Improvements in Brake Apparatus for Bicycles and other Velocipedes.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Dec., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Brake Apparatus for Bicycles and other
Velocipedes.
I, FREDERICK ARNOLD RODEWALD, of Heathfield House, Wimbledon Common,
in the County of Surrey, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion to be as follows:-
According to my invention I construct brake apparatus for bicycles and other
velocipedes as follows:-
A thin metal plate is formed by stamping or cutting into a flat portion having
on each side a downward projecting flange which at each end has a projecting ear
cr rounded enlargement having a hole at the centre.
To the middle of the flat part is fixed by brazing or otherwise a stem which
passes up in front of the steering fork tube like the stem of an ordinary brake.
A lever having a fork at each end is formed either by rivetting or brazing
together two strips of sheet metal each having half a fork formed at each end,
or the two parts may be formed out of a single piece of sheet metal suitably
stamped or cut so that when it is folded together at the middle it will form a bar
with a fork at each end.
The one fork of this lever is connected to the rear pair of ears of the first plate
by a pivot pin so that the free forked end of the lever can move to a certain
extent up and down, to and from the plate fixed to the brake stem. The free
fork of the lever has rotatably mounted in it a caoutchouc or metal roller, or
preferably two coned caoutchouc or metal rollers, held a certain distance apart upon
their spindle by an intervening tubular distance piece. The two front ears of the
upper plate also constitute a fork between which are mounted two oppositely coned
rollers preferably also of caoutchouc and also preferably separated by a distance
piece which rollers are however prevented from turning readily by being nipped
tight between the ears.
At an intermediate point of its length the forked lever is connected to a spring
connection consisting preferably of a stem pivotted to the lever and passing through
a hole in the plate and through a looped piece fixed to the upper side of the plate,
a helical spring being fitted within the looped piece, through which spring the
stem also passes, and against the lower end of which it bears by means of a pro-
jecting pin passing transversely through a hole in the stem, so that on pressing the
forked lever upward towards the plate it effects the compression of the said spring.
The action of this brake device is as follows:-
On pressing the brake stem downwards by the ordinary brake lever, the
caoutchouc rollers carried by the forked lever are first brought in contact with
the wheel tyre; as the brake stem is pressed farther down, the spring between the
lever and the upper plate is more or less compressed, thereby causing the rollers
to be pressed with a corresponding elastic pressure upon the tyre and consequently
exercising a certain moderate braking action.
On still farther depressing the brake stem, the rollers carried by the upper

page_text: plate are made to bear against the top of the lower rollers, thereby preventing
their rotation and pressing them still more firmly on the tyre so as to apply the
full brake power.
Datad this 7th day of Donamban 1806
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Brake Apparatus for Bicycles and other
Velocipedes.
I, FREDERICK ARNOLD RODEWALD, of Heathfield House, Wimbledon Common
in the County of Surrey, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be partioularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates to an improved construction of brake apparatus for bicycles
and other velocipedes whereby a more graduated pressure of the brake upon the
wheel tyre can be obtained than is possible with existing constructions.
It consists mainly in a roller carried on a plate actuated by a brake lever, by
means of spring supports, so arranged that by depressing the plate and spring
supports with only slight pressure the said roller is brought in contact with the
wheel tyre with a corresponding slight rolling pressure, which will be increased
on the farther compression of the spring supports, while if such compression is
carried to a certain extent, the roller is brought in contact with a block of
caoutchouc or other suitable material carried by the above mentioned plate. The
roller will then be more or less prevented from rotating and will at the same time
be forcibly pressed against the wheel tyre so as to exercise the full braking action
thereon.
On the accompanying drawing is shewn the arrangement which I employ by
preference for carrying my said invention into practice.
Fig. 1 shews a side view of the brake in the raised position. Fig. 2 shews a
section of the same partly depressed so as to apply a slight braking action to the
wheel. Fig. 3 shews a similar view with the brake depressed so as to apply the
full braking action. Fig. 4 shews a plan and Fig. 5 an underside plan.
To the rod A, which may be actuated by a brake lever in any suitable known
manner, is fixed a plate B having fixed to it spring arms C preferably formed of
looped steel wire, as shewn, fixed to the plate at B and also held by claws B2 on
the side cheeks B3 of the plate. The ends of the spring arms C carry an axis D
on which is loosely mounted a roller E, preferably of concave form as shewn.
The extended side cheeks B3 of the plate B carry, at a certain distance above the
roller E, a block of caoutchouc F, preferably of the convex form shewn corres-
ponding to the concavity of the roller.
From this construction it will be seen that if the plate B be pressed down with
cnly slight pressure as.at Fig. 2 the roller E will be brought to bear with
correspondingly slight pressure upon the tyre G of the wheel, which will thus be
subject to a slight braking action, while still free to revolve, the roller E being
made to revolve with it. This braking action can be gradually increased by
forcing down the plate B so as to compress the spring arm C to a greater extent.
When this compression has been carried so far that the block F comes in contact
with the roller E, as at Fig. 3, the rotation of E will be more or less prevented,
and it will be subject to the full downward pressure of the brake rod A, thus
applying the full brake power on the wheel tyre.

page_text: As the roller E in revolving may throw mud in an upward direction from the
wheel tyre, I prefer to provide a small mud guard H suitably attached to the
plate B, and preferably formed with a hinge joint such as at H₁, shewn, in dotted
lines in Figs. 1 and 4, so as to enable it to be turned up to clear the parts of mud.
It will be evident that the arrangement of the several above described parts may
be variously modified without departing from the essential features of the
invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. A brake apparatus for velocipedes consisting of a plate such as B operated'
in any suitable manner by a brake lever and having attached thereto spring
supports carrying a roller such as E so arranged in connection with a caoutchouc
or other block such as F, that by a moderate depression of the plate B, the roller
is made to bear with spring pressure on the wheel tyre, while by a stronger
depression of the plate 13 the said block is brought against the roller so as to
prevent its rotation and to exercise the full brake pressure, substantially as
described.
2. A brake apparatus for velocipedes combined and operating as herein described
with reference to the drawing.
Dated this 3rd day of September 1897.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.