An Improved Construction of Wheel for Velooipedes and other Vehicles.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 19th Aug., 1896-Accepted, 31st Oct., 1896
[Communicated from abroad by ARCHER SEPTIMUS BOWMAN, of Strathfield, in
the Colony of New South Wales, Bachelor of Engineering.]
An Improved Construction of Wheel for Velooipedes and other
Vehicles.
I HENRY EDWARD NEWTON of The Office for Patents, 6 Bream's Buildings,
Chancery Lane, in the County of London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention consists in the application, between the hub of a wheel and the
point of attachment of the spokes to the hub, of a pneumatic cushion, whereby
the shock and jar incidental to travelling along any road are very materially
lessened, and the movement of the vehicle rendered more comfortable for the
passenger.
But in order that the invention may be thoroughly understood, reference will be
made to the accompanying sheet of drawings, in which-
Fig. 1 is a transverso vertical section of the application of the pneumatic cushion
or cushious to the hub of a cycle wheel.
Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the same, taken on the line 1-2 of Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section of a modification of the pneumatio
cushion, the same being made all in one piece instead of in two pieces as in
Fig. 1.
A is the fixed axis of the wheel, around which the hub may revolve on ball or
roller bearings of any approved construction. B is the axle box, into which auch
ball or roller bearings may be fitted. C, C is a light metal frame or frames, which
is or are firmly secured to the axle box B, and stand out radially from the axis of
the wheel. The light metal frame is intended to support a grooved or hollowed
out light metal felloe D, which receives the flexible, air-tight tubes E, E (Fig. 1)
or single tube F (Fig. 3). On the side of the pneumatic rings or ring EÈ¹ F,
most remote from the axle A, is placed (in the case of Fig. 1) a corrugated ring
of thin light metal G, so that the flexible pneumatic tubes E, E may be lightly but
firmly held between the concavities of the rings G and D. In the modification
shown in Fig. 8 the ring G will not be corrugated, but will be constructed of such
a form that the single tnbe F may be lightly but firmly retained in its proper
position. The spokes I may be secured in any approved manner to the external
or outer side of the ring G, and to the external felloe that carries the tyre of the
wheel. The result will be that when any weight is brought to bear upon the
tyre, such weight will be transferred to the spokes, and from them to the pneumatic
cushion, thus materially reducing the shock and jar to the passenger..
Any approved meaus may be provided for inflating the pneumatic tubes with
air, and in the case illustrated in Fig. 1, the two tubes E, E' may be connected
together by air passages or tubes, so that the two tubes may be inflated at one
operation.
Tho form and arrangement of the apparatus may be considerably modified from
that shown in the drawings, but I have shown sufficient to illustrate the mode in
which my invention may be applied to any ordinary cycle wheel.

page_text: 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. In wheels of vehicles, the application, between the hub of the wheel and the
spokes, of an annular pneumatic tube or cushion as herein described.
2. In wheels of vehicles, in combination, the hub of a wheel, a radial frame
that is secured on tho hub, a pneumatic ring or cushion that is placed upon such
frame, a netal ring that will secure the pneumatic cushion in its place on the radial
frame, and the spokes, the inner ends of which are secured to such metal ring as
specified.
Dated 18
of August 1000
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.