Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd Nov., 1886.
Complete Left, 2nd Aug., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 6th Sept., 1887.
We, LLOYD HIGGINBOTTOM of 6 Slade Lane, Lonsight, Manchester in the county
of Lancaster and THOMAS MANNOCK of 17 Albert Grove, Lonsight Manchester in the
same County, Engineers do hereby declare the nature of this Invention to be as
follows:-
Our invention consists in improved means of transmitting motion from a driving
shaft to travelling cranes, travelling derricks, gantries, crabs and other similar
machines, so that fast and slow or intermediate speeds of traverse in opposite
directions, of lifting and lowering, or other required movements may be readily
imparted to the said machines.
According to one method of carrying out our invention, we affix upon a shaft,
revolving by means of any convenient source of power, and hereinafter referred to as
"the driving shaft," a long drum or pulley, one part of such drum being of a larger
diameter than the other part.
The separate diameters of the said drum may be formed as separate drums, but in
either case they are securely affixed to, and revolve with the driving shaft.
Parallel with the said shaft, and at a suitable distance therefrom, we provide a
second shaft, hereinafter referred to as "the counter shaft," and connected by any
suitable means with the machine to which motion is required to be imparted.
Upon the said counter shaft and opposite the centre of the small drum on the
driving shaft, we affix a fast pulley of a larger diameter than the said small drum.
On each side of the said fast pulley, we provide a narrow loose pulley, and beyond
these again, on each side, a broad loose pulley, the sum of the width of these five
pulleys equalling the width, or thereabouts, of the said small drum on the driving
shaft.
Again, upon the said counter shaft and opposite the centre of the large drum on
the driving shaft, we affix a fast pulley of a smaller diameter than the said large
drum.

page_text: On each side of the said fast pulley we provide a broad loose pulley, the sum of
the width of these three pulleys, equalling the width, or thereabouts, of the width of
the said large drum on the driving shaft.
An open belt and a crossed belt connect the large drum on the driving shaft with
the small pulleys on the counter shaft for quick motion, and similar belts connect the
small drum with the large pulleys, for slow motion.
Four forks are provided to shift these four belts and the said forks are all con-
nected and worked by a single lever or other suitable device, and can be placed in
five distinct positions.
The action of the apparatus is as follows; the driving shaft being supposed to be
constantly revolving in one direction. When the forks are in the central position the
belts on the small drum are on the narrow loose pulleys of large diameter on the
counter shaft, and the belts on the large drum are on the loose pulleys of small
diameter on the counter shaft, but these latter are at a distance from each side of the
small fast pulley, of somewhat more than the width of a belt. It is obvious that when
the belts are in this position no motion will be communicated to the counter shaft.
On moving the belts to either of the positions immediately next to the central position,
the open or crossed slow motion belt will be shifted to the large fast pulley, the quick
motion belts still remaining on their loose pulleys, but on moving to either of the
extreme outside positions, the open or crossed quick motion belt will respectively be
shifted to the small fast pulley, while both the slow motion belts will be transferred
to the pair of loose pulleys on one or other side of the large fast pulley. Thus it will
be seen that by merely placing a lever in some one of five distinct positions, a machine
may be stopped, or may have quick or slow motion imparted to it in either of two
opposite directions.
In the above described arrangement, the ratio between the quick and slow speeds
is fixed, but where it is desired to obtain intermediate speeds, we modify our apparatus
in the following manner.
A long coned drum is fixed on the driving shaft and a similarly coned drum is fixed
with its large diameter opposite the small diameter of the first mentioned coned drum,
on a counter shaft parallel thereto. Such counter shaft is connected by any suitable
means with the machine to which motion is required to be imparted.
The direction of motion may be reversed by three bevel wheels and a clutch, or by
open and crossed belts introduced between the countershaft and the machine to
which motion is required to be imparted, and actuated in any convenient manner
by the same lever that moves the belts on the cones.
Dated this 1st day of November 1886.
AMBROSE MYALL, C.E.,
Agent for the Applicants.

page_text: Crabs, and similar Apparatus.
