Improvements in and connected with Hoists.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Oct., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 10th Feb., 1892-Accepted, 12th Mar., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and connected with Hoists.
We JANES GARNER of 31 Union Street Tyldesley in the County of Lancaster,
Manager, THOMAS COCKERILL of 105 Derby Street Bolton in the County of
Lancaster, Chemical Engineer, and CHRISTOPHER PORRETT of Change Alley
Sheffield in the County of York, Insurance Manager, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to hoists, and its objects are to prevent the accidents which
now frequently arise through the insecurity of the fastenings of the landing doors
or through their being negligently left open, and to secure the automatic opening
closing and locking of the doors.
According to these improvements I arrange a rocking shaft within or upon the
cage of the hoist, upon which I fix an arm carrying a guide bowl and a second arm
by means of which the door may be lifted, and which also may be used to disengage
the locking device. There may also be fixed to this rocking shaft a handle and
two hooks, the function of the handle being to put the apparatus out of action when
passing the door of any landing at which the cage is not to stop, and the hooks
being employed for lifting and lowering the door at the bottom lauding.
Above the landing doors I arrange upon the framework of the hoist, an inclined
plane or swell, in such a position that the guide roller on one of the arms attached
to the rocking shaft will travel over it and be moved by it. This movement is
communicated to the rocking shaft and thus to the door lifting and disengaging
arm.
On the inner side of each door there is arranged, a bent or bell-crank lever one
part of which is in the path of the lifting arm and one end of which engages with a
fixed projection on the door jamb or hoist framing, thus forming a locking device
which cannot be interfered with from the outside.
As the hoist ascends, the lifting aim comes into contact with the bell-crank lever
and by its continued motion disengages the locking device, whereupon the lifting
arm engages with a projection on the inner side of the door and the door is thus
lifted by the further motion of the cage until, when the cage is level with the
landing, the door is raised to a sufficient height. The lifting arm is disengaged
from the door when the latter has been lifted high enough, by means of the guide
roller coming into contact with the inclined plane or swell, in moving over which
the angular motion of the arm on which the guide roller is fixed, is communi-
cated through the rocking shaft to the lifting arm, which is thus disengaged from
the door.
When the hoist is descending, it may be lowered to a point below the landing,
and then be caused to re-ascend so as to put the apparatus into operation as already
described.
At the bottom landing, a somewhat different arrangement is provided. In this
case the door is lifted and lowered by means of a rope which is arranged to cross
the path of the two hooks already described as being fixed upon the rocking shaft.
The two ends of this rope are secured to the door, and from thence the rope passes
over two pulleys one on each side of the hoist, so that between the pulleys the rope
lies in a horizontal position where it can be engaged by the hooks. In the descent
of the cage, the hooks lay hold of the rope and draw it downwards, thus raising the
door, and so long as the cage remains at the bottom, the door remains open. Upon
the ascent of the cage the door is lowered by the reverse process. The bell-crank
lever on the bottom door instead of being operated by the lifting lever may be
actuated by a latch or arm attached to one end of the door lifting rope in such a

page_text: manner that as soon as the pull of the hooks on the rope occurs the locking device
is first liberated and the door is then lifted. On the ascent of the cage, the locking
device secures itself by gravity.
Deted this and dev of October AD 1891
Per pro WM. E. HEYS,
Geo. Heys,
Agent for the Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and connected with Hoists.
We, JAMES GARNER of 31 Union Street Tyldesley in the County of Lancaster,
Manager, THOMAS COCKERILL of 105 Derby Street Bolton in the County of
Lancaster, Chemical Engineer, and CHRISTOPHER PORRETT of Change Alley
Sheffield in the County of York, Insurance Manager, do hereby declare the nature
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 hoists, and its objects are to prevent the accidents
which now frequently arise through the insecurity of the fastenings of the landing
doors, and through their being negligently left open, and to secure the automatic
opening, closing, and locking of the doors.
We will describe our said invention with reference to the accompanying
drawings, in which—
Figure 1 represents a transverse section through the hoist and door ;
Figure 2 an elevation showing the inside of the door in two positions ;
Figure 3, a vertical section through the hoist, showing the door in the raised
position;
Figure 4, an elevation similar to Figure 2, of the door at the bottom landing;
Figure 5, a similar view to that shown by Figure 4, but with the door partly
lifted; and
Figure 6, a transverse section of the hoist at the bottom landing showing the
method of lifting the door.
may
According to these improvements, a rocking shaft A is arranged within or upon
the cage of the hoist. Upon this rocking shaft there is fixed an arm B carrying a
guide bowl C and a second arm D, by means of which, the door may be lifted, and
which may also be employed to disengage the door-locking device. There also
be fixed to the rocking shaft A a handle Z and one or two hooks E, the function of
the handle being to put the apparatus out of action when passing the door at any
landing at which the cage not required to stop. The hook or hooks E are
employed for lifting and closing the door at the bottom landing. Above the
landing doors there is arranged an inclined plane or swell G, in such a position that
the guide bowl C on one of the arms attached to the rocking shaft will travel over
and be moved by it. This motion is communicated to the rocking shaft by the
arm B, and from the rocking shaft to the door-lifting and disengaging arm D.
On the inner side of each door there is fulcrumed a bent or bell-crank lever H,
one part of which, I, is in the path of the lifting arm D. The opposite end of this
lever is formed as a catch J to engage with a fixed projection K on the door jamb
or hoist framing, thus forming a locking device which cannot be actuated or
interfered with from the outside.
It will be understood that each of the doors slides upwards and downwards in
suitable grooves or guides, to close and open the entrance to the cage, and that. it
is incapable of any other motion.
As the cage L ascends the lifting arm D comes into contact with the part I of
the bent lever H, and by its continued motion it disengages the catch J from the
fixed projection K.
By reference to Figures 2 and 3 it will be seen that the motion of the bent

