MOVING WAGGONS AND VESSELS BY RUNNING RACKS WITH STATIONARY MOTORS
Year: 1884

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION,
I, CHARLES STEINER 13 Portland Terrace, Regents Park in the County of
Middlesex Civil-Engineer do hereby declare the nature of my invention for
MOVING WAGGONS AND VESSELS BY RUNNING RACKS WITH STATIONARY MOTORS
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The new System of traction consists of a certain number of stationary motors,
erected along the railway, street or other communication, giving their power by
the mean of pinions on running racks, which are directly connected with the
waggons or vessels to be trained.
The stationary motors may be Steam-Gas-or compressed air-engines or
hydraulic or other motors. They may be quite close to the line of communication
or at any distance from it, delivering in the latter case their energy by any
transmission, suitable for the circumstances to the Pinionstations, which must bo
always near the line of communication.
I call the points, where the pinions are established "Pinionstations."
In every pinionstation there is either only one pinion for giving the power on
the rack, or there work two or more at once, where it is desirable to encrease the
number of the teeth, working at once and so to reduce in the same proportion the
work, which one tooth has to do. The distance of the pinions of one station, if
there are two or more, are so, that the strokes on the teeth of the pinions are
consecutive.
The rack is single, that is to say, it represents only one surface in the cross-
section besides any pieces for reinforcement or guiding. In order to prevent that
a system of two or more parallel racks should be deemed an improvement of
this invention, I particularly state here my knowledge of that arrangement,
prefering to obtain the same effect by employing two or more pinions on the same
place. The form and size of the teeth are variable according to the power and
velocity. For great velocity and small power the number of teeth may increase
and their size diminish in any degree. The limit being a rough surface.
The rack is composed of a number of pieces, forming together a whole length
which must be greater than the longest distance between two pinionstations, so
that the rack, when leaving one pinionstation, is already caught by the next one.

page_text: The rack rolls over or underground by the mean of wheels on rails or cables or
by the mean of fixed pulleys, or it is supported by movable swimming objects.
The motors work only during the passing of the racks, which move the train, or
single waggons or vessels and the putting at work and stopping can be done by
men or automatically by the moving rack.
Both ends of the rolling rack are constructed in such a manner, that where
meeting with another pinion, they can make a vertical movement by the mean of
springs, which allow such movement to a certain pression, securing so the gearing
together with the pinion.
.
On ramps the disposable effect of power, resulting from descending waggons,
may be saved by the same rack & pinion, working pumps of water or air or
putting it up in electric accumulators and so this power may be used again by the
respective motors for the ascent.
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:
1.) To employ running racks with stationary pinions instead of Locomotives,
Steamers or Animals for the traction of Waggons or Vessels.
2.) To employ running racks with stationary pinions for utilizing the effect of
power, disposable when waggons descend a ramp.