IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BICYCLES AND VELOCIPEDES
Year: 1880

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Augustus Jennings at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 12th March 1880.
AUGUSTUS JENNINGS, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North Britain.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BICYCLES AND VELOCIPEDES."
This Invention relates to certain improvements in the construction of bicycles
and velocipedes, and of the actuating or driving wheels thereof, specially designed
to afford greater ease and facility in driving such vehicles than has heretofore been
possible. By the present improvements a larger driving wheel than usual can also
be fitted to the vehicle without inconveniencing the rider.
And the essential nature and novelty of the Invention consists in actuating the
driving wheel or wheels by means of a coiled or other spring or springs, which
would be wound up or compressed by gearing operated by treadles to be reciprocated
by the driver's feet instead of being driven by revolving cranks as heretofore.
Under one modification of the improvements the central space between the two
usual side discs forming the hub of the wheel and carrying the wires or spokes is
fitted with a strong spiral or coiled spring hooked or otherwise fixed at its inner
end to the central spindle or axle on which the wheel turns, and at its other or
outer end to a pin or stud near the circumference of a box into which the spring is
placed for protection, and which box is rigidly fixed or held to the hub of the wheel
so as to revolve with it. The central spindle or wheel axle is fitted with a pair of
spur pinions, one on each side of the box containing the spring, and keyed or held
by a square portion of this spindle, and these pinions gear into and are actuated by
a pair of spur wheels fitted to revolve each on a pin or stud carried on the usual
forks of the bicycle or velocipede frame. On these studs there are also fitted a
pair of ratchet toothed wheels, each of which may be fixed to or cast or formed in
one piece with each of the spur wheels, and these ratchet wheels are driven-round-
on their stud centres by means of ratchet-pawls centred on a treadle or foot lever
on each side-of-the-wheel.¯¯¯¯¯
These treadles are centred on the studs or pins carrying the ratchet wheels, and
each is fitted at one end with a pair of ratchet pawls, one of which turns forward
its wheel at each reciprocation of its treadle, and so winds up or coils the spring,
and the other catching into the ratchet teeth prevents the wheel turning back.
The treadles or levers are fitted at their other ends with a swivelling foot-board or
tread, adjustable longitudinally in a slot on the treadle lever to obtain more or less
leverage, as desired; and these treadles are reciprocated on their rocking centres to

page_text: turn the ratchet wheels, and with them the spur wheels, gearing into the pinions
on the central spindle, to which the inner end of the spring is attached. The spring
is thus wound up and gives off its power or the energy thus stored within it by
unwinding from its other end, and thereby drives round its retaining box, and the
wheel to which it is attached to propel the vehicle, whether the foot of the driver
is acting on the treadle or not. The treadles, which are depressed or pushed
downwards by the foot for winding the spring, are brought back again for the next
action by means of a rubber or other spring attached to each, and also to each arm
of the fork of the bicycle or velocipede frame.
By another modification of the improvements the spring box in the centre of the
hub is fitted with two, three, or more coiled springs ranged radially round the
central spindle or axle of the driving wheel, each spring being fixed at its outer
end to a separate pin near the circumference of the spring box, and at its inner
end to a short spindle passing through the box, and fitted on each side with a spur
pinion in gear with a spur wheel for each of the set of springs; and these spur
wheels are all actuated simultaneously by means of a spur pinion on each side of
the central wheel spindle which gears into all the spur wheels disposed round it.
This central spindle and pinion are turned for the purpose of winding up or coiling
the springs, as in the modification first described, by means of a ratchet wheel and
pawls on each side actuated by the foot treadles or levers, and the springs in
unwinding from their outer ends drive round the spring box and the wheel to
which it is attached, and thus drive the vehicle forward with a force proportionate
to the strength of the springs and the amount to which they are coiled up.
It will be understood that in any case the winding up of the spring or springs by
the reciprocating action of the driver's feet on the treadles may proceed
simultaneously with the unwinding from the outer ends of the spring and pro-
pulsion of the vehicle, but when desired a considerable amount of energy can be
stored up in the spring or springs by the driver, to be subsequently given out or
utilized in driving the wheel and vehicle some distance without further effort on
the part of the driver.
An important advantage gained by the use of the reciprocating or rocking
treadles, instead of the usual revolving cranks, is that the position of the treadle
and foot tread can be arranged to obtain the full effective downward pressure of
the feet without tiring the muscles of the legs, whilst as the driver's foot need not
pass lower than the centre of the wheel, the driving wheel may be made of much
larger circumference than usual without inconvenience to the rider.