Improvements in and relating to Adjustable Handle Bars for Bicycles and the like.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Dec., 1898-Accepted, 18th Mar.,
1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Adjustable Handle Bars for Bicycles
and the like.
We, WILLIAM WALTER DIRKSEN, Inventor, and JACOB OPPENHEIMER, Gentle-
man, residing respectively at No. 227, West Seventh Street, and Hayward Hotel,
West Third Street, in the City of Jamestown, County of Chautauqua, and State
of New York, United States of America, 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 improvements in devices for adjusting handle-bars of
bicycles whereby the same may be readily raised or lowered and rigidly held at
any desired angle of adjustment, and at the same time permitting such adjustment
while the machine is in motion and without the use of a wrench or other tool.
The invention consists first, in a novel construction of locking device to permit
the adjustment of the handle-bars acting to rigidly hold the same in any of the
various angles of adjustment. It further consists in so constructing the parts that
the same while permitting such adjustment of the handle-bars shall also act to
hold the handle-bar endwise relative to the head or T-piece, and in certain novel
features in the construction of parts, all as hereinafter described.
In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section
through the head and inner ends of the handle-bar showing the improvements
applied.
Figure 2 is a vertical cross-section on the line - Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a side elevation of the locking parts detached.
Figure 4 is a top view of the locking dog with the sliding clamp partly in
dotted lines.
The T-head A and handle-bar tubes B B may be of any usual or desired
construction, said tubes B B being connected to a center piece C by brazing or
otherwise, as shall be found most desirable.
This center piece consists of the cylindrical portions to which the tubular
handles are connected and a central toothed portion C², which central toothed
portion is made somewhat narrower than the opening in the siem so that the ends
of the handle-bars or tubes shall project in beyond the wall of said stem, for a
purpose hereinafter described.
A dog D, provided with a concaved toothed piece d is loosely mounted in the
head but of a width to closely engage the inner ends of the handle-bar tubes, and
by such engagement to prevent the endwise movement of the handle-bar the lower
face of the dog is formed on an incline and is provided with recesses d, having
inclined side walls d hereinafter referred to.
Mounted on a screw-threaded shaft E, is a sliding plate F, provided with an
inclined face e, and projections e¹, to engage the inclined face of the dog and the
recesses formed therein in the manner and for the purpose hereinafter described.
The shaft E is mounted in the stem in any preferred manner and is provided
on the end with a hand piece E¹, in position to be within convenient reach of
the rider.

page_text: It will thus be seen that the rider by turning the hand piece can reciprocate the
plate F and either force the dog into engagement with the toothed portion of the
center piece and by such engagement lock the same and with it the handle-bars
firmly engaged with the head, or release the same from engagement and allow
the dog to drop out of engagement when it is desired to adjust the handle-bars,
the dog, however always engaging the inner ends of the handle-bars as before
stated to prevent the endwise displacement thereof.
When the parts are in position shown in Figure 3, the projections el on the
sliding plate are shown engaged with the recesses in the dog in the position the
parts assume when said dog is released from engagement with the toothed center
piece, and in Figure 2 the parts are shown in the position they assume when the
dog is firmly engaged with the said toothed center piece, and by which it will
be seen that the dog will be abruptly raised into engagement with the toothed
center piece upon a slight movement of the hand piece.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim, is-
1. In a device for permitting the adjustment of the handle bars of bicycles, the
corrugated or roughened center portion, a dog provided with a similar face to
engage the center portion and having its lower face formed on an incline, in
combination with a reciprocal plate provided with a similar inclined face to engage
the dog, and means for reciprocating said plate.
2. In a device for permitting the adjustment of handle bars, the combination
with the handle-bars provided with the corrugated or roughened central portion,
a dog provided with a concaved toothed face, and a face formed on an incline, a
plate provided with an inclined face to engage the same, a screw on which the
same is mounted, and a hand piece for rotatiy'; the screw to reciprocate the plate,
for the purpose and substantially as describer..
3. In a device for permitting the adjustmen
the handle-bar, the handle-bars
or tubes connected to a center piece, the bars extending in beyond the inner wall
of the stem, a toothed portion formed in the center piece, a dog to engage the toothed
portion for locking the handle-bars and to engage the ends of the bars to prevent
end movement of the same, and means for operating the locking dog, substantially
as described.
4. The combination with the handle-bar provided with the roughened or corru-
gated central portion, a dog provided with a similar face and with a lower inclined
face with recesses formed therein, a worm screw, and a plate also provided with
an inclined face and recesses substantially as described whereby to act to abruptly
raise the dog into contact with the handle-bar as set forth.
5. The combination of shaft with worm screw operating through dog adapted
to draw it forward and out of recesses, thereby abruptly raising toothed concave
dog into contact with teeth on center piece and holding it firmly in place by
drawing said dog along on incline, substantially as set forth.
Dated this 20th day of December 1898.
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.