AN IMPROVED INDICATOR FOR RAILWAY CARRIAGES
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Walter Leigh, of Goulden Terrace, Richmond Road,
Dalston, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of
"AN IMPROVED INDICATOR FOR RAILWAY CARRIAGES."
Sealed the 17th May 1861, and dated the 24th November 1860.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Walter Leigh at the
Office of the Commissioners of "Patents, with his Petition, on the 24th
November 1860.
I, WALTER LEIGH, of Goulden Terrace, Richmond Road, Dalston, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "AN IMPROVED INDICATOR FOR RAILWAY CARRIAGES," to be as
follows:-
The object of this Invention is to provide railway carriages with a self-
acting indicator, which will indicate to railway travellers the several stations
on the line as they are approached by the train, thus avoiding the mistakes
which are now continually occurring of passengers being carried past the
point of their destination. To this end I propose to present to view the
names of the several stations on the line in their proper succession, causing.
them severally to pass out of sight as the succeeding station is approached.
Thus the names of the stations may be printed on a band of silk or other
material, the ends of which are attached to rollers, one of which is capable of
being driven by suitable gearing set in motion by the progress of the carriage,
[Price Sal

page_text: after the manner of counting apparatus, and the other retained in position by
a coiled spring like a roller blind for keeping the band in tension. Or the
names of the stations may be arranged radially on a disc, and brought into
view by an intermittent motion imparted thereto by suitable mechanism set in
action by the progress of the train. For example, a projection at the side of
one of the rails may raise a rod and rock a lever, and thus create the motion
which will produce the intermittent axial motion of the disc or other roller
that carries forward the band. Or the motion may be derived from one of the
carriage wheels instead of a fixed projection on the line; other plans may also
be adopted for giving motion to the travelling surface which carries the names
of the stations, and thus presenting them within view of the passengers in the
compartments of the carriages to which the Invention is applied; but in con-
junction therewith it will be desirable to use an audible signal for calling the
attention of passengers to every change of the indicator.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Walter Leigh in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 24th
May 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WALTER
LEIGH, of Goulden Terrace, Richmond Road, Dalston, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand cight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-fourth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Walter Leigh, Her special license that I, the said Walter Leigh,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Walter Leigh, my executors, administrators, and 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 "AN IMPROVED INDICATOR FOR RAILWAY CARRIAGES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Walter Leigh, 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

page_text: Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Walter Leigh, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
The object of this Invention is to provide railway carriages with an
indicating apparatus which will indicate to railway travellers the several
stations on the line as they are approached or arrived at by the train,
thus avoiding the mistakes which are now continually occurring of passengers
being carried past the point of their destination. In carrying out my Inven-
tion propose to present to view the names of the several stations on the line
in their proper succession, causing them severally to pass out of sight as the
succeeding station is approached or arrived at. To this end the names of the
stations are to be printed on a band of silk or other material, the ends of
which are attached to rollers, one of which is capable of being driven by
suitable gearing set in motion by the progress of the carriage, or otherwise,
after the manner of counting apparatus, while the other roller is maintained
or kept in its position by means of spring or other convenient contrivance,
whereby the band will be kept in-tension.
Another form of apparatus consists in arranging the names of the stations
radially on a disc, so that they may be brought into view in succession by
means of an intermittent motion imparted to the disc by suitable mechanism
set in action by the progress of the train, or otherwise. In order to actuate
the indicating mechanism, a projection at the side of one of the rails, or placed
in some convenient place between the rails, may be arranged to raise a rod and
rock a lever, and thus create the motion that will produce the intermittent
axial motion of the disc or roller that carries forward the band or name plate.
Or the motion may be derived from one of the carriage wheels instead of from
a fixed projection on the line; or it may be set in motion by rods or ropes,
which may be worked by the guard. Other plans may also be adopted for
giving motion to the travelling surface which carries the names of the stations,
so as to present them within view of the passengers in the compartments of
the carriages to which the Invention is applied; but in conjunction therewith
it will be desirable to use an audible signal for calling the attention of
passengers to every change of the indicator.
In the accompanying Drawing I have shewn various views of a convenient
form or arrangement of apparatus for effecting the object of my Invention.

page_text: Fig. 1 is a transverse vertical section; and Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical
section of a part of a first-class carriage with my Invention adapted thereto;
Fig. 3 is a front view of the indicator, drawn upon an enlarged scale; Figures
4 and 5 are sectional views of the mechanism for actuating the indicator band.
a, a, are the endless indicator bands, which are extended over rollers b, b,
(Figures 1 and 2,) and have the names of the several stations marked thereon,
as shewn at Fig. 3. It will be seen that there are two bands a, one for
shewing the names of the stations in the compartment A of the carriage, and
the other for shewing the names in the other compartment B of the carriage.
On one end of the axle of the upper roller bare two ratchet wheels c, c, pro-
vided with teeth cut in opposite directions, so that the roller may be rotated
in either direction as may be required. Lever arms d are provided with
pawles or clicks e mounted on pins e¹, for the purpose of driving the wheels c.
The outer end of the arm or lever d is connected by means of a slot c¹ made
therein with the long pendent rod f. The pawle or click e is connected by a
pin with the long rod f, and this pin f' moves in the slot c¹ of the lever
arm d. Upon referring to Fig. 1 it will be seen that the pendent rod f rests
on a bar or spring plate g (Fig. 1), which is attached to the upper ends of
bell-crank levers h. These bell-crank levers h are provided at their lower
ends with bowles or antifriction rollers i, which bear against borizontal inclined
bars that are fixed between the rails at each station. When the bowles
bear against these inclined bars (one of which is shewn detached at Fig. 6),
the lower end of the bell-crank lever h will be forced inwards, and the upper
cnd will be raised, as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 1. The spring
plate or bar g will thereby be raised, and will lift the rod and push the
forward end of the click e into contact with one of the teeth of the ratchet
wheel c. The rod f by still continuing to ascend will push round the ratchet
wheel, and thereby rotate the roller b one-sixth of a revolution, and will
thereby bring round another name opposite the opening (Fig. 1) in the box
or case that contains the indicator. It will be seen that the pin f¹ at the
upper end of the rod works in the slot c¹ at the end of the lever d, and,
consequently, at the commencement of the upward motion of the rod f, the
latter will only act by throwing the click or pawle e into gear with the teeth
of the ratchet wheel c but the continued upward motion of the rod will cause
the pawle or click e to move round the ratchet wheel and the roller, as before
mentioned, and as indicated by dotted lines in the detached view, Fig. 7. In
order to ensure a steady motion the opposite end of the lever or arm d is held
back by an india-rubber or other elastic spring m, and when the bowle at the
lower end of the bell-crank lever k is released from the projecting block o

page_text: piece i, another elastic spring n will bring back the pendent rod and click e
to its original position ready to be again operated upon. It will be seen on
referring to the Drawing that at the end of the roller b there is a double set
of wheels, clicks, levers, and springs, so that the roller may be rotated in either
direction when required, as for instance, on the return journey, and an
additional projecting block k may be fixed between the rails, as indicated by
red lines in Fig. 1. In order to keep the roller b steady, and maintain any
particular name opposite the opening I until the apparatus is again acted upon,
a spring s (Fig. 5) is made to bear against the edge of a metal disc t, in which
are made notches to receive the spring, as shewn in Fig. 5. In order to
produce an audible signal, so that the attention of the passengers may be
attracted to every change that takes place in the indicator, the pendent rod /
is provided with a pin o (Fig. 3), which, as the rod f ascends, raises a short
lever p, and by means of a link q draws back a hammer, and causes the
latter to strike a bell r (Fig. 4), shewn by dots in Fig. 3. It will be obvious
that the same arrangement of mechanism which is employed to rotate the
roller b may be employed to actuate a disc or circular plate on which may be
printed or marked in radial lines the names of the several stations. I do not,
however, consider it necessary to give any detailed description of this modi-
fication of my improved indicator.
Having now described my Invention of "An Improved Indicator for
Railway Carriages," and having explained the manner of carrying the same
into effect, I claim as the Invention secured to me by Letters Patent, as
aforesaid, the mode herein set forth of constructing indicators for railway
carriages, so as to present to the view of the passengers in the carriages the
names of the stations as the train arrives at such stations in succession.
In witness whereof, I, the said Walter Leigh, have hereunto set my hand
and seal the Twenty-fourth day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
WALTER LEIGH. (L.S.)