IMPROVEMENTS IN MECHANISM FOR WORKING THE BRAKES OF RAILWAY CARRIAGES, WAGONS, AND TRUCKS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Adam Burdess, of Coventry, in the County of
Warwick, Watch Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MECHANISM FOR WORKING THE BRAKES OF RAILWAY CARRIAGES, WAGONS,
AND TRUCKS.”
"
Sealed the 13th April 1875, and dated the 28th January 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Adam Burdess at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
28th January 1875.
I, ADAM BURDESS, of Coventry, in the County of Warwick, Watch
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
" IMPROVEMENTS IN MECHANISM FOR WORKING THE BRAKES OF RAILWAY
CARRIAGES, WAGONS, AND TRUCKs," to be as follows:-
.
My Invention consists of the arrangements or combinations of parts
of mechanism herein-after described, having for their object to effect the
automatic action of the brake blocks upon the wheels of the said
carriages, wagons, and trucks, when by any obstruction being offered to

page_text: the advance motion of the carriage, wagon, or truck, the buffers and
buffer springs are brought into operation.
I will describe my Invention as applied to a railway carriage:-
番
The said lever carries a short
To the buffer rod an arm is attached. This arm is folded at its end
and embraces the free end of a lever parallel to the said buffer rod. The
outer edge or side of the said lever is provided with a cam or "rise," so
that when the buffer rod is pressed inwards the folded end of the said
arm påssing over the cam or "rise" on the lever draws the lever
inwards, that is towards the buffer rod.
horizontal cross lever, the inner end of which when the parts are in their 1
normal positions is very nearly but not quite in contact with the inner
face of the carriage wheel. When however the buffer rod is pressed
inwards the motion given to the lever carrying the said small cross lever
brings the end of the said cross lever against the inner face of the wheel.
The wheel by its onward motion gives motion to the said cross lever
pressing against it. The motion thus given to the said cross lever is trans-
mitted through a series of levers and connecting rods, and is made to
operate upon a cross connecting rod parallel or nearly parallel with the axle
of the pair of wheels, so as to draw the said connecting rod inwards. That
end of the said connecting rod immediately over the buffer rod carries a
fixed loop parallel with the buffer rod, and immediately under the said
loop and jointed to the buffer rod is a cleat having a shoulder on it. A
pin or stud on the said cleat engages in the said loop, and when the rod
carrying the loop is drawn inwards as described the said cleat is also
forced inwards, and its shoulder thereby made to engage with the top of
the lever working the brake block. The brake block is thereby pressed
into contact with the periphery of the wheel and the carriage speedily
brought to rest. On the relaxation of the pressure on the buffer the said
buffer resumes its normal position. The cleat is brought into its
withdrawn position by a fixed stop, against which a shoulder on the
cleat acts; or a spring may be employed for the same purpose. The
return motion of the lever carrying the small cross lever is effected by,
means of a spring.
The small cross lever is made to operate cleats on the buffer rods at
both ends of the carriage, and thereby simultaneously to work the brake
blocks of all the wheels of the carriage.
By means of the link or other reversing motion actuated by the
moving in one or other direction of a rod near one end of the carriage,

page_text: the mechanism may be fitted to operate when the carriage is travelling.
in one or other direction.
Although I prefer to act upon the small cross lever by the inner face
of the wheel as herein-before described, yet the advancing motion of
the axle of the wheel may be used for that purpose with the same
effect.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Adam Burdess in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 6th July 1875.
'
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ADAM
BURDESS, of Coventry, in the County of Warwick, Watch Manufacturer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Adam Burdess, Her special
license that I, the said Adam Burdess, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Adam Burdess, 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 MECHANISM FOR WORKING THE BRAKES OF RAILWAY CARRIAGES, WAGONS, AND
TRUCKS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Adam
Burdess, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should par-
ticularly 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 Scal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Adam Burdess, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be

page_text: contact with the face of the carriage wheel e, so that when the buffer
rod a is pressed inwards, the motion thereby given to the lever 6 brings
the said outer part of the roller d' to and presses it against the face of
the wheel e, which puts the other portion of the mechanism into gearing
or in position for working. The onward motion of the said wheel e
carries forward the roller end of the lever d and thus operates the said
cross lever d, which operates at the same time the link g through or by
the connecting rod f. The said link g pivotted at g' is fixed to and
moves the transverse rod / laterally. To each end of the said rod h,
over and parallel with the buffer rods a is fixed a loop i, and immediately
under each of the said loops i is a cleat ; formed with a shoulder j¹ and a
projecting stud (see Figures 7 and 8), which stud j engages in the
said loops, and when the rod / is operated the shouldered end of the
cleats j are moved inwards by the studs j³, so that the shoulders j¹ of
the cleats are brought to engage with and operate the upper ends of the
levers k; to each of these levers k is attached a rod 1, which passes
through and is fixed to the outer end of the spiral spring m; to the
inner end of this spring m is attached the rod n, the other end of which
rod is jointed to the rod p. When the lever k is forced inwards by
the motion of the cleats j, the spring m and rod n are drawn inwards by
the rod ɩ, and the rod n thereby forces the upper part of the lever o also
inwards or towards the wheel e; this lever o being pivotted to a fixed
bracket o¹ at o, on being thus operated draws the brake rod p in the
opposite direction, by which motion the said rod p pulls the brake
blocks on to the periphery of the wheels e, and the vehicle is speedily
brought to rest. Or I form or fix the cam or rise c upon the buffer rod a
(see Figures 11 and 12), which rod when pressed inwards carries the
cam c under and raises one end of each of the two transverse levers b,
which levers are pivotted to the carriage framing at 6 and are linked
together at 6, so that on being operated cach of these levers lowers or
depresses the end 63 of the longer lever (see also Figures 14 and 15),
which end b³ carries down with it one end of the horizontal lever 6'; to
this lever b' is fixed the vertical lever d (see Figure 13), the lower end of
which & is by the said motion pressed against the axle e² of the carriage
wheels; the motion of the said axle operates the said lever d, and
through it the link g and the remainder of the mechanism similarly as
herein-before described. In this arrangement the separate rod n is
dispensed with, and the rod carried through the spiral spring m and
also through a slot in the lever o. The object of the spiral spring m in

page_text: both cases is to prevent the lever k from breaking by allowing the buffer
to be pressed home against the carriage framing, and also to prevent the
passengers being so much shaken by the sudden application of the break
or by the reaction of the buffer springs.
For a carriage having only four wheels, I propose to arrange my
improved mechanism as shewn on Sheet B of the Drawings.
For releasing the carriage wheels I attach to the buffer rod at the
opposite end of the carriage one end of a chain q, the other end of which
is secured to the rod p, so that when the pressure on the buffers is
withdrawn and the latter resume their normal position, they draw the
break blocks clear of the wheels by the said chain. On the relaxation of
the pressure on the buffers, the cleats ; are drawn backward and thrown
out of gear or clear of the lever k by the spring t, which said action of
the buffers brings the other portion of the mechanism into its normal
position.
In order that the vehicles may perform a return journey without being
turned, I reverse the action of my improved apparatus by the following
means, see Figure 2:-I place a rods across the vehicle, which rod
carries two fixed vertical pins s¹, between which pins the connecting
rod fis placed; by moving the said rod s the moveable end of the rod f
is moved from the position shewn at f¹ to the other end f² of the slot in
the link g (or vice versa), which causes the apparatus to operate in the
I
reverse way.
In the arrangement shewn on Sheet B of the Drawings, this method is
varied by placing the pins &¹ on the lever f, see Figure 12.
Having thus fully described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and the method of performing the same, I wish it to be
understood that I do not claim as new the use of the action of the
buffers for applying railway brakes, but I claim as my Invention and
desire to secure by the herein-before mentioned in part recited Letters
Patent,―
Firstly. The method of applying brake blocks to the wheels of railway
vehicles.
Secondly. The method of releasing or withdrawing the brake blocks

page_text: And, Thirdly. The method of reversing the action of my improved
mechanism or apparatus, all substantially as herein described and shewn
in the Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Adam Burdess, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of June, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
five.