Improvements in Shaft Tugs, Back Bands, and Hooks for Harness.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Feb., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 4th Nov., 1897-Accepted, 29th Jan., 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Shaft Tugs, Back Bands, and Hooks for Harness.
We, WILLIAM SIMPSON, of No. 15, Wordsworth Avenue, Cardiff, in the County
of Glamorgan, Engineer, and ALBINUSS HUNTER SCOTT, of No. 37, Metal Street,
Cardiff, in the County of Glamorgan, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to improve harness as used with ordinary car-
riages and the like. The principal portion of it relates to an improved method or
means whereby the harness and shafts can be quickly or instantaneously separated
from the horse, as is frequently necessary in case of accident.
Usually the only means at present in actual use, is either cutting the leather
traces and attachments or releasing a cumbersome arrangement of buckles and
hooks. Now when a strain is on the hook or buckle it is impossible to bring the
hook far enough back to allow of the horse being free.
In carrying our invention into effect, the tug consists of the aggregation of a
series of oval leather loops fitting side to side and presenting their edges to the side,
whereas the tugs at present in use present the flat of the leather to the side and
their edges at the front and rear. The several loops of our improved tug break
joint and are held together by rivets or screws. The separate loops may be made
in any convenient way. We prefer to make them of a varying thickness, the
bottoms being thicker than the tops, so as to fortify the bottom of the tug.
The saddle strap or backband is, or may be, made by holding together several
straps side to side and edges outwards.
Our invention includes the introduction of a detaching hook into the harness
at every junction therein at which an accident to the animal or animals or to the
vehicle would render instant severance of the former from the harness, or the
latter from the vehicle, desirable.
Our improved detaching hook will be best understood from a description of it
as made to be used with the back band. The modifications necessary to adapt it
for use with other junctions in the harness do not affect the principles of its con-
struction or of its operation.
The end of the back-band and the top of the tug, such end and top being the adja-
cent portions of the respective parts of the harness, terminate the one in a ring or
loop and the other in a hook. The ring or loop, is preferably, on the backband,
and the hook on the tug. The hook is open to the side, for preference. There is
pivotted in the end of the said hook a lever, one arm of which is hooked the other
one being shaped to lay down snugly against the tug. When the last mentioned arm
is in the position described, the hook coincides with the sweep of the hook on the
tug, its nose standing behind and engaging the bottom cross portion of the loop
or ring in the backband.
The releasing is effected by swinging the straight arm upwards, the hook carry.

page_text: ing the bottom cross portion of the loop outwards through the mouth of the hook
in the top of the tug and then letting it go.
It is preferable to slot the tug hook downwards and to put the lever in the slot.
1001
Improvements in Shaft Tugs, Back Bands, and HOOKS oг Harness.
We, WILLIAM SIMPSON, of No. 15, Wordsworth Avenue, Cardiff, in the County
of Glamorgan, Engineer, and ALBINUSS HUNTER SCOTT, of No. 37, Metal Street,
Cardiff, in the County of Glamorgan, Engineer, 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:—
The object of this invention is to improve harness as used with ordinary carriages.
The principal portion of it relates to an improved method or means whereby the
harness and shafts can be quickly or instantaneously separated from, the horse,
as is frequently necessary in case of accident.
Usually the only means at present in actual use, is either cutting the leather
traces and attachments, or releasing a cumbersome arrangement of buckles and
hooks; and, when a strain is on the hook or buckle it is impossible to bring the
hook far enough back to allow of the horse being freed.
In carrying our invention into effect, the tug consists of the aggregation of a
series of oval leather loops. fitting side to side and presenting their edges to the
side, whereas the tugs at présent in use present the flat of the leather to the side
and their edges at the front and rear. The several loops of our improved tug break
joint and are held together by rivets or screws. The separate loops may be made
in any convenient way. We prefer to make them of a varying thickness, the
bottoms being thicker than the tops, so as to fortify the bottom of the tug.
The saddle-strap or back-band, is, or may be, made by holding together several
straps side to side and edge outwards.
Our invention includes the introduction of a detaching hook into the harness
at every junction therein at which an accident to the animal or animals or to the
vehicle would render instant severance of the former from the harness, or the
latter from the vehicle, desirable.
Our improved detaching hook will be best understood from a description of it
as made to be used with the back band. The modifications necessary to adapt it
for use with other functions in the harness do not affect the principles of its con-
struction or of its operation.
The end of the back-band and the top of the tug, such end and top being the
adjacent portions of the respective parts of the harness, terminate, the one in a
ring or loop a, and the other in a hook b. The ring or loop a is preferably, on the
backband, and the hook b on the tug on the shafts or their equivalent harness.
The hook is open to the side, for preference. There are pivoted in the end of the
said hook two levers one of which is hooked, the other one L being shaped to lay
down snugly against the hook B. When the last-mentioned lever L is in the posi-
tion described, the hooked one coincides with the sweep of the hook on the tug,
its nose standing behind and engaging the bottom cross portion of the loop or ring
on the backband.

page_text: The releasing is effected by swinging the lever & upwards, the lever L carrying
the bottom cross portion of the loop outwards through the mouth of the hook in
the top of the tug, and then letting it (the ring on the back-band) go.
It is preferable to slot the tug hook downwards and to put the lever in the slot:
In the accompanying drawings illustrating our invention:-
Figure 1 is a general arrangement, of the disengaging gear as applied to an
ordinary set of harness. A is the disengaging hook of the back strap; B, the dis-
engaging hook attached to the hames, and C the disengaging arrangement attached
to the breeching.
Figure 2 is an attachment to the shafts and to which the harness is secured by
the before-mentioned detaching arrangements, A. is the detaching hook for the
back strap, sliding on a bar E, attached to the shafts F; G is a hooked bar to
which the breeching is attached. H is a screwed nut running upon the end of the
bar E and sliding partly over the point of the bar G, so that when it is screwed
outwardly and embracing the bar G, the latter is held firmly in position, and can
only be released by unscrewing the nut H.
Figure 3 is the hook A, shown detached, with the lever K turned upwards, so
that the loop or ring a attached to the back strap is freed.
Figure 4 is an end view of the disengaging hook A, and a section of the shaft F.
Figure 5, Figure 6 and Figure 7 are views of the detaching hook B for attach-
ment to the hames. J represents the part of the hames to which the hook B is
attached. K is the releasing lever, and L a locking lever working between
the sides of the hook B. The top part of the locking lever L is slotted in the centre
to allow of the hooked lever K lying snugly within.
Figure 8 is a modification of a portion of Figure 2 marked G, and represents a
separate locking-bar to be attached to the shafts at any convenient position.
Figure 9 shows a modified form of the loop attached to the backstrap, and
through which the shafts are passed; this arrangement is intended to be used for
carriages and light vehicles and where the backstrap detaching hook is not attached
to a rigid fitting on the shaft as shown in Figures 1 and 2. The backstrap itself
is made of a series of strips of leather of any convenient number, screwed or riveted
together and working edgeways. By this arrangement it is possible to make a back-
strap of any thickness desired and of any cross section according to the shape of the
strips employed. M is the backstrap and P the loop, through which the shaft is
passed; the said loop being also made from strips of leather cut to the required shape,
and riveted or screwed together. The loop P is pivoted at O, to metal cheeks O
attached to the backstrap, and is secured by an arrangement shown at P1, and R, in
which a metal hook upon the point of the loop is sprung under a pin Q-and secured
by a pivoted plate d¹ and screw nut R.
U and U are cross sections through the laminated leather of the loop and back-
strap.
Figures 10, 11 and 12 show another form of the detaching hook for attachment
to the hames by means of a swivel-hook of any convenient form, secured to the
detaching hook by a pin S, otherwise the detaching hook is substantially as
described and illustrated in Figures 5, 6 and 7.
Figures 13 and 14 are views of our laminated loop through which the shafts are
passed and to which the backstrap is attached. A disengaging hook on the prin-
ciple described is shown at K. This loop is constructed of layers of leather riveted
or screwed together as before described, and suitable for use with carriage or light
vehicle harness.
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:-
1. A tug for harness, consisting of an aggregation of leather loops held together
by rivets or screws flatwise so as to present their edges to the side, substantially
os described and illustrated

page_text: 2. Detaching-hooks such as A and B for releasing the animal from the harness,
constructed substantially as described and illustrated.
3. The hooked bar for connecting the breeching with the shafts provided with a
thread-and-nut locking device, in combination with a detaching hook such as A
or B substantially as described and set forth.
4. In a set of harness, the combination of the disengaging hook A of the back
strap, the disengaging hook B of the hames, and the disengaging arrangement C
attached to the breeching, all substantially as and for the purposes herein described
and set forth.
Dated the 4th day of November 1097.
PHILLIPS & LEIGH,
No. 22, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicants.