Untitled record

Application filed August 14, 1889, Serial No, 320,769, (No model,)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Francis A. Williams, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a certain new and 5 useful Improvement in Supporting-Clamps, of which the following is a specification.

My improvement relates to clamps which may be used to support articles from iron beams, and particularly for supporting, pipes, ro such as steam-pipes.

I will describe in detail a supporting-clamp embodying my improvement, and then point out the novel features in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is 15 a side elevation of a clamp embodying my improvement, showing a portion of a pipehanger suspended therefrom. Fig. 2 is a contral vertical section of the same.

Similar letters of reference designate cor20 responding parts in all the figures.

A A' designate two members of the clamp. These members may be made of cast metal and have sliding connections with each other. Their upper portions are bent or extended 25 over toward each other, so as to form overhanging jaws B. These overhanging jaws, when the clamp is in position, extend over the foot or base of a beam J, constituting an overhead support. Each member of the 30 clamp is provided with a horizontally-extending· slot a, and each is also provided with a projection a', which projection extends into the slot a of tlie other member of the clamp. These slots and projections op35 erate as guides to cause the jaws to occupy proper relative positions to each other when the members of the clamp are being moved laterally to cause them to embrace a beam of greater or less width.

4° I prefer to maintain the elements of the clamp together, so as to prevent their separation, by means of a bolt or pin C. I have shown a bolt provided with a nut c. This bolt C extends loosely through angularly45 extending slots D, formed in the members A A' of the clamp. These slots extend in reverse directions from each other—or, in other words, so that they will cross each other at angles. By this means the securing-bolt C 50 will be always centered between the jaws in whatever position the members may be adjusted into laterally.

In order to support an article—such, for instance, as a pipe-hanger—from the clamp, I prefer to employ a T-bolt E, provided with 55 a head e, which head extends loosely through angularly-extending slots F in the members A A', which slots are in shape and inclination approximately the same as the slots D. This construction enables the T-bolt to be cen- 60 tered in the same manner as is the connecting-bolt C, and the strain of the weight suspended from the T-bolt is always central beneath the supporting-beam. The slots D and F also act as cams, which, when the 65 strain is brought to bear upon their lower surfaces, cause the jaws of the clamp to tightly grip the beam. I have shown supported from the T-bolt E a socket G, in which is received a ball g upon a shank II, 70 extending from a pipe-hanger I. I have only shown a portion of this pipe-hanger, as the same does not constitute part of my invention.

It will be seen that by improvement I pro- 75 vide a very simple and ready clamp by which an article may be supported from an iron beam, which, while strong and durable, may also be readily attached to and detached from the foot of the beam at any desirable point. 80