Improvements in and connected with the Shafts or Poles of Vehicles Drawn by Draught Animals.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 26th May, 1896
Complete Specification Left, 19th Oct., 1896-Accepted, 5th Dec., 1896
Improvements in and connected with the Shafts or Poles of
Vehicles Drawn by Draught Animals.
A communication by the Firm of SCHMIDT, LANGKUTT & Co., of Berlin, in the
Empire of Germany, Harness Makers.
1, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of The Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6 Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6 Bank Street,
Manchester, both in the County of Lancaster, 118 New Street Birmingham in
the County of Warwick, and 322 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex,
Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention relates more particularly to vehicles drawn by draught animals
in which (vehicles) shafts or poles replace the traces made of leather, chain or
rope hitherto employed, and has for its object to automatically uncouple or
disconnect the shafts or pole the moment the draught animal falls or lies down, so
that any breaking or bending of the said shafts or pole, or injury to the animal
can no longer take place.
A special advantage of this disconnecting device consists in that it can be
inserted in the splinter bar of any existing carriage without necessitating any
alterations worth mentioning, and may also by reason of its peculiar shape be so
connected with a spring that the latter will support the pole or shafts during
the journey, and on the draught animal falling release the pole or shafts with
certainty.
The arrangement and mode of working are as follows:-
The draw bar, that is, the pole or shaft is provided at its rear end (which is
suitably shaped to allow of the action of the spring hereinbefore mentioned) with
a curved slot open at its upper end and formed at right angles to the longitudinal
axis of the shaft, in which slot engages a bolt mounted in the fork shaped splinter
bar allowing the shaft an upward and downward movement, a bar also fastened in
the splinter bar being engaged by a fork or groove provided at the extremity of
the shaft behind the aforesaid slot. During the journey of a vehicle, the shaft has
sufficient mobility without being able to drop out of the splinter bar as the bolt
engaging in the curved slot receives the pull of the shaft. A spring is fastened to
the splinter bar by means of a bolt or the like so as to enter a groove in the pole
or shaft and always hold the same up, that is to say support it quite freely. The
draught animal is thus relieved of the weight of the shaft itself and is somewhat
supported by the shaft when recovering from any stumble or the like.
If the draught animal should happen to fall and the shaft or pole assume a
downwardly inclined position, the curved slot is disengaged from the bolt and the
pole or shaft is drawn away from the vehicle the forked part of the shaft moving
away from the bolt partly by its own weight, but mainly by the spring which acts
now in another direction, and the pole or shaft is entirely separated from the
splinter bar so that there is no dangerous connection between the vehicle and the
draught animal.
In high vehicles in order to prevent a premature disconnection before the
complete falling of the horse or the like, the rear of the curved slot is provided

page_text: with a lip or raised part which releases the pole only on its encountering the
ground, whilst in low vehicles on the contrary the rear of the slot is preferably
bevelled off so that the pole may be readily released.
The invention may be modified by the splinter bar being provided on both sides
of its forked part with curved guide slots in which a bolt attached to the end of
the pole or shaft may slide. The end of the shaft may also in such case be made
of a separate piece to embrace the wooden pole or shaft and be connected with the
same by means of bolts.
In another modification, the fork or groove at the extremity of the shaft and
the bar may respectively be replaced by a conical shaped recess on the pole or
shaft and a corresponding conical projection on the splinter bar, or by a projection
on the pole or shaft and a hole in the inner end of the splinter bar fork as guide
for the same. These modifications which do not affect the principle of the
invention may be of importance as regards the choice of materials for the splinter
bar and the pole or shafts.
Dated this 23rd day of May 1896.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents.
Improvements in and connected with the Shafts or Poles of
Vehicles Drawn by. Draught Animals.
A communication by the Firm of SCHMIDT, LANGKUTT & Co., of Berlin, in the
Empire of Germany, Harness Makers.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of The Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street,
Manchester, both in the County of Lancaster, 118, New Street, Birmingham, in
the County of Warwick, and 322, High Holborn in the County of Middlesex,
Civil Engineer, 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 :-
This invention relates more particularly to vehicles drawn by draught animals
in which vehicles, shafts or poles replace the traces made of leather, chain or rope
hitherto employed, and has for its object to automatically uncouple or disconnect
the shafts or pole the moment the draught animal falls or lies down, so that any
breaking or bending of the said shafts or pole, or injury to the animal can no
longer take place.
A special advantage of this disconnecting device consists in that it can be
inserted in the splinter bar of any existing carriage without necessitating any
alterations worth mentioning, and may also by reason of its peculiar shape be so
connected with a spring that the latter will support the pole or shafts during
the journey, and on the draught animal falling, release the pole or shafts with
certainty.
Some practical examples of construction of the invention are shown in the
accompanying drawings, together with some modifications of the separate parts.
Figure 1 is a side view of the uncoupling device;
Figure 2 a plan view of the same;
Figure 3 a side view when the shaft is lowered or dropped, and
Figure 4 a side view when the shaft is disconnected, whilst
Figures 5-8 show the above-mentioned modifications and details.

