IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ACTUATING RAILWAY ation
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in
the County of Middlesex, and of Glasgow, North Britain, Gentleman, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ACTUATING RAILWAY
ation from Charles Puiscono of Domic France
D"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
19th July 1855.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, and of Glasgow, North Britain, Gentleman, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ACTUATING
RAILWAY BREAKS," a communication from Charles Bricogne, of Paris, France,
to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to a peculiar construction and arrangement of
mechanism for actuating railway breaks, whereby they require less power to
bring them into action and are more instantaneously actuated than by the
existing methods of effecting the same.

page_text: The improvements consist in the employment of a moveable weight placed
in communication with the actuating rod of any ordinary break, and so
arranged, that when the break is out of action the weight is held up or
supported, but when the weight is released it instantly falls, and by its gravity
supplies the power requisite for putting on the break. This weight is divided
vertically, or composed of two parts, one of which is toothed, or formed into a
rack in the inside, into which rack two pinions are made to gear. The axes of
these pinions are each fitted with a bevel wheel, gearing into corresponding
bevel wheels fast on the vertical shaft or break rod.
The weight is made slightly heavier on the rack side, so that its centre of
gravity in falling shall pass tangentially over the pitch lines of the pinions, by
which means its force is exerted perpendicularly on the pinions, and the weight
is less liable to get jammed. It is guided by antifriction rollers working on
studs fitted into suitable brackets or standards, which are bolted to any con-
venient portion of the carriage or waggon. An ordinary hand wheel or winch
handle and a ratchet wheel are keyed on to the top of the vertical shaft or
break rod. A detent of a peculiar construction takes into the teeth of the
ratchet wheel, and, by preventing the break rod from turning, keeps the move-
able weight elevated until required for action. This detent works on a fixed
centre in a suitable supporting plate, and is kept pressed against the teeth of
the ratchet wheel by a blade spring. The tail of the detent is jointed to a
link, which is also jointed at its opposite end to the tail of a lever or handle,
which throws out the detent, when the break is to be put on, this handle being
actuated by the guard of the train. By connecting the detents of the different
carriages or waggons of the train, or by connecting the various break rods by
gearing, the whole of the weights may be released at once, and the breaks
applied simultaneously. The weights are raised again by turning the various
break rods by the hand wheels or handles, which may also be used in the
ordinary manner for still further tightening the break.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
and of Glasgow, North Britain, Gentleman, send greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said John Henry Johnson, Her special license that I, the said John
Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, or 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, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ACTUATING RAILWAY BREAKS," a communication
from Charles Bricogne, of Paris, France, upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said John Henry Johnson, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, 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 John Henry Johnson, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and
to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
The said Invention relates to a peculiar construction and arrangement of
mechanism for actuating railway breaks, whereby they require less power to
bring them into action and are more instantaneously acted upon than by the
methods at present in use. The improvements consist in the employment of
a moveable weight placed in communication with the actuating rod of any
ordinary break, and so arranged that when the break is out of action the
weight is held up or supported, but when the weight is released it instantly
falls, and by its gravity supplies the power requisite for putting on the
break. This weight is divided vertically, or composed of two parts, one of
which is toothed, or formed into a rack in the inside, into which rack two
pinions are made to gear. The axes of these pinions are each fitted with a
bevel wheel, gearing into corresponding bevel wheels fast on the vertical shaft
or break rod. The weight is made slightly heavier on the rack side, so that
its centre of gravity in falling shall pass tangentially over the pitch lines of
the pinions, by which means its force is exerted perpendicularly on the pinions,

page_text: An
and the weight is less liable to get jammed. The weight is guided by anti-
friction rollers working on studs fitted into suitable brackets or standards,
which are bolted to any convenient portion of the carriage or waggon.
ordinary hand wheel or winch handle and a ratchet wheel are keyed on to the
top of the vertical shaft or break rod. A detent of a peculiar construction
takes into the teeth of the ratchet wheel, and, by preventing the break rod
from turning, keeps the moveable weight elevated until required for action.
This detent works on a fixed centre in a suitable supporting plate, and is kept
pressed against the teeth of the ratchet wheel by a blade spring.
The tail of the detent is jointed to a link, which is also jointed at its
opposite end to the tail of a lever or handle, which throws out the detent, when
the break is to be put on, this handle being actuated by the guard of the
train. By connecting the detents of the different carriages or waggons of
the train, or by connecting the various break rods by gearing, the whole of
the weights may be released at once, and the breaks applied simultaneously
throughout the entire train. The weights are raised again by turning the
various break rods by the hand wheels or handles attached to them, which
may also be used in the ordinary manner for still further tightening the
breaks.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood, I shall now
proceed particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose I shall refer to
the several Figures on the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed, the same
letters of reference indicating corresponding parts throughout all the Figures.
Figure 1 of the Drawings represents a side elevation of the improved
arrangement of mechanism for working the breaks applied to the framing of
a railway carriage; Figure 2 is a top plan of the same, corresponding to
Figure 1 Figure 3 is an elevation at right angles to Figure 1. Figures 4, 5,
6, and 7 are details of the detent and ratchet arrangement which I apply to
the break rod; and Figures 8 and 9 are enlarged details of the actuating
weight. The vertical shaft or break rod A is composed of wrought iron,
similar to an ordinary break rod, and at the top is fitted either a winch
handle or a hand wheel B, which in the ordinary arrangement of breaks
requires to be turned several times and with considerable force before the
break blocks are properly screwed up to the tyres of the wheels. But
according to the present arrangement this wheel has merely to release or take
off the breaks when requisite.
In applying the breaks, it is simply necessary to disengage the detent a
from the teeth of the ratchet wheel b, which is fast on the top of the rod A,

page_text: and which keeps the weight C elevated so long as it is engaged with the
detent. The weight C forms in reality the motive power which applies the
break, and it is therefore made sufficiently heavy to exert the requisite power
for that purpose, being composed of cast or wrought iron, lead, or any
other suitable and dense material.
In order to facilitate the attachment of this weight to the apparatus, it is.
made in two parts, united at the top and bottom by wrought-iron tie bars c, c,
leaving a necessary space between them for the passage of the axes of the
two spur pinions d, d, (Figure 8), which gear with the internal rack e. formed
on the inner side of one of the pieces composing the weight, such piece
being made considerably heavier than the other, in order that the gravity of
the weight may act more effectually and directly on the teeth of the pinions,
and the weight be prevented from becoming jammed between its guides.
This mode of construction has also the advantage of allowing the weight to
descend proportionally as the break brock wears away.
The axes of the pinions d, d, have keyed on to them, outside the standards
D which support them, two bevel wheels E, E, each in gear with a corre-
sponding bevel wheel on the vertical rod A. These two pairs of bevel wheels,
like the pinions herein-before mentioned, are not indispensable, and I have
only shewn them in order to increase the security of the whole apparatus;
it is evident that one pinion and one pair of bevel wheels of a sufficient size
would be capable of resisting any shock to which they might be subjected.
The standards D, which are bolted on to the main framing of the carriage,
and carry the bearings of the axes of the pinions d, serve also as guides for
the two parts of the weight to slide in. For this purpose, I have added two
pairs of friction pulleys f, f, which bear upon the external sides of the weight,
and thereby maintain it in a vertical position, notwithstanding the vibration or
oscillation of the carriage.
When it is necessary to retard or stop the train, the guard disengages the
detent a at the top of the rod, and the weight C thus released from its hold
instantly descends, and by means of its rack e turns the pinions d and bevel
wheels E. This movement, which is effected with the greatest rapidity, is
transmitted to the rod A, and thence to the levers and blocks of the breaks, in
any convenient manner.
It will be seen, on referring to Figures 4, 5, 6, and 7, that the arrangement
of detent which I employ is of a peculiar construction: it is not simply an
ordinary detent engaged in the teeth of the ratchet wheel b, but consists of a
lever detent
the opposite extremity of which is jointed to a small wrought

page_text: iron connecting rod h, the other end of which is jointed to one end of the lever
handle J, which is under the immediate controul of the guard of the train.
When this lever handle J is brought from the position shewn in Figure 4 to
that shewn in Figure 5, it brings back the points of attachment i and n
(Figure 7) to and n¹, Figure 5, whereby the detent a with its blade spring
gis disengaged from the ratchet b, and is brought into the position shown
at a in Figure 5. This detent may be left disengaged as long as it is con-
sidered necessary, and without it being requisite for the guard to keep his
hand constantly applied to the handle. Having once put on the break by
releasing the weight, the guard has his hands free, and may, if found
desirable, turn the hand wheel B, thereby adding to the pressure of the breaks.
By turning the hand wheel in the opposite direction the weight C will be
raised, thus taking off the breaks, and restoring the entire apparatus to its
original position. The height to which the weight is raised varies according
to the thickness of the break blocks and the space which it is required to leave
between the blocks and the circumference of the wheels. By this arrangement
also the same power will always be obtained by the same weight, whether the
break blocks be much worn or entirely new. The amount of fall of the weight
may be regulated or adjusted, and the power of the weight itself increased or
diminished, according to the resistance to be overcome, and according to the
particular arrangement of breaks to which this mechanism may be applied.
The facility with which the weight can be released, the detent having only to
be displaced about 3/8ths of an inch, will admit, if found desirable, of all the
breaks in a train being actuated simultaneously by simply attaching the
several actuating levers J by means of a cord or chain.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into
effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that I do not confine or restrict myself
to the precise details or arrangements which I have had occasion to described
or refer to, as many variations may be made therefrom without deviating
from the principles or main features of the said Invention; but what I consider
to be novel and original, and thereforo claim as the Invention secured to me
by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is,-
First, the general construction and arrangement of mechanism or apparatus
for actuating the breaks of railway carriages or waggons, as herein-before
described.
Second, the system or mode of bringing railway breaks into action by means
of a rack and weight, as herein-before described.

page_text: Third, the so disposing of the centre of gravity of the weight C that it may
descend perfectly vertical and tangential to the pitch lines of the pinions d, d,
as herein-before described.
Fourth, the peculiar arrangement of detent and ratchet mechanism whereby
the breaks of a portion or the whole of a train may be instantly brought into
action at one and the same time, as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, the Nineteenth day of January, One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-six.
J. HENRY JOHNSON. (L.S.)