Improvements in Means for Retarding the Motion of Motor Propelled Road Vehicles.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 19th June, 1899
Complete Specification Left, 19th Feb., 1900-Accepted, 21st Apr.; 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for Retarding the Motion of Motor Propelled
Road Vehicles.
I, ERNEST LATHAM, of 3, Berlin Road, Catford, in the County of Kent, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Skids of the ordinary kind cannot well be employed for retarding motor
propelled vehicles when going down hill and the foot brakes commonly used on
omnibuses, coaches or vans are not sufficiently powerful especially if the diameter
of the wheels be large. Now, the object of this invention is to provide a device
which will take the place of the ordinary skid and can be used instead of, or in
addition to a foot brake and according thereto I provide upon the vehicle in
proximity to each driving wheel thereof a shoe or shoes adapted to be forced
down at the required times into contact with the road surface but not beneath
the wheel or wheels, the friction thus caused effectually retarding the motion of
the vehicle. In one arrangement there is pivoted in a suitable bracket bearing
secured to the underframe of the vehicle a bell crank lever one arm of which
carries a shoe and extends to the rear of the vehicle wheel, and the other arm of
which is in the form of a nut in which works a screw threaded spindle carried by
the underframe and provided with a suitable hand wheel, which in the case of
an omnibus is preferably arranged in a suitable position for operation by the
conductor. By operating the hand wheel the shoe may be forced down with
greater or less pressure, the wheels of the vehicle being, if required, raised
clear of the ground. In order that the shoe or shoes may be held in contact
with the road surface with a yielding pressure the screw threaded spindle may
be capable of limited longitudinal movement in opposition to a spring which
tends to force down the shoe.
The lever may be operated by steam or air pressure instead of by a screw,
and in such cases the spring may be dispensed with. The arms of the lever
may be arranged at a right angle or at any other convenient angle to suit
position of steam or air cylinder, or the hand wheel and screw.
The power may be applied to a single lever of the third order, if desired.
In some cases a single shoe may be arranged at or about the longitudinal
centre line of the vehicle; or there may be one near each side of the vehicle,
both being carried by lever arms fixed to a transverse rock shaft, another arm
on which is engaged by the operating spindle.
T
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JT1900

page_text: Improvements in Means for Retarding the Motion of Motor-propelled
Road Vehicles.
1, ERNEST LATHAM, of & Bef Road; Catford, in the County of Kent, Engineer,
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 CPA MAVO tanáck
Skids of the ordinary kind cannot well be employed, and the foot brakes
commonly used on omnibuses, coaches or vans are not sufficiently powerful; for
retarding motor-propelled road vehicles when going down hill, especially if
the diameter of the wheels be large.
Now, the object of this invention is to provide a device which can be applied
instead of an ordinary skid to motor-propelled road vehicles and can be used
instead of, or in addition to, the usual foot brake; for which purpose there is
provided upon the vehicle, in proximity to each driving wheel thereof, a shoe
or shoes adapted to be forced down, at the required times, into contact with the
road surface, but not beneath the wheel or wheels, the friction thus caused
effectually retarding the motion of the vehicle; there may be only one shoe
arranged centrally between the wheels.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings shows diagrammatically in side view a
portion of a motor-propelled vehicle, provided with retarding means according
to this invention and Fig. 1a is a sectional view on the line AA, Fig. 1;
pivoted in suitable bracket bearings 1 secured to the underframe 2 of the vehicle
is a bell crank lever 3 one arm of which carries a shoe 4 and extends to the rear
of the vehicle wheel 5, and the other arm of which is forked and provided with
a trunnion nut 6 in which works a screw threaded spindle 7. carried by the
underframe and provided with a suitable hand wheel 8 which, in the case of an
omnibus, is preferably arranged in a suitable position for operation by the
conductor. By operating the hand wheel 8, the shoe 4 may be forced down with
greater or less pressure and, if required, the wheels of the vehicle may thus be
raised almost or even quite clear of the ground.
In order that the shoe or shoes may be held in contact with the road surface
with a yielding pressure, the spindle 7 is, in the arrangement shown in Fig. 1,
capable of limited longitudinal movement in opposition to a spring 9 which
tends to force down the shoe. In this example, the spring is interposed
between the boss of the hand wheel 8, and the rear of the vehicle underframe,
but; as will be understood, it may be otherwise arranged. By the interposition
of a spring or cushion as described, the vehicle will still be supported in a
resilient manner even when the shoe has removed the weight of the vehicle
from the driving wheels, the object being to secure the comfort of passengers
and the safety of fragile goods.
The lever 3 may be operated by steam or air pressure instead of by a screw,
and in such cases the spring which holds the shoe in contact with, the road with
a yielding pressure may be dispensed with.
Fig. 2 is a similar view to Fig. 1 showing an arrangement in which the
lever 3 is adapted to be operated by steam admitted to a cylinder 10, whose
piston 11 is connected by the rod 12 and link 13 to a pin 14 carried by the lever 3,
as shown. In some cases, as, for instance, when the vehicle. has just ascended a
hill, the pressure of the steam may not be sufficient to force the shoe onto the
ground with the pressure required to adequately retard the vehicle, and I there-
fore provide means for enabling the lever 3 to be operated by hand when required

page_text: instead of by steam or in conjunction with steam; in the example a spindle i
fitted with hand wheel 8 works in a nut 6 carried by the lever 3 as in the
arrangement shown in Fig. 1; the screw spindle is capable of sliding endwise
to a limited extent and the link 13 is slotted, as shown, so as to enable the lever
to be operated by hand or by steam independently.
Fig. 3 illustrates in section a modified arrangement for permitting the screw
spindle 7 to move when the lever 3 is operated by steam; the spindle 7 is capable
of sliding through the hand wheel 8, but is prevented from rotating relatively
thereto and the hand wheel is fixed. to a sleeve 8ª, or formed with an elongated
boss, rotatably mounted in a bearing 8*, endwise movement therein being
prevented by a collar 8. In the illustration the aperture through the sleeve
and the end portion of the spindle is rectangular in section but a feather and
keyway connection may be substituted if desired.
Instead of a spring 9 such as shown in Fig. 1, the army of the lever 3 carrying
'the shoe may itself be formed as a laminated spring, and it is so shown, by way
of example, in Fig. 2.
When air is employed instead of steam, the arrangement may be similar to
that shown in Fig. 2, but the hand-gear may be dispensed with, when a sufficiently
large reservoir for compressed air is provided.
The arms of the lever 3 may be arranged at a right angle, or at any other
convenient angle to suit the position of the steam or air cylinder, or the hand
wheel and screw.
The power may be applied to a single lever of the third order, if desired.
In some cases, a single shoe may be arranged at or about the longitudinal
centre line of the vehicle as indicated in Figs. 1 and 1*; or there may be one
near each side of the vehicle, each being carried by a lever arm fixed to a
common transverse rock shaft, another arm on which is connected to the operating
spindle or the piston of the steam or air cylinder.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is:
1. Means for retarding the motion of motor propelled road vehicles comprising
a shoe or shoes and means whereby said shoe or shoes can be forced into contact
with the road surface and the driving wheels thus relieved of weight, the arrange-
ment being such that the shoe or shoes will then support the vehicle in a resilient
manner, substantially as described.
2. Means for retarding the motion of road vehicles, constructed, arranged and
operating substantially as herein before described with reference respectively to
and shown in Figs. 1 and 1; in Fig. 2; or modified according to Fig. 3 of the
accompanying illustrative drawings.
Dated this 10th day of Waburan 1000
W. LLOYD WISE,
46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Chartered Patent Agent.