Improved Riding Toys or Apparatus in which Galloping or Analogous Movements are Imparted to Horses, Boats, or Corresponding Parts Carrying the Riders, in App, being in Part Applicable also to Roundabouts or Merry-go-rounds.
Year: 1888

page_text: '
Improved Riding Toys or Apparatus in which Galloping or Analogous
Movements are Imparted to Horses, Boats, or Corresponding Parts
Carrying the Riders, in Addition to their Forward Movement
as Parts of the Apparatus, such Invention being in Part Applicable
also to Roundabouts or Merry-go-rounds.
I FRANK WILLIAM ALLCHIN, of Weston Street, Northampton in the County of
Northampton, engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows
-
According to this invention, horses (boats or corresponding parts) are mounted on
carriages by which they are drawn about for the pleasure of the riders, and such
horses, (boats or corresponding parts) have movements imparted to them from below
in addition to their forward movement together with the carriages on which they are
mounted. These movements may be effected in any manner in which corresponding
movements are imparted from below in the case of the horses (boats or corresponding
parts) of roundabouts or merry-go-rounds; but a special feature of this invention
consists of means by which the horses (boats or corresponding parts) are operated
from below in a manner causing them to perform.circular movements in vertical or
approximately vertical planes in addition to their forward movement with the carriages
on which they are mounted; and these means are applicable, also, for causing corre
sponding movements to the horses (boats or corresponding parts) employed with
roundabouts. According to these means, pairs of cranked shafts are carried in
suitable bearings fixed to the floors of the carriages, or to the revolving framings or
platforms of roundabouts, over which the horses are placed and with which they
travel. The cranked shafts of each pair are mounted to be parallel with one another,
and a crank of one shaft of a pair is coupled with a crank of the other shaft of such
pair by a coupling-rod or frame which supports one, two, or more horses. This
coupling may conveniently consist of a straight rod with suitable bearings thereon for
connection with the cranks, and with the ends turned up and each fixed to the under-
sile of the body of a horse, or the horses may be fixed to vertical supports attached

page_text: to the rod in lieu of turning up the ends thereof. It is preferred (at any rate in the
case of a roundabout) to form three cranks or more in each crank shaft, and to employ
consequently three or more coupling rods or frames. The cranks of each shaft are
set at equal angles from one another so as to cause the weights of the couplings,
horses, and riders thereon, to balance one another as far as possible. One of the
crank shafts of each pair may be conveniently used as the axle for a pair of the wheels
upon which a carriage is drawn, or as the axle for one of the wheels, or for a pair of
the wheels, upon which the revolving frame or platform is carried, and such shaft is
in such case consequently driven by the rolling of the wheels, or wheel, as the carriage
is drawn along, or the frame or platform is driven round, and the other shaft of each
pair is driven through the medium of the coupling rods; or one or both of the crank
shafts may, if preferred, be driven by chain or other gearing from an axle of a pair
of wheels, or of a wheel, aforesaid; or either or both the crank shafts of each pair
may be driven by suitable gearing in any convenient manner. By this arrangement
a rotary movement in vertical planes, (or in planes somewhat out of the vertical, if
the shafts are set somewhat inclined) in general imitation of the galloping of a horse
(or of the up-and-down movement of a boat) is imparted to the horses without the
inconvenience of a vertical rod passing down through the back of each horse, as in
the case of other arrangements which have been adopted for the purpose in connec-
tion with a roundabout.
Pads of indiarubber or springs may be interposed between the frames or rods, or
the vertical supports thereon, which carry the horses, or corresponding parts as afore-
said, and the parts which they carry, in order to take off or reduce any jar which
would otherwise be felt by the riders.
Any desired number of apparatus as described may be arranged in connection with
a carriage, or around the common centre of a roundabout, and it is convenient, for
the purpose of detachment and transit, to arrange the revolving frame or platform
of a roundabout as a number of divisions, each division carrying when in operation
a complete apparatus as described, that is an apparatus comprising a pair of cranked
shafts with the horses (boats or corresponding parts,) which they operate.
It is preferred to run the revolving frame or platform of the roundabout on a
single circular rail, but this not, of course, essential.
It may sometimes be convenient to mount a boat or body on a pair of coupling
rods, in which case the cranks of each shaft to which such pair of rods is connected
are set to throw together, or the cranks may be formed wide so as to admit of the
connection of a pair of rods therewith.
D
1

page_text: Improved Riding Toys or Apparatus in which Galloping or Analogous
Movements are Imparted to Horses, Boats, or Corresponding Parts
Carrying the Riders, in Addition to their Forward Movement
as Parts of the Apparatus, such Invention being in Part Applicable
also to Roundabouts or Merry-go-rounds.
I, FRANK WILLIAM ALLCHIN of Weston Street, Northampton in the County of
Northampton, Engineer, 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:-
According to this invention, horses (boats or corresponding parts) are mounted on
carriages by which they are drawn about for the pleasure of the riders, and such
horses (boats or corresponding parts) have movements imparted to them from below
(that is from the rolling movement of wheels on which the carriages run, or in
analogous manner, such as from the rotation of wheels running in toothed racks laid
on the ground) in addition to their forward movement together with the carriages on
which they are mounted. These movements may be effected in any manner in which
corresponding movements are imparted in the caso of the horses (boats or corre-
sponding parts) of roundabouts or merry-go-rounds, or in other convenient manner;
but a special feature of this invention consists of means by which the horses (boats or
corresponding parts) are operated from below in a manner causing them to perform
circular movements in vertical or approximately vertical planes in addition to their
forward movement with the carriages on which they are mounted; and these means
are applicable, also, for causing corresponding movements to the horses (boats or
corresponding parts) employed with roundabouts. According to these means, pairs
of cranked shafts are carried in suitable bearings fixed to the floors or framings of the
carriages, or to the revolving platforms or framings of roundabouts, over which the
horses (boats or corresponding parts for carrying riders) are placed and with which
they travel. The cranked shafts of each pair are mounted to be parallel with one
another and each crank, respectively, of one shaft of a pair is coupled with the corre-
sponding crank of the other shaft of such pair by a coupling rod or frame which.
supports one, two, or more horses (boats or corresponding parts .aforesaid). It is
preferred to form three cranks or more in each crank shaft, and to employ,
consequently, three or more coupling rods or frames for each pair of cranks. One of
the crank shafts of each pair forms, also, the axle of a pair of the wheels upon which
the carriage is drawn or of one of the wheels upon which the revolving platform is
carried, in which cases such shaft is driven by the rolling of the wheel or wheels as
the carriage is drawn along or as the frame or platform is driven round; or such
shaft may be driven by gearing from the axle of the wheels or wheel; and in either
case the other crank shaft of each pair may be driven through the medium of the

page_text: coupling rods. By this arrangement a rotary movement in vertical planes (or in
planes somewhat out of the vertical if the shafts are set, as they may be, somewhat
inclined) in general imitation of the galloping of a horse, is imparted to the horses
without the inconvenience of a vertical rod passing down through the back of each
horse, as in the case of other arrangements which have been adopted for the purpose
in connection with a roundabout.
In describing this invention by the aid of drawings it will be convenient to describe
first the application of the special means, above referred to for imparting movement
to the horses (boats or corresponding parts aforesaid), to a roundabout. This
application of the invention is illustrated by the drawings on sheets 1, 2, and 3.
herewith.
Figure 1 is a plan of one main division of a revolving platform of a roundabout,
with the gearing and apparatus shewn applied thereto, according to this invention,
for carrying and operating a set of three horses. Figure 2 is a section taken on
line of figure 1; and figure 3 is a section taken on line y y of figure 1. The
same letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the views.
It will
be seen that the main division of the platform is made up of a straight-ended
segment A A and of a V-d part B. The chief object of this construction is that,
upon the removal of the V-d making-up pieces B around the platform, the
segments A A may each be used as a separate trolley with its set of horses mounted
thereon, and be drawn about from place to place at fairs and such-like entertainments
whilst riders are seated upon the horses which have the same galloping movement
imparted to them when the segment is being drawn about as described as when it is
driven around as part of the platform of a roundabout. When the apparatus is being
used with a roundabout, a grooved wheel C, fixed upon the main axle D of a
segment A A runs upon a circular rail E (correspondingly-shaped in section) and
thus supports the weight of its own segment of the platform and of the half of
each Vd part B adjoining such segment and also, during the rotation of the
platform, causes the revolution of the axle D. Motion is conveyed from the axle D,
through the spur pinion a and spur wheels a¹ a³, to a crank shaft mounged
transversely of the segment A A in bearings carried by and underneath the framing
of, the segment. This crank shaft is provided with three cranks spaced equally
around the circle of the revolution of the cranks; and a corresponding crank shaft b¹
is similarly mounted in position to be parallel with the crank shaft b. The opposite
cranks of each crank shaft are connected together, respectively, by longitudinal bars or
rods c c c², by means of bearing blocks & passed around the crank pins and fixed to
the bars or rods, and thus as the-crank shaft bis driven round in the manner
described the bars c c c² are themselves operated therefrom as connecting rods and
cause the corresponding rotation of the crank shaft b', the rods being maintained in a
constant condition of parallelism with one another by the cranks. At each end of
each horizontal bar ce c³ is fixed a block e, and in each block is carried a vertical rod
or tube g, by means of clips h h which pass around such bars or tubes and are bolted
to the blocks e. The blocks on the ends of the bar care shewn in section by
figure 2. Loose sockets i are fitted on to the tops of the tubes 9, and these sockets i
are themselves let into the bodies of the horses which are to be supported upon the
tubes, and thus the horses together with the sockets may be readily lifted off from
and on to the ends of the tubes, as desired. It is preferred to place a rubber pad i,
or other spring, in the inner end of each socket, in order to take off or reduce any jar
which would otherwise be felt by the riders. It will be readily seen that the
bars c c c², and consequently also the horses which they carry, follow the movements
of their respective cranks and thus partake of the desired movement above described.
in addition to their forward movement around the central axis of the roundabout, or
together with the truck or trolley, as the case may be. The bearing blocks d may be
of wood, such as lignum vitae, divided longitudinally so as to be readily placed around
the crank pins. These bearings are, preferably, of considerable length, as shewn, to
prevent any tendency of the tubes reeling sideways; and the one end of each block
may be carried by a bracket f bolted to the connecting bar c, c¹, or c³, as the case may
с

page_text: be. The two parts of each bearing block are held together, and to the connecting bar
and bracket by which they are carried, by means of bolts o passing up through the
blocks and through binding straps o' on their lower sides. Guards g' are placed
around the slotted openings through the floor of the platform or truck within which
the vertical rods move, so as to prevent accident. It is preferred to put the
segments of the platform together so that they incline somewhat inwards, so as to
lessen the effect of the centrifugal force.
In order to reduce as much as possible the slackness or looseness of the driving
gear a a¹ a², the wheel a' is formed in halves flatways, as shewn by detached edge
view figure 5, and the halves are bolted together by bolts passing through slotted
holes 1, as shewn by detached side view, figure 6, and the wheel is caused to gear as a
good fit with the teeth of the wheels a and a by setting the teeth of one half of the
wheel a sufficiently out of line with the teeth of the other half to ensure such fit,
that is in effect to give the teeth of the wheel a¹ the necessary thickness for such
purpose.
When the apparatus is used with a roundabout, the road wheels F (shown by
broken lines), or the inner of such wheels, are removed, and the circular rail E is laid
upon suitable sleepers or packings, and is kept in its proper central position by means
of tie-rods j hooked at one end into loops j riveted to the underside of the circular
rail, and at their other ends into a central ring or plate G. A plan of one of these
rods with its connections is shewn by figure 4. Each rod may be tightened up by a
device k, such as is ordinarily employed for analogous purposes and which is screwed,
respectively, upon right and left-handed threads formed on the inner ends of divided
parts of the rod.
When it is desired that a segment A A be used as an independent truck or trolley,
so as to be drawn about from place to place, it is, of course, fitted with shafts by
which to draw it along; and when it is desired that a galloping movement shall, in
such case, be imparted to the horses (or a corresponding movement be imparted to the
boats or corresponding parts aforesaid) one of the road wheels is threaded or
otherwise fixed upon the axle and thereby causes the rotation of the axle as the
segment is drawn along. If it is simply desired to move the segment from place to
place without conveying riders, both the road wheels may be mounted to turn loosely
upon the axle.
The platform of the roundabout may, of course, be driven in any manner in which
such platforms are now rotated, or in any convenient manner.
It inay sometimes be convenient to mount a boat or body on a pair of coupling
rods, in which case the cranks of each shaft to which such pair of rods is connected
are set to throw together, or such cranks may be formed wide so as to admit of the
connection of a pair of rods therewith; in case, however, only one such boat
or body is mounted on each truck or segment it will be advisable to drive the
secondary crank shaft by the aid of gearing from the first crank shaft or from the
axle of the wheel or wheels on which the segment or truck runs, so as to avoid any
chance of sticking on centre.
By the foregoing description the application of the special means for operating the
horses (boats or other parts aforesaid) to trucks or trolleys which may be put together
with making-up pieces between them for forming the revolving platforms of round-
abouts will be clearly understood. It will be obvious also, without need for special
illustration, that carriages may be formed specially (that is otherwise than as
segments of roundabouts) for being drawn about at fairs and such-like places of
entertainment, and be mounted with horses (boats or corresponding parts aforesaid)
which may be operated in the manner above described with reference to the segments
of the platform when such are used as independent trolleys for the purpose of carrying
riders upon their horses (boats or corresponding parts aforesaid). The invention,
however, as it relates to carriages is not limited to such carriages as are provided with
the above-described means of carrying and operating horses (boats or corresponding
parts aforesaid) mounted upon such carriages, but comprises generally carriages
employed for the purpose of carrying riders about and which are provided with horses*

page_text: (boats or corresponding parts as aforesaid) which have a galloping or analogous
movement imparted to them from below in addition to their forward movement
together with the carriages on which they are mounted, as obviously any convenient
method may be adopted for imparting such galloping or analogous movements such
as one of the various methods which havo been used to impart such movements
from below to horses (boats or corresponding parts as aforesaid) in the case of
roundabouts.
The method of operating the boats (cars or corresponding parts) carried by a
roundabout as described in the specification filed in pursuance of my application for
Letters Patent Number 3245 of 2nd March 1888 may be adapted also to the operating
of boats (cars or corresponding parts) mounted upon a carriage which may be drawn
about at fairs and such like places of entertainment, but in such case the movement
must be given from below in a manner analogous to that described with reference to
figure 8 of the drawings accompanying such specification. Such adaptation is
illustrated by the drawings on sheet 4 herewith. Figure 7 is a side elevation of such
carriage, and figure 8 an end elevation. The carriage is of the usual or any con-
venient character, and in the case shewn is provided with shafts for a horse or other
animal. The parts in these views which correspond to the parts illustrated by
figures 1, 2, and of the drawings accompanying my said former specification are
similarly lettered. Upon the platform H of the trolley is mounted a pair of
standards B2 which carry a transverse shaft in bearings at their tops. On the
outer ends of the shaft g are carried sets of arms D; and these arms carry boats E
(cars or corresponding parts) suspended from pins t projecting outwards from their
outer ends. The shaft q is caused to revolve, as the carriage travels, by means of a
pitched chain passing around a chain pinion on the hind axle c² and around a chain
wheel on the shaft y; and thus, as the carriage is drawn about, the swing boats, or
corresponding parts, not only travel forward therewith, but also revolve in vertical
planes around the axis of the shaft 4. It will be seen that by carrying the frames B
higher a set of boats, cars, or corresponding parts, may be carried between a pair of
sets of arms fixed upon the spindle 9 in position between the frames B2, either in
combination with, or in lieu of the exterior boats as shewn.
Carriages provided with horses, boats, or corresponding parts, mounted and geared
so that a galloping or analogous movement is imparted to them during the forward
movement of the carriages, may be drawn about upon trams, or upon the ground,
or in any convenient manner, whether by animals, or by stean, electric or other
motive power.
If desired, the wheels which give the movements in vertical planes to the horses
(boats or corresponding parts) mounted on the carriages or roundabouts may be
provided with teeth which run in toothed racks or segments, but such will not be
found necessary where the loads are moderate or are tolerably well balanced.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, 1 declare that what
I claim is
1. Independent carriages on which are mounted horses (boats or corresponding
paris), which may be drawn about for the pleasure of riders on such horses (boats or
corresponding parts) and in which such horses (boais or corresponding parts) have
movements imparted to them automatically in addition to their forward movement
together with such carriages, substantially as described, for the purpose set forth.
2. The means by which the horses (boats or corresponding parts) mounted upon
independent carriages, or upon roundabouts or merry-go-rounds, are operated from
below in a manner causing them to perform circular movements in vertical, or
approximately vertical, planes in addition to their forward movement with the
carriages, or with the roundabouts, or segments thereof, on which they are mounted,
substantially as described, for the purpose set forth.
3. In independent carriages, or in roundabouts, or segments thereof, upon which
horses (boats or corresponding parts) are mounted, operating such horses (boats or

page_text: corresponding parts) from below by means of pairs of parallel crank shafts of which
the cranks of each pair are connected together by bars which carry such horses
(boats or corresponding parts), such crank shafts being caused to rotate during the
movement from place to place of the carriages, or segments, or the revolution of the
roundabouts, substantially as described, for the purpose set forthi.
4. The combination of the pair of crank shafts (66) with connecting rods (c c¹ c³)
carrying vertical rods (g), with the means by which the said crank shafts are caused
to rotate, substantially as described and shewn by the drawings herewith, for the
purpose set forth.
5. The improvements in roundabouts or merry-go-rounds, substantially as herein
described for the purpose set forth.
STEPHEN WATKINS,
Wolverhampton and Walsall,
Agent for the Applicant.