US3901364A

US3901364A - Life-saving chute

Info

Publication number: US3901364A
Application number: US462441A
Authority: US
Inventors: Akinaga Katsube
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1974-04-19
Filing date: 1974-04-19
Publication date: 1975-08-26
Anticipated expiration: 1992-08-26

Abstract

A life-saving chute comprising a plurality of descending passages is provided, wherein each one of the descending passages is composed of a flexible vertically oriented tubular member and a bottom member perpendicular thereto and being disposed in any one of a plurality of vertically oriented columns in its condition of use, with each adjacent pair of the passages in descending order adjoining each other as upper and lower ones thereof and being disposed in different or adjacent ones of the columns and having an opening for connecting with each other.

Description

United States Patent Katsube Aug. 26, 1975 l l LIFE-SAVING CHUTE [76] Inventor: Akinaga Katsube, 9-16-5, 4-chome f Examlrlle'gEvon Blunk Sakuracho, Hatogayashia Saimma, Assistant Exammer.lames L. Rowland Japan Attorney, Agent, or FirmOblon, Fisher, Spivak,

McClelland & Maier [22] Filed: Apr. 19, 1974 App]. No.: 462,441

[ 5 7 ABSTRACT A life-saving chute comprising a plurality of descending passages is provided, wherein each one of the descending passages is composed of a flexible vertically oriented tubular member and a bottom member perpendicular thereto and being disposed in any one of a plurality of vertically oriented columns in its condition of use, with each adjacent pair of the passages in descending order adjoining each other as upper and lower ones thereof and being disposed in different or adjacent ones of the columns and having an opening for connecting with each other.

8 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures Pmminmsz lsis FIGS FIGZ

LIFE-SAVING CHUTE BACKGROUND OF THE INvENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to safety chutes, and more particularly to a life saving chute especially suitable for permitting safe vertical descent by an individual from a high building or the like without undue anxiety in emergency situations.

2. Description of the Prior Art Various life saving chutes for permitting safe vertical descent from high buildings in emergency situations have been proposed in the past. There is, for example, a life saving chute which has a tubular member and a plurality of plain supporting members made of cloth or the like disposed within the tubular member designed to operate in steplike fashion. Thus, each supporting member has an opening for permitting descent therethrough to the next lower supporting member. But, when a person, in such an emergency situation, descends, it is very difficult for him to make a confirmable or positive stop on each supporting member, but rather there is a distinct possibility and likelihood that he will slip onto the next supporting member and drop through the opening thereof with an accelerated dropping velocity. Therefore, this concept has not been used practically. because of its inherent unsafe characteristics.

Another life-saving chute for permitting vertical descent under emergency conditions having a plurality of contracted portions disposed along a tubular member by elastical material for reducing the velocity of descending refugees, or escapees, has been proposed. But, when a person attempting to escape from an emergency condition, passes through the contracted portions. reduction of his descending velocity depends upon the cross-sectional area of his body. Some times, it is very difficult for him to pass the contracted portions, and at other times, his velocity will be accelerated because of easy passage through the contracted portions. The chute has another defect, and that is, that when many persons attempt to enter the chute substantially at the same time, the contracted portions will be opened by their total weight and thus broken out.

Therefore, there are no known life-saving chutes available which have proven to be entirely satisfactory for descending vertically from a high building or the like without undue anxiety on the part of the escapee in case of fire or the like which necessitates his esaping in order to avoid what appears to be certain injury, and thus to preserve his life.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved life-saving chute suitable for safe vertical descent from a high building or the like under emergency conditions without undue anxiety.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved life-saving chute for permitting vertical descent which is suitable for admitting escapees into the chute from various stories of a building or the like.

The foregoing and other objects are achieved by this invention through the provision of a life saving chute which has a plurality of descending passages, each of which is composed of a vertically oriented flexible tubular member and a bottom member perpendicular thereto and disposed in any one of a plurality of vertically oriented columns in its condition of use, with each adjacent pair of descending passages being adjoined to each other as upper and lower ones and disposed in different ones of the columns and having an opening for connecting with each other. The chute may have rigid members at the positions of the bottom members so as to always maintain the outer configuration of the bottom members. The bottom members may of course be rigid members. The chute may have only a pair of the columns such that the descending passages are disposed alternately within the columns. At least one of the descending passages, except the uppermost one, may be opened directly to the outside so as to admit escapees. The chute may have flexible elongated slender members in the descending passages was to let escapees grasp them and slide down along them. Further, the chute may have flexible ladders in the descending passages.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will be more fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood from the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a chute of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 22 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3-3 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a rigid member of the invention;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view of a modified chute of the present invention being partly cut-away; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 6-6 in FIG. 5.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1-4 thereof, there is shown a life saving chute formed according to this invention in its condition of use which has an outer flexible member 10 made of a fireproof cloth or the like being elongated vertically along a desired line of descent, and an inner flexible member 11 also made of fireproof cloth or the like. The inner flexible member 11 divides the outer flexible member 10 into two vertically oriented elongated portions or

columns

12 and 13. The chute has a plurality of descending

passages

16, 17, 18 and 19 which compose plural steps of such descent alternately belonging or being disposed in the file or column 12 and the file or column 13. An outlet portion 20 is formed in the lowest position of the column 12 being connected to the last passage 19.

Each one of the passages is composed of at least a portion of a flexible tubular member 22 and a bottom member 23 at the bottom thereof. Each tubular member 22 is composed of a part of the outer flexible member 10 and a part of the inner dividing flexible member 11. The bottom member 23 of each passage is made of fireproof cloth or the like. Rigid members 24 are placed in the uppermost part of the chute and in the lining of the bottom members 23. Therefore, the bottom members 23 are able to always maintain their outer configurations.

Each pair of the descending passages adjoin each other as upper and lower ones, for example the

passages

16 and 17, but are disposed respectively in different ones of the

columns

12 and 13, and have an opening 26 formed in the border portion of the flexible tubular member 22 or in the dividing member 11 for connecting each other and thus permitting passage therebetween. In this embodiment, there are a pair of

columns

12 and 13, therefore, the descending passages are disposed alternately in the files l2 and 13, but there could be more columns, if desired.

A hanging or supporting member 27 of rope, wire or the like is connected to the rigid member 24 at the uppermost end of the chute. A flexible elongated slender member 28 made of rope, a belt or the like is disposed in each of the descending passages so as to let escapees grasp it and slide down along it within each of the vertically elongate passages.

In the case of fire, the chute will be disposed as shown in FIG. 2 being released from its folded condition and supported by the member 27 from a suitable place on the building. An escapee will enter into the passage 16 and grasp the slender member 28 and slide along it down onto the bottom member 23 of the passage, where he will make a confirmable stop thereon. Then, the escapee can pass through the opening 26 and descend in a similar manner in the descending passage 17. At that time, another escapee may enter the passage 16. Thus, escapees descend through all of the descending passages and escape or leave through the outlet portion at the bottom.

In FIGS. 5 and 6, there is shown another embodiment of this invention, in which there is shown a plurality of descending

passages

31, 32 and 33, respectively. But the chute does not have an outer flexible member 10 as does the embodiment shown in FIGS. l-4. Tension members or flexible elongated members 35 made of belt or the like are fixed between pairs of rigid members 24 at both ends thereof, as shown in FIG. 5, so as to provide inlet openings 35 in the upper portions of the

passages

32 and 33 respectively. Escapees may be admitted directly to the chute through these inlet openings 36 from various stories of a building or the like.

The chutes described above have a number of advantages, particularly in that each chute enables safe vertical descent from a high building or the like without any undue anxiety. The chute shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 further enables entry into the chute from various stories of a building or the like.

The foregoing is of course considered as illustrative only of the principle of the invention. Obviously, nu-

merous modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. The chute can have three or more columns to provide the descending passages. The chute may also have rigid bottom members instead of the rigid liners, and it may have flexible ladders made of rope or the like instead of the flexible elongated slender rope members 28.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A life saving chute comprising a plurality of descending passages, each one of said descending passages being composed of a flexible tubular member and a bottom member and disposed in any one of a plurality of columns which are vertically oriented during use, the bottom surface of the space defined by each one of said tubular members being completely closed by said bottom member so as to provide means for completely stopping the vertical descent of an escaping person, each adjacent pair of said descending passages adjoining each other as upper and lower ones thereof being disposed in different ones of said columns and having an opening therebetween for permitting a person to move from an upper to a lower one of said passages, wherein each one of said openings is provided in a common vertical portion of said tubular members, said portion being oriented vertically during use, and said life saving chute being movable as a whole.

2. A life saving chute as set forth in claim 1, wherein rigid members are connected with said bottom members so as to always maintain the outer forms of said bottom members.

3. A life saving chute as set forth in claim 1, wherein said bottom members are rigid members.

4. A life saving chute as set forth in claim 1, wherein said descending passages are disposed alternately in said plurality of said columns.

5. A life saving chute as set forth in claim 1, wherein at least one of said descending passages other than the uppermost one is open directly to the outside to admit escaping persons.

6. A life saving chute as set forth in claim 1, further comprising flexible elongated slender members in said descending passages which may be grasped to permit users to slide down along them to a lower passage.

7. A life saving chute as set forth in claim 1, further comprising flexible ladders disposed in said descending passages.

8. A life saving chute as set forth in claim 1, wherein a plurality of said descending passages are open directly to the outside to admit escaping persons.

Claims

1. A life saving chute comprising a plurality of descending passages, each one of said descending passages being composed of a flexible tubular member and a bottom member and disposed in any one of a plurality of columns which are vertically oriented during use, the bottom surface of the space defined by each one of said tubular members being completely closed by said bottom member so as to provide means for completely stopping the vertical descent of an escaping person, each adjacent pair of said descending passages adjoining each other as upper and lower ones thereof being disposed in different ones of said columns and having an opening therebetween for permitting a person to move from an upper to a lower one of said passages, wherein each one of said openings is provided in a common vertical portion of said tubular members, said portion being oriented vertically during use, and said life saving chute being movable as a whole.