Improvements in Two-speed Driving Gear for Bicycles.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Mar., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 9th June, 1896-Accepted, 23rd Jan., 1897
Improvements in Two-speed Driving Gear for Bicycles.
We WILLIAM REILLY of Wellington Street Salford in the County of
Lancaster Mechanic and CHARLTON HAIGH of Grafton Street Chorlton-on-
Medlock Manchester in the said county. Draughtsman do hereby declare the nature
of the said invention to be as follows:-
This invention is designed to provide a simple and effective mechanism for
throwing into and out of gear the operative parts of the apparatus and also to
improve the construction of the wheel hub so as to reduce the number of parts
thereof.
In carrying out the invention we construct the gearing with an internally toothed
wheel gearing with one two or more preferably four small pinions rotating on studs
carried by the hub which in turn gear with a pinion on the wheel spindle of the sun
and planet or crypto type.
At the driving end of the hub we form a shoulder or enlargement and in this
shoulder we form by 'cutting or otherwise slots or recesses to receive the pinion
wheels. These slots are cut right through at intervals so that when the wheels are
placed therein they extend outwards to engage the internal tocthed wheel and
inwards to engage the pinion on the wheel spindle. Other holes are drilled or
bored and studs passed through on which the pinions rotate.
The internally toothed wheel is attached to and forms part of the sprocket wheel
and is placed over the end of the hub a journal being formed with balls upon which
it rotates. The end of the hub may be faced with a steel or other strip or ring if
found desirable. The spoke flange projects from this enlargement of the boss.
Instead of the pinion having a sliding or longitudinal movement on the spindle
it may be made free to rotate thereon but have no lateral movement. A sliding sleeve
is inside the hub surrounding the spindle which can be moved longitudinally to and
fro. One end of this sleeve embraces the boss of the wheel and the other slides in
a ring or collar fixed to the spindle. The sliding sleeve is provided with clutch
teeth or other teeth or projections and the pinion and hub are provided with
similar teeth so that when the sliding sleeve is moved in one direction it engages
with the pinion and the hub causing the two to be locked and turn together and
when moved in the opposite direction it engages with the pinion and the spindle
causing them to be locked together and preventing rotation of the pinion. The
sliding sleeve may if desired be always in gear with the pinion and provided with
a space or interval at the other end where it is free of both hub and spindle or
instead of or in addition to such space or interval there may also be a space or
interval in which it is out of gear with the pinion. In either case the pinion-
when the sleeve is in the central position-is free to rotate independently of either
hub or spindle.
The spindle is formed hollow for a portion (or for the whole) of its length and a
rod or spindle passes through it with a cotter feather or other device which projects
through slots or holes in the spindle and engages with the pinion or sleeve as the
case may be to move it to and fro on the spindle.
The sprocket wheel is made with or affixed to an internally toothed wheel and

page_text: rotates on ball bearings around the end of the hub a separate journal and ball
bearing being provided for its rotation around the spindle.
Dated this 16th day of March 1896
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
6, Bank Street, Manchester, Patent Agents.
improvements in Two-speed Driving Gear for Bicycles.
We, WILLIAM REILLY, of Wellington Street, Salford, in the County of
Lancaster, Mechanic, and CHARLTON HAIGH, of Grafton Street, Chorlton-on-
Medlock, Manchester, in the said county, Draughtsman, 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 relates to driving gear for bicycles and other vehicles which can
be changed from one speed to another while in motion and is designed to provide a
simple and effective mechanism for throwing into and out of gear the operative
parts of the apparatus and also to improve the construction of the wheel hub so as
to reduce the number of parts thereof.
It consists essentially in the combination with driving gear comprising internally
toothed wheel gearing with oue two or more pinions around a central pinion on the
wheel axle or spindle of a movable slide formed with teeth or projections capable
of being moved to and fro on the spindle and gearing both with the central pinion
and with the hub to retard or accelerate the speed of the wheel as required.
