IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING MOTIVE POWER
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William John Cunningham, of 480, New Oxford
Street, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer and Machinist, and
Alfred Patrick M'Oarthy, of Bloomsbury, in the County of Mid-
dlesex, aforesaid, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING
MOTIVE POWER."
Sealed the 18th January 1870, and dated the 22nd September 1869.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William John Cun-
ningham and Alfred Patrick McCarthy at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 22nd
September 1869.
We, WILLIAM JOHN CUNNINGHAM, of 480, New Oxford Street, in the
County of Middlesex, Engineer and Machinist, and ALFRED PATRICK
MCCARTHY, of Bloomsbury, in the County of Middlesex, aforesaid,. do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
OBTAINING MOTIVE POWER," to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists in the application of springs of any description
or any equivalent power so combined with wheels, levers, and other

page_text: apparatus as to act alternately or simultaneously the one on the other,
and by this means aid or cause the propulsion of any wheeled vehicle.
And in order that our Invention may be clearly understood, we
will describe the same with reference to the accompanying Sheet of
Drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of our apparatus,
Fig. 2 combining sections through A, B, and C, D, Fig. 1. The said
springs are contained in boxes or cases a, a³, free to revolve on a
shaft b, and have attached to them gear wheels c, d, in gear with
pinions e, f, on the shafts g, h, of the winding-up wheels i, j, which are
alternately placed in and out of contact with the ground. On the same
shaft 6 as the spring boxes is a gear wheel k taking into a pinion on
the driving shaft m of the machine, on which are the two carrying
wheels n, so that the action of the springs being communicated to the
shaft 6 causes the gear wheel k to revolve, thereby imparting its motion
through the pinion to the carrying wheels, and thus propelling the
machine. But so that the action of the springs shall be continuous they
are alternately acted upon and kept up to their working power by the
wheels i, j, in the following manner:-On the spring shaft 6 are small
fast and loose pullies o, p, from which a band or strap passes to a
corresponding pulley 2 on an auxiliary shaft r, on which is a conical
pulley & corresponding to another conical pulley t placed in the reverse
direction on the shaft u, and a strap connects these said conical pullies &
and t, so that by shifting the said strap from right to left, or vice versa,
a slower or faster action may be imparted to the cams v, w, on the
shaft u.
These said cams act upon the upper ends of sliding blocks x, y,
carrying the bearings %, 6¹, of the winding up wheels i, j, and alternately
depress the said wheels, which by their contact with the ground during
the progress of the machine are caused to revolve, thereby rotating the
pinions e, f, from which motion is communicated to the gear wheels c, d,
attached to the spring boxes a, a', and thus wind up the springs in
advance of the speed of rotation of the gear wheel &, thus ensuring their
constant action. The said sliding blocks x, y, act alternately upon the
ends of a lever c¹ oscillating on a fulcrum suspended from the cross
frame e¹ carrying the bearings of the cam shaft, by which means the
cams have little or no work to do in raising the wheels, as they exactly
balance one another, thus preventing a great strain being thrown on the
working mechanism of the machine. If a greater amount of adhesion is
required on the winding wheels the cross frame e' may be lowered by
the screw f¹ worked by the hand wheel g', and having its bearing in

page_text: the cross bar h¹. The bosses on the winding shafts g, h, at all times
bear against a guide i, and are connected to the shaft b by radial
arms j', thus ensuring the wheels c, e, and d, f, being always in gear
with one another. One or more guide wheels is or are adapted to the
fore end of the machine, and actuated by a hand wheel F, by which
means the course of the vehicle to which this apparatus is applied is
directed. When the machine is going forwards the pawls m³ acting
on the gear wheels c, d, attached to the spring boxes are placed in
contact therewith to prevent their springing back in a contrary direction
when not acted upon by the winding wheels, and when the machine is
required to go backwards these pawls m³ are lifted out of gear with the
wheels c, d, the pawl n' having been previously thrown into gear with
the wheel to prevent its forward driving action. It is evident that the
action of the spring boxes and spring shaft may be reversed so that the
machine may be driven either by one or the other. When it is desired
to stop the vehicle all the pawls are placed in gear, by which means the
whole power of the springs is stored up for a new start, and the course
of the machine gradually arrested. The springs may be additionally
wound up by hand if required, and the self-acting winding wheels may
be placed in and out of contact with the ground by hand instead of by
the means described, and several springs may be placed on one shaft so
as to have a continuous action, by which arrangement much power will
be gained. The carrying wheels may have clutches applied to their
axles, so that they may be disconnected therefrom when turning or at
other convenient periods, and the two or more springs may be arranged
to act simultaneously if desired.
A whistle acted upon by compressed air or otherwise may be placed
on any convenient part of the machine so as to signal its approach in
the same manner as obtains at present with steam whistles; and the
pawls may be made to act upon spring balances to indicate the amount
of power given off by each spring.
This machine or apparatus may be employed either for railways, road
vehicles, stationary engines, clocks, or any other purpose for which
motive power of any description is required, and will form a valuable
addition to steam engines by enabling a comparatively small power to
perform the same amount of work as a greater power.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William John Cunningham and Alfred Patrick
McCarthy in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 21st March 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
JOHN CUNNINGHAM, of 480, New Oxford Street, in the County of
Middlesex, Engineer and Machinist, and ALFRED PATRICK MCCARTHY,
of Bloomsbury, in the County of Middlesex, aforesaid, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by. Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of September, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the
thirty-third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said. William John Cunningham and
Alfred Patrick McCarthy, Her special licence that we, the said William
John Cunningham and Alfred Patrick M.Carthy, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said William John
Cunningham and Alfred Patrick McCarthy, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein
expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend,
within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING
MOTIVE POWER," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said
William John Cunningham and Alfred Patrick M°Carthy, our executors
or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or their, or
one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to
be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said William John Cunningham and
Alfred Patrick McCarthy, do hereby declare the nature of our said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be par-
ticularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
and accompanying three Sheets of Drawings (that is to say):
Our Invention consists in the application of springs of any description
or any equivalent power, so combined with wheels, levers, and other

page_text: apparatus as to act alternately or simultaneously the one on the other,
and by this means aid or cause the propulsion of any wheeled vehicle.
And in order that our Invention may be clearly understood we will
describe the same with reference to the accompanying three Sheets of
Drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of one form of our
apparatus; Fig. 2, combining sections through A, B, and C, D, Fig. 1.
Fig. 3, Sheet 2, a plan of a modification of our Invention, and Fig. 4,-
Sheet 3, a plan of a second modification of the same. The said springs
are contained in boxes or cases a, a', free to revolve on a shaft b, and
have attached to them gear wheels c, d, in gear with pinions e, f, on the
shafts g, h, of the winding-up wheels i, j, which are ultimately placed
in and out of contact with the ground, as hereafter explained. On the
same shaft as the spring boxes is a gear wheel k taking into a pinion
on the driving shaft m of the machine, on which are the two carrying
wheels n, so that the action of the springs being communicated to the
shaft 6 causes the gear wheel k to revolve, thereby imparting its motion
through the pinion to the carrying wheels and thus propelling the
machine. But so that the action of the springs shall be continuous they
are alternately acted upon and kept up to their working power by the
wheels i, j, in the following manner:-On the spring shaft bare small
fast and loose pullies o, p, from which a band or strap passes to a
corresponding pulley 9 on an auxilliary shaft r, on which is a conical
pulleys corresponding to another conical pulley placed in the reverse
direction on the shaft u, and a strap connects these said conical
pulleys & and t, so that by shifting the said strap from right to left,
or vice versa, a slower or faster action may be imparted to the
cams v, w, on the shaft z. These said cams act upon the upper ends
of sliding blocks x, y, carrying the bearings z, b', of the winding-up
wheels i, j, and alternately depress the said wheels, which by their
contact with the ground during the progress of the machine are caused
to revolve, thereby rotating the pinions e, f, from which motion is com-
municated to the gear wheels c, d, attached to the spring boxes a, à',
and thus wind up the springs in advance of the speed of rotation of the
gear wheel k, thus ensuring their constant action. The said sliding
blocks x, y, act alternately upon the ends of a lever c³ oscillating on a
fulcrum d' suspended from the cross frame e¹ carrying the bearings of
the cam shaft, by which means the cams have little or no work to do in
raising the wheels, as they exactly balance one another, thus preventing
a great strain being thrown on the working mechanism of the machine.

