Improvements in Cycle Lamp Fittings.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Feb., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 16th Nov., 1893-Accepted, 23rd Dec., 1803
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Cycle Lamp Fittings.
We, CHARLES ALBERT MILLER, of the Firm of H. Miller and Company, of
Miller Street, Aston, near the City of Birmingham, Manufacturer, and ALFRED
HENRY BISHOP, of 47 Carpenters Road, Lozells, Birmingham aforesaid, Machinist,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the supporting brackets of lamps, and also to the
sockets of the same, and consists in making the upright portion of the said brackets,
or the sockets which take upon the said upright portions, swivelling or adjustable
at will, so that the lamp supported or carried is capable of being kept upright,
when the cycle is placed in any other than an erect position.
Thus, it often happens that a cyclist, when resting or standing, or at ease,
inclines his machine against a wall, fence, building or the like, and in doing so, the
lamp becomes tilted upon one side, and in consequence of which, the interior
becomes smoked, and if much inclined, the oil is spilled.
Again, a cyclist may be in a place where it is not even convenient to rest his
machine, so that then he lays the same flat on the ground, and when in such or the
other named positions, by our improvements, the lamp is capable of being kept
alight and in an erect position.
.
In carrying out one form of our invention in connection with a bracket, we make
the tongue or that part which takes within the socket, swivel at its lower end, so
that by turning the lamp when the swivelling part is unlocked, the said end is
capable of making any angle as desired.
The rigid affixing may be performed by passing a clamping axis through a slot,
or a semi-circular slot, made through a portion of the moveable part of the bracket
near the joint.
This clamping pin may have an excentric faced lever connected to its end, so
that by pulling the short lever or arm in one direction, rigid affixing is performed,
whilst by turning the lever in the other direction, a clearance is made, thus
allowing the tongue, or the bracket, to move around its pin or centre to any angle
as desired.
The arm of the bracket itself may, if necessary, be made to turn or swivel, and
the tongue may be made double, so that when unfolded by unlocking, the lamp
swings vertically, and is then clamped when in such a position.
The means of locking and releasing may be modified by making the one part
carry a spring with a studded free end, which takes into one or other of a series of
adjustment holes formed in the other part, and lying within the path which the
said studded and free end of the spring makes, when the tongue of the arm is turned.
Or the adjustment may be made by a pull and turn spring action.
In carrying out a further form of our invention, we make the bracket member
rigid, and the socket of the lamp adjustable about a centre, and which socket is
mounted and turns upon a socket carrying plate, and is locked and affixed in an
adjusted position, by a pin, catch, cam or their equivalents.
Both the turning socket and the turning bracket may also be affixed by a thumb
screw or nut.
Dated this 10th day of February 1893.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Cycle Lamp Fittings.
We, CHARLES ALBERT MILLER, of the Firm of H. Miller and Company, of
Miller Street, Aston, near the City of Birmingham, Manufacturer, and ALFRED
HENRY BISHOP, of 47 Carpenters Road, Lozells, Birmingham aforesaid, Machinist,
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:-
Our invention relates to the connections or the supporting means of cycle lamps,
and has for its object, the keeping of a lighted lamp erect when alight when a
machine is resting in an inclined position against a wall or the like.
Thus, it often happens that a cyclist, when resting, inclines his machine against a
wall, fence, building or the like. In so doing the lamp becomes tilted upon one side,
and in consequence of which, the interior of it becomes smoked and if much inclined
such as when laid upon the ground the oil is spilled.
In carrying out our invention in connection with a bracket, we make the front or
that part which takes within the socket, of the lamp, jointed, and also provide the
said jointed part with clamping means.
In carrying out our invention in connection with a lamp socket, we make the
socket adjustable by jointing the same to the socket plate or strap, and we provide
the adjustable connection with a clamping means for the affixing of the parts after
adjustment.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings represents a bicycle with an adjustable
lamp bracket, fitted, constructed and provided according to one form of our
invention.
The said bicycle is shown leaning against a wall and with the lamp in an erect
position, consequent upon the bracket of the same having been adjusted or turned,
so as to allow the said bracket to become erect when the machine carrying it is
inclined.
Figure 2 represents, upon an enlarged scale, the said adjustable bracket, with
the fixing or locking devices of it, and with the same shown taking an upright
position, whilst the head or post of the machine shown inclined, or in a position
which it would take when a machine is rested against a wall as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 3 represents a part side elevation and a part vertical upon the dotted
lines A B Figure 2, showing how the locking of the bracket front to the bracket
arm is performed, and how the said front, which is of a tongue character, swivels
upon a pivot above the locking joint.
It will be understood that when the said bracket is in use, the said bracket part
becomes vertical consequent upon the said post part raking forward.
Figure 4 represents a topside plan of Figure 3 whilst
Figure 5 represents the affixing part of the bracket upon an enlarged scale, and
Figure 6 represents a like section as Figure 5 but with the screw removed.
Figure 7 shows a like view as Figure 2, but with the front of the bracket and the
post of the machine lying in coincident planes.
Figure 8 represents a modified form of our invention and so does Figure 9.
In Figures 1 to 7, a' is the front of a bracket, pivotedly and swivelly connected
at a², to a plate or front part a', of a bracket arm a, being provided with a clip a',
at its rear and connecting screw pins a³, aº, for the drawing together of the sides
around or upon the sides of the post or pillar member b, of a cycle frame.
The said front part a', is pierced at a', and has a stop lip as, whilst the lower
part a, below the pivot a², is pierced with a semi-circular slot al, wherethrough
the screw c, with a head ca, at its end, of a lever, handle or turn c, passes. The
said screw also takes through a screwed hole a", coming in front of the slot a¹, of
the front part or plate a', whilst the handle c, is fast upon the screw, so that by

page_text: rotating the screw in one or other direction, the front a¹, is either locked to or
released from the bracket.
Now assuming that the machine is in use, and in its normal and upright position,
then the front of the bracket is in the position as represented in Figure 7, but on
the other hand, if the machine is made to rest against a wall as in Figures 1 and 2,
then the lamp would remain in the same general plane as the pillar member, but the
rider, instead of allowing his lamp to be smoked turns the lever or handle c, from
left to right in the direction of the arrow Figure 2, which unscrews or makes loose
the adjacent parts by the shoulder or inside edge or face c¹, being removed from
contact with the front side of the lower part a', surrounding the slot a¹0. The rider
then brings the said bracket into an erect position, and with it, the lamp as in
Figure 1, then by turning the said handle or lever c, in a reverse direction to that
before named, the screw pin is traversed backwards, and the lower part a', of the
front a', clamped to the front a³, of the bracket arm a.
In Figure 8, a' is the front of the bracket, a is the arm, a³ the front of the arm,
a² a pivot centre, about which the said front a', turns as a centre, c is a screw pin,
with a shank c³, passing through the semi-circular slot al, and with the shoulder
and expanded end a', lying within a like shaped recess a³, of the front a³, of the
arm a.
Taking upon the wormed end part of the screw, is a fly nut d, which on being
turned one way, allows the parts to become loose, and on being turned the other
way, clamps the parts together.
By employing the semi-circular slot clearances a¹0, in connection with the head a*,
considerable rigidity to the moving part of the bracket is acquired thereby.
In Figure 9, a' is the movable and front part of the bracket, a is the arm, a' the
front part, is the shank of a pin made fast at its inner end to the arm or lever c,
whilst the outer end is furnished with a head c³, having a cam-shaped or inclined
face c', which takes upon an adjacent and like inclined face a, of the lower part of
the front a', whilst the said shank c³, takes and works through a plain hole a",
made through the fore part a³, and through a quadrant slotted hole a¹, made in the
part a³.
By turning the lever in one direction, the cam-shaped face c, is brought away
from the inclined face a³, but when turned in a reverse direction, the inclined face of
the one part is made to wedge against the inclined face of the other part, hence the
clamping and locking of the parts together.
Figure 10 represents the application of our invention to a lamp socket instead of
to a bracket as in the previous arrangements.
a is the open-ended socket for receiving a fixed bracket of the ordinary kind, and
is shown inclined, or in a position which it would take assuming a machine to be
inclined or resting against a wall. c is the handle or lever, the affixing pin head,
a³ the pivot upon which the socket turns, a¹ is the semi-circular slot, a" is the socket
plate carried by the arms as usual and
is the lamp.
In the bracket part of our invention we wish it to be understood that the
movable part may reside in the shank part of the bracket arm instead of the
end part, and instead of affixing the adjustable arm by a screw operated by a
lever, an interposed spring between the opposed faces of the fixed and
adjustable parts may be employed so as to make the joint sufficiently stiff that
the adjustable parts can be turned by hand without any other means of clamping.
Or as a further form, a spring round headed stud may be carried by the fixed part
and be made to take into one or other of a series of quadrantly or semi-circularly
arranged holes or depressions formed or made within the path of the said spring
stud when the adjustable part is turned upon its joint centre.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :-
First. In the brackets of cycle lamps, making the same or the fore part of

page_text: the same angularly adjustable about a pin or centre, substantially as described
and set forth, and with the said bracket fitted with clamping, retaining or
affixing means.
Secondly. In a cycle lamp bracket, consisting of an angularly adjustable end
or body part, turning about a pivot or centre, and being provided with lever and
screw clamping means, substantially as described and set forth in Figures 1 to 7.
Thirdly. In a cycle lamp bracket, consisting of an angularly adjustable end or
body part, turning about a pivot or centre, and being provided with a screw
and turn clamping means, arranged and operated substantially as described and
set forth in Figure 8.
Fourthly. In a cycle lamp bracket, consisting of an angularly adjustable end or
body part, turning about a pivot or centre, and being provided with a lever and
cam clamping means, substantially as described and set forth in Figure 9.
Fifthly. In a cycle lamp socket, making the same angularly adjustable about a
pin or centre, and being provided or fitted with any one of the clamping means
herein described, substantially as set forth in Figure 10.
Sixthly. In the adjustable brackets and sockets of cycle lamps, the means herein
described for the affixing and securing of the adjustable parts of the same, substan-
tially as described and set forth.
Dated this 15th day of November 1893.
CHARLES ALBERT MILLER,
ALFRED HENRY BISHOP,
By Henry Skerrett,
6, Livery Street, Birmingham, Agent for Applicants.