IMPROVED MECHANICAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR RAISING AND LOWERING OR OPENING AND ..
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander McKenzie, of Little Windmill Street,
Haymarket, Westminster, in the County of Middlesex, Coach
Body and Carriage Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVED
MECHANICAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR RAISING AND LOWERING OR OPENING AND
..
1
Sealed the 31st January 1871, and dated the 28th September 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander McKenzie at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 28th September 1870.
1, ALEXANDER MCKENZIE, of Little Windmill Street, Haymarket,
Westminster, in the County of Middlesex, Coach Body and Carriage
Manufacturer, do hereby declare nature of the said Invention for
** IMPROVED MECHANICAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR RAISING AND LOWERING OR OPENING
AND CLOSING THE HEADS OF CARRIAGES AND VEHICLES," to be as follows:-
I use the ordinary outside carriage head joint or jointed support
(the same having, however, an action given to it the reverse of that

page_text: usually adopted, as hereafter described), the upper end thereof being
attached to a rotating axis or revolving prop, which works in the pillar
top or equivalent part of the carriage. To this revolving prop or axis
lever or other gearing is secured, which gearing is also connected to
the cantrail hoopstick or equivalent, and likewise to a spiral or other
convenient spring made of any suitable material, the lower end of
which spring is secured to the lower part of the pillar top or its equi-
valent. These parts can all be covered. The other end of the outside
carriage head joint can be provided with the same arrangement of
gearing and spring, either in addition to or substitution for that
at the top end. Ropes or chains and pulleys may be used to enable
the head to be raised or lowered, or opened and closed from the
coachman's seat if desired. The act of opening and shutting or raising
and lowering are effected by pushing the head (except where the ropes
and chains are used) in the usual way; hence where the carriage head
has to be raised in order to close the carriage it can by the above-
described arrangement be much more easily effected than by the
ordinary arrangement.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Alexander McKenzie in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 28th March 1871.
.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALEXANDER
MCKENZIE, of Little Windmill Street, Haymarket, Westminster, in the
County of Middlesex, Coach Body and Carriage Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of September, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the
thirty-fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Alexander McKenzie, Her special licence
that I, the said Alexander McKenzie, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Alexander McKenzie, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and

page_text: no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the term
therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for “IMPROVED MECHANICAL
ARRANGEMENTS FOR RAISING AND LOWERING OR OPENING AND CLOSING THE HEADS
OF CARRIAGES AND VEHICLES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Alexander McKenzie, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the
said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alexander McKenzie, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
:―
In the construction of my said improved mechanical arrangements
applicable to carriage heads which are made to open and close, such as
the landau, I use the ordinary outside carriage head joint or jointed
support (although in some cases I can dispense with the use thereof),
the same having, however, by preference an action given to it the reverse
of that usually adopted, as hereafter described, that is to say, the
upper end thereof is attached to a turning axis, which works in the
pillar top or equivalent part of the carriage. To this axis lever toothed
or other gearing is secured, which gearing is also connected to the
cantrail hoopstick or equivalent, and likewise to a spiral or other con-
venient spring made of india-rubber or other suitable material, the lower
end of which spring is secured to the lower part of the pillar top or its
equivalent. These parts can all be covered. The other end of the
outside carriage head joint can be provided with the same arrangement
of gearing and spring, either in addition to or substitution for that at
the top end. Ropes or chains and pulleys may be used to enable the
head to be raised or lowered, or opened and closed from the coachman's
or the traveller's seat. The opening and shutting, or raising and lowering
are effected without handling the jointed supports, as is necessary in the

page_text: ordinary arrangements by pushing or pulling the head in the usual way
(except where the ropes and chains are used, when it may be effected
by acting on them), but this will, according to the arrangements I prefer
to adopt, cause the carriage head joint or support to strike outwards
and not inwards, as generally in use; hence when the carriage head
has to be raised, in order to close the same, it can be much more easily
effected than by the ordinary arrangements. Where carriage heads have
side lights which can be slidden along and dropped into the door or
otherwise removed out of the way when raising or lowering the head, such
for instance, as sometimes is adopted for the fore half of the carriage, I
can so adapt and apply the above arrangements or modifications thereof,
as hereafter described, as to dispense with the outside joint or jointed
support, and by covering all the mechanism keep the same entirely out
of view

