IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ROLLER SKATES
Year: 1876

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by George Clark at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 18th May 1876.
GEORGE CLARK, of No. 10, Craven Buildings, Drury Lane, in the County of
Middlesex. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ROLLER SKATES."
1. One object of this Invention is the application to roller skates of an improved
mechanical arrangement whereby the wheels of roller skates may be easily turned
and radiated, and may be locked at any given angle which may be required for the
purpose of enabling the skater to give a curvilinear direction to such roller skates
and turn them on one side or the other and perform more easily such gyrations as
are usually executed by practised skaters.
The said improvement is carried into effect by the application of a lever worked
on a spindle or pin on the principle of a steelyard weighing machine, such lever
when at rest being in a perpendicular position and being set in motion by the action
of a treadle or treadles at the top of the said lever, and worked by the foot of the
skater pressing thercon on one side or the other of the footstand of the skate
laterally or longitudinally.
A good plan for putting this Invention in practice is to fix the lever above
referred to vertically at or about the centre of the skate, and by passing such
lever through a slot in the footstand at an equal distance between the axles of the
front and hind pair of wheels of four-wheeled skates, and causing such lever to
pivot on its spindle or pin fixed under the footstand to and fro laterally under and
from one side to the other of the footstand.
At the top and on each side of the lever thus fitted to the footstand is fixed a
treadle or treadles on which the foot of the skater may be made to press when he
intends to impart a turning motion to the skate, and he is thereby enabled to make
the lever vibrate either to one side or the other. In order to bring this turning or
vibrating action of the lever to bear on the wheels a spur is fixed on the inner
side of each axle if the wheels are on the castor principle as described in my Inven-
tion for improvements in the construction of and appliances for roller skates, for
which I obtained a certificate of Provisional Protection, No. 1180, dated 18th March
1876; and if two wheels are fitted at the opposite ends of one axle two spurs are
fitted to the inner side of each of such axles at equal distances from the centre.
These spurs fixed longitudinally opposite to each other project from the axles
towards the centre of the skate, their ends inside being distant from each other
about one-third the distance between the axles; and in order to connect the said
spurs with the bottom of the said lever fitted and arranged as above described, a
Price 2d1

page_text: horizontal plate or bar is fixed at the bottom of the said lever and is brought in
contact with the inner ends or points of the said spurs affixed to the said axles,
such contact between the said horizontal plate or bar and spurs being so arranged
that the points of the spurs are held by the plate or bar in such manner that when
the lever is made to turn under the footstand in the way before described, the
spurs are made to turn to one side or the other laterally with and in the direction
of the bottom of the lever, and thereby the axles are radiated and the wheels
turned in the desired direction.
To facilitate the lateral to-and-fro motion of the foot, the sides of which press on
the treadles as above mentioned, the centre of the top side of the foolstand is slightly
elevated above the sides by forming a ridge thereon longitudinally.
2. Another object of this Invention is to stop or limit the turning or curvilinear
action of the wheels of roller skates on the caster principle, or each having a sepa-
rate axle to a circle of any required degree when in motion. When the wheel is
by means of any mechanical arrangement made to pivot under a plate fastened to
the footstand, this second object is carried into effect by affixing a perpendicular
stem to one side of the frnine or axle of the wheel, such stem having square sides
bevilled to the required angle, and by affixing to the pivot plate fastened to the
footstand as aforesaid a projecting horizontal plate, into which a slot is cut having
its two sides bevilled to an angle so corresponding to the bevilled sides of the
perpendicular stem that the frame or axle will turn from side to side to the extent
of an arc of the circle determined by the angle to which the said stem and slot are
bevilled, and will thereby stop the wheel from turning in a smaller circle.