Improvements in and relating to Bicycles.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 25th Sept., 1394
Complete Specification Left, 25th June, 1895-Accepted, 27th July, 18:5
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Bicycles.
JOHN HARRISON of Stamford in the County of Lincoln Engineer and JAMES
Dopp of No. 346 Alfreton Road Nottingham Commercial Traveller do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
An improve treadle action an arrangement whereby the pedal is extended
forward which despenses with a driving chain in rear driven machines and a more
advantageous motion is obtained the path of the footplate or pad being elliptical
instead of circular Also improvements in the construction and arrangement of
elliptical or elliptical and excentric sun and planet gearing which can be used in
combination with our improved treadle action And also the arrangement of gearing
now used in geared ordinaries with two elliptical or one elliptical and an excentric
wheel and the adaptation of this class of gearing to a rear driven machine and its
combination with our improved treadle action.
We mount our pedals on the crank pins and carry them (the pedals) forward and
form or mount the footplate or pad at the end and at the back of the pedals; we
joint a connecting rod or extension piece and which we call an extension bar
The object the joint being to provide for any latteral movement and allow the
cranks to control the pedals latterally The extension bar and pedal practically
form the treadle. At the end of the extension bar we joint connecting links or
rocking arms by which the treadles are suspended from frame of machine.
to
The second part of our invention consists of improvements in the construction
and arrangement of elliptical or elliptical and excentric gearing and improve-
ments in, and the adaptation of gearing known and used in "geared ordinaries
rear drivers, in combination with our improved pedal or treadle action the object of
the elliptical gear being to assist the pedals over "dead centres."
In our improved sun-and-planet gearing we use a pin or lantern wheel, for either
the sun or planet wheel and mount a friction roller on each pin or tooth The rollers
practically forming the teeth This wheel we can make elliptical and gear it into an
elliptical wheel of the same size provided with suitable teeth to gear into the
lantern wheel or we can make one wheel excentric and half the size of the elliptical
wheel according to speed required.
To carry our invention into practical effect in a rear driven machine, and with
the combination of our improved treadle action and gearing, we make the axle of
the driving road wheel tubular and pass the crank shaft through the saine and
when we use sun and planet gear the crank pin also tubular and pass through an
axle or shaft to which the placet wheel is fixed; the planet wheel we mount inside
the crank and to gear into the sun wheel which is fixed to the axle of the road
wheel; and at the opposite end of the shaft to which the planet wheel is fixed we
provide a clip or catch which fixes the planet wheel to the pedal; the pedal being
mounted on the tubular crank pin and controlled in its path by the extension bar
The frame of the machine we extend backward beyond the centre of the road
wheel; and hang the treadles from the frame by rocking arms or connecting links
pivoted to treadle at end of extension bar. The treadle action is of course the
same on both sides of machine with the exception that no gearing is needed on one
side, nor is it necessary to make the crank pin tubular unless two speeds are
required then we arrange the sun and planet gear as already described and use on

page_text: one side two wheels of equal size and on the other side one wheel twice the size of
the other; the catches for fixing the planet wheel we construct so that they can
be easily engaged or disengaged as required only one being engaged at the same
time namely the one which gives the required speed.
When we use our improved ordinary gear we pass the crank shaft through the
axle of driving wheel as already described and fix to the crank shaft an elliptical
spur wheel this wheel gears into an elliptical wheel or an excentric pinion revolving
on a stud or bearing fixed to the frame of the machine, fixed to this wheel is an
ordinary spur wheel gearing into another spur wheel fixed to the tubular axle or
hub of rcad wheel.
Although we have only described our invention as applied to a certain class of
bicycles it will be understood that our invention can be applied to different types
of machines, for instance the pedal action can be applied to a front driver by
reversing the arrangements and it will also be understood that we use balls bearings
&c. we having only described such parts as are essential to show our invention to
avoid confusion.
