An Improved Means for Stopping and Propelling Vehicles.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Dec., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 2nd Oct., 1893-Accepted, 12th Dec., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Means for Stopping and Propelling Vehicles.
JOSEPH FIELD 13 Vicars Road Haverstock Hill London Pianoforte
Manufacturer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
By means of bringing a wheel (in connection with air pumps) in contact
with the wheel of any vehicle it is desired to check or stop, to transmit the impetus
or excessive velocity to a storage chamber or accumulator by means of said pumps
(or other mechanism), the stored power to be afterwards used to start or assist said
vehicle. And by means of an adjustable weighted valve in connection with a
compensating plunger or piston, to get the same checking power in air pumps,
immediately upon their application as a brake, as there would be if the air chamber
was fully charged with compressed air, the said plunger to act as a counterbalance
upon the weighted valve, so as to annihilate the back pressure of atmosphere caused
by the accumulator getting filled with compressed air, thereby preventing increased
or unequal resisting power of brake unless desired. And by means of another valve
being opened to allow the compressed air to act upon pistons of pumps, thereby
preventing vehicle from running backwards, supposeing it to have been stopped in
ascending an incline.
1
2000
JOSEPH FIELD.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Means for Stopping and Propelling Vehicles.
I, JOSEPH FIELD, of 13 Vicars Road, Haverstock Hill, Middlesex, Pianoforte
Manufacturer, 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 has for its object certain improvements in or connected with
appliances for stopping and propelling vehicles by storing the excessive energy or
mementum which can be used subsequently for starting or propelling purposes by
such means as herein described.
According to my invention when it is desired to stop or reduce the speed of a
vehicle a friction wheel is brought in contact with a carrying wheel of such vehicle.
The friction wheel has connected with it two oscillating air pumps for forcing
compressed air into a reservoir to be there stored or accumulated until it is desired
to use it for setting in motion or assisting in propelling the said vehicle.
In order to make the retarding power of the pumps perfect immediately upon
their application I use an adjustable weighted valve which offers the same resistance
to the pumps at their first stroke as when the reservoir is fully charged with
compressed air.
And in order to obviate an increasing pressure on the pistons of the pumps by
the pressure of air in the reservoir increasing and pressing upon the weighted valve
in addition to the spring I place upon the latter a rod connected with a suitably
sized diaphragm plunger or piston so that as the air pressure increases upon the
back or inner side of the valve it will also increase upon the diaphragm and reduce
the pressure of the spring upon the valve proportionately.
To cause the stored power or compressed air to start or to assist to put in motion
the vehicle, a cock is opened admitting the air from the reservoir to the pumps in
connection with the aforesaid friction wheel. The operation of opening the cock
from the reservoir also opens the exhaust cock, both being attached to the same rod.

page_text: To prevent undue consumption of compressed air I use it expansively in the
pumps, cutting it off at any part of the stroke of the piston that may be desired by
regulating admission cocks, by means of adjustable tappets.
By using one pair of pumps only both for stopping and starting purposes the
weight of the apparatus is considerably reduced, also the work of the person in
charge, as once the friction wheel is put in contact for checking, it will not be
necessary to remove it or bring another in contact until the vehicle has recovered
its normal speed.
I also advocate (if the apparatus is used for tramcars or such like vehicles) that
auxiliary reservoirs should be used to carry a supply of compressed air, obtained
by other means for assisting them on inclines or whenever extra power is needed.
When the apparatus is used upon a vehicle which is run in opposite directions,
but is not turned at the end of the journey, I use an extra friction wheel in con-
nection with an endless chain or cog wheel to admit of the same pair of pumps
being used for the reversed direction of the vehicle.
By using cup leather packing to pump pistons, valves in pistons are not needed
as the leather will allow the free passage of air in one direction, also should the
friction wheel be left in contact while the vehicle is in motion after the compressed
air in the reservoir is exhausted, the cup leather packing will prevent suction by
allowing air to pass on the outward stroke of piston, and resistance will on the
inward stroke be prevented by the air being allowed to escape through the exhaust
cock.
In order that my invention may be more readily comprehended I have appended
the accompanying two sheets of drawings in which,
Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of a bicycle with the several parts of my invention
attached.
Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the pumps and controlling mechanism,
Fig. 3 is a horizontal section,
Fig. 4 is a transverse section to an enlarged scale of the same on the line A-B
Fig 2, and
Fig. 5 is a horizontal section of valve chamber.
A friction wheel a capable of engaging with the tire of a carrying wheel is
mounted on a shaft c working in bearings in distance rods d and having a limited
movement in the slot e in the supporting bracket f secured to the frame piece g.
To the outer ends of the said shaft c are secured cranks h connected by the piston
rods to the pistons provided with cup leather packings m and working in
cylinders n oscillating about the centre studs o passing through a box frame p,
the working faces q of the said cylinders n being maintained in contact with the
working faces of the chest p by the springs r as will be readily understood. The
rods d are secured to the chest p which is itself connected through the rod 5, crank t
and rod v to a lever or its equivalent near the handle bars of the vehicle, so that it
can be readily manipulated by the rider to put the wheels a, b into or out of
engagement at pleasure. The chest p is provided with four brackets w which
embrace and slide on two guide rods a secured to the frame of the cycle.
On each side of the chest p are two ports y, y' with which the port z in the
cylinders alternately communicates. The port y communicates through a valve a a
with an air chest ab and thence by a pipe ac with an air reservoir ad mounted on
the frame bar a e. The valve a a is held on its seat by a spring af whose force is
regulated by a cross bar ag capable of adjustment by means of the nuts ah and
stud pins ai.
A rod al secured to the valve aa and to a crossbar am, free to slide
on the guide studs a i, is secured by nuts an to a diaphragm ao, itself secured by
nuts and bolts to the cover ap of the chest a b. The object of connecting the valve
to this diaphragm is to balance the pressure on the valve due to the varying
pressure in the reservoir, the pressure on the diaphragm tending to pull the valve
off its seat while the equal and opposite pressure on the valve tends to press it
on to it.
Secured to the plate ag is a plate aq terminating in two rods ar passing through

page_text: stuffing boxes as in the cover ap and connected by a rod at and lever av to a
rod a manipulated by the rider. It will thus be seen that when the plate aq is
depressed by the action of the rider, increased pressure is put upon the valve aa,
which increases the resistance to the passage of the air from the cylinders n and,
thereby, the retarding force on the wheel of the vehicle. In the passage az is
inserted a cock ay which, when the motion of the vehicle is being retarded, is
closed. The port y' communicates through the pipes az, cocks ba, bb and pipe be
with the reservoir ad. The two cocks a y, bb are coupled together by the rod bd
so that both are open or closed together, and are operated by the rider through the
crank lever be and rod bf as will be readily understood.
When it is desired to use the apparatus as a motor to accelerate or start the
motion of the vehicle, the cocks a y, bb are opened, the compressed air then passes
from the reservoir ad through cock bb, pipes az, and admission cocks ba into.
cylinders n and is exhausted through passage aa and exhaust cock a y.
In order to use the compressed air expansively in the cylinders the admission
cocks ba are provided, and on the cylinder ends n are secured arms bg having
adjusting screws bh, so that as the cylinders oscillate the lever bi is caused to
oscillate also to an extent depending upon the position of the tappet screws, the
opening and closing of the cocks being thereby controlled so as to vary the
adinission of air to the cylinders.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In pneumatic apparatus for retarding, stopping, starting and accelerating the
motion of vehicles; the employment of oscillating pumps or cylinders working in
conjunction with an air reservoir and a friction wheel, the whole arranged
constructed and operating substantially as described.
2. In means for stopping and propelling vehicles: the employment of a friction
wheel a shaft c sliding in bracket f secured to the frame, and cranks h, in
combination with piston / having cup leather packing m, and pumps or cylinders n
substantially as described.
3. In means for stopping and propelling vehicles; the means for putting the
friction wheel in and out of engagement with the carrying wheel, comprising
distance bars d in the end of which the shaft c works, the box frame p connected
thereto, and sliding on the guide bars x, and the rod s connected to the rod v
operated by the rider, substantially as described.
4. In apparatus for stopping and propelling vehicles: balancing the back
pressure from the air reservoir on the air pump delivery valve, by connecting it to
an elastic diaphragm in the cover of the valve chest, substantially as described.
5. In apparatus for stopping and propelling vehicles, increasing the resistance to
motion in the vehicle by increasing the pressure on the pump delivery valve, by
means of inechanism controlled by the operator, substantially as described.
6. In apparatus for stopping and propelling vehicles, controlling the supply of
air from the air reservoir to the air pumps or cylinders, by means of admission cocks
operated by adjustable tappet arms on the air pumps or cylinders, so as to vary the
cut off to the same when working as motor cylinders, and thereby use the
compressed air expansively, substantially as described.
7. The general combination of parts constituting my improved means for stopping
and propelling vehicles, the whole arranged constructed and operating substantially
as described in the foregoing Specification and illustrated in the drawings hereunto
annexed.
Dand in 19th
f Santauchen 1000
JOSEPH FIELD.