It will be fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings in
which the hub of driving wheel constructed according to the invention is
illustrated.
Fig. 1. Side elevation.
Fig. 2. Longitudinal section.
Fig. 3. Transverse section on line x-x Fig. 2.
Fig. 4. Transverse section on line y-y Fig. 2.
Fig. 5. Side elevation of spindle or axle.
The gearing is constructed with a sprocket or driving wheel A provided with
internal teeth a which gear with one two or more preferably four small pinions B.
The pinions B rotate on studs b attached to the end c of the hub C and gear with
a pinion D which runs loosely on the spindle E.
At the driving end the hub C is formed with a shoulder or enlargement cand in
this shoulder we form by cutting or otherwise slots or recesses c to receive the
pinion wheels B. The slots c' are cut right through at intervals so that when the
wheels B are placed therein they extend outwards to engage the internal teeth a of
the wheel A and inwards to engage the pinion D on the wheel spindle E.
holes bare drilled or bored and studs 6 passed through on which the pinions B
rotate.
Other
The internally toothed wheel a is attached to and forms part of the sprocket
wheel A and is placed over the end of the hub a journal being formed with balls G
and H upon which it rotates. The end c of the hub C may be faced with a steel
or other strip or ring if found desirable. The spoke flange c projects from this
enlargement of the boss.
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The central pinion D is free to rotate upon the axle E and by means of a sliding
sleeve K on the spindle may be locked with the hub C so that the hub rotates
with it or may be locked to the spindle E and prevented rotating the hub rotating
round it.

page_text: The sliding sleeve K surrounds the spindle and is capable of sliding to and fro
thereon. It is provided with internal teeth or projections & which gear with teeth
of the pinion D but free to slide longitudinally thereon and externally it is provided
with projections or teeth k¹ which may gear with similar teeth or projections k¹¹ on
the inner side of the hub C.
The spindle E is provided with a collar e upon which the sleeve K slides.
The collar e at one edge is provided with teeth e corresponding to the internal
teeth of the sleeve which can gear or lock together. Thus when the sleeve K is
in the position shown in Fig. 2 the internal teeth k are in gear with the pinion D
and with the collare of the spindle E thereby locking it to the spindle so that it
cannot rotate. When the sleeve K is moved towards the pinions B the external
projections engage with the projections " inside the hub and lock the pinion
with the hub so that the two rotate together.
The sliding sleeve K may as shown be always in gear with the pinion D or it
may be provided with a space or interval where it is free of both hub and spindle
so that when the sleeve is in the central position the piuion is free to rotate
independently of either spindle or hub.
The spindle E is formed hollow for a portion (or for the whole) of its length and
a rod L passes through it with a cotter feather or other device which projects
through slots or holes in the spindle and engages with the sleeve K to move
it to and fro on the spindle. The rod L is actuated by a handle or lever N
connected to the end.
In operation when the sleeve K is in the position shown and the pinion D locked
to the spindle so that it cannot rotate the speed of the hub is retarded and power is
gained in driving more slowly when a normal or quick speed is required the
sleeve K is locked into both the pinion D and the hub C so that the hub then
rotates at the same speed as the sprocket or driving wheel A.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we wish it to be clearly
understood that we do not claim per se the epicyclic gearing for varying the speed
nor do we claim the hollow axle and rod therein for moving or shifting the
operative parts, but what we do claim is.-
1. The combination of parts constituting the two speed driving gear constructed
substantially as described and shown.
2. In a driving gear for cycles the combination with the sprocket or driving
wheel A provided with internal teeth one two or more pinions rotating on studs at
the end of the hub and a central pinion on the spindle with which they gear, of a
sliding sleeve provided with external and internal teeth pegs or projections whereby
the central pinion may be locked to the spindle to prevent ius rotation or locked to
the hub to cause the hub to rotate with it substantially as described.
Dated this 8th day of June 1896.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Manchester, Liverpool, and London, Patent Agents.