CERTAIN IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WHEEL CARRIAGES OF VARIOUS DESCRIPTIONS
Year: 1810

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
WYKE, of the City of Bath, in the County of Somerset, Esquire, do send
greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Third,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twelfth day of February,
in the fiftieth year of His reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said George Wyke, my exors, admors, and
assigns, His special licence and authority that I, the said George Wyke, my
exors, adñiors, and assigns, during the term of years therein expressed, should
and lawfully might make, usc, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales,
and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WHEEL CARRIAGES OF VARIOUS DESCRIPTIONS;"
in which Letters Patent there is contained a proviso, obliging me, the said
George Wyke, by an instrument under my hand and seal, to cause a par-
ticular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be enrolled in His Majesty's High Court of
Chancery within two calendar months next and immediately after the date
of the said recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, relation being there-
unto had, may more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
George Wyke, do hereby describe and ascertain the nature of my sd Invention,
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, by the Drawings
delineated and annexed to these Presents, and as follows:-
My said Invention is principally applicable to the following purposes :-
First, to prevent danger arising from overturning of carriages by keeping the

page_text: body of the same always or nearly in a perpendicular position; secondly, by
instantly locking or dragging the wheels, when required, by means of bolts or
bars, although several different plans have been put in execution for both of
the afore-mentioned purposes, yet they have almost in every instance fallen
into disuse, either in consequence of their having been cumbersome, complicated
in their construction, and liable to be put out of order by trifling accidents ;
I therefore ground my right to my Patent for having discovered and found out
the means of applying a mechanical apparatus, by which I have almost entirely
obviated all these objections, by a contrivance very simple in its operation, not
complex, constructed of materials not liable to be soon put out of order, and
adding very inconsiderably to the weight of the carriage. Various descriptions
of carriages already built and in use may be altered at a small expence, and
both of the afore-mentioned improvements, according to my Invention, may be
affixed to them, either jointly or separately, as required.
Figure 1 represents the side view of a carriage, the body of which is hung
to the centre of a bar between springs, as at A, A, where the suspending braces
are united by a shackle, which turns upon a swivel, so as to insure the body
retaining a perfect perpendicular or upright position, the body loops being
placed sufficiently high to enable the lower part of the body of the carriage to
preponderate; B, B, collar braces attached to the bottom of the body by
means of a ring over a half staple, to admit of its disengaging when the
carriage is turning over; C, C, staples or rings to which the lower part of the
collar braces are affixed to hooks attached to the weight at the bottom of
the perch; D, D, are hooks, are affixed to the perch, and confined by the
weight acting as a pendulum; E, a weight of about twelve or fourteen pounds
of metal, or any ponderous substance suitable to the purpose, which may be
varied in form, size, weight, and shape, so as to produce the effect desired,
which hangs at the bottom of the perch by a swivel joint at F, the upper part
of which, above the joint, is a piece of iron in the shape of a quadrant of a
circle. The weight E is so contrived that when the carriage shall be in the
act of overturning, and arrived at about the angle of forty-five degrees from
its usual position, the weight below the joint keeping its perpendicular situation,
the part above the joint F disengages the point of one of the hooks, which is
confined by it on that side of the carriage which is turning over, releasing the
collar brace, and allowing it to fly off, by which means the body swings round
upon its central springs into its perpendicular position, the collar brace upon
the opposite side disengages itself from the half staple at the bottom of the
body as it swings round. Figure 2, a back view of the carriage and plan of
hanging the body at the bar A, referred to in Figure No. 1, from which the body

page_text: is suspended; G, a shackle to which the braces are suspended from the body
loop; H, H, the back springs. Figure 3, the front of the carriage and box.
H, H, the front springs, placed nearer together than is commonly done, to
allow the box when affixed to the body to swing clear of the springs when: over-
turning, the body may likewise be hung or suspended by one single upright
spring behind, and one before, if thought necessary, instead of a bar between the
heads of two springs, as before described; or where the springs in the C form
are used, they may be turned in towards each other sufficiently to allow the heads
to be united with the shackles instead of a bar. Figure 4, a carriage in the
act of overturning. Figure 5 shews how the points of the hooks are confined
by the weight to the under part of the perch, with the lower part of the collar
braces hooked on. Figure 6, a transverse section of the perch, to show how
the hooks are confined when the carriage is upright. Figure 7, the end of the
perch I, when the carriage is overturning; the weight E, by remaining perpen-
dicular, releasing the points of the hooks of the collar braces, as at K at L,
the form of the upper part of the pendulum weight above the swivel joint.
Figure 8, the side view of the perch with the weight attached. Figure 9, 10, 11
shews how the pendulum weight may be affixed in different ways and forms, and
produce the effect of the others herein-before described. Figure 9, I, the end view
of the perch; M, M, hooks to confine the collar braces branching from the side
of the perch downwards, the points of the hooks passing each other under the
perch about an inch at each extremity, the quadrant part of the weight L being
immediately under the points, and confirming them until the carriage is over-
turned to a certain degree, the lower weight retaining its perpendicular posi-
tion, the quadrant part at I releases the point of the hook required, which flies
open and allows the collar brace to slip off. Figure 15 represents another
method of applying nearly the same principles, for the purposes before men-
tioned, by means of a leaden ball confined in a cylinder, with a spring attached
to the upper part, united to the perch by a bolt, to which the collar braces are
affixed at each end; in the act of the carriage overturning, the ball passing
from the centre to the end of the cylinder, overcomes the spring, and releases the
braces, and produces the same effect as the pendulum placed in the different
ways and forms, as herein-before described.
I now proceed to describe the locking bolts and apparatus as affixed to the
Drawing of the carriage No. 1, the action of which is traced in the Drawing
in a distinct colour, being red, from the other part. N, the pedal of iron of
any form or shape suitable to the purpose, for the person on the coach box to
place his foot or feet upon when the wheels are required to be locked or
dragged, which is connected with a crank made of iron or metal at O to a

page_text: part of the fore spring, from which crank an iron rod branches downwards to
another crank at p, to which another rod is affixed, passing along the perch,
and secured to it by iron staples in its proper acting position to Q, where a
joint and swivel connect the rods to two flat iron plates R, which are attached
to iron bolts placed under the axletree of the hind wheels. By pressing down
the pedal at the foot-board, the rods are put in action by the cranks, which,
act as levers, and force out the locking bolts made of iron between the spokes
of the wheels, thereby compleatly locking them. Figure 12, the section of the
pedal rods, and seperated from Figure No. 1. Figure 18 shews the action of
the rods and cranks upon the iron plates R, R, by closing them together, by
which means the bolts S, S, are forced out in a contrary direction, the right
plate forcing the left bolt, and the left the right between the spokes of the
wheels; at T is a spring which forces the plates and bolts into their original
position when the pressure is taken from the pedal, by which means the wheels
are unlocked. Figure 14, the plates, bolts, and rods, as before described, to
shew how one wheel only may be locked when required, which is done by the
means of adding second rods, cranks, and pedal, in which cases the plates
R, R, must not be united at Q, and a second spring at T must be added by
the afore-mentioned Invention, all the necessity of using drag chains and staff
are avoided.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Wyke, have hercunto set my hand
and seal, this Twelfth day of April, in the fiftieth year of the reign of
our Sovereign Lord George the Third, by the Grace of God of the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland King, Defender of the
Faith, and in the year of the Faith, and in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and ten.
Inrolled the Twelfth day of April, in the year of our Lord 1810.