US788560A - Car-starter. - Google Patents

Description

No 788,560. PATENTED MAY 2, 1905.

S. SMITH, Jn.'& G. S. GRIFFIN.

GAR STARTER.

APPLIOATION rum) MAY 6. 1904.

' UNITED STATES Patented May 2, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

STEPHEN SMITH, J R., AND GEORGE S. GRIFFIN, OF HORSEOREEK, ALABAMA.

CAR-STARTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 788,560, dated May 2, 1905.

' A uman fil d May 6, 190 1. Serial No. 206,674.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, STEPHEN SMITH, J r.,

and GEORGE S. GRIFFIN, citizens of the United States, residing at Horsecreek, in the county of Walker and State of Alabama, have invented new and useful Improvements in Car- Starters, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to an improvement in car-starters, and comprises a device which is simple and comparatively inexpensive and which acts with a maximum leverage in either pushing or pulling the car.

More particularly our invention comprises a car-starter having a hook or brace adapted to engage the car-axle and a lever having a flanged beveled head pivotally secured to the hook and adapted to engage the flange of the wheel, preferably at a point in the plane of the axle where the greatest leverage may be exerted. According to constructions now in use the leverage is applied to the wheel from the track and at a point nearly under its center, so that it is necessary to expend a large part of force used to move the car in lifting dead-weight. In fact, it is almost necessary to lift the car in cases where it is ,difficult to start it moving.

Our invention comprises a further important improvement over these devices which apply the leverage from the track, since it is equally applicable to push or to pull the car. To enable the other devices to be used in this manner, it is-necessary to go from one end to the other of the car to successfully use the lever when it becomes necessary to shift the car backward or forward, whereas in applying our invention it is only necessary to reverse the manner in which the hook engages the axle, cause the beveled face of the lever to engage the wheel, and by pressing downward on the lever the car can be moved toward you equally as well as it can be moved from you when the device is reversed.

Our invention further comprises the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described, and more particularly set forth in the claim, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 shows our improved car-starter in elevation as applied to a wheel for moving it from you. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional viewillustrating the configuration of the lever-head and the manner in which it engages the rim of the wheel. Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail view of the lever-head. Fig. 5 is a similar view to Fig. 1, illustrating our device applied for moving the car toward you.

Similar reference-numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

Our invention comprises a hook or brace 1 adapted to be passed over an axle 2 at a point adjacent to the wheel 3. This hook engages the axle in a manner to give a firm connection thereto for the arm 4:, which is slightly greater in length than the radius of the wheel, so that this end extends to a point slightlybeyond the flange 5 of the wheel 3. At this point the head 6 of the lever 7 is pivotally secured to the arm 4 by a bolt 8 passing through both parts and securing them firmly together, but without interfering with the swinging movement of the head 6 around this bolt as an axis. This head 6 has a beveled face 9, cut in an arc to correspond with the arc of the periphery of the wheel, and a flange 10, disposed on the opposite side from the arm 4 and designed to conform with the curve of the flange 5 of the wheel, as will be seen by reference to Fig. 3. The arm 4 is preferably bent outward at the point 11 to provide a clearance for the head 6, which, it will be noted, is wider across the face 9 than the flange of the wheel. If desired, the lever 7 may also be bent so that it can be conveniently handled from a standing posture.

In operation when the hook 1 has been slipped over the axle and the face 9 of the lever-head placed against the rim of the wheel if the lever be lifted firmly to move the car forward the head, by reason of its beveled face, will wedge tightly against the flange and tread of the wheel and gripping the same firmly will enable the car to be started With the minimum expenditure of energy. The advantage of applying the leverage at this point where it will exert the greatest efiect independently of the track or of the deadweight of the car must be obvious, and the simplicity and economy of our device, combined with its efiectiveness in operation,makes it an ideal car-starter. To move the car toward you, it is only necessary to slip the book 1 from over axle 2 and reverse it, so that it engages the axle as shown in Fig. 5, when a downward pressure on the lever7 will cause the beveled face 9 and flange 10 of the head6 to firmly grip the wheel and move it downward to start the car toward you. The advantages of this convertible character of our invention are of the greatest importanceas, for instance, if the car have its brake on the north end and it is to be desired to start it in a northward direction our device may be applied to a wheel at the north end of the car to start it, at which point the party can get quickly to the brake to control the movement of the car. The old-fashioned starter would have to be applied at the south end of the car to start it, after which it would be necessary for the party to climb upon and run the length of the car before getting control of the brake, which might make it possible for the car to get out from under control, especially if the grade be steep. At the same time it will be of great convenience in shifting a car backward and forward for any purpose and to be able to do this with one device without having to move from one end to the other of the car to apply it. No sanding is necessary in connection with the application of our starter no matter how slippery the track may be, whereas with the old devices sand is quite often needed. It is further true that our device engages the wheel positively and cannot slip.

In transportation the hook 1 can be swung around on the pin 8 to a point parallel with the lever 7 making the device compact for the purpose of carriage and shipment.

While we have shown the lever as engaging the flange 5 principally, it may be adapted to engage the tread of the Wheel at any point and will operate successfully. In this construction the flange 10 will be widened, since it takes the strain to which the face 9 in our present construction is exposed.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

In a car-starter, a hook member adapted to engage an axle, a lever member pivotally connected to said hook member and having an enlarged gripping-head, said head having a bearing-face which is cut away on one of its vertical sides so that its cross-sectional contour corresponds with that of the wheel-flange and an adjacent tread portion, the bearingface being slightly concave to engage an extended portion of the convex periphery of the wheel, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of the subscribing witnesses.

STEPHEN SMITH, J R. GEORGE S. GRIFFIN.

Witnesses as to signature of Stephen Smith, Jr.:

W. W. PATTON, J. A. MITCHELL.

IVitnesses as to signature of George S. Griffin:

Gr. 1. VVHARToN, D. D. PA'r'roN.

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