Improvements in and connected with Mudguards for the Wheels of Bicycles, Tricycles, and other Velocipedes.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Feb., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 15th Nov., 1895-Accepted, 21st Dec., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and connected with Mudguards for the Wheels of
Bicycles, Tricycles, and other Velocipedes.
I, SAM THOMAS RICHARDSON, of 3A Rea Street, in the City of Birmingham,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention has reference to those mud-guards. for the wheels of bicycles.
tricycles and other. velocipedes which consist of a strip of woven fabric such as
oiled silk or canvas or other suitable material supported, above and adjacent to the
wheel tyre so as to prevent the mud flying up from the wheel on to the rider and
this invention consists of the hereindescribed improved means for supporting the
said mud-guards so that they can be instantly brought into use or rolled up out.of
the way when not required.
I will first describe my invention as applied to the back wheel of a safety"
bicycle. Carried by bearings which are fixed to the fork or other part of the
framework of the machine immediately above the wheel I provide a small barrel
or roller arranged horizontally to which one end of the strip of fabric forming the
mudguard is fixed and around which by turning the roller the said strip of fabric
forming the mudguard can be wound. A ratchet wheel on the roller and a spring
ratchet or other means retains the mudguard rolled on the roller. The outer end
of the mudguard is fixed to the upper end of a light spring steel or other fork
which embraces the wheel and which at its lower ends is fixed to the fork or frame
of the machine near the wheel axle bearings. Between the two ends of the mud-
guard one or more similar light spring steel wire or other forks is are or may be
provided for supporting the mudguard above the wheel. This spring fork or these
spring forks to which the mudguard is fixed is or are made so that it has or
they have a tendency to spring outwardly and keep the mudguard taut. The roller
around which the mudguard is wound is made with a small handle or T piece or
small head or other means by which it can be turned so as to wind the mudguard
upon it and when the mudguard is thus wound the said spring. fork which supports
the outer end of the mudguard is pulled up near to the fork of the machine frame
so as to be out of the way. By releasing the ratchet from the ratchet wheel of the
mudguard roller the said fork spring immediately turns outwardly and unwinds the
mudguard carrying it out tight across the top of the wheel.
My invention is applied to the front wheel of a safety bicycle or to any other
wheel of a tricycle or other velocipede similarly as above described with reference
to the back wheel of a safety bicycle.
Dated this 14th day of Rahun 1905

page_text: turned so as to wind the mud-guard E upon it, and when the mud-guard. E.is:thus
wound upon the roller D the spring forks G G which support the mud-guard:will
be pulled up
near to the forks B' B' of the machine frame as shown in. Fig. 3. so as
to be out of the way and in this position the mudguard and forks will be retained by
the ratchet engaging with the teeth of the ratchet wheel d'.
By lifting or otherwise. releasing the ratchet f from the teeth of the ratchet
wheel d¹ (which can readily be done by the rider even while he is sitting on the
machine), the spring-forks-GG-will-immediately-spring-outwardly to the position:
shewn by Fig 1 and thus unwind the mud-guard E from the roller D'Carrying it
taut across the top of the wheel as in Fig. 1. The spring forks G¹ G² are by
preference made of an arched or curved shape at their ends g³ 9 so as to make the
flexible mud-guard E assume the corresponding shape when extended over the top
of the wheel.
The upper end g of the intermediate spring fork G³ is not permanently fixed to
the mud-guard E but is secured thereto by fitting in a space between the underside
of the mud-guard E and a tape ; which is fixed to the underside of the mud-guard
and extends from the point e corresponding with the top of the fork G³
when the mud-guard is extended, to the outer end e¹ (see Fig. 1) so that as the
mud-guard is being rolled on the roller D the tape or tapes ; will thus keep the
mud-guard E in position on the intermediate fork G³ and permit of the mud-
guard E moving over the top of the fork G as the mud-guard is being wound on
the roller.
Instead of the forks G' G which carry the mud-guard E being made to spring
outwardly by being made of spring wire and bent to the form shewn by Fig. 4
and clamped to the sides of the part H of the frame, these forks G'G' may without
departing from the nature of my invention be otherwise constructed and the
spring parts arranged in other ways to make the forks G¹ G spring outwardly
when the roller D is released and carry the mud-guard E taut over the wheel C as
stated above.
It will be evident that if desired there may be more than two of the spring
forks GG for carrying the mud-guard E or if desired only one of the said spring
forks may be used, for instance as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1 which represent
the mud-guard E supported by one spring fork G³ fixed to the outer end e¹ of the
mud-guard.
The bearings a¹ a² in which the roller D turns, are by preference formed with
ordinary screw clamps a³ a adapted to fit the forked parts B' B² of the bicycle
frame and thus be readily fixed to an existing bicycle.
My invention is applied to the front wheel of a safety bicycle or to any other
wheel of a tricycle or other velocipede similarly as above described with reference
to the back wheel of a safety bicycle.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The combination with the strip of woven fabric or other suitable material
forming the mud-guard of a wheel of a safety bicycle or other velocipede, of a
roller carried by the frame of the velocipede and on which said strip of fabric can
be rolled, a ratchet and ratchet wheel or like contrivance to retain the roller when
the fabric is rolled thereon, one or more spring forks carried by said frame and
embracing the wheel to which the mud-guard is applied, said spring fork or spring
forks being at the upper end or upper ends attached to the said mud-guard and so
arranged that when the mud-guard is rolled on the roller the said fork or forks will
be bent towards the roller and when the roller is released the spring fork or spring
forks will fly outwardly and carry the mud-guard taut over the top of the wheel
substantially as described.
2. The combination and arrangement of parts forming the improved mud-guard
and the means for supporting and bringing the same in position over the wheel when

page_text: required for use and for winding up the mud-guard out. of use substantially as
herein before described and illustrated by the accompanying drawing.
.. Dated this 14th day of November 1895.