Improvements relating to Wire-ways or Elevated Railways and to Trucks and Cable-traction Apparatus for Use in Connection therewith.
Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd May, 1887
Complete Left, 11th Feb., 1888
Complete Accepted, 29th Mar., 1888
Improvements relating to Wire-ways or Elevated Railways and to
Trucks and Cable-traction Apparatus for Use in Connection
therewith.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to wire-ways or elevated railways, and is chiefly designed
to provide improved means for transporting minerals, grain, and other substances.
The said invention comprises improvements in trucks for use on the said wire-ways
or elevated railways, and improvements in cable-traction apparatus for hauling or
drawing the said trucks thereon.
I provide a claw grip or coupling and carrier-collars which are constructed as
hereinafter described.
The claw grip or coupling is one which is very advantageous for use on steep
gradients.
To the cross-bar of the suspension frame for the buckets or other receptacles, I
attach a casting or frame in which is supported a roller designed to act as a guide
and support for the hauling rope when the buckets or other receptacles are at rest.
Above the said roller a cross-head resting upon springs is arranged to move up and
down. To the lower side of this cross-head is attached a forked gripper and a sleeve.
The said sleeve carries another gripper which is constantly pressed by means of a
spring against a projecting rim at the lower end of the said sleeve.
To couple or connect a truck to the hauling rope, which is kept constantly in
motion, it is necessary first to place the hauling rope on the said roller and then to
lower the cross-head by turning an excentric provided with a lever, so that the
grippers will be caused to engage with the said rope, the springs being at the same
tine compressed. The travel of the said lever is limited by a stop on a cover secured

page_text: to the said casting or frame. Carrier-collars are fixed at intervals upon the hauling
rope. When one of these carrier-collars reaches the gripping apparatus, it presses
against an inclined surface on one of the grippers, thus lifting and passing the said
gripper and striking against the other gripper. As soon as the collar has passed the
first gripper, the latter is forced down by a spring and the coupling operation is
complete, and the whole apparatus together with the suspension frame and bucket
travels forward with the hauling rope. In order to stop the bucket at any point, it is
necessary to release the grippers; this is effected in the following manner, viz. :-On
arriving at the desired point, the said lever strikes against a fixed plate which forces
it back and throws the excentric out of gear, causing the springs to lift the grippers
sufficiently high to allow the hauling rope and collar to pass.
The carrier-collars are sometimes made by forining an outer cylinder in two pieces
which are held together by means of a pin as in an ordinary hinge-joint, thus enabling
the same to be attached at any part of the endless rope after a filling piece has been
inserted between the strands of the rope. The said filling piece is made with radial
projections and with grooves corresponding to the strands of wire forming the rope,
and is turned on the outside to exactly fit the recess in the outer cylindrical-
casing.
The carrier-collars are attached to the hauling rope in the following manner, that
is to say, a sufficient length of the hauling rope is untwisted, and the hempen interior,
for a length equal to the length of the said filling piece, is removed and the filling
piece inserted. The two halves of the collar are then placed over the whole and
secured together by means of the hinge-pin.
The ends of the said filling piece bear against the inner surface of the collar so that
a backward and forward motion of the collar is rendered impossible. For greater
security and to prevent the movement of the filling piece in the rope, the clearance.
spaces are sometimes filled up with white metal or any other suitable composition.
In order to prevent injury to the rope by the impact of the collar, elastic rings in
halves are sometimes placed at the ends of the filling piece, so that any blow will be
gently transmitted to the rope.
The carrier-collars are, in some instances, made in two halves or parts with male
and female screw-threads so that they can be screwed together. With this form of
collar, a filling piece spirally grooved to take the strands is fitted inside the rope.
By this arrangement, an even swelling or enlargement of the rope is produced, so
that, on screwing together the two halves or parts of the collar, they will be caused to
firmly grip the rope, making it unnecessary to employ any composition for fixing the
same; such composition can, however, be used, if desired, for instance when a
considerable strain has to be borne and a large amount of work to be done by the
collar.
In some instances, I employ a pawl-grip for which small cylindrical collars or knots
are attached to the hauling rope. The apparatus is attached to the cross-piece of the
suspension frame. It consists mainly of a casting or frame, a roller supported therein,
and pawls pivotted to the said casting or frame. The said pawls are arranged
symmetrically on either side of the roller, and are free to turn upon their pivot-pins.
These pins are supported either at one end only or at both ends. The said pawls, in
their lowest position, rest upon a projection on a bolt which is fixed in the said casting
or frame. Rods or pins are attached to the said pawls for the purpose hereinafter
described. The said bolt acts as a guide to the hauling rope, it being small enough
to allow the carrier-collars to pass, but sufficiently large to limit the play or up-and-
down movement of the hauling rope above the roller.
The apparatus can be used equally well for right or left hand wire ways.
With this pawl-grip, not only the connecting but also the disconnecting of the
hauling rope is automatic. For these purposes, releasing rails are fixed at the
different stations; these rails raise both pawls (which fit over the rope like a fork) by
coming into contact with the said rods or pins. These releasing rails are arranged in
a similar manner for the arriving as for the departing trucks. They are placed on
one side of the apparatus and commence about a yard before the point at which the

page_text: switch-rail is inclined or tapered towards the rope and are parallel to the switch-rail.
The height of the releasing rail corresponds with the position of the pawls when out
of gear with the hauling rope. The releasing rails are preferably bent downwards at
either end to ensure their getting under the said rods or pins and gradually lifting
the pawls as the bucket approaches. This releasing takes place only when the
approaching bucket has arrived on the switch-rail, by which means the pushing of the
bucket by hand is dispensed with. With this arrangement, as with all others, it is
necessary to push the departing buckets off the switch-rail onto the carrying rope,
but, before the bucket approaches the hauling rope, the pawl will already have been
lifted by the releasing rail and the hauling rope which is in motion can rest on the
roller which is free to revolve. On pushing the truck further on the carrying rope,
the pawls drop around the hauling rope. To ensure the engagement of the pawls with
the hauling rope, springs are sometimes employed. If one of the carrier-collars fixed
to the hauling rope approaches the apparatus, it will move along inclined surfaces on
the pawls, lifting the same and allowing the said collar to pass into the space between
the said bolt and the roller; and further movement of the said collar will be prevented
by the second pawl, and, the first pawl having in the meantime fallen behind the
collar, the latter is held between the two pawls, thus enabling the truck to be hauled
to the next station or the next releasing rail.
The improved truck or runner which I employ consists mainly of a cross-piece or
frame and two grooved wheels. The cross-piece is composed of two steel or other
metal plates and a distance piece held together by means of rivets; the said plates are
reduced in width towards the centres of the holes at either end of the same, into.
which the distance pieces are screwed. These form, moreover, the spindles for the
grooved wheels and are hollowed out to form receptacles for a lubricant, which can
be inserted by the removal of a screw. The grease passes through small radial holes-
to the outside of the spindle. The frame of the bucket is suspended from tho
centre, but on one side of the truck, and swings on the spindle, which passes
through the distance piece. The spindle can be oiled through a hole in the distance"
piece.
The advantages of this form of construction over those heretofore adopted are that
the grooved wheels can never become atwist or out of line, the spindles being
supported at both ends and not at one end only, as is the case with other trucks. A
great saving in the wear and tear of the spindles and wheel-bosses is also effected by
this arrangement.
Dated this 23rd day of May 1887
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements relating to Wire Ways or Elevated Railways and to
Trucks and Cable-traction Apparatus for Use in Connection
therewith.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings in the County of Middlesex, 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 relates to wire-ways or elevated railways and is chiefly designed to
provide improved means for transporting minerals, grain, and other substances.
The said invention comprises improvements in trucks for use on the said wire-ways
or elevated railways, and improvements in cable-traction apparatus for hauling or
drawing the said trucks thereon.
