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United States Patent	3,850,263
Chin	November 26, 1974

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Current U.S. Class:	182/236 ; 182/5
Current International Class:	A62B 1/12 (20060101); A62B 1/00 (20060101); A62b 001/12 ()
Field of Search:	182/75,74,73 254/158,154

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References Cited

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U.S. Patent Documents

141378	July 1873	Pelham
755833	March 1904	Appelman
1099834	June 1914	Baldwin
2261261	November 1941	Kubera
2703219	March 1955	Henshaw

Primary Examiner: Machado; Reinaldo P.

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Claims

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I claim:

1. Apparatus for fire escaping from a high building comprising a frame, a winch having a cable thereon rotatably mounted on said frame, a gear train driven by said winch, a pair of parallelly disposed screw rods having threads in reversed direction to each other and being driven by said gear train, a plate with a pair of nuts matching said pair of reversely threaded screw rods and slidably mounted thereon, a hydraulic cylinder having a piston driven by the slide motion of said plate, a hydraulic selecting pump actuated by said hydraulic cylinder, a brake control cylinder actuated by said selecting pump, and a brake assembly controlling the rotation of said winch, whereby upon rotation of the winch caused by the unwinding of the winch cable due to the falling of an escaper hanging on the cable end, pressure is built up in the hydraulic cyinder and passes through the selecting pump to actuate the brake assembly to stop the motion of the winch, and upon release of said brake assembly, rotation of the winch is resumed to start the whole cycle all over again so that the escaper reaches the ground in intermittent stop-and-go intervals without undergoing gravitational acceleration.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at the free end of the cable a sling is provided for attaching a safety belt or other rescuing aids.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the dimensions and pitches of said pair of screw rods are similar, the rotation of each rod being at the same speed but in opposite direction.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pair of nuts have threads in reverse direction to each other so as to match with the said pair of screw rods, the plate being normally located at the end of the screw rod pair and having the end of a piston rod of said hydraulic cylinder connected thereto.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the hydraulic selecting pump comprises a cylinder body having a fluid inlet hole at its front end, a leakage hole of smaller diameter and an outlet hole of bigger diameter disposed at the side wall of the cylinder body; a piston slidably inserted inside the front end of the cylinder, a piston rod, a flange and a threaded portion being disposed at the middle portion of the piston rod; a sleeve threaded on the outside of a projecting portion of the cylinder body; an adjusting screw threaded on the inside of said projecting portion, an opening being provided at the center of the said adjusting screw to facilitate the passing through of a free end of said piston rod; a movable spring retainer threaded on the threaded portion of said piston rod; a fixed spring retainer threaded at the end of the said sleeve; and a spiral return spring retained between the said movable and fixed spring retainers.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the brake control cylinder comprises a cylinder body having a fluid inlet hole at its top, and a projecting portion at the lower end of the cylinder body; a piston and a piston rod slidably retained inside the cylinder body, the lower portion of the piston rod being threaded and extending downwardly outside the cylinder body; a sleeve threaded on the outside of the projecting portion; a movable spring retainer threaded on the top of the threaded portion of the piston rod; a fixed spring retainer threaded at the lower part of the sleeve; and a spiral spring retained between said movable and fixed spring retainers; the lower end of said piston rod being connected to a brake band of the brake assembly.

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Description

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FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to apparatus for fire escaping, and more particularly to an apparatus that can be installed at window openings of high buildings which, when fire or other emergency strikes, would enable an escaper to descend to the ground safely utilizing the balancing of gravitational force and hydraulic force.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

During fire hazard or other emergencies in a high building, elevators and fire extinguishing facilities often are paralyzed due to power failure. Stairways become the best channel for the up-drafting flame and smoke. The only aid for escaping the fire has to come from outside. However, due to the unreachable height of the building, the rescuing work is very difficult, and many casualties usually result.

Many types of escaping apparatus have heretofore been disclosed. Generally speaking, they fall within two main categories. One utilizes centrifugal force developed by the falling body of an escaper to govern the speed of descent and the other employs a series of rope connected pulleys to the unwinding mechanism to increase friction which in turn results in retardation of the falling speed. Both categories are purely mechanical, have a bulky volume and are troublesome.

In view of the aforesaid drawbacks, the present inventor has gone through many experiments to overcome the difficulties incurred by prior conventional apparatuses.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

Accordingly, the main object of the present invention is to provide a novel apparatus for fire escaping from a high building, which is light in weight, compactly constructed, and whose operation is very simple and reliable.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for fire escaping by providing a balance between the gravitational force on a falling escaper and the hydraulic power produced due to the falling in order to control the falling speed of the escaper.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for fire escaping the function of which is accomplished by the balancing between the gravitational force on the escaper and the hydraulic power of a winch from which a falling escaper is hung and unwound in an intermittent work and stop fashion.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for fire escaping comprising a winch, a gear train driven by said winch, a pair of parallelly disposed screw rods being threaded in reverse direction to each other and being driven by said gear train, a plate with a pair of nuts matching said pair of reversely threaded screw rods and slidably mounted thereon, a hydraulic cylinder having a piston driven by the slide motion of the nuts-plate, a hydraulic selecting pump actuated by said hydraulic cylinder, a brake control cylinder actuated by said selecting pump, and a brake assembly controlling the rotation of said winch.

