1. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, characterised by having a track composed of two static rail-cables (2), on which
motorized vehicles (1) run, are guided and powered; such vehicles may be simple or
made up of several units, like a train or articulated tube.
2. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, according to the above claim, characterised. by the fact that the two rail-cables
(2) are laid down horizontally, separated and maintained statically in space by lifting
supports (21 oe 28), in the form of an inverted T, with cable-carrier shoes (5) incorporated
on the two horizontal parts.
3. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, according to the previous claims, characterised by the fact that the fixtures (21
and 28) hang firmly from support arms (22) on support pillars (20) or another cable
(25) which, supported by higher arms that also exist on the support pillars (24),
by means of hangers (27), helps to keep the rail-cables horizontal in a similar way
to suspension bridges.
4. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, characterised by the fact that the vehicle (1) has two or more drive assemblies
(3), from which it hangs by means of shock-absorbing suspension (11) and swivels (12).
5. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, according to the previous claim, characterised by the fact that each drive assemly
(3) consists, essentially, of a frame (32) containing guide units (4) and support
and traction wheels (31), which are supported on the top of the rail-cables (2) and
which receive their driving power through bushing by means of any conventional transmission
system, or by being coupled directly to the shafts of high-torque, low-speed engines
(30), which are attached to the aforesaid frame.
6. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, according to the previous claim, characterised by the fact that the guide units
(4) are composed of two symmetrically equal centralizer arms (41) that revolve around
axles (42) attached to the vertical edges of the frame (32c) and at the bottom have
guide wheels (43), which run on the sides of the cables and make the centralizer arms
open as they pass through the cable-carrier shoes (5); they maintain the cables centred
in respect of the traction wheels (31) because the arms (41) have a device composed
of two springs (44), a central buffer (45) and a central anchorage (46), in which
the free end of both springs is fixed. Other buffers (47) and stretch restrictors
inside the springs prevent the cable from coming out of the groove formed by the three
wheels.
7. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, according to previous claims, characterised by the fact that the cable-carrier shoes
(5) of the rail cables, have both ends pointed to make the opening an closing of the
centralizer arms (41) smoother as they pass trough them.
8. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, according to previous claims, characterised by the fact that since the rail-cables
are locked-coil cables and cannot be spliced, the rolling between one cable ending
(2a) and another commencing (2b) is performed on special "coupling" shoes (50), which
have a longitudinal opening at the bottom to allow both rail-cables, in a slight arc,
to descend and cross in order to reach slack adjusters composed of hydraulic cylinders
(51) or any other element fulfilling this function, which are anchored beneath such
shoes at the opposite end to the entrance of each cable and horizontally shifted a
few centimetres in respect of the vertical of the centre of each shoe, each to the
opposite side to avoid the rail-cables from rubbing when crossing. and
9. Overhead Transport with a Low Ecological Impact, according to previous claims, characterised by the fact that the cable-carrier shoes
(5 and 50) incorporate longitudinal clamps (53) which, set into a cutting made for
this purpose, hold the rail-cables from above to prevent them from coming out of the
compartment of such shoes in the event of vertical oscillations produced for any reason.
