Improvements in Couplings for Railway Vehicles.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 30th Nov., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 18th Aug., 1893-Accepted, 30th Sept., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Couplings for Railway Vehicles.
I, JOHN NICHOLAS BRAUN of Roslyn, County of Kittitass, State of
Washington, United States of America, Mechanic, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:-
In the couplings of this invention the draw bars are provided with draw heads
somewhat in the form of a trough open at top having a bottom wall, side walls and
a narrow transverse top wall at their inner ends, the botton and top walls being
provided with aligned vertical apertures to receive the link pins for connecting a
link to each draw head. Rising from the bottom wall of each draw head at the
forward end, is a hook sloping back, the backward end being bent down so as to
form a projection to prevent the link from becoming disengaged by the jostling of
the carriages or accident to the link pins. A frame working vertically through the
bottom of the draw heads engages and raises the links when it is desired to uncouple
the carriages. The frame is by means of levers and rods in connection with a bell
crank lever mounted on the top of the carriage from which it may be operated, so
that a person standing at the side or upon the top of a carriage may raise both of
the links above the hooks and thereby uncouple the carriages, or when it is desired
to couple the carriages may raise the link of one draw head so that it will take into
a draw head resting at a higher elevation.
Dated this 30th day of November 1892.
THOMAS R. SHILLITO,
89, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agent for the Applicant..
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Couplings for Railway Vehicles.
I, JOHN NICHOLAS BRAUN of Roslyn, County of Kittitass, State of
Washington, United States of America, Mechanic, 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 coupling of this invention is shewn in the accompanying drawing, Fig. 1
being a side view of portions of two railway carriages coupled together, Fig. 2 a
vertical longitudinal section of the coupling drawn to a larger scale and Fig. 3 a
vertical transverse section of one of the draw heads through line a-a, of Fig. 1.
A are railway carriages, B draw heads provided with draw bars C secured to the
The draw heads B which are similar in con-
carriages in any suitable manner.
struction comprise a bottom wall a side walls b and a narrow transverse top wall c
at their inner ends which top wall c and the bottom wall a are provided with
aligned vertically disposed apertures to receive the link pins d which are designed to
connect the link D of each draw head to the same.
Rising from the forward end of the bottom wall a of each draw head there is a
rearwardly pitched hook E. with a downward projections whereby, when the
bevelled end of link D of the opposite draw head rides upon the outer surface of
book E and over the projections and drops, the said projection prevents the link
from disengagement by the jostling of the carriages.
The links D which have their inner ends square with respect to their sides, as
shewn, have the under side of their curved forward ends bevelled so that they will
more readily ride up and over the hooks E.
By the construction thus far. described it will be seen that when the draw heads

page_text: are coupled the links D will rest one upon the other, and should the pin of one draw
head become broken or disconnected from the link it engages, an uncoupling of the
carriages will be prevented, inasmuch as the inner end of said link will engage the
hook E of its draw head.
Formed in the bottom and adjacent to the outer ends of draw heads B there are
two holes for the reception of the movable pitmen F connected at their lower ends
by a cross bar G and designed to be manipulated to engage and raise links D above
hooks E when the carriages are to be uncoupled. The cross bar G of each draw
head has its ends connected by links H with the forward ends of levers I which are
fulcrummed at their opposite ends upon the sides of the draw head and are provided
at intermediate points in their length with the laterally and rearwardly extending
hooks J.
K are rock shafts carried in suitable bearings on the forward ends of carriages A
and provided at their ends with angular branches K' which by their ends, are
through chains or links 1, in connection with levers L through the medium of which
the shafts K may be readily rocked by a person at the side of the carriage.
Shafts K are also provided at intermediate points in their length with forwardly
and upwardly extending angular branches m which are connected by chains or
links n to the bell crank levers M upon the tops of the carriages whereby the
shafts K may be rocked from that position.
N are arms attached to or formed in one piece with shafts K. They take beneath
the hooks J of levers I which they engage and raise links D when shafts K are
rocked in the direction indicated by the arrow. Thus it will be seen that a person
standing at the side of or being upon the top of the carriages may raise both links D
above hooks E and thereby uncouple the carriages or when it is desired to couple
the carriages may raise the link of one draw head so that it will take into a draw
head resting at a greater elevation.
i'
By the provision of the hooks J upon levers I for the engagement of the arms N
of.rock shafts K it will be perceived that should the, draw bars C become discon-
nected from their carriages and pull out, such disconnection will not damage or
otherwise affect shafts K and parts connected thereto.
E' are curvilinear plates attached to or formed in one piece with the forward
edges of hooks E. They extend rearwardly of the hooks and serve to prevent
disengagement of the links froin said hooks when a draw head is pulled out.
In practice a coupling will be automatically affected by the link of one draw
head entering the other draw head and engaging its hook E unless one of the
draw heads is higher than the other when the link of the lower head may be
elevated through the medium of the devices described. In any event it will be
perceived that with a coupling such as herein described, the objectionable
necessity of going between the carriages to couple or uncouple the same, is
obviated.
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. In a coupling for railway vehicles, the combination, with a draw head, a rear-
wardly pitched hook rising from the longitudinal centre of the bottom of the draw
head at the forward end thereof and having its forward edge bevelled to form a
downward projection, and a vertically disposed pin taking through the draw head
adjacent to the inner or rear end thereof, of a link having its rear end square with
respect to its sides and having its forward end bevelled, for the purpose specified
substantially as described and shewn.
2. In a coupling for railway vehicles, the combination, with a draw head
comprising a bottom wall, side walls and a top wall at the inner ends of the side
walls, a rearwardly pitched hook rising from the bottom wall adjacent to its forward
end and having its forward edge bevelled, a pin taking through the draw head, and
a link engaged by said pin, of the vertically disposed pitmen taking through

page_text: apertures formed in the bottom of the draw head and adapted to engage the link, a
cross bar connecting said pitmen and a suitable means for raising said pitmen, for
the purpose specified, substantially as described and shewn.
3. In a coupling for railway vehicles, the combination, with a draw head, a hook
rising from the bottom wall of the draw head, a pin taking through the draw head,
a link straddling the hook and engaging the pin, the vertically disposed pitmen
taking through apertures in the bottom of the draw head and adapted to engage the
link, and a cross bar connecting said pitmen, of the levers fulcrummed upon the sides
of the draw head and having the laterally and rearwardly extending hooks at
intermediate points in their length, links connecting the levers and the cross bar of
the pitmen, the rock shaft, the arms carried by said rock shaft and engaging the
hooks of the levers, and a suitable means for rocking the rock shaft, for the purpose
specified substantially as described and shewn.
4. In a coupling for railway vehicles, a link in combination with a draw head, a
rearwardly pitched hook rising from the draw head at the forward end thereof and
having its forward edge bevelled, and a curvilinear plate connected to the forward
edge of the hook and extending rearwardly of the same, for the purpose specified
substantially as described and shewn.
Dated this 18th day of August 1902
THOMAS R. SHILLITO,
89, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agent for the Applicant.