Improvements in Bicycles.
Year: 1897

page_text: Improvements in Bicycles.
RICHARD MANSELL-JONES, 76, Merton Road, Wimbledon, S.W., Surgeon, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
These improvements relate to a rear driving rigid frame bicycle and are made
as follows. To absorb vibration the front and hind wheels of a bicycle are con-
nected with the frame so as to permit them to rise and fall to a limited extent,
and thereby accommodate themselves to the inequalities of rough roads. The
handle bars are also made so that they can be depressed by undue pressure & spring
back again into their normal position & thus absorb the vibration transmitted
through the front wheel.
To accomplish this movement in the front wheel the front frame is made
similar in shape, to a rigid frame the only difference being the addition of a
circular plate about two inches in diameter projecting from the centre of the
crown at the head of the fork, & having a hole through its centre, the position of
the plate being horizontal, with one face looking upwards, the other downwards.
Two short levers, about four inches long, are connected near their centres by ball
bearing joints to each fork end. These levers are made of flat steel bars and have
a hole at their rear ends into which the axle of the front wheel is secured in the
usual manner. The front ends of the levers being pierced with smaller holes
to which a light subsidiary fork, made of fine steel rods, is hinged & secured by
nuts and bolts. The subsidiary fork occupies a position exactly under the centre
of the plate attached to the crown of the true fork, the crown of the subsidiary
fork almost touching it. The crown of the subsidiary fork is made of a thin steel
bar & has a hole in its centre. A steel tube about four inches long & of a narrow
guage sufficient for a brake plunger to pass through is passed through the hole
in the plate attached to the crown of the true fork and screwed into the hole in
the centre of the crown of the subsidiary fork & also secured by a nut. A rubber
or pneumatic buffer with a hole through its centre is now passed over the tube &
seated on the upper face of the plate attached to the crown of the true fork.
Another plate similar in size & shape & with a hole in its centre is again passed
over the tube and seated on the top of the buffer & secured in position by a nut.
The buffer placed thus acts as a spring & permits the wheel to play upwards &
backwards & thereby accommodate itself to the inequalities in the roads. If con-
sidered preferable a steel spring coil or rubber cord may be substituted for the
buffer, in which case an arm with a hooked end is fixed above the steering socket
& one end of the spring hooked on to it, & the other end connected with the crown
of the subsidiary fork. Another method of accomplishing the above is to fix a
plate to the front end of the levers, a rubber buffer is now seated on another plate
connected to a steel rod. The steel rod is now passed through the hole in the
centre of the first plate one on each side of the wheel and fixed to a hook brazed
on the front of each fork about two inches above the ball bearing joint. In this
case the subsidiary fork is dispensed with.

page_text: For certain purposes, such as military bicycles the following method of accom-
plishing the spring in the front frame might be considered more serviceable.
The front frame is made similar in shape but about three inches shorter than
that of a rigid frame machine and the steering socket carrying the forks & handle
bars is made seperate and attached to the frame by two links moving on ball bearing
joints. The links being made of a flat & strong steel bar about three inches long.
The top and bottom bar of the frame are connected together in front by a short
tube which occupies the position of the steering socket in a rigid frame, and the
steering socket is connected to this tube above & below by the links above men-
tioned. There is an arm or lever projecting from the rear portion of the upper
link, nearly at right angles from its centre, towards the centre of the frame. The
free end of this lever is hooked, and a strong rubber cord or steel spring coil is
connected to it at one end by a loop, and the other end of the cord or coil is con-
nected to a hook which is fixed to the centre, and underneath the top bar
of the frame. By this arrangement the movements of the front wheel are con-
trolled. If considered preferable the lever which should be about ten inches long,
can be made much-shorter and a buffer plate fixed on its free extremity & front
aspect, another buffer plate to oppose the above being fixed to the posterior aspect
of the front bar of the frame and a rubber or pneumatic buffer inserted between
these plates.
