IMPROVEMENTS IN THE FORM, THE CONSTRUCTION, AND ARRANGEMENTS OF CABLE TRACTION TRAMWAYS, & RAILWAYS & ALSO IN THE APPLIANCES BY WHICH THE TRAFFIC-CARS, WAGGONS OR CARRIAGES ARE MOVED & GUIDED ALONG THE SAME
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Wright of No. 10 Cornhill in the City of
London Civil Engineer for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE FORM,
THE CONSTRUCTION, AND ARRANGEMENTS OF CABLE TRACTION TRAMWAYS,
& RAILWAYS & ALSO IN THE APPLIANCES BY WHICH THE TRAFFIC-CARS,
WAGGONS OR CARRIAGES ARE MOVED & GUIDED ALONG THE SAME
Commu-
nicated to me from abroad by Charles Farquhar Findlay Civil Engineer of
Chicago United States of America
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Wright at the Office.
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 20th June 1882.
JAMES WRIGHT of No. 10 Cornhill in the City of London Civil Engineer
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE FORM, THE CONSTRUCTION AND ARRANGEMENTS OF CABLE
TRACTION TRAMWAYS AND RAILWAYS & ALSO IN THE APPLIANCES BY WHICH THE
TRAFFIC CARS, WAGGONS OR CARRIAGES ARE MOVED AND GUIDED ALONG THE
SAME [Communicated to me from abroad by Charles Farquhar Findlay Civil
Engineer of Chicago United States of America]
"
The first part of my invention relates to the improvements connected with the
form, the construction, and the structure of the roadway or railway proper,
including the formation of the tunnel, within which the ropes or Cables for
actuating the traffic-Cars, Carriages or Waggons are enclosed and mounted
The Second part of my invention relates to the appliances by which the motion
of the ropes or Cables is transmitted to the said Carriages or Waggons, & the
means by which the transmittor is thrown into or out of action & the motion
communicated to or taken from the Cars, Carriages or Waggons.
As to the first part;-The guage of the rails & the width of the roadway being
determined upon, the earth along the whole of the route, is cleared away to a
proper depth to allow the forination of a firm foundation by the introduction of
well rammod Cement Concrete: along the centre of the roadway the excavation is
[Price S/1

page_text: made deeper than at the sides, within which is formed the tunnel for enclosing the
traction ropes and their mountings
The excavation is then filled with good Cement Concrete which forms the walls
of the tunnel & the bed of the structure which bears the roadway.
The frame of this structure is composed of two syinmetrical ribs of cast iron,
which are bolted together transversely at their bases, and bolted & fished at their
upper flanges so as to form continuous lengths.
Figures 1 2 & 3 of
the appended Drawings shew the above described
arrangements The same letters in each of the figures indicate the same parts or
portions of the structure and apparatus.
Fig 1. is a transverse section shewing the roadway, the excavation, the filling
in of concrete, the outline of the iron ribs a, a, the way they are bedded in the
concrete, the holding down anchor bolts, b, b, and the bottle shaped tunnel C
within which the cables and their pullies are enclosed, also the way in which the
extremities of the ribs d, d', are used to form a seat e, e, for the rail bed or of the
sleeper carrying the rail, also the flat rail, & the axle & wheels of a carriage on
the rails.
Fig 2 is a plan of the cast iron structure or ribs.
Fig 3. is a longitudinal section of the road way shewing the tunnel C, C, the
concrete, the iron ribs, a, a, & the cables f, f, & their carrying pullies g, g', the
carriage M, and the grip or clutch h, with its position and mode of attachment to
the carriage, & the mode of actuating the grip so as to attach or detach the
carriage from the cables.