Still a further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for fire escaping that utilizes the gravity of the falling escaper himself without the aid of outside control or power to effect a safe falling speed control to escape from a high building fire or other emergencies.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become clear from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a front view of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention in elevation with partial cut away;

FIG. 2 shows a back view of the apparatus;

FIG. 3 shows a top view of the apparatus;

FIG. 4 shows an end view taken from the right end of the apparatus;

FIG. 5 shows a longitudinal section of the hydraulic selecting pump; and

FIG. 6 shows an elevational section of the brake control cylinder.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown the front and back view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The Frame 1 of the apparatus is comprised of left frame member 1a and right frame member 1b. The two members 1a and 1b are connected by three tie rods 4 passing through three pairs of ears 2a-2b, 3a-3b in the front (FIG. 1) and 9a-9b at the rear (FIG. 2). All the rod ends are locked with nuts. Other pairs of ears 5a-5b and 6a-6b are disposed at the backside of the frame and have holes 7 to enable the frame to be anchored against the wall or window sill outside of a building. Instead of a hole 7, a slot 8 is provided on ear 6a to facilitate easier adjustment upon installation.

Between the frame members 1a-1b, at a lower position, a winch 11 is rotatably mounted on shaft 10. A cable 12 is wound on the winch 11, and a sling 32 for connecting a safety belt or other aids is provided on the free end of the cable 12. Shaft 10 extends at both ends beyond the frame members 1a and 1b. A brake drum 134 is mounted on the shaft end outside the member 1a, while on the shaft end outside member 1b, a gear 14 is fixed thereon. When cable 12 is unwound, winch 11 rotates and the brake drum 134 and gear 14 rotate together.

At about middle position of the frame 1 disposed in parallel with the winch shaft 10, a screw rod 15 is mounted freely rotatable between members 1a-1b. Screw rod 15 has left-hand square threads thereon. At the end of the screw rod 15 projecting outside frame member 1b are fixed two gears 16 and 17. The gear 16 is of larger diameter and meshes with gear 14 on winch shaft 10.

At upper position of the frame 1, a screw rod 18 is mounted in a similar manner and in the same dimension as screw rod 15, except that the threads thereof are right-handed. At the shaft end of rod 18 extending outside frame member 1b, a gear 19 of the same diameter as the gear 17 is fixed thereon and meshes with gear 17. Therefore, the screw rod pair 15-18 rotates synchronously in reversed direction.

A nut plate 21 having two nuts 20a and 20b, each with reversed threads are screwed on rods 15 and 18, so that when rods 15 and 18 rotate, the nut plate 21 tends to move in a linear direction towards the frame member 1a.

Outside frame member 1a, in a position corresponding to the middle point of the nut plate 21, there is mounted a horizontally disposed hydraulic cylinder 22. A piston 23 is slidably mounted in cylinder 22. A piston rod 24 has one end connected to piston 23 and the other end passing through frame member 1a to connect at the middle point of nut plate 21.

Referring to FIG. 3, a hydraulic selecting pump 26 is mounted on a bracket 25 at the uppermost position of the frame 1. The hydraulic field inlet of said pump 26 is connected with the outlet of hydraulic cylinder 22 by a tube 27 so that the hydraulic pressure from cylinder 22 actuates the pump 26.

A brake control cylinder 28 is vertically attached to frame member 1a on the side thereof facing outside the member 1. The inlet of cylinder 28 is connected with the outlet of pump 26 by a tube 29. Hydraulic pressure from pump 26 actuates the brake control cylinder 28.

Now refer to FIG. 4 for a more detailed description of the brake assembly 13. As aforementioned, a brake drum 134 is mounted on the winch shaft 10. A brake band 131 is pivotally mounted at point 133. The horizontal portion of the band 131 is adjustably connected to a piston rod 30 which extends downwardly from the brake control cylinder 28 and has adjusting nuts 31 thereon. When the piston rod 30 moves downwardly, the band 131 having brake lining 132 thereon presses tightly against the brake drum 134 to achieve a braking effect.

The details of the hydraulic selecting pump 26 are further illustrated in FIG. 5. In fact, the said pump is substantially a hydraulic control valve having a cylinder body 201 with a sleeve 202 tightly fitted inside it. Holes 203 and 204 are drilled through the cylinder wall and sleeve 202, and are in communication with the inner bore 205 of the cylinder 201. The bigger hole 203 has a threaded bore 206 within which a fitting 207 is provided for the connection of tube 29 as discharge outlet. The smaller hole 204 has a threaded bore 208 in it within which a fitting 209 is provided for connection of tube 210 for leakage purposes. Tube 210 may return to a reservoir for recovery (not shown). A further threaded bore 211 is provided at the front end of the sleeve 202 to connect a fitting 213 connected to inlet tube 27. A strainer filter 212 is provided between the fitting 213 and bore 202 to prevent dirt entering into the cylinder 201.

At the rear end of cylinder body 201 a projection 214 is provided having inside and outside screw threads on it. Threaded inside the projection 214 is an adjusting screw 216 with a sealing ring 215 retained therein. Threaded outside the projection 214 is a sleeve 218 having a plurality of holes 217 around it. Threaded at the rear end of sleeve 218 is a fixed spring retainer 220 having a center opening 219.

Within sleeve 202 a rubber piston 221 is inserted. The end of a piston rod 222 is passed through the adjusting screw 216 and sleeve 218 and rests inside the opening 219 of spring retainer 220. The front part of the piston rod 222 has screw threads 224. In front of the threaded portion 224 is a flange 223 which serves as a valve. Under normal conditions the flange 223 is retained inside the cylinder 201, while the threaded portion 224 is retained half-way between the rear end of cylinder 201 and the front end of sleeve 218. On the threaded portion 224 a movable spring retainer 225 is threaded and a spiral spring 226 is retained between the fixed retainer 220 and movable retainer 225. Under normal conditions, piston 221 is located at the front end of cylinder 201 and spring retainer 225 is pressed by spring 226 against the projected surface of the adjustable screw 216.

FIG. 6 illustrates the details of the brake control cylinder 28. Cylinder body 301 has a sleeve 302 tightly fitted therein. On top of the cylinder body 301 an inlet hole 303 having a smaller diameter than the inside diameter of the sleeve 302 is provided. A threaded bore 304 on top of the hole 303 is fitted with a fitting to connect with inlet tube 29. At the lower end of cylinder body 301 a projection 306 having an outside thread is provided for engaging with a sleeve 307. At the lower end of sleeve 307 a fixed spring retainer 309 is threaded having a center opening 308. Retained within cylinder 301 is a piston 310. The lower end of piston rod 30 is threaded at 30a. The threaded portion 30a of the piston rod 30 passes through opening 308 of spring retainer 309 and extends toward the horizontal portion of brake band 131 of the brake assembly 13 and is connected therewith by adjusting nuts 31. A movable spring retainer 311 is threaded on the upper end of threaded portion 30a. A Spiral spring 312 is retained between retainers 309 and 311. When not actuated by hydraulic pressure, the movable retainer 311 is pressed against the projection 306 of the cylinder body 301 and piston 310 is positioned at an upper dead point. Holes 313 having threads therein are provided for mounting purposes.

The operation of the apparatus of the present invention will not be described. The apparatus is usually mounted on the wall near the window openings of a high building with anchoring bolts and nuts. A covering hood (not shown) is provided to protect it from weather, etc. Only sling 32 is exposed. An escaper hangs on the sling 32 with the aid of a belt or the like and jumps out of the window. The body weight of the escaper pulls on the cable 12 which in turn unwinds from the winch 11 and causes the winch 11 to revolve. Upon descent of the body, winch 11 rotates the gear train of gears 14, 16, 17, 19 and brake drum 13. Gears 17 and 19 turn the screw rods 15 and 18 which force the nut plate 21 to move forward the piston 23 via piston rod 24, causing hydraulic pressure to be built up within the cylinder 22. This pressure is in turn transmitted to selecting pump 26 through tube 27 and fitting 213. Piston 221 in the pump 26 moves against the force exerted by spring 226 until the flange 223 touches the inside hole of adjusting screw 216 (as shown by dotted line in FIG. 5). In this position piston 221 is stopped below the hole 203 so that a part of hole 203 is exposed to communicate with bore 205 in front of the cylinder. Also, the end of piston rod 222 extends out of fixed spring retainer 220. The extent of exposure of the hole 203 may be adjusted by the adjusting screw 216.

Thus, hydraulic fluid from tube 27 is now transmitted through hole 203 and tube 29 to the brake control cylinder 28, which in turn forces the piston 310 downward against the force of spring 312. The lower end of piston rod 30 tightens the brake band 131 to press against the brake drum 134, thereby stopping the rotation of winch 11. Once the winch 11 is stopped, cable 12 ceases descending, to stop the falling body of the escaper.

When the winch 11 is stopped, gears 14, 16, 17, 19 and screw rods 15 and 18 are stopped. Nut plate 21 does not move forward any more and pressure inside cylinder 22 does not build up any more. As cylinder 22 ceases to produce pressure, fluid inside it leaks slightly through hole 204. As a result of pressure decrease, piston 221 is forced back by spring 226 and returns to its original position. The channel between inlet tube 27 and outlet hole 203 is plugged by the piston 221. Because of the pressure release, cylinder 28 loses pressure and piston 310 is forced upward by spring 312 until it reaches its uppermost position. Piston rod 30 releases brake band 131 from pressing brake drum 134 to diminish the braking effect. Again the escaper starts falling and commences another cycle of operation. When the cycles continue, the escaper can fall to the ground intermittently without undergoing gravitational acceleration. The leakage of fluid through hole 204 is much smaller in comparison with flow through hole 203 so that the time required for brake releasing is longer than that for deceleration of the winch. Thus, even though its an intermittent motion it proceeds smoothly without stumble.

The above embodiment is given only for illustration purposes and not by way of limitation, and modifications will become evident to those skilled in the art which will fall within the scope of the attached claims.

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