# US 2014/0190770 A1 · Height Rescue Apparatus > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2014/0190770 A1 - Document ID: US20140190770A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 14/234,753 - Filed: 2012-07-25 - Published: 2014-07-10 - Earliest claimed: 2011-07-27 - Assignees: Fallsafe Limited - Inventors: Julian Elwyn Renton; Peter Thomas Mence Nott - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140190770A1 ## CPC - A62B 1/10: mechanically operated - A62B 35/0093: {Fall arrest reel devices} - A62B 35/04: incorporating energy absorbing means - A62B: DEVICES, APPARATUS OR METHODS FOR LIFE-SAVING (valves specially adapted for medical use A61M39/00; life-saving devices, apparatus or methods specially adapted for use in water B63C9/00; divers' equipment B63C11/00; specially adopted for use with aircraft, e.g. parachutes, ejector seats, {B64D17/00, B64D25/10}; rescue devices peculiar to mining E21F11/00) ## Abstract There is provided a height rescue apparatus comprising a safety line (1) which is attached at (3) to a flexible elongate element (2) which has a lower tensile strength than the safety line 1 which is wound on a drum (9) which is part of a speed control means. A friction device (5) acts on a portion of the safety line (1) to reduce tension in said portion of the safety line by at least 50% in a full arrest situation. The drum (9) or the speed control means is held in a first position which prevents rotation of the drum and release means can be actuated after the fall arrest to allow the drum to provide a controlled lowering action. ## Claims ### Claim 1 Height rescue apparatus having both a fall arrest function and a lowering function, the apparatus comprising: an elongate safety line which in use has one end secured with respect to a secure anchorage device; a friction device for effecting the fall arrest function and mounted on a bracket having harness attachment means, which friction device acts upon a portion of the safety line towards the other end thereof remote from said one end in order to reduce tension in the end of said portion of safety line by at least 50% in a fall arrest situation; an elongate lowering line which has a first end attached to said other end of the safety line and which has a lower tensile strength than the safety line; a drum mounted on the bracket for rotation relative thereto, around which drum the lowering line is wound and to which drum the second end of the lowering line is secured, said drum being independent of said friction device, at least one speed control means for controlling the speed of rotation of the drum, one of the drum or the speed control means being releasably held in a first position which prevents rotation of the drum, release means for releasing the drum or the at least one speed control means from said first position to allow the drum to effect said lowering function by rotating at a controlled speed in a lowering situation thereby allowing lowering line to be deployed to provide a controlled speed of descent. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the friction device is a dynamic friction device in which the friction applied to the safety line is a function of the tensile load in the safety line between said friction device and said one end of the safety line. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the friction applied to the safety line is directly proportional to the tensile load in the safety line. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the friction device comprises at least one fixed member against which the safety line is constrained in a fall arrest situation. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said at least one member interacts with the safety line in such a way that the safety line is constrained to follow a non-linear path relative to the bracket. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 5 wherein said at least one member comprises a cylinder of round cross-section which is fixedly secured to the bracket, the safety line passing around the circumference of the cylinder. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein the safety line contacts the cylinder over a radial angle of at least 2π radians. ### Claim 8 (depends on 4) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the tension in the safety line in a fall arrest situation is represented by the formula T 1 T 2 = e μ   θ in which T1 is the applied tension at said one end of the safety line, T2 is the tension in the safety line downstream of the friction device, μ is the coefficient of friction between the surface of the elongate 1 and the surface of said at least one member, and θ is the radial angle in radians of contact between the safety line and said at least one member. ### Claim 9 (depends on 4) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein the friction device comprises a clamping mechanism acting on opposite sides of the safety line. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein the clamping mechanism comprises said at least one fixed member which provides a fixed clamping surface and further comprises a movable clamping surface which is able to move towards and away from the fixed clamping surface. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein the movable clamping surface is provided on a clamp arm which is pivotally secured with respect to the bracket on one side of the clamping surface and is acted upon by a harness connection such that tension on the harness connection due to a fall arrest causes the movable clamping surface to move towards the fixed clamping surface thereby increasing friction between the safety line and the clamping surfaces and reducing tension on said other end of the safety line. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 11 wherein the safety line is guided by guides upstream and downstream of the fixed clamping surface. ### Claim 13 (depends on 11) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 11 wherein the harness connection comprises a length of rope looped around a pin provided on the clamp arm. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the clamping surfaces are linear and are contoured to fit the cross-section of the safety line. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the safety line and the lowering line are attached together by one of the following methods: splicing, interconnection of looped ends, sewing, knotting, interconnecting mechanical links. ### Claim at position 16 16-23. (canceled) ### Claim 24 (depends on 1) Height rescue apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said speed control means includes a centrifugal brake mechanism comprising a shoe drive driven by the drum and having mounted thereon shoes for engagement with a cylindrical friction lining and wherein said drum is threadedly attached to a nut which frictionally engages by means of a brake lining ring a drive gear which is resiliently urged toward the nut and which drives said shoe drive, said frictional engagement of the nut and the brake lining ring constituting a load limiting means for limiting the load on the elongate element after the load element has been released.