Improvements in Chains.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Feb., 1897-Accepted, 10th Apr., 1897
Improvements in Chains.
I, BENJAMIN JOSEPH BARNARD MILLS of 23 Southampton Buildings in the
County of London Patent Agent do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(a communication from George Frederick Ballou of the City, County and State of
New York in the United States of America, Machinist) and in what manner the same
is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
Heretofore bicycle chains were composed of hardened blocks provided with holes,
soft links provided with holes and connecting pins adapted to pass through the blocks
and receive the links on their ends, the pins being provided with shoulders against
which the links were held while the ends of the pins were upset or riveted to clinch
the links. In this construction the bodies of the pins were case hardened while the
ends remained soft to permit riveting. While this is the form of chain in universal
use, it is objectionable on account of the time required in riveting, and because of the
fact that the pins cannot be thoroughly bardened.
To obviate these objections, separable chains have been proposed, that is, chains
wherein the pins are thoroughly hardened and provided with hooked or recessed ends
with which the links engage, and the links being shaped so that the parts can only be
connected or disconnected by partly or wholly moving adjacent links and blocks over
one another so as to overlap, and thus permitting the longitudinal movement of the
links relative to the blocks and pins to bring the pins to an enlarged opening or slot
in the link and permit its engagement or disengagement with the link.
While this form of chain overcame the objections pointed out, the cost of manufacture
was not decreased and the chain was open to objection on account of its readily
becoming entirely separated when not in use and the possibility of its becoming
separated in use, although it did possess the advantage of quick repair particularly
while on the road.
The object of the present invention is to produce a chain which possesses all the
advantages of the separable chain i.e., thorough hardening of the pins and quick
repair, and furthermore the desirable features of extreme uniformity of parts and
maximum strength for a given weight of material without increasing the cost of
same, and the rapidity in connecting and permanently securing the parts together thus
reducing the cost of that part of the process.
In carrying the invention into effect the ordinary form of hardened steel block is
employed which is provided with two holes for the pins which connect the blocks to
the links. These pins are cut in proper lengths from steel wire or rods of suitable
diameter, and are provided with grooves at each end. The pins when formed are
thoroughly hardened. The links are punched from strip or sheet metal, with holes
or slots large enough to receive the ends of the pins. The parts are assembled by
passing a pin through two links with a block between them, and the parts are secured
together by subjecting the links (which are not hardened) to pressure upon the outer
longitudinal edges, to force the inner edges of the links, that is, at the holes or slots,
into the grooves of the pin, thus clinching the pin and preventing their displacement.
In subjecting the links to pressure, they spread slightly, and the parts entering the
grooves of the pin are jammed between the sides of the groove, resulting in a rigid
joint between the pin and the links, similar to the joints formed by rivetting. In
practice, the links will be subjected to pressure by passing the chain between two rolls

page_text: provided with clinching dies properly spaced, and it will be readily understood how
rapidly a chain may be assembled and passed through the clinching rolls.
The improved chain is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which :-
Fig. 1 is a view of a few links and blocks;
Fig. 2 is a side view of the parts shown in Fig. 1, with the ends of two of the pins
cut off to show how the links clinch the pins, the clinching dies being illustrated in
dotted lines.
Fig. 3 shows one form of pin, the grooves at each end extending entirely around
the pin;
Fig. 4 shows the link employed with the pin of Figure 3, the link being in the
form before pressure is applied;
Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing a double link, each link being half
the thickness of the links of Figure 1;
Fig. 6 is a side view of the parts of Figure 5, the ends of two of the pins being cut
off to show how the links clinch the pins';
Fig. 7 shows a pin having two grooves at opposite points near each end of the
pin and which is the form of pin employed with the chain of Figures 5 and 6;
Figure 8 is the form of link employed with the pin of Fig. 7, its shape being that
before pressure is applied to clinch the pin ;
Figures 9 and 10 are views corresponding to Figures 5 and 6, the inner sections of
the links, however, not being clinched upon the pins and being preferably of hardened
steel;
Fig. 11 shows a form of connecting bolt for joining the two ends of a chain; and
Fig. 12 illustrates four different forms of links before and after being subjected to
pressure.
Referring to Figures 1 to 4 of the drawings A A are the pins, B, B, the blocks and
CC the links. The pins are provided with shallow grooves a. a near each end, thus,
forming heads a¹, a¹ at the ends of the pins. The blocks are provided with holes
for the pins as usual. The links which are punched from strip or sheet metal
may have any desired shape. Each link is provided with a slot c which is punched
out at the same time the link is punched from the strip or sheet of metal, and
this slot must be wide enough at some point to admit the heads a¹ of the pins.
The ends of the slots are curved as shown, and the diameter of the slot at that
point is of such size as to closely fit the grooved portion of the pin as shown in dotted
lines in Figure 4.
In Figure 5, the links C are made in two pieces, the form being practically the
same as that of Figure 1, except that each section is of half the thickness, thus giving
four surfaces, the two sections being shown at C, C. With this form of chain I
have illustrated the modified form of connecting pin (Figure 7) which is provided
with grooves a², a3 at each end of the pin, and for this form of pin the link is formed
so as to have two straight portions c¹ at each end of the slot c (Figure 8). This
arrangement assists in making a rigid connection between the link and pin when
the link is clinched, in that it prevents the link from turning upon the pin. From
an inspection of Figure 6, it will also be seen that when the link is clinched upon
the pin, two shoulders care formed at each pin, which also assists in firmly holding
the pin in position within the slot of the link. While the pin of Figure 7 is shown
applied to the chains of Figures 5 and 9, it will be understood that that form of pin
is also applicable to the chain of Figure 1.
In Figures 9 and 10, I have shown links similar to those of Figures 5 and 6,
except that the inner section (" is not clinched upon the pins. In that form of
chain, the link will be exactly of the form shown in Figure 8 and will be
hardened, the outer section C being clinched to hold the parts in position as before.
With the chains heretofore in use, it was customary to employ a bolt for joining
the two ends of the chain, and which bolt was provided with a screw thread which
entered a screw threaded hole in the last link, and a check nut was also provided
with the bolt. This form of bolt is objectionable, for the reason that it requires a
screw driver and a wrench in connecting the two ends of the chain.

page_text: In Figure 11 I have illustrated an improved form of connecting bolt, which is
designed for use with my improved chain. In this form of bolt, the shank D is milled
off at two sides to produce two flat surfaces d which correspond to the grooves a² a³
of the connecting pin of Figure 7. The bolt has a small head d' and a screw threaded
end which receives a nut d². In cutting the screw thread a shoulder d³ is formed
and against which the nut strikes. The shank D is of such length as to prevent the
clamping of the links against the block. In making up a chain the free ends of the
last links which are to be attached to the free end of the block at the other end
of the chain have a connecting bolt, or a false pin, inserted so that when the last
links are subjected to pressure and the holt or false pin removed the slots at the
free ends of the links will have the proper shipe to receive the regular connecting
bolt. In connecting a chain the free ends of the last links are brought to the free
end of the block at the other end of the chain and the ends are overlapped so
that the hole in the block will be in line with the ends of the slots in the links.
The bolt D is then passed through, the flat sides d being adjacent to the straight
portions of the link. The nut is then screwed upon the bolt.
From the foregoing
it will be seen that the holt is prevented from turning within the links, but is
free to turn in the hole of the block, as in ordinary forms of chains, and since
the bolt is prevented from turning in the link, there is no chance of the nut d²
working loose and the bolt dropping out of the links. Thus it will be seen that not
only is a simple bolt produced and the necessity for an extra tool avoided, but
there is no longer any necessity for cutting a screw thread in the last link.
In case the links of the chain shown in Figures 1 and 5 should loosen on the pins
after prolonged use, they may be readily caused to again firmly clinch the pins by
a suitable hand operated clamping tool. A further advantage of the form of chain
illustrated is that in case the chain should have too much slack or in case it should
stretch after prolonged use, it can be shortened by further compressing a sufficient
number of the links to produce the desired shortening of the chain.
While I have described the links C as having slots to receive the pins, I wish it to
be understood that I do not limit myself to such an arrangement, since the same end
may be accomplished by providing, for instance, a hole at each end of the link
larger in diameter than the diameter of the pin and clinching the ends of the
links, but I do not believe such a form will give as good a result as the slotted link.
Furthermore while I have described the pins as being grooved at each end, I
do not limit myself to that arrangement because the pins could be differently
constructed but perhaps not so cheaply as the forms shown. For instance, the ends
of the pins might be milled so that when the soft link is clinched, the hard points
of the milled surface will be forced into the link and form a tight joint. Further-
more, the grooves in the links might be rectangular, round or V shaped. Nor do
I limit myself to the use of hardened pins, since it will be readily understood that
my invention is applicable to the manufacture of chains which do not require
hardened pins.
It will also be understood that although I have described the invention in
connection with bicycle chains, the invention may be equally as well employed in
the manufacture of chains intended for other uses.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A chain consisting of links adapted to be hinged or jointed together and a
connecting pin, said links being provided with a hole or slot to receive the ends of
the connecting pins, and which links are subjected to pressure upon their outer edges
to clinch the pins and hold them against displacement.
2. A chain composed of blocks, links and connecting pins, as illustrated in
Figs. 1 to 4, and in which the links are caused by pressure to clinch the pins as
described.
3. A chain having in combination blocks or links provided with holes, double

page_text: links arranged in pairs for connecting adjacent blocks, each of said double links
being provided with holes or slots, and adapted to receive the ends of connecting
pins inserted through the holes of the blocks, and which links are subjected to
pressure upon their outer edges to clinch the ends of the pins.
4. A chain composed of blocks, links and connecting pins, as illustrated in
Figs. 5 to 8, and in which the links are caused by pressure to clinch the pins as
described.
5. A chain having in combination blocks or links provided with holes, double
links arranged in pairs for connecting adjacent blocks, each of said double links.
being provided with holes or slots and adapted to receive the ends of connecting
pins inserted through the holes of the blocks, one part of each of said double links
being hardened, and the other part of each of said links being subjected to pressure
upon its outer edges to clinch the ends of the pins.
6. A chain composed of blocks, links and connecting pins, as illustrated in
Figures 9 and 10, and in which the links are caused by pressure to clinch the
pins as described.
7. A connecting bolt for chains, of the character described and made as illustrated
in Fig. 11.
D
ou 1007
HARRIS & MILLS,
23 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents.