or twisted round the core in successive layers one above
the other & the successive layers may be twisted in the same or reverse directions as
may be found desirable for the particular rope then being made. The number of
covering wires, strands or ropes & the angle at which they are laid or twisted round
the core or round the partly finished rope may be varied so that the covering wires
strands or ropes entirely cover the core or the partly finished rope round which they
are twisted or laid. Figuro 5 shows a cross section of such a rope, cable or band
formed by twisting round a core A produced as above described, several
consecutive layers of wires B. Figure 6 shows a cross section of a rope cable
or band formed by twisting round the core A strands of wire B1 B1.
1 sometimes make the rope with elliptical or flattened strands twisted round an
elliptical core but in this event d place tho strands so that their major diameter & tho
major diameter of the core as also of the finished rope all lie in parallel planes &
this parallel position of the planes is maintained throughout the whole length of the
горе.
Figure 7 shows a section of a rope composed of an elliptical core A round which are
laid elliptical strands B2 B2 having their major diameters all parallel to that of the core
of elliptical or fintioned section.
The objects.of my invention are, to produce a wire rope, the component parts of
which are laid or twisted together without any sowing or connecting wires and which
shall. when bent across the plane of its major diameter, havo a greater amount of
flexibility in comparison with its strength than if the rope was circular in section, and

page_text: from the fact that the free rope will naturally bend in the direction of greatest
flexibility, to obviate the tendency to revolve on its axis which is exhibited by an
ordinary round rope.
I am aware that wire strands ropes and bands have been made of an elliptical
or flattened section as in Latch of Batchelor's patent No. 12,285 of 1888, but the
novelty in my invention consists in the binding together of the wires or strands of wires
to make the core, and the process described to ensure the major diameter of the core and
of the rope being in one and the same plane throughout its entire length.
The binding wires, where wires are used, would be twisted or laid round the wires to
form the cores at an angle fur more nearly parallel with the diameter of the rope than
the angle at which the strands composing the rope, or the rope itself, are laid.
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 :-
:-
1. The manufacture of a core for a wire rope, band, or cable, of an elliptical or
oblong shape, (more or less flattened), having its major diameter in the same plane
throughout its entire length, substantially as described.
2. The drawing of the core through a tube, or through a collar & between a
pair of rollers, substantially as described, to ensure its major diameter being in
the same plane throughout its entire length.
3. The manufacture of the wire rope band or cable of an elliptical or oblong
shape, (more or less flattened) or as nearly as possible elliptical or oblong as is
consistent with the rope, band or cable being made of a number of wires, strands
of wires, or ropes laid or twisted round a core, and having its major diameter in one
and the same plane throughout its entire length, substantially as described.
Dated this 23rd day of October 1889.
EDWARD E. BIRD.