Improvements in Anti-friction Roller-bearings for Heavy Gates. Swing Bridges, Sliding Doors, Cranes, and other Heavy Structures or Bodies.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Mar., 1891-Accepted, 23rd May, 1891
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Anti-friction Roller-bearings for Heavy Gates.
Swing Bridges, Sliding Doors, Cranes, and other Heavy Structures
or Bodies.
I
TA HALLO of Peiere Road Sale in the County of Chester
Civil Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in wint minor
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
This invention relates to improvements in the construction of roller bearings such
as are applicable to facilitate the movement on its path of a heavy gate swing
bridge, sliding door, crane or other heavy structure or body and consists mainly in
an improved arrangement of a series of small rollers in such a manner (hereinafter
described) that the friction of the rolling load is reduced to a minimum, and so that
the rollers may be easily renewed without disturbing the load carried by them.
The nature of my said invention and the manner in which the same is to be per-
formed or carried into practical effect will be readily understood on reference to the
accompanying drawings and the following description thereof.
Fig. 1. is a plan view of a pair of dock gates. A, being the gates pivoted at B
and moving on a curved metal path C.
In such a case my improved anti-friction roller bearings will be applied to the
underside of the gate in such a position that they will support the weight of the
gates and run upon the curved path C.
Fig. 2. is an elevation of a pair of sliding doors, that on the left hand being shown
(for the sake of illustration) as suspended from above by roller bearings D running
along a rail, and that on the right carried by roller bearings E below running on a
straight path.
In the succeeding figs. I have illustrated various modifications of any invention
but the same characteristic feature which constitutes the principle of my invention
will be found to exist in all of them.
It consists principally of a cast iron box a open at the bottom and provided with
a horizontal midfeather or bearing plate & shorter than the inside of the box, and a
series of rollers e so arranged that as the bearing moves along its path these rollers
will constantly move in an endless path under, over, and round the two ends of the
midfeather, so that an endless series of rollers is constantly being brought under
the midfeather or bearing plate to sustain the rolling load.
Fig. 3 is an elevation of one modification of my improved anti-friction roller
bearings with the side of the box a removed.
Fig. 4 is a section of the same through the centre of the rollers, and
Fig. 5. is a transverse section.
The oblong box a is open at the bottom and is so constructed that one end or
side is capable of being removed or opened. Rather lower than the centre of
cast or fix the horizontal midfeather or bearing plate & which must
have a finished under surface and divides the box a into an upper and lower
compartment.
18
This midfeather is shorter than the inside of the box a leaving an open space
at each end leading from the upper to the lower compartment and rice versa.
Inside the box a I place a series of rollers c nearly close together, and connected
by links d so as to form an endless chain of rollers entirely filling the box a both
above and below the horizontal midfeather and also the open ends which latter
are rounded off so as to cause no obstruction to the rollers e passing freely round
from one side of the partition to the other.
The position of the horizontal midfeather in the box a is such that the lower

page_text: series of rollers c', when in contact with its under side and resting on the path, will
raise the sides and ends of the box a up just clear of the path, at the same time
that the rollers e above the midfeather clear the top of the casting and are quite free.
When the door (or other structure to which the bearing is attached) is moved
the box or boxes a with the superincumbent weight will be supported entirely on
the lower series of rollers e' which roll forward along the path and also along the
underside of the midfeather b, and when reaching the rounded end thereof they
each successively pass upwards into the compartment above the midfeather 6 where
they roll back again, and drop down at the other end to the underside of the mid-
feather where they again come into use for carrying the load.
One end (or both ends) of the box a being removable allows any or all of those
rollers which are above the midfeather to be removed and replaced by new ones
if required without disturbing the loaded ones e, then by moving the load along the
path slightly, these new rollers will be brought into use, and the remaining rollers
can then be removed and replaced by others.
The rollers may be made cylindrical if the load is intended to be moved in a
straight line, but for doors or gates turning on pivots and moving on a curved
path as shown at Fig. 1. the rollers would be made slightly conical, and mounted
in the links with their axes slightly converging towards the centre of the curve as
illustrated by the sectional plan Fig. 6.
Fig. 7. is a vertical section, and Fig. 8 a similar view taken in a transverse
direction of a modification of my improved roller bearing which is applicable in
cases wherein the load can be carried by only one roller (or two) at a time.
In this case the box a and the bearing plate bare circular instead of oblong in
form, the lower part of the latter having a flattened part at along which the lower
roller moves when supporting the weight.
The rollers c (instead of being linked together) are carried by flat rings e
which are provided with slotted holes in which the axes of the rollers e run.
In this case an open frame may be used (instead of a box) to support the bearing
plate or block b.
In the modification shown at Figs. 9 and 10 the connecting links are dispensed
with the rollers being quite free.
Each axle of each roller e is provided with a small guide roller and two curved
paths or guides y are fixed in the box a for guiding the rollers in their passage from
one compartment to the other.
And in the modification shown at Figs. 11 and 12 the guide rollers and curved
paths are dispensed with and the ends of the box a, are curved inside so as to
guide the rollers in the required direction.
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
The improved anti-friction roller bearings for heavy gates, sliding doors swing
bridges, or other heavy structures or bodies formed by the combination of a box,
or frame, open at the bottom, a midfeather or bearing plate or block cast to or
forming part of the same and a series of rollers moving in an endless path substan-
tially in the manner and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth and described and
illustrated by the drawings annexed.
Dated this 16th day of March 1801
GEO. DAVIES & SON,
4, St. Ann's Square, Manchester, Agents for the Applicant.