IMPROVEMENTS IN AND APPERTAINING TO POSTAL DESPATCH APPARATUS, OR APPARATUS FOR CARRYING LIGHT PACKAGES CONSIDERABLE DISTANCES BY MECHANICAL MEANS
Year: 1878

page_text: -LETTERS PATENT to William Phillips Thompson, of G, Lord Street, Liverpool,
in the County of Lancaster, British and International Patent Agent and Con-
sulting Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN AND APPERTAINING
TO POSTAL DESPATCH APPARATUS, OR APPARATUS FOR CARRYING LIGHT
PACKAGES CONSIDERABLE DISTANCES BY MECHANICAL MEANS." A communi-
cation from abroad by Monsieur Linus Felicien Chenivesse, of 5, Rue de
Chateaudun, Paris, in the Republic of France.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Phillips Thompson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 24th August 1878.
WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, in the County of
Lancaster, British and International Patent Agent and Consulting Engineer.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN AND APPERTAINING TO POSTAL DESPATCH APPARATUS, OR
APPARATUS FOR CARRYING LIGHT PACKAGES CONSIDERABLE DISTANCES BY ME-
CHANICAL MEANS." (A communication from abroad by Monsieur Linus Felicien
Chenivesse, of 5, Rue de Chateaudun, Paris, in the Republic of France.)
(In the inventor's own words translated):-
"The apparatus (styled in France the Chenivesse post) is composed of,-
1st. An endless rope or cable, metallic or otherwise.
2nd. Two terminal grooved pulleys of large diameter, actuating the endless
rope.
3rd. Intermediate grooved pulleys, supporting the rope aforesaid.
4th. One or more pockets, portfolios, or cylindrical boxes with pointed ends or
other similar containers fixed to the rope or cable, and forming as closely as possible
a portion of same without any sharp salient angles. These pockets form one of the
principal features of the Invention. They must be formed to suit the kind of
objects to be carried.
-
"The interintermediate pulleys present a groove wide enough to let the pockets
pass without injury.

page_text: "To make them as light as possible, and yet take any form of pocket desired, I
make them with a series of knees of light material bolted, screwed, or rivetted to
them, and attach the extremities of each to a light ring on each side the pulley.
These render the knees firm, & form a substantial but light vee pulley.
"In case of the pocket getting off the pulley at the moment of passage over it,
I place to left and right cylinders of wood or sheet iron, or other suitable material,
pivotted upon axles fixed to the frame carrying the pulley. These cylinders have
their surfaces nearer the axis of the pulley than the extremities of the knees are to
said axis. Thus the cable cannot escape from the pulleys in any case, a very
important point.
"The cable can be made to follow a curve. It suffices to put the pulleys in
accordance therewith. This has and can be done in various ways in rope guiding,
and the same plans can be adapted to my Invention. The poles on which the pulleys
are suspended or fixed can be at a long distance from each other, and the two
lines of cable can also be far distant from each other, or upon two opposite points
of a circumference, which offers serious advantages.
"With differences of temperature the cables vary sensibly in length; but this is
no inconvenience, the curvature or amount of slack between the posts being only so
much greater, that is all. If desirable, however, the length from line to line can be
taken in a little. This is continually done in rope traction elsewhere. The
mechanical work necessary to give the cable a great speed is very inconsiderable.
Thus I calculate that to connect two points 10 kilometers apart with an iron wire
cable of 5 millimeters diameter and a hemp centre, one ought to be able to get a
performance of six kilogrametres for each metre of road traversed.
"The cable can run along a wall, pass over a house, across a tree. It can also
traverse gorges, deep valleys, rivers, streams, forests, and the like. Numbered pads
of india-rubber, or any other suitable material, fixed upon the cable at convenient
distances, offer the greatest precision for arresting the movement of the cable as
soon as the pocket arrives at its destination.
"With two pockets, when one arrives at one end the other has also necessarily.
arrived at the other end if they are so placed as to divide the cable into two equal
lengths. The motive pulleys are placed in any convenient place. Nothing prevents
its being brought into an office installed against a wall. All that is required is to
make two holes to give passage to the two lines of cable, and also to the pockets.
It is desirable to have only open pulleys (at least if the apparatus is exposed to
the wind), that is to say, composed, for example, of thin sheet iron forming the
groove, it being tied to the centre by spokes of iron wire.
[
"The Invention is especially desirable for transporting rapidly little objects, such
as letters, newspapers, and the like, through difficult country, such as mountains, or
across the houses in towns."

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Phillips Thompson in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
22nd February 1879.
WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, in the County of
Lancaster, British and International Patent Agent and Consulting Engineer.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN AND APPERTAINING TO POSTAL DESPATCH APPARATUS, OR
APPARATUS FOR CARRYING LIGHT PACKAGES CONSIDERABLE DISTANCES BY ME-
CHANICAL MEANS." A communication from abroad by Monsieur Linus Felicien
Chenivesse, of 5, Rue de Chateaudun, Paris, in the Republic of France.
i
This apparatus is composed,-
First. Of an endless cable, chain, or rope, metallic or otherwise, Fig. 1.
Second. Of two terminal grooved pulleys A of large diameter, say, one and a
half to four metres, giving movement to the endless cable.
Third. Of intermediato grooved pulleys P, upon which passes the said endless
cable.
Fourth. Of one or several pockets, pouches, or portfolios, Fig. 2, or else of one or
more cylindrical boxes, Fig. 3, which are fixed upon the cable by means such as
shown in the Drawing. These pockets or receptacles fixed to the endless cable con-
stitute a principal part of the Invention. They can have a great variety of forms,
made to suit the objects to be carried:
The intermediate pulleys P present a very large groove, so as to permit the
pockets passing with the least unnecessary wear and tear.
In order to inake the pulleys as light as possible consistent with the desired form
I bolt or rivet upon the ordinary grooved pulley a dozen or so elbows of very
light iron, and I bind their extremities with two circles or rings of equally light
section, but which bind the various elbows together into a rigid structure.
To prevent the digression of the pouches at the moment of their passage over
the pulleys, I place cylinders of wood or iron to the right and left, pivotted upon
the fixed frames or standards of the pulleys, built in iron or in wood, Fig. 4.
The distance of the axis of the pulley from the generating line of the cylinder
is less than the distance of the said axis from the extremities of the elbows, Fig. 5.
It follows that the cable cannot fly out from the groove of the pulleys in any case.
This is a main point. One can make the cable follow any curve. All that is
required is to place the pulleys conformably, a point in mechanics long known. The
lines accordingly are sometimes at a great distance one from another upon two
opposite points of a circumference. This offers serious advantages.
With the difference of temperature the cable varies sensibly in length, but this
is not productive of inconvenience. The convexity of the curve which it describes
between the pulleys increases or diminishes, that is all. Otherwise one can regulate
the length from time to time, and thus get over the difficulty. The necessary
mechanical work to impart to the cable a great velocity is very inconsiderable.
Thus Mr. Chenivesse calculates to be able to connect two points distant about ten -
kilometres, say about six miles, with an iron wire cable of five millimetres, say
three-sixteenths of an inch diameter, with a hemp core, at, an expenditure of work
of about six kilogramme metres for each metre of transit, say forty foot pounds to
the yard run.
it can also span
The cable can run along a wall, pass over a house, across a tree;
ravines, deep valleys, rivers, streams, and the like.
It is very desirable to have only open pulleys, at least if the apparatus is exposed
to the wind, such, for example, as one with sheet iron formning the groove, that part
being bound to the centre by wire spokes.
FIRST ARRANGEMENT.
To send the dannathan th
11 1

page_text: iron wire attachments, Fig. 6. The model apparatus A, carrying two half
cylinders C, is prolonged vertically by two plates or partitions; on these are
fastened the attachments indicated, destined to carry the box of letters: The wire
is held by two little stops O. The half cylinders have a mortice, Fig. 7, for the
passage of the forefinger, which causes the attachments to fall upon the cable.
.
The boxes of letters, Fig. 8, can take many forms, but it is necessary that they
should lie close to the cable to keep the balance. To this effect two elastic and
sufficiently strong cords fixed to each extremity of the box in n hold the attach-
ments by their shrinkage. This sort of india-rubber spring is very good; does not
wear, since it does not touch any part, and the action extends over its entire length;
a distance here half the length of the box at least. An interior hinged sheath
protects the elastic cord against contact with the despatches placed in the box.
The screwed hooks, Fig. 9, are fixed at the end of each of the two elastic
cords. J
Fig. 10, arrangement of box carried by the cable..
Fig. 11, the moveable receptacle $, containing horsehair or wool to deaden the
shock of the box on its arrival; C, circular knife cutting the attachments. The
bag is in two pieces; and is composed of hemp of two half rings and a bottom,
without other fastening, as it is shown in Fig. 12.
Figs. 13, 14, and 15 show another arrangement, an annular hinged letter box.
This box can be cylindrical, conical, or of any other form. One can readily under-
stand that it is easy to place this box upon the cable if one takes care to put it
upon a table above which the cable passes at a given height. At the moment of
operation the cable passes to the middle of the empty interior of the box, a cylin
drical void m, n, Fig. 13. The box is now closed fast, and it is immediately con-
nected to and transported by the cable.
To facilitate the connection one can line the interior m, n, with leather or rubber.
The attachment of the boxes remains intact even with a sensible inclination of the
cable. If, however, the cable-be very strongly inclined one would have recourse to
packing bosses or cushions placed here and there along the wire, made of twine or
iron wire, or simply of rubber. These cushions could be placed abont five hundred
yards apart, and would pass easily into the hole of the box m, n.
To stop the box one requires a moveable receiver, which the operator places upon
the cable at the required moment, shown at Fig. 17. This receiver can be placed
upon a sliding piece on a support sufficiently strongly stayed, and above which the
cable passes at a nearly uniform fixed height.
In summing up, it will be seen that it is a simple operation to fix the suspended
boxes by means of clastic cords. :
1st operation. One stretches the cords by means of hooks, that passes into the
hollow m, Fig. 7 (screw hooks turned by the fingers to prevent their coming
out).
2nd operation. One fixes them to two hollow half cylinders, Fig. 6, and
hooks up.
1
3rd operation. One draws back the hooks in the direction of the mortice or
hollow, and immediately the strings are drawn by the elastic cords.
5 4th operation. One passes the forefinger of each hand into the mortices or
grooves of the hollow half cylinders C, Fig. 6, to let them fall upon the cable,
which immediately draws away the box.
Now to sum up the operation of the other system
1st. The open box is placed upon the table in such manner that the cable passes
through the vacancy in the two half cylinders, Fig. 22.
2nd. Upon the table, Fig. 19, slides the piece P, supporting a hinged tube t.
The hinge of tube t is in C, Fig. 21, where the tube is shown open.
The Figure 19 shows how one proceeds to close the box. It suffices afterwards to
simply push it, and the cable carries it on immediately. It is noticeable that one
can also employ to support the intermediate pulleys the system represented by
Fig. 20, which permits one to put tho.cable.in place.

page_text: In order to know the time of arrival of each box one can place a counting
apparatus at all the stations.
As the cable does not slide over the pulleys it will be easy to ascertain its speed,
and consequently the position of each box, from the revolutions of the pulleys and
counting apparatus.
Having now described the Invention in every respect exactly as it has been com-
municated to me by Mr. Chenivesse, I wish it to be understood that what I believe
to be new, and desire to claim under the herein-before in part recited Letters
Patent, is,―
1st. The mode, as described, of conveying parcels, letters, and the like, by means
of an endless rope, chain, or cable passing over grooved pulleys or their mechanical
equivalent, to which rope are attached receptacles for carrying said matters of such
contour as to pass over the said pulleys.
2nd. The apparatus for carrying parcels, mails, and other small objects, substan-
tially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Phillips Thompson, have hereunto set
my hand and scal, this Twelfth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-nine.
WILLIAM P. THOMPSON. (L.S.)