IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND FITTING OF RAILWAY WHEELS
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS-PATENT to Edmund Leahy, of Langford Road, Kentish Town, in
...-the-County of Middlesex, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND FITTING OF RAILWAY WHEELS,
Sealeil The 6th June 1865, and dated the 24th December 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edmund Leahy at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patenis, with his Petition. on the
24th December 1864.
L, EDMUND LEAHY. of Langford Road, Kentish Town, in the County of
Middlesex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND FITTING OF RAILWAY WHEELS," to
be as follows:
This Invention relates to a novel mode of forming railway wheels, and
combining them with, their axles so that the various parts composing the
wheels and axles will be permanently united or knit together. whereby the
necessity for the operation of fitting the wheels to their axles will be avoided.
The tyre of the wheel make in any ordinary or approved manner, with an
inner periphery of wrought iron. and the spokes I form of wroughi bar iron or
wrought iron tubes arranged radially within the tyre. These I heat together
with the axle, and I arrange them in a mould so that the outer ends of the
spokes abut against the inner face of the tyre. and the inner ends against the
axle. I then secure them in position by means of fluid steel or iron, applied
[Price Sd.]

page_text: to the mould when the parts are raised to a temperature a little below welding
heat. The tubular spokes I close with discs so as to leave a recess at each
end to receive the fluid metal, and I pierce these recesses laterally to allow of
the molten metal being poured therein. When wrought-iron bars are used 1
form like recesses therein for the reception of fluid cementing metal. The
contact of molten steel or iron with the heated wrought iron surfaces will I
find produce a perfect union of the parts.
When constructing driving wheels for locomotives, the cavity or hollow of
some of the spokes may be filled with fluid metal to a suflicient degree to
form a counterpoise to the crank, in place of the present. unsightly mode of
fixing a mass of metal between the spokes.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Edmund Leahy in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 24th
June 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDMUND
LEAUY, late of Langford Road, Kentish Town, in the County of Middlesex,
but now of Cardington Street, in the same County, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Edmund Leahy, Her special licence that 1, the said Edmund Leahy, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as 1, the said Edmund
Leahy, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION
AND FITTING OF RAILWAY WHEELS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I.
the said Edmund Leahy, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great
Seal Patent Oflice within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patout.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Edmund Leahy, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the fol-
lowing statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and
to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
This Invention relates to a novel mode of forming wrought-iron railway
wheels, and of combining the same while being formed with their axles so
that the various paris composing the wheel and axle will be permanently
united or knit together, whereby not only may strong wrought-iron wheels be
constructed in an economical manner, but the necessity for the operation of
fitting wheels to their axles may be avoided. In some cases, however, instead
of uniting the wheels to their axles during the process of manufacture
I form the wheels with an independent boss, and key them to their axles in
the usual manner.
In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 shews in side view, and Fig. 2 in
cross section, one mode which employ in forming wrought-iron wheels on
their axles; and Figures 3 and 4 are similar views of a wheel constructed
with a boss to receive an axle.
ordinary or
The spokes
The tyre of the wheel a, a, Figures and 2, is made in any
approved manner with an inner flange or rib of wrought iron a'.
are formed of lengths of wrought bar iron b, b, which are split at their
opposite ends in the direction of their breadth. and are also notched or slotted
transversely, and opened out as shewn at Figures 5. These spokes are arranged
radially around the axle, which is formed with a collar c. This collar is
intended to enter and fill the transverse notches made in the inner ends of the
spokes. In like manner the rib on the tyre is intended to fill the transverse
notches made in the outer ends of the spokes, and thus hold the spokes in the
position in which they are subsequently to be secured by means of molien
metal. To facilitate the placing of the stokes within the tyre radially around
the axle or boss a notch is cut in the flange or rib a of the tyre, and in the
collar somewhat exceeding in width the splayed ends of the spokes, as
shewn at Fig. 3, where two spokes of the wheel are omitted in order the
better to explain the mode of manufacture. Holes are also drilled or punched
through the rib a and collar at the parts overlaid by the spokes. The axle
and yre or the boss and tyre being placed concentric the spokes are
introduced singly (through the notches) between the ring and collar c
which form annular guides to receive them, and the spokes are then slidden
round on their guides to their respective positions. To complete the wheel
pairs of plates b', b, see Figures 6 and 7, are provided, which are intended to

page_text: cover the spaces formed by the splayed ends of the spokes on either side of
the annular guides. These plates are applied to the wheel when lying on its
side. and secured by screw pins, and the upper plates are pierced with a hole,
as shewn, while the ander plates are not pierced. The wheel thus composed,
together with its axle or its boss, as the case may be, is now to be heated to a
red or welding heat. For this purpose I employ a furnace with a divided
sliding cover, which when pushed back admits of the insertion of the wheel
and a part of the axle, and when shut closes upon the axle, round which
luting is applied to secure the joint. This cover is pierced with rings of holes
corresponding in position to the holes in the plates 6 and the bed of the
furnace mould to the form of the wheel to be heated. When the wheel is
placed in the furnace 1 fit over the holes in the plates b', b, fire-clay funnels
for guiding the molten metal into the holes, and the metal conduct to the
wheel through long funnels, which are passed down through the furnace
cover. When the required heat is obtained, and while the wheel and axle are
still in the furnace, I secure the component parts of the wheel in position by
pouring fluid steel or iron through the funnels above mentioned into the holes
in the plates b', b, which fluid metal will fill the cavities between the plates,
and serve to cement and bind all the parts together. This I am enabled to do
by gaining access to the wheel through openings made for the purpose in the
roof of the furnace. In place of using solid bars for the spokes, as above
described, in some cases I propose to form them of tubes. For this purpose I
take cylindrical iron tubing and flatten it to an oval or oblong figure in cross
section, as shewn at Figures 8. The flattened tube then noich at its ends,
that it may fit on the annular guides. as explained, and I close the ends of the
tube with dises to form recesses for the reception of the fluid metal, and 1
pierce these recesses laterally to allow of the molten metal being poured
therein. The hollow spokes are arranged in manner similar to the solid
spokes, as shewn at Fig. 9, but no plates b', are in this instance required.
The wheel being heated. as above explained, and the molten steel or iron
applied thereto a perfect union will be produced between the heated wrought
iron surfaces.
Fig. 10 shows the manner of constructing the wheel with a double set of
tubular spokes according to this Invention. In this arrangement the boss of
the wheel, or it may be the axle is provided with two collars e to receive the
inner ends of the spokes, but the tyre has but one rib b'.
When constructing driving wheels for locomotive engines I propose to fill
the cavity or hollow of some of the tubular spokes with fluid metal to a
suflicient degree to form a counterpoise to the crank in place of the present

page_text: unsightly mode of fixing a mass of metal between the spokes. This I do by
inserting the closing discs 63 of the spokes opposite the crank d. some distance
up the spoke, as shewn at Fig. 11, instead of inserting them so as merely to
form a shallow recess sufficient for the purpose of receiving the cemented
fluid meial.
Having now set forth the nature of any invention of improvements in the
construction and fitting of railway wheels, and explained the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above
in part recited Letters Patent I claim, constructing railway wheels and fitting
them to their axles in the manner above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edmund Leahy, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Twenty-fourth day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand cight hundred and sixty-five.
5 Witness,
J. W. MORFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.