Dated this 22nd day of September 1894'
JOHN HARRISON.
JAMES DODD.
COMT LUID DI ECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Bicycles.
We, JOHN HARRISON, of Stamford, in the County of Lincoln, Engineer, and
JAMES DODD, of No. 346, Alfreton Road, Nottingham, in the County of
Nottingham, Commercial Traveller, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
Our invention relates to velocipedes and consists chiefly in a novel arrangement
of the driving mechanism, whereby the power of the rider can be applied more
continuously and effectively than heretofore, by causing the pedals to move more
quickly than with ordinary pedal mechanism over the top and bottom portions of
the pedal path thus reducing the period when they are at points where the power
can be applied with least effect.
According to our invention we make use of elliptical gearing which may be
arranged to work as sun and planet gearing or as ordinary gearing, and, in
combination with the gearing, we preferably employ pedal-bars connected at or
near their centres to the cranks and at their front ends carrying the pedals and at
their rear ends connected to oscillating links depending from the frame of the
velocipede.
To enable our invention to be fully understood we will describe the same by
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :-
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a bicycle having our improvements applied
thereto :
Figure 2 is a view of part of the same looking from the rear end :
Figure 3 is a side elevation drawn to an enlarged scale shewing the driving gear;
and,
Figure 4 is a sectional plan of the same :
Figure 5 is a view of a nut for locking one of the ball-bearing cones in
position:
Figure 6 is a side elevation shewing the driving gear adapted for high speed :
Figure 7 is a side elevation shewing another form of driving gear; and,
Figure 8 is a sectional plan of the same.
Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

page_text: a indicates the frame of the machine, b the driving wheel, e the crank-axle,
d, d¹ the cranks, e, e' the pedal-bars, the links connecting the rear ends of the
same with the framing, g, g the pedals or treadles, and h, i the sun and planet wheels
respectively.
In the arrangement of our invention shewn in Figures 1 to 4, we make use of
two elliptical gear-wheels having their axes of rotation at the centre and arranged
to work as sun and planet wheels, the sun wheel 7 being fixed to the hub b¹ of the
driving wheel b and having the crank-axle e rotating within it whilst the sun wheel i
is fixed to the pedal-bar e. The said sun wheel, as shewn most clearly in Figure 4,
is provided with a boss i¹ which passes through the crank & into an aperture in the
said pedal-bar and forms the crank-pin. In practice we have found it advantageous
to make the sun wheel as a lantern wheel the teeth of which are pins having
friction rollers whilst the planet wheel has ordinary spur teeth.
By referring to Figure 4, it will be noticed that we have represented ball-
bearings as being placed around the crank-axle c, the balls at one end of the said
crank-axle being carried in a ball-race formed in a hollow boss upon the sun
wheel whilst at the other end the ball-race is formed in a cylindrical block j
screwed into the hub 61 of the driving wheel b. By screwing in this cylindrical
block more or less the adjustment of the balls relatively with the collars c', c¹ upon
the crank-axle c can be effected. In order to lock the said block in any position
into which it may be adjusted, we provide a split nut or collar, shewn clearly in
Figure 5, so arranged that when a taper screw is inserted through the split into
a hole in the block j, the said nut will be expanded to clamp it in the hub b'.
As shewn in Figures 1 to 4, the sun and planet wheels are represented as being
of the same size, in which case the driving wheel only makes two rotations to one
of the crank. If a higher speed is required we advantageously employ the
arrangement shewn in Figure 6, that is to say, instead of using an elliptical wheel
for the sun wheel, we use an eccentric wheel having half the number of teeth of
the planet wheel whereby the driving wheel makes three revolutions to one of the
cranks.
