A New or Improved Brake for Hoisting or Lifting Apparatus and the like.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 25th Jan., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 8th Oct., 1894-Accepted, 17th Nov., 1894.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A New or Improved Brake for Hoisting or Lifting Apparatus and
the like.
I, ANTON BOLZANI of 118 Invalidenstrasse, Berlin in the Empire of Germany,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object an arrangement for braking the descending load
in hoisting or lifting apparatus, that is to say, for stopping the lift automatically at
any point, which arrangement has the advantage over all others of being as simple
as it is possible to conceive, and in consequence of this great simplicity it is
impossible for the brake not to act.
'
The arrangement consists in prolonging the shank or downwardly directed
cylindrical part of the suspension hook of the block and pulley so far as to admit
of the brake parts being placed directly thereon as on an axle. By this means the
pull on the hook produced by the load, that is to say the full weight of the load is
utilised for the braking, the load acting with its full weight on the braking surfaces.
In this case, for instance, the braking surfaces are supposed to be level ones and
the arrangement is made in such a way that two bevel wheels seated on the
horizontal axle of the hand chain wheel (which axle is also in gear with the pulley
which carries the load chain or rope) engage with a third bevel wheel seated on the
prolonged shank of the hook aforesaid which latter bevel wheel rotates between two
discs also on the said shank and which are immovably connected with the frame of
the pulley block, and thus when this latter bevel wheel or brake wheel is rotated, if
the pulley and block be loaded, frictional resistance is produced between the smooth
sides of the brake wheel and the two said discs. The two bevel wheels must of
course be so connected with their horizontal axle by means of ratchet devices that
during the hoisting of the load, these wheels are not rotated, whilst on the descent
of the load, it is only possible for this axle to revolve by rotating these wheels with
it, and thus act against the friction on the brake wheel. If the ratchet devices be
so arranged that on the axle being turned to the right, for instance, one of the two
bevel wheels is engaged, whilst on its being turned to the left, the other bevel
wheel is engaged, in both cases that is to say during the raising and lowering of the
load, a braking will take place and this may be utilised for attaching load-hooks on
both ends of the load chain which passes over the chain pulley. Thus even
during the raising of the load, the resistance of the brake must actually be
overcome.
=
It may also be stated that the kind of ratchet mechanism by means of which the
two bevel wheels are coupled with their horizontal axle may be carried out in any
suitable manner, and that further the kind of braking surfaces is equally unlimited.
As already stated level or smooth surfaces are given as an example, but in place of
these, conical ones may be used; it is also possible to employ cylinder surfaces
with jaws or cheeks which separate or move apart in any suitable manner.
In the case of a modification of the invention as applied to winches, the supports
of the chain drum are not firmly connected with the frame of the winch, but they
are suspended by means of two or more rods or bars in such a way that the latter
press, by means of discs which are firmly connected therewith, loose brake discs
which revolve on them against suitable parts of the frame, so that on the rotation of
these brake discs, the full load acts on both together, that is to say on each of the
same to a greater or less extent according to the position of the point of pressure of
the load on the drum, but always the entire load. Both brake discs have bevel
teeth on their circumference so that, bevel wheels which are seated on the gearing

page_text: axle of the winch and which can only rotate in one direction owing to ratchet and
pawl mechanism, may engage with them. The direction in which these wheels are
prevented rotating must be so chosen, that when the load is descending, the coupling
is established, in other words the brake discs must, rotate so that the descending
load is braked.
Dated this 24th day of January 1894.
5
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A New or Improved Brake for Hoisting or Lifting Apparatus and
the like.
I, ANTON BOLZANI of 118 Invalidenstrasse, Berlin in the Empire of Germany,
Manufacturer, 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 an arrangement for braking the descending load
in hoisting or lifting apparatus, that is to say, for stopping the lift automatically at
any point, which arrangement has the advantage over all others of being as simple
as it is possible to conceive, and in consequence of this great simplicity it is
impossible for the brake not to act.
In the drawings-
Figure 1 is a front view of a hoisting mechanism, partly in section, provided with
a brake according to this invention;
Figure 2 is a similar view of the upper part of a hoisting mechanism provided
with a simple form of brake ;
Figure 3 is a front view of a winch constructed according to this invention;
Figures 4 and 5 show a block and pulley in which a lower hook sheave or running
pulley is used.
The arrangement consists, as may be seen in Figure 1 of the accompanying
drawings, in prolonging the shank or downwardly directed cylindrical part a' of the
suspension hook a of the block and pulley so far as to admit of the brake parts
being placed directly thereon as on an axle. By this means, the pull on the hook
produced by the load, that is to say, the full weight of the load, is utilised for the
braking, the load acting with its full weight on the braking surfaces.
