Improvements Relating to Cycles or Like Vehicles.
Year: 1896

page_text: I, FREDERIC WALMSLEY of 39 Mawdsley Street Bolton Lancashire, Accountant, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The improvements relate to cycles or like vehicles, and have for object to obtain a
combined brake and mud-guard.
To accomplish this and to effect my improvements, I connect the mudguard of
the vehicle wheel to the axle or other convenient point in such manner that the
distance of such mud-guard from the tyre of the wheel may be regulated, either to
press against the tyre or to recede therefrom, at the will of the rider. This may be
accomplished, in one arrangement of my invention, by connecting one extremity of
the mudguard to the axle of the wheel by means of a rigid arın, and attaching to
the other extremity, or otherwise, a suitable link, rod, or connection or connections
communicating with a handle or lever under the control of the rider, whereby, on the
actuation of such handle or lever, the link or connection is depressed or raised, and
the mud-guard brought closer to or removed further from the tyre periphery, so as to
act as a brake upon the same.
Or such actuation of the mud-guard may be effected by cams, eccentrics, cranks, or
by other known mechanical means, and may be operated by hand, or by the foot of
the rider, or otherwise.
I prefer to provide the contact surface of the mud-guard with means for obviating
an excess of friction in the case of rubber tyres, such as anti-friction rollers or the
like, and a portion only of the mudguard surface may be employed to operate as
the brake.
Variations in detail may be made such as in the character and arrangement of
the levers or other mechanisms for actuating the brake, and in the material of which
the parts are composed, without departing from the peculiar character of the
invention.
Dnt date of Contember 1000
WILLIAM GADD, C.E.,
64 Barton Arcade, Manchester, Agent.
Improvements Relating to Cycles or Like Vehicles.
1, FREDERIC WALMSLEY, of 39 Mawdsley Street, Bolton, Lancashire, Accountant, 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 improvements relate to cycles or like vehicles, and have for object to obtain a

page_text: To accomplish this and to effect my improvements, I connect the mud-guard of the
vehicle wheel to the axle or other convenient point in such manner that the distance
of such mud-guard from the tyre of the wheel may be regulated, either to press
against the tyre, or to recede therefrom, at the will of the rider.
This may be accomplished, in one arrangement of my invention, by connecting
one extremity of the mud-guard to the axle of the wheel by means of a rigid arm,
and attaching to the other extremity, or otherwise, a suitable link rod or connection
or connections communicating with a handle or lever under the control of the rider,
whereby, on the actuation of such handle or lever, the link or connection is depressed
or raised, and the mud-guard brought closer to or removed further from the tyre
periphery, so as to act as a brake upon the same.
Or such actuation of the mud-guard may be effected by cams, eccentrics, cranks,
or by other known mechanical means, and may be operated by hand, or by the foot of
the rider, or otherwise.
I prefer to provide the contact surface of the mud-guard with means for obviating
an excess of friction in the case of rubber tyres, such as anti-friction rollers or the
like, and a portion only of the mud-guard surface may be employed to operate as
the brake.
But that the improvements may be better understood I will, with the aid of the
accompanying drawings, proceed more fully, to describe means employed by me.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS.
Fig. 1 shows a side elevation of the front portion of a bicycle fitted with a
combined mud-guard and brake in accordance with one form of iny invention, and
Fig. 2 is a similar view but with another form of my invention shown therein. Fig. 3
is a side elevation of the main portion of a bicycle, both wheels of which are
arranged with combined nud-guards and brakes in accordance with my invention,
while Figs. 4 and 5 are respectively a side elevation and a plan view of a certain
part of one form of my invention and to be hereinafter described.
The same letters indicate corresponding parts whenever they occur.
In Fig. 1a is the mud-guard which is preferably formed out of thin steel, and
arranged somewhat in the ordinary position with regard to the bicycle wheel, and
has its upper end connected to the brake rod 6 in such a manner as to enable
the same to depress such mud-guard towards the periphery of the wheel for brake
purposes. Near the lower end the guard is firmly attached to a rigid arm or arms c,
with the other end or ends held in position at the hub of the wheel. By this
arrangement the mud-guard becomes in itself a spring, which, on being depressed
by the ordinary action of the brake rod b, brings the pulley d, or other brake device
or there may be more than one-into contact with the tyre of the wheel for the
purpose of acting as a brake or brakes when required.
In Fig. 2 a similar formation of mud-guard to that shown in Fig. 1 is illustrated,
but instead of being firmly attached to the rigid arm or arms c, it is loosely fulcrumed
thereto, so that such guard can be made to swivel or turn in a vertical plane, and
the body of the guard itself may be employed as a brake piece by coming in
contact with the tyre of the wheel when depressed by the action of the brake rod
as already described.
In this case the mud-guard may be brought back to its original position by
means of the ordinary spring connection with the brake rod, or by other suitable
means.
In Fig. 3 combined mud-guards and brakes are shown in position for acting upon
the tyres of both wheels of the bicycle, such action being arranged to take place by
one and the same movement of the brake rod b. In this case the brake rod is
provided with a projection e, which, on being moved by the depression of the rod for
the purpose of applying the brake, comes in contact with one leg of the bell-crank
lever g mounted on the front tube of the bicycle. The movement is transmitted by
the other leg of the lever to the link rod h attached to the leg of a second bell-crank

page_text: lever gl which is situated at a rear part of the bicycle frame. The other leg of this
second bell-crank lever is attached to or acts upon the mud-guard of the back wheel,
and by the movement imparted to it through the link-rod h presses such mud-guard
towards the tyre of the wheel. The same may be assisted to return to its normal
position, when the downward pressure is released, by being firmly attached to the
bicycle framing at point al, or by means of a spring at any convenient point.
In order to prevent strain upon the link h when the front wheel is turned merely
for steering purposes, I may make use of the arrangement shown enlarged in
Figs. 4 and 5, in which the leg of the bell-crank lever g when directly actuated by
the projection e on the brake rod b is constructed in the form of a segment of a circle,
so that when this projection follows the movement of the front wheel in the act of
steering it can be pressed on to the arc formed leg of the lever above named, even
when the frout wheel of the bicycle is to a certain extent out of the plane of the
framing of the machine. It will be understood that other forms of mechanisms
may be employed for operating the combined brake and mud-guard whether applied
to one or two wheels; also that the same inay be operated pneumatically; and that
the arrangement shown in Fig. 3 may be applied to the case of a combined
mud-guard and brake provided for the back wheel only; and the mechanism may
wholly or in part be applied to other forms of cycles and like vehicles; and variations
in detail may be made in the form of brake employed, together with the number
and kind of brake blocks, anti-friction rollers, or other devices in connection
therewith; also in the character and arrangement in the levers or other mechanisms
for actuating the brake, and in the material of which the parts are composed,
without departing from the peculiar character of the invention."
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. In cycles and like vehicles. a combined mud-guard a and brake d applied to
either or both wheels, operated by the ordinary brake rod and mechanism of the
machine or otherwise, in manner substantially as herein shown and described.
2. In cycles and like vehicles a combined mud-guard a and brake d applied to
either or both wheels, arranged so that such mud-guard shall form in itself a spring,
and operated by the ordinary brake rod and mechanism of the machine or otherwise,
in manner substantially as herein shown and described.
Dated this 31st day of Mar 1907
WILLIAM GADD, C.E.,
64, Barton Arcade, Manchester, Agent for the Applicant.