Improvements in Two-wheeled Vehicles.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 4th July, 1893
Complete Specification Left, 4th Apr., 1894-Accepted, 5th May, 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Two-wheeled Vehicles.
I, MARTIN DIEDERICH RUCKER of Weston Lodge, Thames Ditton, in the
County of Surrey, General Manager, Humber & Company, Limited, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the design and construction of two-wheeled vehicles
adapted to be drawn by a horse, the vehicle being preferably so constructed that
the side walls or panels represent the total width, the wheels being contained
within that width.
The vehicle body may be constructed as a hollow box or it may be in skeleton
form and entirely open, but it has depending sides or panels preferably nearly or
quite vertical, the whole body somewhat resembling the body of a spring cart
inverted. The seats are placed across so that the persons using the vehicle sit
facing to or from the horse; the back seat would usually accommodate three
persons and the front seat two, one on each side leaving a central space for the
horse whose back would project more or less up to or under the front seat. A
suitable cover or protector may be provided for the convenience of the passengers,
and a third person could be accommodated in the centre, if necessary, either upon
the same level as the others, or higher up. A convenient back would run across
the vehicle between the front and back seats and any convenient arrangement of
boot or receptacle may be provided within the carriage body or else as previously
explained the whole of this might be formed as a box and utilized as required.
Foot and like protectors and supports may be provided for all the occupants of the
vehicle and suitable splash boards and elevated sides may also be used if desired.
The wheels are carried upon one or more horizontal or approximately horizontal
axles, and are intended to run in spaces provided for them in the interior of the
body so that the wheels need not project beyond the sides; any convenient
arrangement of plate, C- or other springs may be employed and these may be
secured in any convenient manner to the carriage body conveniently at or near the
bottom edges of the sides.
The shafts may be secured in any convenient manner and at a proper distance.
apart say for example at or near the inner edges of the foot rests for the front
passengers.
Any suitable form of hood or cover may be employed for purposes of protection.
I prefer to place the steps so as not to project beyond the side of the vehicle and
any of these can be adapted to fold if desired.
'
;

page_text: I, MARTIN DIEDERICH RUCKER, of Weston Lodge, Thames Ditton, in the
County of Surrey, General Manager, Humber & Company, Limited, 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 the design and construction of two-wheeled vehicles
adapted to be drawn by a horse, the vehicle being preferably so constructed that
the side walls or panels represent the total width, the wheels being contained
within that width.
The vehicle body may be constructed as a hollow box or it may be in skeleton
form and entirely open, and have depending sides or panels preferably nearly or
quite vertical the whole body somewhat resembling the body of a spring cart
inverted. The seats are placed across so that the persons using the vehicle sit
facing to or from the horse; the back seat would usually accommodate three
persons and the front seat two, one on each side leaving a central space for the
horse whose back would project more or less up to or under the front seat. A
suitable cover or protector may be provided for the convenience of the passengers,
and a third person could be accommodated in the centre, if necessary, either upon
the same level as the others, or higher up. A convenient back would run across
the vehicle between the front and back seats and any convenient arrangement of
boot or receptacle may be provided within the carriage body or else as previously
explained the whole of this might be formed as a box and utilized as required.
Foot and like protectors and supports may be provided for all the occupants of the
vehicle and suitable splash boards and elevated sides may also be used if desired.
The wheels are carried upon one or more horizontal or approximately horizontal
axles, and are intended to run in spaces provided for them in the interior of the
body so that the wheels need not project beyond the sides; any convenient
arrangement of plate, C or other springs may be employed and these may be
secured in any convenient manner to the carriage body conveniently at or near the
bottom edges of the sides.
The shafts may be secured in any convenient manner and at a proper distance
apart say for example at or near the inner edges of the foot rests for the front
passengers.
Any suitable form of hood or cover may be employed for purposes of protection.
I prefer to place the steps so as not to project beyond the side of the vehicle and
any of these can be adapted to fold if desired.
In the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the general arrangement of a vehicle
constructed according to this invention, and
Figures 2 and 3 are respectively a side and a back end elevation of the same, a
portion of the shafts being, for convenience, shown broken away in Figure 2. For
the sake of clearness the side panels outside the wheels are omitted but they can as
indicated by the dotted line A' in Figure 1 which represents the lower edge of one
of the panels, be placed so as to partly enclose the wheels if desired, but as will be
seen from the end view Figure 3 the wheels need not extend beyond the place of
these sides whether they be actually carried down past the wheels or not.
Like letters indicate like parts throughout the drawings. .
A is the body of the vehicle to which the shafts B may be secured in any con-
venient manner as by brackets B¹ Figure 2. C are the wheels which may have

page_text: pneumatic tyres C₁ as shown or tyres of other desired construction. D is the axle
connected through the springs D' and any suitable brackets D³ with the body A
or shafts B or both.
The body A may provide for the direct support of five seats two E at the front,
- one on each side of the driver-and three E F (Figure 1) and E' at the back.
The seat F is not shown in Figures 2 and 3. The outer of the seats E E¹ extend
over the wheels C as shown in Figure 3 the boards or panels A¹ or the rails A
thereof at the outside of these seats representing the greatest width of the vehicle
body. The seat or cushon F Figure 1 may be made of less width from back to
front than the others to allow for the adjustment of the driver's seat as hereinafter
described.
Secured to the body A at the front and back of the upper part of the wheels C
I may provide guards A³ A' to intercept the mud &c. thrown off by the wheels and
thereby prevent the occupants of the seats E E¹ being splashed. These guards
extend from the seat board A' down to the foot-boards A A'.
The foot boards A of which there are two, are secured in any convenient
manner one at the outer side of each of the shafts B. The foot board A'
extends in one piece across the back of the vehicle and is preferably hinged thereto
so that when the back seats E¹ F are not occupied it may be folded against the
guards A and flap K.
G is the driver's seat preferably supported on a raised box or frame G' which
may be secured to the body A or seat board A' thereof as by rails H and staples
or eyes H¹ or in any other convenient manner to enable it to be moved backwards
and forwards for adjusting the balance of the vehicle. This seat may project more
or less up to or over the horse according to the design of the vehicle and the
balance of the load or if desired the splash board L (hereinafter described) may be
dispensed with and the horse harnessed more closely to the body of the vehicle.
The backs E2 of the seats E E' may also be secured to the body A or seat-board A'
so that they can be adjusted nearer to or farther from the front of the vehicle
to enable the occupants of the seats to sit in the positions best suited to the proper
balance of the vehicle.
I is the driver's foot board supported in any convenient manner by the vehicle
body A or shafts B or both.
Jis a boot or receptacle provided beneath the body A and the door of which
may be at the back.
The space between the two guards A is normally closed by a flap K conveniently
formed of leather the lower edge whereof may be permanently attached to the foot-
board A' and the upper edge to the seat board A by perforated tags and buttons
or such other means as would allow of its ready disengagement when access is
required to be had to the interior of the boot J.
Lis a splash board and M are steps both of which may be of ordinary construction.
It will be obvious that the vehicle may be provided only with seats E or E¹
facing either fore or aft instead of the double arrangement shown; the latter is
however preferred.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I wish it to be understood that I
make no claim to the mere arrangement of seats over the wheels that feature for
example being embodied in jaunting cars as at present constructed but those seats
face towards the sides of the vehicle and not fore and aft as in the vehicle constructed
according to my invention, but what I claim is ;-
1. A two-wheeled vehicle having seats over the wheels facing fore or aft or both
fore and aft.
2. In a two-wheeled vehicle the combination with seats over the wheels facing
towards the horse or front of the vehicle of foot-boards such as A' at the
outside of the shafts substantially as described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.

page_text: 3. The complete two-wheeled vehicle constructed substantially as described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
D
M. D. RUCKER.
W. P. Thompson & Boult,
Agents for the Applicant.