Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 6th July, 1886.
Complete Left, 18th Mar., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 19th Apr., 1887.
I, WILLIAM BOTWOOD of Woodbridge Road Ipswich in the County of Suffolk,
Carriage Builder do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object improvements in two wheeled vehicles.
These improvements are intended to meet the various heights and lengths of horses
by raising and lowering the body by the springs, lengthening or shortening the shafts.
Also to balance the weight and break the weight down hill.
I raise and lower the body of a two wheeled vehicle by using a Cee and half elliptic
spring jointed together at the front end with a large cuphead on the elliptic part and
a corresponding rolled eye on the front end of the Cee spring charged with india
rubber and so centred as to admit of upward play. I connect the springs at the rear
end by a screw and by turning the screw the distance between them can be adjusted
as may be required to raise or lower the cart to suit various sized horses. I also in
place of the screws employ iron couplings having various holes or I employ leather
straps and buckles to lengthen or shorten.
To lengthen and shorten the shafts of two wheel vehicles I connect each shaft to the
other by means of a bar passing under the body and having a screw socket in its
centre. At each end the bar passes between slotted guides in which it can be clamped
by a bolt passing through. The outer ends of the bar are collared to go into sockets
fixed under the shafts by clips or bolts which sockets can be lined with rubber or fitted
iron to iron.
A horizontal screw working in the centre of the sliding bar from either end of the
cart and passing through the centre of the bar is employed to move the shafts to
the position required and they are then clamped as already described. The movement
may be effected without the screw by simply sliding the shafts and bar backward or
forward and securing them by the bolts. The rear end of the shafts I сар with metal
ferrules of any shape; they pass through an eye fixed to the rear end of the body and
lined with india rubber. By these means I get an easy durable and quiet shaft
adjustable to any desired length.
I balance two wheeled vehicles by making the seats moveable by using a pair of
pulleys at each corner of the seat. The pulleys above carry the seat and those below
keep the seat from rising.
The action of the seats backward and forward is obtained without screws or levers
simply by moving the occupants body backward or forward when seated. I further
secure the seat in any position by a spring on the top of the seat having at its outer

page_text: end a handle to be lifted up to liberate the seat and dropped to secure the seat. The
spring has on its under side a projection engaging with a ratchet plate. The projection
when the spring is lifted will pass along the ratchet plate until it drops into another
recess. The seat can be taken from the cart by unfastening the arms which carry the
lower pulleys. I relieve horses of weight and pressure down hill by means of a lever
break having its centres arranged for that purpose and carried by a horizontal metal
bar fixed above the lower springs forward of the axle. Eyes lined with wood leather
or india rubber as neutralizers of sound, are arranged on the outer ends of the
horizontal bar to carry short lever arms. At their ends are brake blocks which
receive india rubber wood or metal to press on the top side of the back of the nave
of the wheel which is steel hooped for the purpose. On the driving side I carry from
the short lever arm a long lever, this by means of a connecting rod I attach to a hand
lever having its lower end attached to the front part of the bottom of the body.
When the handle at the upper end of the hand lever is drawn towards the back of
the cart it acts through a connecting rod to force the brake block on the centre of the
nave. This combination lifts the front of the body and presses the brake blocks so
firmly on the back of the naves of-the wheels as to retard their motion and at the
same time transfers the weight from the horses back by its leverage commencing at
the front of the axle and its bearing on the centre of the nave.
Dated this 6th day of Lule, 1006
CARPMAEL & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Two Wheeled Vehicles.
I, WILLIAM BOTWOOD of Woodbridge Road, Ipswich, in the County of Suffolk,
Carriage Builder, 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 has for its object improvements in two wheeled vehicles.
These improvements are intended to meet the various heights and lengths of horses
by raising and lowering the body by the springs, lengthening or shortening the shafts.
Also to balance the weight and break the weight down hill.
I raise and lower the body of a two wheeled vehicle by using a Cee spring and a
half elliptic spring or stay jointed together at the front end with a large cuphead on
the elliptic part and a corresponding rolled eye on the front end of the Cee spring
charged with india rubber and so centred as to admit of upward play. I connect the
springs at the rear end by a screw and by turning the screw the distance between
them can be adjusted as may be required to raise or lower the cart to suit various
sized horses. I also in place of the screws employ iron couplings having various
holes or I employ leather straps and buckles to lengthen or shorten.
Figures 1 and 9 illustrate my method of raising the body of the vehicle.

page_text: a is an elliptical spring or stay fixed to the under side of the body of the vehicle,
by means of bolts passing through the holes a¹, a. b is a Cee spring, its front end is
connected to the end of the spring or stay a by means of the coupling e, figure 2,
whilst the rear end is coupled by means of the screw d working through a boss at the
rear end of the spring or stay a. By turning this screw the distance of the two
springs apart can be varied and the body of the carriage thereby raised or lowered.
The Cee spring b is fixed to the axle of the carriage in the usual way.
Figure 2 shews a perspective view of the coupling e one half consists of an eye
holding a block of india rubber c¹. This block is held between two parallel plates on
the end of the spring or stay a and a pin carried by the plates passes through the
hole in the rubber block. The other half of the coupling consists of two parallel
plates which embrace an eye holding a block of india rubber, at the end of the
spring 6, the pin passing through the block.
Figure 3 is a perspective view of a similar coupling d' which may be used to
replace the screw d.
Figure 1 shows a modification in which the screw d works in the body of the
carriage in place of in the spring or stay a.
In both Figures 1 and 1 it is the inclination of the coupling c and screw d or
coupling d to each other which causes both ends of the spring b to be raised or
lowered simultaneously when the screw is turned.
To lengthen and shorten the shafts of two wheeled vehioles I connect each shaft to
the other by means of a bar passing under the body and having a screw socket in its
centre. At each end the bar passes between slotted guides in which it can be clamped
by a bolt passing through. The outer ends of the bar are collared to go into sockets
fixed under the shafts by clips or bolts which sockets can be lined with rubber or fitted
iron to iron.
A horizontal screw working in the centre of the sliding bar from either end of the
cart and passing through the centre of the bar is employed to move the shafts to the
position required and they are then clamped as already described. The movement
may be effected without the screw by simply sliding the shafts and bar backward or
forward and securing them by the bolts. The rear end of the shafts I cap with metal
ferrules of any shape; they pass through an eye fixed to the rear end of the body and
lined with india rubber. By these means I get an easy durable and quiet shaft
adjustable to any desired length.
Figures 4, 5 and 6 shew this method of lengthening and shortening the shafts.
Figure 4 shews a plate a pair of which are fixed to the under side of the carriage.
It is provided as shown with a recessed slot to receive the head of the bolt e, figure 5.
A curved and slotted plate of the form shown in figure 5 is fixed below this and
serves to steady the bolt. The shafts are connected by means of the transverse bar f
(see Figure 6) having holes to receive the ends of the bolts ee which pass through it
and are secured by nuts. The rear ends of the shafts are provided with metal ferrules
which pass through eyes bushed with india rubber fixed to the rear end of the body,
the screw g passing through the centre of the bar f may be provided for adjusting
the shafts.
I balance two wheeled vehicles by making the seats moveable by using a pair of
pulleys at each corner of the seat. The pulleys above carry the seat and those below
keep the seat from rising.
The action of the seats backward and forward is obtained without screws or levers
simply by moving the occupants body backward or forward when seated.
I further secure the seat in any position by a spring on the top of the seat having
at its outer end a handle to be lifted up to liberate the seat and dropped to secure the
seat. The spring has on its under side a projection engaging with a ratchet plate.
The projection when the spring is lifted will pass along the ratchet plate until it drops
into another recess. The seat can be taken from the cart by unfastening the arms
which carry the lower pulleys.
Figure 7 shews the method of carrying the seat. h is a bar fixed transversely
across the under side of the seat. At each end it carries pulleys j and j' as shown,

page_text: one above and the other below the head of a rail k fixed to the side of the vehicle.
The pulley j supports the weight of the seat whilst the pulley ¹ prevents it from being
lifted off. The seat can however be removed by taking away the arm which can be
done by unscrewing the nut 1.
Figure 8 shews the method of securing the seat in place. This is done by means
of the spring handles m having on their under sides blades n which take into the teeth
of the rack o.
I relieve horses of weight and pressure down hill by means of a lever break having
its centres arranged for that purpose and carried by a horizontal metal bar fixed above
or below the lower springs forward of the axle. This horizontal bar is carried by
eyes lined with wood, leather or india rubber as neutralizers of sound. The outer
ends of the horizontal bar carry short lever arms having at their ends brake blocks
which receive india rubber, wood or metal to press on the top side of the back of the
nave of the wheel which is steel hooped for the purpose. On the driving side I carry
from the short lever arm a long lever, this by means of a connecting rod I attach to a
hand lever having its lower end attached to the front part of the bottom of the body.
When the handle at the upper end of the hand lever is drawn towards the back of the
cart it acts through a connecting rod to force the brake block on the centre of the
nave. This combination lifts the front of the body and presses the brake blocks so
firmly on the back of the naves of the wheels as to retard their motion and at the
same time transfers the weight from the horse's back by the leverage commencing at
the front of the axle and its bearing on the centre of the nave.
Figures 9 and 10 shew side and perspective views of the brake arrangement. p is
a lever handle pivotted to a plate q fixed to the body of the carriage. The lever
handle has pivotted to it one end of the bar r the other end of which is pivotted to the
end of the arms of a bell crank lever whose other arm s¹ carries a brake block. This
bell crank lever is fixed to the bar t which runs across the carriage and has fixed to its
other end an arm similar to the arm s¹ of the bell crank lever. This arm also carries
a brake block.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim as my
improvements in two wheeled vehicles is :-
1. Mounting the body so that it can be raised and lowered by attaching beneath it
on either side a spring or stay the front end of which is jointed to one end of a Cee
spring mounted on the axle the rear end being connected to the other end of the
Cee spring by a screw or coupling whose length can be adjusted substantially as
described.
2. The modification in which the screw or coupling connects the end of the Cee
spring to the body substantially as described in connection with Figure 1".
3. The couplings substantially as described and shown at figures 2 and 3.
4. Connecting the shafts to the body in such manner that they can be moved
relatively to the body and thus lengthened or shortened substantially as described.
5. Connecting the shafts to the body substantially in the manner shown at figure 6.
6. Mounting the seat upon pulleys substantially as described and shown at figure 7.
7. Securing the seat substantially as described and shown at figure 8.
8. Mounting the brake substantially as described and shown at figures 9 and 10.