provements in or relating to Couplings for Railway and like Vehicles.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 31st Aug.,
1899
Complete Specification Left, 29th May, 1900-Accepted, 31st Aug., 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Improvements in or relating to Couplings for Railway and like
Vehicles.
We, WILLIAM JOHN BRYANT, Manufacturer, 16, Hudson Road, Southsea, and
FRED HERBERT FRASLR, Rly Supt, of Joint South Westein & Brighton
Committee, Superintendent's Office, Portsmouth Station, in the County of Hants,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows.-
This invention relates to improvements in couplings for railway and like
vehicles, its object being the provision of a coupling by means of which the
vehicles may be automatically coupled, the uncoupling being at the same time a
simple and safe operation
In carrying out this invention a fixed hook is provided at the end of each
vehicle and over this hook is placed the bow or 1ng of a diaw-bai, such draw-
bar terminating at the end remote from the vehicle in a hook having its front
surface in the form of an inclined plane Ashong hame is attached to the
vehicle, preferably on each side of the fixed hook, and secured to this fiame ate
stiff springs or rubber blocks which bear upon the bow of the diaw-bai and tend
to keep the axis of the bat approximately horizontal
Pivotted to the frame, or if desired to a portion of the vehicle, is a spindle bent
or otherwise formed into a crank at the part adjacent to the dhaw-bar A lever
18 attached to one or both ends of the spindle by means of which the latter may be
rotated Normally the weight of the diaw-bai is taken paitly by the fixed hook
and partly by the crank-line portion of the spindle, the latter being, prevented
fm 1otation by means of a stop with which the end of the lever engages
Picferably there is no rigid connection between the diaw-bai and the spings or
blocks, but the outside of the bow of the diaw-bai is made somewhat wedge-shaped
so that when the coupling is in tension the springs will piess most strongly upon it.
When it is desired to automatically couple vehicles which are provided with
couplings according to this invention, they are pushed together and the inclined
faces of the diaw-bais meet and slide over each other against the action of the
springs or blocks which as before stated tend to keep the axes of the diaw-bais
approximately horizontal When the nose or flange of the hook of the one diaw-
bar has passed completely over that of the other the bars resume their approx1-
mately horizontal position and the hooks automatically engages with each other
as soon as the coupling is placed in tension by the motion of the vehicle
To uncouple the vehicles, one or other of the draw-bais is moved out of engage-
ment with its fellow by means of the pivoted crank-spindle and side lever, and
the draw-ba may if desued be kept in its disengaged position by providing a
second stop with which the lever may be engaged.
The diaw-bars used in the improved coupling are preferably so made that the

page_text: centie of the opening in the bow though which the fixed hook passes is approxi-
mately in line with the slot or opening in the hook at the end of the bai
Dated this 30th day of August 1899
WILLIAM JOHN BRYANT.
FRED H. FRASER.
Boult, Wade & Kilburn,
Agents for the Applicants.
Fig 5, 18 plan showing vehicles uncoupled
Fig is plan of coupling bar "B.'
Fig 7, is end view of "B
"
Fig 8, is the side elevation of "B"
Stud bolts S," are secured to front of vehicles around which spinal springs
are placed The nut is then sciewed on to the end of stud, thus securing sping
and plate to caillage
C," is a plate slotted over hook as shown
"B," coupling bai shaped as shown and hooking sideways into a similar bar
on adjacent calliage
"D" guide bar pivoted to plate "C" and secured to sliding bar "G."
"
F" sliding bolts, passed through plate "Cand slotted through back part
of coupling bai "B
.
"
.
Pins are put though "E" one in front of "B" and one at back of plate "C."
F" a ba secured to camage with V pieces cut out as shown A sliding
bai "G" has has projections shaped to fit into these V's, the same distance apait
as the V's
It 18 evident from the shape of the front ends of the coupling bai "B" that
as the vehicles come together, they will couple by means of the side hooks
When it 18 required to uncouple, the sliding bar "G" 18 placed into position,
so that the projecting V's are vertically over the cup Vs, and the guide bais "])"
are under the hook part of coupling bar B Then as the vehicles come together,
the front end of the coupling bat "B" is lifted, through sliding up the guide
bais D," this causes the back part of 1" to travel forward, thus diawing the
sliding bolts "E" with it, and the slots in "B" referred to above, allowing the
bolts E" to move forward horizontally
"
As soon as coupling bars "B" are lifted clear of each other the sliding
bolts E" are also clear of "F" & "G." This allows "G" to drop on to "F
thus closing the aperture between.
This holds the one coupling bar clear of the other
The pieces serve the purpose of again adjusting ready for coupling, for, by

page_text: sliding "G" across carriage, it lifts it again, thus allowing coupling bar "B"
to again become horizontal.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim 18.
1. A plan for coupling railway and other vehicles automatically by two hooks,
centrally biassed by springs hooking each other sideways in the mid distance
between their two respective vehicles
2 Vehicles fitted with coupling bais of the shape shown, with the flange at
the front end of the bar tuined to the night at one end of the vehicle, and a similar
bar with flange tuined to the left at the other end of the vehicle, will, if brought
into contact, couple; though one or both of the vehicles should change ends This
makes the coupling bar a fitting that can be used at either end of vehicle, in other
words, interchangeable.
FRED. H FRASER,
Town Station, Portsmouth.
W J BRYANT,