page_text: Fig. 9, fore half of body of a carriage which may be provided with side
light arrangements, the head being up or closed.
Fig. 10, the same, with head down or open.
Figs. 11 to 15, detail views showing motive gear arrangements, such
as are shown adopted in Figs. 9 and 10.
In said Figures wherever the parts hereafter referred to are applied,
A denotes the jointed support (indicated at Fig. 2 by single lines);
B, turning axis centred to the pillar top, or bottom, or both, as shown;
C, a lever connecting the axis by a joint C* with double bent iron
or sling C², to which the spring E is connected by means of the adjusting
screw bolt Ex and nut thereon; F (in Figs. 1 and 2) iron secured to
the lower part of pillar, and securing the spring at the bottom by the
joint G (C and C² forming a jointed crank); H, denotes the toothed
excentric or sector, keyed on the turning axis B and gearing with another
toothed sector firmly secured to the cantrail, the construction and action
whereof will be readily understood from the foregoing statements and
inspection of the accompanying Drawings.
In Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6, the following letters are used in addition to some
of those already mentioned, which refer to parts not before referred to
as these parts do not form constituents in the other Figures :-I a con-
necting rod secured by the joint C*, and also (at the other end) by a
joint K which secures it to an iron fixed to the body of the carriage.
To the joint C* a bent slotted lever L is secured, which is also secured
to the frame of top of carriage, as shown, in the slot whereof a guide
pin M works, such guide pin being secured to the upper part of the
carriage frame, as shown. At the other end the connecting rod I
is secured to a plate fixed to the carriage body, such plate being pro-
vided with a turning axis N, on which the crank lever arrangements O
work, one end sliding in the guide P. To this crank lever arrangement
the spring E is attached, as also at its other end to a non-moveable part
of the carriage framing, as shown. On inspection of the Drawing it will
be seen that in Figs. 3 and 4, whilst the toothed gear operates on the
moveable part of the top of the carriage, the crank arrangement and
spring operate on the moveable part of the pillar, in Figs. 5 and 6,
whilst the slotted lever and parts in connection therewith operate on the
moveable part of top. The crank arrangement and spring operate on
the pillar, and thus opening and closing can be effected.

page_text: In Figs. 11 to 15 are shown separate views of details of the mechanism
(shown applied in Figs. 9 and 10) for side light carriages, in which
views, in addition to some of the parts already described, I* denotes an
iron screwed to the jointed pillar of the carriage and secured to the
turning axis (B), such axis carrying the eccentric sector H which gears
with another eccentric sector H*, the axis of which is secured to an
iron I which is let into the lower part of the shut pillar, this latter
sector H* being usually arranged to work in a slot, as shown in the
Drawings L. Figs. 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, is a link which works loosely on
a pin P which projects from the side of the sector H*. The pin P" being
shown separately in Fig. 13*, such pin being connected to the upper
end plate of the spring, as shown. Figs 13, 14, show the toothed sector
arrangements more clearly and at Figs. 11, 15, are views taken at right
angles to Figs. 12, 13, 14, the turning axis (B) being clearly shown in
these Figures. The part marked *) in Figs. 5 and 9 is hinged, and in
lowering can be pushed so as to fall transversely, which enables the
other part of head to be operated.
It will be observed that in my improvements as shown applied to
carriages as in Figs. 1, 2, 7, and 8, the arrangements for operating the
jointed supports are fixed inside the pillar, whereas in Figs. 9 and 10
mechanical arrangements for raising and lowering the head, dispensing
with the jointed support are let into the pillar, as shown in these last-
mentioned Figures; but the position in which the mechanical arrange-
ments are placed may be varied as desired. Indeed it will be obvious
that the various arrangements shown and described may be modified a
according to the circumstances of the case.
It is to be noted that although the Drawings show my arrangements
applied to one side of a carriage the same have to be repeated on the
other side.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed or put
in practice, I hereby declare that I claim the improved mechanical
arrangements herein described for raising and lowering or opening and
closing the heads of carriages, the nature whereof is described in the
first part of this Specification by the words preceding the description 3
of the Drawings, it being understood that I do not limit myself to the

page_text: outward action of the jointed support when used or to the precise
details of mechanical construction herein described, nor do I claim sucn
details, except when and as used for the objects and purposes of my said
Invention.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexander McKenzie, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of March
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
one.
Witness,
ALEXR. MCKENZIE. (L.S.)
THOMAS MORGAN,
Secretary, Inventors' Patent Right Association, Limited,
21, Cockspur Street,
Charing Cross.