page_text: lever H is limited by the staple or bridge piece M, which is firmly secured to the
door. The continued motion of the cage therefore presses the bent lever against
the upper part of the bridge piece, and as its free motion therein is thus arrested
the door is lifted into the position indicated by dotted lines in Figure 2.
Instead of the arrangement for lifting the door illustrated by the drawings, the
arm D, after liberating the locking device, may be caused to engage with a fixed
projection on the door, either directly or with the bent lever intervening. When
the door has been lifted to a sufficient height the arm D may be disengaged by
means of the guide roller C travelling over a swell or incline such as G, Figures 1
and 3. This swell is preferably fixed at such a height above the landing that
the door is not disengaged until the cage commences to move away from the
landing. If the motion of the cage should be downwards from the landing, the
door naturally falls with the descent of the arm D, but if its motion is upwards
the arms B and D being rigidly connected, the travel of the guide roller on the
arm B over the swell naturally causes the simultaneous displacement of the
arm D, thereby liberating the door, which then falls by its own weight into
the closed position, whereupon the catch J engages with the projection K, and
the door becomes locked automatically. India-rubber or spring buffers may be
employed to deaden the shock of the falling door, or it may be partly counter-
weighted.
Should the cage be required to stop at any landing in its descent, it must be
lowered below the landing and then be caused to reascend, as the apparatus is con-
structed to liberate and lift the door in the upward motion only. Or, if preferred,
a modification of the arrangement hereinafter described with reference to the door
of the bottom landing may be adapted to each landing where the door may
frequently be desired to be opened and closed and locked automatically during the
descent of the cage.
Since the cage cannot generally descend below the bottom landing, so as to
actuate the apparatus in its ascent thereto, as hereinbefore described, the rope N
may be employed for lifting the door, as illustrated by Figures 4, 5, and 6. One
end of this rope is fixed or attached to the door at O, thence it passes over the
pulley P, across the hoist well to the second similar pulley, and thence downwards
again to the door, to which it is secured by attaching the end to the lever Q,
to which the bent lever H carrying the catch J is connected through the link R.
When the hoist approaches the door F the hook E engages with the
rope
ope and pulls
it downwards, as shown by Figures 5 and 6. This pull upon the rope first lifts the
latch or lever Q, thus liberating the catch J. The lever Q then comes into
contact with the bridge-piece and its free motion is stopped. But the pull upon
the rope being still exerted by the continued descent of the cage, it follows that
the door must now be lifted, and it accordingly moves upwards until the cage is
stopped. The door is held in the open position so long as the cage remains at the
bottom of the hoist, but immediately upon its ascent it is closed and automatically
locked by the reversal of the motion. Instead of one hook, as illustrated by the
drawings, two hooks may be employed, in which case it is preferred to arrange
them so as to engage with the rope near to the pulleys P P. Also, instead of a
separate hook or hooks, the hook may be formed by suitably bending the arm D.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is-
1. The combination and arrangement in a hoist having vertically sliding doors,
with a locking device consisting of a bent lever, a catch, and a fixed projection, of
a rocking shaft mounted in the cage, and having secured thereon the arm B and
the hook E, constructed and operating substantially as hereinbefore described, and
as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
2. The combination and arrangement in a hoist having vertically sliding doors,
of a door-locking device, consisting of a bent lever, a catch, and a fixed projection,

page_text: with a rocking shaft having the arm B and the hook E secured thereon, and the
rope N adapted to be engaged by the hook E, and to liberate the locking device
and lift the door, substantially as hereinbefore described, and as illustrated by the
accompanying drawings.
3. The apparatus for opening, closing, and locking the doors of hoists, con- 5
structed, arranged, and operating substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore
described, and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
Dated the 2nd day of February A.D. 1892
WILLIAM E. HEYS,
Agent for the Applicants.