IMPROVEMENTS IN COMMON ROAD STEAM CARRIAGES, AND IN PART APPLICABLE TO RAILWAY LOCOMOTIVES
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Randolph, of Pollockshields, in the
County of Renfrew, North Britain, Engineer, for the Invention of '
"IMPROVEMENTS IN COMMON ROAD STEAM CARRIAGES, AND IN PART APPLICABLE
TO RAILWAY LOCOMOTIVES."
Sealed the 9th April 1872, and dated the 16th October 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Randolph
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Pétition,
on the 16th October 1871.
I, CHARLES RANDOLPH, of Pollockshields, in the County of Renfrew,
North Britain, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN COMMON ROAD STEAM CARRIAGES, AND IN PART.
APPLICABLE TO RAILWAY LOCOMOTIVES," to be as follows, that is to say:→.
This Invention comprises a variety of improved details or arrange-
ments combined together to form an improved steam carriage for carry-

page_text: ing passengers or goods on common roads. A part of the improvements
is applicable to railway locomotives.
The body of the carriage is supported on two pairs of wheels, and in
one modification is divided into three compartments, the middle one
being for passengers, the forward one for the steering mechanism and
various controlling levers, and the after one for the boiler, engines, water
tank, and coal bunker. The passenger compartment has doors at the
sides, and may be fitted up internally according to taste. The forward
pair of wheels are comparatively small and arranged near together,
being connected to a swivelling frame for steering purposes, and having
elliptical steel or other suitable springs applied to them. A vertical
spindle fixed to the axle serves for stcering the wheels by, and is turned
by a movable box or block in which it is fitted with feathers and grooves
allowing it and the block to move vertically relatively to each other. The
block can be raised or lowered by a vertical screw spindle connected to its
upper end and fitted with a hand wheel for the steersman, and inclined
feathers are formed on the outside of the block to work in helical grooves
in the inside of a hollow pillar fixed to the carriage framing, so that the
raising or lowering of the block causes it to turn, and it turns the
spindle and wheels. The boiler is of the vertical cylindrical class with
water tubes projecting down into an internal fire-box, and with a central
vertical uptake or chimney. The lower part of the boiler is tapered or
reduced so as to be narrower at the bottom, this construction conducing
to absence of priming, and permitting a compact disposition of the
engine details and other external parts. The boiler is held by straps
with its forward part fitting in a cavity between two frame castings
which are bolted together in front of the boiler, and the water tank is
placed between the boiler and the passenger compartment and rests on
the forward parts of the frame castings. The upper part of the boiler is
arranged to separate in one piece from the remainder, being connected
by flange joints at the top to the uptake and at its lower edge to the
top of the lower outer shell of the boiler. A single exit is provided
for the steam from the boiler into a fitting provided with two safety
valves and with two branch pipes leading to the engines. The two
hind wheels carry the principal weight, and run quite independently of
each other on studs or short axles fixed in blocks arranged to work in
vertical guides in the frame castings. Elliptical steel springs are

page_text: applied beneath each axle block, their bottoms resting on the bottom of
a strap fixed to the axle block, whilst a lug or bracket fixed to the frame
casting projects in through a slot in the inner side of the strap, and
resting on the top of the spring causes to bear thereon the weight of
the after part of the carriage with the boiler and parts in connection.
The wheels are by preference formed with wooden spokes fixed between
metal centres, but having the ordinary fellows and tires, and each is
driven by means of a toothed iron ring fixed on the inner side of the
spokes. Each wheel is driven by a pinion on a crank shaft actuated by
a pair of steam cylinders with link motion valve gear, the pinion being
applied at the level of the axle so that the vertical motion of the
carriage on the springs will not materially affect their relative positions.
Brake straps are applied to wheels on the crank shafts; and the brake
levers and valve motion levers are connected by rods to hand levers in
the steering compartment, so as to give the steersman complete control
over the action of the engines. The hind or driving wheels are thus
actuated by separate pairs of engines, and although an equal supply of
steam is always available by each pair of engines, yet the wheels will
act quite independently of each other when rounding curves, and will
revolve at different rates inversely corresponding to the resistances they'
respectively encounter. The cylinders are fixed to the upper parts of
the frame castings, the bearings for the crank shafts being at the lower
parts of those castings. The exhaust steam from the engines is led into
an annular chamber formed round the chimney just above the boiler, and
from this chamber the steam enters the funnel in the form of an annular
jet so as to assist the draught without making much noise. The draught
is further regulated by dampers or valves arranged in the ash-pit.
The improved apparatus herein-before described for applying the
exhaust steam to assist the, draught is advantageously applicable to
railway locomotives.
In adapting the carriage for goods the general arrangements may
remain as herein-before described, the middle compartment being fitted
for goods in any suitable known way. A single axle carried across the
carriage may in some cases be advantageously substituted for the two
.short axles herein-before referred to it; but the driving wheels may in
such cases still act independently of each other.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Charles Randolph in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 15th April 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, Charles
RANDOLPH, of Pollockshields, in the County of Renfrew, North Britain,
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of October, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fifth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Charles Randolph, Her special licence that
I, the said Charles Randolph, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Charles Randolph, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from
time to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, usc, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN COMMON Road Steam
CARRIAGES, AND IN PART APPLICABLE TO RAILWAY LOCOMOTIVES," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said Charles Randolph, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Charles Randolph, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement in writing, reference being had to the
accompanying Drawings, that is to say :- -
My said Invention comprises a variety of improved details or arrange-
ments combined together to form an improved steam carriage for carrying
passengers or goods on common roads. A part of the improvements is
also applicable to railway locomotives.

page_text: And in order that my said Invention, and the manner of performing
the same, may be properly understood, I hereunto append three Sheets
of explanatory Drawings to be herein-after referred to, and representing
a common road steam carriage as constructed with my improvements.
In these Drawings the same reference numerals are used to mark the
same or like parts wherever they are repeated.
Figure 1, Sheet 1, is a side elevation of the carriage, but with one of
the driving wheels removed; Figure 2, Sheet 2, is a longitudinal verticaļ
section; and Figure 3, Sheet 3, is a transverse vertical section, as taken
near the back or right hand end, and as viewed towards the left hand.
The body of the carriage is supported on two pairs of wheels 1, 2, and
is divided into three portions, the middle one 3 being for passengers,
the forward one 4 for the steering mechanism, and for certain controlling
levers, and the after one 5 for the boiler 6, engines 7, water tank 9, and
coal bunkers 10. The passenger compartment 3 has doors 11 at the
sides, and may be fitted up internally according to taste. The forward
pair of wheels 1 are arranged near together, being connected to a
swivelling disc 12 for steering purposes, and having elliptical steel.
springs 13 applied to them. There are two pairs of these springs, one
on each side of a vertical spindle 11 jointed to the axle 15 of the
wheels 1, and they rest on a stirrup piece 16 beneath the axle whilst
the swivelling disc 12 rests on them. This disc 12 is slightly coned,
and a number of conical antifriction rollers 17 are interposed between
it, and a slightly coned bearing surface formed on the bottom of a
casting 18 fixed to the bottom of the forward compartment 4 of the
carriage. The steering spindle 14 passes up through and is fitted to
turn in the casting 18, but the part of it above is squared to fit and
slide vertically in a tubular piece 19, which has its lower part squared
internally to fit the spindle. The piece 19 has two or more helical
feathers formed on its outside to work in helical grooves formed in
the lower part of a hollow standard 20 fixed to the flooring of the
steering compartment 4, and the upper part of the piece 19 is screwed
internally to receive a screw spindle 21 held in the top of the standard
20, and which has a hand wheel 22 fixed on it. The turning of the
hand wheel 22 raises or lowers the tubular piece 19, making it turn
by the action of the helical feathers and grooves, and thus through
The boiler G is of
it turning the steering spindle 11 and wheels 1.
the vertical cylindrical class, with water tubes 23 projecting down into

page_text: an internal fire-box 24, and with a central vertical uptake or chimney
25. The lower part 26 of the boiler is tapered and reduced so as to
be of smaller diameter than the upper part, this construction involving
lessened weight, conducing to absence of priming, and permitting a
compact disposition of the engine details and other external parts.
The boiler 6 is fitted within a space formed between the sides of the
water tank 9, this tank being approximately of a horse-shoc form in
plan, and being interposed between the boiler 6 and the passenger
compartment 3. The roof 27 of the boiler is arranged to separate in
one piece from the remainder, being connected by flange joints at the
top to the uptake 25, and at its lower edge to the top of the lower
outer shell 26. A single exit 28 is provided for the steam from the
boiler into a fitting 29, provided with two safety valves, and with two
branch pipes 8 leading to the engines 7. The two hind wheels 2 carry
the principal weight, and run quite independently of each other on
an axle 30, which is bent to pass beneath the boiler, and which is
formed to work in vertical guides 32 formed in the side frames of the
carriage. Helical springs 33, the cores of which are packed with wool
or rubber, are shown as applied to the wheels 2, being fitted above
the axle 30 in the guide recesses 32, which are made deep enough
for this purpose.
Or the wheels 2 may be mounted on separate studs
or short axles fixed in blocks working in the guides. The wheels 2
are formed with wooden spokes fixed between metal centres 34, but
having ordinary felloes and tires, and each is driven by means of a
toothed ring 35 fixed on the inner side of the spokes. Each wheel 2
is driven by a pinion 36 on a crank shaft 37, actuated by a pair of
steam cylinders 7 with link motion valve gear, the pinion 36 being
applied at the level of the axlo so that the vertical motion of the carriage
on the springs will not affect their relative positions. The section in
Figure 3 is taken so as to show only the pair of cylinders 7 on one
side, and even in the case of the cylinders shown various details in con-
nection therewith are not shown, because as they are well known and
understood their detailed delineation would unnecessarily complicate the
Drawings. The engines or pair of cylinders with link motion valve gear
and other details in connection therewith on one side are quite complete
in themselves, and quite independent of similarly complete engines on
the other side. Each crank shaft 37 has fixed or by preference forged
on it a brake wheel 38, and the brake levers 39 at the two sides are
connected by links to one rocking shaft 40 overhead, whilst the valve

page_text: motion levers 41 are similarly connected to another overhead rocking
shaft 42. Levers on these two rocking shafts 40, 42, are connected
by rods 43 running along under the roof of the engine and passenger
compartments 5, 3, of the carriage to vertical rocking shafts 44 at the
back of the steering compartment, and these shafts 44 are connected
to hand levers 45, by which the steersman has complete control over
the action of the engines. Notwithstanding that both sets of engines
are thus controlled by the same levers, they, and consequently the two
driving wheels 2, will act quite independently of each other when
rounding curves, and the wheels will respectively revolve at the different
rates suitable for whatever curve is being traversed. The exhaust steam
from the engines is led by pipes 46 into an annular chamber 47 formed
round the chimney just above the boiler 6, and from this chamber the
steam enters the funnel in the form of an annular jet external to the
› smoke, so as to assist the draught without making much noise. The
annular jet opening is formed by making the upper part 48 of the
chimney to slightly overlap the lower part, with a narrow space between
leading from the chamber 47, as will be easily understood from the
section, Figure 2. The upper part 48 of the chimney is connected to
the lower part by rings 49, rivetted to the two parts and connected by
brackets cast or formed on them. With the view of avoiding noise
the steam passing the safety valves is also led by a pipe 50 into the
annular chamber 47, and a pipe (not shown) is provided for drawing
off from the chamber 47 any water arising from condensation in it;
or in cold weather the hot water collecting in this way may be led
into foot warmers or other warming appliances. The draught is regu-
lated by means of dampers or valves 51 arranged in the bottom of
tho ash-pit 52, there being two connected by parallel levers and links,
and adjustable by means of a draw bar 53. The improved apparatus
herein-before, described for applying the exhaust steam to assist the
draught is advantageously applicable to railway locomotives.
I prefer to have the general construction of the framing of the carriage
as shown in the Drawings, it may however be modified in various ways
without departing from the general design. The part 54 of the roof
6 covering the after compartment 5 is arranged to be easily removed,
and each set of engines 7 with its crank shaft and connections is com-
pletely carried upon a malleable iron frame, which can be lifted clear

page_text: away from the carriage. In a similar manner the boiler 6 can be lifted
out separately, also the water tank 9.
The passenger compartment 3 may be enlarged, or made more or less
resembling an omnibus, and the forward compartment 1 may be adapted
for carrying passengers as well as the steersman.
In adapting the carriage as a steam lorry for goods the general
arrangements may remain as herein-before described, the middle com-
partment being fitted for carrying goods in any convenient way. And
in the case of a lorry the steam power may be taken advantage of to
work a crane or hoisting apparatus for loading and unloading it. The 1
hoisting apparatus may be placed at the forward end of the carriage,
and arranged to lift a barrel or other package vertically up through an
opening in the platform, which opening can be filled up with a plate
or board and the package be rolled or moved thence to any part of the
lorry. The hoisting apparatus may be worked from the engines, which 1
should in that case be provided with suitable gearing and engaging and
disengaging appliances, or it may be worked by a hydraulic cylinder
into which the water is forced either by a common pump worked by
the engines or by an injector supplied with steam from the boiler.
Having thus particularly described my said Invention, and the manner 2
of performing the same, I have to state that I do not restrict myself
to the precise details herein described or delineated; but that what
I believe to be novel and original, and claim as the Invention secured
to me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
1. The arranging or combining together of the parts of common 2
road steam carriages, substantially in the improved manner herein
described and delineated.
2. The arranging of the steering wheels and the steering details in
connection therewith substantially in the improved manner herein
described and delineated.
3. The constructing of steam boilers for common road steam carriages,
substantially in the improved manner herein described and delineated.
4. The applying of a complete set of engines independently to
each of the two driving wheels, as and for the purposes herein-before
described
3
3

page_text: 5. The fitting of common road steam carriages or railway locomotives
with an annular chamber to receive the exhaust steam from the engines,
and having an opening admitting the steam in the form of an annular
jet into the chimney or funnel, so as to surround and act on the smoke,
substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Randolph, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of April, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
two
0
Witness,
EDMUND HUNT,
Patent Agent,
Glasgow.
CHARLES RANDOLPH. (L.S.)