TWI902494B - Anti-fall device for the locking tooth of the lifting ring connection - Google Patents

Abstract

A fall arrestor with a ring and locking tooth has a ring opening and a rope outlet at the top and bottom of the outer shell. A ring of the ring assembly is inserted through the ring opening, and a ring seat is connected to the bottom of the ring. The ring seat is embedded in the top of the outer shell and connected to a locking tooth. A main shaft and a rotating hub with a ring fitted around the main shaft are fixed inside the outer shell. A coiled spring connects the hub and the main shaft. The rope, which is wound in multiple turns around the hub and passes through the outer shell through the eyelet, is combined with a braking component at the mounting part on one side of the hub. The braking component is configured to engage with the locking teeth. Because the eyelet assembly has locking teeth for the braking component to engage, there is no need to install a ratchet for braking the hub on the main shaft. This reduces the size of the fall arrestor and the simplified structure helps to reduce production and manufacturing costs.

Description

Anti-fall device with locking teeth connected to the ring.

This invention relates to equipment for safety protection; in particular, it refers to a fall arrestor with a locking tooth for connecting a hanging ring.

Existing fall arrestors consist of a main shaft fixed inside a housing, a hub rotatably connected to the main shaft, and a ratchet fixed thereon. A braking component is attached to one side of the hub, and a rope wrapped around the hub multiple times is attached to its periphery.

When using the aforementioned fall arrestor, the outer shell is fixed in one place, and one end of the rope passing through the shell is attached to a harness worn by the person. When a person wearing the harness falls from the air, the rope is pulled, causing the hub inside the fall arrestor to rotate rapidly. Due to the centrifugal force of the rapid rotation, the braking component engaged with the hub changes from a state where it would not engage with the ratchet to a state where it can engage with the ratchet. When the braking component engages with the ratchet, it prevents the hub from continuing to rotate and releases the rope, thus preventing the person from continuing to fall and achieving the desired fall protection effect.

While existing fall arrestors effectively prevent falls, their design—where the ratchet and hub are mounted on a main shaft fixed within the casing—prevents reductions in the shaft's length and the casing's volume, hindering miniaturization.

In view of this, the purpose of this invention is to redesign the structure for engagement with the brake components near the hub, thereby simplifying the internal structure of the fall arrestor and achieving the effects of reducing the size of the fall arrestor and lowering production costs.

To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides a fall arrestor with a ring-connected locking tooth, comprising a shell, a ring assembly, and a fall arrestor body. The top of the shell has a ring opening, the bottom of the shell has a rope outlet, and the interior of the shell has an installation space communicating with the rope outlet and the ring opening respectively. A ring seat groove is formed in the portion of the shell adjacent to the inner side of the ring opening. The ring assembly includes a ring seat, a locking tooth, and a ring; the ring seat is fitted into a groove in the ring seat; the locking tooth is connected to one side of the ring seat; the ring passes through the ring opening in the middle and is engaged with the ring seat at its inner end. The fall arrestor includes a main shaft, a hub, a vortex spring, a rope, and a braking component. The main shaft is fixed within the mounting space. The hub is rotatably fitted around the main shaft. One side of the hub has a mounting portion with a vortex spring chamber inside. The vortex spring is disposed in the vortex spring chamber and connected between the main shaft and the hub. One end of the rope is connected to the hub and wound around the hub in multiple turns, while the other end of the rope extends out of the rope outlet. The braking component is connected to the mounting portion and configured to engage with the locking teeth.

The effect of this invention is that the locking tooth is provided on the ring seat at the bottom of the ring assembly, so that the locking tooth is located on the upper side of the installation space, and the locking tooth is used to engage the braking assembly engaged on one side of the hub, thereby producing a braking effect on the hub and the rope released from the hub. Thus, there is no need to provide a ratchet for the braking component to engage inside the main shaft or the housing, reducing the length of the main shaft and the volume of the housing along the main shaft's extension direction. Besides miniaturizing the invention, the structure of the internal housing is simplified by having the hub and braking component only around the main shaft, which also helps reduce the manufacturing cost of the invention.

100: Fall arrestor with locking teeth connected to the ring

10: Shell

10A: Semi-shell

12: Side wall

14: Zhou Bi

16: Hanging ring opening

161: Hanging ring notch

162: Positioning flange

163: Hanging ring seat groove

18: Rope Exit

181: Notch for threading rope

182: Guide Ring

20: Ring assembly

22: Hanging ring seat

221: Roof

222: Enclosure

223: Hanging ring seat hole

24: Locking teeth

26: Rings

261: Pole Section

2611: Positioning Ditch

2612: Buckle rim

2613: Internal insertion pin hole

262: Ring Section

2621: Protruding ears

2622: External Plug Hole

263: Pin

30: Fall arrestor body

31: Rope

32: Bracket

321: Disc Body

322: Through-hole

33: Braking Components

33A: Ratchet Block

331: Base

3311: Rotary Shaft

332: Body

3321: Thorn Claw

3322: Spring Groove

333: Reset Spring

34: Spindle

341:End

342: Screw hole

35: Fixing screws

351: Head

36: Turn the wheel

361: Rope Groove

362: Vortex Spring Chamber

363: Installation Surface

364: In-slot mounting

365: Limit Block

37: Installation Department

37A: Fixed plate

371: External Market

371A: Fixed disc shaft hole

372: Inside Betting

3721: Limiting groove

373: Ratchet Groove

374: Side Wall

375: Inner Wall

3751: Spring base groove

376: Rotary shaft hole

38: Vortex Spring

L: Axis direction

P1: First position

P2: Second position

S: Installation space

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 is an exploded view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention described above.

Figure 3 is an exploded view of the steering and braking components in Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a left-side view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention described above.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view along direction 5-5 of Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a front view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention described above.

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view along direction 7-7 of Figure 6.

Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view along direction 8-8 of Figure 6.

Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the action of the pawl block rotating upwards in Figure 8 engaging with the locking teeth.

To more clearly illustrate the present invention, preferred embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Referring to Figures 1 to 5, a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a ring-connected locking tooth anti-fall device 100, includes a housing 10, a ring assembly 20, and an anti-fall device body 30. The ring assembly 20 is coupled to the housing 10, and the anti-fall device body 30 is installed inside the housing 10. Based on the arrangement of suspending the outer shell 10 and the fall arrestor body 30 at a certain location via the hanging ring assembly 20, the two sides of the outer shell 10 corresponding to the upper and lower directions are respectively referred to as the top side and the bottom side. The following explanation follows according to the aforementioned definitions.

The outer shell 10 includes two half-shells 10A and has an internal mounting space S. The two half-shells 10A are joined by screws, thus making them detachable. In other preferred embodiments, the two half-shells 10A may also be joined by a hook or latch structure. Each half-shell 10A has a side wall 12 and a peripheral wall 14 connected to the side wall 12, and the two side walls 12 of the two half-shells 10A are opposite each other. A ring notch 161 is formed on the top edge of each of the peripheral walls 14. The two ring notches 161 are semi-circular and merge to form a ring opening 16. The ring opening 16 communicates with the installation space S and has a positioning flange 162 on its periphery. A ring seat groove 163 is formed on the portion of the outer shell 10 adjacent to the inner side of the ring opening 16 at the top of the installation space S. A rope-threading notch 181 is formed at the bottom edge of each of the peripheral walls 14. The two rope-threading notches 181 merge to form a rope outlet 18, which communicates with the installation space S. A guide ring 182 is fixed to the periphery of the rope outlet 18.

The ring assembly 20 includes a ring seat 22, a locking tooth 24, and a ring 26. The ring seat 22 is fitted into the ring seat groove 163 of the outer shell 10. The ring seat 22 has a top plate 221 and a surrounding plate 222 connected to the top plate 221. The top plate 221 has a ring seat hole 223 in the middle, which is located directly below the ring opening 16. The locking tooth 24 is a ratchet and is connected to one side of the hanging ring seat 22. Specifically, the locking tooth 24 is connected to one side of the surrounding plate 222, and extends integrally downward from the side edge of the top plate 221.

The ring 26 includes a rod portion 261, a ring portion 262, and a pin 263. The rod portion 261 passes through the ring opening 16 and has a positioning groove 2611 around it. The positioning flange 162 around the ring opening 16 is embedded in the positioning groove 2611, thereby fixing the position of the rod portion 261. The bottom end of the rod portion 261 passes through the ring seat hole 223 of the ring seat 22, and a fastening flange 2612 is formed around the bottom end of the rod portion 261. The fastening flange 2612 abuts against the periphery of the bottom end of the ring seat hole 223. The top end of the rod portion 261 extends horizontally through an inner pin hole 2613. The ring portion 262 is inverted C-shaped and has two lugs 2621 on each side. A pair of external pin holes 2622 pass through the two lugs 2621. The pin 263 passes through the pair of external pin holes 2622 and is fixed to the internal pin hole 2613.

The fall arrestor body 30 includes a bracket 32, a main shaft 34, a hub 36, a coiled spring 38, a rope 31, and a braking component 33. The bracket 32 includes two discs 321, each disc being hollowed out and embedded in the center of one of the side walls 12 by injection molding. Each disc 321 has a through hole 322 in its center, penetrating the side wall 12. Both through holes 322 are non-circular. In other preferred embodiments, only one of the through holes 322 may be non-circular.

The direction of the axis of the main shaft 34 is defined by an axial direction L, which is perpendicular to the vertical direction. Each end of the main shaft 34 has an end piece 341, the shape of which conforms to the shape of the corresponding through hole 322. Each end piece 341 is fitted into the through hole 322, and each end piece 341 has a screw hole 342 at its outer end. A fixing screw 35 is screwed into each screw hole 342. Each fixing screw 35 has a head 351, which abuts against the periphery of the through hole 322, thereby fixing the main shaft 34 to the mounting space S of the housing 10, and preventing the main shaft 34 from rotating relative to the housing 10.

The hub 36 is rotatably fitted around the main shaft 34. The hub 36 has a rope groove 361 around its periphery and a vortex spring chamber 362 inside. The hub 36 has a mounting part 37 on one side corresponding to the two sides of the axial direction L. The mounting part 37 includes a mounting surface 363 and a fixing plate 37A screwed into the mounting surface 363. The mounting surface 363 has an inner plate groove 364 in the middle, and a limiting block 365 is located on the inner surface of the inner plate groove 364. The fixed plate 37A has an outer plate 371 and an inner plate 372 connected sequentially along the axial direction L. The inner plate 372 is concentrically connected to the center of the outer plate 371. The inner plate 372 is embedded in the inner plate groove 364 and has a limiting groove 3721. The limiting groove 3721 is fitted and fixed by the limiting block 365. The fixed plate 37A has a fixed plate shaft hole 371A at its center. The fixed plate shaft hole 371A passes through the center of the outer plate 371 and the inner plate 372 and is rotatably fitted onto the main shaft 34.

Referring to Figures 3 and 5 to 8, the outer plate 371 of the fixed plate 37A has two ratchet grooves 373 arranged in a circumferential and spaced manner around it. In this preferred embodiment, the two ratchet grooves 373 are located on opposite sides of the main shaft 34, and one side of each ratchet groove 373 along the axial direction L is adjacent to the mounting surface 36. 3. The other side has a sidewall 374. One side of each ratchet groove 373 forms an inner wall 375, and the other side forms a spring bottom groove 3751. Each sidewall 374 has a pivot hole 376, located between each inner wall 375 and each spring bottom groove 3751, and each pivot hole 376 is adjacent to each inner wall 375.

The vortex spring 38 is disposed in the vortex spring chamber 362. The vortex spring 38 has two ends, one end of which is connected to the main shaft 34 and the other end of which is connected to the hub 36. Thereby, when the hub 36 rotates relative to the main shaft 34, the vortex spring 38 provides a restoring force for the hub 36 to rotate back to its original position. The rope 31 has two ends, with one end connected to the hub 36. The rope 31 is housed within the rope groove 361 and is wound around the hub 36 in multiple turns. The other end of the rope groove 361 extends out of the rope outlet 18 of the outer shell 10 through the inner side of the guide ring 182. When the rope 31 is pulled outward from the rope outlet 18 by an external force, the rope 31 will drive the hub 36 to rotate around the main axis 34 as the rotation center. The rotation direction of the hub 36 at this time is defined as forward rotation. Conversely, when the force pulling the rope 31 outward no longer exists, the coil spring 38 provides a restoring force to the hub 36 to rotate back to its original position. At this time, the hub 36 will rotate in the opposite direction and retract the outwardly extended rope 31 back into the outer shell 10.

The braking assembly 33 includes pawl blocks 33A in number equal to the number of pawl slots 373. In a preferred embodiment, the braking assembly 33 includes two pawl blocks 33A. Each pawl block 33A is accommodated in a pawl slot 373. Each pawl block 33A includes a base 331 and a body 332 connected together. Each base 331 has a pivot 3311, which is rotatably inserted through a pivot hole 376. Each body 332 rests against an inner wall 375, and each body 332 is oriented to rotate forward and backward corresponding to the hub 36. A pawl 3321 and a spring groove 3322 are formed on each of the two sides of the rotating part, as shown in Figures 3 and 8. A compressed reset spring 333 is provided in each spring groove 3322 and each spring bottom groove 3751. Each reset spring 333 keeps each pawl block 33A in a first position P1, that is, the position where each body 332 is close to the inner wall 375.

Please refer to Figures 5 and 7 to 9. When the rope 31 is pulled outward and the hub 36 rotates in the forward direction, if the rotation speed of the pawl blocks 33A of the braking assembly 33 exceeds a predetermined speed as the hub 36 rotates, the centrifugal force on each pawl block 33A exceeds the elastic force of the pawl block 33A being biased by the return springs 333. At this time, each pawl block 33A will rotate around the axis 3311 as the rotation center to a second position P2. When each pawl block 33A is in the second position P2, each body 332 rotates outward from its inner wall 375, and each pawl 3321 extends out of its pawl groove 373. At this time, the trajectory of the pawls 3321 rotating with the hub 36 interferes with the position of the locking tooth 24, causing the pawl 3321 of one of the upper pawl blocks 33A to engage with the locking tooth 24, immediately stopping the hub 36 from rotating. When the hub 36 stops rotating, it also stops releasing the rope 31 outward. At this time, the other lower pawl block 33A is pushed by the corresponding return spring 333, thus returning from the outwardly rotated second position P2 to the first position P1.

The predetermined rotational speed setting for rotating the pawl blocks 33A from the first position P1 to the second position P2 is designed to complement the application scenario of the present invention where the outer shell 10 is suspended at a fixed point by the hanging ring 26, and the other end of the rope 31 is passed through the rope outlet 18 and connected to the back harness worn by the human body. The predetermined rotational speed is generally set to be higher than the rotational speed at which the hub 36 is rotated by pulling the rope 31 outward from the rope outlet 18 by the movement of a person's hand or body; the predetermined rotational speed is lower than the rotational speed at which the hub 36 is rotated by the rope 31 during the fall when a person falls from the air. In this way, the fall arrestor 100, with its locking teeth connected to the hanging ring, prevents a person from falling further from the air. However, under normal circumstances, the rope 31 can be pulled out by hand or body movement, and the hub 36 can retract the rope 31 when the rope 31 is no longer being pulled out, thus not hindering the user's movement during work.

The advantage of the preferred embodiment of the present invention is that, since the locking tooth 24 is provided on the ring seat 22 at the bottom of the ring assembly 20, the locking tooth 24 is located on the top side of the installation space S and above the braking assembly 33. The locking tooth 24 is engaged with the braking assembly 33 on one side of the hub 36, thereby producing a braking effect on the hub 36. This structure eliminates the need for a ratchet or similar braking mechanism for the locking tooth of the ring-connected anti-fall device 100 to engage with the braking component 33, either around the main shaft 34 or inside the housing 10. Therefore, compared to a structure where the ratchet must be located on the main shaft 34, the length of the main shaft 34 and the volume of the housing 10 along the axial direction L can be reduced. This not only allows for miniaturization of the ring-connected anti-fall device 100 but also simplifies its internal structure, thus reducing manufacturing costs.

In addition to the preferred embodiment described above, in which two pawl grooves 373 are formed in a circumferential and spaced arrangement around the fixed plate 37A, and two pawl blocks 33A are provided in the two pawl grooves 373, in other preferred embodiments, three or more pawl grooves 373 may be formed in a circumferential and spaced arrangement around the fixed plate 37A. In this case, the braking assembly 33 may provide three or more pawl blocks 33A in the three or more pawl grooves 373.

The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention. All equivalent variations made in accordance with the present invention and the scope of the claims should be included within the scope of the present invention.

100: Fall arrestor with locking teeth connected to the ring

10: Shell

10A: Semi-shell

12: Side wall

14: Zhou Bi

16: Hanging ring opening

161: Hanging ring notch

162: Positioning flange

18: Rope Exit

181: Notch for threading rope

182: Guide Ring

20: Ring assembly

22: Hanging ring seat

221: Roof

222: Enclosure

24: Locking teeth

261: Pole Section

2611: Positioning Ditch

262: Ring Section

2621: Protruding ears

30: Fall arrestor body

31: Rope

32: Bracket

321: Disc Body

322: Through-hole

33: Braking Components

33A: Ratchet Block

341:End

342: Screw hole

35: Fixing screws

351: Head

36: Turn the wheel

363: Installation Surface

37: Installation Department

37A: Fixed plate

S: Installation space

Claims (10)

A fall arrestor with a ring and locking tooth, comprising: a shell having a ring opening at its top and a rope outlet at its bottom; an inner space communicating with the rope outlet and the ring opening; a ring seat groove formed in the portion of the shell adjacent to the inner side of the ring opening; a ring assembly including a ring seat, a locking tooth, and a ring; the ring seat being fitted into the ring seat groove; the ring seat having a top plate, and the locking tooth extending integrally downward from the side edge of the top plate; and the ring passing through the ring opening at its center and extending from its inner end... The device is attached to the eyelet seat and a fall arrestor body, including a main shaft, a hub, a coiled spring, a rope, and a braking component; the main shaft is fixed within the mounting space; the hub is rotatably fitted around the main shaft, and one side of the hub has a mounting portion and an internal coiled spring. The vortex spring is disposed in the vortex spring chamber and connected between the main shaft and the hub; one end of the rope is coupled to the hub and wound around the hub in multiple turns, and the other end of the rope extends out of the rope outlet; the braking component is coupled to the device and configured to engage with the locking teeth. As described in claim 1, the anti-fall device with a locking tooth for connecting the ring has a positioning flange around its periphery; the ring has a rod portion and a ring portion, the rod portion has a positioning groove around its periphery, the positioning flange is embedded in the positioning groove for fixation, the top end of the rod portion has an inner pin hole extending horizontally, the ring portion has two lugs on both sides, a pair of outer pin holes are inserted through the two lugs, and a pin is fixed through the pair of outer pin holes and the inner pin hole. As described in claim 2, the anti-fall device with a ring connecting locking teeth, wherein the ring seat has a surrounding plate connected to the periphery of the top plate, the top plate has a ring seat hole in the middle, the bottom end of the rod passes through the ring seat hole, and a fastening flange is formed around the bottom end of the rod, the fastening flange abutting against the periphery of the bottom end of the ring seat hole. As described in claim 3, the anti-fall device with a ring-connected locking tooth comprises a housing consisting of two halves that are detachably connected; each half has a ring notch on its top side, and the two ring notches of the two halves are joined together to form the ring opening; each half has a rope notch on its bottom side, and the two rope notches of the two halves are joined together to form the rope outlet. As described in claim 4, the anti-fall device with a ring-connected locking tooth, wherein each of the half-shells has a side wall and a peripheral wall connected to the side wall; each ring recess is formed at the top edge of each peripheral wall; and each rope-passing recess is formed at the bottom edge of each peripheral wall. As described in claim 5, the anti-fall device with a locking tooth for connecting the ring includes a bracket, the bracket including two discs, the two discs being respectively embedded in the middle of each side wall and having a through hole, at least one of the two through holes being a non-circular hole; the two ends of the main shaft are respectively formed into an end, each end being embedded in each through hole and having a screw hole, a fixing screw being screwed into each screw hole, each fixing screw having a head, each head being fixed against the periphery of each through hole. As described in claim 1, the anti-fall device with a locking tooth for connecting the eye ring includes a plurality of pawl blocks; each pawl block includes a connected base and a body, the pawl blocks are linked to the periphery of the device through the bases in a circumferential and spaced arrangement, and each of the bodies of the pawl blocks has a pawl; a return spring is provided between each pawl block and the device. Each of the return springs holds each of the pawl blocks in a first position; when the rotational speed of the pawl blocks as the hub rotates exceeds a predetermined speed, each of the pawl blocks rotates outward to a second position due to centrifugal force; when each of the pawl blocks is in the second position, the trajectory of the pawls rotating with the hub interferes with the position of the locking tooth, thereby enabling the pawl of one of the pawl blocks to engage with the locking tooth. As described in claim 7, the anti-fall device with a locking tooth for connecting the eye ring includes a main shaft having an axial direction; the mounting part includes a mounting surface and a fixed plate coupled to the mounting surface, the fixed plate having a fixed plate shaft hole at its center, the fixed plate shaft hole being rotatably fitted onto the main shaft; a plurality of pawl grooves are formed around the fixed plate in a circumferential and spaced manner, each pawl groove having an inner wall on one side and a spring bottom groove on the other side; one side of each pawl groove along the axial direction is adjacent to the mounting surface, and the other side has a sidewall; each sidewall has a pivot hole. The pivot hole is located between the inner wall and the spring bottom groove; the pawl blocks are respectively accommodated in the pawl grooves, the base of each pawl block has a pivot, the pivot is rotatably inserted through the pivot hole, each pawl is formed on one side of each body, and a spring groove is formed on the other side of each body, and each return spring is compressed and disposed between the spring groove and the spring bottom groove; when each pawl block is in the first position, each body is close to the inner wall; when each pawl block is in the second position, each body is rotated outward from the inner wall and each pawl extends out of the pawl groove. As described in claim 8, the anti-fall device with a locking tooth for connecting the eyelet has an inner disc groove in the middle of the mounting surface; the retaining disc has an outer disc with pawl grooves formed around the outer disc, and an inner disc is connected to the middle of the outer disc, the inner disc being inserted into the inner disc groove. As described in claim 9, the anti-fall device for the locking teeth of the ring connection has a limiting block on the inner surface of the inner plate groove; the inner plate has a limiting groove that fits into the limiting block for fixation.