'
The frame supporting the hind wheel is similar in shape to the hind frame of
a rigid framed machine and is made as follows.
A ball bearing joint to carry two levers is brazed or fixed to the top of the seat
post on its front aspect. The levers fitted to this joint are made out of a flat
bar of steel, and have a long & a short arm, the latter being bent nearly at right
angles with the former. The short arm is about three inches long & the long
arm about ten. For convenience sake the two long arms, which when in position
lie at the side of the seat post, are joined together in front of it, and made one,
which descends exactly in front of the seat post, and is hooked at its free end.
The free ends of the short levers are connected by ball bearing joints to the heads
of the stays. The lower ends of the stays being connected by ball bearing joints
to the forks, in the usual position, thus forming a link with an arm or lever
precisely similar to that controlling the movements of the front wheel. An india
rubber cord or spring steel coil is hooked at one end to the free end of the long
lever, the other end of the cord or coil being attached to the hook already described
as being fixed to and underneath the centre of the top bar, and thus controlling
the movements of the hind wheel. If considered preferable the lever can be
shortened and a buffer plate fixed on the end of it, and another to oppose it can
be attached to the front of the seat post and a rubber or pneumatic buffer inserted
between them. The buffers take the place of springs & control the movements
of the wheels.
There are various ways and modifications by which levers can be used to form
a spring frame, but the principle is the same. This frame can be instantly made
rigid by securing the ends of the levers to the top bar by steel rods.
The antivibrating handle bars are made as follows. The upper end of the stem
where it is connected with the bar is made in the shape of a loop and each arm
connected to the top of the loop by a ball bearing joint, so made that the arms are
only permitted to close in a downward direction, but are perfectly rigid when pulled
at in the upward direction. A small buffer plate is connected to & underneath
each arm, within about two inches of the joints, so that they face each other
through the loop in the stem, a rubber or pneumatic buffer with a hole through
its centre is secured between the plates by short pins fixed in their centres, or
by a nut and bolt. The bolt passing through the hole in the buffer & also a hole
in the centre of the plates. Or the buffers can be dispensed with & a spring used
as follows. A short arm is fixed to each bar within about three inches of the joint,
& on the upper surface, the arms being hooked at their free ends, & a rubber cord
or steel spring coil hooked to each.

page_text: By these means the buffers or springs absorb the shocks transmitted through
the front wheel.
Another method of accomplishing the above purpose is as follows. The handle
bars are made in one piece in the usual manner, without any joints and are con-
nected to the head of the stem by a lever or arm brazed to the centre & in front
of the bars. This lever is hooked at its free end & is connected near its junction
to the bars by a ball bearing joint to the head of the stem. The stem having
another fixed arm of the same length brazed on it about four inches lower down &
in a line with the top lever. This is also hooked at its free end & a steel spring
coil attached to it & to the end of the top lever. By the above means the handle
bars sink at each shock, & recover their normal position by the aid of the spring.
In this case also a rubber or pneumatic buffer can be substituted for the spring
by being fixed in the centre & behind the handle bars,
T
1712 1007
I, RICHARD MANSELL-JONES, of 76, Merton Road, Wimbledon, S.W., Surgeon, 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 for improvements in bicycles has for its object to connect
the wheels to the frame in such manner that they can rise and fall to a limited
extent and thereby accommodate themselves to the inequalities of rough roads.
In carrying out this invention, the front part of the diamond frame is similar in
shape to the ordinary rigid frame but somewhat shorter, but the diagonal and lower
members instead of being brazed to the bottom bracket are brazed to a special
elbow socket. The steering socket carrying the front forks and handlebars is
attached to the frame by two double links working on ball bearings. One of the
double links is continued backwards beyond the frame and connected to the frame.
by a suitable spring. The hind wheel as is usual is mounted in forks connected
at one end to the axle of the rear wheel. The back forks are brazed at their
forward end to the bottom bracket in the usual manner and the bottom bracket
is hinged by a ball bearing joint to the special socket connecting the lower and
diagonal tubes. The back fork stays are hinged with ball bearing joints at their
lower end to the back forks and at their upper end to the end of a double lever
fulcrummed on the top of the diagonal member of the frame and connected at the
other end by a spring to the frame.
In the accompanying sheet of illustrative drawings:-Fig. 1 is an elevation
of a bicycle constructed according to this invention, Fig. 2 is a detail section
showing the ball bearing joints, Fig. 3 is a detail view showing the manner of
connecting the bottom bracket to the frame. Figs. 4 and 5 show a modification
of the elastic connection between the levers and the frame. Fig. 6 is a section
on line - Fig. 1.
C,
The frame of the cycle comprises the horizontal tube a, the front tube b, the
lower tube and the diagonal tube e. The whole of these tubes are brazed together
in the ordinary manner except that the lower ends of the diagonal tube e and
lower tube c instead of being brazed to the bottom bracket dare brazed to a
special elbow socket e¹.
The steering socket f carrying the front forks g is connected to the front tube b
by the double links h and by the double levers i. Balls are placed between the

page_text: bearing faces of the links h and the levers i and the faces of the lugs m on the
steering socket and the lugs m¹ on the front tube b, the balls working in grooves
on the faces. The joint is then tightened up and fixed by the bolts n.
It will readily be seen that the bolts may pass diametrically through the tube b
but they do not pass diametrically through the steering socket on account of the
steering. The levers i are connected by the helical spring p to a bracket o that
is adjustable on the horizontal tube a.
The bottom bracket d has lugs between which is pivotted the elbow socket el,
balls being placed between the faces in contact and adjusted by means of screwed
bushes screwing in the lugs . The joint is firmly secured by the bolt n
passing through the screwed bushes and socket e¹.
The back forks r brazed at their forward ends to the bottom bracket d carry the
axle of the back wheel and are hinged to the lower ends of the back fork stays s.
The upper ends of the back fork stays s are hinged between the outer ends of the
double levers t that are pivotted on a lug on the upper end of the diagonal
tube e.
The inner ends of the double levers are connected to the bracket o by
a helical spring w. The construction of the hinged joints and of the levers tis
similar to that shown in Fig. 2, and it will readily be seen that the wheels and
forks can rise with respect to the frame by extending the helical springs pw
and that consequently the frame a bee is supported by the springs pw.
In the modification shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the extension springs p w are
replaced by rubber buffers that are fixed to blocks pivotted between the ends
of the levers i and t and bear against blocks fixed on the front tube and the
diagonal tube as clearly shown.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. A bicycle frame comprising an ordinary diamond shaped safety frame, a
steering socket, a link and a lever connecting the socket to the front tube of the
frame and a spring joining the lever to the frame substantially as described.
2. A bicycle frame comprising a front part similar to the ordinary diamond
safety frame, the back forks hinged to the frame, the back fork stays hinged to
the back forks, a lever fulcrummed on the frame and hinged to the upper end
of the back fork stays and a spring joining the lever to the frame substantially
as described.
3. A bicycle frame comprising a front part similar to the front part of the
ordinary diamond safety frame, the bottom bracket hinged to the front part, the
back forks fixed to the bottom bracket, the back fork stays hinged to the back
forks, a lever fulcrummed on the frame and hinged to the upper end of the back
fork stays and a spring joining the lever to the frame substantially as described.
4. A bicycle frame comprising the horizontal tube, the front tube, the lower tube
and the diagonal tube, all brazed together, a steering socket connected to the front
tube of the frame by a link and a lever, a spring joining the lever to the frame, the
back forks hinged to the frame, the back fork stays hinged to the back forks,
a lever fulcrummed on the frame and hinged to the upper end of the back fork
stays and a spring joining the lever to the frame substantially as described.
5. The improved spring bicycle frame constructed substantially as described
with reference to the drawings.
Doted this 18th day of March 1808
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents.