IM- PROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR MEASURING AND INDICATING THE DISTANCE TRAVELLED BY CARS AND OLED VOWOLDS
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Philippe Poirier de St. Charles, of Fulham,
in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, for the Invention of "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR MEASURING AND INDICATING THE
DISTANCE TRAVELLED BY CARS AND OLED VOWOLDS"
Sealed the 6th January 1854, and dated the 8th July 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Philippe Poirier de
St. Charles at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
his Petition, on the 8th July 1853.
I, PHILIPPE POIRIER DE ST.. CHARLES, of Fulham, in the County of
.Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR MEASURING AND INDICATING THE
DISTANCE TRAVELLED BY CABS AND OTHER VEHICLES" to be as follows:-
My improvements refer to apparatus for communicating motion from
the wheels of vehicles to counting or registering apparatus for indicating
the distance travelled.
The counting and registering consists of an index and train of wheels
somewhat of the usual construction, which I place within or outside the

page_text: body of the cab or other vehicle, and according to my Invention I com-
municate the motion from the running wheel of the vehicle to the index
train by means of an endless band or bands, for which purpose I place
a grooved wheel on the nave or other convenient part of the wheel
which is to be the driver, and conduct the endless band to a grooved
wheel or pulley on the index which is to receive the motion. Instead of
communicating the motion direct, I sometimes employ an interme-
diate shaft, and use two endless bands for the purpose, which, however,
depends upon circumstances. In the band communicating from the
driving wheel I find it desirable to employ a tighteuing pulley to bear
upon it, or to use an elastic band for that motion. Instead of hands,
chains or belts may be employed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Philippe Poirier de St. Charles in the Great
Seal Patent Office, on the 7th January 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
PHILIPPE POIRIER DE ST. CHARLES, of Fulham, in the County of
Middlesex, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of July, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the seven-
teenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Philippe Poirier de St. Charles, Her
special licence that I, the said Philippe Poirier de St. Charles, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Philippe Poirier de St. Charles, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to
time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might mako, use, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR
MEASURING AND INDICATING THE DISTANCE TRAVELLED BY CABS AND OTHER

page_text: VEHICLES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Philippe Poirier de St. Charles, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of
the said Juvention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
and cause the same to be filed in the Great Scal Patent Office within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Philippe Poirier de St. Charles,
do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement, reference being had to
the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and
figures marked thercon (that is to say):
My Invention of improvements consists of apparatus for communi-
cating the motion from the wheels of vehicles to counting or registering
apparatus for indicating the distance travelled.
The counting and registering apparatus consists of an index and train
of wheels, which I place within or outside the body of the cab or other
vehicle. According to my Invention I communicate the motion from
the running wheel of the vehicle to the index train by means of an
endless band or bands, for which purpose I place a grooved pulley on
the nave or other convenient part of the wheel which is to be the driver,
and conduct the endless band to a grooved pulley on the index which is
to receive the motion. Instead of communicating the motion direct, I
find it better to use an intermediate shaft with two endless bands for
the purpose, which are arranged according to circumstances. Instead of
endless bands, chains or belts may be employed. In using one band
only to communicate motion from the driving wheel I find it desirable
to employ a tightening pulley to bear upon it, or to use an elastic band
for that purpose.
Fig. 1, of the annexed Sheet of Drawings represents the face of the
indicator about full size, which exhibits the distance travelled in miles
and quarter miles; the opening at the centre showing the miles, while
the lower opening shows the intermediate distances and quarters. Fig. 2,
shows the dials seperately. Fig. 3, a front view of the indicator, with

page_text: the face and dials removed, showing the arrangement of the wheels;
and Fig. 4, a transverse section of the same. Fig. 5, exhibits in
section part of a cab body with apparatus attached and arranged
according to my Invention. The dotted circle shows the running
wheel from which motion is to be communicated to the registering
apparatus, the circumference of which wheel is ascertained in order
to determine the relative diameters of the several grooved or band
pulleys a, b, c, & d, so that onc revolution of the running wheel of
the vehicle imparts a certain determined number of revolutions to
the pulley d, within the registering apparatus A. The first pulley
a, is fixed on the hub, the band e, from which drives the pulley b,
which is fixed on an intermediate shaft f; this shaft should be
mounted in bearings fixed to the cab body, and consequently parti-
cipates in any irregularity or oscillatory motion of the body. The
pulley c, is fixed on the same shaft, and communicates motion to
the index pulley d, by the endless band g. The points of support of
the intermediate shaft and registering apparatus being in rigid commu-
nication, the band g, is enabled to drive uniformly and smoothly, while
the band e, is also free from any chance of irregularity by reason of
any up and down motion of the pulleys a, & b, being in parallel planes,
or nearly so. Where there is any liability to variation of distance
between the pulleys a, & b, by reason of such up and down motion
or oscillation, instead of fixing the bearings of intermediate shaft,
I suspend them by jointed rods, as shown in dotted lines at h, and
also connect them to the axle by a rod shown in dotted lines i,
which has the effect of maintaining all the pulleys at their proper
distances, thus conducing to the perfect action of the bands.
The band g, is conducted through tubes within the padding of the cab,
into which the registering apparatus is also sunk flush. The stud k,
carries the band pulley d, and also the wheel which indicates the
quarter miles. Another stud 7, carries the intermediate wheel m, having
twenty teeth, as also the toothed wheel n, which carries the dial show-
ing miles. The pulley has a pin o, projecting from its side, which at
each revolution of that pulley moves the wheel m, round one tooth.
The wheel m, has a similar pin p, which takes into and moves the

page_text: wliecl I, one tooth at each revolution of m; this wheel
has twenty-
2.
four teeth, and is that which carries the dial u, showing quarter iniles;
when six teeth are moved, making a quarter revolution of.q, it indi-
cates one quarter of a mile; when six more are moved, half a mile,
and so on till it makes an entire revolution and completes the miles,
when this dial comes to zero again, as represented at Fig. 1. The
wheel has a pin r, which takes into the teeth of wheel n, simulta-
neously with the movement of 7, which brings the zero of the quarter
mile dial opposite. the index point s.. This motion of n, moves the
dial t, which shows the miles one step, as from zero to one, from one to
two, and so on. It will be seen by the dotted positions of the figures on
the dial a, in Fig. 1, that as one quarter is passing off the other is
disclosed, always keeping one in view. For more accurate measure-
ment the quarter spaces may be subdivided, thereby determining the
distance to a greater nicety. v, u, v, are steel springs pressing on the
peripheries of the several wheels to prevent more than their correct
amount of motion being given by reason of impact or other irregularity
to which they may be subject. I find gutta percha bands answer the
purpose extremely well, but other matters may be employed. A key
and opening in the index is provided, with which the driver or
attendant sets the apparatus at the beginning of a fare. For this pur-
pose a small pawl w, which is pressed towards the stud d, which also
forms the key pin. This pawl allows the key to turn round in a
forward direction with affecting the index; therefore it would be im-
possible for any one to push the register apparatus forwards, while it
provides being turned back by the driver with the key, which comes
in contact with the end of the pawl w, when turned to the right,
and in an opposite direction to that of the register movement. The
pawl in that position falls back on and is stopped by the pin 3. This
operation is of course not accessible to the fare.
In order to stop the apparatus at the zero point a plate y, is fixed to
the stud ; this plate has a small nib 1, with which a pin 2, comes in
contact. This pin 2, is fixed to the wheel n, in a suitable position for
that purpose. This pin 2, allows the wheel n, to make almost an
entire revolution, and thus registering nearly twenty miles. This,

page_text: however, depends upon the number of the teeth in the wheels, which
may be arranged to indicate a greater or lesser of miles in one
revolution. A similar train of wheels and registering apparatus may
also be connected with the foregoing to indicate the total number of
miles travelled in a day or other period of time by simply preventing
the retrograde movement taking effect upon this second train, which
may be easily effected by mechanical means.
Having described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood that I claim as
my Invention the mode of transmitting motion to the registering
apparatus by means of an endless band or bands for the purpose of
measuring and indicating the distance travelled by cabs and other
vehicles in manner set forth.
In witness whereof, I, Philippe Poirier de St. Charles, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Seventh day of January,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
fifty-four.
P. POIRIER DE ST CHARLES. (L.S.)
Witness, WILLIAM CLARK.