IMPROVEMENTS IN OMNIBUSES AND OTHER SIMILAR CARRIAGES."
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Coope Haddan, of Cannon Row, in the City of
Westminster, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
OMNIBUSES AND OTHER SIMILAR CARRIAGES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION. left by the said John Coope Haddan, at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with. his Petition, on the
21st January 1856.
I; JOHN COOPE HADDAN, of Cannon Row, in the City of Westminster,
Civil Engineer; do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for " IM-:
PROVEMENTS IN OMNIBUSES AND OTHER SIMILAR, CARRIAGES," to be as follows:→
My Invention,consists, firstly, in..constructing carriages with their lights or
windows (or some of them) so disposed: and arranged that when closed. they.
may be opened by sliding them upwards.within or against boxes, recesses, or
frames, constructed.in, or fixed to, or upon the carriages, in order to receive
them, and that when open they may be closed. by sliding them downwards.
within or against such boxes; recesses; or frames:
The intention of this part of my Invention is to obtain greater width inside
of vehicles, such as omnibuses, by doing. away with the double framing and
intervening space into which the lights, or windows ordinarily slide, so far at

page_text: least as regards the ordinary position of such framing. And I consider this
improvement may be best performed by making the vehicle with a double
framing and intervening space projecting above or partly above the roof, so
as to serve as a foot board for outside passengers, and externally for
any
inscriptions that may be required.
My Invention consists, secondly, in constructing omnibuses with a portion
of the floor inside of the omnibus, which is at or near the door on a level or
nearly so with the door step, and with the floor rising either by a step or
steps inside of the omnibus, or by a gradual inclination to the further end,
or to some convenient intermediate point or distance.
The intention of this part of my Invention is to afford passengers a more
convenient standing position at or near the door and inside of the omnibus,
whereby also they may more readily enter and quit the vehicle. The manner
of performing it is sufficiently obvious not to require description.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance, of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Coope Haddan in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 21st July 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
COOPE HADDAN, of Cannon Row, in the City of Westminster, Civil Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant. unto
me,, the said John Coope .Haddan, Her special licence that I, the said
John Coope Haddan, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said John Coope Haddan, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time
and at all times theréafter during the term therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make; use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN OMNIBUSES AND OTHER SIMILAR CARRIAGES," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Coope. Haddan, my exe-
cutors or administrators, by.an instrument in writing under my, or 'their, or
one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the

page_text: nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent.
'
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Coope Haddan, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof :-
My Invention consists, firstly, in constructing carriages with their lights or
windows (or some of them) so disposed and arranged that when closed they
may be opened by sliding them upwards within or against boxes, recesses, or
frames, constructed in, or fixed to, or upon the carriages, in order to receive
them, and that when open they may be closed by sliding them downwards
within or against such boxes, recesses, or frames. The intention of this
part of my Invention is to obtain greater width inside of vehicles, such as
omnibuses, by doing away with the double framing and intervening space
into which the lights or windows ordinarily slide, so far at least as regards
the ordinary position of such framing. And I consider this improvement
may be best performed by making the vehicle with a double framing and
intervening space projecting above or partly above the roof, so as to serve as
a foot board for outside passengers, and externally for any inscriptions that
may be required.
My Invention consists, secondly, in constructing omnibuses with a portion of
the floor inside of the omnibus, which is at or near the door, on a level or nearly
so with the door step, and with the floor, rising either by a step or steps inside
of the omnibus, or by a gradual inclination to the further end, or to some
convenient intermediate point or distance. The intention of this part of my
Invention is to afford passengers a more convenient standing position at or
near the door and inside of the omnibus, whereby also they may more readily
enter and quit the vehicle.
:
Having thus set forth the nature and intention of my said Invention, I will
now proceed to describe the accompanying Drawing, which I have prepared in
illustration of the manner in which each of the two several improvements
which it comprehends is to be and may be performed.
'.
Figure 1 is the side elevation of an omnibus adapted with both my said.
improvements; Figure 2 is a longitudinal section of the same taken through
the back end or portion of the vehicle; Figure 3 is a transverse section taken.
at the line a, b, in Figure 2; Figures 4 and 5 are longitudinal sections,
exhibiting modifications of the second improvement, as represented in Figure 2.

page_text: -and Figure 6 is a transverse section on a larger scale,shewing the improved
window boxing comprised under my first improvement. Figures 1, 2, 3; 4,
and 5 are drawn to a scale of about half an inchi tota foot,iand Figure.6
to a scale of about
The omnibus is constructed
inch to a foot.
one
(generally in a similar manner to those now in ordinary use, the-difference
of construction affecting the sides and floor only, and being as follows:
h, h, is the double framing, projecting partly above and partly below the roof
of the vehicle, as shewn most distinctly in the Figure :6;. such framing
serving to box in and enclose an intervening, space, into which the ordinary
side lights: or windows i, i, may be slided by: moving them upwards; and
in such elevated position; or at any convenient intermediate altitude, they
may be retained by furnishing them with bolts, pins, stops, catches, or any
suitable contrivance or arrangement for the purpose. This framing, which is
intended to be applied on both sides of the vehicle, serves also the double
purpose before mentioned, of a footboard for the outside passengers, and a sign
board for inscriptions: * h are iron brackets for strengthening such
framing, and securing it firmly in its position. It should be observed; that
the louvres or ventilators shewn at *,, in Figure 1, need not be real, but
merely delineated for ornamental appearance, when the actual -louvres, or
ventilators are situate on the top of the roof-under the outside passenger's seat,
as shewn in the Figures 2, 3,-4, and 5. k is a hand rail for the convenience
of the outside passengers (which forms no part of the present Invention):
p is the ordinary door step of the vehicle; and q is a portion of the well or floor
inside the omnibus next to it. In Figure 2 is represented the construction of
these parts on a level, with each other; a single step within the omnibus
instead of immediately at the door, as heretofore, bringing the passengers from
the level of the door step to that of the ordinary or generál floor-marked.s..In
Figure 4, the part q is shewn as constructed, not quite on a level with the door
step, but nearly so the rise to the general floor: being accomplished by two
steps, one at the door of and the other within the omnibus..
་
In Figure 5, a further modification of construction is represented, in which
such rise is accomplished by one stepi within the omnibus, and by a gradual
inclination t from the top of such step to the desired-altitude at any convenient
distance within the omnibus. And I will here observe; that the construction
may be still further varied by employing. such sinclination either with more than
one step, as represented, or without any step, if such construction. should..bo
preferred, so that the end of the inclined floor-next the door is made on a level
with the outside step, or nearly so. In all the cases mentioned, the parts p, q
and t, as well as s, should be properly strengthened with iron brackets.or plates

page_text: though not so represented in the Drawing. And I would also remark, that
for the convenience of the end passengers, who may be sitting on either side of
the vehicle, and next to the door, I construct the seats v,. v, at a somewhat
lower level than the remaining seats w, w, as shewn in the Figures 2, 3, 4,
and 5. Still, however, I prefer that the seats v, v, should be placed somewhat
higher above the floor or step at a than the ordinary distance between the seats
w, w; and the ordinary floor s, in order that they may sit more upright,. and
their knees less obstruct the passage way for the other passengers. x, x, are
hand rails separating the seats v from the seats w, and for the assistance of
passengers on entering and quitting the vehicle, whereby danger may be avoided
from sudden or unexpected starting or stopping of the omnibus. The lowering
the floor also increases the height to the roof at the end inside, so as to allow
passengers to stand upright within the omnibus, (or at any rate much more
conveniently than is ordinarily the case,) on first entering and before leaving
the omnibus.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Coope Haddan, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
J. C. HADDAN. (L.S.)