IMPROVEMENTS IN CABS AND OTHER VEHICLES
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Thomas Parlour, of Rutland Street,
Pimlico, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for the
TLin
T
Sealed the 27th Juno 1873, and dated the 2nd January 1873.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Joseph Thomas Parlour
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 2nd January 1873, pursuant to the 9th Section
of the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSEPII
THOMAS PARLOUR, of Rutland Street, Pimlico, in the County of
Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
CABS AND OTHER VEHICLES," and have petitioned Her Majesty to grant unto
me, my executors, administrators, and assigns, Her Royal Letters Patent

page_text: the springs, and method of attaching the same to the axle of my
improved cab. Like letters indicate the same parts throughout the
Drawing.
The body a of the cab may be of the form shown, or of any other
desired form; the wheels b, axle c, and springs d, may be as shewn, or
of the usual construction; e is the driver's seat, which as shewn is
placed at the centre of the upper part of the back of the cab; f, ƒ, are
the doors which are hinged to the post f¹. By referring to Figure 3 it
will be seen that the back of the cab is inclined at each side of this post
towards the front. The object of this formation is to give more space
for the opening of the doors, one of which is shewn in the position it
occupies when fully open, in Figure 3. The said doors may be readily.
opened and closed by the driver in his seat; they may be provided with
ordinary latches or locks, with handles arranged to be conveniently
grasped by the driver, or they may be connected with the mechanism
herein-after described for adjusting the seats inside the cab, so that the
opening or closing of the doors, and the adjustment of the said seats will
be effected by one operation. The driver's seat e is supported on the bar
or bracket c¹, which is secured to the post f¹ just above the top of the
doors; f,f, are the steps; f, Figure 3, is a guard pivotted at f*; the
said guard is caused by the spring f³ to cover the wheel when the door is
open, and is turned on its pivot away from the wheel by a projection
on the door when the same is closed.
In the cab shewn in Figures 1, 2, and 3, seats g, g¹, are placed at the
back of the vehicle just inside the doors, and when let down upon thoir
supports, as shown in Figure 3, they extend across the doorways.
Therefore to permit ingress and egress they must be adjustable. They
may be arranged either to turn upon pivots or ball-and-socket joints, or
to slide endwise upon their supports. In the Drawing I have shewn the
said seats pivotted at the centre of the cab to the bar h, which is secured
to the centre support i. Both of the seats turn on the said bar, and the
seat g is made capable of lateral adjustment, so that the back of one seat
may pass the back of the other seat in turning either seat upon its pivot.
When the seats are down their outer ends rest securely upon the
pieces j, or other suitable supports fixed on the sides of the vehicle;
when they are raised they stand behind the post f¹ and leave the
doorway free.

page_text: I
may arrange the said seats to be raised and lowered by hand without
any mechanism for bringing them under the control of the occupant of
the seat e, but with public cabs it is very desirable that the seats as well
as the doors shall be completely under the control of the driver, so that
he may open and close the doors, adjust the seats g, g¹, and receive the
fares without leaving his seat. I therefore combine with the said
seats g, g¹, the following mechanism for adjusting them. Levers kare
pivotted at to the post f¹; the long arm of each of these levers
extends from the pivot toward the outer end of the seat. At the
extremity of its long arm each lever has a bar k³ which projects laterally
under the seat. The seats are provided with guards 7, within which the
said arms are confined, and whereon they act in lowering the seats.
The short arm of each of the said levers is jointed to a vertical rod n which
extends up through the roof of the vehicle into a convenient position to
be operated by the driver, who by moving the said rods up or down can
lower or raise the seats g, g¹. The seat is also made to slide forward a
short distance to permit. the backs of the seats to clear and pass each
other in adjusting them. For this purpose the bar h on which the seats
are pivotted is fitted to slide in eyes or rings o, and has an inclined
arm h¹ extending downward into the guide p. A rod Չ which extends
up through the roof of the cab has at its lower end an eye or ring q',
fitted to slide on the inclined or oblique arm h¹. The rod a works
through guides attached to or formed on the post f¹, and by moving
the said rod up or down the seat g is moved forward or backward upon
its supports. The rod q like the rods n has a handle above the roof in a
convenient position to be manipulated by the driver in his seat.
Instead of the above described rods and levers for adjusting the
seats g, g', I may use cords attached to the seats, and passed over
pulleys and through the roof of the cab, the said cords being so arranged
that by pulling or releasing them the driver can raise or lower the seats;
or I may use other suitable contrivances for effecting the same object.
And instead of arranging the seats to be raised and lowered upon a central
pivot or otherwise, I may arrange them to slide upon their supports,
and provide screws or other contrivances for adjusting them on the said
supports.

page_text: Sixth. Constructing the shafts of a cab or other vehicle of metal
ubing or sheet metal, for the purposes specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph Thomas Parlour, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Second day of January, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
three
Witness,
W. J. LOWE,
8, Southampton Buildings,
London.
JOSEPH T. PARLOUR. (L.S.)