IMPROVEMENTS IN RATCHET BRACES
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Andrew Phillip Hansen, of King Street, Soho, Engineer,
and Timothy Cheesebrough, of Pentonville Road, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN RATCHET BRACES."
led the 19th March 1880, and dated the 22nd September 1879
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Andrew Phillip Hansen and
Timothy Cheesebrough at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on
the 22nd September 1879.
ANDREW PHILLIP HANSEN, of King Street, Soho, Engineer, and TIMOTHY
CHEESEBROUGH, of Pentonville Road, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN RATCHET BRACES."
This Invention relates to improvements in the construction of what are commonly
known as ratchet braces, whereby, first, a continuous action is obtained, & secondly,
facility is afforded for working the actuating handle either in a vertical, horizontal,
or any desired angle to the drill, whatever may be the direction of the axis of the
drill itself.
According to one mode of carrying out our Invention we employ two crown
ratchet wheels mounted on the stem or socket which receives the drilling tool, and
having sufficient play along such stem or socket piece to enable them to clear the
teeth of an intermediate ratchet wheel, the teeth of which are made on its periphery
and are cut in opposite directions on each side of the centre, and gear respectively
with the two crown ratchet wheels having their teeth in reverse directions. The
actuating lever may be forked or not, as preferred, and works on a centre or centres
in a loose intermediate collar. By one motion of the lever the one ratchet is
worked, and by the reverse motion the other ratchet is driven, thus producing a
continuous rotary action of the drill. A spring is placed behind both or either of the
crown ratchet wheels, so as to enable them to yield to the corresponding teeth of
the intermediate wheel. Or if preferred, a single crown ratchet wheel may be
employed in conjunction with two palls engaging on opposite sides of such wheel
and worked by the actuating lever; which arrangement also produces a continuous
rotary motion. Both these arrangements may be used as an ordinary intermittent
action ratchet brace, by working the actuating lever round the centre of the socket
piece in lieu of upon its centres or pivots in the loose collar.
As the lever handle is pivotted upon centres or studs at right angles to the loose
collar, it is obvious that it may be worked either horizontally round the axis of the
drill or vertically upon its centres, or at any intermediate angle.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Andrews Phillip Hansen and Timothy Cheesebrough in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 22nd March 1880.
ANDREW PHILLIP HANSEN, of King Street, Soho, Engineer, and TIMOTHY
CHEESEBROUGH, of Pentonville Road, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN RATCHET BRACES."
Our said Invention relates to improvements in the construction of what are
commonly known as ratchet braces, whereby, first, a continuous action is obtained,
and secondly, facility is afforded for working the actuating handle either in a
vertical, horizontal, or any desired angle to the drill, whatever may be the direction
of the axis of the drill itself.
And in order that our said Invention may be fully understood, we shall now
proceed more particularly to described the same, and for that purpose shall refer to
the several Figures on the explanatory Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed, the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Figure 1 of our Drawings represents a side elevation partly in section of one
arrangement of our improved continuous action ratchet brace, and Figure 2 is a
corresponding elevation and partial section at right angles to Figure 1.
A is the stem or socket piece to which is screwed the fixed collar B, a helical
spring C being interposed between the stem and collar for the purpose hereinafter
explained. D is a mitre ratchet wheel mounted on the stem A by a slot and feather,
and having a hollow guiding collar E formed thereon which slides over the fixed
collar B. D' is a mitre ratchet wheel similar to D, also mounted like the wheel D
upon the stem A above the shoulder or enlargement F, in which the socket for the
tool is formed. The said wheel D¹ is also formed with a hollow guiding collar E'
similar to E and sliding on the shoulder F, and has its teeth made in the reverse
direction to the teeth in the wheel D.
'
A helical spring C¹, similar to the spring C, is contained within a recess in the
shoulder F, the two springs C and C¹ tending to force the wheels towards each
other. G is a collar turning loose round the stem A between the two mitre ratchet
wheels D and D', such collar having a projecting stud formed on one side thereof
for the purpose of carrying an intermediate mitre ratchet wheel H which turns
freely thereon, and is held against the teeth of the wheels D and D¹ by a large headed
screw passing through the said stud and engaging at its inner end with an annular
groove, not shown in my Drawings, formed round the stem A, so as to maintain
the collar G in its proper position longitudinally whilst leaving it free to turn
round the stem.
The ratchet teeth in one half of the intermediate wheel H are made to gear into
the teeth of the wheel D, whilst those in the other half gear into the teeth of the
wheel D¹. The two halves having their teeth made in opposite directions. The
acting face of each tooth in all three wheels, should be of uniform depth from the
inner to the outer extremity thereof as shown in Figure 2, in order to ensure their
proper action. The end of the actuating handle I is screwed into a boss I¹ on the
back of the intermediate wheel H, or may be secured to such wheel in any other
convenient manner. The ordinary feeding screw K which is screwed into the
stem A is shown in position in Figure 1, but is omitted in Figure 2.
The action of this improved brace when working.continuously is as follows:-
The handle I on being moved up and down or in the direction of the arrows,
imparts a corresponding reciprocating rotary motion to the intermediate wheel H
which transmits its motion to the wheels D and D¹ alternately, thereby imparting
a continuous rotary motion to the drill placed in the socket F, the springs C and C
allowing the wheel D and D¹ to yield sufficiently to enable the teeth to alternately
gear with and ride over the teeth of the intermediate wheel H. By causing the

page_text: handle I to turn round the axis of the stem A whether in a position at right angles
or at any intermediate angle therewith, the ratchet brace will work intermittently
as an ordinary brace.
Figure 3 is an elevation, and Figure 4 a partial vertical section of a modified
arrangement of our improved ratchet brace wherein the wheels D and D' as well
as the intermediate wheel H, may consist of ordinary toothed mitre wheels gearing
together as shown, but at the back of each of the wheels D and D' there is formed
in one therewith, a series of crown ratchet teeth d and d', each series of ratchet
teeth being cut in reverse directions as shown. The wheels with their crown
ratchet teeth d, d¹, turn freely round the stem A and do not require to slide thereon
as is requisite under the first arrangement. e, e¹, are sliding palls placed in recesses
in the collar B and socket or shoulder F respectively, such palls being held engaged
with the crown ratchet teeth by helical or other springs. The wheel H is carried
by the loose collar G, and the actuating handle is fixed thereto in the same manner
as described with reference to Figures 1 & 2. According to another modification
not illustrated by our Drawings, we dispense with one of the ratchet wheels D or D'
and with the intermediate ratchet wheel H shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and we
employ a single mitre ratchet wheel fast on the stem A with its teeth all cut in the
same direction. To studs on opposite sides of the loose collar G, we attach loosely
the end of the actuating handle which is forked for that purpose, and upon each
side of the fork we mount one, two, or more palls, acting on the teeth of the single
ratchet mitre wheel, so that on moving the handle in one direction one side of the
ratchet wheel will be driven, & by moving it in the opposite direction the other
side of the ratchet wheel will be driven in the same direction, thus imparting
to the drill in the socket a continuous rotary motion.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of our said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into
effect, we would observe in. conclusion that what we consider to be novel and
original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to us by the hereinbefore in
part recited Letters Patent is,-
The peculiar constructions and arrangements of parts constituting a continuous
action ratchet brace, substantially in the manner herein before described and
illustrated by our Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Andrew Phillip Hansen, for myself and on
behalf of the said Timothy Cheesebrough, have hereunto set my hand and
seal, this Nineteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty.
ANDREW PHILLIP HANSEN. (L.B.)