An Improved Driving-gear for Cycles."
Year: 1897

page_text: "An Improved Driving-gear for Cycles."
I, RAMIRO DE PALACIOS, of No. 48, Fichtestrasse, Steglitz, Prussia in the Empire
of Germany, Engineer, formerly Consul of Spain, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to an improved driving-gear for cycles, and the object of
this invention is to provide means for rendering the wheel or wheels to which
motion is imparted, as much as possible independent of the driving mechanism,
such as the larger chain-wheel and the pedals, whereby I enable the cyclist to
impart at will to the driven wheel or wheels any desired successive or intermittent
impulsions, leaving the said driven wheel or wheels to continue, independently
of the driving gear, the rotary motion received.
The object of this invention is realized by mounting the driven wheel of the
driving gear, (i.e. in chain-cycles, the smaller sprocket-wheel,) loosely to turn
freely upon the axis hub or box of the driven cycle wheel, and by coupling the
said driven wheel of the gear to the said axis hub or box of the driven cycle_
wheel by means of two wheels, sheaves or rings, one of which is secured to or
made integral with the said driven gear wheel and the other secured to or made
integral with the axis hub or box of the driven cycle wheel. The said two
wheels, sheaves or rings of the said coupling are so located relative to each other,
preferably inside of each other, and so gearing with each other by means of a
number of pawls, or pivoted pins and corresponding teeth, lugs or projections,
that the driving part of said coupling, on being rotated, will carry along the
driven part of the said coupling, the latter being engaged by one or more of the
said pawls, pins or pivoted studs, or the said pawls, pins or studs of the driven
part being engaged by the teeth, lugs or projections of the driving part; whilst
the said driven part of the coupling is still free to continue its rotary motion, if
the driving part be stopped. To this effect the pawls or pivoted pins or studs
of the said coupling, on being turned to one side, bear against suitable stops, lugs
or projections, while on being turned to the other side, they are free to give way.
and thus form no obstacle to the free rotation of the driven part of the coupling
within or relative to the driving part.
The loose driven sprocket or gear-wheel in connection with a coupling
mechanism of this kind may be easily applied to the axis hub or box of cycles
of any kind, or of existing cycles, and the said mechanism may be employed at
one side of the driven cycle wheel, or at both sides of the said wheel or wheels.
The said driving gear may also be employed in the usual manner, if it is desired
to drive the cycle in the manner generally practised. To effect this, the two
parts, wheels, sheaves or rings of the coupling before described, are secured to
each other by bolts or other locking means, thus preventing the driven part of
the said coupling from moving independently of the other part and forcing the
two parts of the said coupling to turn with each other, whereby motion is trans-
mitted to the driven cycle-wheel in the usual manner. The bolts or locking

page_text: means to secure the two parts of the coupling to each other may be readily removed
and replaced to employ the driving-gear before described, as desired, in one
manner or the other.
Tr
1
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool,
Agents for the Applicant.
ELProver
Tiving-gear for Cycles.'
I, RAMIRO DE PALACIOS of No. 48 Fichtestrasse, Steglitz, Prussia in the Empire
of Germany, Engineer, formerly Consul of Spain, 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:—
My invention relates to an improved driving gear for cycles of that kind in
which the wheel or wheels to which rotary motion is imparted are independent of
the driving mechanism, such as the larger chain or sprocket wheel and the pedals,
whereby the driven wheel or wheels are able to continue their rotating motion
when the pedals are being stopped. Driving gear of such kind is known and has
been used before, it consisted of a disc or collar mounted fast on the hub of the
wheel to be driven and a ring loosely placed on the circumference of said collar
or disc and engaging the same by means of pawls or friction rollers when turn-
ing in one direction, the said ring being so constructed as to form the small
sprocket or chain wheel for receiving motion by the driving chain from the larger
sprocket wheel operated by the pedals in driving mechanism of this kind, the
annular small sprocket wheel will impart motion to the driven wheel and it will
suffer the said wheel to freely continue its rotating motion if the pedals and the
chain are stopped by the cyclist ceasing to work the pedals. But the said con-
struction, hitherto known, is greatly objectionable because, by employing the small
sprocket wheel as a driving ring acting on a collar or disc inside of the same, the
said sprocket wheel must have a considerable diameter to be able to impart motion
to the driven part with a sufficient leverage to utilize the driving force applied.
In employing a small sprocket wheel of a large diameter however the speed trans-
mitted from the larger sprocket wheel is so reduced that no advantage at all
would be derived from the new mechanism. If, on the contrary, a small sprocket
wheel of the usual diameter be employed its driving power acting on the collar
or disc concentrically placed within it will be so reduced on account of the small
leverage that all advantage that could be derived from such construction is counter-
acted and lost.
The object of this invention is to provide a construction of the kind described,
which shall permit the employment of a small sprocket wheel of
even the smallest size, and simultaneously a driving gear of any desired size, even
desired size
any
the largest size, thus uniting the two advantages of having a driving gear of any
desired sufficient leverage for giving impulsions and a small sprocket wheel of
any desired diameter even the smallest to permit of a great increase of speed.
This object is obtained by constructing the driving gear and the small sprocket
wheel separately and by mounting either the one or the other on the wheel axle
with a hub of its own.
In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 illustrates, as a specimen, a driving
gear of this construction.
F is the fixed axle of the wheel to be driven and D the hub of said wheel turn-

page_text: ing on said axle in the usual manner. The spokes of the wheel are indicated
by one pair G and G. On the said hub D is mounted fast a disc or wheel B and
adjacent to the same another disc or wheel A, arranged to turn loosely on the hub D.
Ball bearings may be provided to reduce friction between said hub D, and the
hub of said disc A. The small sprocket-wheel E, in Figure 1, is made integral
with the hub of the disc A (but it might as well be secured to it by any suitable
means) so as carry the disc A. along with it as it is rotated by the chain C, indicated
by dotted lines, or the sprocket wheel E may have a hub of its own and the disc A,
be secured to it in any convenient manner. The sprocket-wheel E on being
rotated by the chain, causes the disc or wheel A to follow at the same rate of
speed, and the said disc or wheel A engages with the fast disc or wheel B, by
means of pawls and indentations, or by pins and projecting lugs, or any similar
means. Figures 2, 3 and 4, drawn to a reduced scale, serve to illustrate some
specimens of gearing of this kind. According to Figure 2, the inside wheel or
dise B, carries pins a, pivoted to it and-the inside circumference of the wheel A
is formed with recesses and lugs b, which, as the said wheel A rotates in the
direction of the arrow, strike against the projecting ends of said pins and as the
latter bear against studs c and cannot give way in that direction, the disc Bis
carried along by the disc or wheel A. On the disc or wheel A being stopped, the
disc or wheel B will nevertheless freely continue its rotating motion, as the pins a,
strike against the projecting lugs b of the disc A and are swung to the opposite
side and thus come free of the said lugs b In the other modification illustrated
by Figure 3, pawls a are pivoted to the wheel or dise A, and engage a ratchet
formed into the circumference of the disc or wheel B. Each pawl a is seated within
a recess, and the adjacent projecting portion of the wheel A serves to back the
said pawl against being turned in one direction, while it is free to turn and come
out of contact with the ratchet-wheel B, in the other direction. In Figure 4
this arrangement is reversed, the pawls a being carried by the wheel B, and the
ratchet by the wheel A. The effect will be all the same. The pawls a need not
be pivoted to the disc B, as represented in Figure 4, but they may be seated with
a rounded joint in a corresponding round socket between the projecting portions c,
which offer resistance in one direction, but allow of their being swung free of
the ratchet in the other direction. Another modification of the mode of making
the driving wheel A, and the driven wheel B, to engage, is illustrated by Figure 5.
In this modification, the inside circumference of the driving wheel A, is provided
with recesses d, gradually diminishing to one side, and the other disc or wheel B,
is provided with pocket-shaped seats e to receive balls f, which by the centri-
fugal force of the quickly revolving disc B have the tendency to be thrown out
of their pockets and are engaged by the revolving disc A. The balls, in this
modification, serve to replace the pawls and motion is transmitted with, equal
result, but without any noise and with less friction.
In Figure 1 of the drawings, the sprocket wheel E and driving wheel A are
shown located adjacent to each other but this arrangement is not necessary.
They could be separated in a manner as to place the sprocket-wheel E at one
side and the driving wheel A, engaging the driven wheel or disc B, at the other
side of the cycle-wheel to be driven. The wheels E and A still must be so con-
nected to each other that A is carried along by the rotation of E and stopped if
the sprocket wheel E is stopped.
Driving gear of the kind described may be readily fitted to the driven wheel
or wheels of cycles of any kind, also to any existing cycles. And the mechanism
described further allows of the cycle being driven in the usual manner by locking
the two wheels or discs A and B to each other. Such locking may be performed
by passing a bolt or bolts, such as H H¹ through said discs, or by any other
locking devices. When locked, the said discs A and B will transmit motion
from the sprocket-wheel E to the cycle wheel in the usual way, the sprocket-wheel
in this case being clutched to the hub of the cycle-wheel and deprived of its in-
dependent motion.

