Fire escape – ladder – or scaffold – Torso harness – Strand-engaging – with descent retarder
Patent
1996-10-21
1998-12-22
Stodola, Daniel P.
Fire escape, ladder, or scaffold
Torso harness
Strand-engaging, with descent retarder
182191, 182192, 188 654, A47L 304
Patent
active
058508902
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention concerns abseil devices, which are devices generally used for mountaineering, caving, rock climbing or work in places high above the ground, in particular enabling descent along a rope with a braking action on the rope.
The figure-of-eight abseil devices most frequently used enable only braking along the rope, the braking force being adjustable by deliberate action of the user on the rope itself. To obtain the braking action the user must hold the rope. If the user lets go of the rope the braking effect is insufficient to stop the abseil device sliding down the rope and the device can slide to the end of the rope at too high a speed, in which case the descent of the user is followed by a fall.
More complex abseil devices have been proposed, comprising moving parts and pull cord systems for adjusting the braking force. These abseil devices are always too complex to be totally safe in use, since the user has to be experienced to use them correctly.
Document U.S. Pat. No. 4,667,772 describes a self-locking device for ascending a rope. This device has a integral main body with two generally parallel main flanges held the appropriate distance apart for the rope to slide between them and a longitudinal connecting flange linking two longitudinal sides of the two main flanges and forming a groove through which the rope passes. Two ring guide openings are provided on the respective main flanges in corresponding relationship to each other. Each has at least one oblique edge progressively converging with the connecting flange in the direction towards the rope entry end as far as a locking end. The ring guide openings are sized to receive a portion of the locking ring that passes through them and that can slide to the locking end where the ring clamps the rope against the connecting flange.
In the above document the connecting flange is generally rectilinear and has asperities increasing the friction force on the rope. The lateral flanges are away from the rope.
A device of this kind, designed for ascending a rope, assures effective locking but is not appropriate for controlled sliding along a rope. The locking force varies too suddenly between effective locking and unlocking with virtually no braking force.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The problem to which the present invention is addressed is that of designing a new abseil device structure that combines great simplicity, great safety in use by avoiding any possibility of error, and enhanced efficacy by assuring effective adjustable progressive braking and positive automatic locking in response to lack of appropriate action by the user.
In accordance with the invention, the abseil device must therefore be able to lock up automatically if the user does not control its location and its orientation along the rope, controlled and braked sliding of the abseil device along the rope being permitted by an intentional action of the user.
In accordance with the invention, this positive safety must be achieved by an abseil device that is particularly simple, having no moving parts.
To achieve the above and other objects, the self-locking abseil device of the invention enables relative locking of a ring to which the user is attached and at least one rope. The abseil device comprises a integral main body with: rope to slide between them, the two main flanges and forming a groove in which the rope passes between an entry end and an exit end, relationship to each other, each including at least on oblique edge progressively converging with the longitudinal connecting flange in the direction towards the rope entry end and as far as a locking end, the ring guide openings being sized to receive a portion of the hook ring passing through them and which can slide as far as the locking end in which the ring clamps the rope against the longitudinal connecting flange; with convergent flanks forming at least one dihedron for wedging the rope; two opposite transverse connecting flanges each joining together two respective transverse sides
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patent: 4394992 (1983-07-01), Fohl
patent: 4542884 (1985-09-01), Dodge, Jr.
patent: 4667772 (1987-05-01), Kammerer
patent: 5146655 (1992-09-01), Gibbs
Alp' Tech
Eilberg William H.
Smith Richard M.
Stodola Daniel P.
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