Improvements in Velocipedes.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 4th May, 1896
Complete Specification Left, 4th Mar., 1897-Accepted, 10th Apr., 1897
I, JAMES MELLING, of Dashwood House, New Broad Street, in the City of
London, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in bicycles and other velocipedes and
has for object to utilize the pressure of the body on the handles for assisting to
drive the machine.
In a suitable arrangement for carrying out my invention I hinge the handles to
the handle bar in such a manner as to allow of them being moved downwards to a
certain extent and I connect the said handles by suitable means such as a connecting
rod or rods to friction clutches, nipping pawls or cranks on the leading wheel or
wheels so that when my drop down handles are pressed downwards the clutches or
the like will act on the wheel so as to assist in driving it.
Springs are advantageously employed to return the handles to their normal
position.
It will be obvious that a machine provided with my improvements can be ridden
up inclines with greater facility than machines as heretofore constructed.
Dated the 4th day of May 1896.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Velocipedes.
I, JAMES MELLING, of Dashwood House, New Broad Street, in the City of
London, Engineer, 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 relates to improvements in bicycles and other velocipedes and has
for its object to utilize the hands for assisting to drive the machine by the
employment of auxiliary driving mechanism as hereinafter described.
In a suitable arrangement for carrying out my invention I pivot the handle bars
in such a manner as to allow of their oscillation and I connect the said handle bars
by suitable means, to friction clutches, nipping pawls, or cranks on the leading
wheel or wheels so that when my handles are oscillated the clutches or the like will
act on the wheel so as to assist in driving it.
Springs are advantageously employed to return the handles to their normal
position.
A machine provided with my improvements can be ridden up inclines with
greater facility than machines as heretofore constructed.
*Di 11

page_text: To enable my invention to be fully understood I will describe the same by
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :-
Figure 1 is an elevation of the front portion of a bicycle with my improvements
applied thereto :
Figure 2 is a sectional front elevation of the same :
Figure 3 is a section on the line 3-3 Figure 2 drawn to a larger scale than the
said figure:
Figure 4 is a side elevation of the front wheel hub having my clutch mechanism
applied and also drawn to an enlarged scale:
Figure 5 is a sectional plan of the same; and,
Figures 6 to 9 are views of details of the clutch mechanism hereinafter
described.
a is the frame of the bicycle and b is the front wheel fork or standard which is
arranged in the frame in the ordinary manner.
c is the handle bar which, as shewn in the drawing, is made in two parts, which
parts have fixed to them sleeves d, d journalled in a T-shaped socket e fixed to the
upper end of the front wheel fork b. The sleeves d, d are each provided on the
outer end with a crank arm f and on the inner and adjacent ends of the two sleeves
are flanges g, g each of which is provided with a projection h the two end faces of
which are designed to impinge against ledges i, i in the socket e to limit the
movements of the two parts of the handle bar in a manner which will be clearly
understood by reference to Figure 3 of the drawings. It will be understood that
with this arrangement the two parts of the handle bar can be raised and lowered
alternately.
In order to lock the two parts of the handle bar so that the handles may lie in
the same plane when desired I form in the adjacent surfaces of the parts h, h of the
two flanges g, y half holes j, j and in the socket e I form another hole k in such a
manner that when the two half holes are placed together beneath the hole kand a pin
is introduced into the holes the handles will be retained in the required position.
The clutch mechanism which I advantageously employ is arranged in duplicate
on the two sides of the front wheel hub and each set comprises a disc l, fixed to
the wheel hub m, a disc n (shewn in elevation and longitudinal section in Figures 6
and 7 respectively) adapted to rotate on the block o fixed to the wheel axle p and
designed to be adjusted to hold the antifriction balls in their proper working
position in the ball-race, and a sprocket wheel q also mounted so as to rotate on the
block o and having pivoted to it a series of gripping pawls one of which is shewn
detached in elevation and plan in Figures 8 and 9 respectively. The said pawls
although carried by the sprocket wheel 9 are arranged between the discs and n
the bosses s,s of the said pawls projecting through apertures t, t formed in the
disc n and having their shauks extending through slots u, u formed in a flange
around the disc n.
With this arrangement it will be obvious that if, when the disc n is stationary,
rotary motion is imparted to the sprocket wheel q in the direction of the arrow
Figure 4, the pawls r, will be pulled on to the periphery of the disc and grip
against the same so that as the rotary movement of the said sprocket wheel q is
continued, motion will be imparted to the wheel hub. The disc n only remains
stationary until the pawls come into contact with the disc when the said disc
moves with the sprocket wheel g, the friction between the said disc n and the
block o being sufficient to prevent it from rotating when the pawls are being
applied.
Rotary motion is imparted to the sprocket wheels q, q from the two handles by
means of a chain v connected at its two ends to rods w, w attached to the
cranks, the said chain passing from one rod to the other under one sprocket
wheel then over an adjustable guide pulley carried on a bracket on the front fork
and thence down and under the other sprocket wheel q. With this arrangement as
one handle c is pulled up by the rider the other handle e will be depressed so that
the two sets of clutch mechanism will be alternately operated, one set gripping

page_text: its disc whilst the pawls of the other set are moving back ready for the next
grip.
In order to keep the chain taut upon the sprocket wheels I arrange in conjunc
tion with the crank arms f,f springs y, y which normally tend to raise the said
handles.
It will be understood that when the handle bars are in the same plane, as herein-
before described, the clutch mechanism will not offer any impediment to the
movement of the machine under ordinary conditions.
Although I have described the two sets of clutch mechanism as arranged to be
operated alternately they may if desired be arranged to operate simultaneously,
that is to say, both gripping together and both moving back together, in this case
the handle bar is made in one piece and instead of employing a single chain
passing around the guide pulley I employ separate chains for the two sets of
clutch mechanism.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In a velocipede the combination with handle bars adapted to oscillate in the
head of the machine, of clutch mechanism arranged in conjunction with the front
wheel hub and connected with the handle bars in such a manner that the movement
of the said handle bars can be imparted to the front wheel through the said clutch
mechanism, substantially as described.
2. In a velocipede wherein the motion of the handle bars is communicated to the
front wheel through the medium of clutch mechanism dividing the said handle bars
and arranging the two parts thereof in connection with two separate sets of clutch
mechanism in such a manner that whilst one set is driving the other set is moving
back, substantially as described.
3. The combination with a velocipede of auxiliary driving mechanism consisting
of the parts constructed and combined substantially in the manner hereinbefore
described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
1 1007
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.