IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY SWITCHES
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Archibald Brooman, of 166, Fleet
Street, in the City of London, Patent Agent, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY SWITCHES."-A communication.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Archibald
Brooman at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 10th October 1858.
I, RICHARD ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the
City of London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY SWITCHES" to be as
follows:-
This Invention has relation to that class of railway switches operated
by the approaching train, and is intended especially to enable a train
coming upon the regular track, and finding the switch set to a "turn-
out," to replace the switch so that the train may pass on its regular
track.
The rails, sleepers, ties, &c. are as of usual make, but instead of
having a simple bar, sliding upon a tie, to carry the moveable end
of the changing rail, a beam of wood or metal is used, which is

page_text: hollowed on the under side so as to play along a suitable piece of
wood resting on the sleepers, and which piece sustains the weight.
The purpose of this arrangement is that the bearing surfaces may be
protected from the dust, ice, &c. The sliding beam is secured in place
by pins which pass through slots cut in the fixed piece. When the
switch is to be set to a turn-out the beam is moved by a hand lever
or by any other suitable means, and as soon as the ends of the rails
coincide the beam is held in that position by a latch bolt, which is
made to drop into a hole or notch in the beam by a spring urging the
bolt forward. The action of the hand lever is to move the beam
against the force of a stiff elliptic or other suitable spring; and thus on
withdrawing the latch bolt, the beam would be thrown suddenly back,
being arrested by any suitable stop at such a point that the rails of the
regular track will be connected. The withdrawal of the bolt will be
effected when a train is approaching in the one direction by means
of a cranked lever placed alongside the rail in such manner that the
flange of the wheel will depress the lever, and, as the lever is attached
to the bolt, thereby draw out the bolt.
In the case of a train approaching from the opposite direction the
bolt may be withdrawn by affixing to it a simple lever of the first
order, the opposite end of which has a connecting rod extending to a
cranked lever similar to that before mentioned, and placed beyond the
moveable part of the rail.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Richard Archibald Brooman in the Great Seal 2
Patent Office, on the 10th April 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
RICHARD ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of
London, Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her 3
Letters Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of October, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the seventeenth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and

page_text: grant unto me, the said Richard Archibald Broomau, Her special
licence that I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Richard Archi-
bald Brooman, 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 Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY SWITCHES," (communicated to me
by a foreigner residing abroad) upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, 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 calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to
the Drawings hereunto annexed, that is to say:
This Invention consists of improvements in self-acting switches for
railroads, part of the said improvements being applicable to switches of
common construction. The operation of the Invention is such that in
the case of a train approaching a switch which has been carelessly left
open, or so as to run the train upon a side track, the rails will be made
to adjust themselves by the force of an auxiliary power as a spring or
weight coming into action before the wheels reach the switch, the
wheels of the locomotive effecting the disengagement of a bolt by
means of proper mechanism placed along the track, and extending a
sufficient distance to allow enough time to clapse for the movement to
take place between the moment the wheels strike the disengaging
apparatus and that at which they come upon the switch rails when
under the highest possible rates of speed. In the construction of self-
acting switches it is important that the parts required to move shall

page_text: always be free to do so. This is not always the case, because
such parts are liable to become choked or clogged up by dirt and
other like obstructions falling upon them, and because also in very
cold weather the shifting rails and sleepers are liable to become frozen.
All these difficulties have been overcome by the present improve-
nients. Figure 1, of the Drawings annexed is a perspective view of a
self-acting switch constructed according to the invention; Figure 2, is
a view of the cross sleeper for shifting the rails taken on the line a, a,
of Figure 1; Figure 3, is a view of a chair constructed so as to be
free from liability to become frozen or choked up by dirt, &c. a, is the
shifting sleeper, which is grooved on its under side, and fitted so as to
slide upon a permanent guide sleeper b, Figure 2, and is kept in place
on this sleeper by a bolt passing through a slot, as seen at c. By this
means the grooved way is always free to act, being kept perfectly
screened by the upper and side surfaces of the sleeper a. At one end
is a spring g, or a weight and lever, as may be preferred. This is the
force for throwing the sleeper across and setting the switch on the
removal of the disengaging bolt by the wheels of the approaching
train. f, is the disengaging bolt; this lies horizontally, and parallel
with the main rails; it extends along to a considerable distance, and
terminates in a link, by which it is bolted to a bent lever h, the fulcrum
of which is at i, at the base of one of the sleepers. The larger arm of
this lever lies near to aud parallel with one of the main rails z, as shewn.
e, is a hole in the shifting sleeper, which receives the point of the bolt
by which the switch is locked when a train is to be switched off. The
bolt is shewn as set in this position. m, is a coupling lever for con-
necting the bolt with another lever similar to h, to be actuated by a
train coming in the other direction. The operation of this arrange-
ment is as follows:-In Figure 1, the switch is shewn as set for a turn
out, and is supposed to have been left in that situation by the careless-
ness of the switch tender. A train now approaches upon the main rails 2, 2,
in the direction of the arrow; the forward wheel strikes the lever h, and
riding over depresses it; this withdraws the point of the bolt from the
hole e, and thus allows the force of the spring g, to act upon the shifting
sleeper a, throwing it over, so that the end strikes against the stop

page_text: post d, the point of the latch bolt k, dropping into the hole ¹, and
making the rails fast in their proper position for passing the train over.
Figure 2, shews a modification of this arrangement at the part where
the point of the bolt enters the shifting rail u. This modification is
effected, first, by affixing a plate m³, to project over the hole and parts
adjacent, so as to shield the hole, and keep out dirt, water, &c.; and,
second, by applying an inclined planen, of metal placed horizontally,
and at one side of the bolt hole, as shewn. The use of this inclined
plane is to throw the bolt farther back than it is withdrawn by the
action of the wheel upon the treadle or lever 1, in order that the lever
may be depressed so far as to clear all the rest of the wheels of the
train. The first wheel strikes and depresses the lever h, ouly so far as
will be sufficient to clear the end of the bolt from the hole e. The
shifting sleeper then in moving across brings the surface of the inclined
plane against the point of the bolt, and makes it recede still further, and
thereby throws down the lever h below the line of the flanges of all
the wheels, which accordingly pass clear. Figure 3, is a view of the
improved chair, shewn on a larger scale than the other parts of Figure 1.
The object is to have a chair which can be attached to the shifting
rails, and move with them without being liable to become choked up
with dirt or frozen. A, is a side section; and A', an end section of the
chair; o, is a base plate of metal fixed to the sleepers; upon this the
moveable chair p rests, being grooved on the under side, and fitted so
as to move upon the base plate o. The groove or cavity on the under
side of the chair, by embracing all parts of the base plate, effectually
shields that from the weather and from obstructions by dirt, &c., and
it is therefore always in order to act freely. The shifting rails are laid
in the jaw and keyed firmly, as usual.
And having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim
as the Invention is,―
First, the mode of constructing the shifting sleeper so as to protect
its bearings from dirt and from the risk of freezing, as described.
Second, the inclined plane n, in combination with the shifting bar,
and disengaging bolt, as described.

page_text: And, third, the construction of a switch chair having its seats so
arranged as to cover the bearing surface, and keep the same free from
dirt and other obstacles, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman,
have hereunto set my hand and scal, this Eighth day of April,
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
R. A. BROOMAN. (L.S.)