Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
9~3
I,ADDER MOUNTED HOIST
Th.is invention relates to a ladder mounted hoist
and more particularly to a hoist for use in underground
mines to hoist materials (.drills, steel, pipes, etc.) up
onto ore muck piles.
In underground mines, it is common practise to use
- wooden ladderways of 50 feet or less in length which are
set at an angle of approximately 45 to handle materials
up and down the muck pile. Motor operated hoists exist
of course, such as, for example, the one disclosed in
U.S. Patent No. 3115211, issued December 24, 1963, or U.S.
Patent No. 4183423, issued January 15, 1980. However,
these hoists are not well adapted for use in mining
operations because they are too bulky. .In cut and fill
stopes, for example, the ladderway is advanced as the
mucking progresses and this means that any system used
to move material up onto the muck pile must be compact,
lightweight and portable. The hoist must, therefore, be
easily removed from the ladderway. Hoists, such as the
one disclosed in U.S. Pa ent No. 4183423, which are
" ~
19~
-- 2
permanently secured to the ladder are, therefore, not
suitable for mining operations. As to the hoist disclosed
in U.S. Patent No. 3115211, it is disclosed as being
removably secured to the ladder but it is attached to
the bottom of the ladder, out of reach of the operator
which is working on the top of the muck pile. The system
also requires a pulley located at the top of the ladder for
passing the ~inch cable which is attached to the load
carrying buggy. Threading of the cable off the pulley
would make it more difficult to remove the hoist from the
ladder.
It is, therefore, the object of the present inven- -
tion to provide a ladder mounted hoist which is removably
mounted on the top of the ladder so that it can be easily
removed from the ladder by the operator working on the
muck pile for moving the ladder or for installation on
another ladder.
The ladder mounted hoist, in accordance with the
present invention, comprises a hoist frame which slides
onto the top of the ladder, a motor mounted on such a
frame, a spool containing a predetermined length of
cable also mounted on the frame, and a buggy slidahly
mounted on the ladder and attached to the end of the
cable.
A track is preferably secured to the face of
the ladder for the buggy to slide on. The buggy is
preferably provided with wheels attached to the underside
thereof for riding on the tracks. Guides are also
secured to the underside of the buggy for guiding the
, . .
~ 3 --
buggy as it slides on the tracks.
The invention will now be disclosed, by way of
example, with reference to the accompanying drawings
in which:
Figure 1 i5 a perspective view ofa ladder mounted
hoist, in accordance with the invention, resting on a
muck pile;
Figure 2 is a perspective view of the hoist;
Flgure 3 is a side-view of the hoist as it is
asser~l.~d to the ladder;
Figure 4 is a partial view of a ladder having
tracks mounted thereon;
Figure 5 is a side view of the buggy of the hoist;
and
Figure 6 is an end view of the buggy.
Referring to figure 1 of the drawings, there is
shown a ladderway 10 res-ting on a muck pile 12 and ~hich
is made of one or several ladders, joined end to end,
depending on the height of the muck pile. The ladders
2~ are normally made of wood sides 14 with rungs 16. The
ladders are preferably 10 feet long and should be
securely joined by using a butt jointand splice pieces.
The ladderway must be secured on the muck pile with the
joints supported by muck or braces, such as braces 18.
Mounted on the top of the uppermost ladder is a
hoist frame 20 which is more clearly shown in figures
2 and 3 of the drawings. The frame has hollow legs 22
which are joined by a transverse member 24. The inside
dimensions of the legs are such as to easily slide onto
.
-- ` 13 72~9l3
the ladder sides in order to allow easy removal of the
frame from the top of the ladder. Two spaced brackets 26
are secured to the transverse member 24 for supporting a
hoist motor 28. The hoist motor is preferably an air motor
although an electric or other types of motors could be
used. A shaft 30 supporting a spool 32 is rotatably mounted
in suitable bearings 34 secured to the inside wall of the
legs of the frame. The shaft is driven by the motor 28
through a roller chain 36 engaging a sprocket 38 secured
to the shaft.
Referring back to figure 1, the spool 32 contains
a predetermined length of cable 40, the end of which is
attached to a buggy 42 which slides on the sides 14 of
the ladderway. As shown in figure 4, straps 44 are pref-
erably nailed to the face of the ladderway, directly on
the sides 14, so as to act as tracks for the buggy
to slide on. The straps may end short of the top of the
uppermost ladder of the ladderway since the buggy does
not slide all the way up.
Referring to figures 5 and 6, the buggy is
preferably made of a piece of plywood 46 on the upper
slde of which are secured side and end members 48 and
50, respectively, so as to form~an open top container.
Wheels 52 in the form of appliance casters are inserted
into holes 54 in the plywood sheet underneath thebuggy to facilitate sliding of the buggy on the tracks
44. A chain or rope (not shown) is preferably fixed
into appertures 56 in the front and back end members 48
and 50 to secure the load in the buggy. Guides 58 are
7~9~3
-- 5 --
attached to the underside of the buggy. The guides are
spaced by a distance, such as to fit inside the tracks
44 so as to guide the buggy on the ladder.
During installation, the frame 20 is slid onto
the top of the ladderway as shown by arrow A in figure
3, and a compressor air hose is connected to the hoist
motor. The buggy is attached to the rope end using a
snap hook or shackle, and then the buggy is placed on
the tracks. One man operates the hoist at the top of
the muck pile and unloads material. One man loads the
material at the foot of the ladderway. All material in
the buggy is ~ecured by ~eans of chains or ropes.
