Improvements in Merry-go-rounds or Roundabouts.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Aug., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 5th June, 1895-Accepted, 6th July, 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Merry-go-rounds or Roundabouts.
I THOMAS CLAYTON of 2 Charles Street Crewe in the County of Chester
Mechanic do hereby declare the nature of my invention to be as follows:-
--
This invention consists of a 16
merry-go-round" or "roundabout" made with cars
in the form of rowing boats suitably hung from, or otherwise supported by, a frame
rotating upon a fixed vertical pivot or pole, and running upon bowls or balls upon
a central circular race or platform fixed upon the said pivot or pole beneath the
boss of the said frame.
The boats are provided with suitable means for keeping them in their places,
and preventing them from swaying, and they are fitted with one or more pairs of
levers, with handles similar to those of ordinary oars, or otherwise suitably
formed.
Each pair of these oar levers is suitably connected by rods, levers, or other con-
venient means to a lever provided with a ratchet or pawl, which acts upon a ratchet
wheel on the outer end of a radially mounted shaft, and at the inner end of this
shaft is keyed a suitable toothed pinion, gearing with a circular rack fixed upon the
above named vertical pivot or pole.
Other equivalent means may be adopted for rotating these radial shafts by
means of the oar levers if preferred.
The said radial shafts are all carried in suitable bearings upon the rotating
frame, and thus as the oar-levers are reciprocated by one or more of the occupants
of the boats, the ratchet wheels (or their equivalents) are rotated and the pinions
caused to revolve and move along upon the circular rack and carry the frame and
the boats around.
This merry-go-round or roundabout is therefore worked by a kind of rowing
motion by the occupants of the cars.
Dated this 6th day of August 1894.
GEO. DAVIES & SON,
4, St. Ann's Square, Manchester, Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Merry-go-rounds or Roundabouts.
I, THOMAS CLAYTON, of 2, Charles Street, Crewe, in the County of Chester,
Mechanic, 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 " merry-go-rounds or "roundabouts" in which cars
are used for carrying the riders; such cars resembling row-boats provided with
means for enabling them to be propelled by the occupants by a rowing motion;
the boat-like cars being suitably hung from, or otherwise carried by, a frame or
Q11

page_text: platform rotating about a fixed vertical pivot or pole, said frame or platform
running upon wheels or balls, in a central or circumferential track.
In the accompanying drawings, which serve to illustrate the mode of carrying
my invention into effect, Fig. 1 represents in side elevation a car in the form of
a boat provided with my improved means whereby the same may be propelled by
the occupant or occupants around a central pivot or pole; Fig. 2 being a
corresponding plan. Six or any other convenient number of these boats may
be combined to form the roundabout, but, as each is a repetition of the other,
I have confined the drawings to the illustration of one boat and its means of
propulsion.
Figs. 3 and 4 are detached views, on an enlarged scale, of the rowlocks:
Figs. 5 and 6 being detached views, also drawn to a larger scale, illustrating the
joint employed for coupling the sculls to the hell-crank levers.
The frame from which the series of boats may be suspended is of the usual con-
struction, and has therefore been omitted from the drawings. The boat A may be
retained in position and prevented from swaying by any suitable means, and be
fitted with one or more pairs of levers B B, having handles similar to those of an
ordinary scull. Each scull or lever B is secured by means of a hinged joint to
a rowlock C which is capable of rotation in a socket D, the latter being attached
to the gunwale of the boat by the bracket d. The sculls B, B are each furnished
with a strap F, E, with which is combined a joint F, F, capable of movement in
two directions at right angles to each other. To each strap is connected a rod G,
which serves to communicate motion from the sculls B, B to the bell-crank
levers H, H fixed on the transverse shaft 1. By means of the connecting rod i and
ratchet-lever L intermittent rotative motion is imparted to the radial shaft K.
The ratchet-lever L, which may be extended beyond its pivot and counterbalanced
as shewn, carries a pawl which acts upon a ratchet wheel m fast on the outer
end of the radial shaft K. At the inner end of this shaft is keyed a bevel pinion m³,
meshing with a stationary bevel wheel M rigidly secured to the central pivot or
pole N. The rods G G and ratchet-lever L may be connected with the bell-crank
levers H H by double joints, as shown at F (Figs. 5 and 6).
Although in the present design I have shewn connecting rods and bell-crank
levers for communicating motion from the sculls B B, and a ratchet and pawl for
converting the same into rotative motion as regards the shaft K, it will be obvious
that other mechanical means may be employed without departing from the principle
of the invention.
The radial shaft K may be carried in suitable bearings (not shown) upon the
rotating frame. Upon the sculls or levers B B being operated by the occupant
of the boat, the ratchet wheel is rotated, thereby causing the radial shaft K to
revolve, and, by means of the bevel pinion m', to travel round the stationary
bevel wheel M, the frame and the buat being carried round in unison.
It will therefore be seen that the improved "roundabout" is operated by the
occupants of the cars or boats, and that it affords an exercise resembling that of
rowing.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I claim :-
1. A merry-go-round or roundabout comprising boat-like cars, furnished with
means whereby the occupants can, by exercising a rowing motion, propel them
along a circular track, substantially as herein described.
2. In a merry-go-round or roundabout of the kind referred to in the preceding
claiming clause, the improved means for imparting motion to the boat-like cars,
arranged or operating substantially as described with reference to the accompanying
drawings.
3. In a merry-go-round or roundabout, the combination with boat-like cars of
(parts of) sculls B B, pivoted in suitable rowlocks C C, connecting rods GG,

page_text: bell-crank levers H H, connecting rod i, lever L, ratchet and pawl m 1, shaft K
and bevel gear M m', substantially as herein described and for the purpose set
forth.