Preventing Loss of Force from Friction, Diminish- ing the Oiling necessary and Preventing the Heating of Axle-trees.
Year: 1853

page_text: Preventing Loss of Force from Friction, Diminish-
ing the Oiling necessary, and Preventing the
Heating of Axle-trees.
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
4th June 1853. Partly a communication.
(Void by reason of notice to proceed not having been given within the
time prescribed by the Act.)
I, CARL FEDOR LENZ, Merchant of Berlin, in Prussia, & in London,
Great Tichfield Street, 52, County of Middle Essex, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "A MECHANISM OF A NEW CONSTRUC-
TION, HAVING AS ITS END THE PREVENTION OF THE LOSS OF FORCE CAUSED
TILL NOW BY FRICTION, TO DIMINISH THE OILING TILL NOW NECESSARY, AND
TO PREVENT THE HEATING OF THE AXLE-TREES IN REVOLVING," to be as
follows:-
This Invention can be applied to all carriages employed on rail as
well as other roads, and to hand barrows used in mines, etc., for
all steam engines, the axles of water and wind mills, finally for all
revolving mill stones, and, for the most, axles which revolve in a hori-
zontal or vertical direction. In the present movement of all kinds of
axle-trees a reciprocal friction takes place in the mortice; but my

page_text: Invention consists in this: All the parts of the mechanism which I
shall substitute for the axle trees or tap holes shall touch each other,
but not rub. This will be thus accomplished after having transmitted
the movement of the axle in a manner suitable to the end between the
moveable and immoveable parts, I bring balls or other bodies of a
circular form so that they turn upon a plain without an axis in the
centre, and the motive power works with equal pressure on two opposing
points of the circumference.
place on all the
Specification In the place of an axle-tree a, are placed (whereby
the rotation friction arises, where, for instance, the axle tree according
to the present method lies with its pivot in its bed,) two conical
wheels b, at a suitable distance from each other, of equal size, requiring,
however, no teeth, and situated symetrically opposite each other, and
decreasing in diameter towards the centre. These two wheels b, are
reunited to two other conical wheels c, of equal dimensions, which
touch each other in the middle between the two wheels b. If this
angle of contact be 60 degrees, such contact takes
collateral lines of the circumference. See k, Fig. I. By the rotatory
motion of the axle a, the wheels b, will be moved, and by these the
wheels c, in an opposite direction round the pivot g, or through its
centre. On the greater surface of these conical wheels c, lie in a
circle around round bodies, must to the purpose, balls d, and behind
them a strong countrepoise i, which forms with the surface of the
wheels a parallel plaine. By the movement of this wheel c, a friction
against the counterpoise i, would certainly arise if the balls did not
prevent it by their rotatory motion. Since the balls through their
rapid rotation are impelled by the centrifugal force from the centre, so
must the surface be somewhat hollowed in a concave manner, as in e,
is to be seen, and, farther, a mechanical apparatus applied in order to
effect the regular distance of the balls; this is done best by the round
plate f, which in Fig. VI., is especially drawn. The plate f, has for
every ball a hole, and can without hindrance move itself round the
pivot g, and preserves the movement through the balls without percep
tibly hindering it. The described apparatus simply taken cannot,
certainly, hold the axle-tree on all sides; it would, therefore, be applied

page_text: on the conical wheels b, on those sides of the axle which must be held,
as, for instance, in a carriage which goes sometimes backwards, viz.,
3 times above, before, and behind, as it is to be seen in Fig. V. The
position of the wheels c, to one another need not always be in an angle
of 60 degrees; in such case the wheels do not repose on the whole side
line, as in Fig. I., but only on a point of their circumference, as in
Fig. II., III, IV., k, in which case immediately on the surface of the
conical wheels c, where this collision takes place, another wheel c',
concentric with the wheel c, is placed directly at the base of each of
these conical wheels where the collision will take place. This wheel c',
will form a like body with the wheel c, and will be more or less conic
according to the size of the angle formed by the wheels c, see Fig. III.
& IV., or cylindrical, as in Fig. II.; the case is, that both the wheels c',
touch the whole side line of their circumference, as in Fig. II., III.,
IV., h.
I claim as my propriety, during the duration of my Patent, the use
of the mechanism abov described, which has as its end the prevention
of friction, not limiting my Invention to the forms and to the dimen-
sions indicated in the design annexed to the present description. I can
modify them, at the same time preserving to my principle the perfec-
tions which make the object of the demand for the present Patent.