page_text: If a greater amount of adhesion is required on the winding wheels the
cross frame e may be lowered by the screw f¹ worked by the hand
wheel g¹, and having its bearing in the cross bar h¹. The bosses on
the winding shafts g, h, at all times bear against a guide i, and are
connected to the shaft 6 by radial arms, thus ensuring the wheels c, e,
and d, f, being always in gear with one another. One or more guide
wheels k¹ is or are adapted to the fore end of the machine and actuated
by a hand wheel A, by which means the course of the vehicle to which
this apparatus is applied is directed. When the machine is going for-
wards the pawls m¹ acting on the gear wheels c, d, attached to the
spring boxes are placed in contact therewith to prevent their springing
back in a contrary direction when not acted upon by the winding wheels,
and when the machine is required to go backwards these pawls m² arc
lifted out of gear with the wheels c, d, the pawl n¹ having been
previously thrown into gear with wheel k to prevent its driving action.
It is evident that the action of the spring boxes and spring shaft may
be reversed so that the machine may be driven either by one or the
other. When it is desired to stop the vehicle all the pawls are placed
in gear, by which means the whole power of the springs is stored up
for a new start and the course of the machine gradually arrested. The
springs may be additionally wound up by hand if required, and the self-
acting winding wheels may be placed in and out of contact with the
ground by hand instead of by the means described when desired, and
several springs may be placed on one shaft so as to have a continuous
action, by which arrangement much power will be gained. The carrying
wheels may have clutches applied to their axles, so that they may be dis-
connected therefrom when turning or at other convenient periods, and
the two or more springs may be arranged to act simultaneously.
Fig. 3, Sheet 2, represents one modification of our Invention, where
a, b, c, d, are the spring boxes, of which any number may be used, con-
taining the springs for driving the machine. These spring boxes are
loose on the shaft e, the springs themselves being fixed thereto and to
the boxes each of them having a graduated tension so that the greater
part of their combined strength is acting on the mechanism. Cranks
worked by treddles are formed on the shaft e to wind the springs up to
their full tension when required. Cone pullies g, h, are also placed on
this shaft, driving by means of one cross strap j and one plain strap i
corresponding cone pullies k, l, on the driving shaft m, fly wheels n, o,

page_text: being placed on the shaft e to keep up the impetus of the machine.
The cone pullies k, l, are provided with interior or exterior clutches, so
that one pulley may be clutched to drive forward and the other to drive
backward. p, q, are the carrying and driving wheels of the machine
placed on the shaft m. r, s, are the guiding wheels of the machine
placed on the shaft t revolving in a central universal joint u running
in an oil chamber to prevent dust or grit getting to the bearing; on
this shaft t is a pulley V driving the pulley wo on the shaft x, on which
are two cone pullies y, z, also provided with clutches for reversing.
These cone pullies drive by means of one straight strap a² and one
cross strap 6 two corresponding cone pullies c, d, on the shaft e'.
Instead of these cone pullies fast and loose pullies may be used, but we
prefer the cone pullies, as the speed of the machine may be gradually
increased by shifting the straps as the impetus of the machine increases.
On the shaft e' are pullies f, g, h, , driving corresponding pullies
j, k, l, m, on the shaft n', attached to which said pullies are drums
communicating by straps with the spring boxes a, b, c, d, to wind up
the springs. This automatic and graduated winding up is performed in
the following manner :-A small pulley is placed on the driving or
other shaft, communicating its motion by means of a cord to a shaft in
close proximity to the shaft e³, but which is not shewn in the Drawing;
on this shaft are four discs having projections thereon covering one-
eighth of their area, the which projections come in contact with clutches
engaging in the pullies f, g, h, i, at the proper time for the con-
secutive winding up of the springs, and treddles may also communicate
with cranks on the shaft n' to further wind up the springs. Pawls
must be placed in communication with racks on the spring boxes or
elsewhere to prevent the machine going in a contrary direction to that
intended.
According to another modification of our Invention, illustrated in
Figure 4, Sheet 3, we drive direct from the spring boxes a, b, by means
of two straight straps c and d, which communicate with pullies e, f, on
the shaft g, on which are two cone pullies h, i, communicating with corre-
sponding cone pullies j, k, by means of one straight strap and one cross
strap, as before described. The cone pullies j, k, are on the driving
shaft 7, and have interior or exterior clutches, so that they can be placed.
in and out of gear for reversing when required. m, n, are the guiding
wheels of the machine, the shaft o on which they revolve working in a

page_text: universal joint, as before described. On the said shaft o is a pulley p
driving a pulley 9 on the shaft r, on which are two cone pullies s, t,
communicating by means of one plain strap and one cross strap with
two corresponding cone pullies u, v, on the spring shaft; this cone
gearing being for winding up the springs, the utility of the cones
having been before explained. On the spring shaft are cranks 10, x, for
winding up the springs to their full tension when necessary; when the
machine is reversed by the aforesaid clutches the guide wheels naturally
receive a contrary direction, which is communicated to the winding-up
gear by the mechanism on the shaft 7, which consists of a screw carrying
at either end a clutch inside the cone pullies 8, t, so that when the
pulley 9 revolves in one direction it turns the screw and places the
forward action in gear, and when it revolves in the other direction it
places the backward action in gear. Instead of placing the driving
wheels on a separate shaft they may be placed on a bush affixed to the
spring box, or form part of the spring box itself, a fly whcel being.
placed either on one or both ends of the shaft, which passes through
the bush carrying the driving wheels, or on the centre of the shaft, in
which case only single instead of double cone pullies will be required
for the winding apparatus, and the cost may be yet further reduced by
driving the winding-up shaft direct from the shaft of the guide wheels,
dispensing altogether with the intermediate conical drums. Or even
this action may be omitted and the tension of the springs may be re-
covered and kept up by the action of the feet alone on the treddles, the
reversing action being in either case obtained by raising or depressing
the reverse pawls, as before described, by which means much mechanism
is dispensed with and the cost of the machine considerably decreased.
Gear wheels may be used instead of pulley and strap in any or all parts
of the machine if desired, and this new motive power may be used on
water as well as land.
A whistle acted upon by compressed air or otherwise may be placed
on any convenient part of the machine so as to signal its approach in
the same manner as obtains at present with steam whistles, and the
pawls may be made to act upon spring balances to indicate the amount
of power given off by the springs.
This motive power may be employed either for railways, road vehicles,
stationary engines, clocks, sewing machines, or any other purpose for
which motive power of any description is required, and will form a

page_text: valuable addition to steam engines by enabling a comparatively small
power to perform the same amount of work as a greater power.
Having thus described the nature and particulars of our Invention
we claim,-
First. The application of springs, weights, or other equivalent of any
description so combined with wheels, levers, and other apparatus as to
act alternately or simultaneously the one or the other, and by this
means aid or cause the propulsion of any vehicle, as herein described
and illustrated in the accompanying three Sheets of Drawings.
And, second. The application of springs, weights, or their equivalents
so combined with wheels, levers, and other apparatus as to act alternately
or simultaneously the one on the other, and by this means aid or cause
the rotation of any stationary engine or machine.
In witness whereof, we, the said William John Cunningham and
Alfred Patrick McCarthy, have hereunto set our hands and seals,
this Twenty-first day of March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy.