IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY COUPLINGS
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
RAILWAY COUPLINGS." A communication from abroad by James Charles
Mitchell and Charles William Roby, both of the Town of Lancaster, in the
County of Coos, State of New Hampshire, in the United States of America.
caled the 9th September 1876, and dated the 12th July 187
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 12th July 1876.
:
JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman. "IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY COUPLINGS." A communication from
abroad by James Charles Mitchell and Charles William Roby, both of the Town of
Lancaster, in the County of Coos, State of New Hampshire, in the United States of
America.
The object of this Invention is to provide an improved device or means whereby
railway carriages may be automatically coupled together, and the operation of
uncoupling may be performed easily and with absolute certainty from the side or
top of the carriage without requiring the operator to step within the rails, by which
means all risk of accident occuring from this cause to any employés of the railway
is entirely obviated.
The apparatus is also so arranged as to admit of the carriages being brought
together, if desired, without being coupled. By its improved construction inoreover
material is economized, as whilst it is equally as strong as the couplings now in use,
it is lighter and less expensive, and, lastly, its arrangement allows the draught strain
to be distributed over the surface of the car in lieu of having it concentrated as in
the ordinary coupling.
In carrying out this Invention the bunter or draw bar consists of a rectangular
box, the front of which is open to receive the coupling link, and is made of a form
to facilitate its entry. The front of this draw bar is flanged, as is also the rear end,
and through this latter pass any suitable number of bolts securing the bunter to
the cross head or end rail of the carriage; some of these bolts being carried inward
to the centre of the carriage so as to throw the draught strain not only on the cross
head but the other framing of the carriage also. Between the back of the draw bar
or bunter and the cross head is interposed rubber or other elastic substance of any
suitable thickness to deaden the concussion when the carriages come together, and
[Price Gd.]

page_text: this object is still further attained by means of pins or guides projecting from the
back of the bunter through the rubber and end rail of the carriage or any like device.
In the bunter (which may be divided up horizontally into two or more chambers to
accommodate cars of differing heights, requiring to be coupled together) is placed a
gate or coupling plate (one being required for each chamber) hung on its upper side
in gudgeons, and leaving under it space sufficient for the coupling link, which is
formed with a shoulder or projection at either end on its upper side. When the
carriages are run together the link enters the draw bar, and striking up the
coupling plate passes under it, the draught being borne by the shoulder on the end
of the link which pulls on the coupling plate, this in its turn bearing against recessed
shoulders formed in the draw bar on either side of the opening. On the ends of the
pivots to which the coupling plates are hung, and which project out beyond the
sides of the bunter, are secured arms, the other ends of which are connected to the
end of a lever pivotted to the end rail of the carriage and worked from the top or
side. This lifts the coupling plates and allows the link to be withdrawn, and by
keeping the outer end of this lever depressed the coupling plates will be retained in
such a position that the link will not catch on them, and the carriages may be run
together without coupling being effected.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by the
said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 11th January
1877.
JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman. "IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY COUPLINGS." A communication fromi
abroad by James Charles Mitchell and Charles William Roby, both of the Town of
Lancaster, in the County of Coos, State of New Hampshire, in the United States of
America.
The said Invention has for its object the provision of an apparatus for coupling
carriages together which shall do so automatically and be easily and surely
operated to uncouple them without exposing the men who perform this operation to
risk of life or limb.
Many devices have been proposed for this purpose, but hitherto no one of these
has practically come into use, the defects which have prevented their adoption
having been either inefficiency in working, complexity of structure, excessive cost,
or even the fact that in many of them the carriages could not be brought together
without being coupled.
By the said Invention not only are all these objections obviated, and a coupling
provided, which is at once simple in construction, efficient in its working, capable
of being operated with perfect safety, and allowing the carriages to be run together
without necessarily coupling them by so doing, but this coupling also presents the
advantages of being (while quite as strong as the ordinary coupling) lighter and
cheaper, and it is at the same time arranged so as to distribute the draught strain
more evenly over the carriage.
And in order. that the said Invention may be fully understood I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose shall refer
to the several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the same letters of
reference indicating corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings represents a front view of the draw bar
or bunter, the parts being in the position to allow the carriages to come together
without being coupled. Figure 2 is a side view partly in section of the bunter,
and parts in connection therewith; Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional elevation
of the bunter, with the coupling link and parts in connection therewith, and
Figure 1 is a plan of the bunter partly in section, to show the arrangement of the
interior.

