AN IMPROVED FRICTION COUPLING FOR THE TRANSMISSION OF MOTIVE POWER
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Francis Wrigley, of the Long Island Iron Works,
Carlisle, in the County of Cumberland, Engineer, for the Invention of
"AN IMPROVED FRICTION COUPLING FOR THE TRANSMISSION OF MOTIVE
POWER."
Sealed the 20th March 1857, and dated the 23rd September 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Francis Wrigley at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
23rd September 1856.
I, FRANCIS WRIGLEY, of the Long Island Iron Works, Carlisle, in the
County of Cumberland, Engineer, 'do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "AN IMPROVED FRICTION COUPLING FOR THE TRANSMISSION OF
MOTIVE POWER," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of a novel arrangement of powerful levers directly
applied, either internally or externally, to a frictional surface in motion, by
which means it is brought gradually into contact with another and similar
surface at rest, and these held by the said levers without any orther retaining
force, and thereby made capable of transmitting any amount of power from
the prime mover to any shafting, gearing, or other machinery requiring to be
alternately set in motion and remain at rest. This is accomplished without
altering the speed of such prime mover, and without shock or concussion to
any part of the said shafting, gearing, or other machinery.
This Invention is carried into effect by having a circular rim of iron or

page_text: other suitable metal, cast on or otherwise fixed to the side or top of a driving
wheel or drum, revolving free upon a shaft, which is intended to revolve or not,
as may be required. Upon this shaft there is a driving plate keyed on fast,
with suitable arrangements for receiving two or more plates, with concentric
segmental rings sliding upon the face of the driving plate, either in slides or
grooves, or upon stud bolts fixed to such plate. The surfaces of the rims
which are intended to be brought into contact are made true in a lathe, or
covered with a facing of metal, leather, wood, or properly prepared caoutchouc,
securely fixed upon them, and afterwards made true. Suitable arrangements
are made in the sliding plates to receive steel or case-hardened blocks with an
adjusting movement. These blocks receive the ends of levers, either in pairs
or single. If the levers are in pairs, they are coupled in the centre or at any
other convenient place, and form what is commonly known as a knuckle joint.
These are connected by rods and joints to a sliding box, which moves upon two
fast keys or feathers let into the shaft. This sliding box is moved by a suitable
lever and connexions working upon a fixed fulcrum; and to put the shafting,
gearing, or other machinery (previously at rest) in motion, the sliding box is
gradually moved forward upon the shaft by its lever towards the driving
plate, thereby acting upon the levers on the sliding plates, by which means
the rims or frictional surfaces of the sliding plates are brought into powerful
and gradual contact with the circular rim or frictional surface on the driving
wheel or drum, and there firmly held in their proper working position without
any additional appliances.
The shafting, gearing, or other machinery is brought again to a state of rest
by reversing the previously described action of the sliding box, and thereby
separating the frictional surfaces.
By a proper and proportionate adaptation of these frictional surfaces and
levers any amount of power may, with ease and economy, be transmitted
without the least concussion to any portion of the shafting, gearing, or other
machinery at the moment of starting or stopping.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Francis Wrigley in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
23rd March 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FRANCIS
WRIGLEY, of Long Island Iron Works, Carlisle, in the County of Cumberland, 3
Engineer, send greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Ier heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Francis Wrigley, Her especial license that I, the said Francis
Wrigley, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Francis Wrigley, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter
during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "AN IMPROVED
FRICTION COUPLING FOR THE TRANSMISSION OF MOTIVE POWER," upon the condition,
amongst others, that I, the said Francis Wrigley, by an instrument in writing
under my hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the motion
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six
calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Francis Wrigley, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement and accompanying Drawings (that is to say):-
This Invention consists in the novel arrangement of powerful levers directly
applied, either internally or externally, to a frictional surface in motion, by
which means it is brought gradually into contact within another and similar
surface at rest, and thus held by the said levers without any other retaining
force, and thereby made capable of transmitting any amount of power from
the prime mover to any shafting, gearing, or other machinery requiring to be
alternately set in motion or remain at rest. This is accomplished without
altering the speed of such prime motion, and without shock or concussion to
any part of the said shafting, gearing, or other machinery.
This Invention is practically carried out by having a circular rim of iron or
other metal cast on or afterwards fixed to the side or top of a driving wheel
or drum, revolving upon a shaft, which is intended to revolve or not, as may
be required. Upon this shaft there is keyed a driving plate, with suitable
arrangements for receiving two or more plates, with concentric metal rings
sliding upon the face of the driving plate, either in slides or grooves, or upon
bolts fixed to such plate. The surfaces of the rims which are intended to be
brought into contact are made true, and covered with a facing of metal,

page_text: leather, wood, or properly prepared caoutchouc securely fixed upon them, and
afterwards made true. Suitable arrangements are made in the sliding plates
to receive steel or case-hardened blocks with an adjusting movement; these
blocks receive the ends of levers, either in pairs or single. If the levers are
in pairs, they are coupled in the centre or at any other convenient place, and
form what is commonly known as a "knuckle joint." They are connnected
by joints and pins to a sliding box, which moves upon two fast keys or feathers
let into the shaft; this sliding box is moved by a suitable lever and connec
tions working upon a fixed fulcrum; and to put the shafting, geering, or other
machinery previously at rest in motion, the sliding box is gradually moved
forward upon the shaft by its lever towards the driving plate, thereby acting
upon the double levers upon the sliding plates, by which means the rims or
fractional surfaces of the sliding plates are brought into powerful and gradual
contact with the circular rim or frictional surface on the driving wheel or
drum, and there firmly held in their proper working position without any
additional appliances.
The shafting, geering, or other machinery is brought again to a state of rest
by reversing the previously described action of the sliding box, and thereby
separating the frictional surfaces. By a proper and proportionate adaptation of
the surfaces and levers any amount of power may, with ease and economy, be
transmitted without any concussion to any portion of the shafting, geering, or
other machinery at the moment of starting or stopping.
In order that my Invention may be better understood and explained in
detail, I have hereunto attached a Sheet of Drawings, made upon a scale of
about two inches and a quarter to a foot, and having similar letters of refer-
ence marked upon corresponding parts of the apparatus in both the Figures
illustrated.
Fig. 1 is a front elevation, shewing the plates for exerting friction upon the
metallic ring; Fig. 2 is a sectional view, taken through the centre of the
coupling, shewing the powerful levers, and the method of attaching them at
their extremities to the sliding boxes, and near their centres to the long lever
by means of the connecting link. In Fig. 1, a, a, is the shaft, upon which
(when at rest) revolves the bevil wheel l, or other driving wheel or drum, and
attached to which is the metallic rim c; d, d, are the slots, within which the
frictional surface plates e, e, slide, and which are brought into contact with the
rim c by the levers f, f, actuated by the lever g, through the connecting link h
and the grooved boss i, which is keyed and slides on the shaft a.
The action of the various parts will be more readily understood upon reference
to the Drawings and the following description thereof:-Supposing the driving

page_text: wheel to be at rest, and is required to impart an intermittent motion thereto,
that is, to stop or start the said wheel at intervals; the wheel is not secured upon
the shaft, but fits loosely thereupon, the apparatus for coupling the wheel with
the driving power being firmly secured upon and revolving with the said driving
shaft. The lever g is moved forward, either by screw power or otherwise,
which causes the boss i to slide along the shaft a, and by means of the link h
to press the jointed front or centre of the levers f. f, into a line with their
extreme centres; this has the effect of extending the revolving frictional
surfaces e, e, in the boxes d, d, bringing their surfaces into contact with the
rim c, and thus imparting motion thereto by the friction created between the
said surfaces and the rim, and consequently to the wheel desired to be driven.
It will be evident that the wheel may be disconnected from the driving power
by reversing this action and withdrawing the fractional surfaces from the
rim.
Having now described the nature and object of my said Invention, together
with the manner of performing the same, I would remark, in conclusion, that
I claim,-
First, the novel application, employment, and use of the jointed levers f, f,
for the purpose of forcing and retaining the frictional surfaces in contact with
the metallic ring, constituting my improved friction coupling for transmitting
rotatory motion to wheels, drums, &c.
And, secondly, in the general construction, arrangement, and combination, of
the said apparatus, as herein-before described, set forth and fully exhibited in
the accompanying Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said Francis Wrigley, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of March, in the year of our
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
FRANCIS WRIGLEY. (L.S.)