Improved Means for Supporting Wheel Vehicles on their Axles and Utilizing their Weight as an Auxiliary Motive Power.
Year: 1892

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Means for Supporting Wheel Vehicles on their Axles and
Utilizing their Weight as an Auxiliary Motive Power.
:
I, WILLIAM CROOK, Senior of St. Johns Avenue, in the City of Winnipeg,
County of Selkirk, Province of Manitoba and Dominion of Canada, Inventor, do
hereby declare the nature of the said invention and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement :-
;
My invention relates to improvements in motive power and its object is to provide
a device whereby the force of gravity is utilized and made to co-operate with and
reinforce the various motors employed for propelling locomotives, street cars, or
other wheeled vehicles.
I
In order to illustrate the operation of my invention, I have herein embodied it in
a form especially applicable to a street or tram car; it being understood that the
principle, with suitable modifications of detail, is equally adaptable to wheel vehicle's
of every description.
The dominant feature of my invention consists in the arrangement of auxiliary
wheels superimposed upon the axles of the truck wheels. These wheels are journalled
in yokes or housings which are attached to the car body and sustain the weight of
the same.
The lower peripheries of these bearing wheels are adjusted in contact
with, and revolve upon the axle of the truck wheels. Suitable mechanism is pro-
vided whereby the said axle may be retained, at will, in a perpendicular relation to
the said bearing wheels or swung to the front or rear thereof in an arc eccentric to
the superimposed wheel bearings so that the bearing point of the said wheels upon
the axle may be shifted out of the perpendicular and the weight of the car being
thus thrown in front or rear, as desired, of the center of the axle of the truck
wheels, the propelling power is consequently reinforced by the gravity of the
vehicle acting on one or the other side of the axle.
The shifting of the axle is easily effected by mechanism controlled by a driver or
brakeman who occupies the front platform of the car, provision being also made for
simultaneously shifting both axles into a uniformn bearing upon their respective
points of contact with the superimposed auxiliary bearing wheels.
The application of my invention will be understood by referring to the accom
panying drawings in which:
Fig. I. illustrates the principle of my invention.
Fig. II. a plan view of the truck gearing of a tram car embodying my improved
auxiliary motor.
Fig. III. a side elevation of the same in conjunction with the body of a tram
car and
Fig. IV. a front view of one of the truck wheels showing its relation to the
auxiliary bearing wheels.
"i
A designates the main frame of oblong rectangular form provided with suitable
braces a. Depending from the upper part of this frame and rigidly attached
thereto are bearing yokes B, within which are journalled twin wheels C whose
peripheries are adjusted in contact with, and adapted to roll upon the car axle c.
In order to prevent lateral displacement, collars care formed upon the axle
and engage grooves c¹ in the peripheries of the twin bearing wheels. The pro-
jecting spindle of the outer bearing wheel and the extremity of the car axle
are respectively-pivoted on the ends of a swinging link D,-the operation of
which will be hereinafter explained.
I
A longitudinal shaft d is journalled centrally within the frame work and
carries a wheel d' operated by a belt or sprocket chain d extending from a

page_text: similar wheel E supported on a vertical standard e and controlled by the driver
of the car.
Transverse beams e¹ are bolted at suitable intervals beneath the
main axle and support a plate ell having longitudinal guide-ways which admit a
sliding block F having a threaded aperture f which engages a worm f¹ on the
longitudinal shaft d. In order to permit independent action of the bearing wheels
and to facilitate the passage of the vehicle around curves, the axle is divided as
shown and its inner ends provided with pivots G which. engage apertures in the
sides of the sliding block F.
Transverse parallel beams 9 are bolted at or near the central part of the truck
frame and provided at their extremities with sprocket wheels g' having similarly
threaded spindles gl. These wheels are operated by chain belts H leading from a
double sprocket wheel which is attached to the shaft d. Connecting bars I have
their extremities pivotally connected with the outer ends of the axles and also with
the link D which connects the axle with the bearing wheels. The said connecting
bars extend rearwardly and are similarly connected to the rear axle, which is not
shown in the drawing. Brackets I¹ are secured to the said bars and also to threaded
nuts which move upon the threaded spindles of the sprocket wheels g'. The
unthreaded ends of the spindles engage and move freely in eyes formed on the
ends of a transverse bar J.
The frame work and the body of the car K are united by suitable springs k which
form the sole connection between them.
The operation of the mechanism will now be described. It will be observed that
the shaft d has no longitudinal motion, but when rotated by the brakeman, the
worm forces the sliding block forward or back as desired. Simultaneously the
double sprocket wheel and the mechanism connected therewith cause a precisely
corresponding movement of the connecting bars 1. By this means, the divided
axles are kept in alignment and are at the same time adjusted and held in the
desired relation to the superimposed auxiliary bearing wheels. It will be observed
that the action of the auxiliary wheels is controlled by their position with respect to
the axle. If their bearing be perpendicular thereto, no effect is produced, but when
the center of the axle is shifted to either side of the perpendicular, the wheels
necessarily bear upon one or other of the downwardly inclined sides of the axle and
the superincumbent weight of the body of the car is thus brought into action and
added to the motive power employed to propel the vehicle.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. An improved motor for wheeled vehicles, consisting of the herein described
auxiliary wheels, the divided axle upon which the auxiliary wheels are adjustably
superimposed in combination with mechanism as described, adapted to reinforce the
power employed to propel the vehicle, substantially as herein set forth.
2. In an improved motor, the herein described auxiliary wheels superimposed
upon a divided axle, in combination with the threaded sliding block F, the rotatable
shaft d, the sprocket wheels h and g', chain belts H, the threaded spindle g" and
connecting bars I all adapted to shift the bearing point of the axle upon the
auxiliary wheels and simultaneously to bold the sections of the divided axle in
alignment, substantially as herein set forth.
Dated this Fourteenth day of October 1892.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agents.