page_text: A is the bunter or draw bar, its form being preferably, as shown, that of a
rectangular box open at the front with lips curving outward, so as to facilitate
the entry of the coupling link B, which will be herein-after more particularly
described. Flanges A, A, are formed respectively on the front and back of the
bunter, and through the flange A2, or in any other suitable position, in the rear
of the bunter, pass bolts C, C, which are as usual provided with heads, and, as
shown in Figures 2 and 4, sécure the bunter to the cross head or end rail D of the
carriage. One or more of these bolts may, as shown at C, be extended and secured
at any point at or near the centre of the carriage so as to distribute the draught
strain over more than one or two places in the framing. By preference, and to
facilitate the operation of taking off and putting on the bunter, the outer ends of
these bolts C are secured in their position by a cottar or key E passing down
through them, but if desired they may be furnished in the usual way with nuts
and washers. Between the cross head D and the back plate A of the bunter is
interposed a thickness (which may be less than what is now required) of rubber
or other suitable elastic inaterial, as shown at F, for the purposes of deadening the
concussion when the carriages come together, and of taking up the spring. Rubber
may also be interposed, as at f, between the heads of the bolts C, C, and the surfaces
against which they bear. From the back plate A of the bunter project pins or
guides G passing through the rubber F and end rail D, and serving not only to
hold the bunter in its proper position with relation to the end rail 1 and other
framing of the carriage but also to afford the necessary play when the carriages
come together.
The apparatus for effecting the automatic coupling together of the carriages is
arranged in the following manner:-For greater convenience, when the carriages
to be coupled together are of differing heights, the bunter is divided up horizontally
by diaphragms a into two or more compartments, the sides being recessed, as shown
at a', in Figure 4, so as to form inside shoulders, against which bear, when strain is
put upon them, the coupling plates or gates HI suspended on pivots or gudgeons h,
the space between the lower edge of a coupling plate H and the diaphragm imme-
diately below it being rather more than the thickness of the coupling link B. This
coupling link B may consist of a narrow plate of iron turned up at the ends so as
to form on its upper side shoulders, as at B'. It may be found necessary in cases
where carriages unprovided with the improved coupling are to be coupled to those
which have it, that some arrangement should be made for securing the ordinary
link, and this may be effected by leaving, as shewn at Z, apertures for the pin
generally used, and forming in the link B a slot b, as shown in Figure 3. The
gudgeons or pivots h, as shown more particularly in Figure 2, are carried out on
one or both sides beyond the walls of the bunter, and on their ends are secured
small arms or levers K, the lower ends of these being connected by chains, cords,
or links to one arm of a lever M, pivotted at m to the end rail D of the carriage
and operated from the side from any safe point. The inner end of this lever may
also be provided with any suitable connection with the top of the carriage, so that
it may be raised from that point. There is also arranged at any suitable point on
the rail or cross head D a catch of any ordinary kind for the purpose of maintaining
the outer end of the lever M depressed, and the coupling plates El in the position
shown in Figure 1. The lower ends of the arms or levers K are preferably weighted,
as shown at %, so as to maintain the coupling plates H, when not otherwise acted
upon, in the position shown in Figure 3. If desired the diaphragms a, a, may have,
as shown, an aperture formed in them, as at Y, for the purpose of draining off any
extra amount of water that may enter the bunter. In many cases it may be found
practicable to omit the diaphragms a, and to have but one coupling plate H in the
bunter, the apparatus being thus greatly simplified in construction.
The apparatus is operated in the following manner: When the carriages are
run together for the purpose of being coupled, the link B projecting from the
bunter of one carriago enters the meeting bunter, and striking against one of the
coupling plates H suspended therein, causes it to swing backwards and upwards

page_text: until the shoulder B¹ has passed underneath it, when it at once falls back to its
former position, viz., that shown in Figure 3. The draught strain is borne
by the shoulder B¹ which pulls on the lower part of the coupling plate H, this in
its turn bearing on the shoulders a¹, a', in the bunker. In order to uncouple the
carriages it is simply necessary to raise either from the side or top of the carriage
the inner end of the lever M thus acting upon the lower ends of the levers K, and
through them swinging up the coupling plates H so as to allow the shoulder B¹ of
the link to pass under and the link to be drawn out. By retaining the coupling
plates in this position, which can easily be done by keeping the outer end of the
lever M depressed, the carriages when run together will not be coupled, the link
passing freely in and out of the compartments of the bunter, and not being locked
by the coupling plate.
It should be understood that although the said Invention is especially applicable
to freight carriages, it may with little or no alteration be adapted to those for
passenger traffic.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into
- effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and original, and
therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent, is-
First. In combination with any railway carriage, the bunter or draw bar A,
constructed substantially as herein set forth, and secured both to the end of the
carriage and to any point near the centre, substantially as herein-before described
and illustrated by the accompanying Drawings.
Second. The novel construction and arrangement of the draw bar A, divided by
horizontal diaphragms into two or more compartments, substantially as herein-before
described.
Third. The draw bar A constructed substantially as described, and provided
with pins or guides G, substantially as and for the purposes herein-before described.
Fourth. The combination with the draw bar A, recessed so as to form shoulders
of the coupling plate E pivotted to the draw bar, as and for the purposes herein-
before described.
Fifth. The arrangement for operating the coupling plates through levers M and
K, and links L, substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have to this my Specifi-
cation set my hand and seal, the Eleventh day of January, One thousand
eight hundred and seventy-seven.
J. HENRY JOHNSON. (L.S.)