US2693936A - Winch - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 9, 1954 D. l. SELFRIDGE 2,693,936

WINCH Filed Jan. e. 1949 l N VEN TOR.

DUNCAN I. SELFRmGE BY I H15 mfom/cy United States Patent Duncan I. 'Se1fridge,S.traiford,1a. vApplication annary 6,1949,Seria`liNo. 69,428

i2 fCla'ms. -f(Cl. '1254-1152) `My invention relates to Winches especially to -those fiwinchesiused on sailing .ships fand boats.

Heretofore, :it has ibeen :general .practice "to Luse manila vor other )vegetable lfiberfiline ifor stays, fsheets and the :futher general purpose requirements offasail boat. Lately,

-eas'il-yand freely when -the -need arises. My winchis not only lsmall :and compact-:permitting iof one-man operation ing theopera-torand Ipermit-s smal-l lincreases or decreases in the tension on fthe `fwxire mopevwhenever there is need therefor.

The-principal objects of my invention are .to .provide a small, vcompact,-easily operable-winch; to`provide a winch :allow-ing micrometer -ne adjustments; toI provide means for quickly taking in, securing, or playing out a wire rope; to provide a winch having suicient storage capacity to keep the deck free of loose line; and to provide a winch having a high degree of safety.

The principles and characteristic features of my invention and the manner of making and constructing and using my improved winch will further appear in the accompanying drawings and the following description explaining the best modes in which I have contemplated using such principles.

In the drawings, Fig. l is a side elevational, cross-sectional view of my improved winch taken along the line 1 1 of Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of my improved winch; Fig. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary view of the drum of the winch and lock ring therefor in cross-section; Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of my modified winch partly in cross-section; Fig. 5 is a top plan view of my modified winch taken along the line 5-5 of Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the worm gear drive taken along the line 6-6 of Fig. 5.

My improved winch comprises a circular base 1 hav* ing formed in the center thereof a circular post 2 on which is mounted a pedestal 3 having a stem 4 which supports a cover 5 which shields the upper portion of the winch. A drum 6 completely encompasses the pedestal 3 and when not engaged by the cover 5 is free to revolve about the pedestal 3.

The pedestal 3 has a lower anged end 7 containing recesses 8 for the containment of pawls 9 which are biased by the springs 10. The projecting ends of the pawls 9 engage the teeth 11 of a ring 12 which completely encircles the flange 7. The engagement of the teeth 11 and the pawls 9 allows movement of the pedestal in but one direction only thereby preventing the line or rope being taken in by the winch from running olf.

The winch is secured to the deck of the ship or operating platform by means of a lock ring 13, secured to the deck 14 by means of a pair of screws or bolts 15, having a protruding lip 16 which overlaps the flange 17 on the bottom of the drum 6. As will be seen in Figs. 1 and 3,

the overlapping of the flange 17 by the lip 16 prevents j.

any substantial vertical movement of the drum 6. As

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the 'bottom of the ydrum '6*rests on the 'flange 7 of vthe pedestal 3, the vertical restraint lon `the drum f6 also 'serves to llimit the vertical ymovementfof both lthe pedestal 3 and the base l10n-which the pedestal rests.

The stem 4 yof the pedestal 3 is :threaded-along most of its length for the Aengagement of 'the threaded recess '1l-8 formed -in the -cone 19 protruding 'from the under central `portion of lthe Icover-"5. "The outer fsurface of the cone 19 frictionally engages lthe surface 20 of the recess 21 formed in the upperycentral portion Aof fthe drum-6.

The cover 5 can be lturned vby-using either Aa -pair of extendable handles 22 so placed las to be approximately perpendicular one toltheother'or by using the perimeter hand grip formed by 'the turned down flange'23 and the cavity 24 formed -in the -face Iof the under surface -of lthe cover S.

When the wire -rope 'is played ont `-and ithe 'winch is not under tension, the relative positions of the 'cover `Vand drum are as shown in iFig. 4. In order to take in the `line and wind it about fthewncnithecover Sis turned clockwise, the hand holds beingused until the cover has been moved down the threaded stemli'a' sufficient distance for the outer surface 19 of the :cover to vengage the inner surface 20 of the drum. Further turning of the 44cover results in 'the bottom lof the v'il-rum being :jammed down against the flange 7 of `x'the pedestal 3. This results in 'the cover, drum and pedestal acting as fone'piece. Thus,

v'further turning of the Ccoverv in fa v"clockwise direction also turns the drum clockwise thereby winding the wire rope 25 about the Vdrum '6, the fdepress'ions '26 'formed "on the ysurface 'of the drum .guiding vand 'holding `the wire rope. When the tension -on @the wire lrope becomes substantial, l nd 'that it is more lconvenen'tto op 'the foldalile arms '22 :about their pivots 27 and to thereafter exert pressure on the handles rather than on the hand ygrip as the Ileverage ratio Yis somewhat higher than is feasible with the hand grip. 'Two extendable farms fare 'provided and .areV placed approximately ninety 'degrees 'apart on `the rim of the cover thereby iprovidin'g for the `lpossibility of one arm being on dead center.

The pawls 9 and teeth 11 prevent the winch from turning counter-clockwise.

To quickly play out the Wire rope wound about the drum it is only necessary to break the frictional engagement between the cover 5 and the drum 6. This may be done by giving the cover 5 a sharp blow in a counterclockwise direction which separates the surfaces 19 and 20. There is then nothing to restrain the drum 6 from freely revolving in the direction of the pull and allowing the wire rope to run free. During this period the cover does not revolve and thus the possibility of damage caused by flailing arms or spinning cover is eliminated.

If but a small section of line is to be let go then the cover should be turned slowly in a counter-clockwise direction until the frictional drag between the surfaces 19 and 20 is just less than the tension on the wire rope. At this point the wire rope will rotate the drum slowly in a counter-clockwise direction against the frictional drag. As soon as sui'l'icient wire rope has been played out it can be caught up sharply by quickly turning the cover clockwise and thereby jam the cover down against the drum.

The bitter end of the wire rope is prevented from running oif the drum 6 by passing the end through a slot 28 piercing the drum 6 and knotting or locking the wire rope on the inside of the drum. The pedestal is cut away at 28 so that the knotted end of the wire can freely revolve with the drum without being caught by the pedestal. The pedestal is also cut away at 29 in order to reduce its weight. A lubricating hole 30 is provided near the base of the stem 4 for lubricating the surfaces of the pedestal 3 and the stem 2 on which the pedestal rests.

In my modified winch, shown in Fig. 4, I provide a ner adjustment for taking in or playing out the rope than that obtainable by merely using the friction drag procedure above described.

Fine adjustments are particularly desirable in racing craft where a slight variation in line tension may increase the pulling power of the sails markedly. In order to provide tine adjustment, I provide means whereby the winch as a whole, including the base, may be revolved by a worm gear.

In my modified winch, a base 31 has teeth 32 cut on the inside of the circumferential wall surrounding the liange 7 of the pedestal and in addition has teeth 33 cut on the exterior surface of the circumferential wall which are engaged by the worm of a gear 34 which is rotatable by a hand lever 35 operating through a shaft 36 attached thereto and a group of beveled gears 37 which turn the worm gear 34. Preferably the Worm gear is located below the surface of the deck on a level with the pawls 9. This necessitates a somewhat more elaborate lock ring 38 which is modified at one side to provide a seat 39 for the reception of the end of the worm gear 34 and a seat 40 for supporting the end of a shaft 41 attached to a beveled gear 37. On the shaft 36 are journalled two of the beveled gears 37. The shaft 36 projects through and above the surface of the lock ring 38 to join the turning lever 35 as can be seen in Figs. 5 and 6.

The hand lever 35 and shaft 36 may be modified in any suitable manner to provide detachability and varied leverage.

The operating procedure with the modified winch is similar to that first described until the wire rope has been wound about the drum. If relatively large adjustments are desired the friction drag procedure can be resorted to. When, however, only a small adjustment is necessary the hand lever 35 may be turned in either direction thereby rotating the worm gear 34 and the base 31 to which the other parts of the Winch are firmly engaged. Thus, the entire winch including the drum is rotated in either direction thereby allowing the wire to play out or to be wound about the drum, as desired. As is well known in the worm gear art, the base 31 cannot turn unless and until the worm is turned so that there is no danger of the winch turning unexpectedly nor is there any necessity for the provision of an additional lock on the Worm gear such as is provided by the ratchet and pawl arrangement between the pedestal and base.

This latter modification is very useful where large sized Winches and loads are used, especially if the load is of such magnitude as to make accurate trimming of the sails by means of the friction drag procedure difficult.

It is to be understood that the size and the manner of securing the bolts, screws, friction surfaces and other structural parts are to be in conformity with the margins of safety usually allowed for the loads contemplated.

My improved winch may of course be used in connection with apparatus other than sail boats where the fiexibility hereinabove described is necessary or desirable.

Having described my invention, I claim:

l. A winch comprising a base mounted on a platform, a pedestal surmounting said base, a drum encircling a part of said pedestal and having formed in the upper portion thereof an inverted cone, a cover surmounting said drum, said cover having a cone projecting into said first named cone from the underportion of said cover and frictionally engageable with said iirst named cone, means to frictionally hold said drum to said pedestal and means on said cover for turning said cover and the frictionally joined members of said winch.

2. A Winch comprising a revolvable base supported on a platform, a pedestal mounted on said base and rotatable thereon, a iiange on said base having teeth cut on the inner and outer circumferential wall surfaces of said flange, pawls projecting from said pedestal and engaging the teeth cut on one surface of said flange, a drum encircling said pedestal, limiting means for restricting the vertical movement of said drum, a cover surmounting said drum and pedestal, frictional means for securing said cover to said drum and pedestal, and a gear engaging the teeth cut in the other surface of said ange.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 839,212 Rustad Dec. 25, 1906 `1,487,498 Whistlecroft et al Mar. 18, 1924 2,263,064 Allin Nov. 18, 1941 2,503,177 Symonds Apr. 4, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 5,141 Great Britain of 1894 264,439 Germany Sept. 26, 1913

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