THE INVENTORS DISCLOSE THEIR IDEAS.
Page 52
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Interesting and Original Devices Staged in the Inventors' Section at the Commercial Motor Show.
MHE exhibition of inventions relat1. ing to mechanical transport organized by the Institution of Automobile Engineers is a novel feature of the Show. The exhibits of the various inventions are to be nen in the gallery of the smaller ball, and we strongly advise all those visiting the Show to see this most interesting section. Here are staged, side by side, the creations of many active brains, and, so far as we have been able to judge,' there are many very practical and useful inventions to be studied.
In, the past such exhibitions have contained many ideas ihat were, to say the least, unwanted and impracticable, but this cannot be said to be the case in those exhibits we have been able to inspect.
Unfortunately, many of the exhibits were not staged in time for us to describe them in the present issue, but among the forty exhibits the following are some of the most interesting :--Gas producer, improved carburetters, brake improvements, hand control for disabled drivers, variable gears and change-gear improvements, lamp and number-plate improvements, lock-nuts and various advances in engine construction and other car details.
The Tulloch-Reading Suction Gas Producer.
For those who are interested in the use of fuid other than petrol, this exhibit should be of special interest. An illustrated description of this invention appeared in our issue of last week.
The Pitter Infinitely Variable Gear.
This interesting gear is shown in a well-finished model, in which any variation of gear can be obtained by the movement of a lever. Unlike other gears of this class, the high ratio is obtained by a direct drive. We beg to correct our description of this device which appeared in our issue of last week, in which we described the central gearwheel as being the rotor and the plate which carries the reciprocating gears as the stator. We now find that the central gear is the stator and that the planetary gears revolve round it, This mechanism is extremely interesting and ingenious.
The Ceasar Lock-nut.
This appears to be a very practical improvement, as it provides a nut which has many advantages. It will be seen from the illustration that the nut is formed of two separate parts, the inner part carrying the thread, whilst the outer part provides the fiats for the spanner to grip. The inner part is formed on the outside into a cone, and is provided with a key, on one side and is split on the opposite side. The outer half is conical so as to receive the inner member, and is provided with a keyway into which the key of the inner part fits. The action When the nut is tightened is as follows :—The spanner turns the outer member, which by means of
D46 the key turns the inner part, which, being conical and split, contracts on to the bolt, where its threads are driven home into the V threads until they grip the bolt firmly.
The cone is of such an angle that, when the nut is unscrewed,the two parts do not come apart, but retain their grip of the bolt, and will still remain "spanner-tight," so that there is not any fear of the nut being lost. Should the nut be required to be run off the bolt by the fingers, all that is needed is to give the outer member a slight tap to free it from its cone, when the inner part will resume its original diameter and then can be easily turned.
One of the advantages of this nut is that, where heat or rust is likely to affect a, nut, a brass inner part can be used in conjunction with a steel outer, so that the advantages ef a non-rusting nut can be combined with the strength of a steel nut.
The exhibitors of this nut claim that it can be sold for the same price, as the ordinary castellated nut, and as no hole is necessary in the bolt, its use should effect a saving.
The Ascough Carburetter.,
The main features of this carburetter lie in the construction of the jet and in the fact that the choke tube is raised and lowered by means of a connection to the butterfly valve. Our illustration shows a part sectional view of the body of the mixing chamber. The float chamber is of usual construction. The small "dose-up" section of the jet shows tiny air passage, which allows a small stream of air to pass through the centre of the jet, the petrol being dis-i charged through the ring formed as shown. This arrangement is said to produce a more complete vaporization, whilst the regulation of the proximity of the cone to the jet is claimed to give a more perfect mixture at all speeds.
A Hand Control for Morris. Cars. For Disabled Drivers.
A very simple and practical hand control for drivers who have not the normal use of their legs is shown by an inventor who is himself unable to use his legs for the purpose of control.
It is hardly possible to imagine any control of this kind being carried out better. At a small cost a Morris car can be converted to one that is entirely hand-controlled, without removing the foot 'controls, so that it may be driven by either normal or disabled persons without any alteration.
The Dunn Valve Truer.
This device is the production of a practical fleet engineer. It differs from ordinary valve truers in many details. The valve is held in a collet, the mandrel of which is driven by a reduction gear, which tends to steady movement. The tool, instead of being one embracing the whoR width of the yalve face at once, is a pointed tool which travels across the face--to be turned, by means of an automatic feed, so is not effected by hard scale.
The Wish Dazzle Lamp.
The title chosen by this inventor is a somewhat misleading one, aS the lamp has other good qualities besides that of being free from dazzle effect. It takes the form of a cylinder which lies horizontally on the side of the vehicle. The front end contains a 'bulb and reflector in the ordinary way, but the side of the cylinder is cut away, as shown in our sketch, and is provided with two bulbs and reflectors, so that a good and wide, spreading light can be thrown• sideways to enable a driver to see a ditch or posts when entering or leaving a dark yard. Either, the front or side lights can be switched off, or, if desired, they can all be used togather.