Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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LIFTING AND TILTING DEVICE
This invention relates to lifting and tilting devices for
lifting and carrying reels of wound material of indefinite length.
Lifting and tilting devices for lifting and carrying reels of
wound material are known. Such reels may be of extreme weight when full
and may include reels of wound metal wire, electrical conductor or
lengths of steel strip. It is convenient for lifting and tilting
devices to be orientated between positions in which a reel has its axis
vertically or horizontally. In some situations it is convenient to move
wound reels while changing them between horizontal and vertical
It positions. If the lifting and tilting device is constructed so as to be
able to change the orientation of the reel axis then this simplifies the
lifting and carrying operation under these conditions.
In one type of lifting and tilting device, a support shaft is
used for carrying reels of material. This support shaft is inserted
into an axial hole of a reel and expandable gripping elements are used
which move outwardly against the surface of the bore of the feel. With
the reel held and being carried by the device with its axis in a
horizontal position, then no problem is normally found with this type of
device. However, should the device be tilted so that the reel axis
moves towards a vertical position, then it is imperative that the
gripping elements securely hold the reel in position to prevent the reel
from sliding from the shaft. Unfortunately it has been found that with
the above type of lifting and tilting device, the expandable gripping
; elements sometimes engage against a greasy bore surface thereby reducing
the frictional grip upon the reel. As a result, there is a tendency for
the reel to be dropped from the tilting device as it is being oriented
towards a position with its axis vertical.
The present invention provides a lifting and tilting device
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having expandable gripping elements as discussed above and in which the
above problems are eliminated. The device of the present invention
includes a spool retention means in which a lever means is included, the
lever means normally urged into a retention position in which it has an
abutment surface for abutting engagement with one side of a reel flange
to prevent removal of the reel from its seating position on the
spindle.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a lifting and
tilting device for lifting and carrying reels of wound material of
indefinite length comprising:- a frame having an arcuate track; a
lifting block movable along the track, the block having means for
attachment to a flexible lifting member to raise and lower the device;
means for locating and gripping a reel, said means comprising a support
shaft extending from the frame for insertion into an axial bore of the
reel and expandable gripping elements movable radially of the shaft to
frictionally engage or disengage the surface of the axial bore; the
frame and support shaft being liftable by movement of the track to
change the position of the lifting block upon the track when the frame
and shaft are suspended from the block; and a reel retention means
comprising a lever means pivotal connected to the frame, the lever
means normally urged into a retention position and being movable out of
said position, the lever means having an abutment surface for abutting
engagement with one side of a reel flange to prevent removal of the reel
from a seating position on the shaft with the lever means in the
retention position.
One embodiment of the invention will now be described by way
of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 is a side elevation Al view of a lifting and tilting device;
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Figures 2 and 3 are cross-sectional views along lines II-II
and III-III in Figure 1 and on a larger scale;
Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 1 with a reel of
electrical conductor carried by the device;
Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 with the device
oriented into a different position;
Figure 6 is a view of the device oriented into a position
between Figures 4 and 5 and showing a reel retention means in an
incorrect position for locking a reel upon the device;
Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view through the device taken
along line VII-VII in Figure 4; and
Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII
in Figure 7.
The lifting and tilting device 10 shown in the drawings is
basically of a conventional construction. This conventional
construction will be briefly described followed by more detailed
discussion concerning the inventive features which relate to two reel
retention means for ensuring that a reel of wound material carried upon
the device is held securely in position under all operating conditions.
The device, as shown particularly in Figure 1, comprises a
frame 12 which is of T-shaped cross-section (see Figure 2) to provide a
vertical web 14 and a flange 16. The web and flange are of arcuate
form, i.e. being part circular with the flange 16 uppermost to form an
arcuate track for a lifting block 18. As shown particularly in Figure
2, the lifting block is of conventional structure in that it is of
inverted U-shape and has a lifting eye 20 on its upper surface and two
rollers 22 attached to downwardly depending flanges with the rollers
disposed beneath and in engagement with the flange 16.
At one end of the frame, the flange 16 is provided with an
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L-shaped stop 24 for the lifting block (Figure 1). At the other end of
the frame, a handle 26 extends from both sides of the web 14 and this
acts as a stop for the lifting block also. The web 14 has one flat edge
surface 28 to which is attached a support shaft 29 for carrying a reel
30 of wound conductor wire. The support shaft 29 comprises an end
flange 32 which is welded to the surface 28. The shaft is tubular and
contains a means 34 for operating expandable gripping elements 36 for
gripping the surface of an axial bore of the reel when it is located
upon the shaft. These expandable gripping elements 36, as shown in
Figure 1, are of conventional construction in that they project through
diametrically opposed apertures 38 provided in the shaft, extend axially
of the shaft and are spaced-apart circumferential. The expandable
gripping elements normally occupy a chain-dotted position, as shown in
Figure 1, in which they slope radially outwards from a fixed end of the
elements which lies towards a free end of the shaft. The slope is such
that when a spool is forced onto the shaft then the gripping elements
are caused to move radially inwards upon contact with the surface of the
shaft bore. The gripping elements are normally held in this outward
chain-dotted position by a compression spring means (not shown) which is
housed within the left-hand end of the shaft 29 and is operably
connected to the gripping elements by operating linkages 40. The
operating means 34 is manually operable and, in conventional fashion,
has an operating lever 42 which projects from one side of the frame 12
as shown in Figure 3. Further detail of the conventional operation of
the device is considered to be unnecessary.
The device of the embodiment and according to the invention
differs from the conventional device in that it also includes two reel
retention means.
A main reel retention means 44 is shown clearly in Figures 1,
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4, 5 and 6. The retention means 44 comprises a lever means in the form
of a single lever 46 which is pivoted towards one end upon a lug 48
depending from the frame 12 towards the end having the stop 24. The
lever 46 is curved so as to follow the main shape of the frame 12 and
also to avoid interference with the reel 30 when it is located upon the
shaft 29 except for any interference which is necessary for locking
reasons as will be described. The lever 46 has a lower surface which
provides a cam surface 50 disposed at an angle to the axis 52 of the
shaft for the purpose of being engaged by a reel for lifting the lever
out of a retention position (shown in full outline in Figure 1) when the
reel is inserted upon the shaft. The cam surface 50 terminates at its
left-hand end, as shown in Figure 1, in a substantially vertical surface
54 which provides an abutment surface for abutting engagement with one
side of a reel flange as will be described. Surface 54 faces in the
opposite direction from the surface 56 of the flange 30 which faces
along the shaft 29 while the cam surface 50 does not extend as far as
the flange 30. The relationship of the two surfaces 54 and 56 is
important to ensure that these two surfaces engage opposite sides of a
single flange of the reel. From the region of the abutment surface 54,
the lever 46 extends in arcuate fashion downwardly towards the operating
means 34 and terminates in an operating handle 58. The handle 58 is
shaped to lie rearwardly of the handle 42, as shown in the Figures (see
particularly Figure 3), and has a downwardly extending portion 60 to be
engaged by the handle 42 when the operating means 34 is being actuated
to release the gripping elements from the surface of a reel bore.
The lever 46 normally lies in its retention position, as shown
by its dotted outline in Figure 1, by a spring means (not shown) which
may be in any suitable location to provide the turning moment about its
pivot point for this purpose. However, the lever is also movable
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towards a reel release position shown in chain-dotted outline in Figure
1. The lever 46 has a stop surface 62 on its upper edge which, when the
lever is in the release position, engages a side plate 64 on the lifting
block 18 to restrict relative movement of the lifting block and the
track which would result in bringing the lifting block closer towards
the handle 26.
The device is used in the following manner. The parts of the
device are normally as shown in Figure 1 with the lever 46 in its
retention position yin full outline) and with the gripping elements 36
in their expanded chain outline positions. With the device suspended
from the lifting block by a chain (not shown) passing through the eye
20, the device is moved horizontally on the chain so that its shaft 29
moves through the bore of the reel 30 which is fully wound with copper
conductor wire. As the device is moved to engage the reel then the
surface of the reel bore contacts the gripping elements 36 and urges
them towards their inner positions. As the reel continues along the
spindle, its forward flange 68 engages the cam surface 50 of the lever
46 and urges the lever out of its retention position towards the chain
dotted position shown in Figure 1. After the flange 68 has passed the
end of the cam surface 50, then the flange 68 engages the surface 56 of
the flange 32 and the reel is then in its seating position upon the
shaft. In this position and after flange 68 has passed the cam 50, the
lever 46 is urged by the spring means into its retention position. The
situation is then as shown in Figure 4 in which the abutment surface 54
engages the surface of the flange 68 opposite to that contacted by the
flange 32. The reel may then be carried or tilted so that its axis is
in a vertical position. The tilting operation is performed by merely
gripping the handles 26 and lifting upwardly to push the frame through
the lifting block 18 so that the frame and the reel are located as shown
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in Figure 5, i.e. with the reel axis extending vertically. In this
position, the lifting block lies close to the handle 26 as shown. If
the surface of the bore in the spool tends to be greasy and the yipping
elements 36 do not operate completely satisfactorily, there will be a
tendency For the reel to fall from the shaft 29. However, this cannot
occur because the abutment surface 54 is engaged with the undersurface
of the reel flange 68, as shown in Figure 5, thereby preventing a
potential accident.
The lifting and tilting device also provides the function of
ensuring that the reel cannot drop vertically, i.e. close to the
operator, if the device is tilted under conditions in which the reel is
not correctly in its seating position. In other words, if the reel is
mounted upon the shaft 29 and does not engage the flange 32, then the
peripheral surface of the flange 68 is still engaged by the cam surface
50 of the lever 46 so that the lever is in its release position and will
not move into its retention position. In such a situation, if the
device were to be tilted to the position shown in Figure 5 and the
gripping elements 36 allowed the reel to drop from the shaft 29 then the
abutment surface 54 could not prevent this reel movement. However, as
shown by Figure 6, the surface 62 of the lever 46 prevents the vertical
orientation of the reel from being assumed. As shown in Figure 6 with
the lever 46 held upwardly in its release position, then the frame may
only be moved through the lifting block 18 until the surface 62 engages
the plate 64. In this position the axis of the shaft 29 and the reel is
only Toledo slightly and the whole assembly cannot be tilted further.
It follows that if the gripping elements do not hold the reel in this
position and allow for slippage, then the reel will fall obliquely away
and thus away from the operator.
A further safety precaution is that with the relative
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disposition of the handles 42 and 60, it is extremely difficult to
operate the handle 60 without operation of the handle 42 because a
conscious effort must be made to insert a hand between the two handles.
It follows that handle 42, in moving to the left as shown in Figure 3,
must be moved a sufficient distance before it engages the downward
portion 60 of handle 58 and further movement of the handle 42 in this
direction then also moves handle 58 to pivot the lever 46 out of its
retention position. As a result of this, the initial operation of
handle 42 releases the gripping elements 36 from the reel before the
abutment surface 54 is drawn out of engagement with the flange 68. It
is virtually impossible therefore for the lever 46 to be removed from
the retention position prior to release of the gripping elements from
the reel. As a result, the situation does not allow for the gripping
elements 36 to be the sole means for holding a reel upon the device when
the reel lies with its axis in the vertical position as shown in Figure
5.
Clearly therefore from the above description, the invention
provides a lifting and tilting device which is safe in operation and
overcomes all problems which are normally encountered with slippage of a
reel upon the support shaft.
In addition however, the device is equipped with a further
spool retention means 70 as shown in Figures 7 and 8. This retention
means requires a conscious effort to manually operate it and does not
automatically locate itself in a retention position. As shown by
Figures 7 and 8, the retention means 70 comprises a plate 72 which is
pivoted about a pin 74 on flange 32. The plate 72 is provided with an
axial projection 76 terminating in a locking flange 78. With the
retention means in its locking position (full outline in Figure 7) the
locking flange 78 overlies the edge of the flange 68 of the spool
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(Figure 8). Thus a further safety device is provided in the event that
the lever 46 is being operated incorrectly. The plate 7Z may be pivoted
between its full outline locking position and an unlocking position
(shown in chain-dotted outline in Figure 7) in which the flange 78 lies
clear of the flange 68 of the reel. To move the plate 72 between the
two positions a knob 80 is gripped, the knob passing through an aperture
in the plate to operate a holding means comprising a spring loaded ball
for holding the plate in either position. The arrangement of the parts
may be any which is mechanically suitable for the purpose. As shown the
plate 82 holds the ball in a socket 84 under the influence of a leaf
spring 86 held between the plate 72 and the strip 82.
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