Self-lowering mechanism

Claim 1

A self-lowering device, comprising, a. a housing, b. harness means connected to said housing for attaching said housing to a person, c. a fixed shaft mounted to said housing and extending through a wall thereof, d. a reel rotatably mounted about said shaft and within said housing, e. a length of line wound about said reel and passing out through said housing, f. said reel being formed with a hub extending out through said wall, g. a shoulder stop formed on the outer portion of said hub, and, h. a manually operated lever arm pivoted to the end of said shaft about an axis perpendicular to the axis of rotation of said reel, and formed with a plurality of angularly spaced abutments in position to be moved by said person into and out of the path of travel of said shoulder, said lever in one position stopping said reel against rotating and in another position permitting said reel to rotate less than a full cycle, i. the working end of said lever being formed with two flaT reel-engaging faces disposed at an oblique angle to one another to limit the angle of oscillation of said lever whereby one abutment will clear said stop and the other will be in the path thereof.