US 4,730,696 A · Emergency escape rope apparatus

Abstract

An emergency escape rope apparatus includes an elongated rope with knots or other protruberances spaced along it and which is arrayed within a container. The container has a plurality of elongated protuberance receiving tubes positioned in it, each tube having a slot extending along its wall and opening at an open end of the tube. In an order from one tube to the next, each tube sequentially receives a selected number of knots with loops of the rope between the knots extending through the slots. Between one tube and the next, an anchor segment of the rope between two sequential knots is stretched taut between the top of the one tube and the bottom of the slot of the next tube to retain the knots within the one tube until the rope secured by the next tube has payed out. The container has a clip in its cap for removably retaining a cap end of the rope for quick access. A base end of the container has a socket and plug arrangement which allows access to a base end of the rope but prevents removal of the base end of the rope from the plug when the plug is in the socket.

Claims23

Dependent claims

An emergency escape apparatus comprising:

(a) an elongated flexible line having opposite ends and a plurality of protuberances spaced therealong to form line segment lengths of said line between two sequential protuberances;
(b) an elongated protuberance receiving means, said protuberance receiving means having a wall;
(c) said wall having an elongated slot formed therein, said slot having an open end and an opposite closed end;
and
(d) said protuberances being received sequentially within said protuberance receiving means through said open end of said slot from a first end of said line to an opposite free end of said line with each line segment length of said line forming a loop of line which extends outward from said protuberance receiving means through said slot when the pair of protuberances adjacent said segment length of line are positioned within said protuberance receiving means, such that said protuberances slide sequentially along said slot and out of said slot thereby paying out said line in an orderly manner upon said free end of said line being pulled.

2 more elements

An emergency escape apparatus comprising:

(a) an elongated flexible line having opposite ends and a plurality of protuberances spaced therealong;
(b) an elongated protuberance receiving tube, said tube having a tube wall;
(c) said tube having an elongated slot formed in said tube wall and extending along a substantial portion of the length of said tube, said slot having an open end and an opposite closed end;
and
(d) said protuberances being received sequentially within said tube through said slot from a first end to an opposite free end of said line such that said protuberances slide sequentially along said slot and out of said tube thereby paying out said line in an orderly manner upon said free end of said line being pulled.

2 more elements

An emergency escape apparatus comprising:

(a) an elongated flexible line having opposite ends and a plurality of protuberances spaced therealong to form line segment lengths of said line between two sequential protuberances;
(b) an elongated protuberance receiving tube, said tube having a tube wall;
(c) said tube having an elongated slot formed in said tube wall and extending along a substantial portion of the length of said tube, said slot having an open end and an opposite closed end;
(d) said protuberances being received sequentially within said tube through said slot from a first end to an opposite free end of said line such that said protuberances slide sequentially along said slot and out of said tube thereby paying out said line in an orderly manner upon said free end of said line being pulled;
(e) a container including a tubular container wall with opposite ends;
(f) a cap closing a cap end of said container;
(g) a base closing a base end of said container;
(h) said protuberance receiving tube being positioned within said container and said line being arrayed within said container in cooperation with said tube;
(i) said cap including cap line retainer means removably retaining a cap end of said line to facilitate the location of the line cap end during use of said apparatus;
and
(j) said base including base line retainer means removably retaining a base end of said line to facilitate the location of the line base end during use of said apparatus.

8 more elements

An emergency escape apparatus comprising:

(a) an elongated flexible line having opposite ends and a plurality of protuberances spaced therealong to form line segment lengths of said line between two sequential protuberances;
(b) a container including a tubular container wall with opposite ends;
(c) a cap closing a cap end of said container;
(d) a base closing a base end of said container;
(e) said cap including cap line retainer means removably retaining a cap end of said line to facilitate the location of the line cap end during use of said apparatus;
(f) said base including base line retainer means removably retaining a base end of said line to facilitate the location of the line base end during use of said apparatus;
(g) a plurality of protuberance receiving tubes positioned within said container, each tube including an associated tube wall, each tube having an elongated slot formed in said wall along a substantial portion of the length of the associated tube, each slot having an open end and an opposite closed end;
(h) each tube having a length to receive a selected number of said protuberances;
(i) a distance from the open end of the slot of a tube to the closed end of the slot of an adjacent tube being substantially equal to said segment length of said line;
(j) in an order from a first tube to a last tube of said plurality of tubes, each tube sequentially receiving said selected number of protuberances through its associated slot from a first end to an opposite free end of said line to array said line within said container such that said protuberances slide sequentially along said slot and out of said tube thereby paying out said line in an orderly manner upon said free end of said line being pulled;
(k) an anchor segment of said line extending between the open end of the slot of one tube to the closed end of the slot of a next tube such that tension in said anchor segment exerts a force on a stack of protuberances in said one tube to retain said protuberances therein.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Emergency escape rope apparatus

Life of this patent

Emergency escape rope apparatus

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims23