IMPROVEMENTS IN DRIVING GEAR APPLICABLE TO TRICYCLES AND OTHER VELOCIPEDES
Year: 1884

page_text: I, WILLIAM HERBERT HOCKLEY of 40 Muntz Street, Small Heath, Birmingham,
in the County of Warwick, Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of my
invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN DRIVING GEAR APPLICABLE TO TRICYCLES AND
OTHER VELOCIPEDES " to be as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements in driving gear applicable to tricycles and
other velocipedes and more especially to that class of tricycle known as the
Coventry Rotary" described in the Patent granted to James Starley Jun' and
John Kemp Starley and bearing date November 18th 1876, N° 4478.
The object of my invention is to provide means whereby the power applied to
the treadles can be transmitted to one or both of the small steering wheels as well
as to the large or driving wheel. By transmitting power to one or both of the
Sinall or steering. wheels steeper inclines can be ascended than when, as is now the
case, power is applied to the large or driving wheel only.
I will describe my invention as applied to transmit power to either the front or
back steering wheel of such tricycles: but sometimes I apply it to transmit power
to both the front and back steering wheels. In carrying my invention into practice
I provide a hollow shaft of metal and support it by bearings attached to that side
of the frame on which the steering wheels are situate. The said hollow shaft is
placed preferably in a line connecting the driving wheel and the steering wheel
axles, and receives rotary motion from the driving wheel axle by means of a pair
of bevel wheels. Between the said bevel wheels and the large or driving wheel I
provide any arrangement of well known "differential" gearing. The "differential "”
gearing allows the bevel wheels to rotate either slower or faster than the large or
driving wheel when the tricycle is not running in a straight line.
Sliding within the said hollow shaft and projecting from that end thereof which
is towards the steering wheel to which power is to be transmitted I provide a
sliding shaft which I will call A. Shaft A has at its end an ordinary "universal
joint in connection with a rod which 1 will call B. The rod B has a second

page_text: "universal" joint at its opposite end and is connected thereby to a shaft which I
will call C. Shaft C rotates in bearings attached preferably to the mud guard of
the steering wheel. Rotary motion is transmitted from shaft C to the steering
wheel by means of a pair of bevel wheels, one of which forms part of the steering
wheel hub.
The proportion of the said bevel wheels is such that the speed of the periphery
of the small or steering wheel is the same as that of the large or driving wheel.
The above described arrangement of mechanism will act whether the tricyclo is
running in a straight line or around a curve.
Dated this 16th day of January 1884

page_text: I, WILLIAM HERBERT HOCKLEY, of 40, Muntz Street, Small Heath, Birmingham,
in the County of Warwick, Machinist, do hereby declaro the nature of my
invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN DRIVING GEAR APPLICABLE TO TRICYCLES AND
OTHER VELOCIPEDES and in what manner the same is to be performed, to bo
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
My invention relates to improvements in driving gear applicable to tricycles and
other velocipedes and more especially to that class of tricycle known as the
Coventry Rotary" described in the Patent granted to James Starley Jun* and
John Kemp Starley and bearing date November 18th 1876, N° 4478.
ff
The object of my invention is to provide means whereby the power applied to
the treadles can be transmitted to one or both of the small steering wheels as well
as to the large or driving wheel. By transmitting power to one or both of the
small or steering wheels steeper inclines can be ascended than when, as is now the
case, power is applied to the large or driving wheel only.
I will describe my invention as applied to transmit power to either the front or
back steering wheel of such tricycles; but sometimes I apply it to transmit power
to both the front and back steering wheels. In carrying my invention into practice
I provide a hollow shaft of metal and support it by bearings attached to that side
of the frame on which the steering wheels are situate. The said hollow shaft is
placed preferably in a line connecting the driving wheel and the steering wheel
axles, and receives rotary motion from the driving wheel axlo by means of a pair
of bevel wheels. Between the said bevel wheels and the large or driving wheel I
provide any arrangement of well known "differential" gearing. The "differential'
gearing allows the bevel wheels to rotate either slower or faster than the largo or
driving wheel when the tricycle is not running in a straight line.
"
Sliding within the said hollow shaft and projecting from that end thereof which
is towards the steering wheel to which power is to be transmitted I provide a
sliding shaft which I will call A. Shaft A has at its end an ordinary " universal "
joint in connection with a rod which I will call B. The rod B has a second
"universal "joint at its opposito end and is connected thereby to a shaft which I
will call C. Shaft C rotates in bearings attached preferably to the mud guard of
the steering wheel. Rotary motion is transmitted from shaft C to the steering
wheel by means of a pair of bevel wheels, one of which forms part of the hub of
steering wheel.
The proportion of the said bevel wheels is such that the speed of the periphery
of the small or steering wheel is the same as that of the large or driving wheel.
The above described arrangement of mechanism will act whether the tricycle is
running in a straight line or around a curve.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to tho accompanying sheet of
drawings the manner in which my invention may be performed; the same letters
of reference on the drawings indicate corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation and Figure 2 in front elevation such parts
of a "Rotary" tricyclo as are necessary to shew the driving gear provided for the
front steering wheel according to my invention. Figure 3 is an enlarged view in
detail of the said driving gear and Figures 4 and 5 represent details of shaft A and
the "universal" joints respectively.
D is the driving wheel, E is the front steering wheel, F is the back steering
wheel and G the frame of the tricycle. H is a hollow shaft of metal supported by

page_text: bearings and attached to the frame C. 11, 12 are a pair of bevel wheels
fixed respectively to the driving wheel axle and the hollow shaft H. The
parts d, of the driving wheel axle are connected together by any well known
arrangement of "differential" gearing at K. Sliding within the hollow shaft H
I provide a sliding shaft A provided with a feather a' so that the two shafts H
and A will rotate together.
Shaft A is forked at the end a² to form with the central piece l', having
four screws 12, and the forked end b¹ of the rod B, a "universal" joint. At the
other end of the rod B is a similar "universal" joint to connect it to shaft C.
Shaft C rotates in a bearing c¹ attached to the mud guard e¹ and in a bearing c².
formning part of the fork e. M and N are a pair of bevel wheels fixed to the
shaft C and to, or forming part with, the hub of the steering wheel E, respectively.
It will be seen that by means of the said bevel wheels, shafts and "universal" joints
power is transmitted from the driving wheel axle to the steering wheel and that
the said steering wheel is free to act as heretofore.
When my invention is applied to the steering wheel or wheels of velocipedes
other than that illustrated such for instance as three track tricycles, sociables or
tandems, my driving gear is substantially the same as herein described and
illustrated for a "Rotary" tricycle such alterations in the parts only being made as
are necessary to adapt them to the particular velocipede to which they are to be
applied.
I wish it to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise details as
herein described and illustrated as the same may be varied without departing from
the nature of my invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the samo is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
In tricycles and other velocipedes (except bicycles) the application of means
whereby power may be transmitted from the driving wheel axle to the steering
wheel or wheels substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in my
drawings.