US2076113A - Amusement ride - Google Patents

Description

Y April 6, 1937.

J. N. BARTLETT AMUSEMENT RIDE Filed Nov. 26, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 April 6, 1937. J. N. BARTLETT AMUSEMENT RIDE Filed Nov. v26, 1934 Sheets-Sheet 2 nzfevzov; l', #6:17;

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April 6, 1937. .1. N. BARTLETT AMUSEMENT RIDE Filed NOV. 26, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 April 6, 1937. L N, BARTLETT l 25076,-113

AMUSEMENT RIDE Filed Nov. 2e, 1954 4 sheets-sheet` 4 Patented Apr. 6, 1937 PATENT OFFIQE AMUSEMENT RIDE John N. Bartlett,

Tonawanda, N. Y.

Application November 26, 1934, Serial No. 754,803

8 Claims.

This invention relates to an amusement ride or apparatus designed for use in amusement parks, playgrounds and the liketo simulate the thrill of looping the loop.

It has for its object to provide an amusement apparatus of this character which is so designed and constructed as to enable the passenger or passengers to readily manipulate it, and which affords maximum safety to the passengers.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a looping apparatus having simple and effective means for arresting its movement after the completion of a ride, and to provide means assog ciated with the arresting means for automatical- 1" ly governing the same to control the duration of the ride.

A further object is to provide an amusement ride which is so constructed and balanced as to enable the passengers through their own efforts to operate the same in a vertical circle to loopthe-loop, and which is strong and durable in construction and safe and positive in operation.

A still further object is to-provide the apparatus with mechanical means for assisting the pas- 3" senger or passengers in effecting the looping of the apparatus.

Other features of the invention reside in the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in 30 the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure l is a side elevation of an amusement apparatus embodying my invention. Figure 2 is an end View thereof, partly in section. Figure 3. o is an enlarged longitudinal section of the passenger carriage taken substantially in the plane of line 3 3, Figure 2. Figure 4 is a cross section taken in the plane of line d li, Figure 3. Figure 5 is an enlarged transverse vertical section taken substantially in the plane of line 5 5 Figure 1. Figure 6 is a detailed sectional View of the timing element or air cylinder associated with the brake mechanism. Figure 'l is a fragmentary side view A5 of the apparatus showing a modification of the booster mechanism. Figure 8 is an enlarged transverse vertical section taken substantially in the plane of line 8 8, Figure 7. Figure 9 is a cross section taken on line 9 9, Figure 8. Figure 10 is 59 a front elevation of a modified form of the amuseapparatus comprises substantially upright side frames or standards disposed in spaced relation and each consisting of an upright central member IE) and inclined side members II, longitudinal base members I2, longitudinal tie members I3 parallel with `the base members and connected to said central and side members in the manner shown in Figure 1, and a transverse tie member I 1l connecting the upper ends of the central members Iii. Adjacent its opposite ends where the passengers are admitted to and discharged from the apparatus, there are provided platforms I5 between the base members I2.

Suspended in the space between these standards for swinging movement in a substantially vertical circular path to simulate looping the loop, is a passenger car or carriage I6 designed to receive one or more passengers in a standing position, the carriage while revolving about a given axis being held against turning so that the passengers always assume an upright or standing position during the oscillating and looping movementof the carriage. This carriage in its preferred construction shown in the drawings, is in the form of a substantially cylindrical cage-like structure made of screening or other foraminous material so that the passengers may look out and also be seen by spectators, and is provided at its iametrically opposite sides with ingress and egress openings Il normally closed by vertically swinging doors I8 hinged at I9 and each having a yielding tie member 20 which serves to either hold the door in its lowered or closed position, shown by full lines in Figure 3, or in its open or elevated position shown by dotted lines in such ligure. In its bottom the carriage has a platform 2l on which the passengers stand during the ride and extending diametrically across the carriage adjacent the opposite sides thereof are handle bars 22 which are adapted to be grasped by the passengers. Adjacent the door-openings I'I are transversely-extending safety bars 23 which are pivoted at one end of the handle bars 22 and which rest at their free ends on the companion handle bar in the manner shown in Figure 4. Associated with each safety bar is a latch-bolt 24 guided for sliding movement in a bracket 25 mounted on one of the handle bars 22 and adapted at its inner end to releasably engage the corresponding safety bar 23 to hold it in its safety or horizontal position when the door i8 is closed. The door is adapted to abut and engage the outer end of the latch bolt to force it into engagement with the safety bar and hold it there during the timethe door is closeoLa spring V2S applied to the bolt serving to urge the latter to its released position when the door is open. In order to positively hold the door in its closedposition, swinging latch hooks 2l may be employed which engage corresponding studs 28 upon the carriage, springs 2S acting to hold the latch hooks in latched position. When it is desired to admit passengers to or discharge them from the 5 carriage, the attendant swings the latch hooks to their released position, opens the door I8 and lifts the safety bar 23, which is automatically released when the door is opened.

The carriage l5 is so suspended from the l standards that it has a motion of translation in a substantially circular path, whereby its platform 2l remains parallel to itself in all positions of the carriage and the passengers always assume an upright position. As shown in Figl ures 1 and 2, the carriage is suspended at its opposite sides from a plurality of revolving arms 30, 3|, 32 which are iulcrumed intermediate their ends at suitably spaced points on the standard. In the drawings, these arms are shown 2O fulcrumed at triangularly spaced points 33, 34, 35, the pivot spindles 3S and 3d of the arms 3E, 3l being applied to the horizontal frame members I3 at equidistant points on opposite sides of the central upright frame member le and the pivot spindles of the arms 32 being mounted on said member l@ above and centrally between the companion pivot spindles 33, 35, whereby, when the carriage is in its lowest position to receive and discharge passengers, as seen by dotted lines in Figure l, the several arms are in a pendant parallel position and equally spaced. At their lower ends, these arms are connected to the carriage by suitable pivots 55 disposed adjacent the periphery thereof and at triangularlyspaced points thereon, the distances between the arm-pivots and the carriage-pivots of the respective arms being the same. Fitted about the pivots 36 are bushings 35lz of rubber or like material which allow for the proper mechanical 40 movements or" the suspension arms without strain and aford a smooth turning of the carriage. The opposite or free ends of the suspension arms are provided with weights 3l which are preferably of such moment as to not only counterbalance the carriage but to slightly overbalance it, and thereby minimize the eiorts required of the passenger or passengers to swing the carriage through a complete circle or to cause it to loop. As seen in Figure 2, the suspension arms are laterally oiset to permit their relative clearance during the rotation of the arms about their respective pivots.

Means are provided for arresting the movement of the carriage i6 at its lowest position for the ingress and egress of passengers, and for this purpose one of the suspension arms, say the arm 3i! is provided concentrically of its pivotspindle 33 with a brake drum 33 which is bolted or otherwise fixedly secured to the suspension arm to revolve therewith, Cooperating with this brake drum is a brake band 35 carried by a vertically-swinging arm 49 pivoted to the adjoining portion of the frame structure and having a spring tl connected thereto for constantly urging the arm fio in a direction to apply the brake. For swinging the arm to a brake-releasing position, a hand lever 42 is provided which is connected by a link or links i3 with the free o end of the arm BB.

Associated with the brake mechanism in opposing relation to the spring 4l is a time element for automatically effecting the application of the brakes after a predetermined time, whereby 75 each passenger is assured a ride of a given duration. This time element is preferably in the form of an air cylinder fifi having a leather cup plunger 45 therein whose rod il@ is connected with the brake lever 42 and by the links i3 with the brake arm 4B, as shown in Figures l and 6. At its discharge end this cylinder has an adjustable vent or port l1 controlled by a threaded stem or bolt 48 which allows for the gradual escape of the air from the cylinder after the brake lever has been shifted to its released position, and effects, in conjunction with the spring itl, the gradual return of the arm ill to its brake-applying position. A pet cock @-9 may also be provided on the cylinder to effect an emergency application of the brake should the occasion arise.

In some cases the passengers may not have that physical control in the use of their bodies, as knee-bending and other body effort, to impart that motion to the carriage to efect its looping. To assist the passengers of this type, I provide a selectively-controlled power or mechanical booster mechanism which functions to assist the turning of the arms 3G, Si and 32 to quickly bring the carriage to the proper degree of swing to loop, and which is preferably controlled by the attendant of the apparatus. As seen in Figure l, this booster mechanism consists of an electric motor 55 suitably supported at the base of the frame structm'e and having a sprocket 5I connected by a chain 52 to a sprocket 53 applied to the brake drum 38. Associated with the sprocket 5l, is a suitable clutch 5ft controlled from the operators station oi the machine by a hand lever 55. When the clutch is engaged, motion is transmitted to the sprocket 53 to compel the turning of the arm 3Q about its fulcrum 33 and likewise the swinging of the carriage and the turning o1 the companion arms 3l and 32 about their respective fulcrums. When the required momentum has been transmitted to the carriage i5 in this manner, the operator then disengages the clutch to allow the carriage to move under its own momentum.

In Figures 7, 8 and 9 I have shown a manuallyoperated mechanism for effecting a boosting movement to the carriage, the same including a drum 56 Xedly secured to one of the suspension arms, say the arm 3l, to revolve therewith about its pivot spindle 35 and a brake shoe 5l cooperating therewith and pivoted at 53 to a crank 59 of an actuating lever E@ which is ulcrumed at 6| to an arm S2 rotatably mounted on a framefitting member 53 of the companion pivot spindle 34. A spring 5ft connected to the actuating lever 60 `serves to constantly urge it in a direction to bring the brake shoe 5l out of engagement with the drum 56, the lower end of said lever having a stop lug 65 thereon adapted to abut against the opposing side of the arm 52 to limit the movement of the lever to its released position. The numeral 56 indicates a booster lever connected by a link 5T with the actuating lever Sil, so that when the booster lever is pulled downwardly it brings the brake shoe 5l in irictional contact with the brake drum and the further movement of the booster lever turns the brake drum to in turn impart a turning movement to the suspension arm 3l to increase the momentum of the carriage and cause it to loop. When the boosting effort has been transmitted in this manner, the lever 65 is released and the spring G4 returns it and the associated parts to their released position. The return of the lever 60 and its supporting arm B2 is limited by a stop 68 secured to the frame member I3, as shown in Figure 9. When the arm 62 encounters this stop, it eiects a toggle action and causes the lever 60 to swing about its pivot 6I in a direction to lift the shoe 51 from the drum 56.

In the modication of the ride shown in Figures 10 and 11, the passenger carriage 89 is pivoted substantially centrally thereof, as indicated at 10, to the lower end of a rotatable suspension arm 1l fulcrumed intermediate its ends at 12 to the frame structure 13. At its upper end this arm is counter-weighted preferably by a fluidchamber 14. During the swinging of the suspension arm, the carriage is adapted to have a motion of translation and to this end the pivotshafts 10 and 12 have bevel gears 15 thereon which mesh with pinions 16 applied to the upper and lower ends of a shaft 11 journaled in bearings 18 fixed on the arm 1|, as shown in Figure 1l. A rocking motion is transmitted to the arm from an electric motor 19 or other source of power through the medium of forward and reverse clutch-controlled gears 80 meshing with a pinion 8| fixed on the lower end of an upright shaft 82 suitably journaled on the frame 13. At its upper end this shaft has a pinion 83 thereon meshing with a gear 84 fixed on the arm-fulcrum shaft 12, which latter is keyed or otherwise secured to the arm 1l. The pivot-shaft 18 of the carriage is keyed thereto so that as the arm 1l is rocked and looped the carriage will assume a 'motion of translation and take a horizontal position in all positions of the arm. The clutch members associated with the gears 88 are indicated at 85 and may be controlled by a hand lever 86.

I claim as my invention:-

1. An amusement apparatus, comprising a frame, suspension arms pivoted intermediate their ends to said frame at substantially triangularly spaced points, and a passenger carriage pivotally connected at spaced points thereon to the companion ends of the arms to revolve bodily about the pivots thereof, the distances between the arm-pivots and the carriage-pivots of the respective arms being the same, and the opposing free ends of said arms having weights thereon to at least counter-balance the weight of the carriage.

2. An amusement apparatus, comprising a frame, a plurality of swinging arms pivoted intermediate their ends to said frame to swing in a substantially vertical plane, and a passengercarriage pivotally suspended at triangularlyspaced points from one end of said arms to have a motion of translation in a substantially circular path during the swinging of the arms, the opposite ends of said arms being weighted to substantially counterbalance the carriage.

3. An amusement apparatus, comprising a passenger-carriage, means for pivotally suspending said carriage to have a motion of translation in a substantially circular path, braking means for arresting the movement of the carriage, means for normally actuating the braking means to its applied position, and timed brake-delaying means interposed in operative relation with the brake actuating means to actuate said braking means after a predetermined duration of the ride.

4. An amusement apparatus, comprising a frame, a plurality of swinging arms pivoted to said frame to swing in a substantially vertical plane, a passenger-carriage pivotally suspended from said arms to have a motion of translation in a substantially circular path during the swinging of the arms, a brake drum applied to one of said arms concentrically of its pivot, a brake band engageable with said drum, lever means for actuating said band including a spring for normally urging said means to a brake-applyingposition, and a time-controlled device including a fluidcontaining cylinder and piston interposed in said leverage means in opposing relation to the spring for governing the automatic application of the brake band.

5. An amusement apparatus, comprising a pivoted, rotatable suspension means consisting of a plurality of parallel, vertically-swinging arms, a passenger carriage of cage-like form pivoted at its periphery to said arms for a motion of translation in which the carriage is in a horizontal position at all times during the movement of said suspension means initiated by the passenger, and means assisting the manual efforts of the passenger for selectively imparting rotary movement to said suspension means to effect the looping of the carriage.

6. An amusement apparatus, comprising a pivoted rotatable suspension means consisting of a plurality of parallel, vertically-swinging arms, a passenger carriage of cage-like form pivoted at its periphery to said arms for a motion of translation in a substantially circular path during the movement of said suspension means initiated by the passenger and in which the carriage is in a horizontal position at all times, a driven member rotatable with the suspension means about its pivot, and selectively-controlled means assisting the manual eiforts of the passenger and operatively connected to said driven member for transmitting motion thereto to impart a boosting movement to the suspension means and its carriage.

7. An amusement apparatus, comprising a pivoted rotatable suspension means, a passenger' carriage mounted thereon for a motion of translation in which the carriage is in a horizontal position at al1 times, the movement of said suspension means being normally initiated by the passenger, a driven member rotatable with the suspension means about its pivot, a manuallyactuated lever including releasable means for coupling it with said driven member for transmitting motion thereto toimpart a boosting movement to the suspension means and its carriage, and means for constantly urging said lever and its coupling means to a released position.

8. An amusement apparatus, comprising a frame, a plurality of swinging arms pivoted intermediate their ends to said frame to swing in a substantially vertical plane, a passenger-carriage of substantially cage-like, cylindrical form pivotally suspended at triangularly-spaced points from the lower ends of said arms to have a motion of translation in a substantially circular path during the swinging of the arms, said carriage being adapted for actuation by the passenger, means applied to the upper ends of said arms for overbalancing the weight of the carriage and tending to swing it past the vertical, and brake means for arresting the movement of the carriage and maintaining it in line with the vertical when loading and unloading passengers.

JOHN N. BARTLETT.

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