IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OP WHEEL CARRIAGES, AND IN THE MACHINERY EMPLOYED FOR PROPELLING, DRAWING, OR MOVING WHEEL CARRIAGES
Year: 1828

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, LEMCEL
WELLMAN WRIGHT, of Mansfield Street, Borough Road, in the County of
Surrey, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His Majesty King George the Fourth, in and by His Letters
Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing dato at Westminster,
the Fifteenth day of April last, for Himself, His heirs and successors, did
give and grant unto me, the said Lemuel Wellman Wright, my exors,
adiñiors, and assigns, His special licence, full power, sole privilege, and
authority, that I, the said Lemuel Wellman Wright, my exors, adññors, and
assigns, and every of them, by myself and themselves, or by my and their
deputy or deputies, servants or agents, or such others as I, the said Lemuel
Wellman Wright, my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make use, exercise,
and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed,
my Invention of "IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OP
WHEEL CARRIAGES, AND IN THE MACHINERY EMPLOYED FOR PROPELLING, DRAWING,
OR MOVING WHEEL CARRIAGES;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained
a proviso obliging me, the said Lemuel Wellman Wright, by an instrument
in writing under my hand and seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, and to cause the same to be inrolled in His Majesty's Iligh Court of
Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the date

page_text: of the said recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being
thereto had, will more fully appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Lemuel Wellman Wright, do hereby describe and ascertain the nature of
my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by the
Plan or Drawing hereto annexed, and the following description thereof, (that
--
is to say):-
My Invention of improvements in the construction of wheel carriages, and
in the machinery employed for propelling, drawing, or moving wheel carriages,
is particularly described and ascertained in and by the Drawings hereunto
annexed, and in the following description thereof (that is to say):
Fig. 1 is a plan or horizontal view of the machinery and working parts of
a wheel carriage. Fig. 2 is a side view or elevation of the same, and the
several letters refer to the same parts in both these Figures.
a, a, a, a, is the framework upon which the engines, machinery, and body
of the carriage are mounted. b, b, are two metal cylinders containing com-
pressed atmospheric air, which are filled through the pipes and cocks c, c,
either from a stationary reservoir or otherwise; from these cylinders the air is
allowed to pass in such quantities as may be required through the pipes and
cocks d, d, (which may be worked by hand or by gear from the other parts
of the machinery) into a third cylinder e, e, where the air is rarified and
rendered more elastic before passing into the cylinders of the two engines by
the heat from the furnace f passing through the pipe g into pipes within the
cylinder e, e, when the air being heated becomes more elastic, and its expan-
sive force is encreased and is then admitted through the supply pipe h and
slide valves i, i, (which are worked by the eccentrics j and rods in the
common manner) into the engines l, l, where, exerting its elastic force upon
the pistons and piston rods m, m, in the manner of steam in the common
alternating steam engine, rotatory motion is communicated by the connecting
rods n, n, to the cranks o, o, the shaft,
p and the drums q, q, which are con-
nected by the bands or straps r, r, to the drums s, s, which are affixed upon
the naves of the running wheels t, t, thus communicating motion to the wheels
and propelling the carriage. Steam may be generated by the furnace f in a
small boiler or pipes, and be then conducted to the cylinder e, e, where, giving
out a portion of its heat to and combining with the compressed air, it is
thereby rendered more elastic. The heat or steam from the furnace may
be conducted to the engines (without using the third cylinder e, e, and there
unite with the compressed air from the cylinders. By any description of
proper connecting gear the man having charge of the machinery may control

page_text: the working of the engines, valves, cocks and force pump, and stop, abate the
speed of, or set the carriage going, as may be requisite. A crank or eccen-
tric motion may be added to the shaft p, and by a connecting rod work a
pump to compress and force air into either of the cylinders when the carriage
is going down hill, and which will also serve as a break to check the speed in
descending. When the carriage is to be guided out of the straight line the
winch handles 1, 1, are to be turned round, and the bevel wheel on their
shaft 2 acting on another bevil wheel on the end of the upright rod 3 com-
municates motion to the drum or pulley 4. Upon this pulley are attached
the ends of two chains or cords 5, 5, their other ends being connected to the
drum or pulley 6 upon the shaft 7; on this shaft is another pulley 8, with
the ends of the two chains or cords 9, 9, fastened to it, their other ends being
connected to the opposite ends of the axle 10, 10, of the forewheels 11, 11.
Upon motion being given to these drums the chains are wound on and off
them, and cause the axletree 9, 9, to turn out of the right angle to the track
of the carriage, thus causing it to travel in a curved line. At different.stations
on the road the carriage is intended to travel strong metal reservoirs are to
be placed, which are to be filled with atmospheric air compressed to the
required density by a common force pump worked by steam or water power.
From these reservoirs the air passes through proper connecting pipes and
cocks into the cylinders b, b, contained within the carriage, as often as the
same may require to be filled, whence the air passes to the third cylinder e, e,
in the manner before described, in such quantities as will keep up a sufficient
supply to the engines.
Fig. 3 is a representation of a rotatory engine adapted to work machinery
for propelling carriages, one of the side plates being removed to shew the
interior. a is the induction pipe. b, b, two piston leaves moving on hinge
joints upon the interior cylinder c, c, fixed on the shaft p; the combined air
and steam or heat exerting its expansive force against the piston leaves b, b,
carries them with the cylinder c and shaft p round until the piston leaves
pass the eduction pipe e, when the stop piece f causes them successively to
close as they pass under it to come into the situation where each respectively
is thrown up into the position shewn in the Drawing by the trip levers g, g,
striking against the friction roller h, and thus maintaining a rotatory motion
which is to be communicated by the straps and drums as before described to
the carriage wheels and thus propel the carriage. The carriage represented
in the Figures is adapted to carry passengers and goods, as well as to
employ its locomotive power in drawing other carriages after it. I do not,
however, mean or intend hereby to claim as my Invention the particular parts

page_text: of which the same may be composed, excepting as applied to the propelling,
drawing, or moving wheel carriages by the agency of compressed air, heated
and used in the manner above described.