IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC WHEELS FOR VEHICLES, AND IN MOULDS TO BE USED IN THE SAID MANUFACTURE
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Southwick, of the Firm of Thompson and Southwick,
of Glascote, in the County of Warwick, Machinists, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC WHEELS FOR VEHICLES,
AND IN MOULDS TO BE USED IN THE SAID MANUFACTURE."
Sealed the 20th January 1880, and dated the 29th July 1879.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Southwick at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 29th July 1879.
JAMES SOUTHWICK, of the Firm of Thompson and Southwick, of Glascote, in the
County of Warwick, Machinists. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
METALLIC WHEELS FOR VEHICLES, AND IN MOULDS TO BE USED IN THE SAID
MANUFACTURE.”
My Invention relates to such metallic wheels for vehicles as are made by casting
upon metallic spokes a rim and boss of iron, or steel, or homogeneous metal, and
consists of the improvements hereinafter described, whereby great accuracy in the
figure of the wheel is secured and great hardness and consequently great durability.
obtained in the parts most exposed to wear.
I will describe the manufacture of a metallic wheel according to my Invention,
by the use of a mould made according to my Invention.
In constructing the mould in which the wheel is to be cast I take a thick central
metal dise forming the base of that part of the mould in which the boss of the
wheel is cast. In this base is an axial hole, in which a metallic core is fitted by
screw and screw nut or otherwise. On this metallic core the boss of the wheel is
cast. The sides of the mould box in which the sand part of the mould, having the
figure of the exterior of the boss is contained, is supported on the said base. The
underside of this base is accurately turned of a slightly conical figure, and upon
this conical under side of the base an accurately fitting ring, carrying a series of
radial arms, is placed. The ends of these radial arms carry an accurately faced
metallic ring, upon which is supported the annular mould box in which the rim of
[Price 6d1

page_text: the wheel is cast. The part of this annular mould box which rests upon the
metallic ring described is also accurately faced, so that when the part of the mould
in which the boss of the wheel is cast is connected to the part in which the rim is
cast the concentricity of the parts is secured, and greater accuracy in the figure of
the wheel made is obtained than can be obtained by the ordinary method of casting.
That portion of the mould in which the rim of the wheel is cast has a cast iron ring
introduced into it, the inner edge of the said ring constituting the surface against
which the periphery, or the part of the wheel which rolls on the ground and is
exposed to wear, is cast. That part is consequently hardened. Thus the interior
of the boss and the base of the boss, and the periphery or wearing surface of the
wheel are hardened, and great durability thereby obtained. The parts of the
mould having been arranged as hereinbefore described, and the spokes put in their
places in the mould the casting of the rim is first effected and afterwards the casting
of the boss. The interior of the boss, besides being hard, is made so correct in form
by the use of the metallic core described that it does not require to be bored.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said James Southwick in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 21st January
1880.
JAMES SOUTHWICK, of the Firm of Thompson and Southwick, of Glascote, in the
County of Warwick, Machinists. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
METALLIC WHEELS FOR VEHICLES, AND IN MOULDS TO BE USED IN THE SAID
MANUFACTURE."
My Invention relates to such metallic wheels for vehicles as are made by casting
upon metallic spokes a rim and boss of iron, or steel, or homogeneous metal; and
my said Invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described, whereby
great accuracy in the figure of the wheel is secured, and great hardness and conse-
quently great durability obtained in the parts most exposed to wear.
I will describe the manufacture of a metallic wheel according to my Invention,
by the use of a mould made according to my Invention.
In constructing the mould in which the wheel is to be cast, I take a thick central
metal disc forming the base of that part of the mould in which the boss of the
wheel is cast. In this base is an axial hole, in which a metallic core is fitted by a
screw and screw nut or otherwise. On this metallic core the boss of the wheel is
cast. The sides of the mould box in which the sand part of the mould, having the
figure of the exterior of the boss, is contained is supported on the said base. The
underside of this base is accurately turned of a slightly conical figure, and upon
this conical underside of the base an accurately fitting ring, carrying a series of
radial arms, is placed. The ends of these arms are accurately faced, and are sup-
ported upon a ring on the annular mould box in which the rim of the wheel is
cast, so that when the part of the mould in which the rim of the wheel is cast is
connected to the part in which the rim is cast the concentricity of the parts is
secured and greater accuracy in the figure of the wheel made is obtained than can
be obtained by the ordinary method of casting.
That portion of the mould in which the rim of the wheel is cast has a cast iron
ring introduced into it, the inner edge of the said ring constituting the surface
against which the periphery or the part of the wheel which rolls on the ground
and is exposed to wear is cast. That part is consequently hardened; thus the
interior of the boss and the base of the boss and the periphery or wearing surface
of the wheel are hardened, and great durability thereby obtained. The parts of
the mould having been arranged, as hereinbefore described, and the spokes put in.
their places in the mould, the casting of the rim is first effected and afterwards the
casting of the boss.
The interior of the boss besides being hard is made so correct in form by the use
of the metallic core that it does not require to be bored.
I will now proceed to describe, with reference to the accompanying Drawing, the
manner in which my Invention may be performed.
Figure 1 represents in plan a mould and appliances connected therewith for
casting the rim and boss of a metallic wheel according to my Invention, and
Figure 2 represents in transverse vertical section the mould after the rim and boss
of the wheel have been cast in the mould; Figure 3 is a cross section drawn to a
larger scale of one of the metallic spokes of the wheel.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in Figures 1 and 2.
a, a, (Figure 2) are the metallic spokes of the wheel; b is the boss cast upon the
inner ends of the said spokes, and c is the rim cast upon the outer ends of the
said spokes. The central part of the mould in which the boss b is cast consists of
a thick metallic disc or base d, having an axial hole in it supporting the mould box :

page_text: and other appliances. To the said disc or base da metallic core e, having the
figure to be given to the interior of the boss b, is fixed. The bottom of the core e
is furnished with a shoulder or enlargement e³, and below the said enlargement is
a screw. The enlargement e² of the core drops into a seat in the disc or base d,
and the screw passes through the axial hole in the said base d. A screw nut g
is fitted upon the screw f for securing the metallic core e in its place in the axis
of the mould. The interior of the metallic core e is made of wrought iron and the
outside is made of cast iron, the said cast iron outside of the core constituting a
chill. The upper side of the metallic base d is hollow and forms part of the mould
in which the boss of the wheel is cast. The mould box containing the sand mould
supported upon the metallic base d is made in two parts, marked respectively h
and i, connected together by pins and lugs. In addition to the two mould boxes
h, i, containing the parts of the sand mould in which the upper portion of the
exterior of the boss is cast, separate loam or other non-metallic cores 1, l, are used
to form that part of the mould situated between the spokes of the wheel, as seen
in Figure 2. The cores l, l, are moulded in the ordinary way of moulding cores.
The exterior of the base d is conical, and a seat at d² is accurately turned on the
exterior of the said base for receiving the ring m carrying the radial arms n, n,
the said ring m of the radial arms fitting accurately against the seat at d³. The
external ends of the arms n, n, are raised out of the plane of the other parts and
the said raised ends rest upon the inner ring or flange p² of the annular mould
box p in which the rim c of the wheel is cast, as seen in Figure 2, the said arms
n, n, being bolted at q to the said ring p². The edge of the ring or flange p² of
the mould box p and the abutting shoulders of the raised ends of the arms n, n,
are accurately faced, so that when the middle part of the mould in which the boss b
is cast is connected in the manner described and represented to the annular
mould pin which the rim c is cast, the concentricity of the said boss and rim is
secured and great accuracy in the figure of the wheel obtained.
Within the annular mould in the box p a cast iron ring or chill r made in one
piece is placed, the inner concave edge of the said ring or chill constituting the
surface against which the periphery or wearing face of the rim of the wheel is cast.
The said ring or chill r is supported upon the mould box p, and is fixed at the
required position in the mould by means of the conical pegs s on the said mould box
p taking into holes in the underside of the said ring or chill r, as seen in Figure 2.
The patterns are moulded in the half mould boxes in which the rim and boss of the
wheel are cast, in the ordinary way of making moulds for casting metals.
The parts of the mould having been arranged in the manner represented, and the
metallic spokes a, a, put in their places in the mould as represented in Figure 2, the
rim c is first cast upon the outer ends of the spokes a, a, the wearing face or periphery
of the said rim being chilled or hardened by the chill or ring 7. After the rim has
cooled the hollow boss b is cast upon the inner ends of the spokes a, a, as represented
in the Drawing. By casting the interior of the boss b upon the chill or cast iron
exterior of the metallic core e the said interior of the hollow boss is chilled or
hardened, and its figure is made so perfect that it requires no boring. The base of
the boss 6 being cast in the metallic base part d of the mould is also hardened, and
great durability thereby obtained. The said base of the boss b also requires no
turning. After the rim and boss have been cast the mould boxes h, i, p, and ring
or chill are removed and the nut g unscrewed from the screw f of the metallic
core. The wheel may now be lifted from the central base d, carrying with it the
metallic core e. The core e is then removed from the boss by drawing it therefrom
in any convenient way.
Instead of casting the rim and boss of the wheel upon the ends of the metallic
spokes, as described and illustrated, the boss only of the wheel may be made accord-
ing to my Invention; that is to say, the rim is connected to the spokes in any con-
venient way, and the boss cast upon the inner ends of the spokes of the combined
spokes and rim, in the manner hereinbefore described.

page_text: I prefer to give the metallic spokes of the wheel the cruciform figure shown in
the cross section, Figure 3, as great strength combined with lightness is thereby
obtained, but spokes of other sectional figures inay be used.
I cast the rim and boss, or the boss only, of the wheel by preference of iron or
steel, or of homogeneous metal.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which the
same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I claim as my Invention
of "Improvements in the Manufacture of Metallic Wheels for Vehicles, and in Moulds
to be used in the said Manufacture,"
First. Casting the rim and boss, or the boss only, of the wheel upon the metallic
spokes in the manner herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawing, that is to say, casting the rim of the wheel in an annular mould in which
a cast iron ring or chill is introduced, the inner edge of the said ring or chill con-
stituting the surface against which the periphery or wearing face of the rim of the
wheel is cast, and casting the hollow boss of the wheel upon a central metallic core
fixed axially in the mould, the upper part of the mould and the core being supported
upon a metallic base, which base constitutes part of the mould, the interior of the
hollow boss and the base of the said boss being chilled or hardened by the metallic
core and supporting base, and the figure of the said parts made so accurate as to
require no boring or turning, substantially as described and illustrated.
Secondly. The construction and arrangement of the parts of the mould and the
appliances connected therewith for securing the concentricity of the parts of the
mould in which the rim and boss are cast hereinbefore described and illustrated in
the accompanying Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the' said James Southwick, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Seventeenth day of January, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty.
Witness,
BENJAMIN THOMPSON,
Glascote,
Tamworth.
JAMES SOUTHWICK. (L.S.)