Fire-proof Doors for Enclosing Lift-openings and other Apertures in Floors of Buildings, and Apparatus for Working the same.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Oct., 1890-Accepted, 1st Nov., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Fire-proof Doors for Enclosing Lift-openings and other Apertures in
Floors of Buildings, and Apparatus for Working the same.
I, REUBEN HALLENSTEIN of Lonsdale Street in the City of Melbourne, in the
Colony of Victoria, Merchant, 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 apparatus whereby openings in floors of buildings such as
those caused by lifts or stairways can be quickly opened or closed when required, as
for instance, for the purpose of localising fire to a limited area in any part of the
building, so that it can be successfully coped with and shortly got under. The closing
of such openings is also useful for preventing burglars and other persons who may be
illegally on the premises, from gaining admission from one floor to another for
purposes of plunder or escape, and for the prevention of accidents resulting from
such apertures being left open particularly in the case of lift-openings, which are
ordinarily a great source of danger to those whose duty calls them to be near such
openings.
At present, when a fire breaks out in a building (especially a high one in which
the evil is intensified and aggravated to an enormous extent) no means exist of
localising or confining the flames to the floor in which the outbreak takes place, but
the opening for lifts and stairs become a great source of danger, as they act as great
flues creating draughts which increase the combustion, with the result that life and
property are frequently sacrificed to the flames.
The apparatus for closing and opening these apertures, can be actuated automatically
by lifts, or in the absence of lifts, it can be worked by hand-power from any floor or
level in the building.
The main feature of the apparatus is a balanced vertical rod, to which is attached,
at any part of its height, a rack for actuating a toothed wheel or equivalent connections
for the purpose of opening and closing hinged or sliding doors, as I shall describe
referring to the accompanying drawings.
Figures 1 and 2 are front and side elevations shewing the apparatus applied in
combination with a lift for actuating a sliding door.
Figure 3 is an elevation showing the apparatus applied for actuating a hinged door
opening downwards.
Figure 4 is a similar view showing it applied to a hinged door opening upwards.
Figures 5 and 6 are elevations showing the doors worked by levers and rods
instead of gearing.
Figures 7 and
are front view and section respectively of Figures 5 and 6 showing
by dotted lines the connection of the hand gearing.
Figures 9 and 10 are end and front views of hand gearing for actuating the sliding
doors shown in Figures 1 and 2.
Figures 11 and 12 are end and front views showing the hand gear for hinged
doors.
Figures 13 and 14 are end and front views showing an alternative method actuating
hinged doors by hand.
Throughout the several figures similar letters of reference denote similar parts.
A is a vertical rod guided by friction-rollers A'. To the rod A, in a suitable position
is attached a rack A³ engaging with a toothed wheel A³ on a transverse shaft A*
mounted in bearings A°. On the shaft A* are fixed toothed wheels A which gear
with horizontal racks A' on the sliding door B. This door B runs on antifriction
rollers B working in guides B² on the floor.
The lower part A of the rod A is preferably made of square section working in

page_text: guide brackets A' the rod A being thus prevented from turning. The lower end
rounded at A10 to receive the finger A" which can turn thereon to an extent limited
by stops A¹2
The apparatus is thrown out of gear allowing the lift to ascend and descend without
opening or closing doors by turning this finger A" about one quarter round as is
shown in Figures 2 and 3.
To the upper end of the rod A is attached a rope A¹³ passing over a pulley A¹
and carrying a counter weight A1, which actuates the rod A when it is released by
the lift.
As shown in Figure 3 where a hinged door opening downwards has to be
worked, the rack A² on the rod A engages with a pinion C which is on a shaft C
and gears with a toothed quadrant 02 upon the axis (3 of the hinged door D.
In Figure 4 there is no intermediate pinion (), so that the door D opens upwards.
In Figure 5 the sliding door B is shewn to be actuated by the alternative method
of levers and rods. The rod A has a pin E carrying a roller E'; which works in a
slot E³ in one arm of a bell-crank lever E³ centred at Et; to the other arın E
of this lever is attached a connecting rod E which is linked to the door B. The
pivot E is carried by a bracket E. Figure 6 shews similar mechanism applied to a
door hinged on E¹.
Figures 9 and 10 shew the application of hand power to actuate the sliding door,
F is a vertical shaft (which can extend the whole height of the building). On this
shaft where required is fixed a bevil-wheel F2 gearing with another F3 on the
transverse shaft A* or it may be on C¹³ or E. The vertical shaft F is provided
with a hand-wheel F¹ or several of these, practically one for each floor. Obviously
the hand gearing can be applied to any of the mechanisms worked by the vertical
rod A.
G is the cage or lift suspended and worked by rope G¹ over the pulley G². G³ are
the guides and G₁ the clamps for same. H are joists and H the floor of the
building. The doors B are made in balves so that the rope or chain can pass through
a hole formed partly in each half which may be bushed with india rubber or similar
material.
In Figures 11 and 12 the quadrant C³ is attached to the hinged door D, and is
worked by hand-power.
In the alternative system shewn in Figures 13 and 14, the bevel wheel F³ is
on a transverse shaft J working in bearings J; on this shaft J are drums J² around
which pass ropes J³ to the door D which is hinged at J. K indicates the stair and L
a wall of the building.
The apparatus operates as follows.
The finger All on the vertical rod A being placed under the floor of the lift G,
when the lift is at its lowest level in the building the doors B or D on all floors are
closed. When the lift G ascends the rod A is caused to ascend by the counter
weight A and the rack A2 acting through the wheels A³ and A6 on the horizontal
rack A' the door B is opened so as to allow the cage G to ascend. The door there-
after remains open till the cage G again descends on the finger A" depressing the
rod A whereupon the doors on the several floors are closed and remain closed till
opened again by the ascent of the cage G.
The sliding door is also actuated by the alternative method shown in Figure 5,
where the rod A by means of its roller E actuates the bell crank E³ so that by the
arm E and rod E the door B is opened.
For working the hinged door the rack A² engages with the intermediate pinion C,
which actuates the quadrant C2 upon the axis of the door D, causing it to open
downwards.
Or the rack A² engaging directly with quadrant C², causes the door to open
upwards. In the alternative method illustrated in Figure 6, the rod A by roller El
and lever E sufficiently rotates the axis E upon which is the door D, with the result
that the door opens.
For operating by hand the vertical shaft F is rotated, and the wheel F³ gearing

page_text: into F3 actuates the mechanism connected to A* as in Figures 9 and 10; C¹ as in
Figures 11 and 12; or to E' as in Figures 7 and 8, or as shewn in Figures 13 and 14
motion being imparted to the drums J the rope J³ hoists the door D high enough so
as to open the stairway, as shown by dotted lines.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. For working doors closing apertures in floors of buildings the combination
with a lift of a counterweighted rod A its rack and the gearing operated thereby
substantially as described and illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
2. For working doors closing apertures in floors of buildings the combination of
the vertical shaft F and the gearing operated thereby substantially as described and
illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 1st day of October 1890
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.