Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 28th June, 1887.
Specification Accepted, 29th July, 1887.
I WILLIAM GILBERT SCOTT of Rochester Olmstead County State of Minnesota in
the United States of America, Gentleman 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:-
This invention relates to a class of wheels known as "expanding wheels." Its object
is to produce a wheel of its class capable of being readily expanded or contracted to
vary its diameter, and consequently its circumference; and it consists, essentially, in"
a sectional rin and joint overlaps, radial spokes connected with the sections of the rim,
and capable of an endwise radial movement, and means to move the radial spokes
endwise on their radial lines, all of which and other necessary parts to produce a
complete wheel are represented in the accompanying drawings, and will be hereinafter
more fully described.
In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a wheel embodying my invention.
Fig. 2 is a side elevation of my improved wheel in which the expanding mechanism is
omitted. Fig. 3 is a central section on dotted line a on Fig. 1, in which the rim of the
wheel is contracted. Fig. 4 is a central section on dotted line a on Fig. 1, in which
the rim of the wheel is expanded.
A hub, 1, bored to receive a shaft or axle-arm, 2, is filled with radial spokes 3, which
receive a rim or felly, 4, bound by a tire, 5, to fix the parts in place and form an inner
wheel. An annular rim, 6, is fixed to the radial spokes 3, concentric to the axial
center of the wheel.
Tri-armed spokes 7 have the outer ends of their three branches 8, 9, and 10 fixed to
the inner face of the fellies or sections 11 of the peripheral rim of the wheel 1. The
outer arms, 8 and 10, of the tri-armed spokes 7 are supported to move end wise
in guides 12 on the side face of the rim of the inner wheel, and the inner end, 13, of
the tri-armed spoke is supported to move endwise radially in guides 14 on the annular
rim 6 on the inner wheel. In this construction the outward movement of the tri-armed
spokes will cause the sections of fellies to move outward and enlarge the diameter and
circumference of the wheel, and the reverse or inward movement of the tri-armed
spokes will contract the fellies and reduce the wheel in its diameter and circumference.
An overlap, 15, is fixed to the peripheral face of one end of each felly in the rim of
the wheel, and its free end overlaps the end of the contiguous felly to permit the con-
traction and expansion of the peripheral rim and produce an unbroken peripheral
surface. A hub, 16, is bored to receive the shaft 2 of the wheel, to slide end wise
thereon.

page_text: Radial link-spokes 17 are pivotally connected at their outer ends to the central
arm, 9, of the tri-armed spokes, and their inner ends are pivot-jointed to the hub 16,
forming a toggle-joint connection of the tri-armed spokes and the hub to expand and
contract the peripheral rim of the wheel as the hub is moved on its shaft-support to or
from the wheel. An annular groove is formed in the projecting end of the sliding
hub, and a yoke, 18, is placed in the annular groove.
A shifting-lever, 19, having a suitable fulcrum-support, is pivot-jointed to the yoke
in the annular groove of the hub, and is employed to shift the hub on its shaft-support
to expand and contract the rim of the wheel. A ratchet, 20, in connection with the
shifting-lever, serves to hold the hub in its adjusted position to control the contraction
and expansion of the peripheral rim of the wheel. In this instance the hub 1 of the
wheel is formed with a clutch-head, 21, to receive a clutch-head having a feather-
connection with the shaft to cause the wheel to revolve with its shaft-support.
My improved expanding wheel is capable of use as a belt-pulley, to dispense with
the usual loose pulley. It is also capable of use as an expanding wheel in perhaps
most or all situations in which an expanding wheel would be required or could be
utilized with beneficial results.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is ;-
1. The combination of an expanding wheel, a non-expanding wheel, a sectional
expanding rim of greater diameter than the non-expanding wheel, joint-overlaps to the
sectional rim, and radial spokes to the sectional expanding rim, said spokes having a
slide-connection with the non-expanding wheel, substantially as and for the purpose
set forth.
2. The combination of an expanding wheel, a non-expanding wheel, a sectional
expanding rim of greater diameter than the non-expanding wheel, joint-overlaps to the
sectional rim, and tri-armed radial spokes, said spokes fixed to their respective sections
of the expanding rim and having a slide-connection with the non-expanding wheel,
substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
3. The combination, with a non-expanding wheel and a sectional rim, of tri-armed
radial spokes attached to the rim sections and having a sliding movement in suitable
guides to the non-expanding wheel, and means for sliding the said radial spokes,
substantially as set forth.
4. The combination, with the tri-armed radial spokes of the expanding rim, and with
axial shaft-support of the wheel, of a hub to slide on the axial shaft and radial link
pivoted to the hub and to the central arm of the tri-armed radial spokes, substantially
as and for the purpose set forth.
5. The combination, with a non-expanding wheel and a sectional rim exterior to the
rim of the non-expanding wheel, of tri-armed radial spokes fixed to the rim-sections
and secured to the non-expanding wheel in sliding adjustment, a sliding hub on the
axial shaft of the non-expanding wheel, links connecting the sliding hub and the tri-
armed spokes, and means for sliding the hub on the shaft, substantially as set forth.
6. The combination of an expanding wheel, a sectional rim, and joint-overlaps,
substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
Dated this 28th Jos of L
1007