IMPROVEMENTS IN BUFFERS FOR RAILWAY ROLLING STOCK
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Illius Augustus Timmis, of No. 17, Parliament Street,
London, S.W., in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for an Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BUFFERS FOR RAILWAY ROLLING STOCK,"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Illius Augustus Timmis at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 16th September 1880.
ILLIUS AUGUSTUS TIMIS, of No. 17, Parliament Street, London, S.W., in the
County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN BUFFERS FOR RAILWAY
ROLLING STOCK."
The objects of this Invention are to lessen jarring, vibration, and wear in the
working of railway carriages, wagons, and trucks, to lessen the cost and increase
the life of same, and to give greater security in the carriage of passengers, live
stock, and merchandise.
The first part of this Invention relates to the construction of buffers for railway
carriages, wagons, &c., and consists in making a buffer so that it can be readily
applied, and at a small comparative cost, not only to new rolling stock, but also to
old stock, and especially to trucks, &c., having "dead end" buffers, without any
objectionable difficulty. It is well known that colliery owners and coal merchants
would save much breakage in the transit of coal if they had a cheap, strong, and
easily applied buffer, which this Invention supplies. It will be seen that by
means of this Invention a wagon or other railway vehicle may have spring buffers
at both ends, and yet have solid timber ends for chains, ropes, &c., to be slung
round for raising, tipping, and other purposes.
I make the back plate of the buffer flat, or to fit round the sides of the timber
or frame-work, or any convenient shape to suit the wants of the vehicle, and I
fasten it to the framework of the vehicle with bolts and nuts or cotters, or in any
convenient way.
I make the buffer head and neck or plunger hollow, and secure it to the back
plate by means of one or more pins or rods which I fasten with nuts or cotters,
or other suitable means. Or I make the buffer head and neck or rod solid,'and
secure it behind the back plate or any part of the framework by means of a nut or
cotter, or other suitable means. I put a spring (and this is the main feature in the
1

page_text: Invention) outside the plunger neck or rod without any case outside it (or a
group of two or more springs may be placed round the buffer neck or rod, and
they may be held in position by spindles, or cups, or cases). When necessary I
have a cup or part case fitted to the back plate, or it may be part of the back
plate, and the sides of this cup project towards the buffer head outside the spring,
so that when the plunger is driven home the buffer head (or plunger head) will
take its bearing on the end of the cup, and thus I secure the following advantages:―
The spring extends from the plunger head to the back plate, and I get the greatest
range of stroke with the least length of buffer. The home thrust is taken by the
cup and so saves the buffer head, and rod, and the spring from straining. Of 1
course the cup may be dispensed with and the home thrust taken by the buffer
neck, or rod, or pin, or by the spring, or by any of thein at the same time. The
different parts of the buffer may be made of steel or cast or wrought iron, or any
suitable material.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Illius Augustus Timmis in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 16th
March 1881.
ILLIUS AUGUSTUS TIMMIS, of Number 17, Parliament Street, Westminster, S.W.,
in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN BUFFERS."
The objects of this Invention are to lessen jarring, vibration, and wear in the
working of railway carriages and trucks, to lessen the cost, and to increase the life
of same, and to give greater security in the conveyance of goods. The first and
main object of this Invention relates to the construction of buffers for railway
carriages, wagons, and trucks, and consists in making buffers so that they can be
readily applied, and at a small comparative cost, not only to new rolling stock,
but also to old stock, and especially to trucks having dead end buffers, without any
objectionable difficulty. It is well known that colliery owners and coal merchants
would save much breakage in tho transit of coal if they had a cheap, strong, and
easily applied buffer, which this Invention supplies. It will be seen that by means
of this Invention a wagon or other railway vehicle may have spring buffers at both
ends, or either end, and yet have solid timber ends for chains, ropes, &c., to be
slung round for raising, tipping, and other purposes, as the buffer can be fitted by
cutting off about half of the wood of the dead end buffer without altering the
length of the truck over all, which is an important matter.
I make the back plate of the buffer flat, or to fit round the sides of the timber
or framework, or any convenient shape to suit the wants of the vehiclo, and I
fasten it to the framework of the vehicle with bolts and nuts or cotters, or in any
convenient way.
I make the buffer head and neck or plunger hollow, and secure it to the back
plate by means of one or more pins or rods, which I fasten with nuts or cotters, or
other suitable means. Or I make the buffer head and neck or rod solid, and