In the accompanying drawings I have shown how the said invention may be
conveniently and advantageously carried into practice.
Figure 1 is a side elevation partly in vertical section, and
Figure 2 is a section on the line x, x Figure 1 showing one form of my improved
coupling hereinafter described.
Figure 3 is a plan of a carrier collar hereinafter described, drawn to an enlarged
scale.
Figure 4 is a longitudinal section of the said carrier collar and a filling piece herein-
after described drawn to an enlarged scale, showing also a portion of the wire rope,
parts of the front strands being removed.
Figure 5 is a section on the line y, y Figure 4.
Figure 6 is a transverse section of the filling piece shown in Figures 4 and 5.
Figure 7 is a longitudinal section, drawn to an enlarged scale showing another form
of carrier collar and filling piece hereinafter described, and a portion of the wire rope,
parts of the front strands being removed.
Figure 8 is a transverse section on the line z, z, Figure 7.
Figure 9 is a side elevation, and
Figure 10 is a section on the line x', x¹ Figure 9, showing a modification of the said
invention.
Figure 11 is a side elevation, and
Figure 12, an end elevation, drawn to a reduced scale, of a portion of a wire-way
or elevated railway having the present improvements applied thereto.
Figure 13 is a plan also drawn to a reduced scale, of a portion of a wire-way or
elevated railway, showing the releasing rails hereinafter described.
Figure 14 is a side elevation, partly in vertical section, and
Figure 15 a plan partly in longitudinal section of the improved truck or runner.
Like letters indicate corresponding parts throughout the drawings.
In Figures 1 and 21 have shown a claw grip or coupling which is very advantageous
for use on steep gradients. a is the cross-bar of the suspension frame for the buckets

page_text: or other receptacles. b is a casting or frame which is firmly attached thereto and in
which is supported a roller c upon a spindle c¹ designed to act as a guide and support
for the hauling rope d when the bucket or other receptacle is uncoupled from the
said rope. The roller c has a recess or chamber c² for oil or other lubricant, which is
retained in the same by the screw plug c³, the oil or other lubricant passes on to the
spindle c' through the hole or oil way c*. A screw plug c is moreover provided by
removing which the oil way et can be cleaned out when necessary. The screw plug c³
is prevented from shaking loose or leaving the recess by means of the spring c
which engages with ratchet-teeth c upon the head of the same. Above the said
roller c a cross-head e is supported upon springs f,f¹ and is so arranged that it may be
moved vertically in guides 6¹ formed on the frame b. To the lower side of this cross-
head is attached a forked gripper g and a sleeve h. The said sleeve carries another
gripper which is constantly pressed by means of a spring ; against an inwardly
projecting rim or flange at the lower end of the said sleeve. Above the cross-head e
is an eccentric k either attached to or forming part of a spindle k¹ carried in suitable
bearings in the casting or frame b, and having a projecting extremity upon which is
fixed an arm or lever 7 provided with a stop m upon the cover n which is secured to
the said casting or frame b.
To couple or connect a truck to the hauling rope d (which is kept constantly in
motion) it is necessary first to place the hauling rope d on the said roller c and then
to lower the cross-head e by turning the eccentric k by means of the lever l'so that the
grippers g and i will be caused to engage with the said rope d the springs f, f being
at the same time compressed. The travel of the said lever is limited by the stop m.
Carrier collars o are fixed at intervals as hereinafter described upon the hauling
rope d. On one of these carrier collars o approaching the gripping apparatus it
presses against the inclined surface p on the gripperi thus lifting and passing the said
gripper, and striking against the other gripper g. As soon as the collar o has passed
the first gripper i the latter is forced down by the spring j and the coupling operation
is complete, and the whole apparatus together with the suspension frame a and bucket
attached thereto travels forward with the hauling rope d.
In order to stop the bucket at any desired point or part of the line it is necessary to
release the grippers g and i; this is effected in the following manner viz. :-on
driving at the point at which the stoppage is to take place the said lever strikes
against a fixed plate 7 provided for the purpose which forces it back and thereby turns
the eccentric and perinits the springs f¹, f¹ to act and raise the cross-head e and
with it the grippers g and i sufficiently high to allow the hauling rope & and carrier
collar o to pass freely between the said grippers and the roller c.
The carrier collar o consists of two pieces o', o' which are held together by joints o³
and bolts or pins o' or by means of ordinary hinge joints. It is of a cylindrical form
when closed. This construction enables the said carrier collar o to be attached at
any part of the endless rope d after a suitable filling piece has been inserted
between the strands of the rope. The said filling piece is made with radial
projections and with spiral grooves corresponding to the strands of wire
forming the rope and is turned on the outside to exactly fit the recess in the outer
cylindrical casing of the carrier collar o.
The carrier collar o is attached to the hauling rope d in the following manner, that
is to say, a sufficient length of the said hauling rope d is untwisted and the hempen
interior for a length equal to the length of the said filling piece r is removed, the said
filling piece is then inserted. The two halves o', o² of the carrier collar o are then
placed over the whole and secured together by means of the joints o³ and the bolts or
pins o. The parts 1 of the said filling piece » bear against the inner surface of the
carrier collar o and thus prevent displacement thereof. For greater security and to
prevent the movement of the filling piece 7 in the rope, the clearance spaces are some-
times filled out with white metal or other suitable composition. To prevent injury to
the rope by the impact of a gripper against the carrier collar, elastic rings formed in
halves are sometimes placed at the ends of the filling piece so that any blow will be
gently transmitted to the rope d.

page_text: Figures 7 and 8 show a modification of the carrier collar o which in this instance is
divided transversely into two halves or parts o'o' provided with male and female screw-
threads o, and holes o for the reception of a bar or lever for turning them so that
they can be firmly united. With this form of carrier collar a filling piece » also
spirally grooved to take the strands is fitted inside tho said rope d. By this arrange-
ment an even swelling or enlargement of the rope d is produced so that on screwing
together the two halves or parts o¹, o³ of the carrier collar o they will be caused to firmly
grip the said rope d making it unnecessary to employ any composition for fixing the
same, such composition can however be used in some cases if desired, for instance
when a considerable strain has to be borne and a large amount of work to be done by
the said carrier collar o.
Figures 9 and 10 show a modification of the said invention wherein I employ a
pawl-grip or coupling, with which small cylindrical collars or knots o attached to the
hauling rope
d are used. The apparatus is fixed to the cross-piece a of the suspension
frame a¹. The pawl-grip or coupling consists mainly of a casting or frame b a roller c
supported therein, and pawls d¹ pivoted to the said casting or frame b. The
said pawls d' are forked to fit over the rope d and are free to turn or pivot
upon pins e in the casting b, which are supported either at one end only or
at both ends. The said pawls d¹ when in their lowest position as shown, rest upon the
projection on the bolt which is fixed in the said casting or frame b. Rods or
pins are attached to the said pawls d' for the purpose hereinafter described. The
said bolt g acts moreover as a guide to the hauling rope d, it being of a diameter
small enough to allow the carrier collars o to pass but sufficiently large to limit the
play or up and down movement of the said hauling rope d above the roller c.
This apparatus can be used equally well for right or left hand wire-ways.
With this pawl grip or coupling not only the connecting but also the disconnecting
of the hauling rope d is automatic. This is performed by means of releasing rails s
which are fixed at the different stations; The rails raises both pawls d' by coming
into contact with the said rods or pins ¹. These releasing rails's are arranged in a
similar manner both for the arriving and for the departing trucks. They are placed
on one side of the apparatus and commence about a yard before the point at which the
switch rails is inclined or tapered towards the rope and are parallel to the said switch
rails. The height of the releasing rails is made to correspond with the position of
the pawls d when out of gear with the hauling rope d. The releasing rails s are
preferably bent downwards at either end to ensure their getting under the said rods or
pins and gradually lifting the pawls d' as the truck B and the bucket a² approaches.
