A SELF-ACTING BRAKE FOR WHEEL CARRIAGES
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Wycherley and John Wycherley, of
Westbromwich, in the County of Stafford, and Cheltenham, in the
County of Gloucester, Carriage Builders, for the Invention of
"A SELF-ACTING BRAKE FOR WHEEL CARRIAGES."
Sealed the 7th February 1871, and dated the 10th August 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Wycherley
and John Wycherley at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 10th August 1870.
We, HENRY WYCHERLEY and JOHN WYCHERLEY, of Westbromwich,
in the County of Stafford, and Cheltenham, in the County of Gloucester,
Carriage Builders, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention
for "A SELF-ACTING BRAKE FOR WHEEL CARRIAGES," to be as follows (that is
to say) :-
Our Invention (which is applicable to all draught carriages) consists
in an arrangement of levers, springs, and slots, whereby the moment
the draught ceases the brake or brakes are applied to the peripheries of
the wheel or wheels to arrest or regulate their further progress, but

page_text: which brake or brakes are withdrawn from the peripheries of the wheel
or wheels directly the drawing power is applied, whether derived from
steam or other elastic force, or horse or other animal power. This we
effect in the following way:-The curved iron, stays for supporting and
carrying the perch pin and radial plates for regulating the free action of
the front wheels are so fashioned as to extend frontway on each side near
to the peripheries of the wheels for carrying two grooved sockets for
receiving elongated shanks connected to the caps to which the shafts are
attached; and to the back ends of the said shanks connecting links are
secured in order that the other ends of such links may be secured to
transverse levers extending from wheel to wheel, working on fulcrums
placed in or near the line of the springs on which the body rests, and to
the outer or short ends of the levers the brakes are applied, thus giving
great leverage. From this it will be seen that the moment the draught
action is stopped the brakes are brought in contact with the wheels and are
held more or less in contact by the stoppage or backing of the principle
of draught, or the declivity of the road being travelled, but the moment
the draught action is exerted, the brakes are drawn from the peripheries
of the wheels leaving them free to revolve.
SPECIFICATION. in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, 2
filed by the said Henry Wycherley and John Wycherley in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 10th February 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, wc, HENRY.
WYCHERLEY and JOHN WYCHERLEY, of Westbromwich, in the County
of Stafford, and Cheltenham, in the County of Gloucester, Carriage 2
Builders, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date' the Tenth day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-fourth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and a
grant unto us, the said Henry Wycherley and John Wycherley, Her
special license that we, the said Henry Wycherley and John Wycherley,
our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the
said Henry Wycherley and John Wycherley, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time 8

page_text: to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,.
should and lawfully might make,. use, excrcise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "A SELF-ACTING BRAKE FOR WHEEL
CARRIAGES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Henry
Wycherley and John Wycherley, by an instrument in writing under
our hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent..
NOW KNOW YẺ, that we, the said Henry Wycherley and John
Wycherley, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement (that is to
(say):
Our Invention (which is applicable to. all draught. carriages) consists
in an arrangement of levers, spring's, and slots, whereby the moment
the draught ceases the brake or brakes are applied to the peripheries
of the wheel or wheels to arrest or regulate their further progress, but
which brake or brakes are withdrawn from the peripheries of the wheel
or wheels directly the drawing power is applied, whether derived from
steam or other elastic force, or horse or other animal power. This we
effect in the following way :-The curved iron stays for supporting and
carrying the perch pin and radial plates for regulating the free action of
the front wheels are so fashioned as to extend frontway on each side
ncar to the peripheries of the wheels for carrying two grooves, planes, or
sockets for receiving elongated shanks connected to the caps to which
the shafts are attached; and to the back ends of such shanks connecting.
links are secured, in order that the other ends of such links. may be
secured to transverse levers extending from wheel to wheel, working on
fulcrums placed in or near the transverse line of the front ends of the
springs on which the body rests, and to the outer or short ends of the
levers the brakes are applied, thus giving great leverage. From this it
will be seen that the moment the draught action is stopped the brakes
are brought in contact with the wheels, and are held more or less in
contact by the stoppage or backing of the principle of draught and
momentum of the carriage or the declivity of the road travelled, but

