Improvements in Chains for Cables for Tramways and such like Purposes.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 5th July, 1888
Complete Specification Lefl, 17th Nov., 1888
Complete Specification Accepted, 15th Jan., 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Chains for Cables for Tramways and such like
Purposes.
1, REGINALD WALTER HEWETT of 196 Soho Hill Birmingham in the County of
Warwick Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my said invention to be as
follows:-
"
My invention has for its object the use of a chain instead of the present wire
rope used for Cable trams and such like purposes which are very defective and
short lived because they are continually bending the wires of which the rope is
composed in all directions and thus causing unequal strains and this stretches it,
the wires thus becoming brittle and very soon break. The wires in the present
rope come in the twisting to the outside at short intervals and when this outside
wire begins to wear through by the friction of the grip it begins to thread or
fray out thus the rope becomes useless. Another object of my invention is to
save power as well as the wear and tear caused by the grippers sliding as they
do upon the present rope which is owing chiefly to thinness of the rope.
One way in which I make my chain is as follows: I make a tube several
inches long the length would depend upon the radius the chain has to make while
in use the smaller the radius the shorter the tube the larger the radius the longer
the tube. At each end of this tube I make an internal screw thread and then a
double headed rivet or bolt which I call a connector, these heads would be nicely
shaped to fit similar to a ball joint. I then put one of the heads of this connector
inside the tube, a nipple made with an external screw and in two halves is then
placed around the connector between the two heads and screwed into the lengths
of tubes forming the links until it has gone far enough thus forming a stop
against the head of the connector and this nipple may be secured by any well
known means, another tube is secured to the connector in the same way and so
ou until the chain is of the desired length, then if an endless chain is required
the two ends can be joined in the same way. It will be seen that the nipple
and head of the connector forms a bearing or ball joint for each other and forins
the joints or connecting parts of the chain and they have sufficient room left to
make it slightly flexible.
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page_text: '
I sometimes make this tube in two halves lengthways. In one half of this tube
I sink small holes and in the other half I make corresponding projections or
dowls to fit into these holes and at each end I fix in the process of making a
pipe inside to form a bearing instead of the screwed nipple. I then use the saine
kind of connectors the heads of which fit inside the tube and would be placed
inside before the two halves are joined together which is done by means of two
small rivets or screws through two holes in each end at right angles to the
divisions i.e. four rivets go through the tube one in each side of it at each end
or I may fasten them by means of washers or screwed sockets round the outside
sunk in to make it the same diameter or this socket may be the length of the
tube and fastened outside & may be at any time renewed. It will be obvious that
divers ways of fastening this tube and bearing may be adopted.
A hollow chain so constructed not only allows of great facility in repairing
should a link be defective but also allows of the parts more exposed to friction
to be made thicker sometimes by means of a secondary socket slid over the tube
not for strength as the inside part of the chain is made of the required strength
but to allow the circumference to be enlargened to enable the grippers to have a
larger surface to hold thus overcoming the slipping and saving the wear and tear
and power that is at present lost.
These tubes may be made of any external shape such for instance as either round
or oval.
DL:
T1 1000
GEORGE WATHEN,
60, Alexandra Street, Birmingham,
Agent for Applicant.

page_text: CUM LEID DI MUITIVATION.
Improvements in Chains for Cables for Tramways and such like
Purposes.
I, REGINALD WALTER HEWETT of 196 Soho Hill Handsworth in the County of
Stafford Engineer 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 :-
My invention has for its object the manufacture of a new or improved chain
for cables trams, mines and all such purposes where ropes and chains of metal
are used and by the durability and strength of which improved chain 1 gain the
following advantages:
First The durability of its wearing power independant of its strength over
the present wire ropes whose lives are comparatively short owing to the friction
wearing the different strands into short lengths because all the strands are exposed
to the friction at short intervals the whole length of the cable, and thus the strands
pull out and so become useless.
Second I overcome the enormous amount of power which is absorbed in
bending and straightening the present rope which in some cases amounts to one
fourth of the total power and thus less propelling machinery is required and
consequently a great saving in fuel is effected.
Third To dispense with the continual bending and straightening of the present
rope which causes unequal strains and stretches the strands which thus become
brittle and liable to break.
Fourth To obviate the twisting and slipping whero cable tram grippers are
employed, the grippers twisting the present rope round similarly to a screw thus
destroying the rope, these grippers do not take proper hold upon the rope which
causes extra friction and loss of power.
Fifth No splicing is required in my chain as in the present rope the splicing
of which takes many hours to accomplish and then it is either thicker and thinner
in some parts than in others and which is very undesirable.
Sixth The much easier transit from or to any desired place and especially
for exportation to other countries.
The principal of my invention is to make in steel or other metals a chain out
of short pieces of tubing with nicely shaped bearings at each end inside and
fastened together by connectors which are similar to a double headed rivet but
are nicely shaped to fit the inside bearings at each end of the tube so that they
work after the style of a ball joint these tubes could be made of various sizes
and shapes such as round oval square or oblong and which at times may have
holes or slots cut in these tubes or links are close together but all the parts are
made so that sufficient room is left to form a flexible and substantial chain.
generally make these tubes with their bearings dowls or bosses all complete in
two halves (longitudinally stamped or forged in dies and tools whilst red hot or
I

page_text: they may be made in a pair of rolls. The connectors after being made by either
process are placed with one head in half tubes other half tubes are then placed
over and rivetted or bolted together (transversely) in any ordinary manner the
holes where these rivets go through and the countersunk parts for the heads are
made equal to the other part in strength by bosses inside the tube.
In order that my invention may be more easily understood I have appended
hereunto a sheet of drawings upon which
Figure 1 is a side clevation of part of my chain and
Figure 2 is a longitudinal section of the same.
Figure 3 is a view shewing my chain joined together in a circle.
Figure 4 is a cross section through the link and connector upon the line A B and
Figure 5 is a cross section through the link upon line C. D.
One mode in which I make my chain is as follows: I first sink a bottom die the
form of half a tube E a few inches long and of the required size with one or more
bosses inside for the purpose of counter-sinking the heads of the rivets F. I then
make a top die which is smaller to go inside leaving a space for the metal to form
the thickness of half the tube with the bearings e¹ and dowls e² ail completo the half
tubes are then stamped or forged out of these dies (when they are made in rolls the
rolls would have the patterns also sunk in them).
I then sink a top and bottom die for the connector G which are exactly alike the
connectors are then stamped or forged out of them, the tubes or links are then
fastened together as before explained and are continued until the required length of
chain is obtained. It will be obvious that the dies and rolls may be made to
manufacture several links etc. at once.
One example of the great advantage gained by my chain will be seen by the
following.
Supposing the connector G to have a sectional area of half an inch and the
tubes E an area of of an inch. One fifth could be worn away by friction before
the strength would fall below the connectors because if Manganese steel was being
used with a tensile strength of 68 tons per square inch the connectors would
break at 44 tons but would work quite safely at one fourth this amount as every-
thing is proportional and substantial thus obviating the defective splicing unequal
strains brittleness etc. as in the present wire rope which begin to lose their strength
as soon as they are applied because they are deficient of independent wearing
surface and have to be made thick and heavy to be safe whereas my chain is very
light and yet has an independant wearing surface and should any link or tube E
be defective a new one may be substituted in a very short time. Of course it
will be obvious that these connectors may be made and connected with the tubes
or links in various ways to suit convenience such for instance as screwing a
nipple in two halves into an ordinary tube carrying the connector heads in with it.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
Manufacturing chains for cables for tramway, mines and all such purposes with
tubes as links and connectors and rivets substantially as herein before described
and illustrated upon the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 16th day of November 1888