IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE APPLICATION OF ROLLING FRICTION TO THE AXLE-BOXES AND JOURNALS OF RUNNING SHAFTS AND AXLETREES OF MACHINES AND VEHICLES OF ALL DESCRIPTIONS FOR LESSENING THE RESISTANCE TO THE MOTION
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Nicolas Bailly, of the Town of Vesoul, in the Empire
of France, Agent of the Eastern Railway, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE APPLICATION OF ROLLING FRICTION TO THE AXLE-BOXES AND
JOURNALS OF RUNNING SHAFTS AND AXLETREES OF MACHINES AND VEHICLES
OF ALL DESCRIPTIONS FOR LESSENING THE RESISTANCE TO THE MOTION."-Partly
a communication by Charles Durand, residing at Jussey, a Town of
France.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Nicolas Bailly at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
3rd September 1863.
I, NICOLAS BAILLY, of the Town of Vesoul, in the Empire of France, Agent
of the Eastern Railway, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE APPLICATION OF ROLLING FRICTION TO THE AXLE-BOXES
AND JOURNALS OF RUNNING SHAFTS AND AXLETREES OF MACHINES AND VEHICLES
OF ALL DESCRIPTIONS FOR LESSENING THE RESISTANCE TO THE MOTION," (the result
partly of a communication made to me by Charles Durand, a person resident
at Jussey, a Town of France, and partly of Invention and discovery made by
himself,) to be as follows:-
"This Invention consists in setting a kind of round cast-iron basin проп the
axle or journal, within which basin are three spheres or balls bearing the
weight of the vehicle or machinery. The basin rests on one side on a slanting
edge of the axle near the nave of the wheel, and on the other side upon a ball
[Price 8d.1

page_text: which is put upon the end of the axle, where it runs in a round groove and is
kept in its place by a little contrivance composed of a socket piece which
rotates over four small conical rollers carried by cross shaped axles maintained
in position by an over cap. The axle by its rotating motion causes the basin
to rotate, the balls in the basin run in a concentric groove cut in the bottom
of the said basin and they are kept at a constant and equal distance from one
another by a small hexagonal prism iu three sides of which small spherical
recesses are made to receive the balls. A lid rests upon the three balls which
run in a concentric groové cut in the under side of said lid which bears the
whole weight either of the vehicle or machinery.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Nicolas Bailly in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
2nd March 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, NICOLAS
BAILLY, of the Town of Vesoul, in the Empire of France, Agent of the Eastern
Railway, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundredand sixty-three,in the twenty-seventh year of Her
reign,did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Nicolas Bailly, Her special licence that I, the said Nicolas Bailly, my
exécutors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Nicolas
Bailly, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE APPLICATION OF ROLLING FRICTION TO THE AXLE-BOXES AND JOURNALS OF
RUNNING SHAFTS AND AXLETREES OF MACHINES AND VEHICLES OF ALL DESCRIPTIONS
FOR LESSENING THE RESISTANCE TO THE MOTION," (the result partly of a commu-
nication made to me by Charles Durand, a person resident at Jussey,a town of
France, and partly of Invention and discoverymade by myself,) upon the con-
dition(amongst others) that I,the said Nicolas Bailly,myexecutors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, on one of their hands and
seals,should particularlydescribe and ascertainthenature of thesaidlnvention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to

page_text: be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Nicolas Bailly, do hereby declare the
nature of the 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 Sheet of Drawing hereunto annexed,
and forming part of this my Specification, and to the figures and letters of
reference marked thereon.
Thefrictionof axlesin revolving in machines and vehicles being the principal
cause of waste of the motive power, many persons have bent their minds to
find out some means to palliate this evil, and it will be readily understood that
the benefits resulting from such a discovery would be very important. If we
consider, for instance, the railways and their countless axletrees running in
all countries which require to be constantly lubricated, and the prodigious
quantities of lubricating material used for that purpose, we shall easily under-
stand what would be the importance of an Invention dispensing altogether
with the system of lubrification, since of all the causes of resistance opposing
the progression of trains on railways the friction of journals of axletrees in
their boxes is unquestionably the most considerable, for its effect is to much
increase the load to be drawn or driven. Now those who have contrived to
lessen the friction of journals and axles have mostly had in view only economy
of the lubricating material by improving the axle boxes or closed bearings for
the purpose of substituting oil to greasy or saponaceous materials. Some of
the proposed improvements have been tried with more or less success, some
of them indeed have been partially adopted on some lines, but hitherto not
extensively.
My Invention allows the journals or axles to revolve without being at
all lubricated, the locomotion becomes much lighter, and the wearing out is
almost null, for the bearing parts are no longer sliding but rolling on each
other.
The annexed Sheet of Drawings shews the application of my Invention to
the axle of a horizontal and a vertical shaft. I will first describe the application
to a horizontal axle, as shewn in Figures 1, 2, and 3; it consists in two similar
apparatuses somewhat like basins with top pieces applied obliquely against the
axle or journal, and a sphere or bullet bearing the said journal, Figures 1 and 3,
Figure is an end view of the axle or journal F of a shaft provided with its
two rolling apparatuses A, A, and Figure 3.is a longitudinal section of the
said axle alone, carried by the sphere O. The apparatus is shewn in section
Figure 1 on the left side; it is composed, first, of a circular basin A, shewn

page_text: alone in plan Figure 2; secondly, of three spheres or bullets s, running in a
groove B, Fig. 1, of short extent, the bullets s are kept at an equal distance
from each other by a small curved plate P of a suitable shape; thirdly, of a
covering piece C, in the lower side of which a groove D is cut also to fit the
bullets. The upper part of the covering piece C has a slanting surface 1,
which fits exactly on a corresponding slanting surface J, Figs. 1 and 3,cuton
the journal of the axle F; this is the actual and sole touching point of the
apparatus with the axle. Now it will be easily understood that no lateral motion
can be produced. On the other hand, the bullet O being also touching on the
slanting or conical surfaces I, I, of both apparatuses and with the axle at P¹,
Fig. 3, no lengthways motion can take place. If we look at the whole system
put together and in motion, it is easy to perceive that all and every part of it
is rolling and not sliding on one another. The small plate P must not be
considered as being a working part of the apparatus, for it is running on a
point X, and does not sustain any effort, its ouly design being to maintain the
three bullets at equal distance from each other; it bears but its own weight,
and no over-heating is to be apprehended.
In order to convey my idea and to be better understood I will suppose the
axle to be revolving in the direction shewn by the arrow F, Fig. 1, the
apparatus of the left side will revolve in the direction f, and of course the
apparatus of the right side will revolve in the direction f¹. The bullet or
ball O will revolve in the direction f", which is in perfect concordance with
the motion of both slanting surfaces I, I, of the circulating apparatuses on
which it is touching. It is to be remarked that as the said bullet revolves on
its bearing R, the point R, Fig. 3, is very nearly the pivot of the revolving
motion. As to the bullets s, they revolve about themselves in a contrary
direction to their progressing motion, which is the very direction of the covering
piece C which they carry.
The foregoing description with reference to the Figures is relating to a
horizontal running shaft. For applying the same system to axletrees of
railway waggons, the very same drawing may be looked at by turning it top
down, and will thus convey a true idea of my new axle box. As to the vertical
shafts the application of my apparatus is shewn by the Figs. 4 and 5. Fig. 4
isa plan, and Fig. 5, a vertical section through the line A', B', of the rolling
apparatus; it is similar to the application to horizontal shafts, but ouly one of
the circulating or bullet apparatuses before described is arranged for receiving
the lower end of a vertical shaft T, the weight thereof causing it to stick
to the covering piece U, forming a compact piece with it as it runs on the
bullets s.

page_text: Whatever may be the application of my Invention, and it can be applied to
supersede any sliding by a rolling motion, lubrification will be no longer
required. I have adopted the sphere or bullet on account of its great mobility,
for when it is on a plane surface it is at any position in unsteady equilibrium,
because a vertical line can ever pass through its center and touching point.
In summing up the advantages and savings resulting from my Invention,
there are, firstly, doing away with lubrification, because the rolling friction
will never be powerful enough to evolve heat enough to overheat the rolling
organs, as material experiments have proved with unquestionable evidence ;
secondly, very sensible reduction of the force to be applied to overcome the
resistance on account of the excessive mobility of the axle in the axle box,
and of course a considerable saving of fuel. I can also mention the trifling
wear of the rolling organs or parts.
My Invention being now described, and the manner of carrying it into effect,
I wish it to be understood that I douot confine myself to the precise arrange-
ment, as shewn in the accompaning Sheet of Drawing, as to the shape and
size of the circulating apparatus in connection with the axle boxes of running
shafts or axletrees, claiming to make any modification I may think proper,
so long as the peculiar features of my Invention be retained, which Invention
consists as aforesaid in the application of rolling friction to the axle boxes and
journals of running shafts and axletrees of machines and vehicles, substantially
as set forth in the present Specification
In witness whereof, I, the said Nicolas Bailly, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-second day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
Signed and sealed in the presence of
L. D'AUBRÉVILLE, C.E.
N. BAILLY. (L.S.)