Certain Improvements in Railway-cars.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd June, 1890-Accepted, 5th July, 1890
CUMIE DIE DIMITTUATION.
Certain Improvements in Railway-cars.
I JOEL BACON Low, Room No. 26, Nevada Block, North West corner of
Montgomery and Pine Streets, in the City and County of San Francisco, State of
California, one of the United States of America, Mining 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 :-
My Invention relates to the class of railway-cars, both for steam and street railways,
though especially for the ordinary railways of cities and towns.
My invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of the seats,
sashes, and sides of the car, which will be hereinafter fully explained and specifically
pointed out in the claims, and the object of which is to enable and facilitate the
ready and easy conversion of the car from a closed to an open car, and vice versa,
thereby adapting the same car for use in all kinds of weather."
Referring to the accompanying drawings, for a more complete explanation of my
invention.
Figure 1 is a transverse section through a railway-car embodying my improvements
and
Figure 2 a side elevation of same.
A represents, generally, the frame-work or structure of the car, having in the
center the customary passage-way a.
The sides of the car are composed of upright frames B, formed of independent
separated stanchions or posts which support the roof a¹. (3) are the car-seats, and D
are the backs of the seats.
The seats are hinged at the point c, in any suitable manner to the supports or.
legs E, so that said seats may be turned through a half-circle from a position in
which they extend outwardly toward the sides to a position in which they extend
inwardly toward the central passage of the car, and vice versa.
The backs D are hinged at d, in a suitable manner to the seats, and are made long
enough to extend down to the floor of the car.
The manipulation of these seats and backs is as follows:-
It is intended that the backs shall, when in one position, close the lower portion
of the sides of the car, and when in another position, shall open said portion of the
sides.
Thus, when the backs are turned outwardly so that the passengers face inwardly,
said backs completely inclose the lower portion of the sides; and when turned
inwardly so that the passengers face outwardly, they open the lower portion of the
sides.
The upper portion of the sides of the car is to be opened and closed by the sashes, G,
so that the seat-backs together with the sashes are intended to completely close and
to fully open the car sides.
In order to do this the sashes have to be made adjustable in some manner so as
to adapt them to be moved in order to close and open the upper portion of the
sides.
Though the sashes may be arranged in several ways to effect this object as for
example by hinging them after the manner of blinds, whereby they may be turned
into the ends of the car, or in other suitable ways, I prefer to arrange them by
housing them in the seat-backs, so that they will take up no room, can be readily
manipulated, and will be out of the way.
Therefore, in the backs D, are made grooves or openings F, which serve as housings
for the window-sashes G.
In practice, short sashes y may be hinged to the upper portion of the car, and join
the main sashes G, when in use, so that said main sashes will not have to be
unnecessarily long; or the sashes G may be made in hinged sections, if desired.

page_text: The dimensions of the seat-backs and of the sashes are such that when the former
are turned outwardly toward the sides of the car, and the latter are raised out of
their housings and run up to the top of the sides of the car, said backs and sashes
shall perfectly and fully close the entire sides of the car, thus making of the car a
closed one.
Tlie seat-backs, being hinged, may be manipulated in smaller space and more con-
veniently than if they were rigidly secured to the seats and depended for the reversal
upon the reversal of the seats.
From the foregoing description, the entire manipulation of the car, and the effect
thereof will be readily understood.
+
When the car is to be used as a closed one, the seats are all turned so that the
passengers sit facing the middle of the car, the backs of the seats are turned to the
outside and occupy a vertical position, in which they completely enclose the lower
portion of the sides of the car, covering fully the spaces between the posts or
stanchions. B thereof; the sashes are raised up out of the seat-backs, and the short
sashes g dropped down in line.
The said sashes G are supported in a vertical position by resting on a small shoulder
on the back of the seat, and in this position they entirely enclose the upper portion of
the sides.
To convert the car into an open one, the sashes are released and run down into the
seat-backs, where they are securely housed, the scat-backs and seats are then turned
over so that the backs occupy a vertical position along and parallel with the central
passage of the car, and the passengers. sit facing the outside, and the sides of the car
are thus wholly open.
The change can be easily effected and the car converted quickly from a closed to
an open one, thus enabling a single car to be used in all kinds of weather. The soat-
backs and seats may be separate short ones or continuous long ones, as may be desired,
and the sashes may be made of any convenient dimensions.
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. A convertible open and closed railway-car having seats with reversible backs
which, when turned outwardly, close the lower portion of the car-sides, and, when
turned inwardly; open said lower portion, and sashes so arranged as to close and to
open the upper portion of the car-sides, substantially as described.
2. A convertible open and closed railway-car having reversible seats with reversible
backs, the latter of. which by their own turning and the turning of their seats are
adapted to be adjusted easily and accurately to close or to open the lower portion of
the car-sides, and sashes so.
o arranged as to close and to open the upper portion of
the car-sides, substantially as described.
3. A convertible open and closed railway-car having sides of open frame-work,
reversible seats, and reversible seat-backs, which, when turned outwardly, close the
lower portion of open frame-work sides, and, when turned inwardly, open said sides,
and sashes housed in the reversible backs when said backs are turned inwardly, and
adapted, when said backs are turned outwardly, to be raised therefrom and to close
the upper portion of the open frame-work sides of the car, substantially. as
described.