Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1902-11-18
new TROLLEY INVENTION
Single Wire Device That NAV
Revolutionize Traffic.
IDEA OF A YOUNG ELECTRICIAN.

| ~ 800. AZ Va NS" OT1ean0 HA0
Perfected a Continuance Whereby
Double Track Road, He Claims.
Can BE Operated by Means of a
Single Overhead Wire.
An Invention that will admit of the
use of single trolley wire for double
tracks, perfected, patented and made
the basis of stock company nv
Ihomas j. Burke, young man of
new Orleans, Of the electrical firm of
bielefeldt & Burke, has been made
public recently by Mr.. Burke, says the
New Orleans Times Democrat. Like
nearly all great inventions, it makes
use OF an obviously simple principle,
once that principle is apprehended.
The gist Of the contrivance which
admits Of the use of but a single wire
is found In the following facts: The
line of poles along which the wire
would be strung would be to one side
OF both tracks. From each pole an arm
would prctrude out as far as the mid
Ole OF the space between the tracks
and would then bend downward. The
trolley OF each car when set in position
would stand at an angle sufficiently
great to bring it's tip under the end of
the arm from the pole. In the model
MI Burke has made the trolley is es-
sent1ally the same as that now found
on cars. It has the friction wheel, but
IN addition to this it has bow shaped
cross arm that Is pivoted to the trolley
just below the friction wheel. This
cross arm may be allowed to hang with
Its tips down, or by means of wire
cable running to the base of the trolley
1t may be made to assume an erect 20
sition so that its middle point is in con-
tact with the friction wheel above,
while it's tips, through smaller pulley
wheels, are in contact with the wire.
The bow shape Of the cross arm brings
its tips almost in contact with the
wire, while the middle of the cross arm
Is the diameter Of the friction wheel
away from the wire.
The cross arm arrangement solves the
problem Of having two friction wheels
pass one another on the same wire.
The cars going one way would have
their cross arms brought to the position
where they lie under the friction wheels
hat run over the wire. The cars going
he other way would have their cross
arms hanging down, so that their fric-
ion wheels would be unobstructed from
below. When cars going in opposite |
directions passed one another, the
ross arm that was up would afford a
'ort Of track on which would run the
riction wheel Of the trolley whose
ross arm was down. In belt run the
ars going ope way would always have
he cross arms down, while those going
he other would have them up. On
ther lines the position of the cross arm
would have to be changed at the end
t each run.
Among the many advantages that
would be secured to street railway
sing this Invention would be the saw
ng of poles and the saving Of wire
nd power. Probably the first road on
Which the device will be tried will be
be Thibodaux street railroad That
pad will make experiments in March,
Mr.. Burke is New Orleans boy and
'as at one time student at the Leche
chool He has been at work on the
lngle wire scheme for several years.
Within the past few months he and
[r. Bielefeldt have succeeded in per-
ecting the device, which has been pro
,cted by patents.