Improvements in Driving Gear for Gas or Oil Motor Cars.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Jan., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 5th Oct., 1894-Accepted, 10th Nov., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Driving Gear for Gas or Oil Motor Cars.
J, HENRY PERCY HOLT, of No. 22, Chancery Lane, in the County of London,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to driving gear for a car propelled by a gas or oil motor
engine, so arranged that the mechanism is at a low level, completely below the floor
of the car.
This enables the body of the car to be turned round horizontally so
that a passenger platform or stair to the roof is required only at one end, (the
driver's station being always at the front end), whilst the speed of the vehicle can
be readily varied and the vehicle can be stopped while the engine shaft continues
to revoive uniformly.
For this purpose, near the middle of the car I mount the engine shaft vertically
with a flywheel, which may be large and heavy, revolving horizontally near the
ground. From this shaft, by means of bands or their equivalents, I drive two
vertical countershafts, one near each end of the underframe. Each of these carries
on it a roller which can be slid along it, say by means of a rocking shaft under
control of the driver, in face of a disc on which its periphery is pressed, so that
it gives to this disc rotation at a speed in either direction depending on the distance
of the roller from the axis of the disc. The disc in each case is on a horizontal
shaft on which is fixed a pinion which gears with a wheel on the driving axle,
preferably with internal teeth in the driving wheel itself. On the middle of the
underframing is fixed a turntable or circular track on which the car body can turn,
preferably on antifriction balls or rollers. The driver, by means of a lever, can
shift both of the driving rollers simultaneously for starting the car, varying its
speed, and stopping while the engine shaft continues to revolve at uniform speed
or nearly so. if desired the axles or one of them may be capable of being angled
so as to enable the car to pass round sharp curves.
By this arrangement, the body of the car is wholly independent of the portion
containing the machinery and may readily be changed when it is desired to use the
vehicle for different purposes.
Dated this 5th day of January 1894.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE
SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Driving Gear for Gas or Oil Motor Cars.
I, HENRY PERCY HOLT, of No. 22 Chancery Lane, in the County of London,
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:―
My invention relates to driving gear for cars propelled by gas or oil motors.
The driving mechanism including the motor engine and flywheel which may be
of considerable size and weight is all arranged at a low level under the floor of
the car.
Among other advantages of this arrangement, it can be provided that
the body of the car may be turned round horizontally so that a passenger platform
or stair to the roof is required only at one end, (the driver's station being always
at the front end). The speed of the vehicle can be readily varied and the vehicle
can be stopped while the engine shaft continues to revolve uniformly.

page_text: I construct and arrange the driving gear as I shall describe referring to the
accompanying drawings; Fig. 1 is a central longitudinal section, Fig. 2 is a plan
and Fig. 3 is an end view of the underframe of the car, Fig. 4 is a transverse
section to an enlarged scale on the line a of Fig. 2.
Near the middle of the car I mount the crank shaft S vertically with a flywheel F
which may be large and heavy, revolving horizontally, by preference as near the
ground as practicable; the engine cylinder C is in this case situated at the side of
the car.
A second cylinder may be arranged on the other side of the car, and the
cylinder or cylinders, if more than one, may be put in other positions suitable for
working a vertical crank shaft, whether that shaft be combined with the driving
gear hereinafter described or with driving gear otherwise arranged. From the
flywheel F by means of bands or their equivalents I drive two vertical counter-
shafts A, or, as shewn in the drawings, sleeves on these shafts one near each end of
the underframe. Each of these shafts or sleeves carries on it a roller R which can
be slid along it, say by means of arms L on a rocking shaft B connected to a
lever H under control of the driver.
Each roller R is slid along the face of a disc D which is pressed by a spring
against the periphery of the roller R which, as it revolves, gives to the disc D
rotation at a speed in either direction depending on the distance of the roller from
the axis of the disc. Each disc D is on a horizontal shaft E on which is fixed a
pinion P gearing with a wheel on the driving axle, preferably with internal teeth
in the driving wheel W itself. On the middle of the underframing is fixed a
turntable G or circular track on which the car body can turn, preferably on
antifriction balls or rollers.
The driver by means of the lever H can turn the shaft B so as to shift both of
the driving rollers R simultaneously, for starting the car, varying its speed and
stopping while the engine shaft continues to revolve at uniform speed or nearly so.
The rocking shaft B is cranked in the middle so as to clear the engine shaft S
and it is connected by crank arms M to the short shaft K of the lever H.
When it is desired to turn the car body on the turntable G, the lever H and
shaft K are moved so as to disengage the cranks M, and when the car body is
turned half round, the crank arms are engaged at the other end of the shaft B.
By the arrangement of driving gear above described, the body of the car is
rendered wholly independent of the portion containing the machinery.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
1. Driving gear of a gas or oil motor car constructed and arranged substantially
as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
2. In the driving gear of a gas or oil motor car, the combination of horizontal
cylinder or cylinders of the motor engine with a vertical crank shaft carrying a
horizontal fly wheel connected to suitable driving gear, all arranged under the car
floor.
3. In combination with the vertical countershafts, the rollers sliding thereon in
face of the discs on the horizontal shafts geared to the driving wheels or axles,
substantially as described.
4. For shifting the rollers above referred to so as to vary the speed of the car.
the levers, arms and rocking shaft with separable connection to the hand lever,
substantially as described.
Dated this 4th day of Notcher 1493
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.