page_text: The arrangement and mode of working are as follows:-
The draw bar a, that is, the pole or shaft is provided at its rear end (which is
suitably shaped to allow of the action of the spring hereinbefore mentioned) with a.
curved slot a open at its upper end and formed at right angles to the longitudinal
axis of the shaft, in which slot engages a bolt 6 mounted in the fork shaped'
splinter bar b allowing the shaft an upward and downward movement, a bar e also
fastened in the splinter bar being engaged by a fork or groove a' provided at the-
extremity of the shaft behind the aforesaid slot. Figure 1 shows the position of
the shaft a during the journey of a vehicle, in which position the shaft has sufficient
mobility without being able to drop out of the splinter bar, as the bolt engaging in
the curved slot receives the pull of the shaft. A spring c is fastened to the
splinter bar 6 by means of a bolt c' or the like, so as to enter a groove c in the
pole or shaft and acts on the said pole or shaft in the direction indicated by
the arrow in Figure 1, and always holds the same up, that is to say supports it
quite freely. The draught animal is thus not only relieved of the weight of the
shaft itself but is somewhat supported by the shaft when recovering from any
stumble or the like.
If the draught animal should happen to fall and the shaft or pole assume the
downwardly inclined position shown in Figure 3, the curved slot aº is disengaged
from the bolt and the pole or shaft is drawn away from the vehicle, the forke
part of the shaft moving away from the bolt e partly by its own weight, but
mainly by the spring which acts now in another direction and the pole or
shaft is entirely separated from the splinter bar b as shown in Figure 4, so-
that there is no dangerous connection between the vehicle and the draught
animal.
In high vehicles in order to prevent a premature disconnection before the
complete falling of the horse or the like, the rear of the curved slot aº is provided
with a lip or raised part al which releases the pole only on its encountering the
ground, whilst in low vehicles on the contrary the rear of the slot is preferably
bevelled off a so that the pole may be readily released.
The invention may be modified as shown in Figures 5 and 6 by the splinter
barb being provided on both sides of its forked part with curved guide slots 6 in
which a bolt a attached to the end a of the pole or shaft may slide. The end a²
of the shaft may also in such case be made of a separate piece to embrace the
wooden pole or shaft a and be connected with the same by means of bolts.
In another modification, shown in Figures 7 and 8, the fork or groove a¹ at the
extremity of the shaft and the bar e may respectively be replaced by a conical
shaped recess a (Figure 7) on the pole or shaft and a corresponding conical pro-
jection el on the splinter bar, or by a projection at (Figure 8) on the pole or shaft
and a hole e in the inner end of the splinter bar fork as guide for the same...
These modifications, which do not affect the principle of the invention, may be of
importance as regards the choice of materials for the splinter bar and the pole or
shafts.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-.
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondents, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. The improvement in and connected with shafts or poles of vehicles drawn by
draught animals, which consists in so connecting the shafts or pole loosely with the
splinter bar by means of slots or recesses and bolts or projections engaging therein
that the shafts or pole become disengaged from the splinter bar when depressed to
a given extent, such as by the animal falling, and in providing a spring to keep
the parts normally in position, substantially as herein before set forth.
2. The improved automatic uncoupling device for drawbars, shafts, and poles of
vehicles of all kinds, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to
5 Figures 1 to 4 of the accompanying drawings.
3. The improved automatic uncoupling device for drawbars, shafts, and poles of

page_text: vehicles of all kinds, substantially as herein before described with reference to
Figures 5 and 6 of the accompanying drawings.
4. The modifications of the herein described automatic uncoupling device,
substantially as herein before described with reference to Figures 7 and 8 of the
accompanying drawings.
Dated this 13th day of October 1896
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents.