Improvements in Apparatus for Operating Railway Points or Switches.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Mar., 1890-Accepted, 19th Apr., 1890
CUMLELE DI MULTIVATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Operating Railway Points or
Switches.
I, HENRY JAMES PRYCE, of 18, Ichburgh Road, Upper Clapton, in the County of
Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement :—
My invention relates to improved means for operating two pairs or sets of railway
points or switches (such for instance as the points of a cross-over road) simultaneously
by a single lever through the medium of rods.
Heretofore such points or switches have usually been operated directly from the
main rod through the medium of bell crank levers, one arm of each of which is
connected with the said rod, while the other arm is connected by a short rod with the
switch, the provision for adjustment being a screw adjusting socket in each of the said
short rods for slightly varying the length thereof. Great difficulty exists in effecting
proper adjustment by the means above described, as if one pair is made too tight so
as to be "home" before the other pair, any further movement of the rod is stopped
so that the last mentioned pair fails to close properly.
The object of my invention is to obviate this difficulty and to this end it consists in
operating the points through the medium of auxiliary rods which are connected to
the main rod by means of, what I term, a floating cross-bar which not only serves to
equalize the strain upon the two pairs of points, but at the same time acts as a
compensator for expansion and contraction and permits of the use of a single socket
for adjusting both pairs of points.
To enable my invention to be fully understood I will describe the same with
reference to the accompanying drawing, in which,
Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view representing a cross-over road, the points of which
are operated according to my invention.
Figure 2 is a plan view, drawn to an enlarged scale, of the floating cross-bar
showing the rods connected thereto.
Figure 3 is a side view of the same, and
Figure 4 is an end view partly in section.
a, a¹ indicate the two lines of rails, 6 the cross-over, and c, c' the two sets of points
or switches thereof. is the main rod which may be provided with a compensator
in the ordinary manner and is worked from the cabin e, and f is the floating cross-bar
which is jointed to the rod d. g, g' are the auxiliary rods which are connected by
joints with the said cross-bar and with the bell crank levers 7, ¹, to which are also
connected or jointed the short rods i, attached to the switches. k is the adjusting
socket which I place in the main rod d, and 1, 1 are guide rollers arranged in the
ordinary manner. The rods g, g¹ are extended. as shown so as to run in the said
rollers.
With this arrangement it is obvious that when the rod is moved, the motion
thereof will be transmitted through the floating cross-bar f, the auxiliary rods g, g',
the levers h, h¹ and the rods i, to the switches. Whenever any adjustment is
required for instance owing to one of the rails adjacent to the points becoming
displaced it is only necessary to lengthen or shorten the rod d by means of the
socket k the result of which will be that the set of switches which is out of adjustment
will be moved without affecting the other set, as the floating cross bar f will assume
more or less of an angular position relatively to the said rod d. As hereinbefore
stated this floating cross-bar also serves to compensate for any expansion or contraction
of the auxiliary rods 9, g¹ in the ordinary manner without affecting the position of
the points.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
:-
(1.) In apparatus for operating two sets of points simultaneously by means of a
single lever, the employment of a floating cross-bar arranged substantially in the
manner described.
(2.) The combination with a floating cross-bar arranged as described, of an
adjusting socket arranged in the main operating rod, substantially in the manner, and
for the purpose, set forth.
(3.) The manufacture and use of the improved point operating mechanism herein-
before described and illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
Deted the 97th day of March 1800
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.