IMPROVE- MENTS IN SPRINGS
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Stephen Alley, of Glasgow, in the County of
Lanark, North Britain, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN SPRINGS."
Scaled the 13th June 1873, and dated the 13th March 1873.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Stephen Alley at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 13th March 1873.
I, STEPHEN ALLEY, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North
Britain, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SPRINGS," to be as follows, that is to say :-
This Invention relates to certain improvel modes of making springs
out of ribbons or strips of steel or other suitable clastic metal so that
such springs may be more compact and convenient in application and
use than ordinary so called elliptic or laminated springs.
In one modification each of two metal strips is bended approximately
into the form of a circular hoop, but with a sufficient helical conforma-

page_text: tion to admit of the points or ends passing each other a short distance.
The hoops are made the one right handed and the other left handed, and
they aro placed with the points.of one touching and facing those of the
other, whilst they combine to form the figure 8, being held by their
middle parts which correspond to the top and bottom of that figure. {
Compression of this pair of hoops bends them into smaller coils and
increases the overlap of their points, whilst the parts in contact have a
rolling action on each other.
tion to admit or the points or ends passing each other a short distance.
The hoops are made the one right handed and the other left handed, and
they are placed with the points.of one touching and facing those of the
other, whilst they combine to form the figure 8, being held by their
middle parts which correspond to the top and bottom of that figure.
Compression of this pair of hoops bends them into smaller coils and
increases the overlap of their points, whilst the parts in contact have a
rolling action on each other.
In a second modification each crossing or overlapping part of one
hoop is continued in the form of a loop into the corresponding part of 1
the other hoop.
In a third modification a single hoop is used in combination with a
pair of antifriction rollers on a pin instead of being in combination with
a second hoop.
Each hoop in any of the modifications may be made of a single strip 1:
of metal or of two or moro strips of different lengths as in ordinary
laminated springs, and the metal strips may be flat, curved, or indented
in cross section, and tapering or of uniform thickness lengthways. The
hoops may be fixed at their middle parts by buckles encompassing them
or by bolts or rivets passing through; it is, however, preferred to have 20
them rolled or shaped with nipples or projections at their middle parts
to fit in counterpart recesses in the holding part, keys, wedges, clasps,
or clamps being used to secure them in the holding part.
It is an important advantage of these improved springs that they
may be easily substituted for almost any existing form or application 25
of spring that acts by compression, and they can also be combined
with existing forms of spring. For example, whero a laminated or
elliptic spring that has been applied is found too weak, it may be
supplemented by placing one or more of the hoop springs within its
concave part.
30

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Stephen Alley in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 12th September 1873.
TO ALL TO WHƠM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, STEPHEN
ALLEY, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North Britain, Engineer,
Bond greeting..
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of March, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Stephen Alley, Her special
licence that I, the said Stephen Alley, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Stephen Alley, my executors,
administrators, 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, excrcise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SPRINGS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Stephen
Alley, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, 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 I, the said Stephen Alley, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement in writing, reference being had to the accom-
panying Drawings, that is to say :-
My said Invention relates to certain improved modes of making
springs out of ribbons or strips of steel or other suitable elastic metal, so
that such springs may be more compact and convenient in application
and use than ordinary so called elliptic or laminated springs.
In carrying out my Invention I have the strips of metal bent into
hoop-like forms or coils, with the ends curved inwards in such a way

page_text: that compression bends them into smaller coils, whilst the ends of
oppositely placed springs roll on each other. Each hoop or coil may be
made simple, that is, of a single strip of metal or compound, that is, of
two or more strips of the same length or of different lengths as in
ordinary laminated springs, and the metal strips may be flat or curved 6
or indented in cross section, and tapering or of uniform thickness or
width lengthways. Single coils either simple or compound, may be used,
with their ends bearing against rollers instead of oppositely placed
coils.
And in order that my said Invention and the manner of performing 1
the same may be properly understood, I hereunto append, a Sheet of
explanatory Drawings to be herein-after referred to, and representing
some of the various modifications of which my 'improved springs are
susceptible, together with a few examples of their applications. In these
Drawings the same reference numerals are used to mark the same or 1
like parts wherever they are repeated.
•
Figures 1 and 2 are side and end elevations of a pair of my improved
springs. In this modification each of two metal strips 1, 2, is bended'
approximately into the form of a circular hoop, or of a coil of little more.
than a single convolution, but with a sufficient helical conformation or 2
twist to admit of the points or ends 3, 4, 5, 6, passing each other a short
distance. The hoops are made the one, 1, right handed and the other, 2;
left handed as regards twist, and they are placed with the points, 3, 4, or
parts near the points of one facing and touching those 5, 6, of the other,
whilst they combine to form the figure 8, being held by or acted on at a
their middle parts 7, 9, which correspond to the top and bottom of that
figure. Compression of this pair of hoops 1, 2, in the direction of the
arrows bends them into smaller coils, as shown in Figure 3, and increases
the overlap of their points 3, 4, 5, 6, whilst the parts in contact have a
rolling action on each other. The hoops or coils 1, 2, are represented
in Figures 1, 2, 3, as being compound or laminated, a series of metal
strips being applied inside of the outer or main strips.
•
In a second modification shown in side elevation in Figure 4 each
crossing or overlapping part of ono outer hoop 1 is continued in the
form of a loop 10 into the corresponding part of the other outer hoop 2. ‹
Figuro 5 shows a variety of this modification suitable for bod or scat
springs, the connecting parts 10 being closed instead of open looped..

page_text: In a third modification, an example of which is shown in sectional
side elevation in Figure 6, and in inverted sectional plan in Figure 7, a
single hoop 1 is used in combination with a pair of antifriction rollers
11, 12, on a pin instead of being in combination with a second hoop.
The ends 3, 4, bear and roll on the rollers 11, 12. Figure 8 shows a
single hoop 1 applied in this way to a cart axle 13.
When for the purpose of keeping the space in which the springs act
as narrow as possible it is desired that the ends 3, 4, 5, 0, should not
overlap, the two halves of each hoop 1, 2, may be set further asunder,
as shown in Figure 9, and be connected by comparatively inactive
portions 11, 15, so that the hoops may be made as shown in the end
elevation, Figure 10, without the helical conformation or twist. In
Figure 11 a pair of springs of this kind is shown as uncompressed in full
lines, and as compressed in dotted lines.
Figures 12 and 13 are sections as at right angles to cach other showing
a pair of my improved springs as applied to a railway buffer. Each
hoop 1, 2, is held by means of a key 16 between checks in a block 17
fixed one in the buffer plunger and the other in the case. It will in
some cases be convenient to make the case and plunger oval in cross
section.
Figures 11 and 15 are a sectional side elevation and an end elevation
of a pair of the springs, such as are shown in Figure 11, arranged as a
suspended bearing spring for locomotives. Figures 16 and 17 aro a
sectional side elevation and a plan also of a suspended bearing spring.
In one modification the suspension rods 18 are at the sides of the springs
1, 2, and in the other they are at the ends.
Figures 18 and 10 are sectional views as at right angles to each other
showing a pair of springs 1, 2, such as are shown in Figures 1, 2,
arranged as a railway draw spring.
Figures 20 and 21 are sections of a railway draw spring and a bearing
spring respectively as arranged with two pairs of the hoops 1, 2.
Figure 22 is a vertical section showing two pairs of springs like those
shown in Figure 11 as applied to a safety valve 19. The springs 1, 2,
are held between two plates or blocks 17, the lower one of which rests
5 on a shoulder or collar on the valve spindle 20, the other being connected
by rods 21 to the bottom of the case. Only one pair of the springs is
seen in the view shown, the other pair being on the further side of the
spindle 20.

page_text: The hoops or coils may be fixed at their middle parts 7, 9, by buckles
encompassing them, or by bolts or rivets passing through. I howover
prefer to have them rolled or shaped with nipples or projections at their
middle parts to fit in counterpart recesses in the holding block or part 17,
keys 10, wedges, clasps, or clamps being used to secure them in the 5
holding part.
It is an important advantage of my improved springs that they may
be casily substituted for almost any existing form or application of spring:
that acts by compression, and they can also be combined with existing
forms of spring. For example where a laminated or elliptic spring that 1
has been applied is found too weak it may be supplemented by placing
one or more of the hoop springs within its concavo part.
Having thus particularly described my said Invention and the manner
of performing the same, I have to state that I do not restrict myself to
the precise details herein described or delineated, but that what I believe I
to be novel and original, and claim as the Invention secured to me by
the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
1. The application and use of a spring consisting of one or more strips
of clastic metal bent into a hoop like or coiled form and arranged so that
compression reduces the size of the.coil or coils, substantially as hercin- 2
before described.
2. The application and use of pairs of hoop like metal springs arranged
to bend inwards under compression, and having a rolling action on cach
other at the parts in contact, substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Stephen Alley, have hereunto set 2
my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of September, in the year of
our Lord One thousand cight hundred and seventy-three..
Witness,
EDMUND HUNT,
Patent Agent,
Glasgow.
STEPHEN ALLEY. (L.S.)