Scientific American Supplement, No. 447, July 26, 1884Various
Science
Scientific American Supplement, No. 447, July 26, 1884
Various
Science -- Periodicals
The most important consequence, however, is the absence of any fixed
frame. In all machines, bicycles and tricycles, with the usual fixed
frame, a position is found for the saddle which is, on the whole, most
suitable. For some particular gradient it will be perfect; on a steeper
gradient the treadles will be further in advance, but with a steeper
gradient the rider should be more over the front of the treadles. To get
his weight further to the front, he has to double up in the middle, and
assume a position in which he cannot possibly work to advantage. The
swinging frame of the Otto carries the treadles, of necessity, further
back, so that the Ottoist, when working at his hardest, is still
upright, with his hands in the line between his shoulders, and his feet
and his arms straight, so that he can hold himself down, and employ his
strength in a perfectly natural position. On going down a slope, the
fixed frame of a bicycle or tricycle leans forward, and places the rider
in such a position that extra weight is thrown on his arms and his
shoulders, whereas the swing frame of the Otto goes back, and the rider
of necessity assumes that position in which his arms are relieved of all
strain. In so far as the general position taken by the automatic Otto
frame is concerned, nearly the same effect can be obtained by using the
swing frame of the Devon tricycle, which can be shifted and locked in
any position which the rider wishes, or by the sliding saddle, which can
be slid backward or forward and locked so as to place the rider in one
of three positions. Though the rider can by these devices assume nearly
that position with respect to the treadles which is most advantageous,
he cannot obtain that curious fore and aft oscillation made use of by
the Ottoist in climbing hills, which, as the model on the table shows,
enables him to get past the dead points without even moving, and which,
therefore, makes the Otto by far the best hill-climbing machine there
is, if account is taken of the high speeding with which all Ottoists
ride. This is a proposition which none who knows the machine will
question for one moment.
The freedom of motion resulting from the swing of the frame of the Otto
gives a pleasurable sensation, which those who have only experienced the
constrained motion of a three-wheeler cannot even understand.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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