IMPROVEMENTS APPLICABLE TO WHEELED CARRIAGES; AND IN SPRINGS
Year: 1839

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, MOSES
POOLE, of Lincoln's Inn, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing. date at
Westminster, the Twenty-ninth day of June, in the third year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Moses Poole, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said Moses Poole, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Moses Poole, my exors, admors, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the
term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS APPLICABLE TO WHEELED CARRIAGES; AND IN
SPRINGS," communicated to me by a certain Foreigner residing abroad; in which
said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Moses Poole, shall
cause a particular description of the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same,
reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Moses Poole, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had
to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked 5
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 represents the back of an omnibus or public carriage fitted with
an apparatus intended to register the number of persons conveyed. A, A, is
the conductor's step; B, B, and C, C, the steps by which passengers mount.
The apparatus beneath the steps is boxed in by stout planks D, D, E, E, F, F,
G, G, H, H, I, I, and by other similar planks, which are removed in the
Drawing, in order to permit the apparatus to be seen.
The conductor's step
is capable of moving on the hinges J, J; the step B, B, is capable of moving
on other similar hinges, which are concealed by the leather K, K; the step
C, C, is also capable of turning on the pivots L, L, which are received in
sockets fixed to the plank, which is removed in the Drawing. All the joints
and crevices between the steps and the parts adjacent are covered with leather
or other suitable material of similar flexibility, in the manner shewn at K, K.
This covering prevents wedges from being inserted, so as to interrupt the
action of the machine, but being flexible, it does not impede the motion of
the steps. To the step C, C, which should not be above nine inches square,
a stout bar M is fixed; to the middle of this bar, which should be equal in
length to the step C, C, a cross bar N is jointed; the upper end of this cross
bar is jointed to the under surface of the step B, B, close to its edge. To the
end of the bar M is attached the chain O, which is fixed below to the bottom
I, I, also the chain P, which is fixed above to the short arm Q of the lever
Q, R, which turns on a pivot or fulcrum S, fixed to the plank G, G. To the
long arm R of this lever, which is three times as long as the short arm Q,
is attached a spiral spring D, the lower end of which is fixed to the bottom
plank I, I. U is an upright, fixed below to the bottom I, I, and jointed above
to the end of the lever V, W; to the end V of this lever is attached a spiral
spring X, which is attached to the plank I, I. The lever V, W, is also
connected by the chain Y to, the under surface of the step B, B. The position
of this chain is such that the portion V of the lever is three times the length
of the portion W. The lever Q, R, and V, W, have several holes near the
end of the long arms V and R, that the springs I and X may be adjusted
according to their strength. These parts must be so adjusted that when the

page_text: steps B, B, and C, C, and the levers Q, R, and V, W, are horizontal, the
lower edge of the step B, B, is a quarter of an inch above the shoulders Z, Z,
which limit its descent, and the chain Q is slackened enough to allow the
bar M to rise one eighth of an inch, and consequently to allow the edge of
the step C, C, to descend one eighth of an inch.
Figure 2 represents some levers connected with the conductor's step, and
removed in Figure 1 to shew the mechanism behind. A, A, is the conductor's
step, to the under surface of which the upper end of the bar B is jointed.
The lower end of this bar is jointed to the short arm C of the lever C, G,
which has for its fulcrum the bar E, screwed to the planks D, D, and F, F.
The long arm G of the lever C, G, is attached to a strong spiral spring H.
The lower end of the spring H is attached near the fulcrum of the lever I,
which turns on a pivot K, which is fixed to the back L. The other end of
the lever I is kept down by a screw M, which inay be screwed into either of
a series of holes formed in a curved plate N, and by this means the force with
which the spring I raises the step A, A, may be regulated. To prepare
the machine for action, this lever should be so adjusted that a weight one
stone less than that of the conductor is required to make the step A, A,
descend to the shoulders O, O, which limit its descent. The chain I', fixed
below to the bar E and above to the step A, A, limits the ascent. of the
step A, A, so that it has only a play of one eighth of an inch. a, b, Figure 1,
is a lever turning at the end a on a pivot fixed in the plank F, F. This
lever is jointed in the middle to the lower end of a bar e,
which is jointed to the under surface of the step B, B.
same lever is jointed to one arm d, which passes through a hole cut for the
purpose in the plank F, F. The lever d, d, moves in the middle on, the
pivot e, fixed to the plank E, E, and is jointed at F to the lower end of the
rod G. The upper end of this rod is jointed to the end h of a lever h, i,
which turns in the middle on a pivot fixed in the plank E, E. The ends h
and i of this lever are connected by the chains k and to the two wires m
and n, which pass in covered grooves cut in the back of the omnibus to the
register o, o. p is a vertical iron rod, jointed above to the under surface of
the conductor's step, below to one end of the lever q, which turns in the middle
on a pivot r fixed into the plank D, D. The other end of this lever passes
beneath the ends of another. lever s, t, which turns in the middle on a pivot u
fixed in the plank D, D. The end t of this lever is joined to a wire v that
runs in a groove cut for that purpose in the back of the carriage to the
register o, o, to which it is fixed.. The register o, o, is lodged in a cavity cut
for the purpose in the back of the carriage, and covered by a door which closes
the upper end of
The end 6 of the

page_text: with a lock and key. The register o, o, hangs by the wire w to the spring x.
The crank y turns at its angle on a pivot fixed to the back of the carriage.
Its arm z is placed above a pin or knob projecting from the wire w. Its
arm a' is attached to a wire 6', which is connected by a chain c¹ to a short
round rod d', which projects upward from the corner of the door to which it
is screwed. The axis of this rod should be in a line with the axles of the
hinges of the door. The chain c' is fixed to the rod d', in such a manner
that when the door is shut the chain is wound a quarter turn round the rod d',
but when the door is open the chain is unwound and slackens. The register o, o,
contains a ratchet wheel e¹, which has eight teeth to the inch, and is turned
by the action of a jointed toothed sliding rod f¹ in the ordinary manner well
known to mechanics. The rod f' is attached below the wire n. The axle
of the ratchet wheel e' carries a hand, which moves over a dial and a pinion
connected with a train of wheels, which move the hands of two or more other
dials in the manner of the common registering machine employed for many
purposes by mechanics, and therefore not necessary to be here described.
The register also contains a ratchet wheel g', having eight teeth to the inch,
and moved by the toothed rod h', which is attached below to the wire m.
The axle of this wheel carries a hand which traverses a dial. The dials
and wheelwork of the register are omitted in the Drawing, in order to
simplify it, and because their arrangement is well known, and constitutes
no part of the Invention here claimed. The wires, &c. connected with
the register o, o, must all be covered with stout woodwork, so as to
be beyond the conductor's reach. These coverings are removed in the
Drawing to show the apparatus beneath. In order occasionally to get at
the apparatus under the steps, doors fitted with locks, such as that shewn
in the side D, D, may be made at convenient places. The action of
this machine is as follows:-A weight on the step B, B, is raised, if only
half the weight be placed on the step C, C. When the door is opened, and
the conductor's step pressed down, a person stepping on the step C, C,
does not affect the register; and a person stepping on the step B, B,
turns the ratchet wheel e' one cog, and moves the corresponding hand over
one division of the dial. When the door is open, and the conductor's' step not
pressed down, a person stepping on the step C, C; turns the ratchet wheel g¹
one cog, and moves the corresponding hand over one division of the dial.
When the door is open and. the conductor's step not pressed down, a person
stepping on the step B, B, turns the ratchet wheel e' two cogs, and moves the
corresponding hand over two divisions of the dial. When the door is shut
either step may be stepped upon without acting on the register. The object

page_text: of the arrangement is to compel the conductor to remain on his step while
letting passengers in, and to hiuder him from preventing the action of the
machine by standing on the step B, B, during the entrance or exit of passen-
gers; also to allow the steps to be used freely without danger of marking when
the door is shut.
I would have it understood that I disclaim the separate parts of this
mechanism, and that I also disclaim the plan of applying a simple hinged
step to move an ordinary register, that plan having been publicly employed
and found, for several reasons, ineffectual. I claim,-First, the plan of com-
bining two or more moveable steps by which the passengers mount. Secondly,
the employment of a moveable conductor's stand. Thirdly, the application of
the motion of the door to contribute to the desired result. Fourthly, the
mode of hanging the register so that its level may be varied, and the applica-
tion of such variation of its level to contribute to the required result. Fifthly,
the application of leather or other suitable material of similar flexibility to
cover the crevices between the moveable step or steps, and the parts thereto
adjacent, so as to prevent the insertion of wedges, &c. And I do not confine
inyself to the precise apparatus or materials above described, but claim the
sole right to apply to wheeled carriages any combination of mechanism which
shall embody all or any of these methods, or shall be essentially the same to
that here spécified.
Figures 3, 4, and 5 represent another apparatus intended to register the
number of persons conveyed in a públic carriage. Figure 4 represents the
back of an omnibus, the door of which carries a turnstile A, A, which revolves
on a pivot a. If the door is two feet four inches wide the length of each arm
of the turnstile should be eleven inches. B is a part of a bent iron rod
(partly concealed in this Figure, but shown in outline at B, Figure 7) fixed
firmly above and below to the door post. D, D, is an oblong box (which may
be made of stout iron plate), and which turns upon the rod B as its pivot, so
that it may take the position shown in Figure 3; or that shown in Figure 4.
This box may be one foot three and a half inches long, four inches deep, and
two inches and a half wide (inside measurement). It carries a turnstile E, E,
similar to A, A. The axle of this turnstile is shown at F, Figure 5, which
represents the box D, D, with its sides removed, and the interior mechanism
brought into view. To this axle is fixed a circular disc G, having four notches
which correspond in position to the four arms of the turnstile. Above the
disc G is a shoulder H, and above this shoulder the axle is squared. I is a
bolt, one end of which fits the notches in the circular disc G; the other end
is pressed towards G by the spring K. The bolt works in a slide L. It

page_text: carries an upright M, to which is attached a wire N, which again is connected
by a chain O to the axle or pivot B. This chain is so adjusted that when the
box D, D, passes from the position shewn in Figure 3 to that shewn at
Figure 4, it is wound half a turn round the axle B, so that the bolt I is drawn
out of the notch in the disc G, in which it has previously been, and suffers the
turnstile to revolve. When the box is turned in the opposite direction the
chain O is unwound, the bolt falls back into one of the notches in the disc G,
and the revolution of the turnstile is prevented. P, P, is an ordinary register,
containing a ratchet wheel moved. by a toothed sliding rod R, and having its
revolutions numbered by means of a train of wheels carrying hands over dials
in the usual way. The rod R has at the end an oblong hole, through which
the squared part of the axle F passes, as shewn at Figure 6, which is a plan
of the register P, P, and the rod R, and a section of the squared axle F.
The rod and axle are so adjusted that every quarter revolution of the axle
draws out the rod sufficiently to turn the ratchet wheel of the register one cog,
and to move the corresponding hand over one division of the dial. S, Figure 3,
is a door in the side of the box D, D, which allows the register to be inspected
or set. This door fastens with a lock and key. T, Figure 4, represents a
bent arm screwed to the door at one end and carrying at the other end
a tooth, which catches in a plate screwed to the top of the doorway, so as to
prevent the door from opening beyond a right angle. The conductor's stand
is wider than usual, as shewn at U, Figures 3 and 4.
.
I disclaim the Invention of the registering turnstile, but I claim its appli-
cation to public carriages; and I do not confine myself to the particular
method of applying it above described, though I consider that method to be
the most compact and convenient arrangement.
Figure 8 represents the back of an omnibus fitted with another apparatus,
intended to register the number of persons conveyed. A, B, C, D, is a bar
of iron bent twice at a right angle in such a manner that when a portion A, B,
is vertical the portion C, D, is horizontal, and vice versâ. The central portion
B, C, which is always horizontal, turns at C in a bearing fixed to the iron
plate E, which is screwed to the door post, and at the end bearing B in
another bearing supported by the bracket F, F. That part of B, C, which is
behind the plate is squared for the length of about one quarter of an inch.
G, G, is a register, having a ratchet wheel turned by the toothed sliding
rod H, and moving the hand of a dial. This ratchet wheel is connected with
a train of wheels moving the hands of other dials in the ordinary manner.
The measurement of each cog of the ratchet wheel at the base should equal
the difference between the side and the diagonal of the section of the square

page_text: portion of B, C. The teeth of the ratchet wheel and the tooth of the rod H
should be so turned that the ratchet wheel is moved by pushing in the rod H.
The register G, G, slides horizontally in a cavity I cut for that purpose in the
back of the omnibus. K is a strong spiral spring attached at one end to the
register G, G, and at the other to the end of the cavity I. This spring draws
the register G, G, away from the bar B, C. M, M, M, is a chain attached
above to the register G, G, and below to an arm N projecting from the
step O, P. This chain turns over a small grooved roller Q. It is lodged in
a groove R, cut in the back of the omnibus and below that in tube S. The
groove
R is covered in with wood, though represented open in the Drawing
to show the chain within. The step O, P, is hinged at the end P to the side T.
The play of the end o is limited above by two holdfasts U, U, below by the
bottom piece V. The play allowed should be one quarter of an inch. All the
crevices between this moveable step and the parts adjacent should be covered
with leather in the manner represented at K, K, Figure 1. W, X, is a
bent arm rivetted at the end ✗ to the bar C, D, and working at the
end W, which carries a tooth through the plate Y, which is screwed
to the door post. This bent arm and plate limit the motion of C, D,
to a quarter of a circle. Z is a similar bent arm screwed to the door, limit-
ing its motion to a quarter of a circle. a is a door opening upwards and
covering the register and adjoining apparatus when shut. It closes with a
lock and key. The action of this machine is as follows:-When the step O, P,
is not pressed down the bar A, B, C, D, may be turned backward and forward
without affecting the register. When the step O, P, is pressed down the
chain M, M, M, M, brings the end of the bar into contact with the squared
part of the bar B, C, so that every time the bar A, B, C, D, is turned the
ratchet wheel moves one cog, and the corresponding hand passes over one
division of the dial. The relative positions of these parts when the step is not
pressed down is shewn in Figure 9, in which K represents the spring;
G, G, the register; H, the sliding rod; and B, a section of the square part of
the axle. The section H is here seen at a distance from the rod H.
Figure 10 shews the change effected by pressing down the step. The
spring K is stretched, and the bar H comes into contact with the squared
portion B of the turning bar.
I do not confine myself to this particular combination of apparatus, but
claim the method of applying to the entrance of public carriages a material
obstacle or obstacles intercepting the passage, the moving of which, to permit
the passage of persons conveyed in the vehicle, is registered by a registering
apparatus.

page_text: Figure 11 represents the back of a public carriage fitted with another
apparatus intended to register the number of persons conveyed. A, A, is a
step moving on hinges at B, B. It is boxed in in a manner similar to that
shown in Figure 1; the side and front planks are removed to shew the
mechanism beneath. Its ascent is limited by the chains C, C, its descent by
the block D, so that it has a vertical play which may be about two inches:
E, E, is a strong steel spring, which renders a weight of about thirty stone
necessary to press the step A, A, down to the block D. F is an upright fixed
to the bottom plank G, G, and jointed above to one end of the lever H. To
the other end of the lever H is attached the chain or wire I, I, which is
lodged in a groove cut for the purpose in the back of the omnibus. This
chain or wire is attached above to two short chains (K) and (L,) which enter
the box M, M. (0) is a round iron rod screwed to the door, and having its
axis in a line with the axis of the hinges of the door. (P) and (Q) are two
chains attached to the rod O in such a manner that when the door is shut
they are wound a quarter turn round the rod (0), and when the door is
open they are unwound and slackened. The chains (P) and (Q) pass over
grooved wheels (R) and (S) into the box (M, M). This box has a door (T)
which closes with a lock and key. It is divided by a vertical partition into
two chambers.
The first chamber which appears on opening the door (T) is shewn
in a front view in Figure 12, and in a side view at (A, A), in Figure 13.
It contains a circular box (B, B), Figure 12, large enough to contain
a strip of paper two inches wide and several yards long, wound upon
a spindle D. The paper called Harwood's Patent Prepared Paper may
be advantageously employed for this purpose. The box (B, B,) has a
moveable cover, and the spindle (D) has a squared end, shewn at (w),
Figure 13, on which a handle may be placed, so that fresh paper may be
easily introduced from time to time. (E,E) are pins fixed in the partition
and supporting the box (B, B). (G, G.) are the rounded edges of a slit in
the box (B, B) through which the paper (C,C) passes. (H) and I are
rollers, between which the paper (C, C) passes. The roller H has fixed
bearings;. its axle. passes through the partition into the other chamber of the
box and carries a pinion (shewn at K, Figure 13), which is turned by a
spring with a train of wheels and fly in the ordinary manner, so that the
circumference of the roller H moves at the rate of about one sixteenth of an
inch in a second in the direction of the arrow (L). The bearings of the
roller (I) are in a crank-formed piece of metal N, O, which turns on a
pivot P, fixed to the partition of the box, and has a strong spiral spring (Q)

page_text: attached to its long arm (O). The action of this spring and crank bearing
is to squeeze the paper (C, C) between the rollers H and I, so that the roller
H, when turned by the mechanism contained in the chamber p, Fig. 13.
draws out the paper (C, C, C). R is a bar, turning above on a pivot (S)
fixed to this partition, and carrying below a sliding tube (T), in which is fixed
a pencil U, for which the kind called Harwood's Metallic Pencils may be
employed. This slide is drawn by a weight and chain (V, X) working over
the grooved roller Y, so that the point of the pencil is pressed against the
paper (C, C, C) which is supported against this pressure by a plate (Z). Fixed
to the partition (a, a, a,) is a chain attached above to the rod (0), as shewn at (0),
Figure 11). This chain passes over a grooved roller (6) turning on a pivot
affixed to the back of the omnibus over another grooved roller (c) turning on
a pivot fixed to the axle of the bar (R), and over another grooved roller (a)
attached to the framework which carries the sliding tube (T). The chain is
attached below to the end of the sliding tube (T). (e) and (g) represent
the top and bottom, (f) and (h) represent the sides of the box (M, M) in
Figure 13, which is a view of the box (M, M) in a vertical transverse section.
(i) represents the partition, (k) the door of the box, (l) its top, (m) its
bottom, and (n) its back; p is the compartment for the mechanism which
turns the pinion (K) of the roller (H). The capital letters indicate the same
parts as in Figure 12. (r) is a spring attached to the partition, and pressing
aside the bar (R). (8, 8, 8, s) is a chain turning over grooved rollers (t), (u),
and (v), attached above to the bar R, and below to the chain or wire (I, I),
Figure 11.
Figure 14 shows the mechanism by which the fly of the mechanism that
moves the roller (H) is stopped. (A, A) is a longitudinal section of the fly
turning on the pivot (B), of which (E) is one of the bearings. The dotted circlė
(D, D, D) represents the path of the circumference of the fly (A, A). E is a rod,
capable of sliding up and down in the slides (F,F). (G) is a branch projecting
from the rod (E). H is a spring pressing up the rod (E). (I) is a wire attached
to the top of the rod (E), and working in a slide (K). (N) is a spiral spring
attached below to the wire (I) and above to the chain (L), which passes over
the grooved roller (M), and is fastened to this rod o, shown also at (0),
Figure 11). (P) is a spiral spring, half as strong as the spring (N), and
twice as strong as the spring (H). R, R, R, is a chain attached above to
the spring (P), and below to the chain shewn at (I, I, I), Figure 11. The
action of this machine is as follows:-When the step (a, a), Figure 11, is
depressed, the lever (H) and the chains (I, I), (K), and (L) are drawn down,
the bolt (E, G), Figure 14, descends, the fly (A, A, Figure 14) is permitted

page_text: to turn, the mechanism draws the paper (C, C, C, Figures 12 and 13) between
the rollers (H) and (I), the bar R, Figure 13, is drawn aside, and the pencil
which it carries draws a line transversely on the paper. While the step is kept
down the paper is marked with a longitudinal line, and when it is suffered to rise
again, the pencil returns to its former position, tracing another cross line on the
paper. The figures or marks thus formed are shewn at (y), Figure 13;
each indicates a passage of a person over the step. When the door is shut
the chains (P) and (Q), Figure 11, are wound a quarter turn upon the rod o,
and the pencil (v) is withdrawn from the paper, the bolt (E, G) is drawn up,
and the machine stopped. The object of this arrangement is to produce
a registering apparatus for public carriages requiring only one moveable step,
the action of which is not interrupted by a person standing on it while
passengers mount or descend. The characteristics of this Invention are,-
First, the plan of supporting the step in such a manner that while depressed
by the weight of one person it is still capable of a further play or motion when
another person passes over it. Secondly, the plan of distributing the force
which acts on the register in such a manner that one portion of such force
produces a mark or trace by moving a pencil or other suitable instrument,
and another portion of such force brings the tracing instrument into contact
with a fresh portion of the surface designated to receive the traces every time
an additional mark is made. In the register, shewn at Figures 12 and 13,
the force applied to move the surface which receives the mark is obtained
from a spring and mechanism acting on a pinion, and the force which moves
the marking instrument is derived from the action of the step.
Figure 15 represents another register on the same principle, but in which
both these forces are derived from the action of the step. A, A, A, Figure 15,
is a ratchet wheel, which may have about twenty-four teeth to the inch. S, S, is
a circular piece of paper attached to the wheel A, A, A. B, B, is a toothed rod
pressed against the wheel A, A, A, by the spring D, sliding up and down in a
guide C, and jointed below to the bar E, which slides up and down in the s
guide b, and is drawn upward by the spring v. F is a chain attached below
to the chain I, I, Figure 11, and above to the bar E, to which it is drawn
down when the step A, A, Figure 11, is depressed. R is a rod turning on a
pivot at d, and carrying a pencil at e. This pencil is fixed in a slide and fitted
with apparatus similar to that shewn at S, T, U, V, Y, X, a, a, c, d,
Figure 12. T, T, in Figure 15, is a chain attached above to the rod R, and
below to a branch U projecting from the sliding bar E. When the bar E is
drawn down by pressure on the step, the chain T, T, depresses the rod R and
the pencil at e.marks the paper S, S, which at the same time is moved laterally

page_text: by the action of the toothed sliding rod B, on the wheel A, A, A. When the
pressure on the step is removed the rods R and B are raised by the springs
W and V, and a second line, forming an angle with the first, is drawn on the
paper; a series of these angles, as represented at X, is formed by the repetition
of this action. Each angle indicates the passage of a person over the step..
If the conductor is on the step while the passengers mount or descend, the
series of marks is made nearer to the centre of the paper, as shewn at Y.
The wheel A, A, A, is prevented from retrograding by the well known mecha-
nism represented at P. When the door is shut the chain Z, Z, removes the
point of the pencil from the paper by a contrivance similar to that mentioned
in the explanation of Figure 12, and the chain a, being wound a quarter of a
turn round the rod O, draws aside the sliding rod B, and disengages its teeth
from those of the wheel A, A, A, so that the action of the register is stopped.
I do not confine my claim to the particular form, arrangement, materials, nor
to the particular tracing instrument here specified, but claim the sole right of
applying to public carriages any modification of this registering apparatus, in
which force shall be distributed in the manner above defined, as constituting
the essential characteristic of the Invention.
Figures 16, 17, and 18 illustrate a certain improvement to the construction
of springs. Figure 17 represents the vertical section of a flexible metallic air
case possessing a certain amount of elasticity in virtue of the resilient force of
the elastic fluid within. A, A, is a circular piece of thin metal plate slightly
hollowed on the upper side. B, B, is a somewhat larger piece of metal plate,
similar form, hollowed on the under side. The edge of B, B, overlaps that of
A, A, as shewn at a, a, and the two are firmly soldered together at their
circumference so as to form an air-tight box. C, C, is the cavity of the box
full of common air or other suitable elastic fluid. D is a central eminence
on the upper side of the air box. E is a corresponding depression on the
under side. The eminence and depression are not required in cases where
one air box only is employed as a spring. When two or more air boxes are
combined to form a spring the eminence of each is received into the
depression of the contiguous one so as to maintain them in the relative
position required. A piece of thin leather is also interposed between each pair
of air boxes to prevent undue friction. These parts are shewn in Figure 18,
in which A, A, and B, B, are two air boxes fitted together, and (d, d) a piece
of leather interposed.
Figure 16 represents
convenient method of applying such air boxes to
form a carriage spring. A, A, A, is a series of twenty-four such metallic air

page_text: boxes fitted together in the manner above described. B, B, is a cross bar, to
which is rivetted a plate C, C, upon which the series of air boxes rest. The
cross bar B, B, is suspended by leather loops D, D, to the arms of an
iron K, K, which is bolted at L, L, to the axletree. M, M, is a plate
supporting the carriage, to which it is firmly fixed and resting upon the series
of air boxes. This plate is kept in its place by the rods N, N, to which it is
fastened by the nuts O, O. The rods N, N, slide freely through holes P, P,
in the cross bar B, B, and are attached below by nuts R, R, to the plates S, S.
T, T, are little arms of semicircular form attached to one of the air boxes
near the middle of the series, and loosely embracing the rods N, N, so as to
steady the series of air boxes and maintain it in an upright position. An air
column thus constructed and applied forms a light, cheap, durable, and elastic
carriage spring. Each air box should be of such a diameter as to present a
square inch of surface for every fifteen pounds it is required to support. The
thickness of the metal plate employed for an ordinary carriage spring may be
about No. 30. In order that each air box may in all seasons be well filled
with air it should be immersed in a freezing mixture after the two plates are
soldered together, and a hole previously made for the purpose in one of the
plates near the circumference should be quickly soldered up without entirely
withdrawing the air box from the freezing mixture.
And whereas springs have been constructed confining air in bladders and
bags of caoutchouc, leather, &c.; and whereas springs have also been constructed
by the method of confining air in a rigid cylinder within which a piston works;
I disclaim those methods of forming air springs, and restrict my claim to the
method of constructing springs by confining elastic fluid within metallic cases
possessing a degree of flexibility which enables them to contract beneath external
compression and to dilate again by the expansive force of the elastic fluid
within when the external compression is withdrawn; and in the employment
of such air cases I do not confine myself as to their number, form, or
arrangement, nor as to the metal of which they are made, nor as to the
frame in which they are placed, nor as to the purpose to which they are
applied, but I claim all suitable methods of performing the Invention
according to the definition herein-before set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Moses Poole, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of December, in the year of our
Loud One thousand night hundred and thirty ning
MOSES (L.s.) POOLE.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-seventh day of
December, in the year of our Lord 1839, the aforesaid Moses Poole, Esquire,
came before our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged
the Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and
specified, in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was
stamped according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.