The drawings are sufficiently illustrated to obviate any necessity for further
explanation as to the different parts of my invention: but it may be well to draw
attention to the upper part of the tunnel which terminates in shoulders & a
neck forming the narrow slot, slit or opening S, which is an important working part
of the invention
Within the tunnel at intervals apart are mounted the carrying pullies gg',
& upon these are carried the two traction Cables, ff, these cables in pairs proceed
from the Engine house where the prime motor is situated and passing over
elevating sheaves enter the tunnel and continue in motion, either one or both as
may be desired, and on reaching the furthest extremity of the route, are made to
return back to the Engine house, either, it may be, through the same tunnel, or
through a different one on the return route.
Attached to the hinder portion of the carriage & on the plane of the vertical
axis of the tunnel, is the frame which carries the details of the apparatus forming
the grip or clutch, which through its action in gripping the moving cable commu-
nicates that notion to the Carriage, and by relaxing its grip upon the cable sets
free the carriage from the cables action.
The frame of the clutch apparatus is composed of strong iron plates, and passes
from its attachment in the carriage through the slot, so that if longitudinal motion
be given to the carriage, this iron frame must move within the slot, & acting as a
guide to the carriage will cause the wheels to run in lines at equal distances on
each side of the slot, hence, through the action of this clutch frame, the axis of
the carriage must move in a line symmetrically central to the lines of the rails, &
thus the wheels, which move symmetrically with this axis, will, without any flanges
either upon themselves, or the rails, keep upon this path.
On the lower portion of the clutch fraine, that is on the portion which moves
within the tunnel, are mounted two pairs of guide rollers 0, 0, figs 1 & 3 which
run along the upper iron wall surface of the tunnel so as to increase & steady the
guiding power of the grip, beneath these rollers, & on the same vertical shank
which carries then, is the clutch proper consisting of a pair of jaws p, q, the lower
fixed, the upper movable or vice versa, or both movable; these are made to act by
means of a lever & crank, r, or any other familiar combination, so arranged as to
be at the hand of the carriage conductor.
Underneath these pair of jaws p, q, are mounted another pair of pully guidest, t,

page_text: which are intended to pass under the moving Cable or Cables and lead them
between the upper and lower jaws of the clutch.
The whole of these last mentioned arrangements, it will be understood are in
that portion of the clutch which is within the interior of the tunnel, the upper or
shank or frame portion of the grip, passing through the slot is firmly attached to
the Carriage: suppose then that the conductor of the Carriage having by means of
the lever &arin, set the jaws of the clutch apart, so that the moving cable f passing
over the guide pullies last mentioned passes freely between the jaws no motion
takes place with the Carriage, but if the conductor brings the jaws together, the
rope is gripped by them & the clutch frame, & with it the waggon or carriage, is
carried forward with the rope; the moment the jaws of the clutch are set apart, tho
action of the cable on the carriage ceases, & the brakes being applied to the wheels
in the ordinary way the carriage stops.
In order to throw out of or bring into action either cable, the following is the
arrangement I adopt.
Near each end of the grip frame, a little below the level of line of cables, when
passing over the guide pullies I mount a roller, m, m, upon a spindle, one arm of
cach spindle being carried by a crank, the other hinged to a sliding piece suspended
from another bell crank: in the middle of the suspended piece is a slot into which
fits the end of one arm of another crank, the other arm being connected with a lever
under the control of the conductor of the carriage. Suppose now the cable to be
gripped by the jaws, if it is desired to throw out this Cable, the lever is moved to
the left, causing the crank to turn & press the suspended piece to the left, which
acting upon the spindles causes the rollers to be moved across the grip & forces
the cable out of it. If it is desired at any time to put both cables in the grip the
aforesaid rollers can be removed
One of the Cranks is formed like a Cam so as to project outside the grip on the
side opposite to the rollers; when the carriage is at the end of its journey, or when
it is wished to drop the cable, if the cable has not been thrown out, the Cam or
projecting piece strikes against another fixed projection in the wall of the tunnel
& thus turns the crank or Cam, and throws out the Cable automatically, hence
the carriage cannot pass that point with the cable in the grip
The cable is connected with the carriage & the grip near the commencement of
the tramway route. To do this I provide elevating sheaves which raise the cables
to such a level that either of them can be received under & by the grip, these
sheaves are mounted in frames, are pivoted on rotating axles, so that the sheaves
are inclined towards cach other, & each has a covered guard inside, so that when
a Car comes along the line to connect with the cables, the grip strikes the guard of
the sheaves and passes between them, the sheaves after the passage falling into their
normal position by their gravity.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said James Wright in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
19th December 1882.
JAMES WRIGHT of No 10 Cornhill in the City of London Civil Engineer
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE FORM, THE CONSTRUCTION AND ARRANGEMENTS OF
CABLE TRACTION TRAMWAYS AND RAILWAYS AND ALSO IN THE APPLIANCES BY
WHICH THE TRAFFIC CARS, WAGGONS OR CARRIAGES ARE MOVED AND GUIDED
ALONG THE SAME" [Communicated to me from abroad by Charles Farquhar
Findlay Civil Engineer of Chicago United States of America]
The more clearly to describe the nature of my invention and to shew in what it
consists, how it is constructed & how it is applied & carried out in relation to the
purposes intended I divide it into the following parts
The first relates to the mode of formning & constructing the roadway upon
which the Car or Carriage runs and also the Channel or tunnel underneath the
roadway within which are the moving Cables which actuate the said Cars or
Carriages.
The Second part of my invention relates to the mode of mounting the Cables at
the extremities of the roadway before entering the tunnel & in passing them
within the tunnel. And also the mode & the means by which they are mounted
supported & guided when moving within the tunnel
The third part of my invention relates to the different methods & appliances
which, I make use of for connecting & disconnecting the moving Cables with
the traffic Carriages, so as at will to transmit to or withhold from the latter the
motion of the former.
In order to illustrate clearly the different parts of my Invention I append to
this description the accompanying drawings which portray the separate portions
of the invention and the action of each and these taken in connection with the
written description illustrate plainly the whole of my system & invention as
applied to Cable traction trainways & Railways.
Figs 1. 2. 3. 4. 40. 4b. 5 & 6 shew the way in which I construct the roadway
& the tunnel underneath.
Fig 1 is a transverse section of the roadway & tunnel at the shallowest part of
the tunnel taken on line a. b. (fig 6) Fig 2 a similar section at the deepest part
taken on line a, b, (fig 6)
Fig 3 is a plan shewing the cast iron ribs which form the frame of the roadway
& tunnel & which carry the sleepers & rails, serving at the same time to bind the
whole together & keep the guage of the rails. The vertical checks o. o form an
open slot in the centre through which communication is made between the
Carriage & the cables within the interior of the tunnel. Fig. 4 is a cross section
similar to fig 1. but shews a modification of the structure having wrought iron
guage ties t. t & rolled checks o. o. with cast iron chair and wings t. Fig 4ª
is an enlarged section of the parts in fig 4 which form the slot & the junction
& fastening of the guage tie. Fig 4b shews details of shoo for rail & sleeper
& the mode of securing the guage tie. Fig 5 is a cross section shewing a modi-
fication of the arrangements pointed out in figs. 1 & 2, the modification being in
the cast iron ribs & the mode of forming the tunnel
Fig 6 is a longitudinal section of the roadway & tunnel shewing also the
position of the carriage M, the grip G & the position of the cables & their bearing
sheaves or pullies, also the mode of draining the tunnel
In Fig 1 the grip is shewn passing through the slot; in Fig 2 the cables with
their carrying pullies are shown,

page_text: The pavement may be of granite or wood laid upon sand bedded upon
concrete Z. Z Z. which is shewn by hatched lines on the drawing.
