Improvements in or relating to Endless Traction Rope Systems for Railways and the like.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Jan., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 2nd Oct., 1888
Complete Specification Accepted, 30th Nov., 1888
Improvements in or relating to Endless Traction Rope Systems
for Railways and the like.
I JOSEPH ALEXANDER WESTERMAN of Via Assarotti No. 5, Genoa in the Kingdom
of Italy, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to systems in which traction is operated by or through an
endless cable of rope wire or the like set in movement by stationary engines, and to
which the vehicles to be moved may be temporarily attached by suitable mechanism.
The improvements relate more particularly to the manner in which the cable or
the like is supported and guided, to the mode in which the movement of the cable
is transmitted to the vehicle, to the means for facilitating the stopping of the latter,
and finally to the manner of actuating the cable or the like from the engines.
The cable is supported by a number of carriages fixed at intervals thereto.
The carriages moving with the cable are guided and caused to roll in a tube of cast
iron, or sheet iron or steel arranged in the axis of the railway. The said carriages
consist of a frame supported by one or more vertical wheels of a diameter almost
equal to the height of the tube, the said frame carrying also a horizontal wheel
or wheels the diameter of which is almost equal to the breadth of the tube. The
carriages will therefore remain always in the axis of the railway and will always
maintain their vertical & horizontal relation by reason of the rolling of the wheels
on the floor or crown and on either side of the tube.
The carriages aforesaid or some of them of stronger construction than the others,
carry on their frames a projection or hook moving in a slot in the crown of the
tube. The slot does not act as guide in this system being solely for the passage
of the said hook and the latter does not exercise any friction on the walls or sides
of the slot.
The vehicle carries a bar having a detent or hook directed downwards and capable
of being moved into the slot aforesaid for the purpose of engagement with the hooks
of the cable carriages. The conductor having caused the fall of said bar by suitable

page_text: lever connections, the first hook arriving on the cable carriage engages the hooked bar
of the vehicle and the latter is drawn along by the cable. To neutralize the shock of
the engagement the bar on the vehicle is provided with elastic devices or any suitable
construction.
As regards the means for facilitating the stopping of the vehicles when disengaged,
they may be of any desirable construction being set in action or assisted by the recoil
of the elastic coupling bar or the mechanism connected therewith.
The motor used for actuating the cable is preferably stationed towards the centre
of the distance traversed by the line and actuates a system of two pulleys carrying
a belt or the like to which are secured hooks or projections adapted to engage with
those on the carriages-or certain of the carriages of the endless cable and so drive
the latter.
HERBERT & Co.,
18, Buckingham Street, Strand,
Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Endless Traction Rope Systems
for Railways and the like.
1 JOSEPH ALEXANDER WESTERMAN of Via Assorotti No. 5, Genoa, in the Kingdom
of Italy, 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 systems in which traction is operated by or through an
endless cable of rope wire or the like set in movement by stationary engines and to
which the vehicles to be moved may be temporarily attached by suitable mechanism.
The improvements relate more particularly to the manner in which the cable or the
like is supported and guided and the construction to this end, to the mode in which
the movement of the cable is transmitted to the vehicle, and finally to the manner of
actuating the cable or the like from the engines.
The cable is supported by a number of small carriages or cable trucks fixed at
intervals thereto. The trucks moving with the cable are guided and caused to roll in
a tube, tunnel or channel arranged in the axis of the railway.
The said trucks consist of a frame so supported by vertical and horizontal wheels
thereon that the trucks will remain always in the axis of the railway and will maintain

page_text: their vertical and horizontal relation by reason of the rolling of the wheels on the
floor or crown and the one or other side or both sides of the tube or tunnel or on rails
or surfaces arranged for this purpose therein.
The trucks aforesaid or some of them of stronger construction than the others carry
on their frames a projection or hook moving in a slot in the crown of the tube or
tunnel. The slot does not act as guide in this system being solely for the passage
of said hook, and there is therefore no friction of the hook on the walls or sides of
he slot.
The vehicle carries a bar having a detent or hook directed downwards and capable
of being moved into the slot aforesaid for the purpose of engagement with the hooks
of the cable trucks, the conductor having caused the fall of said bar through suitable
lever connections.
The first hook arriving on the cable truck engages the hooked bar of the vehicle and
the latter is drawn along by the cable.
The motor used for actuating the cable is preferably stationed towards the centre of
the distance traversed by the line and actuates a system of two pulleys carrying a belt
or the like to which are secured hooks or projections adapted to engage with those on
the trucks or certain of the trucks of the endless cable and so drive the latter.
Referring to the accompanying drawings
Fig. 1 is a cross section of a railway suitable for tramway vehicles and formed on
my improved construction.
The left hand part of the figure illustrating the normal construction throughout tho
track, the left hand portion being partly broken away to permit of illustration of a
portion of one of the driving pulleys and belting or the like driving the cable.
A is the cable, which may be a wire cable or formed of jointed rods or of any other
construction, B the tunnel or tube containing the same, C are the rails.
Fig. 2 is a diagramatic view illustrating the manner of driving a pair of cables or
an endless cable.
Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the cable truck showing also the interior of the tunnel.
Fig. 4 is a plan view of the same showing the manner of driving the cables.
The tunnel B is so constructed that the rails or bearing surfaces therein may
support the wheels of the special cable carrying carriages or cable trucks in such a
manner that the latter are evenly and correctly guided along the axis of the railway,
and the cable supported by and fixed on said trucks does not come in frictional
contact with the walls of the tunnel. The tunnel may be conveniently constructed as
follows.
Dare frames formed preferably of T iron centrally shaped to outline the tunnel
and extending laterally to the rails, to be rivetted to them or with them to the sleepers
on which the rails rest and so assist in centralizing the tunnel and maintaining the
same and the rails of the track in exact and permanent relative position.
These frames may be formed of separate pieces of T iron suitably curved where.
necessary and rivetted together or may be each cast in one or more parts.
The frames are bedded in or on masonry concrete or the like at about 50 to 70 centi-
metres distance apart according to the amount and nature of traffic on the line.
The tunnel is closed or walled in at the sides between the frames by slabs of stone
bricks, masonry, concrete, sheet metal or wooden planks supported by the frames.
The frames do not meet over the crown of the tunnel but extend only to a certain
distance towards each other so as to leave a free space between their opposed faces,
these faces are shaped to receive the T irons E laid longitudinally along the track on
the level of the roadway and suitably fastened to the frames. These Tirons are so
calculated that a certain desired uniform distance (preferably about 20 m/m) is left
between their adjacent edges along the lengths of the track for the passage of the
projections on the cable trucks and of the hook on the drawbar of the vehicle which is
to be engaged with the said projections and to be drawn thereby. Along the floor of
the tunnel are rivetted or otherwise fixed two parallel rails a a preferably with
flanges on their adjacent sides as shown.

page_text: These rails support the vertical wheels cc of the cable truck F. The surfaces d'd!
formed by the vertical webs of the T irons E act as rails for the horizontal wheel of
the said truck. The trucks F are connected to the cable A each by the two stops gg¹
one each end, rivetted to or around the cable the preceding stop or clip g is com-
paratively light, the rear or back stop or clip being heavy and provided with
flanges gg for a purpose hereinafter shown.
'
Between the stop on the cable and the rear or pushed end of the truck are placed a
number of rubber discs h or a volute spring or the like serving as a buffer between
the stop and truck frame so that the transmission of propelling motion from cable to
cars through the truck frames is always elastic. Fig. 3 shows truck frames in side
elevation formed of a steel or brass casting each truck provided with a double vertical
wheel ce with two light rims running on the two guide rails a on the bottom of the
tunnel, the diameter of the wheel being the distance between top of said guide rails
and the under side of the covering plates E with a little play so that the wheel
maintains the cable or bar always at the same height throughout its course.
The
trucks also carry a small horizontal wheel journalled on a stud on the frame of the
truck and running between the two projections or depending webs under the covering
plates; this wheel maintains the truck frame upright so that by the two systems of
wheels, vertical and horizontal, the cable or bar is always kept in due position.
From the truck frame rises a projection M into the slot between the covering plates
this projection stopping flush with the outside of the covering plates.
Only a certain number of trucks are provided with this projection M corresponding
to the number of vehicles to be drawn the trucks so provided being properly spaced
along the tracks, the trucks not provided with the projections filling up the inter-
mediate distances at the required interval. The trucks are set at from 10 to 20
meters distance more or less from each other according to the curves of the line.
The tension on the cable or bars keeps them straight, but longer cables or bars can
be kept straight by light rods and one or more strutis. The cable may be of wire
rope or any other suitable material or of a series of jointed bars. It is driven by
short distance endless hand G provided on its outer face with catches K set at the
same pitch as the trucks supporting the cable, this short driving band G (Figs. 2
and 4) is driven by a motor; its catches K coming in contact with the buffers at the
back of the trucks, that is to say by engaging between or behind the flanges 9 of the
rear stop or clip g', pushes them forwards, and so drives the whole cable. The
driving band' is preferably of such a length as to hold simultaneously 3 to 5 trucks on
each line.
EL
The power transmitted is thus divided in so many parts and the strain on the cable
thus rendered equal the motor being placed about midway or so acting on both lines.
Tramways so constructed may have cables of great length. The two pulleys N N
driving the short endless band and driven by the motor through shafting or other-
wise, drives each line in its other channel a curved meeting at each end of line
forms for latter one endless channel. The central motor is situated in any suitable
locality the short driving band having its own special channel as seen in Fig. 4:
cable or bar is carried along by the rolling trucks fast to it, rolling witli it, guiding,
and keeping it in due position by the vertica!' and' horizontal wheels, even round
curves having a radius of only 7 to 8 meters.
The
By this invention tramway lines can cross each other at any desired angle and for
all speeds without special attendants, the channel of crossing line dipping to pass
under the line to be crossed and rising up on the other side continues its course.
The running tram catch H disengages itself automatically, crosses the line and
engages itself again in the slot being caught up by the following truck catch M.
Such lines, each driven independently, following each other, each driven by any
natural power disposable, will produce a traction, the most economical that can be
desired, as economical as canal traction, the cheapest known, an advantage no other
system possesses. In country trams where no crossings take place, the channel may
be left uncovered, not sunk, but placed on the surface:

page_text: 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,
In cable railways
1. The combination with a guide channel and a cable therein of movable trucks
fixed at intervals along said cable and having wheels for the guiding of the cable in
said channel.
2. Tho combination with a cable of movable trucks elastically fastened at intervals
thereon, said trucks having wheels or sets of wheels in different planes substantially
as set forth and a channel having rails for guiding said wheels for the purpose
described.
3. The combination of a guide channel, a slot in said channel, a cable therein,
trucks supporting said cable, and fixed at intervals thereon, a projection on each
truck or on some of them, projecting into said slot with a drawbar H on the
vehicle to be drawn substantially as set forth.
4. The elastic buffer plates h or springs on the cable substantially as set forth.
5. The combination with the cable having trucks fixed at intervals thereto as set
forth or other equivalent abutments of an endless driving band having projections
adapted to engage said abutments.
6. The combination with an endless cable forming two parallel and contrary lines
and arranged at a suitable place between the extremities of the system substantially
as set forth.
Dated this 2nd day of October 1888.
HERBERT & Co.,
18, Buckingham Street, Strand, London, W.C.,
Agents to Applicant.