page_text: the moment the draught action is exerted the brakes are drawn from the
peripheries of the wheels, leaving them free to revolve.
But as our improved system of self-acting brakes will be best under-
stood by referring to the Drawings hereunto annexed, we will proceed
to describe our Invention by aid of and reference to the same.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS.
Fig. 1 is a front and Fig. 2 a top view of as much of the front wheels
and perch action of a four-wheel carriage necessary for illustrating our
Invention, and as the main portion represented in these Figures is
common to all carriages we will only describe the parts involving our
improvements.
A, A, is an iron stay represented in a separate top view at Fig. 3;
this stay is secured at its ends to the front ends of the elliptic springs
marked B, B, or their equivalents, and on this stay fulcrums are formed,
as at c, c, for the levers D and E to work on, which levers are connected
to the additional levers G and H, and work on fulcrums % and 1, to the
outer ends of the levers G and H the brakes M and N are secured,
whilst to the long ends of the prime levers D and E ramped or curved
bars or links marked O and P are secured, which ramped or curved
bars or links are attached to the inner ends of the draught bars R and S;
these bars pass through the sockets T and U, which sockets are attached
to the ordinary compound iron and wood perch action marked V and W.
The front ends of the draught bars R and S are fashioned into open
forks for receiving the shafts, which are held in connection by a portable
pin tapped and screwed at the ends as here shown. With this general
description of the parts of construction we will remark that the principle
of action for bringing the brakes into operation will be readily seen as
the draught shanks or bars R and S attached to the shafts of the
carriage have only to be pressed back in their sockets T and U by the
effect of the stopping the power, the draught, and the momentum of
the carriage, or declivity of the road travelled, when by their inner ends
being connected to the ramped links O and P connected to the prime
levers D and E at m and n operating on the compound levers G and H
the brakes marked M and N are brought in contact with the peripheries
of the wheels. At Figure 2 we have shown the brake M in action as
applied to the wheel and the brake N off the wheel, and in this Figure
we have also shown that by connecting a bar, marked X, to the inner

page_text: '
or back end of the draught bar S, and extending such bar. backwards and
connecting it to a transverse lever Y, Y, working on the fulcrum Z
secured or formed on the stay A', connected like the front stay A to the
back part of the elliptic springs B, B; or otherwise, as preferred, we are
enabled simultaneously with the application of the brakes to the
peripheries of the wheels in front to apply the brakes behind; but to
avoid confusion we have not exhibited the brake levers and rods
necessary for carrying out this, principle as applied to the back of the
right-hand wheel; but it will be readily seen that by applying corre-
sponding parts on the opposite side the same result will be produced.
Instead of making the draught bars R and S square, as shown in the
Drawings, they may be made round, if preferred, with projecting studs
sliding in grooves formed in the sockets T and U to prevent the parts R
and S turning around, and over the said draught bars R and 'S helical
springs may be placed of sufficient force to keep the buffers of the
brakes from the wheels when not required. And the curved iron stay,
as shown at Figure 3, may be made straight as exhibited at Fig. 4, with
the prime and secondary levers assuming the same form. In applying
this same principle to pair-horse carriages the splinter bar is so con-
structed as to have projections on the under side to fasten into the
shafts forks as at B¹, B', Figure 2, and there held by the pins used for
securing the shafts, and to the centre of the splinter bar a socket is
formed for receiving the pole in the ordinary way; by which arrange-
ment the brakes, either single or double, will be brought into action
precisely as they would be when shafts are used.
By a suitable modification, such as the dispensing with the carriage
pole, and the application of a draught hook in combination with a
draught bar as universally adopted with carriages working on railways,
the same system of levers and brakes as herein described and exhibited
simply adapted to railway carriages may be applied with great effect,
by which means when the action is reversed and the principle of draught
diverted the momentum of the train multiplied by the number of
carriages of which it may be composed will immediately bring the
brakes into action and arrest its free progress.
Having thus described our Invention and the manner in which the
same may be practically carried into effect, we wish it understood that
we do not purpose confining ourselves to the general details herein
described and exhibited as the same may be modified and adapted in

page_text: various ways, according to the description of carriage to which the same
may be applied, without affecting the general character or principle of
the Invention; but what we claim and wish protected by these our
in part recited Letters Patent is, the general combination as herein
described and exhibited for obtaining self-acting brake or retarding
power as applied to road or rail carriages.
In witness whereof, wc, the said Henry Wycherley and John
Wycherley, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Eighth
day of February, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and seventy-one.
Witness,
WILLIAM LOACH,
Clerk to James S. Cockings,
Patent Agent,
Birmingham.
(L.S.)
HY. WYCHERLEY.
JOHN WYCHERLEY. (L.S.).