Arrangement for Setting Free Draught-horses while Travelling.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Jan., 1896-Accepted, 22nd Feb., 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Arrangement for Setting Free Draught-horses while Travelling.
JACOB MARQUARDT Proprietor of an estate and of a brewery at Mammendorf
on the Isle of Fehmarn in Germany, 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:-
My invention relates to an arrangement for setting free draught-horses while
travelling, and the object of the same is to provide very efficacious, though simple,
means, by the use of which certain sad accidents hitherto met with carriages while
travelling, are entirely obviated, the new arrangement rendering it possible by
simply pulling a cord, provided for the purpose, to instantly disengage the traces
of draught-horses from the vehicle, in case of need.
On the accompanying drawings:
Figure 1 represents the front view of a swing-tree, provided with the new
arrangement;
Figure 2 is the bottom view of such a tree,
Figure 3 shows the top view of the same arrangement, applied to a horse-capstan.
Figure 4 is the side view of a part belonging to the tree of a capstan.
In Figures 1 and 2 the swing-tree is indicated by a.
Both the ends & of this
swing-tree are bent in such a manner, that they form open parts, that is to say, each
of them nearly takes the shape of a reversed U.
Not far from these bendings, two studs c are found at the bottom part of the
swing-tree, forming pivots for two straight levers d, and being provided with nuts e,
in order to prevent said levers from slipping by themselves. The shorter ends of
these levers d serve for hooking in links or rings, to which the traces are to be
attached. In order to dispense with separate fixing links f, these shorter ends of
the levers d must be made long enough to nearly close the U-shaped bendings
of the swing-tree. They only give way, when the longer parts of the levers d are
turned aside by considerable force, in which case the levers d take the position
shewn in Figure 2 by dotted lines, and the traces are then automatically
disconnected from the swing-tree.
The middle part of the swing-tree carries an arrangement for keeping the
levers d firmly in their normal or first position, and in case of need, for easily
disengaging them from this position.
This arrangement shows the following features:
On the top surface of the swing-tree, a plate-band g is loosely attached by two
pins h, which pass through two longitudinal openings i of the swing-tree and
project beneath the latter; here they are made use of as stops for the longer parts
of the levers d. Band g at one of its ends forms a loop or ring. At the swing-
tree are found two other stops k and k', which serve to the same purpose as the
projecting pins. A spring 1 being fixed at one of its ends to the upper surface
of the swing-tree and pressing with the other end upon plate-band g, keeps the
latter down, as long as it is not pulled upward by means of cord 9', which is
fastened to the loop of band y, and which may be handled by the coachman or any
other operator.
At the same moment as cord gl is pulled upward, the two pins h are lifted and
the longer parts of the levers d, losing their hold, give way to the pull of the
horses, which being harnessed to the shorter ends of the levers d theu cause the

page_text: latter to be turned round their pivots, until the links or rings f of the traces disengage
automatically, whereby the carriage is immediately stopped.
The new arrangement is put on and handled for operating purposes in the
following way:
First the links or rings f of the traces are put upon the shorter ends of the.
levers d, then the longer parts of the latter are turned round their pivots towards
the swing-tree-at the same time pulling upward cord g'-until they touch the
stops and k', when by releasing cord g', the pins h are caused by the pressure
of spring to project beneath the bottom surface of the swing-tree, and the
levers d being thus kept back by pins h, are now prevented from turning round
their pivots.
In case the arrangement is to be added to horse-capstans, only one lever dis
made use of with each tree.
In the Figures 3 and 4 the trees are indicated by 1, the straight lever, free to turn
round a pivot is lettered by d. By means of stud and nut this lever d is attached
to the tree exactly in the same manner as those in Figure 1; but in this case the
longer arm of lever d rests freely upon the tree, whilst the shorter arm of it
projects beyond the extremity of the tree.
For keeping lever d in its normal position and for rendering its disengagement
possible, an arm n, free to turn round a pivot, is provided at the back side of the
capstan-tree . This arm n has at one end an eye or a ring for attaching cord n',
and at its other end a stop or cam h for keeping the longer part of lever d in its
first position. As long as cord n' is not pulled, arm takes an upright position in
consequence of its weight, and lever d is maintained straight upon the capstan-tree
(see Figure 4); but in the same moment as the operator of the capstan pulls
cord n', arm
n is caused to take the position iudicated by dotted lines in
Figure 4, whereby stop or cam is turned down under the level of lever d; the
latter losing its hold, now gives way to the pull of the horse and turns on its pivot
until the trace disengages by itself from the shorter lever-end.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, 1 declare that what I
claim is:
1. An arrangement for setting free draught-horses while travelling, in which the
traces are attached to the shorter arms of turnable levers, the longer arms being
kept straight upon the swing-tree by a detachable device in such a manner that
this latter may easily be removed in case of need.
2. In an arrangement for setting free draught-horses while travelling the
application of turnable levers, held upon the swing-tree by detachable devices,
and of a cord, by which the latter may be instantly pulled off, substantially as
described.
3. The arrangement for setting free draught-borses while working, applied to
horse-capstans in such a manner, that only one straight lever is made use of with
each tree, and that it is handled by the operator of the capstan substantially in the
way described.
Dated this 15th day of January 1896.
HUGHES, ELI & HUGHES,
76 Chancery Lane, W.C., Agents for Applicant.