Improved Apparatus for Operating the Moving Heads of CarrIAGEB ofRIAGES
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander McKenzie, of Little Windmill Street,
in the County of Middlesex, Coach Builder, for the Invention of
“Improved Apparatus for Operating the Moving Heads of CarrIAGEB.”
**
Improved Apparatus for OperATING THE MOVing Heads of CARRIAGES.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander Mc Kenzie at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 2nd December 1872.
I, ALEXANDER M° KENZIE, of Little Windmill Street, in the County
5 of Middlesex, Coach Builder, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVED APPARATUS. FOR OPERATING THE MOVING HEADS OF
CARRIAGES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to improvements in the mechanism used for
facilitating the closing, and opening, and locking in position the heads
of landaus, barouches, and other like carriages.
In carrying out my Invention I may use the ordinary head joints, or I
may dispense with their use. When using them I connect with the

page_text: head joints telescopic or sliding rods, which serve as guides and supports.
for coiled springs, which springs, as the head of the carriage is thrown
back or opened, become compressed and allow the head to fall, but which
when the head is attempted to be raised will supplement the action of
the coachman, and throw it up into the closed or raised position in which
it will be secured by the straightening of the head joints.
The telescopic rods may be connected to either end of the head joints.
When applying them to the upper ends the lower ends of the telescopic
rods are jointed to fixed brackets on the carriage frame, and their upper
ends are connected to short arms made fast to axles which turn in.
bearings in the pillar tops. These axles are squared to receive the upper
ends of their respective head joints. .
Surrounding the telescopic rods or inserted within them are the coiled
springs which give the upward impetus to the depressed carriage head,"
and effect the straightening of the bent head joints. Collars or equivalent
bearings are provided at the top and bottom of these rods to receive the
pressure of the springs, and when the head is thrown back these bearings
serve to compress the springs, and thereby provide the force for closing
the head.
In order to stop the head at any desired position I apply to the
telescopic or sliding rods spring bolts, the action of which will enable me
to dispense with the head joints. To allow of this the coiled springs are
by preference placed within the telescopic rods. Attached to the outer
one of the telescopic tubes is the spring bolt which plays through a hole
or holes in that tube, and enters one of a series of holes made in the
inner tube, when the spring bolt comes in line with such hole. To
ensure the bolts of the tubes on opposite sides of the carriage working
together, so as to lock both sides simultaneously, I connect the bolts to a
cord or wire which runs over guide pulleys, and is made fast to a swivel
plate mounted on the hoop stick. By turning this plate the bolts are
withdrawn to allow of the movement of the head, and when the tension
of the cord is slackened the spring bolts will be free to fly.into action
and lock the carriage head in position.
In place of using telescopic rods I may use a continuous length of
rod, leaving one end, say the upper end, free to slide through a ball-
and-sccket joint fitted to the arms of the axles of the head joints.

page_text: .
In order to apply my principle of locking the carriage head to this
arrangement of sliding rods, I mount spring bolts upon the axles of the
head joints, or where head joints are not used I mount them on the fixed
guides of the sliding rods at the pillar tops, and form holes in the rods to
receive the bolts, or the rods may carry spring catches which will take
on to the guides of the rods, or on to adjacent fixed stops. The arms of
the head joint axles may be severally connected by a link with one
of the hinges of the cant rail or falling portion of the head, and
they will thereby be caused to act simultaneously on the pillar and on
the cant rail.
Instead of connecting these rods with an arm at the top end of the
head joint I may connect them with similar arms projecting from
squared axles forming the fulcrums for the lower limbs of the head
joints. I would remark that the locking of the head may be effected
through the head joints instead of the sliding rods, as described, by
making one end of the head joint free to slide in a guide affixed either
to the pillar top, or to the framing of the carriage, and applying the bolt
or catch either to the guide or to the head joint.
This arrangement will be chiefly applicable where inside head joints
are used.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Alexander Mc Kenzie in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 31st May 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALEXANDER
MC KENZIE, of Little Windmill Street, in the County of Middlesex,
Coach Builder, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Second day of December, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the thirty-
sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Alexander McKenzie, Her special licence that
I, the said Alexander McKenzie, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Alexander McKenzie, my executors, adminis-

page_text: ..
trators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from
time to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR OPERATING Ĕ
THE MOVING HEADS OF CARRIAGES," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said Alexander M° Kenzie, my executors or administrators, by
an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of
the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
]
formed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the
date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alexander Mc Kenzie, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is 1
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto
annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say) :-
This Invention relates to improvements in the mechanism used for 2
facilitating the closing, and opening and locking, in position the heads of
landaus, barouches, and other like carriages.
In carrying out my Invention I may use the ordinary head joints, or
I may dispense with their use. When using them I connect with the
head joints telescopic sliding rods which serve to receive coiled springs,
which springs as the head of the carriage is thrown back or opened,
become compressed and allow the head to fall; but which when the
head is attempted to be raised, will supplement the action of the coach-
man or the occupant of the carriage and throw up the head into the
closed or raised position in which it will be secured by the straightening
of the head joints. The telescopic rods may be connected to either end
of the head joints as may be thought most convenient.
In Sheet I. of the accompanying Drawings, Fig. 1 shews in partial
side, elevation a landau fitted according to the first part of my Invention,
the head of the landau being closed, and Fig. 2 is a partial side elevation
shewing the landau head open. In both Figures the leather covering of

page_text: the head is removed to show the construction of the mechanism for
closing the same, which mechanism has its counterpart on the opposite
side of the carriage. In these Figures it will be seen that the me-
chanism is applied in conjunction with the usual head joints, but it
should be here stated that the head joints will not be required when the
head lifting mechanism is fitted with a locking appliance as hereafter
described.
'
In the example illustrated at Fig. 1, the telescopic rods A, A, are con-
nected with the upper ends of the head joints B, B, through short
arms C made fast to the axles C¹ of the head joints, which axles turn in
bearings in the pillar tops D. The lower ends of the telescopic rods are
plugged and tapped to receive adjusting screws a* which are jointed to
fixed brackets E on the carriage frame. The axles C³ are squared to
receive the upper.ends of their respective head joints B, the lower ends
of which are pivotted to the framing of the carriage. Inserted
within the telescopic rods are the coiled springs which give the upward
impetus to the depressed carriage head and effect the straightening of
the bent head joints.
.
Fig. 3 shews on an enlarged scale the spring within the telescopic rod.
Bearings are provided at the top and bottom of the rods to receive the
pressure of the spring, and when the head is thrown back the bearings
in the pair of rods will as they approach each other serve to compress the
enclosed springs, and thereby provide the impelling force for raising and
closing the head. Nuts 6* are provided at the bottom of the rods A to
permit of the turning of the same for the purpose of adjusting the
pressure of the springs.
To give the cant rail F or falling portion of the head (which is
hinged to the top of the pillar post D) an automatic motion on the
closing of the head, and to allow of its taking either of the two positions
shewn in the Drawing, I connect the arms O of the head joint axles
by means of links G with the hinges of the cant rail as shewn at Fig. 1.
This connection allows of the depression of the head by simply lifting
the cant rail from the horizontal position of Fig. 1, the turning of the
cant rail on its hinged joints serving through its connection with the
axles C¹ to rock those axles, and thereby double back the head joints by
which the head is supported and allow the head to fall to the position of
Fig. 2.

page_text: When dispensing with the head joints I provide a means for locking
the falling head at any desired position, which means combined with
the above described improvements constitutes the second head of my
Invention. To attain this end I apply to the telescopic sliding rods
spring bolts, in the manner which I. will now proceed to describe.
In Sheet II. Fig. 1 represents in side elevation the head of a
barouche fitted with a locking telescopic arrangement and without
the ordinary head joints, and Fig. 2 is a back elevation of the same.
A, A¹, are a pair of locking telescopic tubes which are intended to
act simultaneously on opposite sides of the carriage head. The larger
tubes (A) are each provided with a lug a (see the enlarged cross section
Fig. 3, taken in the line x, x, of Fig. 2) to carry a locking piece b
which is pivotted thereto, and which is provided with teeth b¹ for locking
into a rack c. This rack is made fast to the joint of the lower tube
A, and it is slotted at its upper end to receive a screw c¹ which secures
it to the tube A, and yet allows of the sliding of the tubes one over the
other. The locking piece 6 is forced into contact with the rack by
means of a spring d, which is carried by a bracket piece e made fast
to the tube A. The locking piece 6 is embraced by a rock lever fƒ,
the rocking of which throws the locking piece out of contact with the
rack and releases the telescopic tubes, leaving them free to move either
by the impelling force of the coiled springs contained therein, or by
the counteracting pressure applied by the occupant of the carriage,
or an attendant, to force back the head to the depressed position.
In order that the locking apparatus may act efficiently it will be
necessary to bring the rock levers ƒ on the opposite sides of the head
into action simultaneously. This I do by connecting the tails of these
levers by means of chains or cords g, with a small barrel h mounted
centrally on the framing of the head. By turning this barrel the levers
will be tipped, and thereby be caused to withdraw the locking pieces b.
out of contact with the racks c. The head will then be free to rise
or fall, as may be desired.
2
In Sheet III. of the Drawings I have shewn a modified arrangement
for locking the falling head, which arrangement from its simplicity,
as compared with that just described, I prefer to employ, as being less
liable to derangement, that being an important consideration where

page_text: the parts are hidden between the covering and the lining of the head
and are therefore inaccessible without displacing the lining.
Fig. 1 shews in partial side elevation a landau fitted with the telescopic
sliding rods, and provided with the modified locking arrangement, the
head in this case being raised; Fig. 2 is a similar view, bút showing the
head depressed to its lowest position; and Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view
on an enlarged scale of the locking apparatus. In this modification it
will be seen that instead of attaching the locking parts to the telescopic
tubes or their connections I pivot the rack c of the first-described
arrangement to a bracket piece projecting from the pillar top D, and
cause its teeth to gear into a pinion c¹ formed on the boss of a disc c²,
which when locked will retain the rack, and consequently the falling
head in any desired position. This disc c is mounted loosely on a
screwed spindle f, which has its bearings in brass fittings a let into the
side framing of the carriage. A screw formed on the inner end of the
spindle/takes into a fixed nut a¹. When therefore an axial motion is
imparted to the spindle by the hand lever f¹ it will receive a slight
endway motion. The disc c² is ribbed upon its face to permit of its.
engaging with the teeth of a clutch b, which is mounted loosely on the
spindle f, and secured thereto by collars. This clutch is fitted with
lateral projections which enter guides formed in the brass fitting a.
This arrangement prevents the clutch from turning, but allows it to
approach and interlock with the disc c², or retire therefrom, as the
screwed spindle is turned by the hand lever f¹. The spindle fis
flattened at its upper and under side to receive the pressure of a forked
spring d, which gives it a tendency to retain either of the positions
shewn in the Drawing. The rack c is held in gear with the pinion.c¹
by an antifriction roller (see Fig. 3), and when the clutch b is in the
position shewn in that Figure the head will be unlocked, and the rack c
will be free to move up or down with the pillar post, as desired. So
soon however as the clutch 6 (which acts the part of the locking piece b
of the first-described arrangement) is advanced by the turning of the
screwed spindle f, and brought into contact with the disc c³ the rack c
will be held fast, and the head will be locked. This may be effected
either when the head is raised, as at Fig. 1, or depressed, as at Fig. 2,
or when only partially depressed. The locking on both sides of the
carriage may be effected simultaneously by extending the spindle f
across the carriage (under the seat), and giving it a right and left
handed screw at its extremities.
Q

page_text: Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of "Improved
Apparatus for Operating the Moving Heads of Carriages," and explained
the manner of carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood
that under the above in part recited Letters Patent I claim,-
First. The sliding rods constructed as above described, and operating,
in combination with the ordinary head joints, as explained with reference
to Sheet I. of the Drawings.
Secondly. The use of the sliding rods in combination with a locking
appliance (in substitution of the head joints), as described with reference
to Sheets II. and III. of the Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexander McKenzie, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Thirty-first day of May, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.
ALEXANDER MCKENZIE. (L.S.)