An Improved Seat for Outdoor Purposes, Tramcar and Omnibus Tops, and the like.
Year: 1899

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Seat for Outdoor Purposes, Tramcar and Omnibus Tops,
and the like.
I, JAMES THOMAS SHORT, of 20, Sholebroke Place, Chapeltown Road, Leeds,
in the County of York, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion to be as follows:-
It has reference to seats such as are exposed to the weather, and therefore
often too wet or too soiled to sit upon.
The object of the invention is to arrange apparatus for readily wiping the bars
forming the seats and leaving them fit for use.
I accomplish my object as follows:-I form my seats of a number of rollers
and these I arrange and mount, in end-frames, so that they may be easily
revolved.
Although the revolving movement may be brought about by any suitable
lever or handle, I prefer to make use, where convenient, of the bearers which
form the supports of the reversible backs of so many of the modern tramway
seats. These back-bearers are so geared with an actuating chain, and chain
wheels on the roller axles, that these latter are revolved whenever a back is
reversed, or is moved as in the act of reversing.
My seat and its appointments take a form in cross-section which may be
broadly termed an ellipse, and in the interior of this ellipse, and running over
two axles of a suitable diameter, I arrange a wiper in the form of an endless
sheet stretched over these two axles.
This endless sheet is drawn across and worked around the interior of the
ellipse by the movement (where convenient) of a reversible back, and in this
manner the sheet wipes the (inner) surface of the then revolving rollers.
The wiper may be formed of any suitable material, but a sheet of india rubber
with projecting wiping ribs, and adjacent channels for carrying off the water
to the ends, will perhaps give the best results.
Nevertheless something less costly may be desirable, such as a canvas sheet
with projecting wiping strips, say, for instance, of leather.
The bearings for the rollers and also those for the wiping sheet axles are
carried in the end-frames that support the seats; and here the back-bearers are
attached by suitable links not only to the roller-revolving chains previously
described, but also to chains working over chain-wheels on the axles of the
wiping sheets; thus both the roilers and the wiper have independent motions,
set in action by moving the reversible back.
The wiping projections on the endless sheet may either be arranged parallel
to the axles of the rollers, by way of carrying off water to the ends of the seats,
or they may be arranged diagonally, in which case a wiper will, as it were,
deliver a longitudinal rub to the inner surface of the revolving rollers.
Dated this Third day of February 1899.

page_text: COMILEIE SPECIFICATION.
An improved Seat for Outdoor Purposes, Tramcar and Omnibus Tops,
and the like.
I, JAMES THOMAS SHORT, of 20, Sholebroke Place, Chapeltown Road, Leeds,
in the County of York, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The invention has reference to seats such as are exposed to the weather, and
therefore often too wet or too soiled to sit upon.
The object of the invention is to arrange apparatus for readily, wiping the
bars forming the seats and leaving them fit for use.
I accomplish my object as follows:-I form my seat of a number of rollers,
and these I arrange and mount in end-frames so that they may easily be
revolved.
In order the better to explain my meaning I have annexed two sheets' of
drawings on which Fig. 1 is an end elevation of a seat fitted with, and actuated
by a reversible back-frame; whilst Fig. 2 is a similar view of a common out-
door seat, having the usual fixed back, and fitted with an independent actuating
lever. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal elevation corresponding to Fig. 1, showing how
the usual back-bearers accomodate themselves, by a slight crank, where space is
valuable, to the mode by which I prefer to actuate my rollers, etc. Fig. 4 is
an end elevation, on an enlarged scale, of the more important details; whilst
Fig. 5 is a corresponding longitudinal elevation of the same details, partly in
section, showing the end of a seat and the necessary gearing thereat. The minor
Figs. 6, 7, 8 and 9, will be described later, as they are met with. The same
letters refer to the same parts in all the figures.
A, A, are the rollers forming my seat, and B, B, are the end-frames in which
the roller-axles C, C, revolve. Although the revolving movement may be
brought about by any suitable lever or handle, such as that at D¹ in Fig. 2, I
prefer to make use, where convenient, of the bearers D, D, which form the
supports of the reversible backs of so many of the modern tramway-car seats,
as shown in Figs. 1, 3, etc.
The back-bearers D are (by pin and link J) so coupled to and geared with an
actuating chain E (see Figs. 4 and 5), running over chain wheels F, F, etc.,
mounted and keyed on the roller-axles C, that these latter, with their rollers,
are revolved whenever a back is reversed, or moved as in the act of reversing.
My seat and its appointments take a form in cross-section which may be
broadly termed an ellipse, as shown in Fig. 4, and in the interior of this ellipse,
and running over two axles G, G, and rollers G, G¹, of a suitable diameter,
I arrange a wiper, preferably in the form of an endless sheet, H, H, stretching
over the said rollers. The axles G, G, have their bearings in the same end-
frames B, B, as the other axles, and they likewise carry chain wheels as shown.
This endless wiping-sheet is drawn across and worked around the interior of
the ellipse by the movement, where convenient, of a reversible back, and in
this manner the sheet H, H, wipes the (inner) surface of the then revolving
rollers.
The wiper may be formed of any suitable material, but a sheet of indiarubber
with projecting wiping ribs, forming channels to carry off the water to the
ends (see Fig. 4) will perhaps give the best results. Nevertheless something
less costly may be desirable, such as a canvas or other sheet with projecting
wiping strips, say for instance of leather, with or without a covering of water-

page_text: proofing for the sheet itself, somewhat after the manner of Fig. 6, (a cross-
section showing the wipers H, as in Fig. 4). Here strips of leather or rubber
are shown mounted on feet standing out to the right and left, which may be
had by cutting the material at its base and alternately bending it right and
left. Channel shaped strips of rubber, etc., will also form good wiping points
when mounted on a sheet as at H, in Fig. 7; as also will any other presenting
an elastic and satisfactory wiping quality. Brushes in longitudinal strips will
also do, as shown in Fig. 8.
In the arrangement shown on the drawings the bearings of the seat-rollers
are carried in the end-frames B, B, that form and support, with their legs below,
the whole structure. Here, at the ends, the back-bearers whose fulcra are
arranged as usual close to the base of the seat, are fitted with projecting studs
at J, (or with equivalent studs on the chain) which engage with the actuating
chain, which latter may actuate both sets of rollers, through their chain wheels;
i.c. both the seat-rollers, and the wiping-sheet-rollers. Only one end of a seat
need be fitted with chain gear, unless there be some special wish to the con-
trary, when it would be easy to arrange the seat-roller gear at one end and the
wiper gear at the other.
In fact a variety of detail may be had without departing from the spirit of
the invention, which is that of wiping, automatically as far as possible, a set
of revolving rollers forming the seat, with an internal wiper, whether such be
an endless sheet or otherwise.
•
I have shown an endless wiping sheet because I think it best, but it is evident
that fixed wipers may be mounted in contact with their rollers as shown in
Fig. 9, where the particular wiper shown is of the brush type stretched across
from end to end, say on wire supports, capable of adjustment for wear.
In Fig. 4, arrows point out the movements of the various rollers, the back-
bearer being supposed to be on the point of completing its throw-over. It also
shows that by this arrangement it is impossible for the rollers to draw any
material in between them, inasmuch as one roller is always running outwards.
In general the wiping sheets should have their wiping points arranged in
lines parallel with the roller axles, and in this way all wiping channels will
deliver any moisture to the ends of the seats: but in some cases short lengths
of wiping points may be arranged diagonally, with a view of giving a more
or less longitudinal wipe to the rollers; such diagonal lengths should overlap
one another so that one strip may begin before the other stops.
Secondary wiping bars may be fixed as shown at K, K, in Fig. 4, extending
across from side to side, with a view to facilitate the removal of moisture from
the wiping projections themselves, as they pass by such bars.
The gearing should be enclosed, leaving only such openings as are requisite
to the proper working of the stud, J, etc., on the bearer bar D.
In Fig. 4, a roller L is arranged to keep the wiping sheets tight, if necessary;
and in Fig. 1, it will be noticed that a dished seat may be accomodated by
allowing the wiper sheet to curve to suit it.
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) The herein described mode of forming the seat itself, of out-door seats,
of rollers mounted and geared in such a manner that they are easily revolved,
and so caused to clean themselves against an inner wiper, substantially as and
for the purpose described.
(2) The mode of mounting, revolving, and coupling seat-rollers and wiping-
rollers, by means of chains and chain-wheels, et cetera, so that they may be
easily actuated by an independent lever, after the manner shown in Fig. 2,
as and for the purpose described.

page_text: (3) The combination of the well-known tram-car seat, with a reversible back-
frame, fitted with additional gear, such as chain and chain wheels for revolving
my roller seats and wipers, substantially as described and shown, with the
object and for the purpose set forth.
(4) The use in combination with my revolving roller seats of stationary wipers,
after the manner shown in Fig. 9 and described herein, with the object and for
the purpose set forth.
(5) In combination with a seat fitted with revolving rollers the various types
of endless wiping sheets substantially as described and shown in Figs. 4, 5,
6, 7 and 8, with the object and for the purpose set forth.
(6) The combination of a roller-seat, and endless internal wiper, with secondary
wiping bars as shown in Fig. 4, at K, with the object and for the purpose set
forth.
Dated this 30th day of October 1899
WM. SNOWDON,
Agent for the Applicant, 24, Basinghall Street, Leeds.