IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR RAISING AND LOWERING HEAVY BODIES
Year: 1872

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Stephen Holman at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 18th
May 1872.
I," STEPHEN HOLMAN, of Laurence Pountney Lane, in the City of
London, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR RAISING AND LOWERING HEAVY BODIES,"
to be as follows:-
This Invention consists mainly of a novel construction of crane,
worked by the direct application of hydraulic power without the
intervention of wheels or other gearing, whereby a powerful, simple,
and efficient crane is produced.
One form of construction of hydraulic crane, according to my Inven-
tion, will consist of a hydraulic telescopic strut, a crane post, and a
hinged or moveable lifting jib or beam; these several parts may be
variously disposed so as to obtain any desired mechanical effect.
The general mode of operation will be as follows:-One end of the
lifting lever or beam will be hinged or otherwise held to the crane pošt

page_text: so that it shall be free to rise or fall at the other or outer end. At any
determined distance from the fulcrum, and at any required angle in
relation to the crane post I place a hydraulic strut consisting of a ram
turned true at one end and fitted to a cylinder to work and recipro-
cate therein, and to be operated (by preference) by hydraulic pressure
obtained either from a self-contained pump or by any other suitable
method of supplying the required power. The outer end of the ram or
strut is connected to the movable lifting jib by means of a jointed pin
or other pivot action or bearing, and the cylinder when used to form a
part of the strut will be attached (say for convenience although not
always essential) to the crane post near to its base, and also to work on
a joint pin or pivot.
The mode of operation will be as follows, for example, take the lifting jib
or beam to be ten feet long and the telescopic hydraulic strut to be placed
for lifting within one foot of the fulcrum or hinged end of the jib, it will
be obvious that by applying a hydraulic lifting power equal to 10 tons to
the ram of the telescopic strut that a load equal to about one ton will
be lifted at the outer end of the jib and a proportionately greater weight
at any lesser distance from the fulcrum, and also by literally lengthening
the hydraulic strut say one foot by applying the necessary pressure to
raise the load the outer end of the moveable jib together with the load
will be raised about ten feet, the lowering of the load will be effected
by a simple releasing valve. Various modifications of this crane may
be made to adapt it to various requirements without departing from
the main feature of the Invention.
Some modifications are as follows:-
-
First. The purchase may be applied to the lifting jib or beam by
placing the telescopic strut beyond the fulcrum and by pushing down
the end of the jib which would be carried beyond the fulcrum to receive
the thrust, and thus raise the other end with or without the load, as the
case may be.
Second. A pulling hydraulic jack may be applied to the end of the
jib just described instead of a pushing hydraulic strut described in the
first modification.
Thirdly. The lifting jib or beam may be substituted by suspension rods,

page_text: Fourthly. The hydraulic telescopic strut may be applied to large
shears used at wharves to effect any radial traverse required.
One or more cranes according to this Invention may be operated by
means of pipes taken from detached pumps made to force either direct
to the cranes or into a hydraulic accumulator whence the power may
be transmitted.
In some cases where a double lift is required two hydraulic struts
may be applied working on opposite sides of the fulcrum of a balance
jib or beam.