Railways.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 19th Apr.-1888
Complete Specification Left, 11th Jan., 1889
Complete Specification Accepted, 12th Feb., 1889
Railways.
I, JOHN LIVINGSTONE, of West Grange, Bogside, By Alloa, Perthshire, Game-
keeper, do hereby declare the nature of my invention to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object the preventing of the wood or other keys or
wedges, which secure the rails of railways in their chairs from shifting longitudinally
out of the chairs even although they may get a little slack from the weather or use
and so prevent accidents by holding the rail in its chair until the surface men come
along to tighten the chairs again.
The nature and novelty of the invention consist in forming a V, rectangular,
round, or equivalent check or recess vertically down half or partially in the centre
of the face of the chair next the longitudinal wedge or key, and also down the
adjacent face of the key, so that by inserting a correspondingly or. converse shaped
section of iron or other metallic vertical securing cotter or key into the said recess it
would hold the longitudinal key in the position it was set or driven into. Several of
these transverse or vertical recesses would be formed in the face of the longitudinal
key at short distances apart, and at alternate distances also across the opposite side
of the longitudinal key, when the key was made parallel so that it could be reversed,
to enable the longitudinal key to be driven in to various distances for tightening up
the rail, and allow the vertical securing cotter or key to be inserted at the part
where the longitudinal key comes opposite the recess in the side of the chair.
The recess would preferably be formed right down through the cheek of the chair
to prevent anything getting in which would obstruct the cotter getting down to
its full depth: And a T or other projecting head would be formed on the
vertical cotter or key preferably on the edges and outside; or slits or recesses
might be formed in the back of the cotter for withdrawing it. And when preferred

page_text: for broad chairs, two or more of the cotter recesses might be formed in the inner
face of the jaw of the chair with differentially divided checks across the wood longi-
tudinal key which would enable the keys to be fixed at shorter intervals than they
could be with one recess in the chairs. When metallic longitudinal keys are used in
place of wood keys for securing the rails they might have creosoted or tarred canvas
or felt inserted between the iron key and the rail, and the retaining vertical cotters
might in this case be small and have the recesses in the longitudinal keys at nearer
intervals for tighthening them at shorter distances.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and Connected with the Securing of the Rails of
Railways.
I, JOHN LIVINGSTONE, of West Grange, Bogside, by Alloa, Perthshire, Game-
keeper, do hereby declare the nature of my invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed to he particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement in writing, reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of
Drawings and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:
This Invention has for its object the preventing of the wood or other keys-or
wedges, which secure the rails of railways in their chairs from shifting longitudinally
out of the chairs even although they may get a little slack from the weather or use,
and so prevent accidents by enabling the rail to be held in its chair until the surface-
men come along to tighten the wedges again.
And in order that my said invention, and the manner of performing or
carrying the same into effect or practice may be properly understood, I have here-
unto appended an explanatory sheet of Drawings in which the same reference letters
are used to indicate corresponding parts in all the figures where shown.
Figures 1 and 2 are a front elevation and plan respectively both partly in section,
the section part of Figure 2 being taken on the line 1---1 of Figure 1, showing a
rail A secured in a chair B having one arrangement of my improvements applied
thereto. Figure. 3 is a back elevation of the new vertical securing cotter C, and
Figure 4, a vertical section at right angles to Figure 3, and Figure 5 an inverted
plan of the same cotter C.
Referring to these Drawings, the nature and novelty of the invention consist in
forming a V rectangular, round, or equivalent check or recess b, vertically down
through the centre of the inner face B¹ of the chair-B, or it may be only half or
partially through it, next the ordinary longitudinal wooden wedge or key A¹ and also
down the adjacent face of the key A' at , as seen particularly.in Figures 1 and 2,
so that by inserting a correspondingly or converse shaped section of iron or other
metallic vertical securing cotter or key C into the said recess b. it will hold the
longitudinal key A' in the position it is set or driven into the chair B. Several of
these transverse or vertical recesses might be formed in the face of the longitudinal
key A at short distances apart, as dotted in. at in Figure 2, and at alternate
distances also across the opposite side of the longitudinal key A¹ as dotted in at "
when the key was made parallel vertically so that it could be reversed, to enable the
longitudinal key A' to be driven in to various distances for tightening up the
rail A, against the retaining face B of the chair B, and allow the vertical securing
cotter or key C, to be inserted at the part where the longitudinal key A¹ comes
opposite the recess in the side of the chair B. The recess would preferably be
formed right down through the cheek B¹ of the chair B as shown particularly in
Figure 1 to prevent anything getting in which would obstruct the cotter C, getting
down to its full depth; and a T or other projecting head is formed on the

page_text: vertical cotter or key C, preferably on the edges and outside; or slits or recesses
might be formed in the back of the cotter C or in the chair below it as indicated
at B in Figure 1 for withdrawing the cotter. And when preferred for broad
chairs, two or more of the cotter recesses might be formed in the inner face.
of the jaw B of the chair B, differentially divided to those in the wood longi-
tudinal key A which would enable the keys to be fixed at shorter intervals than
they could be with one recess in the chairs. B. When the keys A¹ are thus
male of wood, their vertical securing cotters would preferably be made of steel
with a cutting edge and groove as shown at c, c¹ Figures 3 to 5 so that they would
cut out their own retaining recess in the key A', while being driven in.
When metallic longitudinal keys are used in place of wood keys for securing the
rails A, they might have creosoted or tarred canvas or felt inserted between the iron
key A¹ and the rail A, or the face B₁ of the chair, and the retaining vertical
cotters C, might in this case be small and have the recesses in the longitudinal
keys A¹ at nearer intervals, for tightening them at shorter distances.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
-
First. The forming of checks or recesses of V, rectangular, rounded, or other
section vertically down the face of the chairs, and the adjacent face of the
longitudinal wedges or keys, in which vertical cotters or keys are inserted to
secure the longitudinal wedges and rails firmly in position, substantially as herein
described, in reference to and shown in the accompanying Drawings.
Second. In railway chairs, for securing the ordinary longitudinal keys or wedges
of rails, the construction and use of a vertical cotter driven in recesses between the
chair and the keys, substantially as herein described in reference to and shown in
the accompanying Drawings..
D1 1
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