IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY BREAKS
Year: 1875

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Theodore Puskás at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 3rd
April 1875.-A communication from abroad by Emile Schindler,
of Budapest, in the Kingdom of Hungary, Professor of Mathe-
matics.
I, THEODORE PUSKÁS, of 7, Westminster Chambers, in the City of
Westminster, and 14, Southampton Buildings, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY BREAKS," a communication to me
from abroad by Emilc Schindler, of Budapest, in the Kingdom of
Hungary, Professor of Mathematics, to be as follows :—
This Invention relates to what are known as continuous railway
breaks, and consists of certain peculiar combinations and arrangements
of mechanism herein-after described, for actuating the breaks of loco-
motive engines and of the carriages or waggons composing the train.
The engine break blocks are by preference applied to the upper portion
of the circumference of one or more pairs of wheels through the
intervention of horizontal levers partly composed by preference of a

page_text: series of spring plates in order to impart a certain amount of elasticity
to the said levers These levers are acted upon by a pair of knee joint
levers, the straightening of which causes the horizontal levers to be
deflected and the breaks to be applied with the maximum of power.
The said knee joint levers are connected by a rod leading either directly
or through the intervention of an intermediate lever and second rod
with lever arms on a rocking shaft situate beneath the foot plate of tho
engine or otherwise conveniently placed, carrying another lever arm to
which is jointed the end of the piston rod of a steam compressed air or
hydraulic cylinder, which in the case of using steam is supplied direct
from the boiler, by any suitable arrangement of valve or cock. The
other end of the piston rod is connected to a lever, which carries a
spring catch working along a fixed quadrant provided with notches or
holes at suitable intervals or other equivalent contrivance, the object of
such arrangement being to afford facility for regulating the power
applied to the breaks This is effected in the following manner -The
various bicak actuating levers are so disposed that the maximum of
power will be applied when the piston has travelled to the middle of its
cylinder, and hence by engaging the before-mentioned catch with one
or other of the notches or holes in the quadrant the range of travel of
the piston and consequently the power applied to the breaks will be
controlled.
Although I prefer to employ a steam cylinder for applying the breaks,
I may in some cases substitute therefor any well known and suitablo
mechanical motion, such for example, as a screw & handle wheel.
. The following is the improved arrangement and mode of actuating the
several breaks throughout the train of carriages or waggons.—To a central
lever arm on the before-mentioned rocking shaft there is connected a
central buffer rod, which projects beyond the rear end of the tender;
this central buffer rod is provided with a buffer head and is forced
outwards more or less by the action of the lever on the rocking shaft
when the steam is introduced into the break cylinder. Inclined notches
or their equivalent are made in the said buffer rod, and a sliding
catch or equivalent contrivance engages therein, so as to prevent the
buffer rod from being forced inwards again by the pressure of the train
against it, as herein-after explained. The draw bars of the several
carriages or waggons are each connected with a pair of knee-joint leveis
and in their normal condition are held if desired in such a position by

page_text: the draw spings as to ensure that the breaks of each separate or
detached carriage shall be always applied, thereby avoiding the danger
of a detached portion of the train running down a gradient as is
frequently the case, but if otherwise preferred the break mechanism can
be so adjusted that the breaks shall be off when in their normal
condition. The breaks of each carriage are suspended from fixed centres
or otherwise disposed, and each pair of break blocks is pressed against
by the ends of a spring disposed transversely to the framing. Tho
centres of these break springs are in turn pressed against by centrally
› disposed lever arms hung from centres above, the said lever arins being
connected by adjustable connecting rods with other short lever arms
projecting from opposite sides of a horizontal or vertical rocking shaft,
which is connected by a longer lever to one end of the actuating knee-
joint levers, also disposed either vertically or horizontally.
In order to avoid any lateral strain or deflection of the draw bars a
quandrant working on the fixed centre of the knee joint levers bears
upon or rolls over the surface of the draw bar, a buffer head is adapted
to each end of cach draw bar and the said draw bars are coupled together
throughout the train by jointed links.
The action of this break mechanism is as follows.-When the train is
at rest the whole of the breaks on the carriages may if desired be so
adjusted as to be applied with a certain amount of power due to the
springs on the draw bars, but so soon as the tractive force of the engine
is exerted the longitudinal movement of the draw bars takes off the
several breaks leaving the train perfectly free.
Should it be required to stop the train in the shortest possible space of
time the driver admits steam beneath the piston in the break actuating
cylinder and allows the piston to move to the middle of the cylinder, there-
by causing the knee-joint levers of the engine breaks to be straightened,
and give out their maximum effect. At the same time the central
buffer rod in the rear of the engine or tender will be forced outwards
more or less, so as to present a stop or abutment for the end of the next
adjoining draw bar to press against, when the momentum of the hind
part of the train combined with the slackening of the speed of the engine
forces the several draw bars towards the rear, and by straightening more
or less the several kace joint levers causes the breaks to be instantaneously
applied.

page_text: By allowing the piston in the break actuating cylinder to pass beyond
the middle of the said cylinder the central buffer on the engine or
tender will be forced further outwards, and the draw bars by being
correspondingly moved still further to the rear will cause the several
knee joint levers to deflect again towards the opposite side, and thereby 5
take off the breaks.
In order to enable the engine to draw the train with its tender in front
(should occasion require it) and still retain the power of applying the
breaks from the engine, it is simply necessary to repeat the break
actuating mechanism in the fore part of the engine.
With a view morcover to affording the means of applying the breaks
to the carriages- when shunting or being pushed by the engine, each
carriage may be provided with a screw and hand wheel or other suitable
contrivance for putting on the breaks independently of the engine.
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