IMPROVEMENTS IN COUPLINGS FOR Coupling AND UNCOUPLING RAILWAY CARRIAGES AND VEHICLES, AND LOCOMOTIVES
Year: 1877

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 CARRIAGES AND VEHICLES, AND LOCOMOTIVES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Partridge at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 24th March 1877.
SAMUEL PARTRIDGE, of Darlaston, in the County of Stafford, Surgeon. "IM-
PROVEMENTS 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 approach 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 has a joint near its middle, so that the free or outer half of the said bar or link
can turn upon the end of the part which is jointed to the hook on the carriage;
on the axis on which the said slotted bar or link turns, is a second or under link
or fork; this second link or fork is of somewhat greater length than that part of
the slotted bar or link which is jointed to the hook on the carriage, and is of some-
what greater width than the slotted bar or link. 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 slotted bar or link, which is jointed to the
hook at the rear of the carriage, are notches 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 slotted bar or link, and also the second or under link or fork,
:

page_text: when the chisel point engages in the notches, and the slotted bar or link is thereby
supported in its raised position. The short lever, by which the slotted bar or link is
supported, is jointed at its middlo by a knee joint. When the shaft described has
been turned, so as to raise the slotted link and engage the short lever in the
notches on the under side of the said slotted bar or link, the parts of the slotted bar
or link and the under link or fork have the following positions :-The part of the
said slotted link, jointed to the hook on the carriage, has been raised somewhat
beyond a horizontal position, and the under link or fork is below and parallel
thereto, the free or outer half of the slotted bar or link being supported by the free
end of the under link, the said free or outer half of the slotted bar or link not
having been raised into a horizontal position, but making an obtuse angle with the
part jointed to the hook on the carriage.
When the parts are in the respective positions described, the coupling is ready
for use. By bringing up the carriage to which the coupling is attached to the
carriage to be coupled therewith, the extreme end of the free or outer half of tho
slotted link or bar, striking against the stationary carriage, lifts the part jointed to
the hook, so as to disengago its notches from the short lever by which it was
supported, when the slotted bar or link falls and engages itself with the hook
of the stationary carriage.
By means of the handle, the slotted link or bar can be raised to uncouple the
carriages, or to bring the said link or bar into the position in which it will
automatically couple itself in the way described.
The knee joint of the raising lever on the axis facilitates the throwing of the
coupling out of gear when it is not required to be used.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Samuel Partridge in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 13th
September 1877.
SAMUEL PARTRIDGE, of Darlaston, in the County of Stafford, Surgeon. "Iм-
PROVEMENTS 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 approach 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 has a joint near its middle, so that the free or outer half of the said bar or link
can turn upon the end of the part which is jointed to the hook on the carriage.
On the axis on which the said slotted bar or link turns, is a second or under link
or fork. This second link or fork is of somewhat greater length thau that part of
the slotted bar or link which is jointed to the hook on the carriage, and is of some-
what greater width than the slotted bar or link. 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 slotted bar or link, which is jointed to the hook
at the rear of the carriage, are notches 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 slotted bar or link, and also the second or under link or fork,
when the chisel point engages in the notches, and the slotted bar or link is thereby

