Improved Spring Supports for Vehicles and other purposes.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Nov., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 26th July, 1894-Accepted, 1st Sept., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Spring Supports for Vehicles and other purposes.
I, REGINALD HADDAN of the Firm of Herbert Haddan & Co. of 18 Buckingham
Street Strand W.C. London, Patent Agent do hereby declare the nature of this
invention a communication to me from abroad by Paul Eugène Fontaine of
5 Rue du 29 Juillet, Paris, in the Republic of France, Engineer, to be as
follows:-
The object of this invention is an improved spring support to be applied
principally to the suspension of vehicles of all kinds, such as velocipedes, carriages,
waggons and the like, for the transformation of vibrations, shocks, jolts and the
like into undulatory movements by means of one or more jointed parallelograms or
equivalent systems of jointed levers of which the two joints situated in the same
horizontal plane are connected to each other by a spring or springs of any
convenient form to receive by oblique reflection all vibrations shocks or jolts
produced from below at the lower joint, or from above from the weight of the
vehicle and its load on the uppermost joint.
These shocks are transmitted to the summit of the parallelogram in the form of
undulations either by the expansion or by the compression of the spring or springs
according to their construction, in such a manner as to cause the approach or
recession of the two compensating joints to which the springs are connected.
It is known that any spring receiving a blow at its base transmits this blow to its
compressing point (that is to say the point of pressure or load) by means of
multiplied vibrations which become gradually less and less until the moment when
equilibrium is re-established, at which moment according to the well known
principle of mechanics the action is equal to the reaction.
The improved spring support of this invention is however based upon a different
principle; its purpose is to convert the vibrations into undulatory movements by
making these vibrations no longer take a direction perpendicular to, but a direction
oblique in relation to their generating line so that they become lost so to speak in
the hollow of the two angles of the parallelogram, and so that, being taken up by
the springs, there may only remain of the original shock an undulation necessary to
re-establish equilibrium at the point of compression.
Dated this 20th day of November 1893
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Spring Supports for Vehicles and other purposes.
I, REGINALD HADDAN, of the Firm of Herbert Haddan & Co., of 18 Buckingham
Street, Strand, W.C., London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention a communication to me from abroad by Paul Eugène Fontaine, of 5 Rue du
29 Juillet, Paris, in the Republic of France, Engineer, and in what manner the same
is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
The object of this invention is an improved spring support to be applied
principally to the suspension of vehicles of all kinds, such as velocipedes, carriages,
waggons and the like, for the transformation of vibrations, shocks, jolts and the like
into undulatory movements by means of one or more jointed parallelograms or

page_text: equivalent systems of jointed levers of which the two joints situated in the same
horizontal plane are connected to each other by a spring or springs of any convenient
form to receive by oblique reflection all vibrations, shocks or jolts produced from
below at the lowest joint, or from above from the weight of the vehicle and its load
on the uppermost joint.
These shocks are transmitted to the summit of the parallelogram in the form of
undulations either by the expansion or by the compression of the spring or springs
according to their construction, in such a manner as to cause the approach or
recession of two compensating joints to which the springs are connected.
It is known that any spring receiving a blow at its base transmits this blow to its
compressing point (that is to say the point of pressure or load) by means of
multiplied vibrations which become gradually less and less until the moment when
equilibrium is re-established, at which moment, according to the well known
principle of mechanics, the action is equal to the re-action.
The improved spring support of this invention is however based upon a different
principle; its purpose is to convert the vibrations into undulatory movements by
making these vibrations no longer take a direction perpendicular to but a direction
oblique in relation to their generating line so that they become lost so to speak in
the hollow of the two angles of the parallelogram, and so that, being taken up by
the springs, there may only remain of the original shock an undulation necessary to.
re-establish equilibrium at the point of compression.
Reference being made to the annexed drawing,
Fig. 1 represents the improved spring support in its simplest form of a parallelo-
gram, having two of its four articulations which lie diagonally in the same horizontal
plane.
Fig. 2 illustrates a modification in which the two lower members of the parallelo-
gram are not articulated together but to two separate points of support.
Fig. 3 illustrates a further modification in which the two upper members are
similarly separately articulated.
Fig. 4 illustrates the invention as applied to a bicycle frame.
Fig. 5 illustrates another mode of applying it thereto.
Fig. 6 illustrates a modification in which the two upper members are replaced by
a rigid bar on which the lower members have endwise sliding movement.
Figs. 7, 8, and 9 illustrate modifications in the spring support.
Fig. 10 shows the support free from load.
Fig. 11 the same under compression.
Fig. 12 the application of the support to a waggon or truck frame.
The parallelogram A B. B D. D˚C. C A. is the simplest form of the improved
support, the angles B and C being connected by the spring R which may either act
by tension or compression. If a blow be given to the point A the shock is no longer
transmitted vertically to the point D as formerly the case, but obliquely by the
rods A. B. A C, to the spring R which gathers up the force. The vibrations become
extinguished in space that is in the prolongations towards A b. Ac and become
converted into undulations or oscillations transmitted by the spring to the upper
rods B D. C D. which communicate them to the point of compression D which only
receives a simple oscillatory movement for equilibrium, all the vibrations being
deadened laterally at B and C. In Fig. 2 the parallelogram is irregular having two
In Fig. 4
points of support E, while in Fig. 3 it has also two points of pressure.
the two points of support are connected to the frame of the cycle at E E while at P the
point of pressure supports the saddle bar. A similar spring support is applied at S
between the front wheel fork and the steering handle-bar. In Fig. 6 the two lower
rods are supported at E E and support at D' D³ the cross bar C₁ connected to the
frame at B¹.
In Fig. 5 the lower point A of the parallelogram is suspended from the frame
bar A' by the rod or rods A³.
The improved support may be applied to beds, carriages, locomotives, fixed or
movable machinery, or in every case where shocks or vibrations are to be deadened.

page_text: It will be understood that the system may not only act in a vertical plane as in the
examples shown, but also in a horizontal or oblique plane and either by traction,
suspension, compression according to the modes of attaching the springs and of
supporting the points of support or pressure.
The
In place of using the arrangement in parallelogram, this improved spring support
may take any form, to give to the springs acting by tension or compression an
undulatory or oscillatory movement in place of the vibrations causing it.
improved spring support may be applied to cycle pedals as well as to the steering
head and saddle bar.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. The improved spring device consisting in the combination of rods jointed to each
other and a spring connecting two of said joints in a direction transverse to the line
of pressure, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
2. The improved spring device consisting in the combination of two rods connected
at or near their ends by a spring and pivoted at their opposite ends to points of
support, and a sliding bar parallel with said spring and carried by said rods, the said
bar being connected to the point of compression or load, substantially as set
forth.
3. The construction of said device in the form of a parallelogram in the manner
indicated with reference to Fig. 1.
4. The construction of said device with rods prolonged to points E E and to
points DD as illustrated in Fig. 2 or Fig. 3 respectively.
5. The methods of applying the improved spring device to bicycle frames
substantially as described and illustrated with regard to Figs. 4, 5 and 6.
Dated this 26th day of July 1894.
R. HADDAN.