IMPROVEMENTS IN CONTROL APPARATUS FOR PUBLIC VEHICLES
Year: 1883

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Georg Prölss at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 26th November 1883.
GEORG PRÖLSS of the City of Dresden in the Kingdom of Saxony and German
Empire "IMPROVEMENTS IN CONTROL APPARATUS FOR PUBLIC VEHICLES"
This invention relates to improvements in control apparatus for public vehicles.
The control apparatus as described in the following specification is employed. in
connection with public vehicles such as cabs, omnibusses, and tram cars to calculate
the fare for one or more persons according to the distance travelled and to enable
the passenger as well as the owner of the vehicle to control the fare charged and
the money received.
For this purpose three apparatus are combined and made dependent on each
other, that is,
a) the distance measuring apparatus which gives the distance travelled over in
meters or yards as soon as one or more passengers is or are in the vehicle.
b) the passenger counter which is in connection with the aforementioned distance
measuring apparatus and continuously registers the number of meters which
one, two or more persons travel,
c) the control apparatus which adjusts or sets in action the two former
apparatus as soon as one or more persons enter the vehicle and release or free
the same as soon as the passengers leave the vehicle.
.
The control apparatus as mentioned under c is placed at the bottom of the
vehicle, is in connection with the step or steps of the said vehicle and consists of
wo apparatus of like construction so that the vehicle can be entered from both
ides.
In entering the vehicle the passenger must place his foot on the step which is in
onnection with the apparatus and thus put the said apparatus into action.-The
tep rests with its bell crank lever in a suitable hinge and is held up by a suitably
rranged spring.
As soon as the weight of the passenger overcomes the strength of the said spring,
he step is moved downwards and the lever arm upwards.
A suitable wedge is attached to the lever which on rising causes said wedge
o glide on the one half of a fork and move the same to the side on its binge until,
he end of the lever comes over the bell crank lever on the spindle.

page_text: Now that the step mechanism has been set through the side motion imparted to
the half of the fork, the passenger steps onto the bottom of the vehicle.―The cover
of the apparatus is arranged on suitable hinges and is held up by a spring. As
soon as the weight of the passenger presses the spring down an arm attached to the
aforesaid cover, presses on the one half of the fork.-The latter is provided with a
As
hinge which permits a part of the fork to be pressed down by the said arm.
previously mentioned the fork stands now over the bell crank lever and presses in
sinking on one of the arms of the same so that the fork and with the same also the
shaft or spindle is put in motion.
A suitable spring now presses the lever back again into its former position.
The movement of the spindle is transmitted to the apparatus as described later
on. A like apparatus is arranged on the other side of the vehicle so as to permit
the said vehicle to be entered from both sides of the same.
The construction of the second apparatus differs only in so far from the first
apparatus that the bell crank lever sits on the spindle which acts as axis or fulcrum
for the said lever whilst the movement is transmitted to the spindle by means of
the bell crank lever and a suitable rod; the spindle is consequently the only
transmitter of the movement attained by entering the vehicle it being immaterial
from which side the vehicle is entered-When the passenger leaves the vehicle
the same movements are carried out in reverse direction-Whereas the parts are
put in action in stepping on the step and the cover transmits the movement; the
cover now puts the parts in action and the step transmits the motion.
The cover is pressed down by the one foot of the person leaving the vehicle in
consequence of which the wedge attached to the cover moves the fork arm on its
hinge towards the centre until the same stands over the lever-The other foot of the
passenger now presses down the step so that the projecting arm presses on the fork
arm which can be moved upwards by means of a suitable hinge or joint and presses,
in consequence of the motion transmitted through the said projecting arm the bell
crank lever upwards.
This movement is transmitted to a spindle to which the lever is attached and is
by means of the said spindle transmitted to the other apparatus.
Whereas the spindle alone transmits the movement caused by entering the
vehicle, the spindle fulfills the like functions in leaving the same as in this instance
the said spindle only forms the axis for the bell crank lever, whilst the rod
transmits its movement to the spindle.
In order that the beforementioned projecting arms which do not come into
operation may pass freely the two fork arms are provided with springs, which said
pair of springs return the said arms to their original position after the same have
been moved in a horizontal direction on the hinges and the second pair of springs
in like manner after the said arms have been moved in a vertical direction on the
aforesaid hinges.
It is evident that the action of the apparatus is calculated for the correct entering
the vehicle by first stepping on the step and then on the cover of the apparatus and
vice versa on leaving the vehicle.
The apparatus mentioned under a and b, id est the distance measuring apparatus
and the counter are arranged on the back seat of the vehicle.
The distance measurer is set in motion by the revolution of the wheels of the
vehicle from the axle of which a strap chain etc transmits the movement to the
driving wheel of the apparatus.
A suitable toothed roller or elongated pinion sits loosely on the same spindle to
which the driving wheel is keyed and is embraced endwise by a strap like slide
which can glide on a rail and in a suitable guide.-Two bell crank levers catch in
the notches of the aforesaid rail=these levers receive their movement by entering
and leaving the carriage from two suitably arranged connecting rods which are
coupled to the two spindles. If a person enters the carriage the movement of the
spindle draws the rod down and moves one of the said bell crank levers whereby
the slide with the toothed roller or pinion on the shaft is moved forwards until the

page_text: said pinion comes in contact with the first toothed wheel.-As the pinion is
moveable on the shaft but is prevented from revolving on the same by means of a
suitable groove and wedge, the same participates in the rotary movement of the
spindle which is caused by the wheel and transfers the same to the toothed wheel
which is in gear with the said driving wheel.
A toothed or spur wheel is arranged for every person which the vehicle is
intended to carry and the aforesaid bell crank lever effects the movement of the
pinion to the left equal to the distance between two spur wheels as the same
returns to its original position by means of the spring immediately the movement
ceases.
If for instance 4 persons enter the carriage all four wheels are brought into gear
with the toothed roller or pinion and are rotated as soon as the vehicle is set in
motion These four wheels are arranged on a spindle provided with endless screws
which are in gear with four spur wheels.-The movement imparted to the spindle
from the carriage wheels by means of the driving wheel is transmitted through the
pinion to the spur wheels, the endless screws and four suitably arranged spindles to.
which said latter spindles, the four hands or pointers are attached in order to show
the number of meters travelled over on the dials to the same.
As above mentioned the movement caused by leaving the vehicle is communicated
direct to the spindle of the controll apparatus and is transmitted further by means
of the third bell crank lever which with the second bell crank lever sits on the
same spindle but receives a movement in opposite direction to the motion of the
last named lever so that the same gears into the corresponding recesses in the slide
and moves the same with the pinion to the right in corresponding manner to the
second of the aforesaid bell crank levers.
If the said bell crank lever moves the pinion on a person entering the vehicle to
the left up to the spur wheel the third bell crank lever moves the said pinion on
leaving the vehicle in like distance back to the right.
It is evident that the distance measurer is only put into action by means of the
operation of the aforesaid shaft or spindle and the pinion on the spur wheels in the
person counter when the vehicle is occupied whereas the parts remain inactive so
long as the vehicle is not occupied.
If only one person occupies the vehicle the spur wheel is in connection with the
measuring apparatus by means of the aforesaid gearing and with the band or
indicator if two persons occupy the said vehicle one of the spur wheels is also in
gear with the pinion so that the movement is transmitted to the hand or indicator
by means of the gearing-If the vehicle is occupied by three or four persons the
corresponding wheels, their gearing and the hands or indicators are brought into
operation..
If a person leaves the vehicle the pinion is at once freed from gear with the
corresponding wheel. The indicator continuously shows how many meters the
vehicle passes over with one, two or more passengers. This control apparatus is
specially designed for the owner of the vehicle and is arranged under the back seat
so as not to be visible either to the coachman or the passenger.
An indicator is arranged for the passenger so that the same can readily observe
the same.
As it is only of interest to the passenger to know what distance the vehicle
travels over when occupied by him the indicator or hand of the passenger apparatus
always points to zero at the commencement of the journey and shows at the end of
the same simply the number of meters travelled over irrespective of the number of
passengers occupying the vehicle.-The price must be calculated according to a
fixed tarif for instance for one person one penny, two persons 11/ª, 3 persons
100 Meters, or yards.
2d
per
The construction and operation of this indicator mechanism are as follows:-
A strap on the strap drum runs from the spindle to which the indicator or hand
is fixed to a second strap drum on a suitable spindle which carries the indicator or

page_text: hand which said spindle is in any case operated whether the vehicle is occupied by
one or more persons.
Between the hollow cylinder of the hand and a thicker part of the spindle is fixed
a spiral spring which has the tendency to press the band or indicator against a
second thicker part or collar of the spindle to which the indicator or hand is affixed,
which said hand or indicator and also the aforesaid collar are provided with suitable
teeth which are pressed into gear by a suitably arranged spiral spring-A watch
or clock spring is fixed at one end to the case of the apparatus and at the other to
the hollow cylinder which said spring is wound up when the hand or indicator is
moved In order to free the hand or indicator it is only necessary to press against
the said hollow cylinder by means of the key so that the spiral spring is compressed
and the teeth of the hand or indicator is freed from gear with the teeth to the
collar The watch spring now returns to its original position and carries the
indicator or hand with it by means of the power accumulated during the journey—
As soon as the passenger leaves the carriage and the distance travelled over is
fixed or ascertained, the coachman need only place a suitable key on the collar and
press the indicator inwards so that the same can be returned to zero by means of
the aforementioned watch or clock spring.