Improvements in or relating to Central Buffers and Couplings.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 15th May 1896
Complete Specification Left, 16th Oct.. 1896-Accepted, 21st Nov., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Central Buffers and Couplings.
I, GEORGE JOHNSTON of 65, Eastbourne Street, Liverpool in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
This invention relates to central buffers and couplings and has been designed
more especially for use in connection with the central buffers and couplings set
forth in my prior Specification No. 122705 but its use is of course not confined
thereto, as it may be employed for buffers of other kinds. One object of the
invention is to avoid the defect so objected to hitherto, namely, the buffer head
being rigidly united to the buffing or drawbar, the former remains at right angles
or nearly so to the head stock of the vehicle and the buffers being thus rigid, the
buffing action between two vehicles on a curve is mainly confined to one side or
the other of the buffer faces, which is liable to severely strain the vehicle and
possesses other well known disadvantages.
By my arrangement I pivot the buffer box to or so couple it to the buffing and
draw bar that the former is not rigidly united to the latter, but is capable of
turning on its axis so as to facilitate the buffers of adjacent carriages remaining in
line or substantially so when the carriages are on curves. By this arrangement.
the faces of the buffers can be made flat and the buffing action is distributed over
the whole face of the buffer. The end of the bar abuts against a solid abutment
on the buffer head so that the entire pressure on the buffer is received by the end
of the bar instead of on its pivot. An arrangement is provided for causing the
buffer to resume a position parallel with the bar when the vehicle is detached
or when travelling in a straight line. This arrangement consists in providing in
the end of the bar a spring button or stud with a spherical face engaging a
depression in the buffer box. It is so arranged that when the spring button
engages the depression in the buffer box or head the latter will be held in line
with the bar. By exerting a little force the buffer head can be turned on one side
or the other so that it will at once resume its position when the force that turned
it laterally is removed. It is obvious that the bar may engage a jaw in the buffer
head or the buffer head may engage a jaw in the bar and the spring stud be
arranged either on the bar or in the head as the case may be, either arrangement
being a mechanical equivalent of the other.
In my prior specification aforesaid I mentioned that the coupling pin for
engaging the draw link might be raised, when required, by a chain or in any other
suitable manner such for instance as an eyebolt or a horizontal crossbar worked
from each side of the carriage. In another arrangement, which I have since
designed, I employ a pivotted lever having a horizontal crossbar thereon, which,
when raised, is adapted to engage the projecting arm and raise the coupling out of
engagement with the link. The lever drops down after the force which lifted it is
removed, leaving the coupling pin raised until such time as two vehicles are again
brought together.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Patent Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Central Buffers and Couplings.
I, GEORGE JOHNSTON of 65 Eastbourne Street, Liverpool in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to central buffers and couplings and has been designed
more especially for use in connection with the central buffers and couplings set
forth in my Specification of Letters Patent No. 1227095 but its use is of course not
confined thereto, as it may be employed for buffers of other kinds. One object of
the invention is to avoid the defect so objected to hitherto, namely, the buffer
head being rigidly united to the buffing or drawbar, the former remains at right
angles or nearly so to the head stock of the vehicle and the buffers being thus
rigid, the buffing action between two vehicles on a curve is mainly confined to one
side or the other of the buffer faces, which is liable to severely strain the vehicle
and possesses other well known disadvantages.
By my arrangement I pivot the buffer box to or so couple it to the buffing
and draw bar that the former is not rigidly united to the latter, but is capable of
turning on its axis so as to facilitate the buffers of adjacent carriages remaining
in line or substantially so when the carriages are on curves. By this arrangement
the faces of the buffers can be made flat and the buffing action is distributed over
the whole face of the buffer.
The invention will be understood from the following description, reference being
had to the accompanying drawings, in which,
Figure 1 is a front elevation, partly in section, of a central buffer showing my
invention applied thereto;
Figure 2 a plan thereof, also partly in section.
In these figures, A is the buffer box, B the buffing and drawbar, C a pivot
which couples the buffer box to the bar, so that the former is not rigidly united to
the latter but is capable of turning on its axis and facilitates the buffers of
adjacent carriages remaining in line when the carriages are on curves. The end
of the bar B abuts against a solid abutment on the buffer head A so that the
entire pressure on the buffer is received by the end of the bar B instead of on its
pivot C. An arrangement is provided for causing the buffer A to resume a
position in line with the bar B when the vehicle is detached or when travelling in
a straight line. This arrangement consists in providing in the end of the bar a
spring actuated ball D, button or stud adapted to engage a depression E in the
buffer box A. It is so arranged that when the spring ball engages the depression
in the buffer box or head the latter will be held in line with the bar. By
exerting a little force the buffer head can be turned on one side or the other, but
it will at once resume its position when the force that turned it laterally, is
removed. It is obvious that the bar B may engage a jaw in the buffer head A or
the buffer head may engage a jaw in the bar and the spring stud be arranged
either on the bar or in the head as the case may be, either arrangement being a
mechanical equivalent of the other.
In my prior specification aforesaid I mentioned that the coupling pin for
engaging the draw link might be raised, when required, by a chain or in any
other suitable manner such for instance as an eyebolt or a horizontal crossbar
worked from each side of the carriage. In another arrangement set forth in the
accompanying drawings which I have since designed, is a coupling pin for
engaging the draw-link, and G a pivotted lever having a horizontal crossbar G
thereon, which, when raised in uncoupling two vehicles, comes into contact with
the projecting arm e and lifts the coupling pin F out of engagement with the draw-

page_text: ink. The lever drops down after the force that lifted it from either side of the
carriage is removed, leaving the coupling pin F raised until such time as two
vehicles are again brought together. If preferred, the horizontal crossbar G¹ may
engage a slot in the arm e. One advantage of such arrangement is that a simple
means is provided for preventing the pin F turning.
In the Specification of my Letters Patent aforesaid, the draw-link, when two
vehicles come together, automatically enters the bell mouth of the central buffer
and is guided by the sloping sides and by a stirrup into the exact position for the
coupling pin to fall, the link pushing back the stirrup which in its turn pushes
back a spring catch from engagement with the shoulder on the pin, leaves the pin
free to fall through the coupling link and thus fastens the buffers. It is obvious
that this stirrup may, if desired, be dispensed with, in which case the spring catch
is arranged in such a position that the coupling link on entering a buffer shall
strike the catch direct and slide it back from engagement with the pin, while the
moment the pin is raised from the link and the two carriages are separated, the
spring catch flies into position engaging the shoulder on the pin and preventing
the pin from again falling into the buffer until it or another link is again
inserted, when the weight of the pin, on the pushing back of the catch by the
link, causes said pin to fall and lock the coupling link. This obvious modification
of my patent aforesaid is covered by Claim I etcetera of said patent.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In a central buffer for railway rolling stock, the arrangement for enabling a
buffer to turn laterally to one side or the other when the train is on a curve,
and to at once resume its normal position when the force that turned it is
removed, whereby the buffers of adjacent carriages can always remain in line
and the buffing action will be distributed over their whole faces, substantially as
described.
2. A central buffer in which the buffer head is pivotted to the buffer bar and
the end of said bar abuts against a solid abutment on the buffer head, whereby the
entire pressure on the buffer is received by the end of the bar instead of on the
pivot, in combination with a device, such as a spring-actuated ball, button or stud,
for causing the buffer to instantly fly back in line with the bar when the force
which turned it laterally is removed.
3. In a central buffer and coupling having a coupling pin engaging the drawlink,
the arrangement for lifting said pin out of engagement with the drawlink from
either side of the vehicle substantially as described.
Deted this 15th dox of October 1906
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, and London, Patent Agents.