New or Improved Self-acting Electrical Signalling Apparatus for Preventing Collisions on Railways.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 10th Feb., 1896-Accepted, 14th Mar., 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
New or Improved Self-acting Electrical Signalling Apparatus for
Preventing Collisions on Railways.
I, HEINRICH OTTO KRAPF, of 18 Lortzingstrasse, Dresden, in the Empire of
Germany, Druggist, 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 a self-acting electric signalling apparatus for railways,
which consists firstly of a conductor placed alongside the rails at a station or other
part of the line, secondly of a galvanic or storage battery or other suitable source
of electricity placed on the locomotive, thirdly of an indicating apparatus also
placed on the locomotive, and fourthly of the necessary conductors and contact
makers. The object of this signalling apparatus is to call the attention of the
engine driver, by means of the indicator on the engine, when there is an obstacle
on the line in front of him in the shape of a carriage, wagon or train, and
thereby indirectly to prevent collision between the approaching train and the
obstacle.
In the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation showing small bars or rails of copper, or
other suitable conducting material, placed alongside the ordinary rails of a
railway.
Figure 2 is a plan of same.
Figure 3 is a front view of a locomotive with contact brushes fitted thereto.
Figure 4 shows part of a carriage or wagon forming the obstacle, and furnished
with circuit-closing brushes and connections.
Figure 5 shows a side view of a brush carrier.
Figure 6 is a front view of the same.
Figure 7 shows the indicating apparatus on the locomotive.
Figure 8 shows a plan of a switch or junction with its electric con-
nections, and
Figure 9 is a diagram of the electric connections of the apparatus.
a are conducting bars fixed alongside the rails forming the railway. b are
conducting brushes fixed, on the one hand to the locomotive, and on the other to
the carriage, wagon or other vehicle forming the obstacle. c are the connecting
wires leading the current to and from the brushes b. d are brackets fixed to the
locomotive, and to the vehicle forming the obstacle, and which brackets carry the
brushes b. e is a fork carried by a lever i which is pin-jointed at to the switch
bar h, and is pivotted to a fixed pivot at g. k are contact plates for the set of
o are the
branch rails m' m, and I are contact plates for the other set of rails n n.
points of attachment of two conducting wires u connecting the conducting bars a a
with the fork e. p is a warning disc or plate painted red for example which can
be brought into sight opposite an opening in the front of the indicating apparatus
by means of an armature or core s of a solenoid bobbin t. q is a disc or plate
which normally stands opposite the aforesaid opening in the front of the indicating
apparatus and shows "Safety." ris a spiral spring for drawing up the armature
or solenoid core s. to is a rod connected to the armature or cores of the
The indicating
solenoid t and y, z are lugs which act as guides for the rod w.
dises or plates p and q are fixed to and are moved by the said rod w.

page_text: The fixed conductor consists of the bars a (Figures 1, 2 and 8) and these are
connected with a contact-changing apparatus fgivelu ok as shown in Figure 8.
The fixed conductor extends to such a distance that the engine driver of an
approaching train will receive by it an indication of a block in time and at such a
distance from the obstacle that he will be able to stop his train and avoid a
collision.
Instead of bars a, rods or strong wires may be used for the fixed conductors, and
they are preferably made of copper. The battery or other generator of electricity
is placed on the locomotive of the train that is to be protected and the indicating
apparatus is placed on the locomotive at about the same height as the pressure
gauge, so as to be readily seen by the driver.
In front of the locomotive are fixed, one to the left and one to the right, two arms
or brackets d, each provided with an elastic yielding metallic brush & which bears
constantly against the corresponding conductor bar a.
The electric circuit is closed when both bars a are connected together at the
point where the obstacle occurs by a suitable conductor. For this purpose when a
line of rail is blocked at the station by one or more vehicles, one of these vehicles
is provided with a connector e provided with brushes b like those on the locomotive
of the approaching train and these brushes & likewise touch both conducting bars a.
The indicating apparatus on the locomotive is of course connected to the bars a as
shown diagrammatically in Figure 9 and is therefore always ready, when locomotive
is over the bars a, to give a visible and audible signal.
Assuming now that one or more vehicles is or are standing on the same line of
rails as an approaching train, and over the hars a which extend in the direction of
such train, one of the said vehicles is provided with a conductor e which connects
the two brushes & on that vehicle together and thereby one conducting bar a to the
other, this closes the circuit through the battery and indicating instrument on the
locomotive of the approaching train immediately the brushes & on the locomotive
some into contact with the conducting bars a, and the bell in the indicating
apparatus sounds and the warning disc p (Figure 7) is brought into view, calling
the attention of the driver to the fact that there is an obstacle before him, and that
he must stop the train as quickly as possible.
At switches or junctions the special apparatus shown in Figure 8 for making the
electric connections to suit the line of rails that is open should be employed,
otherwise useless and improper signals would in some cases be given. In this
apparatus the switch bar is prolonged and has pin-jointed to it at the
lever i which is pivotted at g. The lever i carries the fork e, the ends of which
make contact with the plates k or I according as the switch is open or closed.
When the switch is open to pass a train on to the branch line the fork e is
brought into contact with the plates k, and the conlacting bars a of the branch
are thereby connected with the bars a of the main line so that if a vehicle is
standing on the branch line when the switch is open, and the conductor e upon
that vehicle connects the two bars a of the branch line together, the said bars are
connected through ke and u, with the bars a of the main line in readiness to warn
an approaching train of the obstacle standing on the branch line. But when the
switch is closed the fork e is brought into contact with the plates as shown in
the figure, and the conducting bars a on the main line to the right in Figure 8
are thereby connected with the bars a of the main line to the left in the figure, so
that the presence of an obstacle on the main line to the right hand of Figure 8
will be indicated to a train approaching on the main line from the left hand of the
figure. The pins e fixed to the ends of the fork e carry the copper wires u which
are connected at o with the bars a as shown in Figure 8. These wires u are free
to follow the movements of the fork e.
The leading ides in this invention is to produce a signalling apparatus which
shall be as independent as possible of that personal attention which has to be
given in signalling with the apparatus at present in use. This new signalling
apparatus is intended to be supplementary to the ordinary system of signals, and

page_text: by its automatic action is specially useful in cases where collisions might otherwise
occur through the improper placing of signals or switches, or through the illness
or neglect of the signal man in charge and so forth.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
First. Self-acting electrical signalling apparatus for railways for preventing
collisions between an incoming train and another train or single vehicles standing
on the same line or coming in an opposite direction which consists of a main con-
ductor placed alongside the line of rails, an electric battery or other suitable
source of electricity placed on the locomotive, an indicating apparatus also placed
on the locomotive, conducting devices for connecting the battery or other source
of electricity, and the indicating apparatus on the locomotive with the main
conductor, and conducting devices placed on the vehicle which forms the obstacle,
for the purpose of connecting together electrically the two parts of the main
conductor at the point where the obstacle occurs, substantially as described.
Second. Self-acting electrical signalling apparatus for railways, constructed and
operating substantially as described, and for the purpose specified.
Dated 10th day of February 1900.
H. O. KRAPF.
Per W. H. Beck,
115 Cannon Street, London, E.C., Agent.