Improvements in Car Starters.
Year: 1896

page_text: Improvements in Car Starters.
I, THOMAS HEATHER of 10 Westeroft Square, Ravenscroft Park, County of Middlesex,
Tutor and Draughtsman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention relates to car starters and the application of the power stored up
when the vehicle is stopping or descending hills for starting or propelling purposes.
In carrying it into effect I arrange upon or in connection with the road wheel or wheels
of the vehicle a preferably internally toothed ring and upon or in connection with
preferably the hub of the wheel an externally toothed ring or wheel, and between
these two any desired number of toothed wheels carried upon sliding frames so that
they can be caused to engage with either the toothed ring of the road wheel or the
toothed ring of the hub; the invention is in connection with this intermediate
wheel.
Rigidly connected with the intermediate wheel is a ring with ratchet teeth upon
its periphery, this ratchet wheel, and consequently the intermediate wheel being
prevented from turning by any suitable pawl or stop mechanism carried upon some
portion of the vehicle sliding frames, or non-rotating portion of the axle.
Inside the ratchet ring is a suitable volute or other coiled spring one end being
connected with the ratchet ring or the intermediate wheel and the other with a small
ratchet wheel; the teeth of the ratchet wheel lie in the opposite direction to the
teeth of the ratchet ring. The ratchet wheel is carried upon a fixed spindle which is
fixed to or a portion of the sliding frame and supports the whole of this portion of the
mechanism, a suitable pawl or detent is carried preferably by the sliding frame to
prevent the rotation of the ratchet wheel in the wrong direction.
The operation is as follows:-
When it is desired to utilize the car starter and the spring is wound the inter-
mediate wheel and its appurtenances are moved by the driver so as to place the
intermediate wheel in gear with the toothed wheel or ring of the hub of the vehicle
and consequently the intermediate wheel is caused to rotate, carrying round with it
the ratchet ring and winding up the spring the inner end of which is held by the
ratchet wheel. It is not necessary to place the intermediate wheel at once into gear
with the ring of the road wheel, but that can be done at any time required. When
it is gear and the detent removed from the ratchet ring the full power of the spring
will be applied to the road wheel of the vehicle near its periphery thus obtaining
greater effect than if it were applied near the hub and the power of the spring for
starting or propelling purposes could thus be efficiently utilized.
Dated this 19th day of August 1896
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: I, THOMAS HEATHER, of 10 Westcroft Square, Ravenscroft Park, County of Middlesex,
Tutor and Draughtsman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
imanner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to car-starters of the kind described in the specification of
prior Letters Patent No. 5516 of 1896, granted to me, and concerns improvements
in the means whereby the car wheels are enabled to over-run the car-starter, when
necessary.
In the accompanying drawings,
Fig. 1 is a side elevation showing part of a vehicle with a starting device applied
thereto, constructed according to this invention, the parts occupying the positions
which they are caused to take when it is required to stop the vehicle.
Figure 2 is a view showing part of Figure 1 with the starting device in the position
occupied when the vehicle is to be started, and
Figure 3 is a view partly in plan and partly in horizontal section on the line 3-3
of Figure 1.
Like letters indicate like parts throughout the drawings.
In carrying my invention into practice I arrange upon or in connection with one of
the road wheels A (of which only a portion is shown in the drawings), a preferably
internally-toothed ring A3, and upon or in connection with preferably the hub A2 of
the wheel A, an externally toothed ring or wheel A¹. Between the toothed ring A³
and wheel A¹ I provide any desired number of toothed wheels B so arranged that it
or they may be caused to engage with either of the toothed rings A¹ As. In the
drawings I have shown only one intermediate wheel B and hereinafter I describe my
invention as though only one such wheel is employed, but I do nct limit myself to
this arrangement.
Rigidly connected with the intermediate wheel B is a ring B with ratchet
teeth upon its periphery, this ratchet ring B and consequently the intermediate
wheel B being at the required times prevented from turning by a spring-controlled
or other pawl Cpivotted, in the example illustrated, to an arm projecting upwards from
an adjustable block F; if desired the pawl C may be carried upon any other
convenient part of the vehicle or upon a non-rotating portion of the axle.
Inside the ratchet ring B', or, as shown in the drawings, inside the intermediate
wheel B, is a suitable volute or other coiled spring B2 of which one end is connected to
the ratchet ring B' or intermediate wheel B and the other end is connected, say for
example, through a shaft or spindle O, to a ratchet wheel P. The ratchet wheel P is
smaller than, and has its teeth set in a direction opposite to those of the ratchet
ring B¹.
The before-mentioned shaft or spindle O can rotate in the block F and has the
intermediate wheel B mounted loosely upon it, this wheel if desired being provided
with a cover which, with the said wheel, constitutes an enclosed drum or casing for
containing the spring B². With the ratchet-wheel P engages a spring-controlled or
other pawl P¹, to prevent the spindle 0 from rotating in the wrong direction; the
pawl P is pivoted to the block F.
The block is capable of being moved horizontally in a frame G a portion of which
encircles the axle of the road wheel A, and this frame is provided with an upwardly
extending slotted arm L³, which, by engaging with or sliding on a pin or projection N
secured on the vehicle-body serves to ensure the maintenance of the frame G always
in a horizontal or approximately horizontal position. The frame G may be perforated

page_text: or recessed at its front end to admit of the free movement therethrough of a rod H'
connected to the block F. The rod is connected by a link H2 to the lower end of a
lever H pivotted to the vehicle-body, and the upper end of which may be situated so
as to be conveniently within the reach of the driver of the vehicle.
The before-mentioned pawl C is provided with an arm the free end of which,
when the block F has been moved through a portion of its travel or stroke as herein-
after described, is brought into contact with a fixed pin or stop G mounted in the
frame G as shown in Figure 2, so that upon the block F being moved beyond this
point (at which point the intermediate wheel B is out of gear with the toothed
wheel A¹ and is in gear or just entering into gear with the toothed ring A', the
pawl C is disengaged with the ratchet ring B'.
The operation of the before described apparatus is as follows:-
Assuming the vehicle to he travelling in the direction indicated by the arrow k in
Figure 1, and that it is desired to wind up the spring B' so that its energy may be
subsequently employed for starting the vehicle, the driver moves the lever H so as to
place the intermediate wheel B into gear with the toothed wheel or ring A¹ whereby
the intermediate wheel is caused to rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow b
in Figure 1, carrying round with it the ratchet ring B', and consequently winding up the
spring B whose inner end is prevented from rotating by the engagement of the
pawl P¹ with the ratchet wheel P. It is not necessary, immediately after the winding
of the spring B, to place the intermediate wheel B in gear with the toothed ring A5,
for that can be done at any time required, and the intermediate wheel may be retained
in a central position in which it is out of gear with both the toothed ring A³ and the
toothed wheel A¹ until such time as it is desired to utilize the energy of the spring for
starting the car. When this starting is to be effected the driver of the vehicle through
the lever H moves the block F so as to bring the pawl arm C¹ into contact with the
fixed pin G5 as shown in Figure 2, and thereby release the pawl C from the ratchet
ring B, at which juncture the intermediate wheel B has entered into ge ar with the
toothed ring A whereby the wheel B under the influence of the spring B is caused to
rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow b¹ in Figure 1 and the vehicle is con-
sequently again moved in the direction indicated by the arrow & Fig. 1. When the
spring B2 is unwound and the vehicle has attained its proper speed, should the
intermediate wheel B have been left by the driver in gear with the toothed ring A³
the teeth of the ratchet wheel P will slip past the pawl P and the whole of the
intermediate gear B, B1, B2 0 P, can rotate in company when the ring A³ tends to
over-run the wheel B.
With the foregoing apparatus it will be observed that as the spring when energised,
is caused to operate on a wheel (the toothed ring A³) of considerably greater diameter
than the toothed wheel A¹ with which the intermediate wheel B is geared when the
spring is wound up, the stored up energy can be very conveniently utilized.
Instead of the pawls arranged and operating as described to control the spring B²,
any detent devices may be employed which will keep one end of the spring stationary
whilst it is being wound up and while it is unwinding, but which permit all the
parts B B B OP to be rotated in company by the wheel A' after the spring has
unwound itself and automatically prevent unwinding of the spring at such times
as the latter is not in gear with the wheel A³.
Although my invention is hereinbefore described in its application to car-starters, it
may be useful for other purposes, for instance for application to cranes, and hoisting
machinery-and I may so apply it if I find it desirable to do so.
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. In apparatus of the kind described the combination with a spring such as B2 of
a detent device arranged to keep one end of the spring stationary whilst it is being
wound up or enwound, but to permit it to rotate freely after it has unwound itself,
for the purpose described,

page_text: 2. In apparatus of the kind described the combination with a wheel A and gear
wheels A¹ A3 of different diameters, of an adjustable intermediate wheel such as B, a
spring B operatively connected at one end to the wheel B and at the other end to a
rotatable part such as O and a detent device for the part O arranged and operating
for the purpose described.
3. In apparatus of the kind described, an automatic detent such as C arranged and
operating substantially as and for the purpose specified.
4. The combination and arrangement of parts constituting the complete starting
apparatus, substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
THOS. HEATHER.
Boult & Wade,
Agents for the Applicant.