Patent Application
20090288274
This application claims priority of French application no. 0853365, filed on May 23, 2008, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein.
The invention relates to the technical field of apparatus for lifting and handling boards of composite wood, plaster or other materials intended to be positioned onto ceilings and/or onto the wall or walls of a structure.
These large boards constitute heavy loads to be moved and positioned, and apparatus of this type use telescopic masts mounted manually by a winch. A rope safety device is accordingly provided, which ensures that, in case of breakage of the traction rope used to raise or lower the columns constituting the mast, a supplementary safety rope is then activated to substitute for the broken traction rope. A safety device of this type has been described in french patent no. 2538437, and was then improved by the device described in french patent no. 2758150 to the applicant. This patent is used by the applicant satisfactorily. FIG. 1 of the application shows the safety device known from the prior art in french patent no. 2758150. It uses a particular arrangement with two ropes, one for traction and the other for safety by substitution, these two ropes being looped and anchored at one of their ends separately to two pins joined to the bottom end of the terminal column of the mast with different positioning levels. Thus, the safety rope is longer than the traction rope, with an assembly that reveals a clearance between its lowest point and the retaining pin, in order to avoid being loaded in normal periods. This safety rope is kept under tension by means of a spring of which one of the ends is joined to the loop of the rope, and the other is joined to the inside column by means of a hole for hooking.
While this device is commonly used by the applicant, the implementation of its assembly is not always practical. The device is accommodated inside the terminal column of the telescopic mast, as shown in FIG. 2 of abovementioned french patent no. 2758150.
In connection with new researches, the applicant has externalized the tension of the safety rope with regard to the vertical column of the telescopic mast to facilitate the assembly of the overall safety device. For this purpose, this solution has been described in patent application fr 06.055264 and has been illustrated partially in FIGS. 2a-2b.
The safety device comprises, on the one hand, a part (1) for hooking and fastening the traction (2) and safety (3) ropes, so that they are at the same fastening level, the said hooking part being fastened in the lower accommodating portion (4a) of the terminal internal column (4) of the telescopic assembly and, on the other hand, a mechanism for tensioning the safety rope (3), this mechanism being externalized with regard to the telescopic mast and located opposite the winch for winding the traction and safety ropes. The hooking part (1) is prepared in the form of a profiled plate having, in its upper top proportion (1a) in its inside, two terminals (1b) spaced and projecting from the flat base (1c) of the plate. Each terminal allows the passage and fastening of the anchoring loops (2a) (3a) formed at the ends of the traction and safety ropes. The loops (2a) (3a) surround the abovementioned terminals and are therefore kept under tension by the ropes which are directed towards the winch. The bottom portion (1d) of the hooking part (1) has an inward offset (1e) so as to be anchored in the space formed for this purpose on the lower portion of the terminal internal column of the telescopic mast.
This latter solution, although advantageous, reveals a number of drawbacks concerning the strength of the end loops of the traction and safety ropes, and of the hooking plate itself with regard to the accommodating tube.
The profiles of the telescopic columns of telescopic masts for lifting apparatus may, furthermore, have different triangular configurations with an open square or rectangular section face. According to known practice, the hooking devices of the safety and traction ropes must take account of the differentiations of profiles and have very different configurations.
Thus, it is a further aspect of the invention to produce a novel device having an identical functionality, regardless of the profile of the uprights.
The applicant's approach was therefore to reflect on an improvement to the fastening of the said ropes, and also on the amplitude imparted to the trajectory of the safety rope to give it more slack in comparison with the working rope in an operating situation.
A further aspect was to obtain longer rope service life.
Faced with these various aspects, the applicant revisited the device for fixing and hooking the ends of the safety and traction ropes in an optimized configuration.
According to a first feature, the device for fastening safety and working ropes on telescopic columns of apparatus for lifting boards onto ceilings and walls, of the type comprising a part for hooking the traction and safety ropes being positioned on the internal column of the telescopic mast of the apparatus, is characterized in that the device is fixed horizontally on the accommodating column in the alternative profiles thereof, and consists of a 1 shaped plate with a horizontal face and a vertical face connected together by a curved central shape having a wide radius, and in that the said plate is arranged with two parallel and identical oblong holes formed in the height of the plate, and in that these holes allow the positioning and passage of traction and safety ropes, the said ropes having at their ends stops coming into contact with the lower side of the plate.
These features and others will appear clearly from the rest of the description.
To clarify the object of the invention, it is illustrated in a non-limiting manner in the figures of the drawings in which:
To make the object of the invention more concrete, it is now described in a non-limiting manner illustrated in the appended figures of the drawings.
The columns (10) constituting the mast of the board lifting and handling apparatus have an open profile or a closed profile and both alternatives have been shown in the figures, one with an open triangular profile,
In the alternative of the closed column shown in
In the case of the open column,
The ropes (2-3), at their ends, have stops (13-14) duplicate-moulded or added on or crimped and coming into contact with the inside of the part (11) according to the operating and loading conditions. The stop (13) associated with the traction rope (2) comes into contact with the plate. On the contrary, concerning the safety rope (3), its stop (14) has a loop (14a) for hooking the end of a spring (15) so that the rope is kept under tension, the other end of the spring being joined to the bottom portion of the column by anchoring means (16) of any appropriate type.
For questions of manufacturing standardization, it is obvious that the configuration of the ropes (2-3) and of their stops (13-14) may be identical.
The hooking device (11) of the invention is applicable regardless of the profile of the columns, and it is the particular design of this device that is claimed. Profile arrangements for adapting to the profiles of opened and closed columns of any section may be provided as required.
The solution of the invention provides numerous advantages, with simplicity of manufacture and assembly of the device, and above all, enhanced safety.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0853365 | May 2008 | FR | national |
