IMPROVE- MENTS IN OR APPERTAINING TO VEHICLES OR ROLLING STOCK TO BE USED ON COMMON ROADS, TRAMWAYS, AND RAILWAYS
Year: 1878

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Edwin Powley Alexander at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 27th November 1878. A communi-
cation from abroad by Gustav Joachim Hambruch, of the City of Berlin, in
the Empire of Germany.
EDWIN POWLEY ALEXANDER, of 14, Southampton Buildings, in the County of
Middlesex, Consulting Engineer and British and Foreign Patent Agent. "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN OR APPERTAINING TO VEHICLES OR ROLLING STOCK TO BE USED ON
COMMON ROADS, TRAMWAYS, AND RAILWAYS." A communication from abroad by
Gustav Joachim Hambruch, of the City of Berlin, in the Empire of Germany.
This Invention relates to a peculiar construction and arrangement of the axles of
common road carts or wagons, train way cars, and railway rolling stock, whereby
they are caused by the action of the pole or other means of draught to lock or
assume the positions of radii to any curves traversed by such vehicles. By this
Invention curves of much smaller radii than have hitherto been found practicable
can be traversed by vehicles with perfect ease and safety. The before mentioned
self-acting radially adjustable axles when applied to railway carriages or wagons
are brought into radial positions to the curves to be traversed by the action of a
peculiar arrangement of self-adjusting coupling buffers in connection with the said
axles.
In carrying out the said Invention the axles of the various kinds of vehicles
hereinbefore referred to are made in two separate halves in lieu of extending from
wheel to wheel of each pair, and both halves of each axle are made to swivel freely
round separate points or centres of their own, situate either close to the wheels
(whether inside or outside the same) or exactly in the centres of the wheels in lieu
of pivotting on one common centre in the middle of the axle, as has heretofore been
proposed, whereby a greater range of adjustment is obtained. Two or more of the
half axles of the saine vehicle are connected together at their inner ends by crossed
coupling rods, and are further connected with the pole or draught bar in order to
ensure their simultaneous adjustment by the lateral movement thereof.
In the case of railway rolling stock, where two or more carriages are coupled
together, the crossed coupling rods may be dispensed with, and the two halves of

page_text: the axle at one end of a vehicle are adjusted simultaneously with the halves of the
next axle of the adjoining vehicle through the intervention of the self adjusting
coupling buffer, as will be herein after explained.
In common road carts or wagons and also in tramway cars the half axles at each
end of the vehicle are connected by a second pair of crossed coupling rods to the
two opposite ends of a horizontal T-shaped swivelling lever, the pole or draught
arrangement being connected to the centre arm of the lever. A similar arrange-
ment of crossed coupling rods and T lever may be provided at both ends of the
vehicle, so that the pole can be connected to either end as found convenient, and
the vehicle run to and fro without turning, the adjusting action of the T lever on
the half axles being the same at either end of the vehicle. One of the axles in
common road vehicles may also be arranged so as to have a slight pivotting action
in a vertical plane round a point situate in the longitudinal centre line of the
vehicle, with a view to easing the motion of the same on uneven roads.
The self acting coupling buffers for railway rolling stock consist of two ẹ shaped
or bifurcated buffers, pin jointed at the bend to the end of the longitudinal draw
bar of each carriage, and free to pivot and adjust themselves horizontally in slots in
the buffer beams.
Between the two arms of each swivelling buffer there is disposed the third or
central arm of a horizontal T shaped lever pivotting in such a manner that the
lateral movement of the buffer shall be transmitted to the said T lever, and as the
opposite ends of the cross arms are connected by coupling rods to the corresponding
inner ends of the half axles, it follows that the said halves will be brought into
radial positions by the lateral movement of the buffers when passing over curves.
These buffers are coupled together by two coupling hooks mounted each upon a
horizontal rocking spindle in each buffer, the ends of such spindles being connected
to other spindles extending to the outer sides of the framing. In coupling up it is
simply necessary to bring the buffers of both carriages together, the hooks being in
an elevated position, and then to engage each hook with the rocking spindle in the
opposite buffer by simply turning the side spindles. The tedious operation of
screwing up the carriages is thus obviated, and as the coupling is accomplished from
the outsides of the carriages all risk of injury to the attendants is avoided.