Improvement in Hand Cars.
Year: 1889

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvement in Hand Cars.
I ALBERT FRANKLIN KUHL, of Van Wert, in the county of Van Wert and State
of Ohio, United States of America, Farmer, 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 certain new and useful improvements in Hand-cars; and
it consists in the special construction and arrangement of a superstructure therefor
as will be hereinafter fully set forth and particularly pointed out in the claims.
The object of my invention is to provide a superstructure or housing for hand-cars
which can be readily removed therefrom to provide either an open or closed car.
I accomplish the above object by the construction illustrated in the accompanying
drawings in which-
Figure 1 is a side view of a hand-car showing the housing applied thereto to
provide a closed-car. Fig. 2 is a plan view. Fig. 3 is a side view showing the end
and side sections removed. Fig. 4 is a sectional view through the line of Fig. 3.
Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of one of the end doors. Fig. 6 is a detail plan
view of one of the end doors. Fig. 7 shows the attachment of the post to the
car floor.
A refers to the floor of the car-body which is suitably braced by longitudinal
stringers a, which terminate in handles a' for lifting the car when it is desired to
remove the same from the track. These stringers have bolted thereto boxes forming
bearings for the axles, and the floor is further braced by additional longitudinal
stringers or beans and by transverse beams. One of the axles is provided centrally
with a cog wheel 1 which is rigidly keyed thereon and meshes with a larger wheel 2
supported between the inclined beams of the frame A¹ and the wheel 2 meshes with
a still larger wheel 3 above the same, which is driven by suitable crank-handles.
The driving mechanism consisting of the cog-wheels 1. 2, & 3, is suitably covered or
protected by a casing and the supporting frame is rigidly bolted to the floor A and
to the stringers beneath the same. In order that the driving axle may have a
slight lateral play, the cog-wheel 1 attached to the axle, is made quite broad so that
should the axle move laterally it will continue to mesh with the wheel 2 above.
B & B refer to brake-levers pivoted to the floor-boards, to the lower ends of which
is pivoted a bar b connecting them together. One of these levers has attached
thereto a link which engages with the central crank-arm of a brake bar b, which
carries shoes which engage with the tread of one set of wheels. One of the brake
levers B is located immediately in rear of the driving mechanism while the other
lever B' is to one side of the saine so that either lever may be grasped.
The floor-board A extends beyond the stringers a and also beyond the transverse
end beams, and this floor-board is provided at its four corners with openings or slots c
through which pass tenons formed on the corner posts of the top or housing frame.
The wheels pass through openings in the floor-boards and these openings are
protected by suitable shields which lie under the benches or seats.

page_text: The ends of the car are provided with steps, as shown.
The car hereinbefore described is adapted to be used without the superstructure or
housing as an ordinary hand-car, and may be used for all the purposes to which
such car is usually put.
Drefers to the roof, the ends of which taper nearly to a point, and this roof is
rigidly secured to a rectangular frame D', provided with supporting-posts E which
are attached to the floor of the car by mortise and tenon, the tenon e baving a
perforation through which a pin passes for securing the posts securely in place. The
corner-posts are further braced at their lower ends by longitudinal strips F which
are grooved as shown at f and similar grooved slips 1 are secured to the rectangular
frame D which taken together form ways for holding the sides in place. To the
roof and frame thereof are rigidly secured depending and tapered end pieces G G
which not only serve to support the overhanging ends of the roof but also form
frames against which the end doors abut. These end doors H H are hinged to
suitable eyes secured to the corner-posts, with which the hinges hh attached to the
doors engage. The doors H H each carry an angular bottomplate H' which plates,
when the doors are closed form a continuation of the floor and the doors are also
provided with windows set in frames the upper and lower portions and i¹ of which
are angular while the part 2 stands at nearly right angles with the door, so that the
window will be at right angles with the sides of the car when the doors are closed,
thus permitting a free view ahead. Latches are provided for holding the doors closed,
which latches may be located either on the doors or upon the inner edges of the end
pieces G.
KK refer to the side sections of the car each of which are provided with windows
and a suitable hasp and staple for securing the sides to each other and if desirable
these sides may be used as doors as they are free to slide in the grooved strips.
The superstructure or housing may be made of either light metal plates or thin
boards and a car constructed as hereinbefore described may be either used as an
ordinary hand-car or for carrying passengers and for inspecting the road.
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. In a car provided with hand propelling mechanism substantially as shown,
brake-levers B, B2, one located to one side of the propelling mechanism and the other
to the rear thereof, the lower ends of said brakelevers being connected by a bar and a
link for connecting one of the levers to a crank-rod carrying brake-shoes substantially
as shown and for the purpose set forth.
2. In a hand car a superstructure or housing therefor consisting of a top connected
to a frame for supporting and bracing the same side strips D & F having grooves f'f
for supporting side sections substantially as shown and for the purpose set forth.
3. In a car a roof having front and rear portions which extend beyond the frame
thereof angular depending end pieces, the supporting corner-posts and end doors
hung to the corner-posts and provided with angular bottom plates the parts being
organized substantially as shown.
4. In a car a removable superstructure supported upon corner-posts, said corner posts
being provided with eye bolts and doors hinged thereto said doors being adapted to
meet in front of the car substantially as shown.
5. In a car end doors constructed substantially as shown and provided with
angular extensions which, when the doors are closed, form a continuation of the floo
boards for the purpose set forth.
6. In combination with a car the end doors supported upon hinges and provided a
their lower ends with inwardly extended pieces which are adapted to meet when th
doors are closed said doors having windows supported in angular frames substantially
as shown and for the purpose set forth.

page_text: 7. In combination with a housing for hand-cars end doors hinged to the side frames
so as to meet beyond the car-body the doors being at an angle as shown with the
sides of the car.
D
ALBERT F. KUHL.
By his Agents, Horn & Son.