An Improvement or Improvements in the Beads of Harness Saddles.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 7th July, 1891
Complete Specification Left, 25th Mar., 1592-Accepted, 30th Apr., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improvement or Improvements in the Beads of Harness
Saddles.
I FRANK WILLIS of No. 13 Station Street Walsall in the County of Stafford
Gig Saddle Manufacturer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:
My invention has reference to those parts of harness saddles commonly called
the beads that is to say those metal parts which are situated at the ends of the
trough or passage made between the skirt and flaps of the saddle for the back band
to pass through. The said beads consist of trough shaped plates which are made
to line the top and sides of the ends of the trough or passage herein before
referred to in the harness saddle and the back band in its motion bears and rubs
principally against the edges or vertical sides of the metal beads at the ends of the
trough.
The object of my invention is to reduce to a minimum the friction between the
edges or vertical sides of the beads and the edges of the back band working against
them so that the freedom of motion of the back band is not interfered with or
interfered with only to a slight extent on its passage through the trough between
the skirt and flaps of the saddle.
I effect this object by mounting in the edges or vertical sides of the metal beads
one or more antifriction rollers preferably of a concave figure the said rollers
projecting slightly beyond the sides of the said beads. The edges of the back
band bear against these rollers and the friction between the moving back band and
the edges or sides of the said beads is by the interposition of the said rollers
reduced to a minimum.
My invention may be applied to all kinds of beads to which it is applicable.
Dated the 7th day of July 1891
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improvement or Improvements in the Beads of Harness
Saddles.
I FRANK WILLIS, of No. 13 Station Street, Walsall, in the County of Stafford,
Gig Saddle Manufacturer do hereby declare the nature of my invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention has reference to those parts of harness saddles commonly called
the beads; that is to say, those metal parts which are situated at the ends of the
trough or passage made between the skirt and flaps of the saddle for the back
band to pass through. The said beads consist of trough shaped plates which are
made to line the top and sides of the ends of the trough or passage herein before
referred to in the harness saddle, and the back band in its motion bears and rubs
principally against the edges or vertical sides of the metal beads at the ends of the
trough.
The object of my invention is to reduce to a minimum the friction between the
edges or vertical sides of the beads and the edges of the back band working against
them so that the freedom of motion of the back band is not interfered with or

page_text: interfered with only to a slight extent on its passage through the trough between
the skirt and flaps of the saddle.
I effect this object by mounting in the edges or vertical sides of the metal beads
one or more anti-friction rollers, preferably of a concave figure, the said rollers
projecting slightly beyond the sides of the said beads. The edges of the back band
bear against these rollers and the friction between the moving back band and the edges
or sides of the said beads is by the interposition of the said rollers reduced to a
minimum.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings represents in front elevation, partly in
section Figure 2 in side elevation and Figure 3 in plan, a portion of a harness
saddle the beads of which are provided with my invention;
Figure 4 represents in plan Figure 5 in cross section, partly in end elevation,
and Figure 6 in front elevation, drawn to a larger scale, one of the beads of the
saddle detached.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several figures of
the drawings.
a is the trough or channel between the skirt and flaps of the saddle for the back-
band to work in. The top and sides of each end of the trough a is lined by a
metal bead marked e, d and e, the top plate or bead proper e being fixed to the
skirt of the saddle by nails, the said top plate being placed over the leather
of the skirt so as to expose the said plate. On the underside and at each end of
the top plate or bead e is a bottom plate d, e by which bottom plates the bead cis
strengthened and provision made for supporting the anti-friction rollers, g. It
will be seen by an examination of Figures 5 and 6 of the drawing that the bottom
plate d, e at each end of the bead is bent or cranked. the part 7 constituting the
vertical edge or lining of the end of the trough and the horizontal part e
constituting the bottom bearing to which the pin or axis on which the anti-friction
roller turns, is fixed, the other end of the pin or axis being fixed in the top plate
or bead proper c.
The manner in which the anti-friction rollers g, y are mounted
in the edges or vertical sides of the metal beads and the edges of the back band b
made to bear against the said rollers will be understood by referring to Figures 1,2
and 3.
By the use of rollers at the vertical sides or edges of the ends of the trough a, in
which the backband works, the freedom of motion of the said backband is not
interfered with and the friction between the said band and the edges or sides of
the beads is reduced to a minimum.
Figure 7 represents in plan; Figure 8 in cross section and Figure 9 in front
elevation, another bead supporting anti-friction rollers constructed according to my
invention. In this bead, the edge e² of the top plate is only exposed, the leather
of the skirt covering the greater part of the top plate c as indicated in dotted lines
in Figure 8. The other parts of this bead are the same as corresponding parts of
the bead first described and are marked with the same letters of reference.
I prefer to make the edges of the anti-friction rollers concave as represented,
but the anti-friction rollers. may have flat edges.
Although I have represented each of the vertical sides or edges of the beads as
provided with one anti-friction roller yet each side or edge of the beads may be
provided with more than one anti-friction roller. In this case the lower bearing e
at each vertical edge of the bead is lengthened and the top plate made broader for
supporting two or more anti-friction rollers.
My invention may be applied to all kinds of beads for harness saddles to which
it is applicable.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that I claim as
my invention of "An improvement or improvements in the beads of harness
saddles
Mounting one or more rollers in the edges or vertical sides of the metal beads

page_text: fixed at the ends of the trough or passage made between the skirt and flaps of the
harness saddle for the back band to pass through, whereby the friction between
the moving back band and the edges or vertical sides of the beads is reduced to a
minimum, the said anti-friction rollers being arranged in or combined with the
beads substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
Dated the Twenty-third day of March 1800
FRANK WILLIS.