Variable Air Cooling
Page 72
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AIR cooling for engine cylinders forms the subject of Patent No. 781,367, the chief feature of which is that the air current can be directed either over the cylinders or diverted so that only a portiori.of it reaches them. (Daimler-Benz A.G., Stuttgart-Unterturkheim, Germany.)
The cylinders are each provided with cowlings (1) which form a surrounding jacket. The space between them (2) functions as a by-pass to the air stream.
Each cowling is provided with a butterfly throttle (3), and similar throttles (4) are located in the by-pass passages. By 'suitable throttle settings the air can be made to flow in any desired proportion over the cylinders or through the by-passes, a common linkage (5) being provided to work all the throttles in unison.
A PNEUMO,HYDRAULIC SUSPENSION DATENT No. 780,612 showi a sus pension system employing compressed air as the resilient medium and fitted with hydraulic mechanism for giving lateral equalization. (WoodheadMonroe, Ltd., Kirkstall Road, Leeds 4.) The frame is supported on each wheel by a hydraulic ram as shown at 1. The pipes from the two rams are led to a pressure equalizing device in the middle. One ram is piped to the underside of 4 flexible diaphragm (2), the other to the underside of an upper one (3). The two diaphragms are separated by a rigid wall but are interconnected so that they move in unison. The spaces above the diaphragms are subjected to a controlled air pressure via pipes (4 and 5).
In operation, assuming that cornering causes the vehicle to lean towards the near side, the ram on that side will be increasingly loaded whilst the off-side ram will tend to lengthen. The
diaphragm for the near side will move upwards, carrying with it the one connected to the off side. This action will withhold liquid from the off-side ram and prevent it lengthening, thus tending to maintain stability.
The interaction is localized between the two rams, the main suspension cornitig into play only when the two road-wheels move in the same direction. The characteristics of the suspension can be varied •sitnply by adjusting the air pressure either manually •or automatically.
A NOVEL SCRAPER RING
1-11L scraper rings am made in a large variety of forms, but many of them lose their effectiveness when slack develops between them and their grooves: A ring which is axially extensible so that it cannot become slack in the groove is shown in Patent No. 780,649. (Cross Manufacturing Co. (1938), Ltd., 38 Midford Road, Combe . Down, Bath.) The drawing shows a ring in position in its piston groove. It consists of three parts, a pair of triangular-section rings (1 and 2) and a backing ring (3). This last is made from spring steel and may be polygonal or corrugated in plan.
The spring ring is chamfered on its outer edge and forces the other two into contact with the cylinder wall, and by its wedging action also separates them in a vertical direction, thus ensuring a lasting fit in the groove. Oil collected by the sharp edges is returned to the sump via drain holes (4).
A STEERING INDICATOR
NAANY industrial trucks obtain IV" reverse by turning the front-wheel assembly through 180° of steering movement. In such cases the front wheel is usually hidden from the view of the driver, and he can often be in doubt as to the precise direction in which the vehicle will start to move. Patent No. 781,296 shows an indicating device for removing this doubt. (E. Kaye and J. Sharp, Kingsclere Road, Basingstoke, Hants.) The steering movement is performed by a handwheel (1) which, via reduction gears (2), a universally jointed shaft (3) and a final reduction gear (4) rotates the front-wheel assembly.
The steering angle indication is given
in the centre of the handwheel where a pointer (5) is located. The pointer is moved in accordance with the steering position by a pair of small gears (6 and 7). These giye the desired reduction from the intermediate shaft to the pointer.
A BONDING MATERIAL
TO bond the asbestos fibres of a friction material together it is proposed to use a siloxane resin, and attach the facing to the metal part with a heat-resistant thermo-setting resin. This scheme comes in Patent No. 781,686 from Diamond Alkali Corporation, 300 Union. Commerce Building, Cleveland 14, Ohio, U.S.A.
STEERING FOR TRAILERS
PATENT No. 781,304 deals with I drawbar-ontrolled steering for trailers, and is intended mainly for lowloaders on account of the fact that the steering mechanism is made to lie completely below floor level. (Crossley. Motors Ltd., Errwood Park, Stockport.)
The drawbar (1) is pivoted to the trailer frame and has attached to it a short lever (2) at an approximate rightangle. From this a link (3) extends to an arm (4) fixed to a cross-shaft. The other end of the cross-shaft carries a drop arm (5) which actuates a conventional steering mechanism (shown generally at 6) controlling the two wheels.
The dimensions of the various parts are such that they give the correct angular displacements of the road wheels with respect to the drawbar angle.