US1186955A - Engine-starter. - Google Patents

Description

G. S. THOMPSON & CL F. RICHARDSON.

ENGINE STARTER. I APPLICATIOR FILED MAY 23, I9l3- 1,186,955. PatehtedJuneB, 1916.

a SHEETS-SREET WITNESSES: .9 ,f 2 INVENTORS a F M G. s. THOMPSON & c. F. RICHARDSON.

ENGINE STARTER. if

APPLlCATION FILED MAY 23, 1913.

1,186,955. ParentedJune13, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET 2'.

I ETR' NVI VOS rir gafwud A OHIVEKS m2 COLUMBIA PLANOURAPH co., WASHINGTON, D. c.

. Patented June 13, 1916.

3 $HEETS-SHEET 3- G. S. THOMPSON ,& F. "RICHARDSON.

ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 23. 1913. 1,186,955.-

1 X H I lHE COLUMBIA PLANOORAPH CO1, VASHINGTON, D. C.

V/ 4% HM WITNESSES:

' for 'WTED STATES PATENT orrron.

GEORGE S. THOMPSON, 0F HOPKINTON, MASSACHUSETTS, AND CHARLES F. RICHARD- SON, OF WOONSOCKET, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNORS T0 THOMPSON ENGINE STARTER COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK. I

ENGINE-STARTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 13, 1916.

Application filed May 23, 1913. Serial N 0'. 769,372.

panying drawings is especially designed for cranking the engine of' an automobile, 1t Wlll be obvious that the invention in its broadest aspect is not confined tothis specific use.

Referring to the drawings which show the preferred embodiment of our invention, Fig

ure 1 is a view in perspective to show more or less diagrammatically one convenient way of mounting the starter. Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of starter mechanism. Fig.3 is a longitudinal section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2. -Fig. 4l is a cross-section on line H of-Fig. 3. Figs. 5 and 6 are detailson an enlarged scale. 7 7

The character 10 designates a suitable housing in-which the starting mechanism is confined and operates. The starting mechanisui is mounted upon the engine supports 11 and located at one-side of the engine 12, just under the bonnet, not shown, thus giving ready access to the various parts of the starter when desired. Preferably fixed upon the engine shaft 13 is a sprocket gear 14 over which a sprocket chain 1.5 of the silent type is adapted to operate the latter in turn connected to a gear 16 loosely encircling a rotatable power shaft 17 which is suitably journaled in the housing 10. Mechanism operatively connected to the gear 16 is provided for automatically cranking the engine and also mechanism for restoring, in turn, power in the spring. NVe will now proceed to describe in detail these respective means cranking the engine and restoring power in the power spring. Located in proximity to the gear 16 and rotating around the power shaft 17 in unison therewith, is another gear 18. This gear 18 is 'nally 'upon said power shaft.

so far as the cranking of the engine is concerned, it performs no particular function, but is necessary in the restoration of power in the power spring. The gear 16 carries a plurality v of spring pressed plungers or pawls 19 which are located in sockets 20, as clearly shown in Fig. 3. The pawls are provided with ears 21 that slide'in grooves 22 of said gear which prevents rotation of the plungers relative to the said gear. The gear 18 is provided with annular perforations 23 through which the rearward ends of said plungers project. Located in the forward end of each of the sockets 20 is a suitable spring 24:which tends to urge-the pawl rearwardly. This rearward movement of the pawl is limited by the fact that one end of the ear 21 comes into contact with the forward side of gear'18, it being understood that the pawl is so shaped at its rearward end as to effect a snug fit with the perforawith respect to this shaft. This member is provided "with laterally projecting ratchet teeth 26 which are adapted to be engaged'with and disengaged from the pawls 19," protruding through gear 18, when the said member is moved longitudimounted upon the shaft is a worm wheel27 providedwith laterally projecting teeth 28 which are adapted to normally engage corresponding sockets 29 in the clutch member,

the said teeth and sockets effecting an inter- Loosely.

looking engagement between the said worm 4 gear and the said clutch member, said engagement being maintained until one of sa d elements is moved relative to the other. The rear end of the power shaft is connected to a. power spring 30. Forthe sake of convenience, the part 31 of the shaft to which the spring is connected may be disconnectible from the main power shaft at the point 32.

The clutch member is provided with a circumferential flange 33 adapted to be constantly engaged by a forked member 3 1 havisfiXed preferably to a shaft 36 which is adapted to be moved longitudinally by spring,

means of a lever 37 pivoted at 38 upon the housing 10. A spring 39 is employed to hold the upper ends of this lever in its for- "ward position which in turii holds the clutch effecting a rearward pull upon the lever 37.

When the spring is wound up let it be assumed that certain instrumentalities are connected with the worm wheel 27, for holding the same stationary, and inasmuch as the clutch member is fixed to the power shaft and is in interlocking engagement with the worm wheel, obviously no unwinding can take place, and the operation in cranking the engine is as follows; When the lever 37 is pulled to its rearward position, it disengages the clutch member from the worm wheel, but before it is completely disengaged therefrom the lateral teeth 26 on the clutch member are beginning to engage with the spring pressed pawls 1:9.- Consequently when the clutch member 25 is completely disengaged from worm wheel 27 it is in effective operative engagement with gears 1618 and the-p ower spring now acts, through the power shaft and clutch member, to rotate the gears 16.l8 to crank the engine, the

: power spring and gears 14 and 16 being so constructed as to impart about eight revolutionsto thecrank shaft in the operation of cranking the engine.- During the cranking of the engine the teeth on the clutch member 25' are held in? engagement with the pawls '19 by the turning force of the latter or by continued tension on lever37, But assoon asthe engine iscranked the pawls, owing to theirnpeculi'ar formation, run -"ahead of locking engagement with worm wheel 27. Those parts that have not been previously described are now in position to effect a re-. winding of the power spring. Having described the mechanism and the operation thereof, for cranking the-engine, we will now proceed to describe the mechanism associated with the aforesaid mechanism for the restoration of energy in the power Suitably journaled in the casing and'movable longitudinally with respectto the same is a counter shaft upon which is loosely located a gear 43,- which meshes with gear 18 and which is provided with; latorally and rearwardly projecting teeth 44, similar toxteeth 28 on worm wheel 29. Around that part; of theshaft rearwardly from the gear 43 'isa sleevex45, the said I shaft adapted to" move longitudinally with respect to this sleeve independently of the movement of the latter, but is fixed to rotate in unison therewith. Upon the sleeve 45 and movable longitudinally with respect to the same is a second clutch member 46 provided with sockets 47 which are adapted to receive the teeth 44 of gear 43, and which are similar to the sockets 29 in the clutch member 25. The sleeve 45 is slotted as indicated at 48 to receive a pin 49 which extends through the counter shaft and so connects the said shaft and the said clutch mem ber 46 that any longitudinal movement imparted to the former will be likewise imparted to the latter. rotatably fixed to sleeve 45 by means of a key 77 and said clutch member is slidable longitudinally on the said key. Owing to the slot 48 in sleeve 45 a longitudinal move ment may be imparted to the shaft and clutch member without necessarily being im-o parted to the said sleeve. Fixed to the sleeve 45 is a spiral gear 50 which meshes .with another spiral gear 51 fixed on a vertical shaft 52 having suitable bearings 53 and 54. To this vertical shaft 52 is also secured The clutch member is a worm gear 55 which meshes with worm wheel 27. Let it be assumed therefore that the device is provided with certain instru-- mentalities for moving the counter shaft cranked; the process of restoring energy in the spring is as follows: As before stated, as soon as the engine is cranked the clutch member 25 isreleased from the pawls 19 of gears 1618 and the said clutch member is moved rearwardly by means of the spring 39 connected to lever 37 and interlockswith worm wheel 27 and establishes again a rigid connection between the latter and the power shaft to which the power spring is con nected. The gear 43 being in mesh with gear 18, which is now being rotated by means of sprocket chain 15 and sprocket gear 14, will impart to sleeve 45, to which the spiral gear 50 is fixed, a rotative movement through the interlocking engagement of the said gear 43 and clutch member 46. This rotative movement of spiral gear 50 is in turn transmitted to the worm wheel 27 through spiral gear 51,. shaft 52 and worm gear 55, the latter meshing with the said worm wheel 27. The rotation of worm wheel 27 imparts vin turn a rotative movement to the power 7 shaft by reason of the interlocking engagement between the said worm gear and mem' ber 27 and this rotation of the power shaft, which, as will be obviously understood, is in the opposite direction to s its rotation in cranking the engine, restores energy in the power spning. V

The mechanism for moving the counter shaft longitudinally to effect an interlocking engagement between gear 43 and clutch member 46 to restore energy in the power spring and to effect a disengagement of said gear and member after the spring is wound up, we will now proceed to describe in detail. Fixed to the power shaft and within the housing 10 is a gear 56 which meshes with a gear 57 provided with a pinion 58, which gear and pinion are mounted upon a common shaft 59. The pinion in turn meshes with a gear 60 located upon a shaft 61.- Projecting laterally from one side of this gear 60 is a stud or other member 62 which is adapted to contact with the opposite sides of a lug on arm 63 projecting at right angles to the axis of rotation of said shaft. The outer end of this arm 63 is pivoted to a link 64 which is in turn pivoted to an arm 65 keyed to the shaft 66. The latter has another arm 67 projecting at an angle to the aforesaid arm, said arm 67 being provided with a stud 6S projecting at right angles therefrom and adapted to engage between the flanges 69 which constitute a sort of neck. l/Vhen the clutch 46 moves into and out of mesh with the teeth on gear 43, positive power is required to maintain the parts in their proper relative position. In case the spring dies out too soon, it is possible that stud 62 located on gear 60 may not revolve far enough around to'lift lever 63 up, thereby not pushing clutch 46 into mesh with teeth 44. The link 64 is therefore continued up through casing 10 and is provided with a pin 78 to enable the operator to pull up on said link 64, whereby the parts may be placed in proper position for effecting a rewinding of the spring. The tension of the spring motor is controlled by V the stud 62 and when wound up said stud contacts with the opposite side of the arm 63 pushing the. latter together with the link 64 downwardly thereby disengaging the clutch 46 from gear 43.

To supplement the action of the mecha-' nism just described, we employ a segment 70 fixed to shaft 66 in mesh with a gear 71 g located upon stud 72 projecting from the supporting arm 73. The gear 71 is pro-jg vided with an arm 74 to which is connectedi a. spring 75 the opposite end of the spring; being suitably connected at a fixed point 7 In the position shown in Fig. 3, the shaft} 42 is in its rearmost position and is so}; maintained by virtue of the spring 75 beingi ii on one side of a dead center. 'When that} stud 62 contacts with arm 63 the counterjg shaft 42 will be moved inwardly as will be understood and the spring will be thrownon the opposite side of the dead center. This action of the spring therefore not only supplements the throw of the shaft but effectively maintains the shaftin its extreme positions. The sprocket; gears 1618 loosely mounted upon the power shaft and the sprocket gear 14 fixed to the crank shaft are operated by the spring actuated means to crank the engine and in turn operate the spring actuated means to store up energy in the. spring. As soon as the sprocket gears 1618 are released from operative engagement with the spring actuated mechanism, after energy has been stored in the power spring, it will be necessary to hold the-said spring actuated mechanism against operation. This we accomplish by the arrangement of the spiral gear and the worm gear on the vertical shaft 52, as it will be understood motion can be imparted to the worm wheel 27 only by the rotation of the worm gear in mesh therewith. It will also be apparent that the pressure from the worm wheel upon the worm gear acts upon the threads of the latter at substantially right angles to the direction of the same. Consequently there can be but little, if any, rotative movement acting upon the worm gear. If there be arotative moment it is so slight that its effect is nil. It will therefore be seen that we have eliminated the extraneous or the independent holding mechanism which is invariably used in engine starters. The worm wheel and'gear have therefore a dual function, namely, to hold the'spring actuated mechanism against rotation and to coiiperate with other mechanism to store up energy in the power spring. This not only reduces the number of parts to a minimum, but also 1nsures a better operation of the starter.

From the above description, it will be ob,- served thatafter the engine is cranked and energy restored in the power spring the only parts that operate, so long as the engine continues to run, is the sprocket gears 14, 16-18, gear 43 and the sprocket chain 15, and as these parts are out of engagement with the other parts of the starter there can" be no w'ear outside of that which occursduring the brief inter'val of timeirequired to crank the engine and restore energy in the power spring. The housing which incloses the mechanism is preferably made fluid tight so that ,the various parts may be run and thus reduce the wear to a minimum.

corresponds substantially to the number of revolutions of the power shaft; while in .restoring energyin the power spring the number of revolutions of the power shaft is considerably less than the number of revolutions of the engineshaft. In fact it will be obvious that the ratio of the number of revolutions of the engine shaft to the power shaft in cranking the engine and in restoring energy in the power spring may be varied indefinitely according to the particular requirements, I

It is to be understood that we do not limit ourselves to the particular embodiment which we have chosen to illustrate our invention, as it is perfectly obvious, in the lightof the foregoing description taken in connection with the constructions herein shown, that various other modifications may be resorted to and minor changes made without necessarily departing from the true spirit and scope of. the invention.

What we claim is 1. In an engine starter, an engine shaft, in combination with starting mechanism for operating said shaft and mounted independently thereof, said mechanism comprising a power shaft, asprocket gear rotatably mounted upon said shaft, means for Open atively connecting said sprocket gear and engine shaft, a clutch member rotatably fixed 'to said power shaft but capable of longitudinal movement thereon, said sprocket 7 gear and clutch member provided with means for effecting: an interlocking engagement between the 'sameas one is moved toward the other, means normally engaging said clutch member to hold thelatter stationary, and mechanism for moving said clutch member out of engagement with the a powerr'shaft, ,a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon said power shaft, and means for operatlvely connectmg the sprocket gear and engine shaft, in combination with means for rotatingfsald sprocket gear to crank the r means normally engaging said clutch mempower shaft, a sprocket gear loosely mounted engine, c said means comprising a clutch member rotatably fixed to said shaft but capable .of longitudinal movement thereon,

ber to hold the same stationary, and means for movingwthe clutch member longitudinally of said powershaft out of engagement with the last mentioned'means into clutching engagement with the sprocket gear whereby the shaft is permitted to'rotate the said clutch member and sprocket gear to crank the engine. I v

3. Inan engine starter, an engine shaft, a

- upon saidpowershaft, and means for oper- ,atively connecting the sprocket gear and enl glne shaft; 1n combinatlon wlth means for rotating said sprocket gear, to crank the engme, said'means compris ng a clutch mem- "ber rotatablyfixed to said shaft but capable of longitudinal movement thereon, means normally engaging said clutch member to hold the same "stationary, and means .for

moving the clutch member longitudinally of said shaft to release the same from said engaging means and to bring the same into clutching engagement with the sprocket gear, said clutching engagement being es tablished before the clutch member is re leased from its holding means, substantially as described. r

4:. In an engine starter, an engine shaft, a power shaft, and means for operatively connecting the sprocket gear and engine shaft; in combination with means for rotating said sprocket gear to crank the engine, saidmeans comprising a clutch member rotatably fixed to said power shaft but capable of longitudinal movement thereon, means normally engaging said clutch mechanism to hold the same stationary, means for moving the clutch member longitudinally of said shaft to release the same from said engaging means and to bring the same into clutching engagement with the sprocket gear for rotating the latter to crank the engine, and means for automatically moving the clutch member in the opposite direction after a certain number of rotations of said sprocket gear to disengage the same from the sprocket gear and to cause the same to reengage the aforesaid holding means.

5. In an engine starter, an engine shaft, a power shaft, a sprocket gear on said power shaft, and means for operatively connecting the sprocket gearand engine shaft; means for rotating said sprocket gear to crank the engine, said means comprising a clutch member rotatab'ly fixed to said power shaft but capable of longitudinal movement thereon, means normally engaging said clutch mechanism to hold the same stationary, means for moving the clutch member longitudinally of said shaft to release the same from said engaging means and to bring the same into clutching engagement with the sprocket gear to rotate the latter to crank the engine, and means for automatically returning the clutch member to normal position, in combination with means connected to and operated by said sprocket gear after the engine is cranked for rotating said clutch member to restore energy to the power spring.

6. In an engine starter, an engine shaft, a power shaft provided with a power spring, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon said power shaft, and operatively connected to the engine shaft, a clutch gear rotatably fixed to said power shaft but capable of longitudinal movement thereon, rotatable means normally engaging said clutch mechanism to hold the same stationary, means for moving the latter out of engagement with said rotatable means into clutching engagement with said sprocket gear to crank engagement with c said. rotatable holding means, and means operatively connected to said sprocket gear for rotating saidrotatable holding means and said clutch member for restoring energy in the power spring.

7. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines,- in combination, an engine shaft,

a gear fixed to said shaft, a power shaft operated by power means, a sprocket gear loosely mounted upon said power shaft, means on said power shaftoperated in one direction by the power means to rotate the sprocket gear to crank the engine, and mechanism connected to said sprocket gear for operating the aforesaid means in the opposite direction to store up energy in the power means, said mechanism comprising means for holding the aforesaid means normally stationary against the tension of said power means.

8. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a power shaft, a

sprocket gear mounted on said shaft, and 7 means for operatively connecting the sprocket gear and engine shaft; in combination with means actuated by said sprocket gear after the engine has been cranked to restore power in the power means, comprising a gear rotatably mounted upon the power shaft, a clutch member fixed to said shaft and normally in interlocking engagement 7 with the last mentioned gear, and mechanism operatively connecting the sprocket gear and the last mentioned gear.

9. In starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a power shaft, a sprocket gear loosely mounted upon said power shaft, and means for operativelyconnecting the sprocket gear and engine shaft;

in combination with means operatively connected to said sprocket gear and actuated by the engine after the latter has been cranked to restore power in the power means, comprising a gear wheel rotatably mounted 'upon the power shaft, a clutch member fixed to said shaft andin interlocking engagement with the last mentioned gear, a counter shaft located adjacent said power shaft, a toothed gear loosely mounted thereon and operatively connected to the sprocket gear, and means for effecting an operative connection between said toothed gear and the said gear Wheel.

10. In a starting apparatus forexplosive engines, an engine shaft, a power shaft, a sprocket gear loosely mounted upon said power shaft, means for clutching the sprocket gear to the power shaft, and means for operatively connecting the sprocket gear and engine shaft, in combination with means operatively connected to said sprocket gear and actuated by the engine after the latter has been cranked to restore power in the power means, comprising a gear wheel rotatably mounted upon the power shaft, a clutch member fixed to said shaft and northe, rotation of the'latter'will be imparted r to the clutch member and to the gear wheel.

11. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon in combination with power means operatively connected to said fixed gear for cranks ing the engine, and mechanism associated with the aforesaid means after therengine has been cranked and actuated by'the said engine to restore power 'in power means; said cranking means .comprisinga power shaft, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon said power-shaft, and means adapted to engage with and rotate said sprocket gear to crank the j engine; and said restoring mechanism comprising a gear wheel rota tably mounted upon the power shaft and normally in engagement with the last mentioned means, a counter shaft arranged adjacent to said power shaft, a toothed gear rotatably mounted thereon and operatively connected to saidsprocket gear, and meansv operatively connecting said toothed gear and said gear wheel whereby the latter and the said means in normal engagement therewith are rotated by the formerto restore energy in the power means.

12. In a, starting apparatus forfexplosive engines, an engine shaft, ajfixed gear therein, and cranking means "operatively connected to said fixed gear comprising a spring actuated power shaft, a sprocket gearrotatably mounted upon said power shaft, and means adapted to engage with and rotate said sprocket gear to crank the engine, in combination with mechanism operated in turn by the engine for restoring energy in the spring after the engine has been cranked, comprising a gear wheel rotatably mounted upon the power shaft and normally in engagement with the last mentioned means, a counter shaft arranged adjacent to said power shaft, a toothedgearrotatably mounted thereon and operatively connected to said sprocket gear, and means operatively connecting said toothed gear and said gear. wheel whereby'the latter and the said means in normal engagement therewith are rotated by the former to restore energy in the power means. 7 v

13. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a'fixed gear-thereon, cranking means operatively connected to 7 said fixed gear comprisingfa spring actuated power shaft, a "sprocket gear rotatably mounted uponsaid p'ower shaft, and a normally stationary memberslidably ounted upon and rotatably fixedto said power shaft adaptedto be brought into engagement with I and'torotate' said spr'ocket gear to crank the engine, in combination with mechanism a I "operated in turn by theengine for restoring been cranked, comprisinga counter shaft arranged adjacent to .said power shaft, a.

energy in the spring after. the engine has to'othed gear rotatablyimountedthereon and operatively connected to said'spro'cket gear, and means J operatlvely connecting said toothed gearand said normally stationary member whereby the latter is rotated by the former to store energy in the power means.

I14; In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, arr-engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, cranking means operatively connected to fsaid fixed gear,f'compr1s1ng a spring actu- 'ated power shaft-,a sprocket gear rotatably mounted uponusaid power. shaft, and a normallyi-stationarymember? adapted to be broughtintooperative engagement with'the sprocket "gear and operated in one direction by the spring actuatedipower shaft to crank the engine, in combination with means adapted to operatively connect said normally stationary 1, member and actuated by the.

" sprocl'ret -gear after? the engine has been cranked to operate the said member in the other direction to store-' 1P .gnergy in the power spring. 7

15. In a starting apparatus for explosive yenginea'an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon,- cranking' meansoperatively connected to ,said fixed gear comprising a spring actu- 4O ated' power shaft, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon'said power shaft, and a nor- 'mally stationary; member; adapted to be brought into operative engagement with the sprocket gear and operatedin one direction by the spring actuatedpower shaft to crank the engine, and means fo-rautomatically disengaging the normally stationary member from thesprocket gear, in combination with means operated by the. sprocket gear and connected to said member for rotating the latterin the'opp'osite direction to store up energy in the power spring, and means for automatically connecting and disconnecting the, aforesaid meansfr'om the sprocket gear at the. beginning and the end respectively of the'restori'ng operation. I

7 16. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, cranking means operativelyconnected to said fixed gear comprising a spring actuated power shaft, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon said power shaft, and a normally stationary member adapted to be broughtinto operative engagementwith the ma s sprocket gear and operatedinonedirection by the spring actuated power shaft to crank the engine, in combination with means to store up energy in the spring, comprising a counter shaft arranged adjacent to the power shaft, a toothed I gear rotatably mounted thereon and operatively connected to the sprocket gear, means actuated by the said toothed gear for rotating the normally stationary member in the opposite direction to restore energy in the spring, and means for automatically connecting and disconnecting the aforesaid means with the toothed gear at the beginning and end respectively of the restoring operation.v I

17. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, cranking means operatively connected to said fixed gear comprising a spring actuated power shaft, a sprocket gear rota tably mounted upon said power shaft, a clutch member fixed to said shaft but longitudinally movable thereon, rotatable means on said shaft normally in interlocking engagement with said clutch member, means" for normally holding the aforesaid means against rotation, and meansfor moving the clutch member out of interlocking engagement with said rotatable means into clutching 7 engagement with the sprocket gear whereby the same is actuated by the power shaft to rotate the sprocket gear to crank the engine, in combination with means to store up energy in the spring comprising a toothed gear rotatably mounted adjacent to the power shaft and actuated by the sprocket gear, and a clutch member operatively connected to the holding mechanism and adapted to be brought into clutching engagement with the toothed gear to rotate the holding mechanism and the first mentioned clutch member in the opposite direction to store up energy in the power spring.

'18. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, cranking means operatively con nected to said fixed gear comprisinga spring actuated power shaft, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon said shaft, a clutch jacent and operatively connected to said engine shaft, spring actuated power means adapted to engage with said sprocket gear and actuated in one direction to rotate the same, to crank the engine, and means connecting said sprocket gear to the power means and operated by said sprocket gear after the engine has been cranked for actuating the power means in the opposite direction to restore energy in the power means, said connecting means normally serving to hold the spring actuated means against rotation.

20. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted adjacent and operatively connected to said fixed gear, in combination with spring actuated means for engaging with the sprocket gear and rotated in one direction to crank the engine, and means actuated by the engine after the same has been cranked to restore energy in the power spring, comprising mechanism connected to the sprocket means to rotate the same in the opposite direction, said mechanism adapted to hold the spring actuated means normally stationary against the tension of the power spring.

21. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted adjacent and operatively connected to said first gear, spring actuated means adapted to operatively engage with the sprocket gear and rotate in one direction to crank the engine, in combination with mechanism operated by the sprocket gear after the engine has been cranked to rotate the spring actuated means in the opposite direction to restore energy in the power spring, said restoring mechanism normally engaging with the spring actuated means to hold the same stationary against the tension of the power spring.

22. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, a power shaft located adjacent to said engine shaft, a counter shaft located in proximity to the power shaft, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon the .power shaft and operatively connected to the fixed gear on the engine shaft, a toothed gear rotatably mounted upon the counter shaft and operatively connected to the sprocket gear, spring actuated means adapted to engage with the sprocket gear and to be rotated in one direction to crank the engine, and mechanism adapted to engage with the spring actuated means and operated by the toothed gear to rotate the spring actuated means in the other direction to restore energy in the power spring.

23. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, a power shaft located-adjacent to said engine shaft, a counter shaft located in proximity to the power shaft, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon the power shaft and operatively connected to the fixed gear on the engine shaft, a toothed gear rotatably mounted upon the counter shaft and operatively connected to the sprocket gear, means engageable with the sprocket gear and rotated in one direction by the power means to crank the engine, and means operable'by the toothed gear and engageable by the aforesaid means for rotating the latter in the opposite direction to store up energy in the power means.

24. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, a power shaft located adjacent to said engine shaft, a counter shaft located in proximity to the power shaft, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted upon the power shaft and operatively connected to the fixed gear on the engine shaft, a toothed gear rotatably mounted upon the counter shaft and operatively connected to the sprocket gear, means engageable with the sprocket gear and rotated in one direction by the power means to crank the engine, and mechanism operable by the toothed gear and engageable by the aforesaid means for rotating the latter in the opposite direction to store up energy in the power spring, in combination with means actuated by the power mechanism for bringing the said mechanism into operative engagement with said toothed gear when the engine is cranked and for disengaging the same after energy has been restored in the power spring.

25. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted adjacent and operatively connected to said fixed gear, spring actuated means adapted to operatively engage with the sprocket gear and rotated in one direction to crank the engine, and mechanism operated by the sprocket gear after the engine has been cranked to rotate the spring actuated means in the 0ppo-site direction to restore energy in the power spring, in combination with means actuated by the power means for bringing the said mechanism into operative relation with said sprocket'gear when the engine is cranked and for dlsconnecting the same after energy has been restoredin the power spring. 1

26. In a starting apparatus for explosive engines, an engine shaft, a fixed gear thereon, a sprocket gear rotatably mounted adjacent and operatively connected to said fixed gear, spring actuated means adapted to operatively engage with the sprocket gear and rotate in one direction to crank the engine, in combination with mechanism operated by the sprocket gear after the engine has been cranked to rotate the spring actuated means in the opposite direction to restore energy in the power spring.

. by the engine after the same has been cranked for restoring energy in the power Copies of this patent may bepobtained tor means, said mechanism comprising means serving to hold the power means, after energy has been restored therein, against the tension of the power spring.

In testimony whereof We afiix our signatures in the presence of tWo subscribing Wit- GEORGE S. THOMPSON. CHARLES F. RICHARDSON. Witnesses: V WM. BOHLEBER,

THOMAS J. BYRNE.

nesses;

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0.

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