In this case,
for instance, the braking surfaces are supposed to be level ones, and the arrangement
is made in such a way that two bevel wheels d d seated on the horizontal axle 6 of
the hand chain wheel c (which axle is also in gear with the pulley which carries the
load chain or rope) engage with a third bevel wheel e which moves between the
cross bar on the one hand and the disc g on the other, the latter being connected
with the frame of the block in such a way as not to be capable of revolving but to
be adjustable parallel to the axis of the hook, and thus, when this bevel wheel or
brake wheel e is rotated, if the pulley and block be loaded, frictional resistance is
produced on the smooth sides of the wheel e. The two bevel wheels d d' must of
course be so connected with their horizontal axle b, by means of ratchet devices,
that, during the hoisting of the load, these wheels are not rotated, whilst on the
descent of the load, it is only possible for this axle to revolve by rotating these
wheels with it, and thus act against the friction on the brake wheel e. If the load
chain which passes over the pulley h of the pulley block be provided at both ends
with carrying hooks, the wheels d d' must be so connected with the gearing axle b
that one of them is always connected in such a way that on the ascent of the load,
no connection takes place between this wheel and the axle b, but, on the descent of
the load, the wheel is rotated along with the gearing axle and thus a braking takes
"

page_text: place, while the second wheel, for instance d¹, is disconnected during the ascent and
descent of the load. This latter wheel must then come into action, when a load is
suspended to the other hook, while the former wheel ceases to operate.
In Figure 1, the gearing axle b is supported in such a way that it may be moved
in the direction of its axis to right or left, to a certain extent which is indicated by
set rings The gearing wheel which is connected with the chain pulley h
engages with the pinion which is adjustable by means of a screw thread on
the gearing axles, and this pinion is provided with side discs or flanges to ensure its
correct engagement, any axial adjustment being thus prevented. If the hand
chain wheel c be then revolved the axle 6 is screwed forward into the internal
screw of the pinion which is prevented from rotating by the wheel k and
consequently by the load banging on the pulley h, that is to say, the axle 6 is moved
according to its rotation to the right or left, until the pinion rests or bears.
against one or other of the rings or stops m or m' which are arranged on the axle.
When this has taken place, if 6 continues to rotate, 7 will also be rotated and thus
the load will be raised. This bearing of 1 against m is shown in the drawings.
The wheels d and d' are axially retained between the stops i and m or ♬ and m
fixed on the axle 6 in such a way that an engagement of only one of these wheels
with the brake wheel e takes place only in the end position of the axle b, while in
the intermediate position neither of them engages with e; in the position shown
only engages in the teeth of e, while d' is disengaged. The wheels d d' are also
provided with spring socketted, pawl-like bolts n n which engage in ratchet teeth
on the rings or stops m or m', so that the rotation of the wheels d can only take
place in one direction on the axle b. The pawl and ratchet teeth of m are also so
arranged that when the load is being raised, no engaging of m and takes place,
but, on the contrary, when the load is descending, the wheel d is revolved and
consequently also the wheel e. The direction of the ratchet teeth on m' is naturally
reversed, as they are intended to act when the direction of the power is reversed,
that is to say, when the load is suspended to the other end of the chain. Thus
according as the load is suspended on the one hook or the other of the chain, the
wheel d or the wheel d¹ is engaged and consequently the raising of the load takes
place without friction, whilst the lowering of the same only takes place after
overcoming the frictional resistance of the brake wheel e.
Figure 2, shows a simple form of construction which is suitable for only one load
hook. There is here only one wheel d employed which may be connected with the
driving pinion in one direction of rotation, by means of a catch bolt or pawl .
This pinion is in this case firmly connected with the axle b. When the load is
rising, the ratchet teeth act in such a way that d is not carried with the axle, while
when the driving pinion revolves in the opposite direction, d is carried along with
it and also e and thus the braking takes place.
Figure 3 shows the invention applied to a winch. The winch drum A has
a toothed wheel k¹ secured to it and driven by a toothed pinion secured on the
shaft 6' similar to the analogous parts shown in Figure 1.
The shaft is revolved
by an ordinary haudle shown at the right hand side in Figure 3 and provided with
a spring actuated pawl. The pawl engages with ratchet teeth on the hub of the
bevelled toothed wheel d¹ which is loose on the shaft 6'. The load and the hoisting
drum are suspended by the bar a' provided with an end disc y'. The winch frame
has a crossbar and a toothed brake-wheel e' which latter is interposed between
the disc g' and the bar f¹ and rotates on the bar e'. The above described parts are
preferably duplicated at the left hand side of the winch.
The operation of the brake when applied to the winch is exactly the same
as when applied to a block as hereiubefore described.
Figures 4 and 5 represent a block and pulley in which a lower hook sheave or
pulley g is used, and in which the braking of the descending load is brought about
by the fixed end of the load chain engaging on a spindle p' of the brake device
which is mounted in a special cross bar o. In this case the pull of the load chain,
with the direction of which coincides the spindle of the brake device, is directly

page_text: P
utilised for producing the necessary frictional pressure. The spindle p¹ of the
chain loop or ring p is in turn mounted in a movable socket or thimble g connected
with the crossbar o, which socket transmits the pull of the chain to the brake
wheel the teeth of which engage with the bevel wheel d mounted on the horizontal
axle b. As this bevel wheel d may be engaged by means of a catch bolt n and
ratchet teeth for one direction of rotation, with the gearing fixed on the axle b, the
brake in one direction of rotation, that is, on the descent of the load, is also
connected with the block and pulley gearing so that the load when drawn up can
only be lowered by overcoming the resistance of the brake by means of the hand
chain wheel.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
⚫ claim is-
1. In a hoisting mechanism, the combination, with a slidable bar suspending the
said mechanism and its load and provided with a friction disc at its lower end, of a
frame provided with a crossbar arranged above the said disc, a bevelled toothed
brake wheel interposed between the said disc and crossbar, a driving shaft journalled
in the said frame, a toothed pinion operatively connected to the driving shaft and
adapted to operate the hoisting devices, a bevelled toothed wheel mounted on the
said driving shaft and gearing into the bevelled toothed brake wheel, and ratchet
and pawl mechanism operatively connecting the said bevelled toothed wheel and
pinion, whereby the load is normally sustained by the said brake wheel, substantially
as set forth.
2. In a hoisting mechanism, the combination, with a slidable bar suspending the
said mechanism and its load and provided with a friction disc at its lower end, of a
frame provided with a crossbar arranged above the said disc g, a bevelled toothed
brake wheel interposed between the said disc and crossbar, a driving shaft journalled
in the said frame, a toothed pinion operatively connected to the driving shaft and
adapted to operate the hoisting devices, a ratchet wheel m secured on the driving
shaft, a bevelled toothed wheel mounted on the said driving shaft and gearing into
the bevelled toothed brake wheel, and a spring actuated pawl carried by the said
bevelled toothed wheel and engaging with the said ratchet wheel, substantially as
set forth.
3. The combination, with a hoisting mechanism, of a slidable bar suspending it
and its load, a brake-wheel loosely seated on the said bar and normally held
stationary between the lower end of the bar and the frame by the weight of the
said hoisting mechanism and its load, and toothed driving wheels operatively
connecting the said brake-wheel with the said driving mechanism, substantially as
set forth.
4. In a hoisting mechanism, the combination, with the slidable suspension bar a
provided with a disc of a frame provided with a crossbar, the bevelled toothed
brake wheel interposed between the said disc and cross bar, a slidable driving shaft
journalled in the said frame and provided with a screw threaded portion and the
ratchet wheels in m³, the toothed pinion engaging with the said screw threaded
portion and adapted to operate the hoisting devices, the bevelled toothed wheels d d'
adapted to be slid into gear with the said bevelled toothed brake-wheel, and the
spring actuated pawls carried by the wheels d and d' and engaging with the said
ratchet wheels, substantially as set forth.
5. The combination, with a hoisting mechanism, of a slidable bar suspending it
and its load, a frame provided with a crossbar, a toothed brake wheel loosely
journalled on the said bar between the end of the said bar and the crossbar and
normally held stationary by the weight of the hoisting mechanism and its load, and
driving devices operatively connecting the said brake wheel with the shaft by which
the said hoisting mechanism is operated, substantially as set forth.
6. In a hoisting mechanism having a lower hook sheave or pulley, the
combination with a slidable bar or spindle provided with a thimble or disc and

page_text: coinciding with the direction of the chain and having the fixed end of the chain
connected to its lower end, of a frame provided with a crossbar, a bevelled toothed
brake wheel loosely seated on the said spindle and interposed between said thimble
or disc and crossbar, and means for effecting the engagement of the brake wheel
with the hoisting gear during the descent of the load, substantially as described and
illustrated.
Dated this 6th day of October 1894.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicant.