Improvements in Rope Clutches or Apparatus for use in Trans- porting Loads by means of Travelling Ropes or Cables.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Mar., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 26th Mar., 1892-Accepted, 5th Nov., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Rope Clutches or Apparatus for use in Trans-
porting Loads by means of Travelling Ropes or Cables.
I, PER THEODOR SUNDBERG of Donmarfret, Sweden, Civil and Mechanical
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to a rope clutch by means of which a basket bucket or
vehicle (hereinafter called a bucket) to be transported can be automatically
coupled to or uncoupled from a continually moving hauling rope or cable.
The invention is especially designed for aerial ropeways used for transporting
coal, charcoal etc., but it is also applicable to lifts, elevators and similar apparatus.
There are many kinds of rope clutches in use in aerial ropeways but so far as I am
aware all are open to objection. For instance none of them act automatically and
thus the coupling operation must always be effected by hand.
According to one construction of these clutches as heretofore employed the
hauling rope is held between two jaws which are pressed together by means of an
eccentric. The drawback to such an arrangement is that the clutch does not act
with security in the case of steep gradients or heavy loads, the eccentric not being
able to press the jaws beyond a certain limit. Another construction wherein the
jaws are forced together by means of a screw has the same inconvenience. A third
kind of coupling consists in a box bolted to the bucket and made to receive a sleeve
fixed on the hauling rope. This very simple arrangement has the objection of
spoiling the rope at the points where the sleeves are fixed, in consequence of
the continual bending of the rope on the sleeve when passing the supporting
pulleys.
The disadvantages of the various known systems are all obviated by the use
of a rope clutch according to my invention and which is illustrated in the accom-
panying drawings.
Fig. 1 is an elevation partly in section.
Fig. 2 is a plan in section.
Fig. 3 is a cross section of the apparatus.
The clutch comprises a cast body a open at the top and having a wedge shaped
recess a¹ of gradually decreasing cross sectional area from the centre towards both
ends as shewn in Fig. 3. In this recess are placed loose jaws bb the outer surfaces
of which are also wedge shaped tapering from the middle of the jaws towards
their ends. The jaws are inserted into the body a through an opening in one side
thereof, this opening being afterwards closed by a plate c which is screwed to a
as shewn in the drawings. The plate c may have its inner surface either straight
or wedge shaped but the jaw sliding on the surface should be correspondingly
formed. g is a plate upon which the jaws rest and which has its ends bent over so
as to embrace the jaws and prevent them from changing their longitudinal position
relatively to each other and also to prevent them falling against each other. The
plate c is arranged to slide in a guide a fixed to the bucket the sliding movement
being limited by bolts e and f.
The coupling between the bucket and the hauling rope is effected by merely
dropping the rope or cable between the jaws 6 of the clutch. The plate g will
then be moved by the friction between the rope or cable and the jaws towards
one or other end of the wedge shaped recess a¹ in the body a thereby causing the
jaws to approach each other and firmly grip the rope.
On increasing the load the pressure of the jaws on the rope will be also increased
and thus the security of the clutch is guaranteed and its gripping action rendered
automatic and dependent upon the load.

page_text: The uncoupling of the rope from the bucket is effected by fixing wedge shaped
pieces h h on the supporting rope or rail at the points where the bucket is to be
stopped. These pieces hh are each fixed to the supporting rope or rail by any
suitable means such as screw bands and constitute an elevation over which the
vehicle carrying the bucket must run. Having passed up the one inclined portion
of this elevation and passed the highest point thereof the vehicle will rapidly.
descend the other inclined portion with the result that a velocity greater than that
of the travelling rope will be imparted to the bucket and to the guide d fixed
thereto. The body a until this happens will have been resting against the bolt f
assuming the clutch to be moving in the direction of the arrow Fig. 2, but when
the guide d moves rapidly forward with the bucket as stated, the said guide will
slide forward on the plate c and cause the bolt e to strike against the plate c and
move the body a forward relatively to the jaws b which will consequently move
towards the centre of the double wedge shaped recess a' in the body a. The jaws
will thus release the rope which is then removed from the clutch by causing it to
move upward over a pulley i arranged a slight distance in advance of the wedge
shaped piece h h this pulley having a tendency to keep the rope above the clutch.
It is evident that the means employed for causing the clutch to release the rope
can be varied from that shown in Fig. 4, which however has the valuable qualities
of being cheap, simple and effective and, provided that they be such as to cause the
bucket and the guide d to move with a velocity greater or less than that of the
hauling rope at the place where it is desired that the bucket should stop. This
difference of speed will always result in a blow between the body in which the
jaws bare placed and the studs employed to limit the movement of the said body
this blow resulting in movement of the said body relatively to the jaws which are
thereby caused to release the rope.
In the example illustrated in Fig. 4 the bucket receives a greater speed than
that of the hauling rope.
Fig. 5 illustrates an example where the bucket receives a velocity less than
that of the hauling rope.
In this arrangement the bucket which is supposed to have moved down in an
inclined direction is shown as moving in a horizontal direction on a rope or rail
below which it is to be stopped. The jaws will at this time be so firmly wedged
between the rope and the walls of the recess of the body a that they will at first
maintain the position they have assumed when the bucket was moving downward in
an inclined direction. At the place, where the bucket is to stop, the supporting
rope or rail may be provided simply with a screw band land if then the hauling
rope be supported at a slight distance in front of the said band by a pulley &
as shown the clutch will release the hauling rope in the manner hereinbefore
explained.
Fig. 6 shows a somewhat modified arrangement of the above described rope
clutch. If the boom of the bucket should not be perfectly even, it will easily
happen that the soft guide will assume an oblique position, which will interfere
with the motion of the clutch and prevent it working properly.
To avoid this, the apparatus is made stronger by inserting the jaws 6 6 and their
plate in a box a* (Fig. 6) that is hollowed out like the body a herein before
described, the box a being placed in a casting a' in such a way that it is able to
slide backward and forward inside the said casting. The box a* and the jaws bb
are placed in the casting a³ through an opening formed in the backwall of the
latter, the opening being normally shut by means of a plate c' which fastens the
piece a³ to the boom on the bucket.
It is obvious that a rope clutch such as described can be employed in lifts or
elevators. The arrangement for effecting the uncoupling of the rope being of
course suitably modified to suit the altered conditions of working.
Dated this 16th day of March 1892.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
.
Improvements in Rope Clutches or Apparatus for use in Trans-
porting Loads by means of Travelling Ropes or Cables.
I, PER THEODOR SUNDBERG of Donmarfact Sweden, Civil and Mechanical
Engineer, 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 a rope clutch by means of which a basket bucket or
vehicle (hereinafter called a bucket) to be transported can be automatically coupled
to or uncoupled from a continually moving hauling rope or cable.
The invention is especially designed for aerial ropeways used for transporting
coal, charcoal etc., but it is also applicable to lifts, elevators and similar
apparatus.
There are many kinds of rope clutches in use in aerial ropeways but so far as I
am aware all are open to objection. For instance_none of them act automatically
and thus the coupling operation must always be effected by hand.
According to one construction of these clutches as heretofore employed the
hauling rope is held between two jaws which are pressed together by means of an
eccentric. The drawback to such an arrangement is that the clutch does not act
with security in the case of steep gradients or heavy loads, the eccentric not being
able to press the jaws beyond a certain limit. Another construction wherein the
jaws are forced together by means of a screw has the same inconvenience. A third
kind of coupling consists in a box bolted to the bucket and made to receive a sleeve
fixed on the hauling rope. This very simple arrangement has the objection of
spoiling the rope at the points where the sleeves are fixed, in consequence of
the continual bending of the rope on the sleeve when passing the supporting
pulleys.
The disadvantage of the various known systems are all obviated by the use of a
rope clutch according to my invention, which is illustrated in the drawings left
with my Provisional Specification in which
Fig. 1 is an elevation partly in section.
Fig. 2 is a plan in section.
Fig. 3 is a cross section of the apparatus.
The clutch comprises a cast body a open at the top and having a wedgeshaped
recess a² of gradually decreasing cross sectional area from the centre towards both
ends as shown in Fig. 2.. In this recess are placed loose jaws bb the outer surfaces
of which are also wedge-shaped tapering from the middle of the jaws towards their
ends. The jaws are inserted into the body a through an opening in one side thereof
this opening being afterwards closed by a plate c which is screwed to a as shown in
the drawings the plate c may have its inner surface either straight or wedge shaped
but the jaw sliding on the surface should be correspondingly formed. 9 is a plate
upon which the jaws rest and which has its ends bent over so as to embrace the
jaws and prevent them from changing their longitudinal position relatively to
each other and also to prevent them falling against each other. The plate c is
arranged to slide in a guide d fixed to the bucket the sliding movement being
limited by bolts e and f.
The coupling between the bucket and the hauling rope is effected by merely
dropping the rope or cable between the jaws 6 of the clutch. The plate g will then
be moved by the friction between the rope or cable and the jaws towards one or
other end of the wedge shaped recess a¹ in the body a thereby causing the jaws to
approach each other and firmly grip the rope.
On increasing the load the pressure of the jaws on the
rope
will be also increased

page_text: and thus the security of the clutch is guaranteed and its gripping action rendered
automatic and dependent upon the load.
The uncoupling of the rope from the bucket is effected by fixing wedge shaped
pieces h, h on the supporting rope or rail at the points where the bucket is to be
stopped. These pieces h, h are each fixed to the supporting rope or rail by any
suitable means such as screw bands and constitute an elevation over which the
-vehicle carrying the bucket must run. Having passed up the one inclined portion
of this. elevation and passed the highest point thereof, the vehicle will rapidly
descend the other inclined portion with the result that a velocity greater than that
of the travelling rope will be imparted to the bucket and to the guide d fixed
thereto. The body a until this happens will have been resting against the bolt f
assuming the clutch to be moving in the direction of the arrow Fig. 2, but when
the guide d moves rapidly forward with the bucket as stated, the said guide will
slide forward on the plate c and cause the bolt e to strike against the plate c and
move the body a forward relatively to the jaws b which will consequently move
towards the centre of the double wedge shaped recess a' in the body a. The jaws
will thus release the rope which is then removed from the clutch by causing it to
move upward over a pulley i arranged a slight distance in advance of the wedge
shaped piece hh this pulley having a tendency to keep the rope above the
.clutch.
It is evident that the means employed for causing the clutch to release the rope
can be varied from that shown in Fig. 4 which however has the valuable qualities
of being cheap simple and effective, provided that they be such as to cause the
bucket and the guide d to move with a velocity greater or less than that of the
hauling rope at the place where it is desired that the bucket should stop. This
difference of speed will always result in a blow between the body in which the
jaws bare placed and the studs employed to limit the movement of the said body
this blow resulting in movement of the said body relatively to the jaws which are
thereby caused to release the rope.
In the example illustrated in Fig. 4 the bucket receives a greater speed than
that of the hauling rope.
Fig. 5 illustrates an example where the bucket receives a velocity less than that
of the hauling rope so that the clutch may be caused to release the said rope.
In this arrangement the bucket is supposed to have moved down an incline in the
direction of the arrow and to be moving in a horizontal direction on a rope or rail
below which it is to be stopped. While descending the incline the bucket has a
tendency to move faster than the hauling rope so that the jaws will be so firmly
wedged between the rope and the walls of the recess of the body a in the position
shewn in Fig. 2 on reaching the horizontal rope or rail that they will at first main-
tain this position. At the place where the bucket is to stop, the supporting rope
or rail may simply be provided with a stop or band attached by means of a screw,
and if then the hauling rope be supported at a slight distance in front of the said
stop by a pulley i the hauling rope will draw the body forward and thus cause it
to strike against the bolt . The jaws are thereby caused to move towards the
middle of the recess in the body a and thus release the hauling rope in the manner
herein before explained with reference to Fig. 2.
Fig. 6 shews a somewhat modified arrangement of the above described rope
clutch. If the boom of the bucket should not be perfectly even, it will easily
happen that the soft guide will assume an oblique position, which will interfere
with the motion of the clutch and prevent it working properly.
To avoid this, the apparatus is made stronger by inserting the jaws bb and their
plate in a box a* (Fig. 6) that is hollowed out like the body a hereinabove
described, the box a being placed in a casting a² in such a way that it is able to
slide backward' and forward inside the said casting. The box a and the jaws bb
are placed in the casting a through an opening formed in the backwall of the
latter, the opening being normally shut by means of a plate, c² which fastens the

page_text: It is obvious that a rope clutch such as described can be employed in lifts or
elevators. The arrangement for effecting the uncoupling of the rope being of
course suitably modified to suit the altered conditions of working.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed 1 declare that
what I claim is :-
1. The hereinbefore described improved rope clutch wherein loose jaws such
as bb of which at least one is made of gradually decreasing cross sectional area
from the centre towards both ends, are arranged to move endways within a recess
or passage also of gradually decreasing cross sectional area from the centre towards
its ends and formed in a block or body connected to the bucket containing the load
to be transported, the arrangement being such that the said jaws after insertion of
the hauling rope will move to one or other end of the recess or passage and grip
the rope with a force proportional to the amount of the load to be transported
substantially as described and shown.
2. In a rope clutch of the kind specified in the preceding claim, attaching the
block or body in which the jaws are placed to the bucket in such a manner as to
allow the said body a limited movement relatively to the bucket for the purpose of
producing a blow between the said body and the bolts or other stops employed to
limit the movement thereof, when the bucket is caused to move with a greater or
less velocity than that of the hauling rope, and thereby causes the jaws to loosen
their hold upon the hauling rope which will then move the jaws towards the centre
of the recess or passage in the said block or body and permit the hauling rope to
become automatically disengaged from the clutch substantially as hereinbefore
described.