A New or Improved Gripping Device for Attaching a Hook or the like to a Beam or other Article.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 13th Feb., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 13th Aug., 1895-Accepted, 5th Oct., 1895.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A New or Improved Gripping Device for Attaching a Hook or the
like to a Beam or other Article.
-
A communication by JOSEPH WHITE, of 80 Long Street, Cape Town, South
Africa; Builder.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON F.C.S., M.I.M.E.,. of The Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6 Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street,
Manchester both in the County of Lancaster, 118 New Street Birmingham
in the County of Warwick, and 31 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex,
Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object a point d'appui or device for attachment to a
beam.
:-
The device comprises essentially two eccentric serrated rolls with handles or
their equivalent, pivots or spindles carrying these rolls, two brackets having
perpendicular or incave sides facing cach other carrying these spindles, and
arranged so as to be brought nearer or further from each other as required, and a
base plate carrying these brackets adjustable thereon and also carrying a hook on
the other side of it, or other means of attachment.
The mode of action is as follows:-
If it be desirable to attach the article to a beam or rafter overhead, it is pressed
up against the beam till the bottom of the beam touches the base plate. The two
brackets are now pressed up close to the beam and clamped in position, the handle
of the rolls being vertical so that the rolls have their shortest radius next to the
beam. The handles are now depressed until the serrated surface rolls touch and
press into the beam. The apparatus is now fixed in position, and the greater the
weight attached to the hook the greater is the tendency of the serrations on the
rolls to bite into the beam, as any tendency to cause the rolls to revolve, such as
the weight carried by the hook, and the weight of the device itself will cause a
larger radius of the eccentric rolls to come against the beam. When however the
device has to be loosed from the beam a very slight upward pressure on the two
handles at once releases it. It is obvious that where the device has to be attached
so as to resist an upward force or horizontal force instead of a downward one, the
rolls must be pressed by hand into position and held there until the strain is
applied, otherwise it would not be effective. Instead of however doing it by hand,
springs could be used so that the normal position of the rolls should be with their
greatest diameter inward against where the beam has to go, then in order to adjust
the apparatus the handles are raised. Further, in those cases where there is no
room for handles to be raised above the rolls, a spring or other device on the
spindle of the roll can be used instead of a handle attached to the roll. It is
obvious that where the device has always to be used for one size of beam, the
brackets can be permanently adjusted in position, or cast or formed in one with the
bed plate. It is also obvious that in place of a hook, a bracket carrying a pawl or
other like device could be used. It is also obvious that in place of serrations,
grooves or embayments could be used where the device has to catch on to rounded
bars or other like projections, the principle in each case being precisely the same,
namely, that any pressure in a given direction shall tend to bring a large diameter

page_text: of the rolls opposite each other and thus forcibly compress the article between the
two rolls, and the only object of having serrations is in order that the rolls may
more firmly bite into any yielding material such as a wooden beam or even a soft
iron beam.
Dated this 16th day of February 1895.
A New or Improved Gripping Device for Attaching a Hook or the
like to a Beam or other Article.
A communication by JOSEPH WHITE, of 80 Long Street, Cape Town, South
Africa, Builder.
1, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of The Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6 Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street,
Manchester, both in the County of Lancaster, 118 New Street, Birmingham
in the County of Warwick, and 31 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex,
Civil 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:-
This invention has for its object a point d'appui or device for attachment to a
beam.
The invention will be understood from the following description, reference being
had to the accompanying drawings, in which,
Figure 1 shows the device one half in cross section, and the other half in end
elevation, showing how a hook or the like may be attached to a beam, or other
article ;
Figure 2, a front view.
The device comprises essentially two eccentric serrated rolls A with handles B
or their equivalent, pivots or spindles C carrying these rolls, two brackets D
having perpendicular or incave sides facing each other carrying these spindles C,
and arranged so as to be brought nearer to or further from each other as required,
and locked in position by the bolts and nuts E, and a base plate F carrying these
brackets D adjustable thereon and also carrying a hook G on the other side of it,
or other means of attachment.
The mode of action is as follows:-
:-
If it be desirable to attach the article to a beam or rafter over head, it is pressed
up against the beam till the bottom of the beam touches the base plate F. The
two brackets D are now pressed up close to the beam and clamped in position by
the nuts E, the handle of the rolls A being vertical so that the rolls have their
shortest radius next to the beam. The handles are now depressed until the
serrated surface rolls touch and press into the beam. The apparatus is now fixed
in position, and the greater the weight attached to the hook G, the greater is the
tendency of the serrations on the rolls to bite into the beam, as any tendency to
cause the rolls to revolve, such as the weight carried by the hook, and the weight
of the device itself will cause a larger radius of the eccentric rolls to come against
the beam. When however the device has to be loosed from the beam a very
slight upward pressure on the two handles B at once releases it. It is obvious that
where the device has to be attached so as to resist an upward force or horizontal
force instead of a downward one, the rolls must be pressed by hand into position
and held there until the strain is applied, otherwise it would not be effective."
Instead of however doing it by hand, springs could be used so that the normal

page_text: position of the rolls should be with their greatest diameter inward against where
the beam has to go, then in order to adjust the apparatus the handles are raised.
Further, in those cases where there is no room for handles to be raised above the
rolls, a spring or other device on the spindle of the roll can be used instead of a
handle attached to the roll. It is obvious that where the device has always to be
used for one size of beam, the brackets can be permanently adjusted in position, or
cast or formed in one with the bed plate. It is also obvious that in place of a
hook, a bracket carrying a pawl or other like device could be used. It is also obvious.
that in place of serrations, grooves or embayments could be used where the device
has to catch on to rounded bars or other like projections, the principle in each case
being precisely the same, namely, that any pressure in a given direction shall tend
to bring a large diameter of the rolls opposite each other and thus forcibly
compress the article between the two rolls, and the only object of having serrations
is in order that the rolls may more firmly bite into any yielding material such as a
wooden beam or even a soft iron beam.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, 1 declare that what I claim is:-
1. A gripping device for attaching a hook or other device to a beam rafter, or
other article, comprising two eccentric serrated rolls with handles or their
equivalent, pivots or spindles carrying these rolls, two brackets having perpen-
dícular or incaved sides facing each other carrying these spindles and arranged to
be brought nearer or further from each other as required, or permanently fixed in
one position, and a base plate carrying these brackets and also carrying the hook
or other device on the other side of it substantially as described.
2. A device for attaching a hook or other device to a beam rafter or other
article, which consists in arranging one on each side of the beam, rafter, or other
article, a roll mounted eccentrically in a bracket carried by a base plate, to which
the hook is attached, said eccentric rolls and brackets being so arranged that any
rotation of the rolls in a given direction, shall tend to bring their longest radius
next to the beam and cause the rolls to bite into and grip the beam, and thus
forcibly compress the beam between the two rolls substantially as described.
3. The general combined arrangement and construction of parts forming the
improved gripping device for attaching a hook or the like to a beam or other
article.
Dated this 12th day of August 1895.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents.