GB2153766A - Switch arrangement in an overhead suspension system - Google Patents

Abstract

The system comprises two vertically spaced guide rails 22, 24 to provide twin rail suspension system for trolleys heads 12. A switch arrangement 26 enables the trolleys to move out of the twin rail arrangement into switch stations 26 at an article work station. A displaceable member 30 is movable between positions either causing the trolleys to continue moving on the twin rail arrangement through the agency of an intermediate rail 28, or causing the trolleys to displace out of the twin rail arrangement down incline 29 to the switch station. When the trolley bypasses the switch station the trolley head wheels 16, 18 swing up to be engageable with upper rail 22. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Overhead suspension system This invention relates to overhead suspension systems, comprising suspension rail means and trolleys which run on said rails.

In particular, the invention is related to the twin rail suspension systme as descirbed in our European Patent Application No. 83111069.7, and concerns work station switchs for the suspension rail system described in said co-pending application, to enable the trolleys of the type as descirbed in said European Patent application to be displaced from a main circuit or rail along which the trolleys move, into a work station or switch region which is separated from the main path of travel.

As is clear from the said European Patent Application, the trolleys illustrated and described therein comprise heads each provided with three rollers, the heads having suspension brackets by which the loads can be suspended from the trolleys.

When the heads are engaged between the twin rails, a pair of rollers rest and run on to the lower rail, whilst the third roller engages the underside of the upper rail, giving the suspension considerable stability. The heads can be removed from between the rails quite simply by raising the suspension brackets which causes pivoting of the heads to a position in which a second pair of the rollers engage the underside of the upper rail, and the third roller is free of the lower rail, whereby the heads can be swung out laterally from between the rails and removed.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, use is made of the characteristic constructions of the trolley heads, and in order to direct the trolley either on the main part past the switch at a work station, or out of the main part into the switch at the work station, the trolley either runs with a pair of wheels on the lower rail, or is moved to a running position in which a pair of wheels engage the underside of an upper rail.By this selection, it is possible to design the switching mechanism so that for example when the rollers run on the lower rail and arrive at the switch, they will deviated out of the main path of travel by suitably shaping the lower rail and if necessary by cutting away the upper rail to enable the trolley head to change direction, or in the alternative, an upward force can be exerted on the head causing a pair of rollers to engage the underside of the upper rail and therefore continue along the main path past the switch station. There may be a lower rail portion at a higher level than the main length of the lower rail in the main path at the said switch station to ensure that whilst the head runs between the upper rail and the lower rail portions, two rollers engage the upper rail and the third roller engages lower rail.In order to effect the lifting movement, which may be a swinging movement of the head, a suitabie ramp or the like may be used, and the ramp may be positionable selectively in order to control whether or not any particular trolley moves into any particular switch station or past it, continuing its travel on the main patch.

In an alternative embodiment of the invention, at the entry to the switch section, the lower rail is provided with a displaceable portion, said displaceable portion having a first end which is flexibley connected to the reminder of the lower rail, whilst the other end can be swung free of the lower rail so as to be couplable between said lower rail and the end of the switch section.

When the trolley advances this displacable portion, if it is to be displaced into the switch section, said portion is displaced, either manually or automatically as appropriate, so that the roller end of the upper roller can dis-engage from the upper rail by travelling obliquely and downwardly to the switch section.

The trolley may be provided with two of said heads, or it may comprise a single head, and the arrangement may be adopted in a manually movable system or a power operated system in which the trolleys are driven on the main path. The trolleys may be returned from the switch station to the main path by a similar machanism.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a plan view of a path of traved defined by the suspension rails of an overhead suspension system, the drawings illustrating the location of a switch station; Figure 2 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the switch station, and also shows a trolley arriving at the switch station; Figure 3 is a side view showing how a trolley is prevented from moving into the switch station shown in Fig 2, and the position which the trolley takes while travelling on the main path past the switch station; Figure 4 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the switch station, and also shows a trolley arriving at the switch station; and Figures 5 and 6 are respectively a side elvation and plan of the rail and switch station shown in Figs 5 and 6.

Referring to Fig 4 of the drawings, reference numeral 10 indicates a continuous path around which suspension trolleys of the type illustrated in European Patent Application No. 83111069.7 pass. The trolleys are of the type shown in said European Patent Application and as shown in Figs 2, 3 and 4 have two heads 12 each with three rollers 14, 16 and 18 and each swivelably mounted upon a suspension bracket 20. The continuous path 10 is made up of twin rails 22, 24 comprising an upper rail 22 and a lower rail 24 between which the trolley heads engage as explained in said European Patent Application, and the said rails 22, 24 are continuous except for breaks at switches 26 of which only one is shown in Fig. 1, but of which there will probably be a plurality in each continuous path of travel.At each switch is a work station at which an operator can work for example upon garments or garment parts carried by the trolleys around the continuous patch, as is well known.

The embodiment of the invention shown in Figs 2 and 3 is concerned with designing the switch 26 to function effectively by virtue of the construction of the trolley heads 12 in that as each trolley head 12 arrives at a switch 26, it can be directed into the switch lower rail section 27 by allowing the two lower rollers 16, 18 to continue to roll on the lower rail section and onto section 27, the roller rail having a downward incline 29 so that the trolley head 12 will fall into the switch section 26 by gravity, or to cause the trolley head 12 to continue moving in the main path past the switch by raising the trolley head 12 so that rollers of the pair 14, 18 of the rollers engage the underside of the upper rail 22 which is continuous past the switch section 26, whilst the third roller 16 rolls onto an intermediate lower rail protion 28 in the region of the switch 26 only, as shown in Fig. 3. In order to achieve the lifting of the trolley head 12, or each trolley head, and which lifting is in fact combined lifting and tilting, there may be a selectively movable ramp 30 which can be positioned over the lower rail 24 in the main part immediately prior to its curving at the curved section 34 away from the main part so that the leading roller 16 of each head will engage the ramp and ride up same, which causes the head to lift and swivel until the other two rollers 14, 18 engage the underside of the upper rail 22, at which time the head is moved on to the intermediate lower rail section 28, and the head 12 continues in its rolling movement in thi s position until it reaches the end of the switch when it falls back on to the main section of the lower rail, and takes up the position shown to the ieft of Fig. 3.

It can be seen that the heads are provided with side guide plates 36, 38, and the rollers 14, 16 and 18 are diablo shaped. Therefore, to permit the head or each head to swing from the main part into the switch section 26, the underside of the upper rail 22 may be required to have a section cut away to prevent obstructions of the head with the underside of the upper rail as the head moves out of the main path into the switch section 26. Alternatively, the upper rail may have a raised portion as shown in dotted lines at 42.

The ramp 30 is selectively movable and can be moved automatically by a suitable control system depending upon the requirement for directing a trolley into the switch 26 or causing it to continue its movement in the 6 main path. The switch section may be provided at either side of the main rail path.

This embodiment of the invention provides the effective solution that, by the hinging of the heads, the head can then take up two positive positions i.e. one with two rollers on the lower rail, and one with two rollers on the upper rail, for the directing of the trolleys either into a switch section, or to continue on the main path of travel.

Referring to Figs 4, 5 and 6, an alternative switch arrangement is disclosed in that the lower rail 24 at the entry and optionally at the exit end of the switch 26, is provided with a displacement section 24A which is level when in the full line position shown in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, and is inclined when in the dotted line position also shown in these Figures. Fig. 4 shows the section 24A in the displaced position enabling the leading trolley head 12 to travel along the displaced section 24A in an outwardly and downwardly directed fashion, as shown in Figs 5 and 6, whereby the head 12 becomes clear of the upper rail 22, and travel into the switch section 26. At the end 31, the displacement section 24A is flexibly connected to the remainder of the lower rail 24 to enable the displacing motion as indicated by arrow 33 of the section 24A to take place.This displacing motion may be effected manually by the apparatus upon seeing the arrival of a trolley which has to be displaced into a switch section 26, or it may be effected automatically by sensing the trolley in such a fashion giving an indication of the work required to be performed on the garments supported by the hangers 35. Thus, by the appropriate sensing, which may be by a bar cording arrangement, a control means can determine which work station each trolley should be delivered to, and can effect control of the appropriate displacement section 24. It may be desired that a trolley should simply bass the switch 26, in which case the displacement section 24A remains in the position as shown in Fig. 5 and 6. Fig 5 shows that 0 the switch section 26 is under the level of the lower rail 24, whilst Fig. 6 shows the switch section 26 is also displaced laterally of the vertical plate containing the rails 22 and 24. It will be appreciated that the embodiment of the invention shown in Figs 4, 5 and 6 can be operated to displace trolley to either side of the vertical plane containing the rails 22 and 24. Dropping the rear end of section 24A, and by swinging it outwardly, enables the trolley edge 12 to move downwardly and outwardly clearing the top rail 22 so that no modification of the top rail, such as may be acquired in the Fig. 2 embodiment and illustrated reference numeral 40, is required.

Claims (9)

1. A switching arrangement in a suspension rail system comprising a pair of vertically spaced rails, wherein there is a switch station spaced from the side rails, and a means for directing trolleys of the type disclosed in European Patent Application No.

83111069.7, which run on the said spaced rails into the switch section whilst permitting subsequent trolleys to continue to travel between the said rails.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein said switching means comprises a movable guide positionable between first position causing an arriving trolley to be difflected out of the twin rail guide arrangement into the switch station, and second position causing the trolley to continue moving in the direction of the twin guide arrangement.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein the first position of the said member, the trolley head(s) is/are pivoted in to a position in which a pair of rollers engage the underside of the top rail and a third rail comprises a said member maintaining the head so that it can travel in the direction of the twin rail arrangement, whilst in the second position of the said member the head(s) travel(s) on a portion of the lower rail which is curved outwardly and downwardly and leads to the switch station.

4. A system according to claim 2, wherein the said member comprises a portion of the lower rail of the twin rail, which portion is flexible connected to the remainder of the lower rail at one end and the other end is free to moved out of alignment with the lower rail and into coupling connection with the switch section.

5. A system according to claim 4 wherein the switch station is located lower than the lower rail, and laterally of the lower rail so that the trolley head in travelling along said rail drops clear of the upper rail.

6. A system according to any one of the proceeding claims, wherein the said member is moved automatically based on the sensing of the trolley and ascertaining by the said sensing those switch stations into which the trolleys are to be directed.

7. A system according to any proceeding claim, wherein there is a similar switch arrangement at the end of the switch station to enable the trolleys moved into the switch station to be returned to the twin rail guiding arrangement.

8. A system according to any proceeding claim, wherein the twin rail system is associated with a lurality of the said switch stations each provided with a said switch means.

9. A overhead suspension system as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures.1 to 3 or Figs. 1 and 4 to 6 of the accompanying drawings.