IMPROVEMENTS IN TILTS FOR RAILWAY TRUCKS." A ALL & 110O
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Ward, of Tadcaster, in the County of York, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN TILTS FOR RAILWAY TRUCKS."
A
ALL
&
110O
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Ward at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 8th April 1879.
"
THOMAS WARD, of Tadcaster, in the County of York. IMPROVEMENTS IN TILTS
FOR RAILWAY TRUCKS."
The object of my said Invention is to fit upon the trucks which are used on
railways for the conveyance of merchandise a novel arrangement of bows, for the
purpose of forming a tilt, upon which the tarpaulings or sheets may rest in a sloping
position, so as to prevent water from rain or snow accumulating upon them, the said
bows being so constructed as to fold back, over, or beyond the ends of the respective
trucks when not required for the purpose described.
I now proceed to describe more particularly my said Invention, and how I carry
the same out in practice. Near to the top of each side of the truck, and at a distance
from the ends of same, equal to about one sixth of the length of the truck, I hinge
or pivot a pair of bows, that is, one bow for each end of the truck. These bows
are cranked so that they radiate on the said hinges or pivots, at a distance of about
one sixth of the length of the truck from the said hinges or pivots to the spring of
the arch of the said bows. When the said bows are required for use, they are made
to radiate on the said hinges or pivots towards the middle of the truck until they
form two arches over it, at a distance apart equal to about one third the length of
the truck. During loading operations, or when the nature of the load of the truck
renders it desirable that they should be out of the way, they are caused to radiate
in opposite directions until the said bows hang over or beyond the ends of the
truck. The said bows are supported in either position by suitable rests fixed to the
truck, or catches upon the said bows.. They are constructed of iron or steel, either
solid, or partly solid and partly tubular.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Thomas Ward in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 7th October
1879.
THOMAS WARD, of Tadcaster, in the County of York.
FOR RAILWAY. TRUCKS."
"IMPROVEMENTS IN TILTS
The object of my said Invention is to fit upon the trucks which are used upon
railways for the conveyance of merchandise a novel arrangement of bows, for the
purpose of forming a tilt, upon which the tarpaulins or sheets may rest in a sloping
position, so as to prevent water from rain or melted snow accumulating upon the
said sheets, and so save the said sheets or tarpaulins and the merchandise which
they cover from the damage which results from such accumulation of water upon
and consequent percolation through the said sheets when they lie level or hollow
upon the trucks, the said bows being so constructed as to fold back, over, or beyond
the ends of the respective trucks when not required for the purpose described.
And in order that my said Invention may be better understood and readily carried
fnto effect, I will now, with the aid of the accompanying Drawings, whereon similar
letters and figures indicate corresponding parts, proceed more particularly to describe
and ascertain the same.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a goods' wagon, with doors in centre of each side
and my Invention fixed thereto.
Figure 2 is an end elevation of a truck of same class..
At b, Figure 1, I hinge or pivot the eyes, which form the ends of the radial arms
a¹, as, which said radial arms extend at the elbows d into bows, as shewn at a, a³, a*,
Figure 1, and a, a, Figure 2, which bows, when required for the purpose of sup-
porting the tarpaulin or sheet, are placed in position across the truck, as shewn
at a, a, Figure 1 and a, Figure 2, but when the sheet has been removed, and the
whole clearway of the wagon top is required for loading or other purposes, the said
bows being free to revolve upon the pivots or axes at b, Figure 1, are turned upon
the said pivots towards the ends of the truck until they fall beyond the same, as
clearly shewn at a, Figure 1, and a', Figure 2. They are supported in either position
by the hooks c, Figure 1, or their equivalent.
The method of fixing to the truck at b, Figure 1, may be varied, as, for example,
for low sided trucks they may be hinged to standards fixed in the upper edges of
the trucks, or in some cases they may be hinged inside the trucks, the Invention
consisting mainly in the construction of bows with elbowed radial arms a², a³,
(Figure 1), so that they radiate freely upon the pivots or axes provided at the ends
of the said arms, and are thus capable of being readily placed over the wagon, as
shewn clearly at a³, a', Figure 1, and a Figure 2, and so supports the sheet, or
with equal facility be placed out of the way, as shewn at a Figure 1, and a
Figure 2.
The bows are made of iron or steel, and either round, oval, half round, half oval,
or of any other suitable section, or they may be partly solid and partly tubular,
i.e., their arms may be solid, and their arches of tubing welded or jointed to the
said arms, while their span and curve are determined by the size and construction
of the truck to be fitted.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention of improvements in tilts
for railway trucks, I would have it understood that I do not confine myself to the
precise details hereinbefore set forth, as the same may be varied without departing
from the principle of my Invention. Also, that I make no claim to the use of simple
bows for the purpose of supporting railway truck sheets, as such bows have already
been applied for such purpose in various ways. What I claim is the application to

page_text: railway trucks of bows provided with elbowed arms, to allow of their being radiated
to and fro upon the axes formed by the ends of such arms, substantially in the
manner and for the purposes herein before described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Ward, have hereunto set my hand and
seal, this Sixth day of October, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and seventy nine.
THO. WARD. (L.S.)