page_text: supported in its raised position. The short lever, by which the slotted bar or link
is supported, is jointed at its middle by a knee joint. When the shaft described
has been turned, so as to raise the slotted bar or link, and engage the short lever in
the notches on the under side of the said slotted bar or link, the parts of the slotted
bar or link and the under link or fork have the following positions :-The
part of the said slotted bar or link, jointed to the hook on the carriage, has been
raised somewhat beyond a horizontal position, and the under link or fork is below
and parallel thereto, the free or outer half of the slotted bar or link being supported
by the free end of the under link, the said free or outer half of the slotted bar or
link not having been raised into a horizontal position, but making an obtuse angle
with the part jointed to the hook on the carriage.
When the parts are in the respective positions described, the coupling is ready for
use. By bringing up the carriage to which the coupling is attached to the
carriage to be coupled therewith, the extremne end of the free or outer half of the
slotted link or bar, striking against the stationary carriage, lifts the part jointed to the
hook, so as to disengage its notches from the short lever by which it was supported,
when the slotted bar or link falls and engages itself with the hook of the stationary
carriage.
.
By means of the handle, the slotted bar or link can be raised to uncouple the
carriages, or to bring tho said link or bar into the position in which it will
automatically couple itself in the way described.
The knee joint of the short raising lever on the axis facilitates the throwing of
the coupling out of gear when it is not required to be used.
I will now proceed to describe, with reference to the accompanying Drawings,
the manner in which my Invention may be performed.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation my improved coupling applied to two
railway carriages or other vehicles, marked respectively A and B. The coupling on
the carriage A is represented raised into position for coupling the said carriage A
to the other carriage B, and the coupling on the carriage B is represented out of action.
Figure 2 represents an end elevation of the carriage and coupling, the coupling
being represented out of action. As the coupling on each of the carriages is
similarly constructed and used, I will only describe the construction and action of
the coupling on the carriage A, Figure 1, but corresponding parts of the coupling
are marked with the same letters of reference in Figures 1 and 2. To the ordinary
hook c, at the rear of the carriage A, a slotted bar or link d, d², is jointed at d³.
The two parts d, d, of the said slotted bar or link are jointed together at d', the
said joint d² permitting the free or outer half d to turn freely upon the part d,
which is jointed to the hook c on the carriage. On the axis or joint d³, on which
the slotted bar or link d, d, turns, is a second, or under link, or fork c. The said
under link or fork e is somewhat broader and longer than the part d of the slotted
bar or link. The object of the said under link or fork e is to support the outer
half of the slotted bar or link in the proper position for releasing the coupling, as
herein-after described.
In the under side of the inner half d of the slotted bar or link are notches ƒ, f.
g is a shaft underneath the rear end of the carriage, and turning in bearings at y³.
On the ends of the shaft g are handles or levers h, k, and at its middle is a short
lever i,, for raising the coupling into position for use. This raising lever is made
in two parts, jointed together at . The end of the outer part of the raising lever
is chisel pointed, and the chisel point can be made to engage with the notches f, f,
in the under side of the part d of the slotted bar or link, and support the said bar
or link. The chisel pointed part 2 of the raising lever is jointed to the other part i
by a knee joint at is, so that while the chisel point may turn upwards upon the
said joint, it cannot turn downwards beyond the position represented. By turning
the shaft g, by pressing down one of its handles h, the short lever i, i, passes from the
position indicated in dotted lines to that represented in continuous lines. In taking
the position represented, the said short lever i, i, bears against the under side of
the slotted bar or link d, and also against the second or under link, or fork e, and

page_text: raises the said bar or link, and under link, and when the said bar and under link
have been lifted to the positions represented in Figure 1, the chisel point i* engages
with the notches f, f, and supports the said parts & and e in their raised positions.
The chisel point 1 of the raising and supporting lever is so broad that it crosses
both the slotted bar d and the under link e (see the end elevation Figure 2). When
the parts have been thus raised into the positions represented in Figure 1, the
coupling is ready on the bringing up of the carriage A to be automatically coupled
with the carriage B. By an examination of the said Figure 1, it will be seen that
the part d of the slotted bar or link has been raised into the inclined position
represented, and that the under link or fork e is below and parallel therewith, the
free or outer half of the slotted bar or link being supported by the free end of
the under link e, the said outer half of the said slotted bar making an obtuse
angle with the other half d. The coupling being thus ready for use, the carriage A
is brought up to the carriage B. As the carriage A approaches the carriage B, the
extreme end of the free or outer half d of the slotted bar or link d, d³, strikes
against the stationary carriage B.. By the striking of the outer half of the bar
against the carriage B, it lifts the inner part d jointed to the hook c in the direction
indicated by the arrow, and thereby disengages the notches f,f, of the said part d
from the short lever i,, by which it was supported. The lever i, 2, and the
under link e, now fall by their own weight into the positions indicated in dotted
lines, and the slotted bar or link d, d, also falls, and the part d² engages itself with
the hook of the stationary carriage B, as indicated in dotted lines. The two
carriages A and B are thus automatically coupled together.
When it is wished to uncouple the carriages, the handle h of the axis g, carrying
the lifting lever i, i, is depressed into the position represented in continuous_lines,
when the slotted bar or link d, d², is lifted from the hook of the carriage B, and
the two carriages are uncoupled, and the coupling is again raised into a position
ready to automatically couple itself to the carriage to which it is brought up in the
nanner herein-before described.
Having now described the nature of iny Invention, and the manner in which the
saine is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I claim as my Invention
the improvements in couplings for coupling and uncoupling railway carriages and
vehicles, and locomotives, herein-before described and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawings, that is to say, the combination or arrangement of the slotted bar or
link d, d², under link or fork c, and lifting lever i, 2, and parts connected with the
said lever, constituting an automatic coupling, the said coupling being lifted or
brought into position for use, and made to automatically couple itself to the
stationary carriage or vehicle to which it is brought up, substantially as described
and illustrated.
"
.
In witness whereof, I, the said Samuel Partridge, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eleventh day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
SAMUEL PARTRIDGE. (L.S.)