IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF TEAM RAILS, IN THE MODES OF FASTENING
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Llewellyn Light, of Richmond, in the
County of Surrey, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF TEAM RAILS, IN THE MODES OF FASTENING THE
Sealed the 18th March 1870, and dated the 22nd September 1869.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Llewellyn Light
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
22nd September 1869.
I, CHARLES LLEWELLYN LIGHT, of Richmond, in the County of
Surrey, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said In-
vention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF TEAM RAILS, IN THE MODES
OF FASTENING THE SAME, AND IN THE MODE OF SHIFTING CARRIAGES FROM ONE
LINE OF RAILS TO ANOTHER," to be as follows:-
The object of the Invention is, firstly, the construction of a tram rail of such
a shape that stones or other hard substances which may be in the groove shall
be removed by the flange of the wheel in passing; also to facilitate the wheels
of the carriages freely leaving the groove at any angle without being jammed
or strained

page_text: Secondly. Means of securing the rails end to end to prevent them rising one
above the other.
Thirdly. Means or modes of securing the rails upon the sleepers or
.bearers.
Fourthly. The means of securing the rails at a fixed distance
apart.
And, fifthly. The mode of shifting carriages from one line of rails to another,
all as hereafter described.
My improved form of rail is composed of a flat or rounded surface for
the wheels of the carriage to bear upon, and a channel for the
flanges of the wheels to run in. The said channel on its outer side runs into
and terminates in an inclined surface leading to the outer edge of
the rail, as seen in the perspective view of the Drawing annexed, such outer
surface being level with the tread of the rail and perfectly flush with the
paving. Should a stone or other hard substance lie in the groove over which
the wheel of the carriage will not pass it pushes the stone a
short distance in front, and then forces it sideways up the incline to clear the
track entirely or only to move it out of the way. This improved form of rail
offers great facilities for wheels of other than the flanged ones
getting out of the groove at any angle, there being only one abrupt side to
the groove, narrow wheels do not get jammed or strained in the
attempt to leave it. I form or fit a tongue or projection at each end of the
rail; at one end the tongue is under the inclined portion, and at the other
end it is under the flat or bearing portion. I also form spaces at each end
of the rail for the tongues to fit into, as shewn in the Figure.
By this arrangement the ends are held firmly in the same plane. 1 propose
that the top of this rail shall be laid flush with the level of
the ordinary roadway, so as to offer no impediment to other vehicles passing
over it.
1
To secure the rails upon the sleepers or bearers 1 drive spikes through
holes made alternately in the sides of the rail into the sleeper; the holes are
at an angle, so that the spikes are in opposite directions, or, as it were,
across one another.
I do not wish to confine myself to the above described mode of securing
my improved rails upon the sleepers or bearers, because in some cases I do
not employ sleepers. The rails may be secured upon girders, rails, chairs,
or otherwise. When no sleepers are employed I maintain the parallelism
of gauge of the road by means of tie rods and keys.

page_text: In order to transfer a carriage from one line of rails to another I fit or cast
a lip or fillet on the inclined side of the rail, against which the wheels press;
this pressure causes the carriage to clear the points and run in
the required direction.
For curves I propose that a grooved rail should be employed only on one
side of the track, the other rail being flat on the surface for the flange of the
opposite wheel to run By this means the raised wheel follows
the curve with less friction and with less danger of the carriage running off
the track.
filed by the said Charles Llewellyn Light in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 22nd March 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
LLEWELLYN LIGHT, of Richmond, in the County of Surrey, Civil Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the thirty-third year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said Charles Llewellyn Light, Her special licence that I,
the said Charles Llewellyn Light, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Charles
as I, the said Charles Llewellyn Light,
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
of Man, an
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF TRAM RAIL, IN THE
MODES OF FASTENING THE SAITE, AND IN A MODE OF SHIFTING CARRIAGES FROM ONE
LINE OF BAILS TO ANOTHER," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Charles Llewellyn Light, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and scals, should.
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause

page_text: the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Charles Llewellyn Light, 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
following statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto
annexed, that is to say:-
The object of the Invention is, firstly, the construction of a tram rail of such
a shape that stones or other hard substances which may be in the groove
shall be removed by the flange of the wheel in passing; also to facilitate the
wheels of the carriages freely leaving the groove at any angle without being
jammed or strained.
Secondly. Means of securing the rails end to end to prevent them rising
one above the other.
Thirdly. Means or modes of securing the rails upon the sleepers
or bearers.
Fourthly. The means of securing the rails at a fixed distance apart.
And, fifthly. The mode of shifting carriages from one line of rails to another,
all as hereafter described.
My improved form of rail is composed of a flat or rounded surface for the
wheels of the carriage to bear upon, and a channel for the flanges of the
wheels to run in. The said channel on its outer side runs into
and terminates in an inclined surface leading to the outer edge of the rail, as
seen in the perspective view, Figl 1, of the Drawings annexed, such outer
surface being level with the tread of the rail and perfectly flush with the
paving. Should a stone or other hard substance lie in the groove over which
the wheel of the carriage will not pass it pushes the stone 8
short distance in front, and then forces it sideways up the incline
to clear the track entirely or only to move it out of the way. This improved
form of rail offers great facilities for wheels of other than the flanged ones
getting out of the groove at any angle; there being only one
abrupt side to the groove narrow wheels do not get jammed or
strained in the attempt to leave it. I form or fit a tongue or projection at
each end of the rail; at one end the tongue is under the inclined portion, and
at the other end it is under the flat or bearing portion. I also
form spaces at each end of the rail for the tongues to fit into.
By this

page_text: I pro-
arrangement the ends are held firmly in the same plane.
pose that the top of this rail shall be laid flush with the level of the
ordinary roadway so as to offer no impediment to other vehicles passing
over it.
To secure the rails upon the sleepers or bearers I drive spikes through holes
made alternately in the sides of the rail into the sleeper; the holes are at an
angle, so that the spikes are in opposite directions, or, as it
were, across one another.
I do not wish to confine myself to the above described mode of securing
my improved rails upon the sleepers or bearers, because in some cases I do
not employ sleepers. The rails may be secured upon girders, rails,
chairs, or otherwise. When no sleepers are employed I main-
tain the parallelism of gauge of the road by means of tie rods
and keys.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a perspective view of a portion
of a rail constructed as herein-before described. a, a, is the
bearing part or rail proper for the wheels of a carriage to run upon; b, the
groove in which the flanges of the wheels run in, and by which the carriages
are kept upon the track. From the deepest part of the groove
near the rail proper the metal is inclined upwards towards the inner edge or
side of the rail as at c, c, So that there is no side wall on
that side of the groove against which the flanges of the wheels can come into
contact during the travelling of the carriage. By this means the vehicle is
more free to accommodate itself to the varying positions into
which it is thrown without in the least being strained, as is the case when
travelling on rails with two side walls to the groove. The greatest advantage
which will be gained by the employment of my inclined face rail
will be the facility with which stones and other hard substances can be
ejected from the groove by the flanges of the wheels coming foul of them, for
when the stones are struck by the wheels they are flitted along
until they run up the incline clear of the groove without in any way interfering
with the passage of the vehicle. Another advantage to be derived
from the employment of my inclined grooved rail is that ordinary wheeled
vehicles, such as broughams and other carriages, carts, &c. with
narrow tires can with facility run in the groove without the least fear of
being jammed in it; they can also draw out of it with perfect freedom at any
point without becoming locked or injured. The rails are made of any length
and substance, and of any metal either of the same kind or of

page_text: a combination of metals, that is to say, the body of the rail, the incline, and
the groove may be of ordinary iron, and the bearing portion faced with
Bessemer or other steel. I propose to make two grooves or channels in the
bottom of the rails, so as to lighten them as much as possible; and I terminate
the channels near the ends so that a portion at each end is left
solid, so to speak, to form a tongue or end projection to take
into a recess in the meeting end of the next rail, so that they tend to bind one
another together longitudinally.
This part of the Invention will be well understood by referring to the plan
and end views Figures 2 and 3, where d is the tongue and e the recess, and
applies particularly to cast-iron rails. I prefer to make a tongue
and a recess at each end of the rail and at opposite sides, as shewn, so that
when the rails are laid the bearing part a and the groove bare
in a true line. In Figure 4 I have shown one method of securing the rails
upon the sleepers or foundation timbers. When timbers are used I form here
and there holes in the side walls of the rails at an angle and
slanting downwards towards the centres of the rail, and I drive spikes into
these holes so that they cross each other, as seen in Figure 4. The holes
break joint one with the other so that one hole on one side is mid distance
between the two holes on the other side; by this means a firm
and reliable hold is obtained to preserve the regidity of the way and gauge
of the track. I do not confine myself to this special mode of
fastening my tram rails upon the timbers or foundations, as in many instances
the construction of the base of the rail may necessitate other
forms or modes of fastening being employed, for example, the base of the rail
may have wings or spread out portions either continuous or at intervals, on
which lipped spikes may bear to hold the rail in place, as seen
in Figure 5. Or holes may be formed through the rail from the top at some
part of the incline or groove, into which screw bolts may be
inserted and take into the timber underneath. I do not in all cases employ
sleepers or timbers for the rails to rest upon, as I can so shape
the base of the rail that it can be secured to girders or longitudinal rails,
bars, chairs, or other metal bodies, but I prefer to employ sleepers of timber
f, f, and to rest the rails longitudinally upon them, as represented in Figure 5.
Here I have shown the longitudinal sleepers f, f, as being fitted
in recesses cut or formed in transverse sleepers g, g, the recesses are undercut
enable keys h, h, to be driven in to hold the longitudinal
sleepers in place, the recesses being so cut as to preserve the gauge of the
track under all conditions. Figure 6 represents a rail composed of four
to

page_text: run
wearing and inclined surfaces to enable it to be turned with either surface
do
of
upon. I
not
the carriage wheels to
uppermost for
course as before mentioned confine myself to any mode of securing the longi-
In some cases
tudinal sleepers or foundations to the transverse sleepers.
easy
it may be advisable to bore a hole through both the sleepers and
Sometimes the
fasten a bolt through them, as shown at Figure 7, 8, 9.
sleepers may be formed of metal plates bent into shape and secured to the
base web of the rail by rivets or screw bolts, as represented in Figure 10,
the parallelism of the gauge being maintained by the tie rod i, i.
I do not in all cases propose to make the metal plates of great
lengths so that the rails are supported throughout their entire length, as they
may be only short pieces to act as chairs to support the rail at intervals.
These plates may be of wrought or of cast metal; if made of cast metal I
prefer to have them of the shape shown in Figure 11, and I
make the upper surface like a shoe, so that the longitudinal sleepers or
timbers may rest in them, the timbers being held firm by bolts being passed
It will be observed in this
through them and the side uprights of the shoe.
Figure that I employ two sleepers fitted side by side in the shoe; this mode
allows of the timbers being bent or curved to follow the curvature
of the road way in which the tram is to be laid in an
and inexpensive manner. The bolts which keep the timbers in the shoe also
serve as tie bars to fix the gauge. Figures 12 and 13 illustrates a method of
continuous longitudinal metal sleepers i, j, held at the respective
distance apart by plates k, k, which also serve for the path for
the horses to run upon. The sleepers are in a piece with the incline of the
rail and have projections or eye lugs 1, 1, upon the inside edge at intervals
for studs or pins m, m, on the under side of the plates k, k, to take into.
These plates may be fluted, grooved, or chequered on the top to give a firm
bite to the horses' feet, or they may be perforated and filled in
with concrete or other substance to produce a partially rough surface as found
most suitable. The outer edges of the sleepers have also a series of projec-
them
tions or lugs on
or intermediates
as headers
the pitching stones or macadam of the roadway, so that a great rigidity of
permanent way is obtained; in this case I prefer to secure a separate bearing
rail upon each of the sleepers by screws or other appliances are
indicated in the Figures 12 and 18; the rail may have both faces steeled so
that when one of them is worn thin or becomes injured it can be turned with
the other face upwards and secured in the same manner. I do not propose
to serve
to

page_text: to secure the central plate upon the rails, but simply to drop
them into places to rest them upon the eye lugs as shewn. I
however prefer to fill the space between the rails with well rammed earth or
with concrete to form a solid sub-structure for the plates to bear upon; this
would not only make a sound serviceable and permanent tramway
of great strength, but it also establishes a true parallel gauge under every
condition of wear and tear. In many cases where a great traffic is con-
tinuously passing to and fro and a diminution of noise is required, it is
advisable to fill the space with wooden blocks, and I propose to do so in the
following manner and as represented in Figure 7, 8, & 9, that is to say, I
make a platform of planks 10, n, by resting the planks upon trans-
verse sleepers to form a foundation to the horse path, and I so place the
wooden paving blocks upon the planks as to leave a space of, say,
one inch between them; the lower part of this space is to be occupied by a
strip of wood, and the upper part of the space is filled up with asphalte or
concrete as desired, thus the blocks are firmly bound together to make a
hard and strong roadway with an amount of elasticity or softness for the
tread of the horses' feet.
It will be understood that I am at liberty to employ any of the above men-
tioned methods of securing my inclined grooved rails in the tram or roadway
without departing from this first part of my Invention.
In order to transfer a carriage from one line of rails to another I fit or cast
a lip or fillet p, p, on the inclined side of the rail A, against which the wheels
press; this pressure causes the carriage to clear the points and
run in the required direction, this will be understood by referring to the plan
and detailed views Figure 14.
For curves I propose that a grooved rail should be employed only on one
side of the track, the other rail being flat on the surface for the flange of the
opposite wheel to run on, as represented in Figure 15, by this means the raised
wheel follows the curve with less friction and with less danger of the carriage
running off the track.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,-
Firstly. The general construction of tram rails with an inclined surface
leading from the groove to the inner edge of the rail, as herein-before
described and represented in the Drawings hereunto annexed.

page_text: Secondly. The modification of such rails, substantially as repre-
sented in Figures 12 and 13 of the accompanying Drawings and above
described.
Thirdly. I claim securing the ends of the rails together to form a continuous
length in the manner and for the purposes herein-before described and illus-
trated in the accompanying Drawings.
Fourthly. The modes, substantially as herein-before described and shown
the rails upon the
together with the modifications of securing
sleepers.
Fifthly. The mode or means before described for determining and retaining
the parallelism or gauge of the rails, as herein-before described and illustrated
in the accompanying Drawings.
Sixthly. I claim the employment of a lip or fillet on the inclined side of the
rails for the wheel on one side of the carriage to press against for shifting
the carriage from one pair of rails to another, as herein-before described and
represented in the annexed Drawings.
And, seventhly. I claim the employment of one grooved rail and one plain
rail at the curves of the tramways, substantially for the purpose herein-before-
described and represented.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Llewellyn Light, have
hereunto set my hand. and seal, this Twenty-second day of
March, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
CHAS. L. LIGHT. (L.S.)