US1748514A - Relatively stationary body with a single punctiform or approximately punctiform support or a plurality of such supports in one row - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 25, 1930. A. KUCHARZIK- ET AL 1 748,51 RELATIVELY STATIONARY BODY WITH A SINGLE PUNCTIFQRM-OR APPRO'kIMATELY RUNCTIFORH SUPPORT OR A PLURALITY OF SUCH SUPPORTS IN ONE ROW Filed Nov. so. 1926 SShgats-Sheet 1 I 1W MM Muv OM14- IMAM Feby25, 1930. A. KUCHIARZIK Er'AL RTS IN ONE ROW 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 RELATIVELY STATIONARY BODY WITH A SINGLE 'PUNCTIFORH OR APPROXIMATELY PUNCTIFORM SUPPORT OR A PLURALI'TY OF SUCH SUPPO Filed NOV- 30, 1926 Feb. 25, 1930. .A. KUCHARZIK ET AL 1,748,514

RELATIVELY STATIONARY BODY WITH A SINGLE PUNCTIF'ORH OR APPROXIMATELY PUNCTIFORN SUPPORT OR A PLURALITY OF SUCH SUPPORTS IN ONE ROW Filed Nov. 30. 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 I II/III I 1/ I III I II I I I I I II I II I I/ III/ Feb. 25, 1930. A KucHARz T AL RBLATIVELY STATIONARY BODY WITH A SINGLE PUNCTIFORH OR APPROXIMATELY PUNOTIFORM SUPPORT OR A PLURALITY OF SUCH SUPPORTS IN ONE ROW Filed Nov. 30, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 If V F 1930. A. KUCHARZIK ET AL 48,514

RELATIVELY STATIONARY BODY WITH A SINGLE PUNCTIF'ORH OR APPROXIMATELY PUNCTIFORM SUPPORT OR- A PLURALITY OF SUCH SUPPORTS IN ONE ROW Filed Ngv. 30, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 ARNO SCHMIDT, GERMANY Patented Feb. 25", 1930 ADOLZE 'KUGHARZIK, or BnnLrN, AND

or" BERLINCHARLCSTTENBURG;

, REIQA'JP IVELY STAT o wuw BODYVVWI'IH A sINoLE -rUNcr roRi/r on APPRO IMATELY rn rorrromvi sorrow OR A PLURALITY: or SUCH sorrows. IN 01m ROW v I 7 vehicles provided with "punctiform or approximately Application fiIedNOvernber 30, 1926, Serial No. 151,750,andin GermanyDecember 3,1925.

Our invention relates; toaconveyanc'es; or

punctiform supports and means for stabilizing the same. '1 It 'is well known that ing at high speed about its' ovvn axis will maintain, its balance in apparent contradiction to the laws ofgravity in any plane with in which .itliotates. This is, for instance,

thefcase in the gyroscope. ,Thus, for,eXama k motors. By means of therotating blades,

I pl'e',ia gyroscope rotating w'ithinanienvelope,

, may maintain.its balance"uponone-corner of said envelope. Furthermore, the gyroscope may be made totravel along a stretchedcord upon this cornerof the envelope without dis-'- turbing'its balance. Thus, notwithstanding the presence of the envelope," the gyroscope has'only'a single point'of- 'support., lt is also known that a relatively station-'- ary body which provided with two points of-supportarranged-in. a -line, can be maintained in equilibrium by a proper balancing ofthe weight above one of the supporting points, as, for. example, in a bicycle. 1 Another solution of hisproblein fbal ancing "relatively stationaryjbodies having one or more "punctiiorm or approximately pun'ctiform supports, lis aceomplished ac cording to ourinvention, by a rotating def vice which produces a whirling or-eddying of the air for securing a proper balance. of

- the relatively, stationary" body. Thus, rprexample, asuitable whirling Of'thG air-may J be producedfby one orcmore blades or vanes I more pairs of blades rotating in opposite di-,

rotating clockwise ,or' anti-clockwise. The

line-supported vehicle by'means of two or .rections and suitablyfmounted so 'as ito be adjusted to any desired planeof revolution between the horizontal and'vertical planes. It thus becomes possible to providea vertical componentfsuflicient to retain the vehicle in upright position as hereinafter explained in connection with Figure 8 ofthe drawings.

The body, to be maintained in balance, may

cireular body rotatports: 5

may be inclined to any .desired angle,'forexample, by the juse of ball and socket connec" tions with the shafts which drive said rotat-;

ing planes.

The blades which produce the whirling of I the air should have a speed whichcorresponds approximately .with that of the aeroplane air is drawnin between the relatively station ary body and said blades. Those portions .of the relatively stationary body which are; disposed opposite to the blades, should therefore be given apshape or configuration suitable for sucking in the air.

The supports of the relatively stationary body or vehiclemay consist .of wheels, rollers slide rails or runners. Said vehicle-sup ports are then arranged and adapted to travel on substantially'punctiform or monorailsup- It has heretofore been proposed to propel a a stabilized. vehicle along double rails by,

the whirlingof air,"but according to our invention, it. becomes possible toutilize the whirling of air not only for the propulsion of a monorail vehicle or the like but also for the maintenance ofsaid vehicle in balance or equilibrium. v This object may be attained by means of blades or vanes arranged atthe ends of therelatively stationary body. f The relatively stationary body may'thus be drawn forward in a direction corresponding to the direction of travel atany particular instant; The'propeller located in the rear of the body, may be rotated in the same direction as ary. For maintaining'balance special prozontal or vertioal-planesas well as in intermediate thereto.

The maintenance of proper balanceimay alsobe accomplished byone and the same air whirling device or. propeller operating "in a horizontal plane adjacent to the front but planes capable of being arranged in a position I which operates in a plane deviating from the horizontal. "The force K acting under an r the propeller in front or mayremain stationpellers be provided to operate in hori-yf ion angle to the plane is then resolved into its components F and H, as'illustrated in Fig. 8 of the drawings. It will be understood that the component H can be made to exert such a strong upward pull that the body 11 of the vehicle mayin effect be practically suspended in such a way as to counteract the tilting effects. Component F is then'available for propelling thevehicle and for regulating its speed. If the Weight of the Vehicle is so great as to render it impossible to thus counteract thetilting effects while at the same time maintaining a sufliciently large component F for propelling the vehicle, it becomes necessary to employ the laterally-presented propellers 16 and 17 as. shown in Figure 9 for maintaining equilibrium.

If the whirling of the airtakes place in the horizontal plane a tractive force at (right angles to the plane .of rotation of the pro pel-lers is generated more or less relieves the supports of the weight of the relatively stationary body, depending upon the intensity of the whirling action. 'In this way the weight of the conveyance is partly supported-by the whirling of theair,'thereby reducing the friction at thesupporting points. Itwill be possible to form an idea about this if it is assumed that the supporting points consist of wheels which run along a railor a railless road. i

Heretofore, it has been necessary to make the weight of the driven relatively stationary body as large as possible'since upon this and the friction depended the weight of the train to be hauled.

Inasmuch as the driving of-vehicles by airdisplacing propellers may be made to more or less counteract the effect of gravity, it follows that theweight of the vehicle need not be any greater than is required toimpart the necessary mechanical strength and carrying capacity. i

WVhere the revolving elements are arranged in vertical planes such as on opposite sides of the balanced relatively stationary body it' becomes possible to relieve the supports from lateral pressure. The advantage of this arrangement will be best understood in connection with a vehicle traversing a curve, as illustrated in the Figures 18 'to 28. Hereto fore, the centrifugal force acting upon a vehicle rounding a'curve has been compensated by elevation of the outer rail, thus prevent ing an overbalancing of the relatively sta tionary body on a curve. In this way, however, a pressure is generated which acts upon the elevated track from the center of curvature.

According to our invention centrifugal force upon a curveis compensated for additional rotating planes acting at right angles to the supports and thus partially or entirely taking up the lateral pressure due to centrifugal force. This compensating may be regulated automatically byany suitable well-known type of governor which is connected up to the motor which drives the propeller which is thus adapted to vary the lateral pressure .in the manner hereinafter pointed out inconnection with Figures 18 to 28 of the drawings.

This whirling of the air may be effected by means known per (se, as already rmen.- tioned, by propellers or turbine wheels.

The present invention also contemplates the use of Wind wheels suitably disposed above the relativelystationary body in such a way that they are not exposed to the wind pressure. on the straight track, but upon a curve are brought into position to be acted upon by thenatural force ofthe win-d so that the pressure produced byrthe vehicle travel counteracts the centrifugal force.

he ary lad s mayb driven by a prime mover, such, for-"example, as a high speed internal combustion motor. 'lfdesired, a variable speed transmission device maybe employed for operating therotary blades at any desired speed by any snitable motor. h q may lso .be employed 9. iv n the wheels of the vehiele;

. The driveforthe rotating blades may also consist of one or more motors arranged at the wheels so that the surplus power not required for the wheels by reason of the reduced friction, may be employed for driving the propeller blades through any suitable transmission dev'ice.

' As hereinafter explained, the vehicle supports may consist of the rotating parts of specialmotors mounted at the wheels. For example, the rotor of an electric motor may be designed as a supporting runner wheel. Such nn W eel d ldbe iournaled in suitable manner to dampen vibrations and absorb shocks caused by the track.

7 When the vehicle comes to astop further means would have to come into operation for maintaining thebalance. Inthe ,case of a sudden stoppage of thedrive a failure of the air whirling fans on the forwardly-moving vehicle would throw said vehicle out of equilibrium, thus causing it to fall.

According to our invention this prevented by the provision of suitable balancing supports for the vehicle. 'Thes'e supports are preferably arranged symmetrically on oppo sitesides of the running supports, a device which is responsive to the speed of the propellers being arranged to position these sup ports in readinessv to operate whenever the normal speed of the driving motor drops to such a degree that the vehicle is not maintained in balanceby its forward movement.

The points of the supports may likewise be equipped with wheels, runners or rollers. h y m y, for s a c rest upon il cated upon opposite. sides of the supporting points of the vehicle.

- The side supports may at the same timebe designed as-brakes. The braking action may ,be effected automatically by the vehicle Wheels, for example, when the propellers are no longer operative or have-been stopped.

'Inasmuch as the supporting points of the side supports are located lower than the supportin points .ofthevehicle body, the former tale up almost the entire weight of the vei hicle.

' .The side rests should then be brought into such a position that they- ,form. an angle with the track or runway, in order to absorb the pressure generated during thelr applidevices employed for braking, propulsion, re-.

d may be employed.v

cation according to the direction and speed.

of travel. These side'rests also serve to support the vehicle body when it has come to rest. Where the conveyance is intended for the transport of peopleor goods along a single rail or a trackless road, all the well-known ducing-"resistance of the air and "equipment,

. In the drawings affixed hereto some embodiments of our invention are illustrated by way ofexample.

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic side elevation of one embodiment of our invention.

Figures 2,. 3, and 4 show side elevation, end

elevation and top plan views of another embodiment of our invention. I

1 {Figures 5, 6, and 7 show side elevation, end; elevation and top plan views respectively of [another embodiment of our invention- Figures 8, 9, and 10 show side, end, and top .plan views. of a modification.

' Figures 11 and 12 show side and endviews f 1 Figures 13 and 14 show side of another'modification. l .i

and top plan views of one end of another embodiment of 1 our invention. I

:Figures15 and 16 show similarrviews of Y equipped with our'improvements.

i Figures 31 and 32 are similar diagram-' matic views in side elevation of the same.

' Figures 33 and 34illustrate in end eleva-v Figures 18 'to' 28 show a series; of force diagrams. a Figures'29 grammatic transverse views of a monorail p I the blades 16 and 17 located in the vertical and are fragmentary diavehicle provided with automatically-operated stabilizing, supports'of'the character contemplated in our improved device.

- tion, a modified form of the auxiliary supports in lowered and raised positions respectively.

Figures 35 and 36 show partial top plan' diagrammatic views of the same.

Figures 37 and 38 show dlagrammatic side elevations of another form of the auxiliary supports in loweredand raised positions respeotively.

i Figure 39 is a detailof a preferred form of motor .for'driving avehicle equipped with our invention.

Figure 40 isa front elevation of one'of the wheel supports detached.

Figure 41' is a front elevation of a modi- 'fied form of the wheel support;

I Fig.f1,of the drawings illustrates the gen-v eral principle underlying our invention, a

relatively stationary'body "11 being maintained in stabilized equilibrium upon a punctiformsupport 12"by means of revolving proflpellerblades 13. rHoused within the body 11 is asuitable device for driving the blades 13,

which may thus be revolved at sufficient speed to practically counteract gravity effects and thus prevent tilting. i.

According to the same principle in Fig. 2, a vehiclezbody 11 is provided with wheels 14. adapting it to be propelled by any suitable means along a single rail 15. 3

15 Fig. 3 shows an end elevation of Fig. 2,-the

wheels 14 running on the rail 15 being provided with double flanges. J Said wheels 14 rotatably support the relatively stationarybody 11 while the propellers 13 are mounted on top The dotted line shows a special shape or'configuration of theparts ofthe relatively stationary body 11 adjacent to the blades which may be barrel shaped, dome-shaped or arched so that a funnel-shaped suction'chamber is of the carriage, as in Figs. 1 and 2.-

formed between the blades 13 and the curved top of'thebodyforthe intake of air under-a strong; draft and a forcibleejection therefrom in a whirl. a

F ig.4 ofv the drawings is atop plan view of Figs. 2 and 3130 show the construction of the planes. as viewed from. above. The blades may be designed to form a'single or double propeller. Any desired number of blades may 'be arranged above one another in the manner of propellers. "The blades rotate either ,clockwiseor anticlockwise.

In Fig.5 of the drawing the relatively stationary body 11 is equipped with bl ades.13

operating in a-horizontal plane and with v blades 16 and-'17 operating in vertical planes parallel'to a straight line connecting the suporting points of the wheels. The object of plane will be more'fully'explained below.

Fig. 6 is an'end view of Fig. 5, showing in I dotted lines the preferred cross section of the Fig. 7,'is a top planof Fig.

operate in horizontal'planes' but may be ad justably positioned in both directionsasim dicated by arrows'to operate in difierent in clined planes as indicated in broken lines.

In the diagram shown on the left of this figure the force K generated by the propeller blades 13-may be resolved into two compo nents, the vertical component H serving to maintain the balance and the horizontal component F acting to propel the-vehicle along the rail 15. It will be understood from this description that by a suitable adjustment in the angle of inclination of the propeller, these components maybe increased or reduced with respect'toeachother so that in the horizontal position of the propeller the force F may become zero and the body remain at rest. By inclining the propeller planes towards the verticalthe force F is increased so that the body may be startedslowly and gradually accelerated as the blades approach their vertical planes of movement so that a regulation of the speed of the vehicle may thus be effected. In thisway, by the time the rotating plane reaches a vertical position, the body hasattained its maximum'speed and the force Hbecomeszerol At the same time, the horizontal component H may be governed in such away as to counteract the tilting efiects ona runningvehicle, either by itself alone where the weight of the vehicle is not too great, or

in conjunction with laterally-presented airpropellers when the weight of said vehicle is excessive. 7 r

Fig. 9, shows an end elevation corres ondingwith Fig. 8, the propeller shaft 18 eing adapted'to move in a slot 19. V

Fig. 10, is a top plan of Fig. 9. In Fig. 11 of the drawing aplurality of blades 13 arranged above the ends 20 and 21 of the car, may be moved from a horizontal plane into vertical transverse planes at opposite ends of the car when the blades 22 op erating in a horizontal plane at the middle of the body take over the balancing. The blades 22in the middle revolve about a fixed axiswhile the blades 13 at the ends 20 and 21 revolve in the same direction and in this position assist each other in propelling the car. It will be understood that by, a suitable regulation in the direction of rotation of the blades 13 at any particular time, it becomes possible to drive the car forwards or backwards. The ends 20 and 21J of the relatively stationary body are suitably formed as described above to suck in the air in any posltion of the rotating blades.

Fig. 12-of the drawings shows by way of example a preferred cross-section for the central portion of the car body with respect to the blades according to the embodiment shown in Fig. 11.

In Fig. 13 is illustrated one end of a conveyance provided with four points of support, arranged to provide a duplex pointsupport at each end of a vehicle. tively' movable body is a railroad car, these supports may form bogeys. The blades 13 at the ends 20, 21 of the car may be adjusted between vertical and horizontal planes or be mounted to revolve about. fixedaxes. In the latter case, the speed of the vehicle 1s If the rela-.

middle of the vehicle, said blades being preferably revolved in opposite directions for maintaining a proper balance.

F ig, 14 is atop plan of Fig. 13. Fig. 15 illustrates a further embodiment of our invention in which the vertical blades are replaced by a-plane 24 located above the vehicle and rotatable around a shaft 23whi'ch forms a continuation'of the turning axisof the'bogeys. This plane 24 as shown in Fig. 16 is so placed that when the vehicle travels in a straight line it 'ofi'ers no resistance. VVhentravelling along a curve, however, said plane is turned either by the angular motion of ti e bogey or. by some other controlling device operating accordingto the direction of the wind to produce a force which counteracts the centrifugal force which maybe created at any particular instant. F or simplifying and facilitating the "turning of "this blade during high wind velocities the plane may be provided with a F lettner rudder or any. other suitable device. It is also contemplated to arrange propeller blades between the roof of vehicle 11 and the plane 2 1 for which purpose the propeller shaft may be made hollow to permit the passage there through of the shaft for adjusting the plane 24-. Plane 24 may be-suitably mounted to be tilted from its horizontal position. i

In 1'? is illustrated an electrically operated vehicle which isfed with current from the trolley lines 25 by meansof sliding collectors 26. The equipment which was used for the test runsof the electric high speed railway track Lichterfelde-Zossen and gave great satisfaction at speeds up to 220 km. per hour may be employed here. It will be understood, however, that the rail or rails 15 can be employed for Y the supply of electric current. This vehicle is provided with six axles and has thecharacteristics fully described with reference to the preceding figures of the drawings. The front and rear ends 20 and 21 are suitably shaped to reduce the resistance of the air.

The manner of employing the several embodiments illustrated in the drawings will now be readily understood.

The relatively stationary body, for instance, may be conceived as a vehicle travelling along a single rail in the manner of a monorail railway. It is also possible to employ such a vehicle as a single track automobile by designing one of the supporting points as a steering device. By the rotation of the blades the vehicle may be balanced without in any manner disturbing the steering capacity of the similar to a gyroscope. They have the admam .p aratively light and. if driven with sufficient power may relieve the supports or wheels of partofthe load so-that some of theweight of f the vehicle is taken from the axles. ,7

By. making use of the revolving blades for propelling avehicle, said vehicle canbe made to attain a very high speed. This speed would, however, be limitedby the'curves inthe '6 traclrwhich areunavoidable in anyrailroad.

, This, limit is set by the magnitude of; the cen trifugalforce; 1 7

To adopt the hitherto proposed solution of the problem of the centrifugal force in 'f y' s g neor the rails wouldb'e I impossible at'such' speedson account of the excessively large angle required. 7

According to our nvention we therefore provide blades, vanes or revolving planes 16 g( .and 17 in a vertical plane parallel to the I directionof motion of the vehicle and thus by the.forceproduced,compensate the cena 'trifugal force; As already mentioned theseblades may be replacediby blades capable of angular motion and operating as follows;

According to Figs. 18 and 19cu'rves' are drawn to illustrate diagrammatically, thebehavior of a relatively stationary body when provided on opposite sides with revolving -36 blades 16 and '17 jarranged'in'planes parallel tothe direction of travel. 7 The blades or jvanes 13 working in the horizontallplane are'here omitted for thefsake' clearness. The laterally-spaced blades arranged on opposite sides of the car, are-here made torotate in opposite directions to each other andv revolve idly at times when saidcar is traveling'over a" straight track. When, h'owever, a curve "is? reached, they act automatically andat- 4Q right angles to the track: forces to generate fla st ron ger force (g) directed towards the center of the curvature and a force (a), directed away .from' thefcenter" of, curvature,

I c which ispracticallynihil; IDuring a straight linejtravel theseforcesg] and a balance each other, as shown in Figs. 20 and-2 1'. gThefforce inthe direction of travel is, indicated by the n m I n During travel areundliaj-curve, the forces r .0" (additionalforce) andfq' (counterforce) are not-equal to each other as they are during a straight-away course but, on the contrary,

1 their relative-magnitudes arealtered to cor'-' respond to the centrifugal force "developed:

on the curve so that the representation of the forces'areshown in Figs. 22 and-23w f i According to Figs. 18 and 22 the counter force, 9.. produced by the rotation plane 17 acts towards the center of curvature and com-.

pensates for the centrifugal force 0 as well 1 as for the. force reproduced-bytheirotation. plane16 in a directionaway from ,thevcenter.

ofcurvature. ,The centrifugal force adei 55 veloped on thecurve is therefore countertooverturn, the vehicle in a cloc tion about the outer rail.

' Let it be assumed firstthat the outerrail is not. raised, The centrifugal force 0 acts towards the right andfforms withthe weight P G of'the vehicle (assumed to be concentrated at point m) the'resultantforceR which tends kwise direc- In Fig. 25 similar eifects are shownwhen the outer ira-il v is, elevated, the resultant f B in this case acting normal to j the rail base to counteract the overturning tendency of the centrifugal force 0. I v 7 -Figs. 26, 27 and 28 '-illustratejgraphically the forcesinvolved accordingto thelpresen't invention. Withacenter of curvature located on'thejleft, the radius of curvat'urefof the single rail ,may be represented by at -The weight of the car, G restsinthebenter'line of the "rail 15. Thecentrifugal force ode.- veloped acts towards thefri'ght; To the fcene trifug'al force cis added in like mannerv to that shown in Figs. 19 and 24 an additional force 2.. ITheseatwo forces-may be counter};

balanced by the" force 9 created by'frotary vanes 16'soi'that no resulting force is developed and only the weight'of the car less A the force H developed by the rotating blades in thehorizontal plane presses upon the rail. '51 According to the polygonof forces illus,-

trated in Figure 27 the weight G of the vehicle applied at point m may be represented by the line Injthe same'way, the cenpeller which may be represented by the line.

2-9." The resultant R of these. forces may then be represented by the linem-R acting.

normal to the an base, the horizontal "com ponent U (R,-G) of weightG being exerted toward'the.left'andgclosing theforce poly:

gon." indicated .in the upper left-hand I portion of Figure 27,.the' lifting force H opf eratesoppositely to and in line. with resultant I B, said forceH beingthat exerted byan up wardly-presented air-whirling wheel. This. forcelH mayIbe resoIved into a vertical componen't'N counteracting theweight of the ve hicle and a horizontal component S counter actingthe centrifugal force onacurve. V

The combined effects ofall of these forces may be represented in a closed polygon as shown in Figure 28. Thus force H may be taken as a counterpressure to .resultantJR, giving a net resultant represented by the line m-H. Likewise vertical component N in elfect reduces the gravity effect of the vehicle while the horizontal "component S may be taken in counteraction to the centrifugal force. In effect therefore with respectto the forces acting upon the vehicle,'we have the closedforce polygon referred to the point an as follows. Centrifugal force mU,. horizontalcomponent'S, net gravity effect 8-H, and net rail reactionHfin. 1 When travelling alonga straight track the forces a and 9 will in case of a strong wind pressure upon theside facesof the vehicle not be equal as in Figs. 20and 21, but that blade which is opposite the wind" pressure will produce a stronger force than the other blade and will takeup the wind pressure so that no upsetting torques can be developed. It is thus theoretically. possible to traverse the curves almost without friction since a lateral pressure is not exerted upon the rails by the centrifugal force. The rolling frictionis, as described above, also reducedto a certain extent by the force H of the horizontal rotating plane so that only the friction due to steering the vehicle around the curve,'has to be overcome. V

The centrifugal force itself'is also reduced by't'he reduced weight of the mass which, as hereinbefore mentioned, is no more than that required by the carrying capacity of said vehicle: In the equation to be secured oncurves by vehicles whi'ch run. v

balance the vehicle 2 InFigs. 34 and 36 their position d rin mass velocity m '0 the massm becomes smaller and thus alsothe centrifugal force.

There is furthermore kinetic energy a decided advantage .at highspeeds .upon a single rail. v g

As is generally known, two wheels upon the. same axle. are forced to rotateat differentspeeds when negotiating a curve result.- ing a twisting ofthe aXleor. skidding of onset the wheels. To overcome this diff culty in motor cars, differential gears'mustbe provided. In railway vehicles coaxial wheels are rigidly secured to one axle and. thus combined into a unit [which makes it impossible for; said wheelsto rotate: at di'fiient speeds, Thisfact explains one of the principal causes for thederailinent of railroad carswhen trav ersing 'a curve at a. speedwhich exceeds that for which. the elevation ofthe; outer rail has. beendetermined. This drawback isnot present' in, a monorail vehicle because there is. only oneradius for a singlewheel. Thisino mentum may also be eliminated by composing-the runner. wheel, as shown in Fig. 41 of two parts 49 and 50'so that thetwo axles as or 51 are capable of being rotated diiferem tially. i

. A vehicle travelling-upon a single rail is the speedof the drive drops to a noticeable extent and the balance can no longer be maintained by the-propellersf 'i-iccordingto Figs.l29 and 30 andj the corresponding side-elevationsshown in'Figs; 31

and 32,.vertically-movable supports'comprise verticalv rods 27 provided with wheels or roller-s28 adapted to run upon rails 29, and 30 arranged. on opposite sides of "the running rail. 15. Said supports may be provided with lateralstays-31 and 32 for counteracting the speedpressure and in case these} side supports are also employed for braking the vehicle they may be made to operate as brake rods 'between'therail and supporting platform, of the vehicle. The supports rest coinpletelyjnpolrtherails when the drive fails entirely, and as shown in Figs. 29'andf31, support] and balance the relatively I stationary body. 7

In the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 30' and 32the, rods 27 are adapted to be drawn. into or close to the body of the vehicle so, as not to interfere withtliepropulsion of the vehiCle. The rods 27, 31 and 32 maybe designed as racks and be operated by any usual means.

The embodiments shown in Figs. 33 and 35-have simple supports33lpivoted upon the side walls of the vehicle which inoperative positionv form an angle with the the travel of the vehicle is shown. They are thendrawn up along the sidewalls 34. The points of contact 35 of the supports 33 arefitt'ed with caterpillar chains in the manner oftanks. andinounted upon the supports 33 by means of ball-bearing'sso that obstacles along -the-track" maybe readily overcome;

The upper ends of supports-33;areprovided wlth roller bearings or pinion and; rackconnections arranged in recesses of the? sidewall 34,- thusenabling said supports to absorbthesho cks. A suitable, device isprovided for depressing the rods 33: to. the ground. wheneverthe balance has been lost- -Thegguide,

rollers 38,.an d 3 9 on the frameofthe ,vehicle are 'also flexibly coupled sogthat a proper constraint ensured. thereby/ These sup-J vertical'land 29,-31,;33, 35.,and37.- I that I the supports ,te ctive wireenettingsiwhichgallowzj only the. air to. pass but prevent; the :entry of solid ports alsobe suit-ably stayed to resist the travelling pressure developedl.when placed upon the ground 1 f 1: 'In-the embodimentvillustrated,inthe Figs. 37 and 38 the supportsc'onsist of st-ayrods 40 and 411 and a roller 42011 each side capable of movingalongyguide rails43.,.Thestays 'tained, as mentioned above. Intravelling v, iO and 41 in thisfca'se, not (only servenasi brake rods-but alsoas ,stiifeners for theframing ofjthe can f All these supports automatically controlled by the driving: motor of the =propellers, so that the: --following.effect' isvzobposition, the supportsare drawnup,.as"shown SPBGflOf: the motor has dropped somewhat,

' said; supportsare' brought toepositions, of readinessg for" actionwithout hinderinglgthe movement of thecar. iO nly when the speed 7 drops. solow that the vehicle no longer ba-1--; ances do said supports come into-positions to supporter brake ,the pvehic'lez; The fall of 1 lt -will be undcrstood "sults'in each individual-case'.r; I.

"' j rnnnerjwheel 4A in such-a way that the motor windings are located at'the vright and left ofpositions of the supports are the car is thuseffectivelyprevented; These shown in Figs,

may besuitably designed-togive thebest re-; ,The propellers besurrounded 15m bodies between the blades V In the'iemb'odiment illustrated mini-g the rotating part of the motor is designed as "the runner wheel 44in casings 45nd i6 which are mounted upon the bogeysforunden i biframes of the'vehicles by means of rods 17; The axle 48 may be journaled in these casings f or separately.

V "(the runner wheel, consists ofa single piece In the embodiment illustrated 10 while in that illustrated in Fig 41, it is composed of two parts 49 and 50. A hollow axle 51 is capable of turning upon the axle48 to a 1 certain extent. ready described, the means to enable the two 5 parts of the runner wheel to run with'differture of the running wheel face.

speeds all bearings are provided with forced lubrication so-as to avoid overheated bear- This device provides, as alent speeds due to the different radii of curva- In order to reduce friction even'at high ings; 1

In carrying out our invention according to I Figs. 29 to 32 and 37 and 38, it becomespossible to adapt all railroad tracks with two rails for vehicles constructedaccording to our invention without disturbing thelordinary service. Thus by inserting a third rail with an elevated surface between the other two rails, the double'track system may be converted to our improved system while at Either individual thesanie tinieproviding' a thirdrail for the 1 electriccurrentij carriages. v

made 4 without departing: from the spirit and motor enem be er n--. ployed orctra'ins maybe composed of such ivariouschanges and modificationsymay be scope of our invention which we; desire to claim in the broadestpossibleterms consist-- ent with the :prior state o'fthe'arta .We claim: Y

tusincludingan airlwhirling device. 12. Aconveyance'body-providedi with one or moresubstantially punctiform supports;

in combination with balancingapparatus including one or more blades adapted to -re-i volve clockwiseor anti-clockwise.

conveyancebody provided with conein opposite directions.v

in vcombination with balancing apparatus including two *or morezpai'rs gOf :revolvable' 'bladesspresentedingopposite directions and U operating-inglivertica'l"planestransverse .to a

straight; line' ,;connecting the supporting points;-;-;;-T= l i onveyance provided with oneor more r sub'stantial-lypunctiform supports, in co1 nbi-' nation. with, balancing apparatus consisting V v oftwoi or more pairs of blades revolvablezin'g 1 opposite directions ,andi'in planes parallelly 1' and transversely disposed with respect toa straight line 1 cbnnecting" :the supporting --7.-Aconf e A conveyance provided with one I nmore substantially punctiform-supports, v

v 7s 1 I i l. Arelatively stationary,bo dy' withoneor. w more substantially .ipunctiform "under sup- I ports,'in combination with balancing appara yance vprovidediwith oneor more" substantially punctiform:supports,in combi-c nation with'balancing apparatus consisting of-twoormore pairs ofblade'sadapted-to 'revolve in oppositedi-recti'o'ns in ip'lanes arrangedhorizontally-parallel, verticallytransg verseand vertically parallelwith' respect' to a R straight line connecting the supporting oints.

2:87; 'Aiconveyan ce provided=withone more I substantially punctiform supports, in combi nation with: a balancing apparatus consisting of two or more pairssof blades "revolvable in horizontal and vertical: planes.

,9. A conveyanceprovided with one or'm'ore i substantlally punctiform supports; in combi- I nation=with balancing apparatuscomprising 1 t .i 7125 .7 oppositedirections on axesfmoyable'between two ormore pairs ofblad es'revolvable" inop posite directions, and other blades revolvable about axes-inclined to a line connecting'said punctiform supports, the planes within which said blades revolve being suitably arranged with respe'ctito. the outer Wall of said conveyance to'. induce a suction ofair towards said blades. r 7

IO: A vehicle body supported on wheels arranged in a plane'in'combinationwith balancing apparatus consisting of suitably located propelleribl'ad'es'. J

I 11. A- vehicle provided with carrying:

Wheels arranged in a common plane in combination with balancing-apparatus comprising air whirling." devices ilocat'ed at the ends of'said body; r

125A vehicle supported: on Wheels ar ranged in a common-plane, in combination with balancing apparatus comprising: air

whirlin gdevices at tlieends of saidvehicle, saidairi-whirlingidevices belngi' adjustably mounted for'producingi variable components of active forceforirespectively'balancing and propelling said vehicle. 1

13: A conveyance provided with carrying Wh'eelsarrange'd in a common plane, incombination with balancing apparatus'comprising propeller blades revoliva'ble in- 'a' hori-- zontal; plane and in a. direction adapting them to exert a tendency to lift the body'of said conveyance;

14:. A. conveyance provided with a single row of? alined supports and with propeller blades: revolving; in laterally spaced planesat.variablekrelative speeds for balancing said conveyanceion said alinedi supportsl under.

the: stress; of an unbalanced lateral force;

15. A vehicle supported on a singlerow' of;points'and' providedwithxpropeller' blades revolvable about a-Xesangularly adjustable in: a" vertical J plane for" producing combined propulsion andibalancing effects, other blades revolva'ble in: laterally-spaced verticalplanes forz compensating-"thee: centrifugal force" and wind: pressure on said; vehicle.

16. A vehicle mounted on a single row'of alined supports, air-whirling. blades revolvable inlaterally=spacedi vertical planes, the

blades: revolving: in: one: plane being operable :in an opposite: directionand at different relative. speeds with: respect? to: the I planes revolving inthexotherplane 5 for neutralizing the effects-of centrifugal force" on saidvehicl'e, and a pivotally mountedr blade mov-' able about an axis in a vertical plane.

17. A.vehicle1provided" with" a. single row of alinedsupports and having oppositely presented propellers on opposite sides-ithere of, said-propellers being operable at rela= tively difi'erentsspeeds; on a curve toproduce' a force toward. the; center of curvature for counteracting the centrifugal force on said vehicleduelto .the :curve;

182: The-:1 combination With a vehicle pro-' vided with a single row of alined supports, of motor-driven propellers presented forwardly and rearward-1y on said vehicle, and other motor-driven propellers presented laterally in opposite directions on said vehicle, the last-mentioned propellers being operableat. variable relative speeds. I

19; Ayehicle provided with a single row of'c'arrying' Wheels arranged in a common plane, in combination with propeller blades foribalancing said vehicle on said wheels, and a prime mover connected to one of said carrying wheels, .said wheel constituting the rotating part-of saidmotor.

20. In adevice of the character described, the" combination witha monorail support, of

a vehicle, motorsfor said vehicle, said motors being provided with rotating parts forming vehicle wheels arranged'in acommon vertical plane,uand propellers mounted on said Vehicle, for balancing'it onsaid monorail.

. 21. In a deviceof the character described,

the combination with amonorail support, of

ture's;

a ADOLF' KUCI-IARZIK.

: ARN O SCHMIDT.

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