IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF OR APPARATUS FOR OILING OR LUBRICATING THE AXLE BOXES OF ROLLER SKATES AND SUCH OTHER PARTS AS MAY REQUIRE OILING, AND WHICH SAID INVENTION MAY BE APPLIED FOR OILING PURPOSES TO OTHER ARTICLES.” PROVISIONAL SP
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Thomas Davis, of No. 20, Brindley Street,
Lewisham High Road, in the County of Kent, Engineer, for the Invention.
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF OR APPARATUS FOR OILING OR
LUBRICATING THE AXLE BOXES OF ROLLER SKATES AND SUCH OTHER PARTS
AS MAY REQUIRE OILING, AND WHICH SAID INVENTION MAY BE APPLIED FOR
OILING PURPOSES TO OTHER ARTICLES.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Thomas Davis at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 25th October 1876.
HENRY THOMAS DAVIS, of No, 20, Brindley Street, Lewisham High Road, in
the County of Kent, Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF OR APPARATUS
FOR OILING OR LUBRICATING THE AXLE BOXES OF ROLLER SKATES AND SUCH
OTHER PARTS AS MAY REQUIRE OILING, AND WHICH SAID INVENTION MAY BE
APPLIED FOR OILING PURPOSES TO OTHER ARTICLES."
On the under side of the stock or sole of the skate is attached a small chamber or
cistern of metal having a circular opening on the top, which opening corresponds
with a circular hole cut through the stock of the skate. On the inside bottom of
the cistern a small tube is placed crossways the ends of which tube pass through
the sides of the cistern, above this tube a lever is placed on one end of which lever
is a small pad or stop which is pressed down on a pin hole drilled in the tube by
the action of a spring attached to the other end of the lever. This lever is so
adjusted that the end to which the spring is attached comes immediately under the
opening in the top of the cistern. Through this opening is a short length of tube
the lower end of which rests on the spring end of the lever, while the upper
rises a short distance above the surface of the skate, so that upon the tube being
pressed down by the foot when the skate is put on, the pad or stop over the pin
hole is raised and the oil in the cistern allowed to flow through the pin hole into
the tube. Lengths of tube are attached to the ends of the tube which passes through
the sides of the cistern and are so adjusted on the under side of the skate that the
oil passing through them is directed to such parts of the axles or such other parts of
FD 077

page_text: the mechanism attached to the skate as may require oiling. The cistern is supplied
with oil through the tube which passes through the stock and into the cistern.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Henry Thomas Davis in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 25th
April 1877.
HENRY THOMAS DAVIS, of 20, Brindley Street, Lewisham High Road, in the
County of Kent, Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF OR APPARATUS
FOR OILING OR LUBRICATING THE AXLE BOXES OF ROLLER SKATES AND SUCH
OTHER PARTS AS MAY REQUIRE OILING, AND WHICH SAID INVENTION MAY BE
APPLIED FOR OILING PURPOSES TO OTHER ARTICLES."
The object of this Invention is to provide means for supplying oil to the working
parts of the axle bearings of skates and other articles such as bicycles, sewing
machines, and the like when same are in use, but to discontinue or cut off the supply
when the skate or article is not in use, that is when the parts are not required to be
oiled;
and this is effected by a spring plunger or lever operated automatically to
open an orifice in or way from a cistern or oil receptacle to and communicating by
light conducting tubes with the parts to be lubricated.
In order that the Invention may be well understood I have hereunto annexed a
Sheet of Drawings illustrative thereof, and have referred thereto in the following
particular description by figures and letters of reference.
Fig. 1 represents a sectional side view of apparatus for use on a skate with.
arrangement of lever device for opening and cutting off the supply of oil from the
cistern.
Fig. 2 a sectional view of skate stock with recess for oil cistern.
Fig. 3 a side view of cistern detached; Fig. 4 a plan of Fig. 3.
Fig. 5, sectional view of apparatus worked by direct action of spring plunger.
Fig. 6, sectional view of cistern detached showing modification of direct action
plunger.
Fig. 7 illustrates the method of supplying the oil from the conducting tubes to
the moveable parts of apparatus such as the rocking axle bearings of a roller
skate.
33
A represents the stock or sole of the skate; B the oil cistern containing the
spring plunger E and working parts; and this cistern B is to be attached either
on the under side of the stock A or in a recess or hole therein or therethrough, or
the recess in the stock is fitted with a boxing C as represented in the Drawing,
which last arrangement I have found to be very convenient. The boxing C is pro-
vided with a dip or "well" C¹ from which oil conducting tubes D are led to the
parts to be lubricated. In the cistern case a small hole is drilled above the "well
C', and this hole is opened or closed through the lever a and spring plunger E shown
in Fig. 1, a spiral spring being shown arranged around the pin b, but a flat spring
may be employed to raise the plunger and retain the lever a in place to close the
way or passage from the cistern to the conducting tubes D. The face of the end of
lever a where it covers said way or passage is provided with a leather washer to
ensure a tight closure.
When the apparatus is worked by the direct action of the plunger, as shown in
Figs. 5 and 6, the spring plunger E¹ has attached thereto a pin 6' provided with a
disc c, said pin b¹ being grooved vertically for a portion of its length (at the part
indicated by the arrow) to form a way or passage for the oil to the well C' when the
plunger E is depressed. The pin bi has placed thereon above the disc c a small
leather washer (not shown in the Drawings) or may be made to work through a
washer fixed on the bottom of the cistern, and generally washers or packing will be
pmployed where required to prevent any escape of oil.

page_text: In the modification shewn in Fig. 6 the plunger E¹ is closed at its inner end by a
plate c¹, which plate el is provided with a washer upon its upper side, and a slotted
hole d' is here provided for supply of oil to cistern.
When the boxing C is not employed the oil tubes D are led directly from or
through the cistern B from side to side or secured immediately beneath and in
contact with it, the supply of oil passing to the pipes through a hole drilled through
said pipes and corresponding to or with the hole in the cistern.
The cup or funnel piece G shewn in Fig. 6 is arranged upon a working part of
the axle bearing as near as practicable to the "dead centre" of the action thereof, so
that the mouth or funnel part G will receive the oil as it drips from the extremity
of tube D. G¹ represents a crossway tube.
The oil is filled into the cistern B through hole d or d¹ in the plunger or through
a hole in the cistern case, said hole being closed by a screw as illustrated at e, Fig. 4,
in which latter case the hole d or d in the plunger will be dispensed with. The
slotted hole d', Fig. 6, will by partially depressing the plunger E' allow of the oil
being poured directly into the cistern through the plunger, whilst at the same time
the plate c' will ensure that the oil will not run out of the cistern when the article
is not in use.
The cistern B will be readily retained in the boxing C by the friction, and the
boxing C will be held in place by the tube D and brackets D at the same time that
the casing C can be readily got at to clean the parts and for any necessary repairs.
It will be obvious that the supply of oil to and through the tubes D will be dependant
upon the size of the way or passage from the cistern, the capacity whereof will be
decided by experiment.
Upon the plunger E or E¹ being pressed down by the foot when the skate is put
on the way or passage from the cistern will be opened and the oil flow to and
through the conducting tubes.
From the foregoing description and the illustrative Drawings it will be easy for
any practical workman to apply my Invention to any skate and to other mechanism
where it may be desirable, such as to a bicycle, in which class of machine the oil
cistern and spring plunger may be conveniently arranged under the saddle.
Having now described the nature and particulars of my said Invention, I claim,-
First. In an apparatus for oiling skates and other mechanism, a spring plunger
working automatically to open or close a way or passage from an oil receptacle or
cistern, substantially as herein set forth.
Second. The apparatus substantially as herein described and as illustrated by
the Drawings operated as and for the purpose set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Thomas Davis, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of April, One thousand eight hundred
and seventy-seven.
HENRY THOMAS DAVIS. (L.S.)