Improvements in Merry-go-rounds or Roundabouts.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 4th Mar., 1895-Accepted, 1st Feb., 1896
Improvements in Merry-go-rounds or Roundabouts.
I, THEODOR MAHN, Engineer of Schrimm in the Province of Posen and
Kingdom of Prussia 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 :—
The invention now to be described refers to a merry-go-round in which, contrary
to the custom hitherto in vogue, the vehicles intended for the reception of persons,
are not coupled together in any great number and do not run behind each other.on
a single track, but in which for each vehicle only a single double-track is arranged,
so that several concentric tracks are made, on which the vehicles move alongside
of or towards each other,
The vehicles which may be employed for this merry-go-round, may be of a
great variety. The following description and the accompanying drawing refer to
the employment of vehicles of the nature of a velocipede.
In Fige. 1 and 2 the annexed drawing shows the vehicle in a partial side-view
and in a front-view;
Fig. 3 shows the arrangement of the concentric tracks.
Fig. 4 represents on a smaller scale the vehicle which was partially shown in
Fig. 1 and finally
Figs. 5 and 6 give details of the way the line is laid.
DO
The track consists, as already mentioned of a number of double lines a a
arranged in concentric circles, the number of which depends on the number of
vehicles to be employed. These lines are secured by means of screws to chairs o
which, as will be seen from Fig. 3 are suitably and firmly fastened to sleepers,.
which radiate from a centre.
Corresponding to the radii of the respective circular tracks the exterior lines.
are, as is known, laid higher than the interior ones in the manner explained in
Fig. 2.
In the arrangement of which we are now speaking, the lines all lie alongside of
each other in a plane; they may however, be also arranged lying one above the.
other like terraces.
As has been already mentioned, the vehicle in the present arrangement forms a
frame of the nature of a velocipede and provided according to the size of the
apparatus, with 4, 6 or more wheels. Such a vehicle is represented as a specimen
in Fig. 4 for the reception of two persons. These persons ait behind each other-
each on a separate seat d'd of the vehicle.
The latter primarily consists of a frame formed of rods e e e and resting on the
axles 991 bearing the wheels ff. On the upper horizontal rod e, of the frame the
seats d d are arranged in a suitable manner and in front of them rods h h provided
with handles, like the guide-bars of velocipedes. The lower horizontal frame-.
rod e, bears the two forks ii provided with bearings on which are two chain-
pulleys and on the out-side of which are the treadles for setting the machine
in motion. The chain-pulleys kk, are connected by a chain m. From the wheel k
a second chain n leads to the chain-pulley situated on the axle g, so that the whole
force exerted by the riders on the treadles is transferred by the wheels k, the
chain m, the chain n and chain-pulley to the axle g, the latter setting in motion,.
the wheels ff and thereby the whole machine.

page_text: In order to prevent the machine from leaving the rails two rollers r r, lying
under the rails and attached to a shaft q are provided, the shaft being mounted in
the rails PP attached to the axle-bearings o o.
Of course the vehicle can, as has already been mentioned, be arranged for more
than two persons. It is then built longer in proportion and the chain-pulleys and
treadles altered in a suitable manner.
The form of the vehicle may also undergo corresponding alterations, by using
ships, carriages etc. instead of the velocipede.
As all bearings employed in the vehicles are ball-bearings, and the former are
very easily moved on that account, the arrangement can be so made, that only
every second rider assists to set the machine going, the rest being inactive and
the like.
Instead of one vehicle, on one line, two may also be employed; they are then
coupled together in such a manner that one of them may be removed without any
trouble, should this be necessary.
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 :
A merry-go-round, distinguished by the arrangement of freely-moving vehicles
of every description, propelled by human power on several concentric rail-tracks
lying in a plane or one above the other like terraces, in such a manner that each of
these tracks receives one or more vehicles, the latter either all moving in the same
direction or alternately in opposite directions.
Dated this Twenty-
der of February 1805