We LLOYD HIGGINBOTTOM of 6 Slade Lane, Longsight, Manchester, in the county
of Lancaster, and THOMAS MANNOCK of 17 Albert Grove, Longsight, Manchester, in
the same county, Engineers do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the saine is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement:-
The object of our invention is to provide improved means of transmitting motion
from a driving shaft to travelling cranes, travelling derricks, gantries, crabs and
other similar machines, so that fast and slow or intermediate speeds, of traverse, of
lifting and lowering or other required movements may be readily imparted to the
said machines and instantly changed in speed or direction.
In the accompanying two sheets of drawings, Fig. 1 is an elevation and Fig. 2 is
a plan, of the apparatus which forms the subject of our invention, as applied to the
traversing of a travelling crane. Figs. 3 and 4 are similar views of a modified form
The same letters of reference denoto similar
of our apparatus applied in like manner.
or corresponding parts throughout the several figures.
In Figs. 1 and 2, A, A¹, are two wheels, supporting one end of the main girders B, B¹
of a travelling crane, in the ordinary way. C is a vertical shaft constantly revolving
in one direction by means of the endless rope D passing around the pulley E and
driven from any convenient source of power in the usual manner. Upon the shaft (,
hereinafter referred to as "the driving shaft," we affix a long drum or pulley F, F',
the part F of the said drum being of a larger diameter than the part F¹, these two
parts are preferably formed as separate drums, but in any case the drum or drums
are securely affixed to, and revolve constantly in one direction with the shaft C.
Parallel with the said shaft and at a suitable distance therefrom, we provide a second
shaft H, hereinafter referred to as "the counter shaft," and connected by means of
the train of bevel gear J, J, J2, with the horizontal shaft K, which carries at each
end a spur pinion L gearing with the spur wheel L', which is keyed on the axle of
the driving wheel A¹, at each end of the crane, in the usual manner.
Upon the counter shaft H, and opposite the centre of the small drum F¹, we affix
a fast pulley M of a larger diameter than the small drum F¹. On each side of this
fast pulley M, we provide narrow loose pulleys M', M, and beyond these again, on
each side, broad loose pulleys M³, M², the sum of the widths of the five pulleys
M, M', M³, M², M², equalling the width, or thereabouts, of the small drum F¹. Again
upon the said counter shaft H, and opposite the centre of the large drum F, we affix
a fast pulley N, of a smaller diameter than the large drum F; on each side of this
fast pulley N we provide broad loose pulleys N¹, N, the sum of the widths of these
three pulleys N, N₁, N₁, equalling the width, or thereabouts, of the large drum F,

page_text: An open belt O, and a crossed belt P, connect the large drum F, with the small
pulleys on the counter shaft, for quick motion, and an open belt 0¹ and a crossed
belt P¹, connect the small drum F, with the large pulleys, for slow motion.
A vertical rod Q, capable of a certain amount of end motion, has four forks R, R',
R2, R3, mounted upon it to embrace the belts O, P, O, P, and always maintain them
in the relative positions shewn in Fig. 1. Motion is imparted to the rod Q by an
arrangement of levers and rods as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, but any suitable
combination of devices may be employed for this purpose, such devices being so
arranged that the rod Q can be operated upon from the platform of the crane.
The action of the apparatus is as follows: the driving shaft C being supposed to be
revolving constantly in one direction, as before described. When the forks are in
the central position, as shewn in Fig. 1, the belts O¹, P¹, on the small drum F¹, are
on the narrow loose pulleys M³, M', of large diameter on the counter shaft H, and the
belts on the large drum F are on the loose pulleys N¹, N', of small diameter on the
said counter shaft, but leaving a space on each side of the small fast pulley N, of
somewhat more than the width of a belt. It is obvious that when the belts are in
this position, as they are all driving loose pulleys, no motion will be communicated
to the counter shaft. On moving the belts to a position immediately next to the
central position, that is to say so that the belt O' is shifted on to the fast pulley M,
and the belt P is shifted to the upper loose pulley M³, while the belts O and P still
remain on the loose pulleys N¹, N¹, the counter shaft H will be put in motion and
the crane traversed slowly, and to reverse such motion it is only necessary to shift the
belts the opposite way, so that the belt P¹ drives the fast pulley M. To obtain a
quick traverse, the belts are moved still further until either the belt O or P, drives
the fast pulley N, the belts 01 and P¹ being shifted to the upper or lower loose
pulleys M1, M2, according to the direction of traverse.
