US431449A - Thill-coupling - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

E. w. DOOLITTLE & J. D. BURNS. THILL COUPLING.

N0. 431,449. Patented July 1, 1890. v

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EMMET WARREN DOOLITTLE AND JAMES DANA BURNS, OF GARDEN GROVE, IOWA.

THl-LL-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 431,449, dated July 1, 1890.

Application filed February 15, 1890. Serial No. 340,578- (No model.)

To aZZ whom itmay concern:

Be it known that we,E1vrMnr WARREN Doo- LITTLE and J AMEs DANA BURNS, citizens of the United States, residing at Garden Grove,

in the countyof Decatur and State of Iowa,

which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to an improvement in shaft, thill, or pole couplings, the object of the invention being to simplify,improve, and perfect the construction of couplings of this kind, and especially to prevent the noisome rattling 'which commonly occurs with couplings of this character and which is so disagreeable, and also to form a new, strong, and compact connection, so that the thill or pole may be easily connected to or disengaged from the axle with but little inconvenience and with no sacrifice of security and strength; and the invention to this end consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of parts, substantially as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating our invention, Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of our improved thill, shaft,or pole coupling, shown as applied to a vehicle-axle and ready for use. Fig.2 is a sectional plan view on the line as w of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of the draw-arm. Fig. 4 is a detail plan view of the guard-piece. Fig. 5 is a detail plan view of the draw yoke or plate. Fig. 6 is a detail view of a different form of spring employed in the device.

Like letters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the different figures of the drawings.

A denotes a portion of a vehicle-axle, in connection with which our improved thill-coupling is arranged. The invention isequally applicable to vehicles of all kinds, and hence the section of axle herein depicted is given by way of illustration only. Around the axle passes a clip a, provided with the usual nuts on. the screw-threaded ends thereof, said clip being employed for the purpose of connecting securely to the axle in a horizontal position the draw yoke or plate B, which is shown in detail plan in Fig. 5 and in operative position in Fig. 1. This draw-yoke consists simply ofa plate recessed at b to receive the axle, and perforated at b b to permit the passage therethrough of the screw-threaded end of the clip, whereby the draw-yoke is firmly secured in a horizontal position to the under side of the axle. Furthermore, the draw-yoke is provided with a slot 13, at the forward end of which is the draw-bolt b, which forms the pivot of the coupling, said bolt being integral with the yoke and being nicely rounded, so as to form a neat pivot. This draw-bolt being integral with the draw-yoke, there is no possibility of its becoming loose or detaching itself from the main body of the yoke, and thus stability and permanence of the device is better attained.

In Fig. 3 we have illustrated in detail perspective what we term the draw-arm. This is a curved orbent arm of suitable length and shape, which is preferably bolted or otherwise securely fastened to the circle-iron of the pole or to the heel of the'shaft or thill. I11 the drawings we have shown the draw-arm O as connected to the thill D by means of the bolts 0 c. WVe are restricted to no particular angle of curvature or pitch for this arm, as it may be fashioned in any desired manner, it being essentially an auxiliary piece fastened to the thill or pole and serving to connect the latter pivotally with the axle. The draw-arm O is adapted to have its lower end passed downward through the slot 13 in the draw-yoke, and the side of the draw-arm which lies to the rear of the draw-bolt b is provided with a slot 0', of suitable size and shape to receive said bolt b, and thus the bolt serves to support the draw-arm,which turns thereon as on a pivot. On each side of the slot 0' are two lips or guards d d, projecting toward'each other, as shown. These help to keep the drawarm from becoming disengaged from the bolt and enable the slot 0 to contain the bolt constantly at all times nearly as well as if it were a perforation instead of a slot. Furthermore,

the draw-arm is provided on its face opposite to that where the slot 0 is located with two parallel vertical lips or flanges of suitable size and length, said flanges being lettered E E and being, perforated at e 6. Through these two perforations passes the bolt pin or rivet F, around which the anti-rattler spring G" is coiled.

H designates the guard-piece. It comprises a substantially straight piece of iron or other suitable metal made with two parallel lips situated about midway of the length of the piece, said lips being lettered h h and being perforated to allow the passage through them of the same pin or bolt F which we have seen passes through the perforated lips on the drawarm. The guard-piece is shown in plan view in Fig. l andin vertical section in Fig. 1. It, likewise with the draw-arm, is designed to be located within the slot 13' of the draw-yoke. When in this location, its lips h hwill lie outside of the lips E E of the draw-arm. The pin F, as we have seen, will pass through the lips h h and also the lips E E. Coiled around this pin will be a spring whose opposite ends will bear, respectively, upon the lower portion of the draw-arm and the lower portion of the guard-piece H, said spring thus serving to force apart the draw-arm and guard-piece in the manner shown in Fig. 1. It is immaterial what kind of a spring is employed for this purpose. Several varieties may be used. We have shown one form in Figs. 1 and 2 and a different form in Fig. 6. Either one may be used or an entirely different kind devised for the purpose. It is only necessary that a spring should be so coiled that its opposite ends or opposite parts of it may bear upon the lower end of the draw-arm and the lower end of the guard-piece, respectively, for the purpose of forcing them apart, the result of which will be to force the upper end of the guard-piece toward the draw-arm. In this way the guardpiece and draw-arm together will fully occupy the slot B and the belt I) will be kept constantly within the slot G, the spring G serving to maintain this constant connection between the pivotal bolt 1) and the draw-arm. Whenever it is desired to disengage the drawarm from the draw-yokethat is to say, to withdraw the pivotal bolt from the slot in which it is situated-the operator needs simply to withdraw or force away the upper end of the guard-piece from the draw-arm, the result of which will be to press together the extreme lower ends of the draw-arm and guardpiece, and when they are in this position they may be easily removed from the slot, and thus the thill-coupling disengaged. They can readily be returned to place and the engagement made as before whenever it is desired to do so.

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

1. In a thill, shaft, or pole coupling, the combination of the slotted draw-yoke conon the side opposite to said slot, the guard-' piece with its parallel lips, the pivoted pin passing through the lips of the guard and parallel flanges on the draw-arm, and the interposed spring coiled around said pin, sub stantially as specified.

3. The combination of the draw-yoke connected to the axle and having the draw-bolt integral therewith, the draw-arm connected to the thill and slotted so as to hang pivotally upon the draw-bolt, and likewise having lips on each side of said slot, substantially as described, together with the guard-piece, and

the interposed spring coiled around the guardpiece pivot for ke ping the draw-arm in position, substantia y as described.

4:. The combination of the axle, the slotted draw-yoke having draw-bolt, the clip connecting said draw-yoke to the axle, the draw-arm slotted to hang upon the draw-bolt and having lips on each side of said slot and parallel lips or flanges on that side of the draw-arm opposite to the guard-piece, the guard-piece with its parallel lips, the pin for pivoting said guard-piece to the draw-arm, and the interposed spring coiled around said pivot-pin and having its parts acting upon the guardpiece and draw-arm, so that their lower ends may occupy the slot in the draw-yoke, and thus keep the draw-arm upon its pivot, a specified.

5. In a thill, shaft, or pole coupling, the combination of the axle A, the draw-yoke B, slotted at B, having draw-bolt b and connected to the axle, the draw-arm C, slotted at C, so as to hang pivotally upon the drawbolt, and having lips d d on each side of said slot, the guard piece, and the interposed spring hung upon the guard-piece pivot for retaining the draw-arm in its pivoted position, substantially as described.

6. The combination of the axle, the drawyoke B, slotted at B and having bolt 1), the slotted draw-arm having parallel flanges E E, perforated at e e, the guard-piece H, having side lips h h, the pivot-pin F, pivoting the guard-piece to the draw-arm, and the inter posed spring, all arranged as specified.

7. The combination of the axle A, the drawyoke B, slotted at B, having recess 1) and having draw-bolt b, the clip a, connecting the yoke to the axle, the draw-arm C, secured to IIO the thill, shaft,0r pole and slotted at C, so In testimony whereof we affix our signaas to hang pivotally on the draw-bolt, and tures in presence of two witnesses. likewise having lips cl d adjacent to said slot,

EMMET WARREN DOOLITTLE. and parallel llps E E on the opposite side of the arm, the guard-piece H, having lips h h, JAMES DANA BURNS the pivot connecting said lips with lips E E, Witnesses:

and the interposed spring, all arranged as F. D. BAKUs,

specified. G. E. METIER.

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