An Improved Brake for Wheels.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Dec., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 19th Feb., 1895-Accepted, 23rd Mar., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Brake for Wheels.
"
I PRESTON WEIR, Schoolmaster 4 Melville Road Redland, Bristol do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows
A series of two or more parallel bars, so arranged as to lie transversely or
obliquely across the periphery of the tyre when in contact with it. These transverse
bars are united by a bar or bars running across them & secured to each of them.
The bars may consist of any material or combination of materials ;-as metal
alone, or metal with rubber. All or any of these bars may be straight; or bént
to suit the curvature of the wheel or the tyre.
.**
If convenient, the whole series of bars may be cast or moulded in one piece.
The bars may be flat, round, oval, or of any form in cross section, so long as the
brake, when in action, is divided into transverse sections; separated by intervals.
Dated this 19th day of December 1894.
An Improved Brake for Wheels.
I, PRESTON WEIR, of 4 Melville Road, Redland, Bristol, 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:
a
The object of this invention is an improved brake for wheels, and consists of a
series of two or more parallel bars, so arranged as to lie transversely or obliquely
across the periphery of the tyre when in contact with it. These transverse bars
are united by a bar or bars running across them and secured to each of them.
The bars may consist of any material or combination of materials as metal alone,
or metal with rubber. All or any of the bars may be straight, or bent to suit the
curvature of the wheel or the tyre. If convenient the whole series of bars may
be cast or moulded in one piece.
The bars may be flat, round, oval, or of any form in cross section so long as the
brake, when in action, is divided into transverse sections separated by intervals.
The features of my invention will be readily gathered from' an 'inspection of 'the
annexed drawings.
Figure is a side elevation of one example of my openworked or grating bar
form of brake. Figure 2 an end view of same, and Figure 3 a plan looking on the
underside.
Figures 4 and 5 are end and plan views of a modification of certain parts in
order to show that the rail or bar pressure need not be transverse as provided for
with reference to Figures 1, 2, 3, but angularwise, said bars having a single
(central) rib instead of side ribs or bars.
Figure 6 represents the front or the brake wheel of a cycle with my invention
applied.
Existing brakes employed with rubber tyres (inflated and others) create an
unnecessary amount of useless friction and abrasion by the grit of the road which

page_text: is lifted by the tyre very often in cakes and patches, and by its adhesive character
travels round with the wheel, so that when the brake, usually of spoon or hollow
shape, Jet of solid metal, is pressed down upon this muddy grit it becomes partially
transferred to the brake and forms a cushion constantly accumulating and heaping
and preventing the direct contact of the brake with the wheel, there being no
chance of its escape while the brake is down.
up
The foregoing disadvantages are obriated by my invention, the mud lifted by
the wheel being scraped, so to speak, by the first cross bar which bears against
the two sides of the tyre, the mud accumulating at the sides more readily than
at the middle or tread proper the after bars are so shaped that they bear against
the sides or upon the periphery or on both sides and periphery and the surface of
the tyre left sufficiently clean for the other bars in conjunction with the first bar to
exert a gripping biting frictional contact direct with the rubber.
Any mud or grit escaping the first bar will effectually be scraped off by the
second bar.
In practice however I have found the tyre to be perfectly cleared of mud and
grit by the action of the first bar which scrapes it off and casts it sideways.
The effect which the front bar has of scraping off the mud does undoubtedly
occur, but the special feature of the invention in this respect is, that whereas a
spoon brake when out of action and suspended over the revolving tyre at a short
distance above it, becomes plastered and coated with mud and grit, which dry on
it, my "gridiron " brake, on the contrary, from its open form renders this collection
of mud impossible, there being no continuous surface sufficient for the mud to cake
With respect to mud this is unquestionably the fundamental point of the
brake. The mud passes up through the brake.
on.
I prefer bare arranged as shown on the drawings as a brake but any other form
or arrangement of openworked meshed or grating like kind of brake is within the
scope of my invention in contradistinction to an unbroken even surfaced spoon or
other kind of brake now existent.
A, A, are parallel bars. B, B, bars uniting the bars A, A. C lug. D shackle
links for connection to fork or band. E rod operable from above in any well
known manner, or from the lever F. G, G, are the handles. H, H, represent
part of the frame of a machine, and J the wheel.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The construction and employment of wheel brakes from a combination of
transverse curved cross bars and longitudinal side bars having intervening spaces,
substantially as described and shown.
2. A cycle brake of cross bars to be successively pressed upon a tyre, or all of
them to act simultaneously, as desired.
ISLA DRY DI вергнягу
вергнЯГУ ІОРДА
H. GARDNER,
Patent Agent, 166, Fleet Street, London,
Agent for the said Preston Weir.