Improvements in Apparatus for Communicating Motion to Station Indicators in Railway Carriages.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 21st July, 1896
Complete Specification Left, 20th Apr., 1897-Accepted, 22nd May, 1897
Improvements in Apparatus for Communicating Motion to Station
Indicators in Railway Carriages.
I, DUNDAS WILLIAM PORTEOUS, of 3 Fitzroy Road, Regent's Park, in the
County of London, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
The invention has for its object improvements in apparatus for communicating
motion to station indicators in railway carriages and relates to an improved and
simple arrangement of means whereby the prime motion or actuating lever is
caused to communicate only the exact amount of motion required to operate the
indicator at each contact of the actuating lever with the fixed cam or incline.
For this purpose I mount the actuating lever on the axle of a pair of the
carriage running wheels and I connect the upper end of this actuating lever by a
link with a cross head connecting together two grooved rods fitting and capable of
moving to and fro within cylinders each provided with a stud or projection entering
the grooves of said rods.
These cylinders are mounted within bearings so as to be capable of revolving
but not of moving end wise therein. These grooved rods have their grooves formed
partly longitudinal therewith and partly inclined around the same and the groove
of one rod in the reverse of the other, the inclined portion of the groove of one rod
starting at the same cross line as the other but proceeding in opposite directions,
that is to say where the one rod has an inclined groove the other has a longitudinal
groove and rice versa.
The normal position of the parts is with the actuating lever vertical and the
studs or projections from the cylinders lying in the grooves of the rods at the
point of junction of the inclined with the longitudinal parts of said grooves so that
if such rods are moved in either direction one only of such rods will give a partial
rotary motion to its cylinder whilst the other rod will keep its cylinder still. And
in order that the parts may after each operation be brought back to their normal
position in readiness for a fresh action pass through a projection on the cross
head connecting the two rods a reaction rod one end of which is fixed to a suitable
block or fixture and I place around such reaction rod on each side of the cross
head a spring acting against such cross head and against suitable abutments at the
ends of the reaction rod. In order to cominunicate the rotary motion of the
cylinders to the vertical shaft giving motion to the indicators I mount on the end
of each cylinder a toothed wheel which is driven only in one direction by its
carrying cylinder and is capable of rotating freely thereon in the contrary direction
these toothed wheels gear with a third wheel on the axle of which is also fixed a
bevel pinion gearing with another bevel pinion fixed on the lower end of the
aforesaid vertical shaft.
This vertical shaft communicates motion by suitable gearing to a horizontal
shaft running along the top of the carriage and such horizontal shaft communicates
motion to the indicators by means of worms and worm wheels.
Thus when the actuating lever is moved in one direction it will by one of the
grooved rods and cylinders give motion to the gearing in one direction, the
wheel on one of said cylinders being driven thereby whilst the toothed wheel
on the other cylinder runs loosely thereon and vice versa whilst after each operation

page_text: the reaction rod and springs bring the parts to their normal position in readiness
for a fresh operation.
Duted Tuly 21+ 1000
HARRIS & MILLS,
23 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents.
Improvements in Apparatus for Communicating Motion to Station
Indicators in Railway Carriages.
I, DUNDAS WILLIAM PORTEOUS, of 3 Fitzroy Road, Regent's Park, in the
County of London, 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 :-
The invention has for its object improvements in apparatus for communicating
motion to station indicators in railway carriages, and relates to an improved and
simple arrangement of means whereby the prime mover or actuating lever is
caused to communicate only the exact amount of motion required to operate the
indicator at each contact of the actuating lever with the fixed cam or incline.
I will describe my invention by referring to the accompanying drawings, in
which-
Fig. 1 is a side elevation and Fig. 2 is a plan of apparatus constructed according
to my invention.
Fig. 3 is an end view of parts.
Fig. 4 is a sectional side view and Fig. 5 is a cross sectional view of one of the
toothed wheels.
Fig. 6 is an end view of one of the operating rods and cylinders.
Fig. 7 is a plan of one of the rods showing the groove and operating pin
therein, and
Fig. 8 is a vertical section of the actuating lever.
In all the figures like parts are indicated by similar letters of reference.
These
a is the actuating lever, which I construct and mount ou the axle of a pair of
the carriage running wheels, as shown at Figs. 1 and 8. The upper end of this
lever is connected by a link e with a cross head d connecting together two grooved
rods d fitting and capable of moving to and fro within cylinders e, each provided
with a swivelling stud or projection el entering the grooves of said rods d.
cylinders e are mounted within bearings on a bracket or frame fixed to the
under-carriage g so as to be capable of revolving but not of moving endwise
therein. These rods d have their grooves d' formed partly longitudinal therewith
and partly inclined around the same, and the groove of one rod is the reverse of
the other, the inclined portion of the groove d¹ of one rod starting at the same
cross line as the other but proceeding in opposite directions, that is to say,
where the one rod has its groove inclined, the other has it longitudinal, and
vice versa.
The normal position of the parts is with the actuating lever a vertical and the
studs or projections e' from the cylinders lying in the grooves of the rods d at the
point of junction of the inclined with the longitudinal parts of said grooves, so that
if such rods d are moved in either direction one only of such rods will give a partial
rotary motion to its cylinder e, whilst the other rod d will keep its cylinder still.
And in order that the parts may, after each operation, be brought back to their
normal position in readiness for a fresh action, I pass through a projection de on
the cross head d³, a re-action rod h, one end of which is fixed to a suitable block

page_text: or fixture f on the frame f, and I place around such reaction rod on each side-
of the cross head, a spring h' acting against such cross head, and one of such springs
also acts against a fixed nut or stop hat the outer end of the rod h, and the other
against a nut h³.
In order to communicate the rotary motion of the cylinders e to the vertical
shaft i giving motion to the indicators, I mount on the end of each cylinder e a
toothed wheel e driven by a clutch 3 such as that represented at Figs. 4 ani 5,
whereby each of such wheels e2 is driven only in one direction by its carrying
cylinder e and is capable of rotating freely thereon in the contrary direction; these
toothed wheels & gear with a third wheel e', to which is also fixed a bevel pinio e
gearing with another bevel pinion fixed on the lower end of the vertical sha't i.
This vertical shaft i communicates motion by suitable gearing to a horizontal
shaft running along the top of the carriage, and such horizontal shaft com-
municates motion to the indicators by means of worms and worm wheels or other
gearing.
I have not thought it necessary to show in the drawings the above described
arrangement for communicating motion from the vertical shaft i to the indicators
as such will be readily understood from the description given.
Thus, when the actuating lever a is moved in one direction it will, by one of the
grooved rods d and cylinders e, give motion to the gearing in one direction, the
wheel e on one of said cylinders being driven by its clutch es fixed on the cylinder e,
whilst the toothed wheel 2 on the other cylinder e runs loosely on its clutch, and
vice versa. After each operation the reaction rod h and springs h¹ bring the parts
to their normal position in readiness for a fresh operation.
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. The improved arrangement and combination of apparatus for communicating
motion to station indicators in railway carriages substantially as herein shown and
described.
2. In apparatus for communicating motion to station indicators in railway
carriages, the combination with an actuating lever, of a pair of grooved rods
capable of being moved end wise by said lever within rotatable tubes provided with
projections fitting the grooves of said rods, toothed wheels mounted on and driven
by clutches fixed on said tubes so as to be moved in one direction and slip in the
contrary direction, said toothed wheels giving motion to the indicator mechanism.
by suitable gearing, substantially as herein shown and described.
Dated this 20th dox of Auril 1897
HARRIS & MILLS,
23 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents.