IMPROVEMENTS IN COMPENSATING APPARATUS FOR RAILWAY SIGNAL WIRES
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frederick Wade Brierley and Walter Wright Brierley
both of the Harrow Road in the County of Middlesex for an invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN COMPENSATING APPARATUS FOR RAILWAY SIGNAL
WIRES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Frederick Wade Brierley
and Walter Wright Brierley at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents
on the 28th February 1882.
FREDERICK WADE BRIERLEY and WALTER WRIGHT BRIERLEY both of the
Harrow Road in the County of Middlesex "IMPROVEMENTS IN COMPENSATING
APPARATUS FOR RAILWAY SIGNAL WIRES.
"
The object of this invention is to provide an apparatus which will compensato
for the slackening and tightening of railway signal wires due to the changes of
temperature.
In carrying out our invention we employ what is known as a "floating" wheel,
and to this wheel we attach a chain which after taking a turn round the wheel is
attached by one end to the signal wire and by the other end to a weight.
The floating wheel is formed with teeth or holes on its periphery or has a plato
formed with holes bolted to its side to receive a pawl whereby the wheel may be
turned on its centre to pull off the signal. This pawl is carried by a lever or arm
which is mounted loosely on the axle of the wheel and may consist of a pin secured
to a slide on the lever or arm and which is caused to enter the teeth or holes in the
wheel by a second pin secured to the slide and working in a curved slot in a plate
fixed by the side of the wheel. The lever or arm is connected to the hand lever
by a rod, or in any other convenient manner.
Or an ordinary pawl carried by the lever or arm may be used. This pawl is
caused to enter the teeth or holes by a link one end of which is pivotted to the
pawl and the other end is provided with a pin which slides in the groove in the
side-plate before mentioned.
Or the pawl may consist of a spring secured to the lever or arm and provided
with a pin which will pass through the lever and enter holes in the side of the

page_text: floating wheel. In this case the curved slot in the side plate will be dispensed
with, and in lieu thereof the end of the spring which is bent outwards slightly
enters a hole formed in the side plate.
The wheel when the signal is at danger (which will be its normal position) will
be free to rotate upon its axis, so as to take up slack, or give out wire according to
circumstances, the pawls being held clear of the wheel by the action of an inclined
portion at the end of the curved slot acting on the slide or link pins, or by the end
of the spring entering the hole in the side plate prepared for it. By pulling on
the hand lever to lower the signal the lever or arm will be depressed and the pins
will be pushed into the curved part of the slot or the spring will be drawn out of
its hole by which means the respective pawl pins will be drawn down or forced
into the teeth or holes in the wheel, which will then be locked.
The continued movement of the hand lever will then rotate the wheel on its
axis and pull off the signal.
Instead of the slot in the side plate, we may employ an arrangement of toggle
levers to force the pawl into the teeth of the floating wheel, or a spring pawl to be
released by a stop pin or wedge may be employed.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Frederick Wade Brierley and Walter Wright Brierley in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 28th August 1882.
FREDERICK WADE BRIERLEY and WALTER WRIGHT BRIERLEY both of the
Harrow Road in the County of Middlesex " IMPROVEMENTS IN COMPENSATING
APPARATUS FOR RAILWAY SIGNAL WIRES
"7
The object of this invention is to provide an apparatus which will automatically
compensate for the slackening and tightening of railway signal wires due to
changes of temperature.
In carrying out our Invention we employ what is known as a "floating" wheel,
to which is attached a chain connected at one end to the signal wire, and at the
other end to a weight. The floating wheel has teeth or holes on its periphery to
receive a locking pin which is connected to the hand lever and whereby the wheel
when locked may be rotated on its axis to pull off the signal.
In the accompanying drawings we have shewn in Sheet I one form of our
compensating apparatus, Fig: 1 being a side elevation of the apparatus shewing
its connections with the signal post and the hand lever, and Fig: 2 an edge view
of the compensator with the hand lever disconnected. In Fig: 1 the signal post is
drawn one half the size of the compensator.
A. A are two side plates which are bolted or otherwise secured to a suitable
bed-plate. In the said plates are formed the bearings for an axle B on which is
mounted the "floating" wheel C.
In the periphery of this wheel C radial holes a. to receive a locking pin to be
presently described are formed. In constructing this wheel we prefer to employ
a grooved pulley, and we form the holes a. in a separate ring which is afterwards
shrunk on to one side of the grooved pulley as seen at Fig: 2.
To the pulley is secured in any convenient manner a short length of chain b
which after passing once round the pulley is secured by one end to the signal wire c.
and by the other end to a weight d. This weight is intended to take up "slack'
wire but is not sufficient to pull off the signal.
The locking device is carried by a lever or arm D mounted loosely on the axle B
and consists of a pin e. secured to a slide f. mounted on the lever D. At the lower
end of this slide is a pin g. which works in a slot h. in one of the side plates A.
The slot h. is curved for the greater portion of its length the curve being struck
from the axis B but its upper end is inclined outwards and the pin g. rests in the
end of the inclined portion when the signal is on (see Fig: 1), the locking pin e.
being then clear of the wheel A.-The lever D is connected by a rod i to the hand
lever E.
The action of the apparatus is as follows. viz:-On pulling over the hand lever E
in the direction of the arrow the lever D is depressed.
The commencement of the downward motion of the lever D-will cause the
pin g. to slide down the inclined portion of the slot h. into the curved portion in
doing which the slide f. will be drawn down and with it the locking pin e, which
will enter one of the holes a. in the wheel When the pin g. enters the curved
portion of the slot h, the pin e. will be locked with the wheel A and the continued
downward movement of the lever D into the position indicated by the dotted
Jine X Fig: 1 will cause the wheel A. to rotate on its axis in the direction of the
arrow and "pull off" the signal, the wheel being attached to the signal wire as
before mentioned.
To raise the signal the hand lever is rocked in the opposite direction, the lever D
is raised, which movement (the wheel being still locked) rotates the wheel in the

page_text: opposite direction and slackens the signal wire so as to allow the weight at the
signal post to act on the semaphore arm in the usual way.
When the pin g. reaches the end of the inclined portion of the slot h, the
wheel A is free to turn in either direction, to the left to take up slack under the
action of the weight d, or to the right to allow for the contraction of the signal
wire caused by the temperature.-The weight at the signal post being greater than
the weight d, the latter has to give way.
In Sheet II we have shewn another form of the apparatus, Fig: 1 being a side
elevation and Fig: 2 an edge view. The same letters of reference apply to
corresponding parts in all the figures.
In this arrangement the wheel is formed with radial teeth at one edge of its
periphery instead of holes a.
The locking device consists of a pawl j, which is pivotted to the end of the
lever D. The pawl j. is caused to engage with the teeth a. by the link k. one end
of which is pivotted to the pawl, and the other end is provided with a pin g. which
works in the slot h. of the side plate A. As the lever D descends under the action
of the hand lever E, the pawl j. enters a tooth, being guided thereto by the
link At the same time the link . straightens out after the manner of a toggle
joint and the pin g. is pushed into the curved portion of the slot h. This locks
the pawl in the teeth of the wheel A, and so long as the pin g. remains in the
curved slot the wheel will be locked.
The return motion of the lever D frees the wheel as indicated with respect to the
first arrangement.
In Sheet III we have shewn a further modification of our compensating
apparatus, Fig: 1 being a side elevation Fig: 2 an edge view Fig: 3 a cross
section partly in section on an enlarged scale of a portion of the wheel, and
Fig 4 a front view of the locking device which in this modification we term an
engaging plate.
In this arrangement the wheel is cast with two rows (side by side) of ratchet
teeth a on its inner periphery the teeth in one row being set in the opposite
direction to those of the other.
The engaging plate e, is formed with corresponding teeth and it is actuated as
described with reference to the former figures, viz: by a pin g. working in a slot h.
in the side plate A. The engaging plate is secured to the lever D in any convenient
manner to allow of its sliding longitudinally thereon.
In this modification the inclined portion of the slot h. will be turned in the
opposite direction as the engaging plate has to be pushed up instead of being drawn
down into the teeth.
A further modification in the construction of our compensating apparatus is
shewn at Figures 3 and 4 Sheet II Fig: 3, being a side elevation and Fig: 4 an
edge view of the same.
In this arrangement the holes a are formed in the side of the floating wheel.
The locking device consists of a pin e. which is rivetted or otherwise firmly
secured to a plate 7. This plate is hinged at one end to the lever D and its outer
end is bent outwards as shewn at Fig: 4 and enters when the wheel is unlocked,
The pin e works through an opening in the
a hole m formed in the side plate A.
lever D.
In order to lock the wheel the lever D is depressed by the hand lever E, as before
described, which draws the part . of the plate out of the hole m, and its outer
edge rests against the inner face of the side plate A.
By this means the pin e. will be caused to enter one of the holes a. in the side of
the floating wheel and so long as the inclined part . bears against the inner face
of the side plate the wheel will be locked to the lever D.-It will thus be seen that
the inner face of the plate A takes the place of the curved part of the slot h.
referred to in the former figures, and the inclined portion of the plate 7. serves
instead of the inclined portion of the slot h. The action of the apparatus is
⚫ otherwise the same as in the former Figures.

page_text: 2
Having now described the nature of our Invention of Improvements in
compensating apparatus for railway signal wires” and explained the manner of
carrying the same into effect We claim:"
First: In an apparatus for compensating for the contraction and expansion of
railway signal wires, the combination with a "floating" wheel connected on one side
with the signal wire and on the other side with a weight, of a locking device the
action of which is governed by a curved and inclined slot or its equivalent
substantially as herein described and shewn in the drawings.
Second: The locking devices constructed arranged and operated substantially as
herein shewn and described for locking the hand lever E to the floating wheel for
the purpose set forth.
In witness whereof we the said Frederick Wade Brierley and Walter Wright
Brierley have hereunto set our hands and seals this twenty-sixth day of
August in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and eighty
FREDERICK WADE BRIERLEY. (L.S.)
WALTER WRIGHT BRIERLEY.
(LS.)