IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS FOR PRODUCING ROTARY AND RECTILINEAR MOTION, AND ALSO FOR RETARDING OR STOPPING ROTARY MOTION
Year: 1880

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by John Frearson at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 18th December 1880.
JOHN FREARSON, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Mechanical
Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS FOR PRODUCING ROTARY AND
RECTILINEAR MOTION, AND ALSO FOR RETARDING OR STOPPING ROTARY MOTION."
One part of my Invention has for its object the production of rotary motion
without the use of the ordinary rotating crank, by which I obtain important
advantages; for instance, the length of the throw of a rotary crank is limited in a
treadle machine, such as a lathe, sewing machine, tricycle, or bicycle to the move-
ment of the foot, and the foot is confined to and must accompany the movement of
the crank. But my foot or hand lever may be operated conveniently if of several
times the length of an ordinary rotary crank of a treadle machine.
Again, the foot travels with an ordinary crank without accomplishing any
useful work for more than half of every revolution, and the maximum leverage and
power is only obtained during a fractional portion of the remaining travel of the
crank.
But my foot or hand lever may be operated several times during each revolution
with either short or long strokes to suit the convenience of the operator, and the
full leverage and power is always available.
Further, a novice has often considerable difficulty in learning to treadle a crank,
and he is some time before he obtains a maximum amount of benefit, but with my
machine a novice is at once at home, however singular his action may be, and this
is simply because my new motion is not confined to length of stroke.
I will explain an arrangement and combination of parts as applied to give
circular motion to a shaft or pulley.
We will suppose the pulley with its nave securely keyed upon the shaft. Upon
this nave I fit loosely a boss, on the inner end of which there are three or other
number of projections, the outer parts being by preference curved something like
the teeth of a ratchet wheel or excentric to the circle of the shaft. On the other
end of the boss I secure a disc by means of screws or a key. Upon this boss
between its projections and its disc I fix loosely a ring and flange. The three or
other number of inclined projections are between the spokes or plate of the pulley
CD...
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page_text: and the flange on the loose ring. The face of the ring may be in a line with the
projecting edge of the rim of the pulley, and the inclined projections may be the
same width also as this projecting rim; thus when they are brought together there
is a space left in which I pivot three or other number of arms; one end of each
arm is curved to suit the inner circumference of the projecting edge of the rim of
the pulley, and the other end of each arm is made to agree with the inclined
projections on the boss. Upon the disc between its boss and periphery I fix a pivot
on which is a lever which is on a radial line or thereabouts with the apparatus
when not in action. Also upon the disc above the fulcrum pivot I fix a snug and
adjusting screw, its point coming in contact with the lever, and below the fulcrum
pivot on the loose ring I have an adjustable projection which comes in contact
with the lower end of the said lever. This lever acts on the first and second
principle. By the reciprocating action of the lever on the disc the apparatus is
locked and unlocked. It is locked when the lever is moved in the direction of the
rotary motion and unlocked when it is brought to a stand, or when it is moved in
the contrary direction to the rotary motion.
When the apparatus is used for propelling machines, instead of a crank and
treadle I attach a band of suitable material at the middle of its length to the lever.
Near the periphery of the disc are a series of small rollers over which the band
passes, and at a convenient distance from this shaft on which the apparatus is fixed
is a way-shaft carrying the treadle lever and a cross bar, to each end of which the
band is attached.
The action of the apparatus would be as follows:-The treadle being pressed
causes the band to slide slightly around the disc over the small rollers, and of
course taking with it the lever, which causes its lower end to press against the
adjusting arrangement on the loose ring.
Thus the boss with its inclined projections is caused to move in the direction of
the rotary motion, and the loose ring with its arms is caused to meet the rotary
motion, and thus the curved incline projections on the boss are caused to press
against the under sides of the arms on the loose ring, which moves them out and
presses them against the inner circumference of the pulley and completely locks
the apparatus together, therefore with this firm grip the foot produces the rotary
motion; the greater the resistance the more powerful is the grip. Besides, as the
boss and projections move with the rotary motion and the ring and arms meet
the rotary motion, the loss of motion is almost imperceptible. The lever may
be extended so that the operator may work the machines wholly or in part by
hand,
Immediately the foot is removed the pressure is withdrawn from the arms and
the grip is released.
On the return motion springs may press upon the arms to prevent contact with
the rim, or, as I prefer, counter arms to the arms on the ring and counter inclines on
the boss.
When the apparatus or movement is applied to a bicycle, I dispense with the
pulley and nave, and turn a recess on each side of the nave of the wheel to be
driven, and the boss and disc are made to fit loosely on the axle.
I
When applied to sewing and other machines propelled by a crank,
vary the
parts to suit the particular case, generally applying two of the movements to each
machine, one for each foot or hand.
I also use this apparatus to retard or to stop rotary motion by adding a catch
which, at the will of the operator, is made to enter a notch in the disc or ring. Or
I secure to the disc or ring a radial arm, and by applying the said catch or the
hand to the said radial arm the disc and the ring are forced apart from each other,
and in proportion to the pressure applied against the catch, or the hand to the
lever against the pressure of the foot, the rotary motion is retarded or completely
stopped.
In applying the apparatus to railway or other similar carriages for the purpose
of retarding or stopping them, I prefer to attach to the inner side of the axle

page_text: bearing concentric to the axle, the boss, and disc, and the loose ring and flange
and the arms fitting truly the inner surface of the tyre. To the ring and flange I
fix a radial arm and a jointed connecting rod which is actuated by a lever and
screw, or otherwise, or as ordinary brakes are worked, either by hand or
automatically. Thus in stopping or retarding the motion of a wheel, the arms on
the flange of the ring are forced in the contrary direction to the wheels' rotary
motion, and the boss with its inclines and disc being a stationary fixture to the
axle bearing the apparatus is completely locked and unlocked by forcing the ring
and flange in the direction of the rotary motion of the wheel; or the projections
and arms may be reversed, which would make the apparatus still more effective in
stopping the motion. The arms may be made of brass, gun metal, malleable cast
iron, wrought iron, or steel, or other suitable material, such, for instance, as
lignum-vitae or other wood or substances secured to the arms. These surfaces
being well lubricated and the inner part of the wheel or tyre turned smooth, there
would be but little wear as compared with ordinary blocks rubbing against the
outside of a wheel.
To apply the apparatus to turret clocks and similar purposes where a ratchet
and paul are used, I firmly fix the pulley or nave or other equivalent to the part
to which such paul is usually fixed, but concentrically with the axle on which the
driven works rotate. The radial arm or lever on the disc passes between two studs
or snugs on the part of the clock to be moved, and when the clock or other
machine is being wound up the apparatus is unlocked, and the instant the hand is
taken off the windlass the apparatus is completely locked.
I also use the said apparatus for producing the rectilinear motion of various
materials, as in cases of feeding them into machines intermittently in a rectilinear
direction. In these cases I very finely flute or cut grooves across the periphery of
the pulley, leaving fine teeth to operate under the material to be fed, and over the
top of the material to be fed is a vertical slide containing a small roller or smooth
foot actuated by a spring sufficiently strong to press the material against the teeth
on the periphery of the pulley, and by the reciprocating action of the lever on the
disc any convenient length of feed may be accurately produced in a rectilinear line
by the said movement.
Rotary motion may be produced according to my Invention by various modifi-
cations of parts and forms, but in all there exists the principal feature of the
double action of the inclines on the boss, and the arms on the flange or the double
action of the lever which locks and unlocks the apparatus.
The apparatus used as a brake has advantages over the ordinary brake, and over
the ratchet wheel and paul. The arms being equally distributed around the flange
on the ring, their pressure will also be equally distributed against the inner
projection or tyre of any wheel or other mechanism to which the apparatus may
be attached. The working is also practically noiseless as compared with brakes
and ratchet wheels.
I will now describe another form of my improvements for producing circular
motion, which is however not so free from disadvantages as the former, as there is
considerable backlash, and it is not suitable for a brake. It would answer admirably
for a brace.
In this case I use a ratchet wheel with circular sides, which are secured together
outside the periphery of the ratchet wheel, and between which I hang a handle, the
upper part when not in action being in a radial line (or thereabouts) with the
apparatus; indeed its form is something like the letter L, the termination fitting in
the teeth of the ratchet wheel. I provide a suitable stop for the handle when out
of gear. A ring of thin sheet metal is loosely fitted on the periphery of the two
circular sides, and through a hole in this the handle passes loosely. A band of
suitable material is secured to the handle, and the apparatus may then be worked
by the foot or hand, as previously described.
Another modification for producing rectilinear motion intermittently for feeding
metals or other materials into machines is as follows:-Upon the top side of the

page_text: periphery slide for producing rectilinear motion intermittently is a boss with a
cylinderical hole at right angles to the slide; in this hole are two pieces of steel
loosely fitted, between which and through the boss the material is to be fed. In
the top of the said boss is an adjusting screw to adjust the top piece of steel. These
pieces of steel meet face to face with the feeding line, the lower one protruding
beyond the under side of the slide. On the under side of the slide are two pro-
jecting snugs, one in a line with the steel pieces, and one at the end of the slide;
on the latter there is a lever pivoted which, when out of action, is at right angles
(or thereabouts) to the said slide, and this lever has two studs and arms inclined
in opposite directions to each other. The opposite end of each arm to its stud
passes through a slot in the snug on a line with the steel pieces. The lower end of
this snug has an adjusting screw and saddle for the purpose of regulating the pinch
of the material and the wear of the parts. The slide is pressed on one side by
means of a spring to ensure a grip.
The action of this modification is as follows:-The lever being pressed at its
lower end, the lower arm is forced through the slot in a line with the feed, and the
upper arm is drawn in the opposite direction to the feed, and as the two inclines
meet each other, the lower arm is pressed against the saddle on the adjusting
screw, and the upper arm is caused to rise and press against the protruding
cylindrical piece, and against the material to be fed, and when the grip is effected,
the slide with the material between the steel pieces is made to advance in a
rectilinear direction, and on the return motion of the lever, the two inclines of the
said arms recede, and the grip is released, and the slide returns for another length.
Or the upper arm of the lever may be actuated, and the action of the two inclines
will be reversed.