IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR PREVENTING THE ENGINES AND CARRIAGES FROM GOING OFF THE RAILWAYS, AND FOR REMOVING OBSTRUCTIONS ON RAILWAYS
Year: 1843

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, FRANCIS
M'GETRICK, of Ernest Street, Saint Pancras, Artisan, and MATTHEW BAILEY
TENNANT, of Henry Street, Regent's Park, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Twenty-sixth day of January, in the sixth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
Francis M'Getrick and Matthew Bailey Tennant, Her especial licence, full
power, sole privilege and authority, that we, the said Francis M'Getrick and
Matthew Bailey Tennant, our executors, administrators, and assigns, and such
others as we, the said Francis M'Getrick and Matthew Bailey Tennant, our
executors, administrators, or assigns, should agree with, from time to time and
at all times thereafter during the term of years therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within that part of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, the Dominion of
Wales, and Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, our Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS FOR PREVENTING THE ENGINES AND CARRIAGES FROM GOING OFF
THE RAILWAYS, AND FOR REMOVING OBSTRUCTIONS ON RAILWAYS;" in which said
Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that we, the said Francis M'Getrick
and Matthew Bailey Tennant, should particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
by an instrument in writing under our hands and seals, or under the hand and

page_text: seal of one of us, and cause the same to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the
same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, the said
Francis M Getrick and Matthew Bailey Tennant, do hereby declare the nature
of our said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to
be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement,
reference being had to the Drawing therein referred to and to these Presents
annexed. And we would remark, that in the various figures the same letters
of reference are used to indicate the same parts.
One of our improvements in apparatus for preventing the engines and
carriages from going off the rails, consists in applying sliding wheels, made of
cast iron or other material, to act in frames of cast iron with grooves, fixed by
any efficient means to the side frames of our leading carriage and to the tender
following the engine, as shown in the Drawing 1 at a, a, Figure 1, and a, a,
Figure 2, in which frames the wheels slide up and drop down again by their
own weight immediately on passing over any obstruction, and thereby adhere
to the rail, while the other wheels are passing over such obstruction. The
sliding wheels do not bear any part of the weight of the carriage to which
they are applied; the slides to which the wheels are attached are stopped in
the grooved frame, in which they act by a rivetted iron bolt passing through it,
as shown at b, Figure 2, which bolt allows the slide to work up and down by
means of a slot, as shown at c, Figure 2. These wheels will, in conjunction
with the convex and concave buffers hereafter described, assist in keeping up
the carriage in case of the front or hind axletree breaking, in which case not
less than four wheels, and even five out of the six, will remain on the rails,
provided the obstruction over which the wheels have to pass does not exceed
in height the interval through which the sliding wheels are permitted to move.
The slide, as shewn in the inside view of Figure 2, d, may be made of brass
or iron, and occasionally lubricated, to pass more easily up and down in the
grooves of the iron frame, of the thickness of two and a half inches, or less,
eight inches wide, and sixty inches in height, ten inches of which below the
axletree, and the remainder above it; the iron frame must be proportionately
thicker than the slide to allow a sufficient groove and requisite strength.
a, a, Figure 2, the axle or pin upon which the wheel revolves has a large flat
bead e, Figure 2, and screws into a sliding axle box of the same description as
is now used in the engines and carriages, which, with the inner slide, will assist
to prevent the wheel from twisting.
go

page_text: Another of our improvements for preventing the engines and carriages from
going off the rails, consists in the mode of uniting, in addition to the drag link,
the engine between a leading carriage and the tender, by means of rising and
falling buffers, with concave and convex heads acting within each other, in the
form of cups and balls, the said buffers being allowed such play, to be regulated
by the length of the drag link, as will allow the fore carriage, engine, and
tender to turn the curves, and run on the line of railway with greater safety
and velocity. Thus the engine, by being so locked between the two carriages,
may be said to be mechanically elongated, and if the concave and convex
buffers are applied to the whole train, it will tend to keep the whole on the
rails, and also turn the curves with greater ease and safety; and in case of a
concussion, the whole may be said to experience a push rather than successive
blows. The convex and concave buffers may be made of brass or cast iron, of
sufficient strength for the purpose required, and must be rivetted or otherwise
secured to transverse cast or wrought-iron arms, or each buffer and arm may
be cast in one. The arms extend along the end frame of the carriage to within
a short distance of each side of the drag link Z, Figures 3
on a pivot, as shown at g, Figure 3; the arm is shown by h. Near the buffer
is a pin i, which passes through a slot in the arm into the frame at j, Figures 3
and 6, in order to prevent the buffer rising higher than about three inches;
the slot need not allow the buffer to fall, as the heaving of the engine in front
will, in a great measure, be counteracted by the buffers attached to the leading
carriage, and supported at the back by the buffers of the tender.
and 5, and work
Another improvement in the apparatus for preventing the engines and car-
riages from going off the railway, consists in a mode of applying, in like
manner, the concave and convex buffers to the train in combination with spiral
springs. The train being so locked together, will not only be kept from
going off the rails, but by the addition of the springs, the effect of any collision
will be modified. The concave buffer, as shown at Figure 11, is let loose into
a cast-iron box, which is made with an opening, and then the spiral springs
are inserted behind it, being first properly fixed between two light iron plates,
and the box must be cast with a rim, to prevent the springs forcing out the
buffer, and then closed down by an iron cover; five springs of the strength
required may be inserted between the two iron plates, namely, one in the
centre and one at each corner; the iron box which contains the buffer and
springs may be cast in one to the iron arm, as, in Figure 11. Figure 12
shews the springs in the box in a compressed state.
Another of our improvements is in the apparatus for removing obstructions
on railways. A grated fender, shewn on a side view at Figure 1, and a front

page_text: view 1, 1, Figure 4, made of wrought or cast iron, is suspended on two iron
bolts, with flat heads fixed or screwed into the buffing board of the leading
carriage, passing through two short slots, as shown at m, m, Figure 4, to
allow it to rise about half an inch, in case the rollers n, n, at the bottom of the
fender strike with too great force against any projection, the rollers being
allowed to reach the rails within an inch and a half, or less; the bars are of
an angular shape to cut the atmosphere, and about two inches apart; also, the
front of the leading carriage is to be sharp pointed, as shewn in plan at k,
Figure 5, so as to experience as little resistance from the atmosphere. The
atmospheric pressure on the platform 5, 5, at each side of the pointed front of
the leading carriage, will cause an additional adhesion of the wheel to the
rails; and we do not confine ourselves to a flat platform, but the same can be
varied from a flat surface to that of a rising slope to the top edges of the angle
or pointed front. We also employ a shoot underneath o, Figure 1, to enable
the guard or look-out man in the leading carriage to let sand on the rails,
when necessary, by means of an iron handle p, Figures 1 and 5, branching
into two parts right and left, and passing through tubes at q, q, Figure 5. At
the end of the branches of the handle are two flat slides, to prevent the sand
from falling into the shoots, when not required. A broom, made of cane, whale-
bone, wire, or other suitable material, is inserted in a tube r, behind the
fender of the leading carriage; its own weight will keep it on the rail. A
similar one is on the opposite side; the tubes in which they are inserted are
fastened to the inside of the frame.
Another of our improvements consists in the use and application of half
axles to the front and hind wheels of the leading carriage and tender, which
wheels ought to have broader peripheries than wheels on whole axles, on
account of the short radius and risk of dropping within the rails after passing
over any obstructions (the sliding wheels being in the centre), such half axles
acting independently of each other will allow either wheel to rise and fall
again without distributing the opposite one, and turn the curves without skid-
ding and straining the axletree, which would be the case if a whole one. The
end of each half axle is finished with a small round knob or ball, as shewn
ats, Figure 7, and works in a brass or iron box, made in two parts, with
hollows or sockets to correspond to the rounded knobs or balls; the two separate
parts of the box t, t, Figure 6 and Figure 7, enclose the ends or knobs of the
half axles, which are united by a collar w, Figure 7, and secured by a strap u,
Figure 6, to a centre frame fixed longitudinally under the carriage, or by any
other convenient method; the channel or neck of the box through which the
passes has a sufficient space above and below to allow it to rise and fall
axle

page_text: when the wheel runs over any obstruction, as shewn at ; Figure 7, the spiral
spring keeping the axle in its proper position; and in order to ease the friction
of the axles in the boxes, but which will seldom turn except on the curves of
the railroad, the wheels may be allowed to turn on the axles, so that a double
action in such case will be gained; the wheels turning on the axles may be
secured by any of the patent axle boxes now in use for common road carriages;
half axles being thus secured in the centre cannot break like whole ones, and
can be replaced at less expence.
Another of our improvements consists in the application of steel spiral
springs to the fore and after wheels of the leading carriage and tender, which
springs work up and down in polished brass or iron cylinders, cast with flanches
at the bottom, in order to allow of being bolted or strapped to the frame of
the carriage, as shewn at y, Figure 8; through the centre of the spiral spring
runs a cast-iron rod to fill the spring when expanded, as shewn at No. 1,
Figure 8; the spring rests on a rim, No. 2, cast on the rod; the rim being
nearly the diameter of the inside of the cylinder, the rod is continued from the
flange through the frame, and rests on the axle box, as shown at No. 3; the
steel spiral springs may be round or square, but we prefer square, and are to
be seven-eighths of an inch by one inch and a quarter, and being wound six or
eight times round a block of six inches circumference, a spiral spring is formed
to carry twenty-five hundredweight and somewhat upwards; the spiral springs
in the cylinders will cause the carriage to ride much easier, and will be
essentially serviceable if applied to the trucks carrying cattle, as they can be
strengthened or weakened at pleasure, to answer to the load to be carried, by the
use of a winch or key applied to the nut or screw, No. 4, Figure 8, at the top
of the cylinder, which, by being screwed downwards, will compress and upwards
expand the spring, the compression rendering it stronger, the expansion or decom-
pression weaker; the spring must not, when in an expanded state, reach to
the top of the cylinder, in order that the nut or screw may lay hold of the
thread inside of the cylinder, which would otherwise prevent the spring from
being acted upon by the nut or screw. By taking off the nut, the spring can
be lifted out of the cylinder to be examined, and replaced by simply dropping
in again, and in case it should break, will act nearly as well in parts as entire ;
the inside of the cylinder must be as large as the outside of the spring when
compressed.
Another of our improvements for preventing the engine and carriages-from
going off the railways in case of collision consists in the application of a
powerful buffer placed between the buffers of the leading carriage, as shewn in
Figure 13; it is composed of about twenty plates to form an elliptic spring,
and fastened to the buffing board of the carriage by means of a strap and bolts,

page_text: or other efficient manner; the stuffed board in front, composed of horsehair
and leather or other material, is attached to the ends of the springs by suf-
ficiently strong pins, in slots of such length as will allow the spring to expand
to its full length; that part of the buffer on which the ends of the spring act
may be faced with brass to allow of the ends of the spring to slide more easily;
this buffer, acting in conjunction with the buffers at each side, constructed in
the usual way, will, in case of collision, have the effect of neutralizing the
shock of an engine or carriage similarly provided.
Another of our improvements for preventing the engines and carriages
getting off the railways, consists in the arrangements or method herein-after
described, by which the wheels run on rails paved with wood blocks or any
other vegetable or mineral substance; the wood blocks to be about eight
inches long, four inches deep, three inches wide at top and four at the bottom,
cut longitudinally and prepared with coal tar or other similar substance,
whereby not only the heaving and vibration of the engine, and the danger of
bounding off the rails will be diminished, but the disagreeable rattling occa-
sioned by the iron wheels running on iron is in great measured obviated.
The rails are laid down so that the heading joints rest on and are spiked down
to the same sleeper; the iron rails are to be cast with a dovetailed channel,
Figure 9; the narrow or upper part of the channel of the rail will prevent the
blocks from rising out, and the blocks cut to their proper shape are to be
driven in from the ends of the rail to their proper position, the end of one
block to protrude three or four inches, and the same space to be left in the
next rail to receive it, as shewn at Figure 10, so that when driven together
the possibility of either end rising will be prevented.
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, it will be obvious to any person acquainted with
carriages and railways that the precise details above given may be varied
without departing from the character of the several improvements herein-before
described. And what we claim as of our Invention in respect of the said
apparatus and arrangements herein-before described is,-
First, the application of the sliding wheels capable of turning on their own
axis, and sliding up and falling down immediately on passing over any obstruc-
tion without bearing any part of the weight of the carriage, and by their
adhering to the rail, having a tendency to keep the other wheels from going
off, whether the said sliding wheels be or be not used in conjunction with
the concave and convex buffers, as above-described.
Secondly, the application of the rising and falling concave and convex
buffers, as above described.
Thirdly, the application of the convex and concave buffers in combination

page_text: with spiral springs working in a box and attached to an arm, as above de-
scribed.
Fourthly, the construction and application of the leading carriage, and of
the fender for removing obstructions, whether the said fender be used alone or
in combination with the buffer above described.
Fifthly, the construction and application of the half axles working in a box,
so as to allow either wheel to rise and fall without affecting the opposite one,
as above described.
Sixthly, the arrangements herein-before described for applying spiral springs
and cylinders, in which they work up and down, to the wheels of carriages
travelling on railways.
Seventhly, the application of the elliptic spring as a buffer in front of the
leading carriage or of an engine, as above described.
And, lastly, the construction and application of the angular channelled rail,
paved with wood, vegetable, or mineral substance, in the manner and for the
purposes herein-before described.
In witness whereof, we, the said Francis M'Getrick and Matthew Bailey
Tennant, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-sixth day
of July, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
forty-three.