Improvements in Apparatus for Facilitating the Starting and Stopping of Tramway-cars and other Vehicles.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Dec., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 9th Aug., 1889-Accepted, 28th Sept., 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Facilitating the Starting and
Stopping of Tramway-cars and other Vehicles.
I, HENRI DE MARNEFFE, of Liége, in the Kingdom of Belgium, Manufacturer do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to apparatus for facilitating the starting and stopping of
tramway-cars and other vehicles.
The improved apparatus has for its object to accumulate or store up energy in the
stoppage of a vehicle, such as a tramcar and to utilize the said energy when the said
vehicle is set in motion and thus obviate the sudden pulls on the horse-collar which
are very injurious to the horses.
The improved apparatus comprises a helical spring the compression and expansion
of which respectively cause the stoppage and the starting of the vehicle. Upon the
axles of the car are arranged one or two wheels or the like on either side of which
are placed levers pivoted upon the said axles or upon fixed points. Two and two of
the said levers are held in parallel positions by means of rods with which they are
connected by joints. Two springs and chains are designed to cause these levers to
return to their normal position at the desired moment.
A bar is used the extremities of which form forks that partially embrace the afore-
said axles and are provided with contact rollers so as to obviate too much friction upon
the axles during their motion. This bar is provided with a movable slide or carriage
having rollers for facilitating its movement, and with a helical spring the extremities
of which bear on the one hand upon a disc or plate and on the other hand upon the
said slide or carriage.
An endless chain which passes around the above-mentioned wheels suitably
constructed for this purpose, causes in the regular motion of the vehicle, this endless
chain to move with the axles. This chain passes between the two plates forming the
lateral walls of the slide or carriage. At the upper and lower end of the latter, above
and below the endless chain, are pivoted two catches the heads of which are movable
in opposite directions and are arrested in one direction by the rod of the catch.
spring is employed to cause the catch to return to the vertical position when it has
left the same. The two catches are lowered or raised according as the rods to which
they are attached by rings are lowered or raised at the same time as the above-
mentioned levers on either side of the wheels.
A
Two small coupling sleeves are arranged upon the rod for the crank operated by the
driver. One of these sleeves, when moved in one direction can slide upon the teeth
of the other coupling sleeve. These coupling sleeves act only in one direction of
the rotation. The lower coupling sleeve carries an excentric pin, and upon the upper
sleeve is wound a cord so that when the latter is wound up a chain of the brake is
unwound, and vice versa.
The said chain of the brake is divided at its extremity into two parts one of which
is fixed to the excentric pin so that when the apparatus is actuated the brake will act
first but only for a short time, by reason of the excentricity of the aforesaid pin.
At the point of insection of the cords is arranged a small roller to which another
cord is attached.
As the apparatus operates in a similar manner in the two directions of the motion
it will be sufficient to describe its action for the stoppage of the vehicle in one direction.
When the driver actuates the crank during the first half of the revolution it will.
act exclusively upon the brake by reason of the excentric arrangement of the afore-
said pin. By continuing the rotation of the crank the cord is wound upon the
coupling upper sleeve and successively causes each pair of levers by the side of the

page_text: wheels on the axles to be inclined, so that the catches will approach each other.
One of the catches then engages with the endles chain and is carried with it. The
slide or carriage follows the motion of the said catch, is displaced on the forked bar
and compresses the spring upon the latter. The movable head of the other catch on
the contrary is inclined each time as it encounters a link of the endless chain, and is
caused to return to its position by the spring connected with it. The spring upon
the bar on being compressed acts in opposition to the motion of the axle and finally
stops the vehicle. The recoil of the slide or carriage and of the vehicle is prevented
by the engagement of the catches. In order to set the car in motion again the driver
turns back the crank, and the levers caused to return to their vertical position by
the spring connected with them raise one of the catches, whilst the other catch
remains engaged with the endless chain, and the compressed spring upon the forked
bar on expanding acts upon the second catch and the endless chain and sets the tram
car or other vehicle in motion in the direction in which it passed before the stoppage.
By actuating the crank in the other direction the brake will act alone.
Dated this 1st day of December 1888.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Facilitating the Starting and
Stopping of Tramway-cars and other Vehicles.
I, HENRI DE MARNEFFE, of Liége, in the Kingdom of Belgium, Manufacturer, 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 apparatus for facilitating the starting and stopping of
tramway-cars and other vehicles. The improved apparatus has for its object to
accumulate or store up energy in the stoppage of a vehicle, such as a tram-car and
to utilize the said energy when the vehicle is set in motion and thus obviate the
sudden pulls on the horse-collar which are very injurious to the horses.
In the accompanying drawings,
larger scale.
Figure 1 is a general view of the restoring brake applied to a tram-car.
Figure 2 is an upper view of the brake, the gall chain being removed.
Figure 3 is part of the mechanism drawn to a larger scale and
Figures 4 to 6 are views of the click or catch to a
The improved apparatus comprises a helical spring R the compression and
expansion of which respectively cause the stoppage and the starting of the vehicle.
XX is the floor of a tram-car. Upon the axles A A¹ of the car are arranged one
or two wheels or the like B and B on either side of which are placed levers c, c,
c, c, pivotted upon the said axles A, A¹ or upon fixed points. Two and two of the
said levers are held in parallel positions by means of rods a, a¹ with which they are
connected by joints. Two springs r,, and chains are designed to cause these levers
to return to their normal position at the desired moment.
A bar T is used the extremities of which form forks that partially embrace the
aforesaid axles A and A¹ and are provided with contact rollers so as to obviate too
much friction upon the axles during their motion. This bar is provided with a
movable slide or carriage E having rollers for facilitating its movement, and with
a helical spring R the extremities of which bear on the one hand upon a disc or
plate p and on the other hand upon the said slide or carriage E.
An endless chain F which passes around the above-mentioned wheels B B' suitably
constructed for this purpose, causes in the regular motion of the vehicle, this endless
chain to move with the axles. This chain passes between the two plates forming the
lateral walls of the slide or carriage E. At the upper and lower end of the latter,
figures 1, 3 and 4 above and below the endless chain, are pivotted two catches t, t¹ the

page_text: The
heads of which are movable in opposite directions and are arrested in one direction
by the wall V of the rod of the catch, figure 4. A springs is employed to cause
the catch to return to the vertical position figure 4, when it has left the same.
two catches t and t¹ are lowered or raised according as the rods a a¹ to which they are
attached by rings m, figures 4, 5 and 6 are lowered or raised at the same time as the
above-mentioned levers c, c', c, c, on either side of the wheels.
Two small coupling sleeves e el are arranged upon the rod for the crank Z operated
by the driver. One of these sleeves, when moved in one direction can slide upon the
teeth of the other coupling sleeve e. These coupling sleeves act only in one direction
of the rotation. The lower coupling sleeve e carries an excentric pin, b; and upon
the upper sleeve e is wound a cord o¹ so that when the latter is wound up a chain à of
the brake is unwound, and vice versa.
The said chain of the brake is divided at its extremity into two parts d, d', as
shown in the drawing, one of which is fixed to the excentric pin b so that when the
apparatus is actuated the brake will act first but only for a short time, by reason of
the eccentricity of the aforesaid pin b.
At the point of insertion of the cords o is arranged a small roller to which another
cord o' is attached.
As the apparatus operates in a similar manner in the two directions of the motion
it will be sufficient to describe its action for the stoppage of the vehicle in one direction,
for example, according to the arrows shown.
When the driver actuates the crank Z during the first half of the revolution (the
cord of being sufficiently stretched at the end of this) it will act exclusively upon
the brake by reason of the eccentric arrangement of the aforesaid pin b. "By,
continuing the rotation of the crank the cord of is wound upon the coupling upper
sleeve e and causes each pair of levers c, cl, cl, ell, to be inclined so that the catches t
and will approach each other. One of the catches t then engages with the endless
chain and is carried with it. The slide or carriage E follows the motion of the said
catch, is displaced upon the forked bar T and compresses the spring R upon the
latter. The movable head of the other catch t¹ on the contrary is inclined each time
as it encounters a link of the endless chain, and is caused to return to its position
by the springs connected with it. The spring R upon the bar on being compressed
acts in opposition to the motion of the axle and finally stops the vehicle. The recoil
of the slide or carriage and of the vehicle is prevented by the engagement of the
catches t¹. In order to set the car in motion again the driver turns back the crank Z
and the levers c, el being caused to return to their vertical position by the spring
connected with them, raise one of the catches t, whilst the other catch t¹ remains
engaged with the endless chain F, and the compressed spring R upon the forked bar
on expanding acts upon the second catch ¹ and the endless chain F and sets the
tram-car or other vehicle in motion in the direction in which it was moving before
the stoppage. By actuating the crank Z in the other direction the brake will act
alone.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I wish it understood that
I claim :-
An apparatus for facilitating the starting and stopping of tramway-cars and other
vehicles consisting of two wheels B and B keyed upon the axles A A' of the vehicle and
carrying an endless chain F, of levers c, c¹ and c, e adapted to turn upon the axles
or upon the rod T and two and two connected by means of rods a, a' operated by the
crank Z and automatically moved back to their normal position by springs and,
which rods a, a¹ actuate pawls t and t¹ having movable heads fixed upon a chariot E
and capable of engaging alternately with the endless chain F, thereby causing the
sliding movement of the chariot E upon the rod T and the compression of the
spring R which when the starting takes place, gives off the force accumulated by its
compression to the pawl engaged in the last place, and also to the chain F and
causes the forward movement of the vehicle in the direction previously followed,

page_text: eventually in combination with an ordinary brake having shoes, likewise actuated by
the crank Z and which through the medium of engaging mechanism eel and the
eccentric pin b enables the retardation of the motion of the vehicle before the action of
the restoring brake.
Dated this 9th day of August 1880
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.