page_text: secure it behind the back plate or any part of the framework by means of a
nut or cotter, or other suitable means. I put a spring (and this is the main
feature in the Invention) outside the plunger neck or rod without any case outside
it. Or a group of two or more springs may be placed outside round the buffer
neck or rod, and they may be held in position by spindles, or rods, or by cups.
When necessary I have one or more cups or part cases fitted to the back plate or
to the vehicle, or they may be part of the back plate, and these cups or projections
project towards the buffer head outside the spring or springs, so that when the
plunger is driven home the buffer head or plunger head will tako its bearing on
the end of the cup or projections. I also put a sleeve or tube round the plunger to
strengthen and support it, and by preference I make it of forged steel and weld it to
the back plate, and I, by preference, let the dead blow of the buffer head be taken
by the sleeve, and outside the sleove or tubo I put a spring. There may be two
or more plungers and sleeves or tubes and springs round cach, and thus I secure
the following advantages:
The spring or springs extend from the plunger head to the back plate, and I get
the greatest range of stroke with the least length of buffer. The home thrust is
taken by the cups or projections, or by the sleeves or tubes, and so saves the
buffer head, and rod, and the spring from straining; of course the sleeves support
the plunger. The cup or cups or projections and sleeves may be dispensed with,
and the home thrust taken by the buffer rod or neck, or by tho spring or springs,
or by any or all of them at the same time. The different parts of the buffer may
be made of steel, or cast or wrought iron, or any other suitable metal. Another
advantage is the saving of the expense of using an ordinary buffer caso.
Such being the nature and object of my said Invention, I will now proceed to
describe in detail the manner in which the same is to be or may be performed or
carried into effect; and in order that the same may be clearly understood I have
annexed hereunto a Sheet of Drawings illustrative thereof, and have marked
the same with figures corresponding with those in the following explanations:
Figure 1 in the annexed Drawings shows a buffer head a hollow in its centre,
and held in position by a pin b which passes through the back plate c, and is
secured by a cotter d (a nut or other suitable means can be employed when
necessary); the back plate c is fastened to the vehicle by a bolt or bolts e (or it
may be secured in any other convenient way). Outside the hollow plunger a² I
put a spring & of any suitable strength, shape, and material; the dead blow of the
buffer may be taken up by the plunger a' coming in contact with the back
plate c, or by the spring 8, or by both together.
Figure 2 shows a buffer head a and plunger a', both made solid, and secured
behind the back plate c by a cotter d (or by any other suitable means). Outside
the plunger a¹ I put a spring s, and the dead blow can be taken by the spring, or
by the plunger, or by both of them.
Figure 3 shows a buffer head a, plunger a¹, and spring 8, substantially as in
Figure 2, but with a cup c, or part case, or projections outside the spring, for the
purpose of taking the final or dead blow of the buffer head a when it is driven
home. The cup may be of any suitable shape, and either solid, or in several parts
or projections from the end of the vehicle.
Figure 4 shows another adaptation of the cup c, the back plate b being held in
position by it. A conical spring 8 is here shown outside the plunger a¹ which is
secured by a cotter d.
Figure 5 shows a buffer head a and plunger a' with three auxiliary plungers a
fitted with springs 8, the whole being secured behind the back plate c by a cotter d
in the plunger a¹. The back plate c is fastened to the vehicle in any convenient
way. The dead blow of the buffer is taken by the thick part of the plunger a¹
coming against the back plate c, or it may be taken up by any part of the
plunger rods, or by the springs, or cups; or projections may be fitted to take the
dead blow of the buffer. There may be any number of plunger rods and springs
that may be found convenient.

page_text: Figure 6 shows a buffer head a and plunger a¹, both made solid, and secured
behind the back plate c by a cotter d, or by any other suitable means. Outside
the plunger a¹ is a sleeve or tube e, by preference of forged steel, which I fasten
or fit to the back plate c; this sleeve may be part of the back plate and acts as a
support to the plunger a¹, and receives, if necessary and by preference, the dead
blow of the buffer head a. I fix the springs outside the sleeve e. There may be
two or more plungers, and round one or more of them there may be sleeves or
tubes and springs. The main object of these sleeves or tubes is to support the
plunger and prevent its being bent. There are a great variety of ways in which
the above mentioned means may be arranged for fitting the various parts and
effecting the objects of this Invention, and I do not claim the use of any special
spring or springs, but I use any suitable and available springs.
Having now described the nature and object of my Invention, together with the
manner in which the same is to be or may be performed or carried into practical
effect, I wish it to be understood that I claim as my Invention,-
The use of a buffer head with one or more plunger rods, either hollow or solid,
and of any requisite length and shape, and fastened to the end of a railway vehicle
-in-any-convenient way,-in conjunction (and this is the main feature_of_iny_
Invention) with one or more springs placed outside the plunger rod or rods, and
where necessary in conjunction with one or more cups (or part cases) or projections
from the back plate, or from the end of the vehicle, or from the buffer head, which-
shall-take-up-the-dead-blow-of-the-buffer,-and-also-in-conjunction-with-a-sleeve.or
tube round the plunger or round any of the plungers to strengthen them, and also
to take up the dead blow of the buffer, and outside the sleeve or sleeves I put
springs, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Illius Augustus Timmis, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.