IMPROVED USE OF MAGNETS IN OVERBALANCING WEIGHTS
Year: 1864

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Thomas Philip Tregaskis at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
18th August 1864.
I, THOMAS PHILIP TREGASKIS, of Perran-ar-Worthal, Cornwall, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for the "IMPROVED USE OF MAGNETS
IN OVERBALANCING WEIGHTS," to be as follows:-
I propose that a series of magnets or soft pieces of iron be placed round
about the circumference or outer portion of a wheel or revolving machine, in
such a manner that they shall have half of their ends or poles facing the centre
or axle of the wheel, & half facing in an opposite direction. They are to be
placed in sockets or guides, or in a series of cases (by preference) that they
may easily be moved. towards the centre or axle of the wheel, or in an
opposite direction, and to be supplied with catches or stays (if necessary) to
stop them in. any required position or distance from the centre of the wheel.
The wheel to revolve in an upright position similarly to the wheel of a car-
riage or cart, and to have a casing (if necessary) to cover and conceal the
various parts. The wheel may revolve on an axle or pivot, and may be
attached to guere work by any suitable means. That a stationary magnet or
set of magnets; the face or faces of which are in the form of an arc of a circle,
or any convenient. curve, not having the same centre as the wheel; is to be
placed or fixed in such a manner that the upper part of this stationary mag-
netic arc may touch (if necessary) the outer face or faces of one or more of
the sliding. magnets or soft pieces of iron at some part of the wheel which is

page_text: uppermost, and the lower part of the magnetic are to bo at some convenient
distance from the face or faces of one or more of the sliding magnets or soft
pieces of iron in some lower part of the wheel. This stationary magnet or
set of magnets to be in the same plane as the wheel, and the concavo portion
or face of the stationary magnet to bo smooth, & to face towards the con-
vexity formed by the outer poles or ends of the sliding magnets or soft pieces
of iron belonging to the wheel. By this means the sliding magnets or soft
pieces of iron in the wheel are attracted to the stationary magnet or magnets,
and are drawn by the attraction from the centre of the wheel to any con-
venient distance. The outer ends or poles of theso sliding magnets or soft
pieces of iron to glide over the inner face or faces of the stationary magnet
or magnets. The sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron in the wheel may bo
retained in this position by the catches or stays until they are (being removed
by the revolving of the wheel) sufficiently low down, & there they may be
released for the purpose of being again drawn or attracted towards the centre.
These sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron may be attracted towards tho
centre of the wheel by means of another stationary magnet or set of magnets,
(baving a convex face, smooth & curved,) and which may be employed to
attract the inner ends or poles of the sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron to
the lower part of the stationary magnet or magnets, and these may continuo
to be thus attracted gliding along the face or smooth surface of the second
stationary magnet or magnets until they are drawn sufficiently near the
centre of the wheel or revolving machine, & may be held in this position also
by catches or stays (if necessary). This second stationary magnet or set of
magnets is to be fixed between the centre or axle & the inner ends or poles
of the sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron, to be in the same plano as the
wheel, and to have the smooth convex face of the stationary magnet or
magnets prosented to the inner face or faces or poles of the sliding magnets
or soft piecos of iron. Springs may be used to supply the place of this inner
stationary magnet or magnets by being attached to the wheel near the axle &
to the sliding magnets at or near their ends or poles, or in any other con-
venient part or parts of the same; or springs may be attachod to any other
portion of the wheel for the purpose of drawing the sliding magnets towards
the centre of the wheel, or retaining them when in that position.
By the first arrangement a continuous eccentric motion or force is formed,
the sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron being drawn away from the centre
of the wheel by the stationary magnet or magnets, which act on the outer
ends or poles of the sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron, & are drawn
towards the centre again by the stationary magnet or magnets, which aro

page_text: placed between the centre of the wheel & the inner ends or poles of the
sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron.
By the second arrangement (viz., the springs) a semi-eccentric motion or
force is produced, as it were, the sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron being.
drawn away from the centre of the wheel towards the stationary magnet or
magnets acting on the outer ends or poles of the sliding magnets or soft
pieces of iron, and being drawn in again by the springs are retained in their
original positions by means of these springs till their positions are sufficiently
changed by the further revolution of the wheel. A slide or curved incline
may be used to assist the stationary magnets in drawing out the sliding
magnets or soft pieces of iron from the centre of the wheel, or in drawing
them towards the centre of the wheel or revolving machine. A continual
overbalancing of sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron is thus produced, the
sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron being drawn away from the centre of
the wheel on the one side of the centre of the wheel & towards the centre of
the wheel on the other side of the centre of the wheel; and the power pro-
duced will be in proportion to the size of the whole apparatus, & especially
the weight of the sliding magnets or soft pieces of iron in the revolving
machine.