IMPROVEMENTS IN TRACTION AND AGRICULTURAL ENGINES AND ROAD LOCOMOTIVES
Year: 1879

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Arthur Wallis, Charles James
Steevens, and Thomas Ekins Daintree at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents on the 20th March 1879.
ARTHUR WALLIS, CHARLES JAMES STEEVENS, and THOMAS EKINS DAINTREE,
all of Basingstoke, in the County of Hants. "IMPROVEMENTS IN TRACTION AND
AGRICULTURAL ENGINES AND ROAD LOCOMOTIVES."
Our Invention relates to means of varying the travelling speed of steering,
traction, and agricultural engines, and road locomotives, and of applying to such
engines drums or barrels for hauling purposes. For the purpose of varying the
speed of the driving wheels of such engines we employ two intermediate shafts
between the crank shaft and the driving wheels, each of those shafts being provided
with gearing wheels and pinions arranged in the following manner :-Calling for
the sake of clearness the two intermediate shafts respectively the first and
second shafts, we fix on the second shaft a toothed wheel which gears either with
a pinion on the crank shaft or with a pinion on the first shaft, according as these
pinions are slid respectively into or out of gear. On the first shaft, besides the
pinion above mentioned, we provide a pinion which can gear with a pinion on the
crank shaft, or may be slid out of gear therewith. The pinions on the first shaft
may be themselves fitted to slide along the shaft, or the shaft may be slid bodily in
its bearings so as to engage or disengage its pinions. For one rate of speed the
pinion on the crank shaft is geared direct with the wheel on the second shaft, the
first shaft in that case remaining at rest. For the other rate of speed the crank
shaft pinion is made to drive the first shaft, which drives the second shaft, the
engines being reversed for travel in the same direction. The wheels and pinions
above described, or some of them, may be in duplicate, in order to divide equalize
the strain or to accomodate them in convenient positions for gearing. For the
purpose of steering engines such as are above referred to we place the steering
spindle within the horn or bearing plates, preferably near the middle of the engine,
so that the steersman may conveniently see on both sides, and we connect this
spindle to the chain barrel, according to one arrangement, through an intermediate
shaft mounted on the top of the engine. According to another arrangement we mount
the chain barrel itself on the top of the engine, leading the chains therefrom over guide
pullies; or, otherwise, we provide two chain barrels, one on each side of the engine,
connected by gearing to the upper shaft above referred to as being worked by the
steering spindle. In order to adapt such engines for hauling, as for example, for

page_text: working steam ploughs or cultivators, we mount a drum on a horizontal axis on one
side of the engine, or two drums, one on each side in front of the main road or
driving wheels, and preferably of such width as not to project beyond the widest
part of the engine. These drums may be both on one transverse shaft, or each may
be on a short separate shaft, or mounted free on a stationary axle projecting from
the side of the engine, and these shafts or axles may be supported by outer
bearings. We drive such drum or drums by suitable gearing from the crank shaft,
provided with known means of throwing them, or either of them, into or out of
gear.