IMPROVEMENTS IN TRICYCLES OR Germany Engineer and Patent Solicitor VELOCIPEDES
Year: 1882

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Friedrich Carl Glaser at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 23rd December 1882.
FRIEDRICH CARL GLASER of Berlin in the Kingdom of Prussia and Empire of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN TRICYCLES OR
Germany Engineer and Patent Solicitor
VELOCIPEDES
In using Tricycles or velocipedes considerable difficulty is experienced in
propelling them up hill. According to the present invention this difficulty is
obviated by so connecting the treadle shaft with the driving wheel or wheels by
means of variable intermediate gearing that that with one and the same speed of
revolution of the treadle shaft the driving wheel can be made to revolve at a
quicker or slower speed, thus enabling the operator to drive the machine with
greater power but at a less speed when going up hill than when running along a
level road.
For this purpose the mechanism is arranged as follows:-The endless pitch chain
or perforated steel band which ordinarily serves to transmit the motion of the
treadle shaft to the driving wheels, instead of being passed only round one pitch
wheel upon or gearing with the driving wheel, is caused to pass over two or more
such pitch wheels, so arranged that they can alternately be put in gear with the
driving wheel, the ratios of such gearing being however different so that the one
pitch wheel will rotate the driving wheel, say, at the same speed as the treadle
shaft, while the other will rotate it considerably slower.
Various arrangements of the said pitch wheels and of their connections with
the driving wheels may be employed for the above purpose some of which are
shewn at Figs I. II and III of the accompanying drawings.
In the arrangement shewn at Fig I the pitch wheel c on the shaft of the driving
wheel serves to impart to the latter the quick motion for running on level roads.
For running up hill this wheel is uncoupled from the shaft and the smaller pitch
wheel b is put in gear with a toothed wheel & fixed to the driving wheel.
Figs IV to X shew to an enlarged scale the construction of the mechanism for
this purpose.
The pitch wheel c is loose on the driving wheel shaft but can be geared with
the driving wheel by means of the sliding studs ff which are made to project into
holes in the driving wheel boss, as shewn at Fig V. The driving wheel shaft also

page_text: carries a loose eccentric g, which can be turned by means of a handle h, as shewn,
and which has a screw thread formed in its boss into which take projections / on
sliding pieces shewn detached at Figs IX and X. These sliding pieces have other
projections that take into a circular groove in the boss carrying the sliding studs f.
The eccentric has a strap with an arm i that carries at its outer end the pitch
wheel bround which as well as round the wheel c the endless pitch chain or
perforated steel band a passes. The arm i is prevented from turning by a pin n
on the framing entering a slotted hole therein, affording sufficient play to allow of
the side pins of the pitch wheel b being put in and out of gear with the internal
teeth of the wheel b. From this arrangement it will be seen that when the lever i
and eccentric g are turned into the position shewn at Figs I, IV and VII, the
studs are withdrawn from the driving wheel so as to uncouple the wheel c
therefrom, while the arm i is pushed outwards so as to bring the wheel b in gear
with d. When the lever his turned in the opposite direction, the wheel b is drawn
out of gear and the studs f are slid in gear so as to couple the wheel c with the
driving wheel.
In the arrangement shewn at Fig II the eccentric actuates a sliding beam o
carrying the two pitch wheels b b, which are thereby alternately put in gear either
with the larger toothed wheel d or with the smaller one d'.
In the arrangement at Fig III the two pitch wheels are carried by a rocking
forked lever, the motion of which puts either the one or the other in gear.