An Adjusting Saddle for Cycles, and in the Means for Effecting the Adjustment.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Nov., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 24th Aug., 1897-Accepted, 6th Nov., 1897
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Adjusting Saddle for Cycles, and in the Means for Effecting the
Adjustment.
I, JOHN LONGMORE, of 56 Melville Street, Edinburgh, Banker, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to an adjusting saddle for cycles and in the means for
effecting the adjustment.
The object of the invention is to enable the rider whilst on the saddle to adjust
the angle of it either towards the front or the rear. When the cyclist is riding
and desires to raise up the front of the saddle or to lower it all that he has to do,
in accordance with my invention, is to operate a screw by means of a small wheel
or crank handle, or the equivalent of such gear.
By turning the handle in one direction the front of the saddle is raised; by
turning it in the opposite direction the saddle is lowered to the required degree.
One method of carrying out my invention is as follows:-
-
I support the underneath of the front part of the saddle by means of a crossed
lever support between the said under part of the saddle and the horizontal bar
or tube of the cycle frame. This crossed lever may be on the well known principle
of "lazy tongs" lever system. Through the centre of the tongs in a horizontal
direction I provide a right and left hand screwed rod arrangement. I provide the
front end of the screw with a small handle or crank lever and by rotating the screw
in one direction the tongs are brought to their collapsing position by means of
which the tongs are distended and the front of the saddle forced up thereby. On
rotating the screw in the opposite direction the tongs are shortened or closed in an
opposite direction and the front of the handle thereby pulled down. The tongs
are provided with four pivotted pins in the ordinary way, to effect their collaps-
ing and expanding. The one pivot being immediately below the front of the
saddle and by means of which the top of the tongs are connected thereto. The
other pivot is also the means by which the lower ends of the tongs are connected
to a strap or clamp on the horizontal bar of the cycle frame. The other two
pivots are those at the centre of the tongs at the same place as the horizontal
right and left hand screw works. The saddle itself is pivotted or balanced by
means of a pin passed through the forward projection end of the ordinary hori-
zontal saddle attaching tube iece. The arrangement is such that the saddle
frame is therefore carried upon pivots on both sides of the saddle supporting tubes
and thus pivots at this point. The forward spring of the saddle may have its
rear end fixed in a clamp on each side of the pivotting pin which carries the weight
of the saddle and the rear spring may be attached to the pivotting pins in the
same way so that it is the springs carrying the saddle which pivot.
I may employ any equivalent of the tongs arrangement for example, the rais-
ing and lowering arrangement may be in the form of an upright screw spindle
which passes through a nut portion formed through the horizontal tube of the

page_text: frame or through a nut portion attached to the said horizontal tube. Or the said
lower end of the adjusting rod may simply be supported on the top of the hori-
zontal tube and the raising and lowering of the front of the saddle effected by an
elongated nut portion provided at the under side of the front of the saddle. The
nut or the screwed rod itself being rotated by the hand in any convenient manner.
Or I may employ any obvious equivalent to this various gears. The particular
feature of the invention being the adjustable saddie which the rider can adjust
to any desired position without dismounting.
For ladies cycles the adjusting gear may be arranged at the side of the saddle
or behind it and the adjusting tongs or screw gear, or any equivalent of the same,
may be used. Instead of using the horizontal bar as in men's cycles I may attach
a bracket to the upright saddle supporting tube and mount the tongs or adjust-
ing screw between an arm of the said bracket and the saddle. Or it may be at
the front of the saddle so long as the adjusting gear is arranged so as to be
covered by the front of the saddle, and not be in the way of the ladies dress.
Dated this 23rd day of November 1896.
JOHNSONS,
115 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Petitioner's Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Adjusting Saddle for Cycles, and in the Means for Effecting the
Adjustment.
I, JOHN LONGMORE, of 56 Melville Street, Edinburgh, Banker, 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:-
This invention relates to an arrangement for adjusting the saddles of cycles and
the means for effecting the adjustment.
The object of the invention is to enable the rider whilst on the saddle to adjust
the angle of it either towards the front or the rear. When the cyclist is riding
and desires to raise the front of the saddle or to lower it to suit the gradient of
the road or relieve soreness all that he has to do, in accordance with my inven-
tion is to revolve a screw by means of a small wheel or crank handle, or the
equivalent of such gear. By turning the wheel in one direction the front of the
saddle is raised; by turning it in the opposite direction the front of the saddle is
lowered to the required degree. One method of carrying out my invention is as
follows:-
I support the underneath of the rear part of the saddle by means of a crossed
lever support between the said under part of the saddle and the seat pillar or tube
of the cycle frame. This crossed level may be on the well known principle of
"lazy tongs" lever system. Through the centre of the tongs in a horizontal
direction provide a right and left hand screw rod arrangement. I provide the
front end of the screw with a small wheel or crank lever and by rotating the screw
in one direction the tongs are brought to their collapsing position and
the front of the saddle forced up thereby. On rotating the screw in the opposite
direction the tongs are lengthened or closed in an opposite direction and the front
of the saddle thereby lowered. The tongs are provided with four pivotted pins
in the ordinary way, to effect their collapsing and expanding the one pivot being
immediately below the back of the saddle by means of which the top of the tongs
is connected. The other pivot is also the means by which the lower ends of the
tongs are connected to a strap or clamp on the seat pillar of the cycle frame. The

page_text: other two pivots are those at the centre of the tongs at the same place as the hori-
zontal right and left hand screw works. The saddle itself is secured in the usual
way to a tube piece pivotted upon the top of the seat pillar, or may be pivotted
or balanced by means of a pin passed through the forward projection
end of the ordinary horizontal saddle attaching tube piece.
The arrange-
ment is such that the saddle frame is therefore carried upon pivots
on both sides of the saddle supporting tube and thus pivots at this
point. The forward spring of the saddle may have its rear end fixed
111 a clamp on each side of the pivotting pin which carries the weight of the
saddle and the rear spring may be attached to the pivotting pins in the same way
so that it is the springs carrying the saddle which pivot.
I may employ any equivalent of the tongs arrangement for example, the rais-
ing and lowering arrangement may be in the form of an upright screw spindle
which passes through a nut portion formed through the horizontal tube of the
frame or through a nut portion attached to the said horizontal tube. Or the said
lower end of the adjusting rod may simply be supported on the top of the
horizontal tube and the raising and lowering of the front of the saddle effected by
an elongated nut portion provided at the under side of the front of the saddle.
The nut or the screwed rod itself being rotated by the hand in any convenient
manner.
Or
Also in place of situating the adjusting gear at the back of the saddle it may be
situated at the front, in which case the strap connecting the lever support with
the frame of the cycle may be attached to the horizontal bar of the frame.
I may employ any obvious equivalent to these various gears. The particular
feature of the invention being an arrangement for altering the level or gradient
of the saddle which the rider can adjust to any desired position without
dismounting.
But in order that my said invention may be more readily understood and easily
carried into effect I will proceed to describe the same with reference to the accom-
panying drawings in which
Fig. 1 is a side view and
Fig. 2 a rear view shewing one method of carrying out my invention.
Referring to the said drawings the saddle A is secured in the usual way to the
tube supporting piece B which is pivotted at 6 to the lower portion C of the usual
seat pillar, the said tube piece B being produced or extended a short distance to
the rear and provided with lugs 61. The tube B is therefore free to be tilted in
either direction as desired.
In order to adjust the position of the tube B and consequently the angle of the
saddle I provide the saddle at the rear thereof with a crossed lever support cón-
sisting of four links or levers D the ends d of which are secured by pivots d¹ to
the portions E, E¹ which are pivotted respectively to the lugs b₁ of the tube B
and the projection or lug f on the strap or clamp F upon the tube C The other
ends of the links D are pivotted to studs or projections G through which is
passed a right and left handed screw rod H operated by a small milled wheel h the
arrangement being such that upon the rotation of the screw in one direction the
links are brought to their collapsing position and the front of the saddle forced
up thereby. On rotating the screw in the reverse direction the links are length-
ened or closed in an opposite direction and the front of the saddle thereby lowered.
Fig. 2 illustrates the raising and lowering mechanism with the saddle removed.
X represents the ordinary indiarubber buffers of an ordinary saddle and has
nothing to do with the invention.
For ladies cycles the adjusting gear may be arranged at the side of the saddle
or behind it as described, and the adjusting tongs or screw gear, or any equiva-
lent of the same, may be used.
Or it may be at the front of the saddle so long as the adjusting gear is arranged
so as to be covered by the front of the saddle and not be in the way of the ladies
dress.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said in-
vention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. The arrangement for adjusting the saddles of cycles and means for effecting
the adjustment, substantially as hereinbefore described and shewn in the
accompanying drawings.
2. The adjusting saddle arrangement for cycles, pivotting the saddle support-
ing the tube B to the seat pillar or tube C or the mechanical equivalent of the said
arrangement, substantially as herein before described and shewn in the
accompanying drawings.
3. In the adjusting saddle arrangement for cycles, the means for effecting the
adjustment of the position of the saddle consisting of the rotted links or arms 1)
actuated by a right and left handed screw rod H, or the mechanical equivalents
of the said arrangement, substantially as hereinbefore described and shewn in the
accompanying drawings.
Dated this 23rd day of August 1897
JOHNSONS,
115 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Applicant's Agents.