Improvements in Safety Apparatus for Hoists or Lifts.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Feb., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 30th Oct., 1896-Accepted, 2nd Jan., 1897
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Safety Apparatus for Hoists or Lifts.
I, JOHN BOTTERILL, of Washington Street, Kirkstall Road, Leeds, in the
County of York, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
This invention relates to apparatus for automatically operating the safety-gates
and the like (hereinafter included under the term gates) of hoists and lifts.
According thereto in connection with each gate there is provided a lever mounted
to oscillate on a fixed stud and which carries two pullies one of which is arranged to
be operated by a wave shaped cam carried by the cage or platform of the hoist or
lift and the other of which is arranged to bear against a rope or chain fixed at one
end and connected with the gate to be operated. The arrangement is such that
as the cam approaches the lever the rope or chain pulley thereon or connected
therewith will act against the rope or chain so as to give the requisite movement,
it may be through multiplying mechanism to automatically open the gate and
hold the same open whilst the cage or platform is opposite a gateway, and on the
cage or platform commencing to move in either direction, the lever will be
permitted to move in the opposite direction and allow the gate to automatically
close. The lever may be of different orders and of various shapes, that is to say,
straight, curved or bell-cranked.
In the case of a one-armed lever, the two pulleys may be mounted to rotate on
the free end of the lever, whilst in the case of a two-armed lever they are similarly
mounted on the two ends thereof.
The cam instead of acting upon the lever through an antifriction pulley, might
act directly thereon. Also, the rope or chain pulley instead of being carried by
the lever might be journalled in a carrier and mounted to be operated by the
lever.
Dated this Ind day of th
1000
Improvements in Safety Apparatus for Hoists or Lifts.
I, JOHN BOTTERILL, of Washington Street, Kirkstall Road, Leeds, in the
County of York, Engineer, 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:-
The object of this invention is to provide improved automatic means for quickly
operating the safety-gates and the like (hereinafter included under the term gates)

page_text: arranged on the various floors with which the well of a hoist or lift communicates,
for the purpose of preventing passengers from getting on or off the cage whilst it
is in motion and also to prevent anyone from falling into the well when the cage is
not opposite a landing place or floor.
According thereto in connection with each gate there is provided a lever which
is mounted to oscillate on a fixed stud and which carries two pulleys one of which
is arranged to be operated by a wave-shaped cam carried by the movable cage or
platform of the hoist or lift and the other of which is arranged to bear against a
rope or chain fixed at one end and connected with the gate to he operated. The
arrangement is such that as the cam approaches the lever, the rope or chain
pulley thereon will act against the rope or chain so as to give the requisite
movement it may be through multiplying mechanism to open the gate and hold
the same open whilst the cage or platform is opposite a gateway, and that when
the cage or platform commences to move in either direction, the lever will be
permitted to move in the crosswise direction and allow the gate to close
automatically.
Figs. 1 and 2 of the accompanying illustrative drawings represent in side and
front elevation respectively a lift provided with gate-operating apparatus according
to this invention, and
Figs. 3 and 4 are respectively side and front elevations, drawn to a larger scale,
of the one-armed lever employed therein.
1 (Figs. 1 and 2) is a wave-shaped cam formed from a bar of rectangular section
and secured to angle-pieces 2, which are bolted to one side of the cage 3. To the
vertical guides 4 and 5 of the lift is secured a cross-beam 6 carrying a stud 7 on
which is mounted one end of a lever 8 whose other end is forked and provided
with two bearings 9 and 10 (see Figs. 3 and 4) in which is mounted a shaft 11.
The end 12 of the shaft 11 next to the cage projects and carries a pulley 13, which
is free to rotate on the said shaft and is arranged to roll on the cam 1. The
portion of the shaft 11 between the limbs of the forked end of the lever 8 carries
a grooved pulley 14. One end of the lifting-chain 15 is secured to an eye 16 on
the vertical guide 5 and its other end is passed round the grooved pulley 14,
thence under a guide-pulley 17 mounted ou a stud 18 secured to a bracket 19 fixed
to the vertical guide 5, thence over a guide-pulley 20 mounted on a stud 21 fixed
to a bracket 22 secured also to the vertical guide 5, and finally over a guide-
pulley 23 adapted to revolve on a pin 24 in a bracket 25 fixed in a suitable position
over the gate 26, to which the end of the chain is secured.
The arrangement of the apparatus is, therefore, such that as the cage 3 ascends
or descends, it brings the cam 1, into contact with the roller 13 and causes it to
oscillate the lever 8 back into the position shown in Fig. 1 and thereby to lift the
gate 26 into the, position shown in Fig. 2, in which it is fully opened. If the
cage 3 be now moved upward or downward, the cam 1 will allow the lever 8 to be
oscillated back again into its original position and the gate to be closed by gravity.
In the example shown, the vertical length of the cam 1 is rather greater than the
length of the cage 3, but its effective vertical length is equal to that of the cage,
so that the gate 26 is opened and closed by the movement of the cage through a
distance equal to its own length. It will be seen that the passing of the chain 15
round the pulley 14 in the manner described, causes the gate to move twice as fast
vertically as the pulley 13 moves horizontally. The chain may, however, be
arranged to pass over one or more additional pulleys in order to obtain a greater
vertical movement of the gate than twice that of the horizontal movement of the
pulley 13.
In lieu of the one-armed straight lever 8 shown, it is obvious that levers of
other orders and shapes (ie., straight, curved, or bell-cranked levers) may be used
to produce the same resulta. Figs. 5 and 6 show, by way of example, a two-armed
lever having the pulley 13 mounted on a stud 27 secured in the end 28 of the lever
whose other end 29 has fixed in it a stud 30 on which is mounted the grooved
pulley 14. When this lever is mounted on the stud 7 in lieu of the lever 8, the

page_text: cam 1 must be arranged to point in the reverse direction from that shown in Fig. 1:
if the other parts retain the positions shown.
Instead of acting upon the lever through an antifriction-pulley, the cam might.
act directly thereon in which case the lever 8 may, as shown in Fig. 7, be provided.
with a boss or projection 31 in lieu of the pulley 13.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inveu--
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I.
claim is :-
1. Safety apparatus for hoists and lifts wherein there is provided in connection.
with each safety gate to be operated, a lever that is mounted to oscillate about
a fixed axis, is arranged to be operated by a cam carried by the movable cage or
platform of the hoist or lift and is provided with a pulley around which passes.
a rope or chain that is fixed at one end and connected with the gate to be
operated, the arrangement being such that when the cam approaches and acts
against the lever, the rope or chain pulley thereon will act against the rope or
chain and open the gate connected therewith, and when the cam moves from the
lever the latter will be permitted to move in the crosswise direction and allow the
gate to automatically close, substantially as described.
2. For automatically operating a gate or equivalent part of a hoist or lift
apparatus constructed, arranged and operating substantially as hereinbefore-
described with reference respectively to and shown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive of the-
accompanying drawings, or modified as described with reference to Figs. 5 and 6-
or to Fig. 7 of the drawings annexed.
R. E. P. CRAVEN,
Registered Patent Agent,
22 Victoria Chambers, South Parade, Leeds, Agent for the Applicant..