Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Feb., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 7th Nov., 1889---Accepted, 7th Dec., 1889
WILLIAM THOMAS SHAW and ARTHUR SYDENHAM, of the "Crypto" Works, No. 64,
City Road, in the County of London, Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
-
An improved means of applying a brake to the front wheels of those velocipedes
which are steered by means of two front wheels which are held parallel when the
machine is running in a straight line but which are caused to make an angle the
one to the other when they are deviated for the purpose of making the machine
run in a curvilinear path.
Hitherto machines of this type have had the brake applied to the rear driving
wheel or wheels. By our improved construction such rear brake is supplemented,
or if so desired, superseded by a brake so contrived as to operate on the two front
wheels with equal force whatever the relative positions they may occupy with reference
to each other, and so as not to interfere with their free movement for steering purposes
whilst the brake is in full operation.
In those velocipedes in which the front steering wheels are controlled by a central
spindle and handle-bar as used on a bicycle, the construction we use is as follows:-
On the hub of each front wheel we form a narrow drum encircled by a steel band
or strap lined with leather or other suitable material. This band is hinged at its
upper end upon a pin held by an arm fixed to the abutment of the stud-axle. The
lower end of the band is in like manner hinged upon a pin fixed to a short arm
or lever which latter is piu-jointed at one end to the abutment of the stud-axle.
The other end of this short lever-arm is moved through a small arc of a circle and
the band is thus tightened on the drum so as to impede or stop the rotation of the
wheel, as is commonly done in brakes of this kind. Each wheel being thus pro-
vided, the lever-arms on the brake-bands are joined up and connected by means of
a strong cord of steel-wire, cat gut, or other suitable material. By means of grooved
guide-pulleys this cord is led from the lever-arms in a direction tangential to the
ares described by the latter, and thence to similar pulleys fixed on the upright
stem or tube of the steering spindle. From these pulleys the cord is led in a
vertical direction and thus forms a loop which is passed over a similar grooved
pulley carried by a fork formed at the lower end of a vertical connecting rod. This
rod is attached to a lever of the ordinary construction pin-jointed to the handle-bar. By
pressing the other end of the lever. the vertical rod is lifted, the cord is tightened,
and the lever-arms on the brake bands being pulled upwards, the latter are caused
firmly to grasp the drums whilst at the same time the cord, although in a state of
tension, is free to move over the pulleys, and consequently the deviation of the wheels
differentially for steering purposes remains wholly unimpeded even with the brakes
full on.
In this construction as well as in any other machines in which the brake-
drum is liable to an access of oil from the moving parts, we find it preferable to line
the brake-bands with leather that has been "tawed" or cured with oil instead of by the
tanning process.
Dated this 9th day of February 1889
WM. THOS. SHAW.
ARTHUR
SYDENHAM.

page_text: We, WILLIAM THOMAS SHAW and ARTHUR SYDENHAM, Director and Manager of tho
Crypto Cycle Co. Limited, No. 64, City Road, in the County of London, 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:-
Judgment
Our invention relates mainly to an improved means of applying a brake to the
front wheels of those velocipedes which are steered by means of two front wheels
which are held parallel when the machine is running in a straight line, but which are
caused to make an angle the one to the other when they are deviated for the purpose
of making the machine run in a curvilinear path. Hitherto machines of this type hace
had the brake applied to the rear-drivingwheel orwheels. Byour improved construction
such rear brake is supplemented, or if so desired, superseded by a brake so contrived
as to operate on the two front wheels with equal force whatever the relative positions
they may occupy with reference to each other, and so as not to interfere with their
free movement for steering purposes whilst the brake is in full operation.
-
In those velocipedes in which the front steering wheels are controlled by a central
spindle and handle-bar as used on a bicycle, the construction we use is as follows:-
On the hub of each front wheel we form a narrow dum encircled by a steel band or
strap lined with leather or other suitable material. This band is hinged at its upper
end upon a pin beld by an arm fixed to the abutment of the stud-axle. The lower
end of the band is in like manner hinged upon a pin fixed to a short arm or lever
which latter is pin-jointed at one end to the abutment of the stud axle. The o her
end of this shori lever-arm is moved through a small are of a circle and the band is
thus tightened on the drum so as to impede or stop the rotation of the wheel, as is
commonly done in brakes of this kind. Each wheel being thus provided, the lever-
arms on the brake-bands are joined up and connected by means of a strong cord of
steel wire, cat gut, or other suitable material. By means of grooved guide-pulleys
this cord is led from the lever-arms in a direction tangential to the ares described by
the latter, and thence to a similar pulley carried by a fork formed at the lower end of
a vertical connecting rod. This rod is attached to a lever of the ordinary construe-
tion pin-jointed to the handle-har. By pressing the other end of the lever, the
vertical rod is lifted, the cord is tightened, and the lever-arms on the brake bands
being pulled upwards, the latter are caused firmly to grasp the drums whilst at the
same time the cord, although in a state of tension, is free to move over the pulleys,
and consequently the deviation of the wheels differentially for steering purposes
In this construction as
remains wholly unimpeded even with the brakes full on.
well as in any other machines in which the brake-drum is liable to an access of oil
from the moving parts, we find it preferable to line the brake-bands with leather
that has been "inwed or cured with oil instead of by the tanning process,
In order that the said invention may be more clearly understood and readily carried
into effect we will proceed, with the assistance of the accompanying drawings, more
fully to describe the same.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Fig. is a plan, Fig. II a front elevation, and Fig. III a side elevation of our
improved brake applied to a tricycle with two front steering wheels steered differen-
tially as described in our Patent No. 8199 of June 7. 1887. The same, or equivalent
parts in the several drawings are indicated by the same letters. i, are the hubs of the
two wheels to be operated upon by the brake hands ; e, are narrow drums or
flanges fixed to the hubs; e, are pins upon which the bands are hinged; these
pins are fixed to the abutment of the stud-axle and move with the latter in the act
of steering, so that the pins are always parallel with their respective axles. dis
a pin fixed to a short arm or lever and carries the lower end of the band b

page_text: hinged upon it. The end of this short levere is moved through a small arc and
thus tightens the band on the drum in the usual way. To effect this the lever e
has attached to it a strong cord or chain, passing first over the guide pulleys f and
then over a grooved pulley y carried by a fork g which is attached to the connecting
rod h. This rod is carried up to a lever pin-jointed on the steering bar in the ordinary
way.
In another form of this our differential brake we make use of connecting rods and
levers in place of the cord and guide pulleys. This construction will be readily
understood on reference to Figs. IV, V, & VI which show the various parts in plan,
front and side elevation respectively, the same parts bearing the same letters in each
Figure. Fig. VII, lettered in correspondence with the preceding is a front view of
the central connections of this brake. It consists of an attachment g', ball-jointed to
the vertical rod which is carried up to and actuated by a lever on the handle-bar
in the ordinary way. By this means the rod is pressed downwards when it is
desired to put on the brakes, and by the intermediate pieres gives motion to the
curved levers g, which hang from pins fixed to a bracket h³ on the stem ¹ of the
frame. The lower ends of gare ball jointed at g³ to connecting rods el which at
their opposite extremities (see Fig. IV. V & VI) are in like manner ball-jointed at es
to the bell-cranks e. The latter move on a fulcrum-pin carried by two lugs
formed on the steering lever s. The bell cranks care pin-jointed at to a rod e
which passes through a slot in the band band is joined at its lower end to a leather-
lined steel band encircling the drum or flange a fixed to the wheel-hub i. The other
extremity of the band carries a socket a hinged on the fixed pin which is firmly
held by the arm et, the latter being supported at one end by the abutment of the stud-
axle and at the other end by the rod c. The spiral spring serves to hold the
band clear of the drum when the brake is not in action. Our newly invented system
as herein described in its various forms has the great advantage of enabling the
brakes to be equally and simultaneously applied to wheels which are being steered
differentially (ie. out of parallelism with each other) without in any way interfering
with the freedom of steering even when the brakes are hard on.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
The improved means of applying brakes simultaneously to the steering wheels of
velocipedes which are steered by means of two front wheels held parallel when the
machine is running in a straight line but which make an angle the one to the other
when they are deviated so as to cause the machine to run in a curvilinear path,
substantially as herein described.
Dated this Seventh day of November. 1889.