IMPROVEMENTS IN VELOCIPEDES
Year: 1885

page_text: I, DAVID WIGGINS, of 677 Commercial Road East, in the County of Middlesex,
Manager for the Gospel Oak Iron Company, Limehouse Branch, do hereby declare
the nature of my invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN VELOCIPEDES to be as
follows:-
"
My invention relates to velocipedes, and is chiefly designed to improve the
construction of bicycles and tricycles and thereby decrease or diminish the jars or
concussion incident to inequalities of the roads upon which such velocipedes are
required to travel.
My said invention is applicable either to specially constructed, or to existing
velocipedes.
'
In carrying my invention into practice I provide a yielding or elastic con-
nection between the "backbone" or other part of the frame of the velocipede and
each or either of the wheels thereof. This connection usually consists of a socket
or sleeve formed on, or secured to, the said backbone or other part and fitted upon
a parallel pin or rod projecting upwards from the top of the forked piece which
carries the axle of the wheel This pin or rod is capable of turning freely in the
said socket or sleeve to permit the steering of the velocipede; and the said socket
or sleeve is free to slide up and down on the said pin or rod, but is normally held
in its highest position thereon by a spring. This spring is firmly secured at any
desired point to the said backbone or other part of the frame and presses at its
free end upon the top of the said forked piece. When any downward pressure
is exerted on the frame or any upward pressure on the wheel, this spring yields
and thus avoids or considerably diminishes any liability to shocks or concussion
due to such causes.
When the said invention is applied to a bicycle I prefer to attach a socket and
spring such as those above described to both ends of the backbone, one socket.
and spring for the driving wheel and the other for the trailing wheel. It is
obvious, however, that my invention may be applied to any of the wheels of a
velocipede.
The strength and form of the springs can be varied to suit the weight which the
velocipede is designed to carry, or according to other circumstances.
My improvements considerably facilitate the steering of a velocipede by reducing
the friction between the parts; they also enable the velocipede to run more
smoothly and thus increase the comfort of the rider as compared with ordinary
velocipedes.
Dated thi. 04th dow of Mouch 1905
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
For the Applicant.

page_text: I, DAVID WIGGINS, of 677 Commercial Road East, in the County of Middlesex,
Manager for the Gospel Oak Iron Co, Limehouse Branch, do hereby declare the
nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN VELOCIPEDES" 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 velocipedes, and its object is to provide improved means
for diminishing the jars or shocks occasioned by inequalities of the roads upon
which such vehicles are required to travel.
My said invention is applicable either to specially constructed, or to existing,
velocipedes.
In the accompanying drawings,
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a tricycle with my improvements applied
thereto.
Figure 2 is a sectional elevation, and
Figure 3 a rear elevation, both drawn to an enlarged scale, shewing the mode of
connecting the driving wheels with the frame.
Figure 4 is a side elevation, and
Figure 5 a rear elevation, also drawn to an enlarged scale, shewing the connection
between the frame and the steering wheel.
Figure 6 is a side elevation of a bicycle with my improvements applied
thereto, and
Figure 7 is a rear elevation of a part of the said bicycle.
Like letters indicate corresponding parts throughout the drawings.
In Figures 1 to 5, a indicates the frame of the machine, b, b are the driving
wheels, and c is the steering or guiding wheel. d, d are two bars or posts which
are carried by the axles e, e, and in the lower ends of which are bearings for the
crank-shaft or treadle-shaft f. Each of these bars has two slots d', d. Each of
the parts a¹ of the frame a is provided with a head or block a³ which is fitted to
slide up and down in the slot d' of the corresponding bar or post, and has flanges a³
which hold it securely within the said slot. A rod g is, moreover, attached to each
part a of the frame and extends downward at an acute angle thereto.
extremities of the rods g are fitted to slide up and down within the slots d³.
h, h are curved springs which are secured to the frame a and bear upon shoulders
or brackets d' on the bars or posts d. These springs are preferably made from
flat steel bars bent into the form shewn. The said springs may, however, be of
the same shape as the spring for the steering wheel hereinafter described.
The
The part a of the frame a is provided with a socket i which is fitted to slide
up and down upon a parallel pin k fixed in, or forming part of, the forked piece l.
A spring his attached at one end to the part a and bears at its other end upon
a collar or flange on the said forked piece l, as shewn in Figures 4 and 5. The
springs h are each made with two flat or straight portions, one of which bears

page_text: upon the top of the fork and the other of which is secured to the frame of the
vehicle. Between these two portions there is a circular or C-shaped part or
loop h' which constitutes the elastic portion of the spring. The pin k is capable
of turning freely in the socket i to permit the steering of the tricycle.
It is obvious that this combination of parts (that is to say, the socket i, parallel
pink and spring h) is also applicable to the steering or guiding wheels of invalid
chairs or other vehicles.
By the means above described, I provide an elastic connection between the
frame and the wheels of the velocipede, and, if the springs should break, the
machine will not be incapacitated, but will still be as serviceable as any ordinary
velocipede without springs, because the heads a³ and rods g will then rest upon
the bars or posts d at the bottom of the slots d¹, d². It will be seen that, in the
case of the driving wheels, the peculiar construction and arrangement of the parts
permits the movement of the frame relatively to the wheels without varying the
tension of the driving chain or affecting its action. Moreover the rods g, which
slide in the slots d³, add greatly to the strength and rigidity of the vehicle.
I prefer to make the socket i in such a manner that it will be in contact with
the pink only for a short distance from each of its extremities, as indicated by
dotted lines in Figure 4. I thus reduce the extent of rubbing surfaces between
the said socket and pin.
In Figures 6 and 7, n indicates the "backbone" of the bicycle, which is made
with a socket n' at its upper end. This socket is fitted upon a parallel pin o at
the top of the fork p, which is carried by the driving wheel b. A hole is formed
in the socket n¹ and a pin n³ is passed through the same and secured in the
parallel pin o. By these means the wheel is prevented from being turned too far
round in steering the bicycle. The pin n³ also serves as the support for the spoon-
brake, when such brake is employed. A spring q is attached at one end to the
underside of the backbone n, and bears at its other end upon a collar p² at the top
of the fork p. The rear or lower end of the backbone is cut off slightly above the
trailing wheel c¹ and a forked piece is fixed in or on the said backbone. This
forked piece is made with two sockets i, each of which is fitted to slide upon a
parallel pink forming part of one of the limbs or prongs of another forked piece 8.
This forked piece 8 is carried by the axle c³ of the trailing wheel, and its upper
end is fitted with a capability of vertical movement in an arm t secured to the
backbone n. The arrangement of this arm in combination with the forked piece 8
as above described imparts additional rigidity to the vehicle. A spring is
preferably attached to the underside of the arm t and arranged to bear upon a
shoulder on the fork 8. A spring his attached to the forked piece r on each side
of the trailing wheel c and bears upon a collar a' on the forked piece 8. These
springs form elastic connections between the trailing wheel and the backbone, and
their breakage will not render the bicycle unserviceable.
When a rider mounts a velocipede constructed as above described, the springs
will be more or less compressed, and, when any upward pressure is exerted on the
wheels of the said velocipede, the said springs will yield and thus avoid or con-
siderably diminish any shocks or concussion due to inequalities of the road upon
which the velocipede is used.
The strength and form of the springs can be somewhat varied according to
the weight which the velocipede is designed to carry or according to other
circumstances.
My improvements considerably facilitate the steering of a velocipede by reducing
the friction between the backbone or frame and the fork of the steering wheel;
they also greatly increase the comfort of the rider as compared with ordinary
velocipedes.
I have found that the peculiarly shaped spring h, when used in combination
with the socket i and parallel pin k, is especially advantageous for the purpose of
my invention,

page_text: 1
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
First. In a velocipede, the employment of a spring formed as above described
with a circular or C-shaped portion as at h¹, for the purpose specified.
Second. The combination of the fork and parallel pin k, the socket i, and the
spring h, substantially as described with reference to Figures 4 and 5 of the
drawings for the purposes specified.
Third. In a tricycle, the combination of the frame a provided with the blocks or
heads a' and with the rods g, the slotted bars or posts d carrying the treadle-shaft,
and the springs h, substantially as described with reference to Figures 1, 2 and 3
of the drawings for the purpose specified.
Fourth. The combination, with the trailing wheel of a bicycle, of the forked
pieces provided with the parallel pins k, the fork provided with the sockets i, the
springs hand the arm t, substantially as described with reference to Figures 6
and 7 of the drawings for the purpose specified:
Fifth. The improved tricycle constructed substantially as above described and
as shewn in Figures 1 to 5 of the drawings, for the purpose specified.
Sixth. The improved bicycle constructed substantially as above described and
as shewn in Figures 6 and 7 of the drawings, for the purpose specified.
Dated this 28th day of July 1885.
DAVID WIGGINS.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
Agents.