: Conical Drums are Used.
Year: 1885

page_text: : Conical Drums are Used.
We JAMES FARRAR and EDWARD HORNBY BIRLEY, of the old Foundry,
Barnsley in the county of York, Engineers do hereby declare the nature of our
invention for BALANCE ROPES AND APPARATUS FOR PITS WHERE FLAT ROPE OR
CONICAL DRUMS ARE USED to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object the balancing of the ropes for winding engines
in pits where drums for flat ropes are used or, where round ropes and spiral or
conical drums are used, the balance rope is attached to the under side of the cage,
at one end, and continued down to the sump: two or more pulleys of the largest
available diar revolving on fixed axes are secured to suitable beams in the sump
below the bottom platform, or landing, beneath these are placed three or more
pulleys of a slightly larger diar than those above, also revolving loose on their axes,
which axes are held in frames or guides and are free to have a certain amount of
vertical movement; the rope from the underside of the cage passes below the first
of the lower series of pulleys above the first of the upper series and below the
second of the lower series, (as in a pulley block) and so on-depending on the
number of pulleys, to the underside of the second cage; a dead weight hanging
from the lower or moveable axis is placed to keep the ropes at their proper
tension.
Inasmuch as the rope attached to cage with coal to be lifted is led away to the
small dia of drum if conical, or the first lap if flat rope, the rope of the empty or
descending cage being led to the largest dia of the drum if conical, or the last lap
if flat rope, the amount of rope wound on and off in one revolution differs, (which
hitherto has rendered a balance weight for such drums, difficult of application)
our invention is a method of overcoming this difficulty, the lower pulleys in the
sump being capable of vertical motion to allow for this difference and being self
adjusting.

page_text: Balance Ropes and Apparatus for Pits where Flat Ropes or
Conical Drums are Used.
We JAMES FARRAR and EDWARD HORNBY BIRLEY, of the old Foundry,
Barnsley in the county of York, Engineers, 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 the balancing of the ropes for winding engines
in pits where drums for flat ropes are used or where round ropes and spiral or
conical drums are used; the balance rope is attached to the underside of the cage
at one end and continued down to the sump; two or more pulleys, of the largest
available diameter revolving on fixed axes, are secured sto suitable beams in the
sump below the bottom platform or landing, beneath these are placed three or
more pulleys of a slightly larger diameter than those above, also revolving loose
on their axes, which axes are held in frames or guides and are free to bave a
certain amount of vertical movement; the rope from the underside of the cage
passes below the first of the lower series of pulleys above the first of the upper
series and below the second of the lower series, (as in a pulley block) and so on
depending on the number of pulleys, to the underside of the second cage; a dead
weight hanging from the lower or moveable axis is placed to keep the ropes at the
proper tension.
'We will now more fully explain our invention referring in so doing to the
accompanying drawings in which, Figure 1 is a section of the bottom of a shaft
and sump hole showing the arrangement in elevation; Figure 2 is a plan at top of
sump hole showing upper pulleys; Figure 3 is a plan showing lower pulleys;
Figure 4 shows diagramatically an arrangement by which the diameter of the
pulleys may be varied as desired.
At any convenient distance down the sump hole below the bottom of the shaft
one, two, or more separate loose pulleys a a¹ of the largest available diameter are
centred on a shaft mounted on fixed cross beams a' beneath these two three or
more separate loose. pulleys 6 61 62 are centred on a shaft mounted on a frame c
provided with grooved guide wheels d d or equivalent guiding arrangements and
capable of free vertical reciprocating motion on' the guide rails or frames e e fixed
vertically on either side of the sump, or in 'some cases the guiding arrangements
may be dispensed with and the lower series of pulleys may hang freely. The
diameter of the moving pulleys may be the same as, but is made preferably
slightly larger than, that of the fixed pulleys to enable the ropes to run clear and
may advantageously be made equal to the distance from centre to centre of the
cages 1..2.
One end of the balance rope f is attached to the underside of cage 1 and led
away down the sump hole beneath the first of the lower series of pulleys b up over
the first of the upper series a descending again beneath the second of the lower
series 61 as in an ordinary pulley block, and so on, the other end of the rope f
being led and fixed eventually to the underside of cage 2. Any desired number

page_text: of pulleys may be used which number is determined by the depth of the sump and
weight of the winding rope there being obviously one pulley more in the lower
than in the upper series.
In cases where the sump hole is shallow and it is desirable to decrease the travel
of the moving series of pulleys the modification shown in figure 4. may be adopted
with advantage where by the aid of the guide pulleys hh the diameter of the
pulleys of the lower series may be increased to the greatest extent allowed by the
diameter of the sump hole; or by multiplying the number of pulleys the travel of
the moving frame c may be decreased to any extent so that the system can be
used with advantage in pits having very shallow sump holes, whereas if the
balance rope were all allowed to hang freely in the sump hole without a pulley or
with only a tightening pulley and weight according to the usual practise a much
greater depth would be required. In some cases a dead weight such as g may be
suspended from the frame c to keep the ropes at proper tension.
According to the usual practise the winding rope attached to the upper side of
the loaded cage when it is at the bottom of the pit is led away over the head gear
pulleys to the smallest diameter of the drum if conical or the first lap if flat rope,
and the winding rope attached to the upper side of the empty cage when it is at
the top is led away to the largest diameter of the drum if conical or the last lap if
flat rope. The length and weight of rope thus wound off one and on the other in
one revolution varies and this variation has hitherto rendered a balance rope
arrangement for such drums difficult of application and not thoroughly efficient
in practise. The difficulty is overcome by the above described arrangement, for
the moving frame c with its pulleys being self adjusting compensates for the
unequal length and weight of ropes wound on and off the differential drum, and
tends to overcome the inertia of the machinery at the start and to stop the load
at the end of the winding.
It is obvious that by a modified arrangement the principle of this invention is
equally applicable to cases where the pits are arranged on either side of the engine
house, in which case the balance rope from the underside of one cage may be led
under a guide pulley at the bottom of one shaft and thence over a guide pulley
down a sump hole situated in any convenient position between the shafts around
the above described double series of pulleys situated in the said sump hole, and
thence over and under guide pulleys similar to the first described to the underside
of the second cage.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is:
(1.) The compensating balance rope and apparatus constructed and arranged
substantially in the manner and for the purposes hereinbefore described and
illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
(2.) The combination with a balance rope such as is specified of two series of
pulleys, the one series fixed, the other movable and arranged so as to be self
adjusting substantially as and for the purposes herein before set forth.
.
1
T... 1000
1000
J. C. CHAPMAN,
Agent for Applicants.