page_text: From Figure 1 it will be readily seen that the sprocket-wheel E is of small
size, as employed to transmit an accelerated motion from the pedals to the driven
cycle-wheel. The driving wheel or disc A, has a considerably larger diameter
and thereby is enabled to work on the driven wheel or disc B with a considerable
leverage of its pawls, pins or balls. The size of the sprocket wheel E is fully
independent of the size of the driving wheel or disc A, and vice-versa.
The advantages derived from the improved driving gear above described con-
sist, partly, in a considerable saving of fatigue and, partly, in a considerable
acceleration of motion, if desired. By imparting to the pedals a number of suc-
cessive impulsions and, thereupon, stopping them with the feet remaining at rest
on the pedals, the sprocket-wheels and the chain will at once be stopped, while
the driven wheel or disc B and the driven cycle-wheel freely continue to rotate
till the vis inertiae acquired by the forward motion is fully exhausted by friction,
after which fresh impulsions must be given to proceed. It will be seen then that,
for riding a given distance, only at intervals the pedals need be worked, the work- 1
ing periods being shorter than those of rest., Or, in applying to the pedals suc-
cessive impulsions without stopping the same, the driver will be able to proceed
with a considerable acceleration of speed, because every impulsion causes the driven
wheel to advance, independently of the driving chain, i.e. the speed of revolution
of the cycle wheel will surpass the speed of the sprocket wheels, gaining on the
speed of the latter between every two impulsions. As the rider is able to proceed
for a considerable distance without working the pedals, he may better attend to
the steering mechanism or control his path at will and with perfect ease.
The chain and sprocket-wheels being out of work during a considerable part of
the way, a great saving of wear and tear is obtained.
The combination of a driving wheel or disc, such as A, independent of the
size of the transmitting wheel, such as E, may equally well be applied to any
other driving gear, in which the chain and sprocket-wheels are replaced by toothed
gear-wheels, or worm wheels or frictional gearing. In every case the wheel,
sheave or gear which replaces the small sprocket wheel on the axle of the driven
cycle-wheel, instead of being mounted fast on said axle, may be combined in the
manner described with a driving-wheel such as A, arranged to turn freely on the
wheel-hub and engaging a collar or wheel fast on the said hub, as before described.
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 driving gear for cycles, consisting of a sprocket-wheel, or its
equivalent, the hub of which is arranged to freely turn on the hub of the cycle-
wheel; a driving wheel or disc rigidly connected to the said sprocket wheel and
independent of the size of the same, and a wheel or disc fast on the hub of the
cycle-wheel, said fast wheel or disc being so engaged by the said driving wheel
or disc as to allow of an independent motion of the former, when the latter one
is being stopped, substantially as and for the purpose described.
2. An improved driving gear for cycles, consisting of a driving wheel or disc,
the hub of which is arranged to freely turn on the hub of the cycle-wheel, a
sprocket-wheel or its equivalent, independent of the size of said driving wheel
or disc and mounted on the hub of said wheel or disc, and a wheel or disc fast
on the hub of the cycle-wheel, said fast wheel or disc being so engaged by the
said driving wheel or disc as to allow of an independent motion of the former
when the latter one is being stopped, substantially as and for the purpose described.
3. An improved driving gear for cycles, consisting of a sprocket wheel or its
equivalent, a driving wheel or disc independent of the size of the same and so con-
nected to it as to follow its motion loosely around the hub of the cycle-wheel, and a
wheel or disc fast upon the hub of the cycle-wheel, said fast wheel or disc being so
engaged by the loose driving wheel or disc by means of balls lodged in recesses, as to

page_text: allow of a free motion of the driven wheel or disc when the driving wheel is being
stopped, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
4. A driving gear for cycles, consisting of a driven wheel or disc engaged by
a driving wheel or disc by means of balls lodged in recesses and corresponding
indentations, substantially as and for the purpose described.
5. A driving gear for cycles constructed and operating substantially as described.
Dated this 22nd day of October 1897
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6 Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicant.