Improvements in Lubricating the Journals of Railway Carriages and the like.
Year: 1892

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Lubricating the Journals of Railway Carriages
and the like.
A communication from abroad by BUTLER EDGAR, of Sunbury, Pennsylvania,
Gentleman, and ROBERT J. THOMAS, of Alexandria, Virginia, Gentleman.
I, PHILIP MIDDLETON JUSTICE, of 55 and 56 Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Patent Agents, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention relates to improvements in lubricating the journals of railway
carriages and the like.
In the accompanying drawings which form part of this Specification
Fig. 1 is an elevation of a journal box with the side removed to show the prepared
fibre balls and the journal.
Fig. 2 is a cross section of same.
Figs. 3 and 5 show different forms in which the fibre may be knotted or tied in
accordance with the invention, and
Figs. 4 and 6 show the same forms respectively after the fibre has been partly
worn by contact with the journal.
The common method of lubricating the journals of car axles is to pack the interior
of the journal box with a heterogeneous mass of cotton, wool or other fibre or thread
commonly known as "waste." This waste packing requires frequent attention to
keep it in operative contact with the journal for the reason that it sinks away from
the journal partly on account of wear and partly on account of its own weight and
lack of elasticity, thus often-times letting the journal get dry and hot while there is
plenty of oil in the bottom of the box.
The object of this invention is to provide a packing of any suitable fibrous
material which will remain in contact with the journal for a considerable period of
time without any attention whatever and even after portions of it have been worn
away. This object is accomplished by forming the fibre into loose strands or ropes
and confining the strands at certain points so as to leave intermediate loops by
knotting or tying it. The rope or strand is cut into sections, each section having
one or more of the loops.
Many expedients more or less complicated or complex, have been tried for the
purpose of supplying oil continuously and effectively to the journals, but none of
them have been permanently adopted for the reason that they do not fill several
important requirements of railway service. In the first place any successful
lubricator or lubricating material must be such that it can be applied, adjusted and
attended to quickly and by unskilled labor; and secondly, it must be cheap and
durable, and suitable for long runs without attention. In the present improved
lubricating packing these conditions are fulfilled thus enabling cotton or even
cheaper fibre to be used instead of the wool waste now sometimes employed for the
reason that by this improvement a tendency to expand is given to the cheaper fibres
which causes them to spread even more than the wool does from its natural spring.
As the wool fibre is quite expensive a great saving in cost of material may thus be
effected, or if wool be employed in accordance with this invention it will be rendered
much more durable and effective, than when used in the form of waste, and therefore
will be much cheaper in the end.
Referring to the drawing, A indicates the axle, B the journal, C the journal box,
and D the packing beneath and around the journal. In Figures 3 and 4, are
illustrated one form in which the improved packing may be put up. In this form

page_text: two or three knots are tied in the strand thus confining the fibres at points a, a,
where they pass through the knot and leaving intermediate loops b extending around
the knot. It is preferred to cut the strand on either side of the knot, as shown.
The fibres at the free ends, d, d, spread and thus prevent the knot from untying and
also form brush-like extensions which have great capillary power and are valuable
for applying the oil to the journal.
As the loops b wear away by contact with the journal the fibres of the loops are
'cut in two and spread apart as shown at c in Fig. 4 thus forming additional brush-
like extensions which increase the volume of the material and prevent it from
sinking away from the journal. By occasionally inserting a rod into the box and
stirring up the packing as is now customary in using waste, new portions of the
doops will be brought in contact with the journal which will also cut and expand.
In this way a car may be run for a very much longer period without having the
journal boxes repacked than is possible with the ordinary material now in use.
In Figures 5 and 6 the fibre is confined at a', a!, by means of cord or wire bands
thus forming the intermediate loops or expansive portions 1, 1, and the brush
ends c'. Fig. 6 shows the manner in which the loops 61 break up and separate into
the auxiliary brushes c¹.
The balls of fibre when prepared as above described are sufficiently compact to
prevent them from sinking away from the journal when they are saturated with
oil. Also on account of their compactness, their capillary action is more perfect
than that of loose fibre and they convey the lubricant more readily to the journals.
Although the balls are more compressed than the ordinary loose packing material
it takes no more fibre to pack a journal box for the reason that the box need not be
filled so full when the prepared packing is used.
While but two forms have been shewn in which the prepared lubricating packing
may be embodied it will be evident that many other equivalent ways of knotting or
tying the strands so as to form loops could be readily devised without departing
from the spirit of the invention which is therefore not to be understood as being
limited to the precise forms shown and described-but-
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me from
abroad by my foreign correspondents, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. As a new article of manufacture, lubricating packing consisting of sections of
loose strands or ropes of fibre knotted or tied to form compressed portions and inter-
mediate expansive portions, substantially as described.
2. In axle lubrication, the combination with the axles, and axle boxes, of
fibrous lubricating packing arranged to bear upon the journals, said packing being
knotted or tied to form compresscd portions, and expansive portions which enlarge
to compensate for wear when the fibres are worn through by the journals, substan-
tially as described.
Dated the 1st day of November 1802
PHILIP M. JUSTICE.