This releasing takes place only when the approaching bucket has arrived on the switch
rails by which means the pushing of the bucket by hand is dispensed with.
With this arrangement as with others it is necessary to push the departing buckets
off the switch rails on to the carrying rope d' but, before the bucket approaches the
hauling rope d, the forward pawl d' will already have been lifted by the releasing
rails and the hauling rope d which is in motion can rest on the roller c which is free
to revolve. On pushing the truck further along the carrying rope the pawls d'
drop around the said hauling rope d. To ensure the engagement of the pawls with
the hauling rope d, springs are sometimes employed. If one of the carrier collars o
fixed to the hauling rope d approaches the apparatus it will move along inclined
surfaces on the pawls d' lifting the same and allowing the said collar o to pass into
the space between the said bolt g¹ and the roller c; the said collar o will be prevented
going further by the second pawl and the first pawl having in the meantime fallen
behind the collar o the latter is thus securely held between the two pawls d' enabling
the truck B to be hauled to the next station or the next releasing rail.
The improved truck or runner B which I employ consists mainly of two steel or
other metal plates & Figures 14 and 15 and a distance piece u held together by means
of rivets t¹; the said plates t are reduced in width towards the ends of the same, into
which distance pieces are screwed. These form moreover the spindles for the
grooved wheels to and are hollowed out so as to form convenient receptacles a for oil
or other lubricant which can be inserted therein upon the removal of the plugs or

page_text: screws y. The lubricating material passes through small radial holes a¹ to the outside
of the spindle v. The frame a Figures 11 and 12 of the bucket a² is suspended from
the spindle 2 which passes through the distance piece u, in such a manner as to swing
freely upon the same. The spindle can be lubricated through a hole t³ in the
distance piece u.
The advantages of this form of construction over those heretofore adopted are that
the grooved wheels w can never become atwist or out of line, their spindles y being
supported at both ends and not at one end only, as is the case with other trucks. A
great saving in the wear and tear of the spindles and wheel bosses is also effected by
this arrangement.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed as communicated to me
by my foreign Correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
First. A coupling device comprising a casting or frame provided with a roller for
supporting the hauling rope, a cross-head fitted to slide in the said frame and provided
with forked grippers acted upon by spiral or other springs, and an eccentric connected
with a lever, the motion of which is limited by a stop upon the said frame, substantially
as, and for the purposes, set forth.
Second. The roller for supporting the hauling rope, constructed with the recess or
chamber for oil or other lubricant, the way or channel and the screw-plugs, sub-
stantially as, and for the purposes, set forth.
Third. The collar-carrier divided into two parts in a plane parallel with the rope,
and provided with the spirally grooved filling piece the arms of which extend beyond
the strands of the rope and the ends of which bear against the inner surfaces of the
collar, substantially as described.
Fourth. The carrier-collar divided into two parts in a plane at right angles to the
rope and provided with the spirally grooved filling piece, substantially as, and for the
purposes, set forth.
Fifth. The combination of parts comprising the pawls pivoted above the roller for
supporting the hauling rope, and so constructed that they may be raised out of, or
lowered into contact with the said rope by means of a rail or rails, substantially as,
and for the purposes, set forth.
Sixth. The combination of parts comprising the truck-frame formed of two side
plates and a central distance-piece, the grooved axles hollowed out to form receptacles
for oil or other lubricant and closed by means of screw plugs, and serving as distance-
pieces between the ends of the said side plates, the swinging suspension frame and the
spindle, substantially as, and for the purposes, set forth.
Seventh. The improved apparatus consisting of the parts constructed and combined
substantially as described with reference to Figures 1 and 2 or to Figures 9 and 10 of
the drawings and operating as, and for the purposes, specified.
1000