A MACHINE TO PREVENT DANGER TO PERSONS DRIVING OR BEING IN CURRICLES, SINGLE HORSE CHAISES, OR OTHER CARRIAGES, BY HORSES BEING RESTIVE BREAKING OR RUNNING AWAY WITH SUCH CARRIAGES, OR BACKING IN CONSEQUENCE OF TAKING FRIGHT WHILE HARNESSED THERETO
Year: 1802

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, PHILIP
JAMES MEYER, of Great Portland Street, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third, upon
the hunible Petition of me, the said Philip James Meyer, was graciously
pleased to grant unto me, the said Philip James Meyer, His Royal Letters
Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at Westminster,
the Twenty-fourth day of March, in the forty-second year of His reign,
thereby giving and granting unto me, the said Philip James Meyer, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, His special licence, full power, sole
privilege and authority, that I, the said Philip James Meyer, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, and every of them, by myself and themselves, or
by my or their deputy or deputies, servants or agents, or such others as I,
the said Philip James Meyer, my executors, administrators, or assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at
all times thereafter during the term of years therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend my Invention of "A MACHINE
TO PREVENT DANGER TO PERSONS DRIVING OR BEING IN CURRICLES, SINGLE HORSE
CHAISES, OR OTHER CARRIAGES, BY HORSES BEING RESTIVE BREAKING OR RUNNING
AWAY WITH SUCH CARRIAGES, OR BACKING IN CONSEQUENCE OF TAKING FRIGHT WHILE
HARNESSED THERETO," within that part of His United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland called England, His Dominion of Wales, and Town
of Berwick-upon-Tweed, in such manner as to me, the said Philip James

page_text: Meyer, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or any of them, should in
my or their discretion seem meet, and that I, the said Philip James Meyer,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, should and lawfully might have
and enjoy the whole profit, benefit, commodity, and advantage from time to
time coming, growing, accruing, and arising by reason of the said Invention,
for and during the term of years therein mentioned, to hold unto me, the said
Philip James Meyer, my executors, administrators, and assigns, for and during
and unto the full end and term of fourteen years from the date thereof; in
which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that if I, the said Philip
James Meyer, should not particularly describe and ascertain the nature of
my said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, and cause the same
to be inrolled in His High Court of Chancery within one calendar month
next and immediately after the date of the said recited Letters Patent,
then the said Letters Patent, liberties and advantages whatsoever thereby
granted, should utterly cease, determine, and become void, anything therein-
before contained to the contrary thereof in anywise notwithstanding.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Philip James Meyer, do hereby declare that my said Invention is described
in manner following (that is to say):-
In general terms, my machine constitutes or forms a communication
between one or more of the wheels of the carriage and the reins, in such a
manner as to cause the rotary force of the wheel or wheels to be exerted in
the action of drawing those reins, whether the reins be the same as are
commonly used, or any other additional reins, so as very powerfully to check,
curb, restrain, and stop the horse or horses which may be disposed to become
ungovernable; and further, the said machine by suddenly opposing an
impediment to the rotation of one or more of the wheels of the carriage,
renders it difficult or impracticable for such ungovernable horses to back the
carriage into danger. And the particular structure of the machinery, or
parts of which the said machine is composed, together with their respective
adaptation to each other, are exhibited and illustrated in the Figures hereunto
annexed.
In Figure 1, A represents the nave of a carriage wheel, to which is affixed
B, a strong metallic toothed wheel. C represents another toothed wheel,
which may be made to lock into B, and be turned thereby, or otherwise it
may be disengaged and left at rest.
In Figure 2 the same letters denote the same things, and D, D, represents
a roller firmly connected with the framing of the carriage by the cocks or

page_text: supporters H, H, between which it runs. At the end K its pivot runs
loosely in a hole, so as to admit of the roller being tilted; the other end of the
axis upon which the wheel C, C, is fixed turns in a long hole, which admits of
that end of the roller being elevated or depressed by drawing the rope, wire,
bar, or other communication F, F, which elevates the collar M, and throws
the wheel C into action with B; then a strong strap is fastened to the
barrel D, D, and wound about it, and the outer end thereof is fastened to the
reins intended to check the horse or otherwise, communicating straps may, if
thought necessary, be fastened between the said strap and the common reins;
and in such cases as the additional reins are used, which for the most part are
preferable, the said reins are passed along the shafts, or through such parts of
the harness as may be most convenient.
Figure 3 shews the usual frame to which the springs, shafts, and other parts
of the carriage or curricle are affixed, and is delienated in order to exhibit the
spring and lever D, or d, to the moveable extremity of which is fixed a strong
cord that passes through the pullies E and F, near which last place F the
said cord is buckled or fastened to the strap which passes round the roller,
and by that means serves to slacken the reins whenever the barrel is not
acted upon, as hereafter is more fully to be shewn; and also to keep the said
strap at all times steadily in its place a clock spring in a round box, placed at
any convenient place, will also answer the purpose of the spring and lever.
From this description of parts, the operation or effect will be readily under-
stood; that is to say, whenever it is required to check or stop the horse
nothing more is necessary than to draw the rope or piece F, which will bring
the wheel C in connection with B, and the rotation will necessarily cause the
barrell D, D, to draw in the reins with a force that no horse can withstand.
In some cases, according to the shape of the axletree, bevil wheels will be
found to answer the purpose. The cord or connecting piece F is attached to
a lever or arm, which may either communicate with an handle within or
outside of the carriage, or (which is preferable) with a pedal that may be
pressed down when required by placing the foot upon it. As the form
of the levers here mentioned must be obvious to every workman, and the
same are capable of being varied according to motives of convenience or
But I must
beauty, it is unnecessary to give any drawing of the same.
take notice, that it will be proper to make the arm of the lever to which F
is attached of such a length as that it may act effectually, whether the
carriage be much or little depressed on it's springs, and that the part F
must be prevented from becoming too slack by means of a weak back spring
to the lever; and in case it should be necessary to prevent the horse or horses

page_text: from backing I apply & use a bended or curved lever I, I, L, Figure 1,
make very strong, having it's axis or head N fixed to the solid part of the
carriage, and the inner part of its curve, either plain or having toothed
indentations to press and act upon the wheel B, and impede the rotation of
the wheel itself; and the said lever is prolonged at L, so as to afford a
considerable power of pressure when acted upon by means similar to those
stated and described in the action upon F, F, Figure 2; and the said last-
mentioned lever is prevented by a slight back spring, or other adequate
and well-known means, from approaching the wheel B, except when
required. And
Lastly, I do hereby declare that there are various particulars relating to
the materials and workmanship, and the proportion of the parts, which I have
thought it unnecessarary to describe, because every workman properly skilled
to carry this my said Invention into effect will readily determine the same,
according to the circumstances and effects intended to be produced; and
moreover, that the figure and position of some of the parts of my said machine
herein described may be varied so as to differ from the Drawings and
descriptions here given, without essentially departing from the evident and
distinguishing characters of my said Invention.
:
In witness whereof, I, the said Philip James Meyer, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-second day of April, in the year of our
Land One thousand night hundred and two