A DOUBLE-ENDED TRAILER.
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By Using Similar Axle Mountings and Coupling the Axles Diagonally Many Advantages are Offered.
IN ORDER to ensure that a trailer L shall track with the steering wheels 3f the hauling vehicle to which it is attached, it is necessary to deflect the axles of the trailer, the front axle turning inwards and the rear axle outwards. If only the front axle can be so deflected, the trailer will " cut the corner," necessitating every curve being taken rather wide, and the trailer is then not easy to manoeuvre; certainly it cannot be trailed from its other end. In order to overcome these defects, Mr. A. Robb, of 41, College Street, Belvedere Road, London, S.E. 1, has provisionally protected a method of linking the front and rear axles of the trailer by means of diagonal tie bars, both axles being equipped with pivoted under carriages, and each being
an exact duplicate of the other. So as to set the axles initially parallel to each other, each diagonal tie bar is adjustable by means of a bolt threaded at each end and passing through the axle, being connected at the inner end to one of the pins of the universal joint at the end of the diagonal tie bar. These universal joints permit differential movement of the wheels and axles. As our diagram . of two coupled trailers will show, the rear one, which has its axles thus linked up, will follow more accurately in the track of the hauling vehicle than will the one with a fixed rear axle line. Being compelled to follow more closely the tra.ck of the tractor, the trailer with coupled axles should be less liable to skidding, and the risk of overturning
would be materially reduced, should a corner be taken or a swerve made at an unsafe speed.
The great advantage offered by diagonally coupled axles lies, however, in the capacity of the trailer so equipped for manceuvringin narrow places, mils de sac, and so forth. A trailer in such a position need not be man handled at all, as all that is necessary is to remove the trailer bar from the one axle, attach it to the other axle, and draw the vehicle out by that end. Being double-ended, it is immaterial which way it travels, and this can mean a great saving of time; labour, and trouble at terminal points. Mr. Robb, we understand, is prepared to negotiate for the use of Ihe invention.