US763985A - Carriage-top. - Google Patents

Description

No. '763,985- PATENTED JULY 5, 1904. W. H. KELLY. CARRIAGE TOP.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 30, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

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.155. ww W X Y v 0 UNITED STATES Patented July 5, 1904.

PATENT OEEicE.

CARRIAGE-TOP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 763,985, datedJuly 5, 1904.

Application tiled September 30, 1903. Serial No. 175,192. (No model.)

To (all zul/1,0m, it 771/607/ concern:

Be it known that I, VILLIAM H. KELLY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brownsburg, in the county of Rockbridge and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Carriage-Tops; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to carriage-tops for buggies, phaetons, surreys, and other vehicles; and it has reference more particularly to those kinds of vehicle-tops which are provided with rolling curtains at the sides and back, a modern example of which is illustrated and described in the drawings and specification accompanying my United States Letters Patent No. 735,270, dated August 4, 1903. In the construction illustrated in said patent the topframe, which supports the covering and rollers, has front and rear bows connected at each side of the top by upper and lower side strips, to the lower ones of which the supportingstandards for the top are attached, while the intermediate bow or bows are connected to the upper side strips. The side-curtain rollers are mounted or supported between the front and rear bows, being housed within the sides of the top-covering, and the curtains pass between the side strips, and when drawn they hang over and cover the standards and braces which support the top. An innerlining within or under the top-covering attached to the front and rear bows and the lower side strips conceals the rollers and their mountings or brackets.

My present invention is an improvement over the vehicle-top shown in my aforesaid patent, and its principal objects are t0 provide a neater construction and a more compact arrangement of the curtain-rollers within the top-frame, to render the rollers readily accessible for the purpose of mounting them in place or removing them, as well as for conveniently drawing down the curtains in case they suddenly y up by accident, to provide for readily taking out or replacing the side frames of the top, with the rollers mounted therein, and for folding the top-frame together for shipment or storage, and to irnprove the construction of the top in various particulars.

With the above objects in view the invention will first be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which are to be taken as a part of this specification, and its distinguishing features will then be recited in the annexed claims.

For the purpose of explanation the invention is herein represented embodied in a buggy-'top similar to that illustrated in the vdrawlngs of my aforesaid patent, though it will be understood that the invention is capable of embodiment in different forms and is applicable tothe tops of other kinds of vchicles.

In said drawings, Figure l is aside view of the buggy-top, the 'same being represented mounted on a buggy-seat, aportion of the topcover being broken away and the side curtain being partly drawn. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view of one of the side frames with the curtain-roller mounted therein, an intermediate part being broken away. Fig. 3 is an enlarged partial vertical cross-section on line 3 3 of Fig. l looking' in the direction of the arrow, showing the rear right-hand corner of the top or the corner at the left when looking backward. Fig. l is a fragmentary vertical section on linei 4 of Fig. 3 looking in the direction of the arrow, showing the same corner from the inner side. Fig. 5 is a detail vertical crosssection through one of the sides of the top near the middle.

The letter A denotes the buggy-seat; B, the seat-back; C, the top-covering, and D the usual vertical side strips depending from the rear end of the top. The top is shown supported by suitable posts or standards-in this instance three at each side, E F (ir-having their upper ends spread apart and attached to the top-frame and their lower ends brought together and pivoted to suitablebrackets, as H, at the sides of the buggy-seat in thc'usual way.

The letter J denotes-the diagonal jointed armspor braces which hold up the buggy-top and which when folded or doubled permit the top to be swung backward and down, said braces having their upper front ends pivoted to the sides of the top-frame, as hereinafter explained, and their lower rear ends pivoted to suitable brackets, as K. Studs L, as shown, are secured to the back part of the seat to support the rear standards G when the top is thrown back.

The top-frame, over which the cover U is fitted, comprises principally a front bow M, rear bow N, and an intermediate or middle bow O, corresponding to the supportingstandards and rigid therewith. Said bows may be formed integrally with said standards, or they may have their ends fitted and made fast in sockets in the upper ends of the latter, as represented in Fig. l. The middle bow has its end portions at the sides of the top separate from its main curved or bowed portion and joined thereto by curved braces or semicircular strips or plates P, fitting around the rollers of the side curtains T, which rollers are arranged between side strips R and S, connecting the front and rear bows, being thus neatly and compactly incorporated in the sides of the top. These side strips may be joined to the front and rear bows by any suitable means. ln this instance fiat double angle irons or braces U and Vare shown at the op* posite ends of the side portions of the frame attached to the strips and screwed to the bows, thus forming secure joints between these three parts. The upper side strips are shown attached to the middle bow by inverted-T- shaped irons Q, which are provided with pins to which the upper ends of the prop-braces J are joined. The lower side strips are shown con nected to the middle bow by screws (j, (shown in dotted lines in Figs. l and 5,) inserted vertically through the said strips down into the upper ends of the bow end portions or standards. Said angle-ir0ns U and V are also shown formed with the brackets which support the spindles of the side-curtain rollers. The rollers, however, may be mounted between the side strips by any suitable means. Their brackets may be supported on the lower strips or depend from the upper strips or project from the front and rear bow or end portions thereof; but the construction illustrated is preferred, for it will be observed that the side strips R and S, with the double angle-irons U and V, constitute rectangular frames for the side-curtain rollers, which may be readily removed, with the rollers therein, by unfastening the screws which secure said angle-irons to the front and rear bows, unfastening the screws which hold the irons Q to the middle bow, and unscrewing the screws q. Vhen the side frames, with their rollers, are thus removed, the standards and bows of the topframe may be brought together, and the top may thus be folded so as to occupy less than half its usual space, which is a great advantage both to the manufacturer and retailer.

The top-cover C is of course fastened to the bows and upper side strips, the lower side edges thereof hanging down slightly below the lower side strips. The portions of the top-cover which extend down over the sides may be formed with eyes or apertures to en* gage studs or knobs on the ends of the bows, so that the sides of the top-cover may be unbuttoned and lifted up for access to the rollers or for detaching the roller-frames. An inner lining Z is secured to the under side of the top-frame in such manner as to conceal the rollers, with their mountings, and produce a smooth neat appearance. This lining may be attached to the under surfaces of the bows, and its opposite side portions may be attached to the upper side strips R and brought in curves around the rollers and fastened to the lower side strips S, suitable linishingstrips s being arranged over the lower edges of said lining', if desired. At the back corners of the top semicircular blocks may be secured to the inner sides of the rear bows, around which the lining Z is fitted, corresponding to the central curved braces or strips Q. No such blocks are needed at the front in the construction illustrated, for the side curtains T are shown having their front edges upwardly forwardly inclined to correspond to the general shape of the buggy-top side, and hence when said curtains are rolled their front portionsl do not lie any considerable amount within the top, so the lining Z may be drawn taut over the upper and lower side bows atthe front, thus producing a very neat appearance and practically obviating any attention to the rollers. The side rollers arc thus hidden from view, while at the same time they are easily accessible, either for the purposes of mounting them in place and removing them or to get at the curtains to draw them down in case they suddenly fly up and roll all the way. The arrangement is also exceedingly simple and compact, the rollers being incorporated in the sides of the top-frame. The said side portions of the frame are preferably substantially fiat, leaving the upper and lower side strips or the roller-frames in vertical or substantially vertical planes, and the rollers are preferably so arranged that the curtains when drawn will hang down closely over the lower side strips and the supporting-standards. In some instances, however, the construction and arrangement may be such that the side curtains may hang on the inner sides of the standards. The Ycurtains are shown provided with suitable eyes or sockets for fastening to studs on the standards and studs on the rear vertical strips D.

As in my prior patented carriage-top, so also in the present construction, the roller of the back curtain WV is shown mounted beneath the rear bow N and in this instance between said bow and a back strip X, located under or within and having' its ends secured to the bow \l. The back-curtain roller is thus also incorporated in the back plane of the TOO TIO

frame, as the side-curtain rollers are arranged in the side planes of the frame, and said back curtain when drawn hangs over the bow X and under the rear valance or horizontal strip Y of the top-cover. A lining-strip z2 is arranged over said back roller, being fastened to the bow N under the edge of the lining Z, drawn around the roller over suitable curved blocks e3, and fastened under the strip X.

Vhile I preferably dispense with intermediate bows arranged between the bow O and bows M and N, nevertheless such intermediate bows may be employed, if desired, their lower ends being joined to the upper side strips R, as in my prior patented construction, or joined to other supporting-standards, as the middle bow of the present construction. The invention is also susceptible of various modifications in details of construction and arrangement without departing from its scope.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

l. In acarriagetop,abowed top-frame having a suitable cover thereon and an inner lining, and side curtains having their rollers concealed between said cover and lining and mounted in said frame and incorporated in the sides thereof.

2. In acarriage-top, atop-frame comprising front and rear bows and upper and lower side strips connecting the same at each side, and side-curtain rollers mounted between the said upper and lower side strips.

3. In a carriage-top, a top-frame comprising front and rear bows and upper and lower side strips connecting the same, side-curtain rollers mounted between the said upper and lower side strips, and a back-curtain roller mounted beneath and within the rear bow.

4. In a carriage-top, a top-frame comprising front and rear bows, upper and lower side strips connecting the same, supporting-standards for said top-frame, an intermediate bow or bows connected to the upper side strips, a top covering for said frame fastened to the bows and upper side strips and depending so as to cover the lower side strips, an inner lining on the under side of said frame, and side curtains having their rollers mounted between said upper and lower side strips, said curtains hanging over the lower strip and outside the supporting-standards.

. In a carriage-top, a top-frame comprising front and rear bows, upper and lower side strips connecting the same, standards or bowarms joined tothe ends of said bows, an intermediate bow connected to the upper side strips, and intermediate standards or bow-arms connected to and depending from the lower side strips as continuations of the ends of said intermediate bow, curved braces or strips joining the ends of said intermediate bow and said standards or bow-arms, the spaces between the upper and lower side strips being designed for receiving side-curtain rollers.

6. In a carriage-top, a top-frame consisting of suitable bows, and separable side frames connecting said bows and adapted for holding curtain-rollers therein.

7. In a carriage-top, a top-frame having front and rear bows, and side frames detachably connected to said bows and having provision for mounting curtain-rollers therein.

8. In a carriage-top, a top-frame having front and rear bows and an intermediate bow,-

and side frames detachably connected to said bows and having provision for mounting curtain-rollers therein, said intermediate bowbeing curved or bowed around the inner sides of the rollers.

9. In a carriage-top, a top-frame having front and rear bows, side frames detachably connected to said bows and having provision for mounting curtain-rollers therein, an interf mediate bow having its depending end portions separate from its main bowed portion and joined thereto by curved braces or strips spanning the curtain-rollersor the spaces of said side frames, and detachable fastenings between said side frames and the main bowed portion and depending end portions of said intermediate bow.

l0. In a carriage-top, a top-frame having suitable bows, `and separable roller-supporting frames detachably connected to said bows j at opposite sides of the top, and a top-cover having its side portions buttoned over the end of said bows.

11. The herein-described roller-supporting IOO frame consisting of upper and lower side strips, angle-irons joining' the ends of said strips and adapted for attachment to the front A and rear bows of a carriage-top, and brackets for supporting the spindles of a curtain-roller mounted in .said frame.

In testimony whereof I aiiiX nay-signature in.

IVitnesses:

R. C. WALKER, E. L. MOORE.

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