The links ff are pivotted as close together as possible to a rearward extension
of the framing a, as shown in Figure 2, so as to prevent their having an unsightly
appearance upon the machine, and the pedal bars e, e' are bent inwards, as shown in
Figure 4, in order to meet the lower ends of the said links. In order to allow the
cranks to have lateral control of the pedals and to prevent any wringing of the
links f, f¹ in case either of the treadle bars e, e¹ should be accidentally bent laterally,
the said links f, f¹ are formed in two pieces at their upper ends connected together
by knuckle joints 2 which permit of the necessary movement of the links.
Instead of forming knuckle joints in the links, knuckle joints may be formed in
the treadle bars adjacent to the crank-pins.
in an
With the arrangement of driving mechanism herein before described the pedals
move in the path indicated by the dotted line k in Figure 1, that is to say,
approximately elliptical path in which the vertical movement is very much greater
than the horizontal movement thus giving a more effective path for the applied
power whereby the dead points of the cranks are more quickly passed than when
the pedals move in a circle, a very uniform and regular movement being at the
same time obtained which was not the case when elliptical gear was used with
ordinary pedal-cranks.
We sometimes dispense with the sun and planet arrangement of gearing and use
the arrangement shewn in Figures 7 and 8, in which figures we represent four
gear-wheels, videlicet, an elliptical gear-wheel m fixed upon the crank-axle c, an
eccentric circular pinion n (having half the number of teeth of the elliptical wheel)
engaging therewith and mounted upon a stud o, a circular gear-wheel p fixed to the
eccentric pinion n and rotating therewith upon the stud o, and the circular
gear-wheel q engaging with the wheel p and fixed to the hub 6' of the driving
wheel b. With this arrangement the wheel n, which has only half the number of
teeth of the wheel o, makes two revolutions to one of the cranks and consequently

page_text: also the wheel p makes two revolutions. This motion of the wheel p may be
communicated to the driving wheel at an accelerated speed according to the
relative diameters of the wheels p, q. This arrangement of gearing may be driven
directly by pedals upon the cranks or by means of the treadle-bars e, el hereinbefore
described.
Although we have shewn our invention applied to the rear wheel of a bicycle it
is to be understood that it is also applicable to the front wheel, or to a chain or
gear wheel geared with the driving wheel of the machine.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. In a velocipede the combination with the cranks of pedal-bars mounted upon
the said cranks and connected at their rear ends to links depending from the frame
and at their front ends carrying the pedals one or both of the said pedal bars
carrying an elliptical planet wheel engaging with an elliptical sun wheel on the hub
of the driving wheel whereby as the cranks are rotated the said pedals will be
caused to move at an approximately uniform speed in an approximately elliptical
path, substantially as described.
2. In a velocipede the employment of elliptical gear-wheels for transmitting the
motion of the cranks to the hub of the driving wheel, the planet wheel of the said
gearing being provided with a boss extending through one of the crank-arms and
serving as a crank-pin for supporting one of the treadle-bars, which bars at their
rear ends are connected to links depeuding from the frame and at their front ends
carry pedals, substantially as described.
3. In driving mechanism for velocipedes in which sun and planet gearing is
employed making the planet wheel of elliptical form and the sun wheel of an
eccentric form having half the number of teeth of the planet wheel, the said planet
wheel being provided with a boss extending through one of the crank-arms and
serving as a crank-pin for supporting a treadle-bar connected to a link depending
from the frame, substantially as described.
4. In a velocipede in which the motion of the cranks is communicated to the
driving wheel through the medium of gearing, the employment of a train of wheels,
consisting of an elliptical wheel fixed to the crank, an eccentric wheel having half
the number of teeth of the elliptical wheel and gearing therewith, a circular
gear-wheel fixed to the said eccentric pinion and another circular gear-wheel upon
the hub of the driving wheel and gearing with the first mentioned circular
gear-wheel substantially as described.
5. The manufacture and use of bicycles having driving mechanism arranged and
operating substantially as herein before described and illustrated in Figures 1 to 5,
Figure 6 and Figures 7 and 8 of the accompanying drawings.
Th
دعم
1
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicants.