IMPROVEMENTS IN FOLDING HEADS OF CARRIAGES
Year: 1885

page_text: I, JOHN GEORGE HARRISON No 10 Noel Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham Manager
of Works do hereby declare the nature of my invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN
FOLDING HEADS OF CARRIAGES to be as follows:-
My invention applies principaly to those carriages having half hoods only, such
as Victorias and Barouches & the object of my invention is to arrange the parts
in such a way as to hold the hood in the raised position firmly and securely, to
arrange a spring behind the front pillar to balance the head when being folded
back & to so arrange the centres of the different parts & the centre of the spring
pressure that the head will remain open in a horizontal possition until raised a little
by hand when the springs will become engaged & assist in lifting the head to the
raised position as first described-To effect my object I place between the cloth or
other lining of the carriage & the leather cover a jointed stay iron, having the
lower end held by a bolt, on which it may turn, & a suitable bearing for such bolt
a certain distance. behind and below the main centre on which the head of the
carriage folds and secured to elbow rail of carriage-At a short distance above
the centre joint of jointed stay iron I drill a hole, and above that I form a collar,
and also a long end of rounded iron-I drill in one of the slat irons or finger irons
which carry the hoops or bows a hole to correspond with the one in upper half of
jointed stay iron and pass a pin or bolt through the two parts and secure them by
means of a threaded nut or by riveting-I place a spiral spring on the long
rounded end of top half of jointed stay iron and pass the point or end of such
rounded end through a socket eye which is fastened to the back or side of the
carriage pillar or front hoop stick-The spring take its bearing against the socket
eye at one end and the collar on the jointed stay iron at other-The long round
end of stay iron passes through the socket eye when the head of carriage is thrown
back and so compresses the spring which is properly adjusted to balance the
weight of the head when moving on its main joints-The pin or rivet that secures
the slat iron or finger iron to the upper half of jointed stay iron acts as a fulcrum
for the folding of the jointed stay iron when the carriage head is thrown back,
the long rounded end of upper half of the jointed stay iron on which the spring
works acting as a lever to move the centre joint when the head is thrown back-
The main joint may be made in any of the usual ways, and also the slat or finger

page_text: iron with the exception of the one mentioned above, but by preference I would
attatch them to the pins or rivets which I describe as passing through the upper
half of the jointed stay iron and the slat iron or finger iron-I claim as new the
rounded end of the upper half of jointed stay iron, its engagement with the socket
eye on pillar, and the arrangement of the spring on this rounded end.
The advantages I claim are the extreme simplicity of my arrangement, and as a
consequence of fewer parts than in any other spring balance for this purpose, less
friction of the parts, greater freedom of action, and a inoré perfect balance.
I, JOHN GEORGE HARRISON of N° 10 Noel Road Edgbaston Birmingham
Manager of Works do hereby declare the nature of said invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN FOLDING HEADS OF CARRIAGES" and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
My invention applies principally to those carriages having half hoods only such
as Victorias and Barouches; but my invention is applicable to Landaus and other
similar vehicles, wherein a cantrail is employed. The object of my said invention,
is to arrange the parts in such a way, as to hold the hood in the raised position
both firmly and securely. This is effected by arranging a spring behind the front
pillar, so as to balance the said head when being folded back; and further, to so
arrange the centres of the different parts and the centre of the spring pressure that
the head will remain open in a horizontal position, until raised a little by hand
when the spring will become free and assist in lifting the head to the raised
position as first described. To effect this, I place between the cloth or other lining
of the carriage and the leather cover, a jointed stay iron, having the lower end
held by a bolt or pin, on which the said stay iron may turn. A suitable bearing
is provided for such bolt at a limited distance behind and below the main centre,
on which the head of the carriage folds and is secured to the elbow rail of
carriage.
.
At a short distance above the centre joint of the jointed stay iron, a hole is
nade or drilled and above the said hole, I form a collar and also further above the
collar, a long-end or prolongation of rounded iron. The lower ends of the slat
irons or finger irons, which carry the hoops or bows, are provided with holes to
correspond with the hole in upper half of jointed stay iron, and through the holes

page_text: of both the stay iron and the slat irons, the pin or bolt passes and is secured by
means of a threaded nut, or by riveting. I place a spiral or coiled spring on the
long rounded end of top half of jointed stay iron, and pass the point or end of such
rounded end through a socket eye, which is attached to the back or side of the
carriage pillar. The spring takes its bearing against the socket eye at one end,
and the collar on the jointed stay iron at the other end. The long round end of
stay iron passes through the socket eye, when the bead of carriage is thrown back,
and so compresses the spring which is properly adjusted to balance the weight of
the head, when moving on its main joints. The pin or rivet that secures the slat
iron or finger iron, to the upper half of jointed stay iron, acts as a fulcrum centre
for the folding of the jointed stay iron, when the carriage head is thrown back by
the long rounded end of upper half of the jointed stay iron, on which the spring
works acting as a lever to move the centre joint, when the head is thrown back.
The main joint may be made in any of the usual ways, and also the slat or finger
iron, with the exception of the one mentioned above.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying drawings, the
manner in which the same is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation, the parts of the folding heads of carriages
(such as Victorias and Barouches) constructed according to my invention, with the
cloth and lining of the hood removed. The said figure 1 represents the parts in
position which they respectively occupy when the carriage head is closed, and the
supporting and distending slat irons and jointed arms or stay irons are open.
Figure 2 shows the said parts of the folding mechanism of the carriage head
collapsed, or thrown back into its open position. Figure 3 is a portion of the
principal parts of the folding head mechanism upon a larger scale. Figure 4 is a
plan of figure 3, with some of the parts in section, and figure 5 shows the bracket
and the lower part of the jointed.stay iron.
The same letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures
of the drawings.
a is the front pillar of the carriage head, jointed at its lower end to the elbow
rail or frame b. This joint connecting the front pillar to the said elbow rail, is the
main joint, and is marked c. d is the lower half of the stay iron, and e is a
swivelling or fixed bracket to which the lower part of the said stay iron is jointed;
either by a bolt or by a pin. f is the upper half of the jointed stay iron, having a
folding joint centre 2, which connects the upper to the lower half; and situated
a little above the said folding joint centre f2, a slat iron centre joint is formed, to
which the three slat irons g g and g³ are connected to the upper half of the stay
iron at a point a little above the folding joint of the upper and lower half of the
said stay iron.
The middle slat iron extends below and at the back of the stay iron, and is
jointed upon the main centre c, which connects the front pillar to the elbow rail.
The lower end of the said slat iron, which comes between the stay iron and the
front pillar, is marked g. The said middle slat iron g² is provided with an
extending arm or lug g³, at a short distance from the lower end; in order to joint
that part of the slat iron to the upper stay iron. The slat irons g and g³ are
hooked or turned at their ends, and turn upon the same joint centre as the middle
slat iron g
The joint centre h of the slat iron g², forms the fulcrum centre about which the
upper half of the stay iron turns; that is, on the turning back of the front pillar
in the act of folding the head, the upper and lower stay irons are folded inwards
upon the joint centre f. The change of position or the movement of the front
pillar, and with it the upper stay iron, upon the lower stay iron, into the position
as represented in figure 2, causes the gathering in of the slat irons g g g (which
carry the hoops of the hood) and the folding up of the parts of the head.
The upper half of the jointed stay iron, is made in the form of a rod, and
markeds which said rod is encircled by a coiled spring . This coiled spring has
its upper abutment upon a socket or bracket eye k, through which the upper end

page_text: of the rod f slides or passes, on the folding of the head. This bracket eye is
situated near the upper part of the front pillar. The lower end of the coiled
spring which is for assisting the opening and closing of the head, and for
retaining the said head respectively in its open and closed positions, has its
abutment upon a collar or nut f4. near the lower part of the rod f3 which is
screwed and is a prolongation of the upper half stay iron; and immediately below
this collar, the said stay iron is made bracket or fork like, to form a double bearing
for the fulcrum pin h connecting the slat iron with the upper stay, and upon which
the said slat irons turn, for gathering in or for opening out. The extreme end of
the rod f is provided with a nut or collar f³, to prevent the rod from being
withdrawn through the eye of the bracket k, on the opening of the parts.
To close the carriage head, or to bring it forward from its thrown back or
collapsed position, raise the front pillar by hand, when the parts are relieved from
their set positions, the force of the spring which is under tension, forces the parts
into the positions as represented in figure 1, thereby bolding securely and firmly,
the hood of a carriage head in its closed position.
To throw back or collapse the head, it is only necessary to again press back the
front pillar a jointed upon the vertical arm of the elbow rail b; when the bracket k
through which the end of the upper stay red f³ passes, compresses the spring and
the folding up of the upper and lower stay irons, to an acute angle, and the
gathering in of the slat irons is thereby effected, as represented in figure 2.
The holding of the parts of the collapsed head is effected by the acute angle with
which the stay irons make with each other.
The spring for the opening out, and for the holding of the parts in position, (open
and closed) is balanced to the weight of the head.
The head when closed as in figure 1, is retained in its open position, by the
pressure of the spring exerting itself upon the bracket k, and collar or nut f* of the
upper half stay iron, and so long as the parts and the joint centres thereof, remain
in the respective positions as represented, so long will the bead of the carriage be
balanced or kept open.
By arranging the parts of folding heads as described and represented, it is
impossible for the head to be accidentally opened, by persons in the carriage
leaning upon the stay irons, as sometimes happens with folding heads of the
ordinary construction; and further, no inside handles are required for the folding
or unfolding of the head; that is, for Victorias and other similar vehicles.
In applying my invention to Landaus and vehicles of a like character, a cantrail
has only to be added to the front pillar, and the other parts arranged accordingly,
to suit the character of head to which my invention is or may be applied; so that
in this class of vehicle last named, the cantrail has to be raised and lowered for the
opening and folding of the head.
The lower part of the upper stay iron may be bent out of the line of the other
part, so that the upper and lower stay irons when open, lie somewhat parallel
(inclining to an obtuse angle) but are not in the same line.
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. The improvements in the folding heads of carriages consisting of a front
pillar connected to an upright arm on the front end of the elbow rail by a main
joint or centre; and extending. from the upper part of the front pillar to the back
part of the elbow rail (when head is closed) is an upper and lower stay iron jointed
about its middle and capable of folding inwards. The upper stay iron is partially
encircled by a coiled spring confined between a collar or adjustable nut on its lower
part, and a bracket near the top of the pillar head, through the eye of which said
bracket the end of the said upper stay is free to move or slide on the pillar
describing an angular movement on the opening and closing of a carriage head;
the outside slat irons are pivoted above the middle joint of the upper and lower

page_text: stay, while the middle slat iron, is jointed upon the same centre as the other slats
with its lower end connected and jointed to the main centre, which connects the
front pillar to the elbow rail; the parts being con-tructed arranged and operating
in the manner and for the purpose substantially as described and illustrated.
Secondly. The application of folding head mechanism, hereinbefore described
and illustrated to Landaus and such like vehicles where a cantrail is employed at
the upper part of the front rail.