IMPROVEMENTS IN COUPLINGS FOR COUPLING AND UNCOUPLING RAILWAY CARRLAGES AND VEHICLES AND LOCOMOTIVES
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Samuel Partridge, of Darlaston, in the County of Stafford,
Surgeon, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN COUPLINGS FOR COUPLING
AND UNCOUPLING RAILWAY CARRLAGES AND VEHICLES AND LOCOMOTIVES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Partridge at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 14th July 1876.
SAMUEL PARTRIDGE, of Darlaston, in the County of Stafford, Surgeon. "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN COUPLINGS FOR COUPLING AND UNCOUPLING RAILWAY CARRIAGES AND
VEHICLES AND LOCOMOTIVES."
My Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in couplings
for coupling and uncoupling railway carriages and vehicles and locomotives, wliereby
the said couplings are inade automatic; that is, they effect the coupling together
of the carriages to which they are applied by the making up of the train, the
gentle striking of the carriage brought up against the stationary carriage of the
partly made up train or other stationary carriage bringing the apparatus into
operation and coupling the two carriages together.
In constructing couplings according to my Invention I joint a slotted bar or link
to the ordinary hook on the rear end of the carriage. The said slotted bar or link
is jointed near its middle by a knee joint which permits of the two parts being
folded upon or turned towards each other in one direction only, that is the free end
of the link is capable of turning upwards so as to form an acute angle with the
other part, but on turning downwards cannot pass beyond the position in which
it is in a line with the other part. Underneath the rear end of the carriage is a
shaft parallel thereto and working its bearings on the under side of the carriage.
This shaft carries at one end or both ends an arm or handle, and at its middle a
short lever is fixed. The free end of this lever is chisel pointed, and on the under
side of that part of the jointed link which is jointed to the bar at the rear of the
carriage is a notch in which the said chisel point can engage. By turning the
shaft described by means of its handle the short lever can be anade to raise the
jointed lever into a horizontal position when the chisel point engages in the notch
and the jointed link is supported in its horizontal position.
The short lever by which the link is supported is jointed in its middle by a knee
joint. When the shaft described has been turned so as to raise the jointed link
and engage the short lever in the notch on the under side of the jointed link, the
bandle is in a vertical position.

page_text: A ball or weight is by preference fixed on the end of the handle. When another
carriage is brought up and strikes against the buffers of the carriage with the
raised link, the sudden motion communicated to the latter causes the link to fall
and engage itself upon the hook of the carriage brought up. The disengagement
of the link is effected by the inertia of the handle and its weight which not imme-
diately partaking of the motion communicated to the carriage produces a slight
motion of the shaft carrying the short lever. This motion causes the two parts
of the short lever to turn slightly upon their knee joint which motion when started
is followed by the sudden collapse of the short lever by the weight of the jointed
link pressing upon it. The unsupported link then drops upon the hook of the
brought up carriage and the two carriages are coupled. By incans of the handle
the jointed link can be raised to uncouple the carriages or to bring the link
into the position in which it will automatically couple itself in the way described.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Samuel Partridge in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 8th January
1877.
SAMUEL PARTRIDGE, of Darlaston, in the County of Stafford, Surgeon. "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN COUPLINGS FOR COUPLING AND UNCOUPLING RAILWAY CARRIAGES AND
VEHICLES AND LOCOMOTIVES."
My Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in couplings
for coupling and uncoupling railway carriages and vehicles and locomotives, whereby
the said couplings are made automatic; that is, they effect the coupling together of
the carriages to which they are applied by the making up of the train, the gentle
striking of the carriage brought up against the stationary carriage of the partly
made up train or other stationary carriage bringing the apparatus into operation
and coupling the two carriages together.
In constructing couplings according to my Invention I joint a slotted bar or link
to the ordinary hook on the rear end of the carriage. The said slotted bar or link
is jointed near its middle by a knee joint, which permits of the two parts being
folded upon or turned towards each other in one direction only, that is, the free end
of the link is capable of turning upwards, so as to form an acute angle with the
other part, but on turning downwards cannot pass beyond the position in which it
is in a line with the other part. Underneath the rear end of the carriage is a shaft
parallel thereto, and working in bearings on the under side of the carriage. This
shaft carries at one end or both ends an arm or handle, and at its middle a short
lever is fixed. The free end of this lever is chisel pointed, and on the under side
of that part of the jointed link which is jointed to the hook at the rear of the car-
riage is a notch in which the said chisel point can engage. By turning the shaft
described by means of its handle the short lever can be made to raise the jointed
link into a horizontal position, when the chisel point engages in the notch, and the
jointed link is supported in its horizontal position.
The short lever, by which the link is supported, is jointed in its middle by a
knee joint. When the shaft described has been turned so as to raise the jointed
link and engage the short lever in the notch on the under side of the jointed link,
the handle is in a vertical position above the shaft.
A ball or weight is by preference fixed on the end of the handle. When another
carriage is brought up and strikes against the buffers of the carriage with the
raised link, the sudden motion communicated to the latter causes the link to fall
and engage itself upon the hook of the carriage brought up.
The disengagement of the link is effected by the inertia of the handle and its
weight, which not immediately partaking of the motion communicated to the
carriage produces a slight motion of the shaft carrying the short lever. This
motion causes the two parts of the short lever to turn slightly upon their knee
joint, which motion, when started, is followed by the sudden collapse of the short

page_text: lever by the weight of the jointed. link pressing upon it. The unsupported link
then drops upon the hook of the brought up carriage and the two carriages are
coupled. By means of the handle the jointed link can be raised to uncouple the
carriages, or to bring the link into the position in which it will automatically
couple itself in the way described.
I will now proceed to describe, with reference to the accompanying Drawing, the
manner in which my Invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation portions of two railway carriages or trucks
in the act of being coupled together, the couplings of the said carriages or trucks
being constructed according to my Invention; and Figure 2 is an end elevation of
one of the said carriages or trucks and its coupling.
In Figure 1 the carriage marked A is represented in the act of being coupled to
the carriage marked B by the coupling on the carriage A, the said carriage B being
brought up to the carriage A in the making up of the train. The coupling on the
carriage A is indicated in dotted lines, coupling the two carriages A and B together.
I will describe the coupling on the carriage A, but it must be understood that
the coupling I am about to describe is applied to both ends of each carriage. The
same letters of reference indicate the same parts in both Figures.
c is the ordinary hook at the rear end of the carriage A, and d, ³, is the slotted
coupling bar or link jointed to the said hook at d³. The slotted coupling bar or
link d, d, is made in two parts marked respectively d, d², the said parts being
connected together by a knee joint at d. The said knee joint permits the two
parts d, d, of the slotted bar or link being folded or turned towards one another
in one direction only, that is to say, the arm d² is capable of turning upwards so
as to form an angle with the other part or arm d, as indicated in dotted lines in
Figure 1, but on turning the said part or arm & downwards it cannot pass beyond
the position in which it is in a line with the other part d, as represented in
continuous lines in the said Figure 1. This will be readily understood by an
examination of the knee joint d' from which it will be seen that the heel d³ of the
part when the latter is turned upwards is removed from the abutment d of the
other part d, and when the part is turned downwards the said heel bears
against the abutment on the other part d, and prevents its further motion in
that direction. On the under side of the part d of the slotted coupling bar or
link d, d, is a protuberance in which a notch is made for the purpose herein-
after explained.
For the purpose of bringing the slotted bar or link d, d, into a position to be
automatically coupled with the carriage being brought up I use the following
arrangement of parts, which said arrangement is worked from one or other side of
the carriage without the necessity for the porter or coupler placing himself between
the carriages to be coupled. Underneath the rear end of the carriage is a shaft c
working in bearings at e², c². The said shaft e has at each end an arm or handle f,
provided with a weight f at its lower end. The position of the shaft e is best seen
in the end elevation Figure 2. At the middle of the shaft e is a short lever g, y³,
made in two parts, jointed together by a knee joint g³, the said knee joint being
constructed in the manner described with respect to the knee joint of the slotted
link d, d, that is to say, the outer part of the said lever can turn upwards
upon its joint, but not downwards below the position represented. The outer
part g of this lever is by preference forked (see Figure 2) and its free end is chisel
pointed for the purpose of engaging with the notch d on the under side of the
slotted link d, d².
с
When it is required to prepare the carriage A to be coupled with the carriage B
one of the weighted handles f, f², on the shafte of the carriage A is turned from
the pendent position indicated in dotted lines to that represented in continuous
lines. The lever g, g, on the shaft e is thereby made to bear against the under
side of the slotted link d, d, (its position being similar to that of the link on
the carriage B) and lift the said link into the raised or nearly horizontal position
represented. When raised into this position the chisel pointed end of the leverg, g²,

page_text: being engaged in the notch d in the slotted link, the latter is supported in its
raised or nearly horizontal position as represented in the Drawing. The coupling.
link is thereby firmly supported in its raised position, the weight of the slotted
link d, d, upon the chisel pointed arm of the raising lever pressing upon it so
as to preserve the two parts g, g, in a line with one another, and the weighted
handles ff, being situated on the opposite side of the centre on which they are
fixed (that is somewhat beyond the dead point) to that of the lever g, g², they tend
to preserve the said lever in the position represented.
When the carriage B is brought up and strikes against the buffers of the
carriage A, the sudden motion communicated to the carriage A causes the coupling
link d, d, to fall and engage itself upon the hook a of the said brought up carriage B.
The disengagement of the slotted link d, d², from the supporting lever g, g, is
effected in the following manner:-The motion which is communicated to the
carriage A by the bringing up of the carriage B, is in consequence of the inertia
of the weighted handles f, f, not immediately imparted to the said handles, and
hence a slight motion of the shaft e carrying the lever g, g², is produced in the
direction of the arrow, Figure 1. Immediately the weighted levers or handles f, f,
have passed the dead centre there is no longer any impediment to their fall into
the position indicated in dotted lines, the weight of the slotted bar or link d, d²,
also urging the weighted handles f, f, into their pendent position, and the two
parts of the lever g, g, make a small angle with one another. By the descent of
the slotted link d, d, it hooks itself upon the hook a of the carriage B taking the
position indicated in dotted lines. The jointed lever g, g, now disengages itself
from the notch d7, and the said lever, when the weighted handles have assumed
their pendent positions, has reached the position indicated in dotted lines
in Figure 1. The two carriages A and B are thereby automatically coupled together.
To uncouple the carriages they are made to approach one another, and one of the
weighted handles f, f, on the carriage A is lifted to the position represented, so as
to raise and withdraw the slotted link d, d, from the hook a of the carriage Bin
the same way as when the said slotted link is raised to cause it to couple itself
automatically with the carriage brought up as before described.
The coupling mechanism described is applied to both ends of each carriage, the
coupling mechanism at the coupled end of that carriage which is for the time
being the brought up carriage not being used as illustrated in Figure 1, but is ready
when the said carriage is the stationary carriage to be coupled to the brought up
carriage in the manner herein-before described.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which the
same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit myself to
the precise details herein described and illustrated as the same may be varied
without departing from the nature of my Invention; but I claim as my Invention
the improvements in couplings for coupling railway carriages and vehicles and
locomotives herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings,
that is to say, the combination of the jointed slotted coupling bar or link d, d², d,
on the end of the carriage or vehicle with the jointed raising lever g, g, g³, on the
shaft e having weighted arins or handles for preparing for coupling, and for effecting
in the manner described the automatic coupling of the two carriages or vehicles,
and also for uncoupling the said carriages or vehicles, the said jointed slotted
coupling bar or link and jointed raising lever and parts connected with them being
constructed and operating substantially as described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Samuel Partridge, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Fourth day of January, in the year of our Lord One thousand
nicht hand