The Cast iron frames B B. with the transverse arms B, terminating in the shoes
or seats B. within which are placed the wooden sleepers B, carrying the iron
rails B. the whole held down by the Anchor bolts B, passing through the mass of
concrete & metal under the shoe, which when great rigidity is required may
be formed hollow so as to receive the nut of the anchor bolt in B, the nut of the
bolt holding down the rail under the seat S; different modes of seating & fixing
the rail with or without wooden sleepers are shewn in the different figures, but
one leading feature is the use of a flat rail as shewn in figs 1. 2 & 5.
The
The transverse arms of the iron frames have brackets or wings V. V. which are
at their lower extremities bolted together & form the sectional outline of the tunnel,
& at the same time serve to tie the whole frame together & keep it rigid, more
particularly retaining the parallelism of the rails & equality of the guage.
checks O. O. form the slot & serve to guide & steady the Grip G when in motion,
its guide rolls 0, 0, running along their lower inner surface. The tunnel is
formed throughout of good concrete: it may be partly brick or stone, & concrete,
or it may be wholly of metal but the latter would be needlessly expensive. At
the places where the pullies which carry the cables are mounted, the tunnel has a
greater area, both diameters being increased so as to give more space By
regulating the fall on each side to these points the drainage of the rain or other
liquids, may be carried off into sewers The iron ribs are cast in lengths & bolted
together transversely as shewn in figs 1 & 2 & longitudinally as shewn in
Fig 3.
The position of the Carriago, the wheels, the grip, which latter is the medium of
communication between the Carriage & the cables, with its mode of attachment to
the Carriage, & its connection with the cables within the tunnel, as shewn in
Fig 6
The next group of Figures namely Figs. 7. 8. 9. & 10 show the arrangements of
the cable before entering the tunnel
The
Fig 7 is the initial tension wheel situated near to the prime motor.
wheel Elans its bearings mounted upon a travelling Carriage e: the chain f: passing
over a pulley e, supports a series of weights. W which can be successfully brought
into action so as to regulate the tension of the cable by causing the carriago to
traverse to & from the direction of the cable motion
Fig 8 is the terminal tension wheel E, which is horizontal & may have its
tension regulated by a varying weight or by a constant weight, having a varying
arm or moment so arranged as to produce an equable tension upon the cable by
means of the traverse motion of the Carriage e, The cable being bent round the
initial tension wheel passes outwards & guided by the series of wheels shewn in
figs 9 & 10 is made to enter the tunnel, & passing through the tunnel einerges
at the other extremity & is then bent round the horizontal terminal tension
wheel E, fig S, & is again returned into the same tunnel & carried back to the
initial tension wheel E fig 7, or passes into a different tunnel & goes back
through it to the initial tension wheel E The arrows in figs 9 & 10 shew the
outgoing & incoming cables.
I propose to use one cable going & returning in the same tunnel or going out in
one tunnel & returning by another.
The use of one cable for the purpose proposed is not new however, except
in connection with my form of tunnel & my mode of guiding & actuating the
saine.
I propose as a much more efficient & perfect mode of actuating the carriages in
cable traction Tramways to use two cables both moving in the same direction
within one tunnel & both returning to the initial tension wheel through another
tunnel or it might be even in the same tunnel. I propose also within the same
tunnel to use auxiliary Cables for the purpose of transmitting power from the
prime motor to actuate other cables at soine distance away.

page_text: The drawings figs 2. 6. 13. 14 & 15 are intended to shew the mode of carrying
& guiding the cables when in motion within the tunnel
Figs 2 & 6 shew the mounted bearing pullies b, b, with the cables a. a. the
auxiliary cables x, x & their pullies V. V.
In fig 13 the upper portion of the tunnel & roadway is removed shewing the
position of the bearing & auxiliary pullies & also the cables themselves. In this
figure the line is shewn to be straight When the line is curved I adopt a
different arrangement which is shewn in figs 14 & 15, the one a plan of the
tunnel with the top removed to shew the pullies & cables, the other a section of
the tunnel. In these last two figures the auxiliary Cables are not shewn so as
not to complicate the drawing a, a, are the two cables b₁ by the pullies
C, C. guide pullies which keep the cable on the curve. C is a loose pulley on the
axle of C, its diameter slightly greater than C, & so constructed that its lower face
sits in an annular cup formed in the upper face of C₁. C, has a recess where the
cable a, in moving presses against it & the pulley b, is not wider than necessary
to carry a, a, keeps its place against C, & on b, by virtue of its tension & gravity
& to ensure its being held against pulley C & above b, when raised by the
passage of the grip as it moves in the slot. C is made with shallow spiral grooves
which lead the cable down as it moves on it while rotating The line of a is
lower & so far distant that when the Cable is laid down by the grip it will not
come in contact with pulley b, but will be caught by C, which is conical with
spiral grooves about the same diameter of the Cable: the rotation of C₂ pays out
the cable through the action of the grooves assisted by the weight of the Cable
itself until it reaches its place on the pulley b; if from any cause ut, should come
in contact with the pulley C its weight together with the spiral grooves in its
surface will force it to descend to C, which will pay it out until it reached C₂ A
pulley with spiral grooves & either cylindrical or conical in form having its axis
either vertical or oblique may be used in the other parts of the line of way
wherever there is a possibility of the cable getting out of its true line so as to
guide it back to that line, r. r, are horizontal guide rails which may be attached
to a frame to guide the grip & carriage round the curve.
Figs. 6, 16. 17. 18, 19, 20 & 21 shew the arrangements I adopt for the purpose of
transmitting the motion of the moving cables to the Carriages, also the details of
the grip by which the carriage is connected with or disconnected at will from the
cable.
Fig 6. shews the mode in which the grip is attached to the Carriage: the
particular arrangement of the front wheels & axles of the Carriage & the mode of
connecting these with the grip, also the arrangements of the rear wheels & axles
from which a steadying guide bar also passes through the slot into the tunnel
having guide rollers o, o, mounted upon it.
Fig 16 is an enlarged elevation of the Grip.
Fig 17 A plan of lower face of do. inverted
Fig 18 A plan of its lower jaw
Fig 19 A plan of guide rollers which move within the checks of the slot
Fig 20 An enlarged plan of a pair of these rollers shewing the cushions or
springs.
Fig 21 A section of both jaws.
P (fig 16) is the hand lever which is always in the control of the Conductor
1

page_text: the end of one arın of another bell crank q having the other arm connected as
shewn in fig 16 to a hand lever Q within reach of the conductor The operation
of this machine is as follows-The rollers m being in the position shewn in
figs 17 and 18, a cable being supposed to be between the jaw of the grip but on
the other side of the rollers, now if it is desired to throw the cable out of gear
the lever is moved to the left which causes the crank q to turn & the piece o
to be pressed to the left & the rollers m to be moved across the grip by the
crank n thus forcing the cable out of the grip. If at any time it is desired to
take both cables out of the grip, the rollers m can both he moved; one of the bell
cranks n is formed with a projecting piece y, which projects outside the grip on the
opposite side to the roller m When the car arrives at the end of the journey or
at a place where the cable ought to be dropped, if the cable has not been thrown
out of gear by the pieco y, it strikes against the projection Z firmly fixed to the
side of the tunnel which turns the bell cranks & throws the cable out of gear,
hence providing that the carriage cannot pass that point with a cable in the grip.
The mode for passing the cable under the grip before attaching it to the carriage
is shewn by figs 9 & 10, also the elevating sheaves & the cables in figs 11 & 12
In order to pass the grip under the cable at starting I arrange the cables as
shown in figs 9 & 10
The grip or clutch G is shewn within the tunnel with the outgoing & incoming
cables when the grip is within the tunnel I mount a pair of oscillating elevating
sheaves as shewn in fig 11 over which the cable passes, the grip is advanced
from the position shewn in figs 9 & 10 & made to pass between the rotating
sheaves & the cable passes between its upper & lower jaws, the mode of mounting
the oscillating elevating sheaves is shewn in figs 11 & 12
:
It may happen that the cable gets out of the jaw of the grip when the grip &
carriage is in action in such case the motion of the carriage would cease until the
grip could recover the moving Cable: to effect this I fix at different portions of the
line one or more pullies whose axle & bearings are mounted upon one extremity of
a lever the other extremity of which rotates on a trunnion so that by actuating
the extremity carrying the pulley by means of a rack & pinion or a screw or
other well known mechanical appliances, the lever is made to rotate on the
trunnion, & the end carrying the pulley is raised & with it the moving cable to
such a height that it can be caught between the jaws of the grip.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention and pointed out how
the saine is constructed & works, I wish it understood that what I claim as new
& desire secured to me by the before in part recited Letters Patent are:-
1st The construction of a cable traction Tramway or Railway having the
roadway & tunnel underneath formed & built substantially as set out in this
iny Specification shewn in figs 1. 2. 3. 4. 4ª 4b 5 & 6 of the drawings appended
& more particularly the cast iron ribs for carrying the rails & sleepers so as to keep
the guage of the same at the same time forming the slot in the centre of the
roadway also the mode of holding down the said ribs by means of anchor bolts &
generally the mode of building & constructing the said tunnel. I claim also the
use of flat rails in connection with the same. I claim also the modified arrange-
ment as shewn in figs 4 4 & 4° where rolled iron ties & cheeks are used instead
of cast iron & the arrangement for securing the sleeper & rails as forming a portion
of my system. The use of one cable for the purpose of a traction railway is not
new & I do not claim its use except in connection with my roadway, tunnel, grip &
mountings but I do claim-
2nd In connection with cable traction Tramways & Railways the use of two
Cables running in the same direction in the said tunnel & preferably that each
shall be mounted upon a separate system of pullies so that either cable can be
used indifferently by any carriage running in the same direction on the line & so
actuated that either may be operated separately or both at the same time.
3 I claim the use of auxiliary cables for transinitting power to other cables or
machinery connected with Tramways at a distance from the prime motor

page_text: 4 I claim also as connected with the object of my invention the shape &
arrangement of the carrying pullies as shewn in figs 2. & 13
5. I claim the elevating oscillatory sheaves for permitting the grip to pass under
the cable as shewn in figs 10. 11 & 12.
6 I claim the elevating pulley for raising the cable when within the tunnel so
as to permit it to be passed between the jaws of the grip
7 I claim the method of regulating & adjusting the tension upon the cable at
the extremities by means of the arrangements set out in figs 7 & 8
81 claim the mode of regulating the teusion & guiding the cable when within
the tunnel when the line is curved by means of the arrangements in figs 14 & 15
& I claim specially the use of a fusce in any part of the tunnel for guiding the
cable & keeping it in its true line & path
9 I claim the particular construction of carriages in connection with the
arrangements & mode of attaching the grip to the carriage as shewn in fig G
10 I claim the use of a guide rod & guide rolls attached to the other axle of the
carriage as shewn in fig 6.
11 In connection with the grip apparatus I claim the combination of parts &
appliances forming the grip which is used for connecting & disconnecting the
carriage to the moving cables & more particularly I claim the guide rolls o, o, acting
upon the inner cheeks of the slot, the jaws & the mode of actuating them by
means of the levers P & Q & connecting links. Also the mode of actuating the
rollers m m so as to throw out of gear the cable at any desired point & as
connected with that purpose I claim the cranked lever n, the sliding piece o when
used with a grip upon a cable traction tramway
12 I claim also the arrangement & use of the projecting piece y on the grip in
connection with the other projecting piece Z fixed in the tunnel for automatically
freeing the cable at any desired point on the line.
In witness whereof I the said James Wright have hereunto set my hand
& seal this nineteenth day of December 1882
Witness
HJ HIGGS
10 Cornhill
E.C.
JAMES WRIGHT (L.S.)