It will thus be seen that by merely shifting the rod Q, with its forks into any one
of five positions, the crane may be traversed slowly or quickly, in either of two
opposite directions, or may be instantly stopped.
In place of providing four loose pulleys M³, M', M2, M3, on the shaft H, we may
employ only two loose pulleys, one on each side of the fast pulley M, similarly to the
pulleys, N', N', on each side of the pulley N, but in this case the forks R, R¹, must
be mounted on a separate rod to the forks R2, R3, and separate levers, or other suitable
devices, provided to operate them.
In the above described arrangements the ratio, between the quick and slow speeds,
is fixed by the relative diameters of the pulleys, but when it is desired to obtain any
intermediate speed between two fixed limits, we modify our apparatus after the
manner shewn in Figs. 3 and 4. In this case the shaft C constantly drives in one
direction a drum S, connected by an open belt O and crossed belt P, with loose
pulleys T1, T2, on the shaft C'.
A fast pulley T is placed between the said loose
pulleys, and either of the belts O or P may be shifted to this fast pulley by means of
the rod U, which actuates the independent forks V, V', thus giving motion, in either
direction, to the shaft C¹, in a manner well understood.
Affixed to the said shaft is a long coned drum F, F', which, by means of the belt W,
drives the similarly coned drum M, N, affixed to the shaft H. A double fork Y,
sliding on guides Y₁, Y2, and being actuated by a chain (as shewn in dotted lines) or
other suitable devices, shifts the belt W up or down, and varies the speed of the
shaft H, as desired. The said shaft, by means of the bevel gears J, and spur gears
Z, Z, drives the shaft K, which is geared with each driving wheel A¹, by a spur
pinion Land spur wheel L', as before described.
Three bevel wheels and a clutch, or other equivalent known device may be employed
to reverse, or stop the motion of the shaft C, in place of the open and crossed belt
arrangement, as shewn in Figs. 3 and 4.
We wish it to be understood that in carrying our invention into practice, we do not
limit ourselves to the precise details of construction, which we have shewn and
described, as for instance, although the apparatus is shewn with the shafts in a vertical
position, it is obvious that they may be arranged horizontally, or at any desired angle.

page_text: Nor do we confine the application of the apparatus to the traversing of a travelling
crane, as it is clear that the said apparatus may readily he employed, by means of
suitable connections, in transmitting motion to any machine of a similar class, or to
any part or parts of such machine, where it is desired to be able readily to stop, start,
or change the direction, or speed of the motion of the said machine, or the part, or
parts, thereof.
We lay no claim to the particular mechanism described and shewn in the drawings
for transmitting motion from the counter shaft H to the crane driving wheels, nor to
any particular method of driving the shaft C.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we claim is,
1. In a power travelling crane, or other similar machine, the apparatus for
imparting fast or slow, or intermediate speeds of traverse to the said machine,
substantially as herein set forth, or any mere modification thereof.
2. In a power travelling crane, or other similar machine, the apparatus for
imparting fast or slow speeds of traverse, of lifting and lowering, or other required
movements to the said machine, or to any part or parts thereof, substantially as
herein described and shewn, with reference to Figs. 1 and 2 of the accompanying
drawings.
3. In a power travelling crane, or other similar machine, the apparatus for
imparting fast or slow, or intermediate speeds of traverse, of lifting and lowering, or
other required movements to the said machine, or to any part or parts thereof,
substantially as herein described and shewn, with reference to Figs. 3 and 4 of the
accompanying drawings.
AMBROSE MYALL,
21, Cockspur Street, London, S.W.,
Agent for the Applicants.