Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd Oct., 1894 Accepted, 3rd Nov., 1894

page_text: and receives motion from said shaft through the anti-friction devices hereinafter
described. ccc represent shafts which extend through the pulley and are parallel
with the shaft a. To the ends of the shafts c are affixed rolls d which are in
rolling contact with the shaft a and with the inner surfaces of fixed annular
bearings ee attached to fixed housings or containers jf. g g represent shafts
which are journalled in bearings affixed to the inner surface of the pulley b,
said shafts being also parallel with the shaft a. To the ends of the shafts g
are affixed rolls which are in rolling contact with the shafts c c and with the
inner surfaces of loose rings ii which have inwardly projecting lips or flanges i
engaging them with said rolls, said flanges preventing independent lateral movement
of the rings and rolls.
It will be seen that the rolls d supported by the fixed bearings e constitute
rolling supports for the shaft a, and are given a planetary motion about said
shaft by the rotation thereof, the shafts being connected with said rolls, so
that they receive the same motion.
The pulley receives a rotary motion from the shafts c through the rolls h,
which are in rolling contact with said shafts, and the shafts g attached to said
rolls and engaged with the pulley by the bearings attached to the pulley,
said rolls and shafts 9 receiving a planetary motion from the shafts c. A
reduced motion is thus imparted to the pulley from the shaft, with so little
frictional resistance that no lubrication is necessary, however high the speed of
the shaft
may be.
'The bearing-rings e e are made contractible, so that they can be adjusted
inwardly or contracted from time to time, to compensate for wear of the surfaces
of the ring, of the rolls d, and of the shaft, to the end that a close contact may
be maintained between said surfaces and slipping or lost motion thereof 'prevented.
Each ringe is cut across at a suitable point in its periphery to form two ends ele
(Figure 6), one of said ends, being recessed and the other projecting into the
recess, so that while the ends are separated by a space, permitting them to
approach each other for the purpose of contracting the ring, there is practically
un break in the continuity of the bearing surface. The containers ffare
provided with tapering inner surfaces, and the outer surfaces of the rings e e
are correspondingly formed, so that lateral pressure exerted on the rings to force
then into the containers will cause the contraction of the rings. I prefer to
give the rings the described external taper by providing them with ribs ee
of different height, said ribs bearing on the tapered surfaces of the containers,
as shown in Figure 1. The ribs are provided with transverse grooves e which
increase their flexibility, and permit the ready contraction or bending of the
rings. This construction makes the rings more flexible and more easily contracted
than they would be if they were gradually tapered from one edge to the other.
A block of soft compressible metal is placed between the ends of each ring e
to preserve the continuity of the rings and prevent any tendency of the ends of
the rings to become approximately straight.ee represent pressure rings which
are internally screw-threaded to engage external threads on the containers,
and are formed to bear on the outer edges of the bearing rings e. When said
pressure rings are rotated, to give them an inward movement, they force the bearing
rings into the containers, and thus cause the contraction of said bearing rings.
represent caps or plates which are attached to the rings e' for the purpose of
covering the outer ends of the cavities or chambers containing the rolls'd.
The rolls.d are connected with shafts c by flexible connections which permit the
rolls to adjust themselves to the portions of the bearing rings e and shaft a on
which they bear, so that good frictional contact will not be impaired by slight
variations in the diameters of either the bearing rings, rolls, or shaft. I have
here shown as such elastic connection sleeves e mounted to rotate freely on the
end portions of the shatts c, and comparatively thin flexible annular Hanges o
connected to the sleeve e by webs c, said flanges being externally screw-threaded
at their outer ends and engaged with internal threads formed in 'the "rolls d
.

page_text: said threads being at central portions of the rolls, so that the rolls are in contact
with the flanges e only at their central portions, as clearly shown in Figure 1.
This construction enables the rolls d to adjust themselves to the corresponding
surfaces of the bearing rings and sbaft, and compensates for any slight variations
in the diameters of said surfaces, as will be reality seen.
In order to reduce to the minimum the wear occasioned by the frictional contact
of the rolls d with the shaft and with the bearing rings e, I provide for the
independent end wise movement of said rolls and their shafts, so that the wear may
be distributed over a greater length of the shaft than would be the case if the rolls
had no end wise movement. I find that when the rolls are permitted to move
endwise, they have a constant tendency to so move, and that by giving them an
initial movement in one direction they will continue to move in that direction until
the movement is arrested and reversed. I have therefore provided means for
arresting the movement of the rolls after they have moved a limited distance in
one direction, and imparting movement in the reverse direction to the rolls, this
operation being continued, so that the rolls are constantly moving end wise with a
slow reciprocating motion. This result is conveniently attained by providing the
shaft a with two tapered or frusto-conical sections a² a², the taper of one being the
reverse of that of the other, as shown in Figure 1, and forming upon the outer end
of each roll d'a tapered section d' which corresponds to the taper of the adjacent
section a², the arrangement being such that when the movement of the rolls in one
direction along the shaft brings the tapered sections of the rolls at one end of the
apparatus into contact with the tapered section a² at the same end, the end wise
movement will be stopped, and the rolls d and their shafts c will be given a slight
lateral movement, which gives said shafts and rolls a slight angle relatively to the
shaft a.
In other words, the shafts c and the rolls thereon become slightly askew,
so that they have a tendency to move endwise in the opposite direction, this
movement continuing until the rolls d at the other end meet the other tapered
section a, when the rolls and their shafts are thrown over at a different angle,
causing their end wise movement to be again reversed. The described devices
coustitute automatic means for reciprocating the rolls end wise. It will be seen,
therefore, that the rolls instead of wearing a track the width of which is equal
only to their own length, cover an extent of the surface on the shaft a which is
considerably longer than their own length.
с
In Figures 8, 9, and 10, I show the preferred construction when motion is to be
imparted to the central shaft at an increased rate from a member rotating about
said shaft. In said figures, a' represents the shaft to which motion is to be
imparted.
j represents a cylindrical casing surrounding the shaft and adapted to be rotated
by power externally applied in any suitable way. represent rings affixed to
the ends of the casing j, the inner surfaces of said rings constituting annular
bearings which are constructed to be contracted like the bearing rings e e.
kk represent rolls in contact at their outer portions with the bearings and at
their inner portions with the shaft a'. Said rolls are attached to shafts ¹ which
extend parallel with the shaft a. represent rolls which are also affixed to
the shafts and bear on the central portion of the shaft a'. Said rolls have
peripheral grooves k into which projects an annular rib affixed to the casing j,
the office of said rib being to prevent extreme endwise displacement of the rolls k
and k³..
It will be seen that rotary motion imparted to the casing; will be transmitted,
highly multiplied, to the shaft a through the rolls kk.
The casing is provided with inclined seats which bear upon inclined outer
sides of the rings and cause the contraction of said rings when the latter are
forced inwardly by the pressure rings which operate in the same manner as the
rings e above described, so that provision is made for contracting the rings j to
compensate for wear of the surfaces of the rings, the rolls k, and the shaft a'. The
shaft is provided with the frusto-conical sections a' a' which co-operate with the

page_text: correspondingly formed outer ends of the rolls in imparting initial end wise
'movement to said rolls and to the rolls k³.
m m m represent rings which are interlocked with the shafts k' in such manner
as to hold said shafts in their proper relative positions between the central shaft a
and the casing. Each ring encloses two shafts, as shown in Figure 9, and the
rings are so arranged that each shaft ¹ is confined between the sides of an
elliptical shaped recess composed of portions of the inner surfaces of two rings, one
side of the recess being a part of one ring, and the other side a part of another
ring. The rings are held in place by the shafts A', the inner surface of each ring.
being in contact witli two shafts which bear on diametrically opposite points on the
ring; hence the rings are held in place by the shafts, while the shafts are kept at
'the proper distances apart by the rings. The rings are free to rotate, and are, in
fact, rotated by their frictional contact with the shafts ¹, so that while they
maintain the shafts in their proper positions, they do not oppose their rotation by
frictional resistance. The number of the rings m will depend upon the number of
shafts k. In Figure. 9 1 show three shafts.and three rings; and in Figure 10, I
show four shafts and a corresponding number of rings.
It will be seen that in each construction two connected bearing rings are
employed, the'rings e e shown in Figure 1 being connected by the base f¹ formed
with the housings ff, while in Figure 8 the bearings are connected by the
'cylindrical casing j. It will be seen, therefore, that various features of my invention
are applicable both to apparatus in which the bearings surrounding the shaft are
6ixed, as in Figure 1, and rotary, as in Figure 8.
The construction shown in Figure 1 may be used in an organization in which the
containers are adapted to rotate, and are connected so as to form the ends of a
casing, as in the construction shown in Figure 8, in which case the pulley b will be
omitted, the loose rings i serving to hold the shafts c in their proper position, said
rings being in this respect an equivalent of the independent rings m shown in
Figures 8 and 9.
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
claiin is:
1. A power transmitting apparatus comprising a shaft, connected containers
surrounding the shaft and provided with interual annular bearings, a series of pairs
of rolls interposed between the bearings and the shaft, shafts connecting the rolls,
a pulley surrounding the driving-shaft, and a series of rolls connected with said
pulley and bearing on the said roll-connecting shafts.
2. A power transmitting apparatus comprising a shaft, connected annular bearings
surrounding the shaft, rolls interposed between said bearings and shaft, said rolls
being movable end wise, and automatic means for reciprocating said rolls end wise to
equalize the wear of the surfaces of the bearing, rolls, and shaft.
3. A power transmitting apparatus comprising a shaft having oppositely tapered
sectious, connected annular bearings surrounding said shaft, and rolls interposed
between said bearings and shaft, said rolls being movable endwise and having
portions of their peripheries tapered to co-operate, as described, with the tapered
sections of the sliaft in imparting initial end wise movements to the rolls, whereby
the wear of the surfaces of the bearing, rolls, and shaft, is equalized.
4. A power transmitting apparatus comprising a shaft, connected annular
bearings surrounding the shaft, rolls interposed between the bearings and shaft,
shafts connecting said rolls in pairs, and flexible connections between said rolls
and their connecting shafts whereby the rolls are made self-adjusting, as set
forth.
:
:
5. A power transmitting apparatus comprising a central shaft, two connected
annular bearings surrounding the shaft, rolls interposed between the bearings and
shaft, the rolls being connected by shafts extending parallel with the central shaft,
“and loose overlapping rings adapted to retain the shafts and rolls in their proper

page_text: relative positions, each ring enclosing two shafts and co-operating with adjacent
rings in forming bearings adapted to support the shafts laterally.
6: A contractible bearing ring transversely cut and provided with a compressible
soft metal block between its ends, whereby the continuity of the ring is preserved.
Dated this 25th day of August 1894.
GEORGE JOHN ALTHAM.