Improvements in and relating to Ball Bearings.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Mar., 1896-Accepted, 2nd May, 1806
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Ball Bearings.
I, CHARLES TRUMAN, Bicycle Manufacturer, residing at Smead and Elmwood
Avenues, in the City of Toledo, in the County of Lucas and State of Ohio,
United States of America, 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:-
My invention relates to ball-bearing journals for bicycles and other vehicles, and
its object is to give greater strength and rigidity to the ball-bearing surfaces and to
the spindles than have heretofore been found in such journals, and to provide means
for the adjustment of the ball-bearing surfaces of such journals, which may be
conveniently operated from the outer extremities of the journals instead of
at a point inside the bearings of the fork-ends, as in vehicles of this class heretofore
in use.
I attain these objects by means of the mechanism and arrangement of parts
hereinafter described, and shown in the accompanying drawing, made part hereof,
in which the single figure is a perspective view of my device with portions cut away
disclosing the arrangement of the parts in longitudinal section.
In the drawing, a is the cylindrical hub, having the usual flanges b, from which
radiate the suspension-spokes. (Not shown in the drawing.) c is a spindle passing
through the center of the hub, made in two parts, the inner end of one part being
interiorly threaded, and the inner end of the other part being exteriorly threaded
so that the two parts may be screwed together within the hub.
d is the sprocket-wheel or chain-wheel, screwed upon the hub; e, a lock-nut or
keeper for the sprocket-wheel, screwed upon the hub by means of a left-hand thread.
ff, are ball-bearing cones formed integral with the spindle c. gg are cup-shaped nuts
having a conical cavity, screwed into the ends of the hub, forming, in conjunction
with the cone on the spindle, a ball-bearing race for the antifriction balls h. ii are
washers resting against shoulders upon the spindle, and jj are nuts on the
projecting screw-threaded ends of the spindle.
The spaces between the washers i and nuts j are designed to receive and support
the fork ends of the bicycle-frame, (not shown in the drawing,) the nuts j being set
up firmly against the fork ends, securing them rigidly to and preventing rotation of
the spindle.
Assuming that the parts are assembled, adjustment of the ball-bearing surfaces
of the cone and screw-threaded cups g is obtained as follows: The nut j on the
projecting end of the spindle c is slightly loosened, a wrench is applied to the square
projecting end c' of the spindle, and a slight turn of the wrench to the right or left
lengthens or shortens the spindle, the two screw-threaded halves being thereby pro-
jected or retracted, carrying the ball-bearing surfaces of the cones upon the spindles
toward or away from the corresponding surfaces of the ball-bearing cups. The
exact desired adjustment and relation of the two ball-bearing surfaces having been
thus obtained, nut j is now tightly set up against the fork-end and the operation is
complete. It will be observed that the pinch of the fork end between the washer i
and set-nut j is obtained without in the least affecting the adjustment of the ball-
bearing surfaces, and that the wrench has been readily and conveniently applied
outside of the wheel instead of between the fork ends and the hub, as heretofore.
The adjustment may be had at either end of the spindle, it being understood that it
is only necessary to give one end of the spindle an outer extremity square headed or
otherwise suitably prepared to receive a wrench or key.

page_text: The advantages of my device, in which both ball-bearing cones are formed
integral with the spindle, are that such spindle is stronger and the cones are solid
and rigid and maintain their adjustment more constantly than where the cones are
movable upon the spindle.
An additional advantage of my device is that the adjustment of the ball-bearing
surfaces is entirely independent of the side thrust of the fork ends and their
adjusting-nuts, thereby relieving the ball-bearings from any undue strain on that
account.
Having described my invention and its mode of operation, what I claim, and
desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-
1. In a journal for bicycles, in combination with the hub, a spindle in two parts,
a ball-bearing cone on each of said two parts formed integral therewith, and a male
and female screw at the meeting ends of said two parts of said spindle whereby said
ball-bearing cones may be adjusted in relation to each other, substantially as and
for the purpose specified.
2. In a journal for bicycles, in combination with the hub, a spindle in two parts,
a ball-bearing cone on each of said two parts formed integral therewith, and a male
and female screw at the meeting ends of said two parts of said spindle whereby said
ball-bearing cones may be adjusted in relation to each other, and a square head or
equivalent device at the outer extremity of said spindle adapted to receive a wrench
or key whereby the adjustment of the ball-bearing cones may be effected from
outside the fork-ends of the wheel, substantially as shown and described, for the
purpose specified.
3. In a journal for bicycles, in combination with the hub, a spindle in two parts,
a ball-bearing cone on each of the two parts formed integral therewith, a male and
female screw at the meeting ends of said two parts of said spindle, a shoulder (¹)
upon each of said two parts of said spindle, washers (ii) resting against said
shoulders and nuts (j), on the projecting screw-threaded ends of said spindle, all
substantially as and for the purpose specified.
4. A journal for bicycles or other vehicles, comprising a hub, a sprocket-wheel
screwed thereon, a ball-bearing cup screwed therein, in combination with a two-part
spindle passing therethrough, and adjustably screwed together at their meeting ends,
ball-bearing cones on each of said two parts of said spindle formed integral there-
with, anti-friction balls in the ball-race formed by said screw-cups and said cones,
a shoulder and washer (ii), on each of the two parts of said spindle, nuts on the
outer extremities of said spindle adapted to engage the fork-ends of the bicycle-
frame, and a square head or equivalent device at the outer extremity of one of said
spindle parts, all substantially as and for the purpose specified.
Dated this 19th day of November 1895
CHARLES TRUMAN,
By E. P. Alexander & Son,
Chartered Patent Agents,
19, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Filing Agents.
CHARLES TRUMAN,
By E. P. Alexander & Son,
Chartered Patent Agents,
19, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Filing Agents.