IMPROVEMENTS IN TRUCKS FOR LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Levi Bissell, of the City and State of New York,
United States of America, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN TRUCKS
FOR LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES."
Scaled the 7th July 1857, and dated 5th May 1857.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Levi Bissell at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 5th May
1857.
I, LEVI BISSELL, of the City and State of New York, United States of
America, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN TRUCKS FOR LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES," to be as follows:-
My said Invention relates to certain means for guiding the truck wheels of
locomotives in running on straight tracks or around curves, and preventing
the wheels from running off the track.
My Invention is especially applicable to engines fitted with a truck at the
forward end, formed of four or more wheels, supported in a frame that is con-
nected to the engine by a centre pin or king bolt, so that the same turns to

page_text: conform to the rail, as this character of truck is considered preferable to pairs
of wheels in fixed journals, although my Invention could be applied to single
pairs of wheels as well as double pairs or trucks.
My Invention consists in so connecting and fitting the smaller or truck
wheels, that while the driving wheels move directly forward with their axles at !
right angles to the track or on the radial line of a curve, and the longitudinal
centre of the engine moves as a tangent, the curvature of the rail gives the
said smaller or truck wheels a transverse motion under the engine, the act of
doing which turns the axles of said wheels to such an angle relative to the
axle of the drivers as to bring the same also on to the radial line, so that it
will run round a curve. I also make use of inclines to prevent a sudden
movement of the truck, and to counteract the centrifugal force in passing on
to a curve, by causing the engine to rise on said inclines as the truck moves
laterally.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Levi Bissell in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 4th
November 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, LEVI
BISSELL, of the City and State of New York, United States of America, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fifth day of May, in the year of our Lord One thou-
sand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twentieth year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Levi
Her special loanso that I, the said Lovi Bissell,
Bissell, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Levi Bissell, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at
any time.agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN TRUCKS FOR LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Levi Bissell, by an instrument in writing under
my hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of
the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within

page_text: six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Levi Bissell, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement,
reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the letters and
figures marked thereon (that is to say):
--
Figs. 1 and 2 are plans of the ordinary six and eight wheel locomotives now
generally in use, and universally approved in the United States, shewing the
manner in which the wheels travel on a curved track; Fig. 3 is a similar
plan, shewing the nature of my improvements; and Fig. 4 is a side elevation.
of the same; Fig. 5 is a plan, and Fig. 6 is an end view, shewing the details
of my truck. Similar marks of reference denote the same parts.
In order to illustrate fully the nature of my said Invention, it will be neces-
sary briefly to shew the operation of the presont locomotive engines on curved
rails, and shew the reason why they so often run off the track, particularly
when meeting with any obstruction or encountering a broken rail, the object.
of my Invention being to retain the truck with the axles always at right.
angles to the rail, whether on a straight or curved track, and prevent the
truck swinging around on its centre pin in case of meeting with any obstruction,.
and to make the curvature of the rail the means for turning the truck, so
that the axles are parallel to the radial line of the given curve, in which
position they are retained firmly until the direction of the track again
changes.
a, a, is the railroad track, shewn as on a curved line in Figs. 1, 2, and 3,
and the red lines represent the radial lines. The platform b, or general out-
line of the engine, is shewn in Figs. 1, 2, and 3. in blue lines. The ordinary
six-wheel locomotive (Fig. 1) in running around a curve assumes the:
position shewn; the axle of the drivers c, c, is not on the line of the.
radius in consequence of the same being at right angles to the platform,
and the truck, carries the forward end of said platform on to the curved
line; hence the flanges in contact with the rail towards the sides 1, 1, grind
against the rail, and the flanch on the sides towards 2, 2, are relieved, and
there is a constant sideways sliding motion on the rail, in consequence of
forcing the drivers in a deflecting line or sideways from that of a cylindrical
forward rolling The truck is constantly by this means borne to the outer >
side of the curve, and the engine has a tendency to go off in the direction..
motion
A
particularly in case a broken rail or obstruction occurs,
of the arrow,, when the truck swivels around on its centre- pin, throwing:

page_text: the locomotive off the track, greatly at the risk or to the injury of life
and limb.
The same general remarks as the above apply to locomotives with eight or
more wheels, and on account of the curvature in the rail and the character of
the truck, the forward pair of drivers d, d, very seldom have flanches, for in
such cases the flanges would bind at the points 1,1, and be relevied at the
points 2, 2, and the truck will still have the same tendency to run off' the track
and turn around on its center pin. For the above reasons curves are very
troublesome as well as dangerous, and there is more proportionate wear and
injury to the running gear and rails in a short curve than on several miles of
straight level track.
I therefore construct my truck in such a manner that the axles of the
driving wheels shall be on the line of or parallel to the radial line of the curve,
so as always to have a direct forward propelling motion, and not strain or wear
the rails or flanges of the wheels, and so that two or more pairs of drivers can
be fitted with flanges; consequently the centre line of the locomotive in going.
around the curve travels as a tangent to the centre of the drivers, and to
accommodate the curve I fit the truck or forward wheels in such a manner as
to allow of a transverse motion, the said truck swinging laterally upon an axis
of motion (h), located centrally between the centre of the drivers and truck
(or slightly forward of the same, so as to give a slight tendency to the truck to
run to the inner side of the curved track), thereby the axles of the truck
wheels are parallel (or nearly so) to the radial line of the curved rail, and the
engine runs around any given curve without much more strain either on the
wheels or the track than would occur on a straight railroad, and at the same
time there is no chance for the truck to turn on its centre pin by any obstruc-
tion coming in contact with the wheels, and the wheels will pass over a broken
rail and not be displaced, unless all four wheels are simultaneously unsup-
ported, and even then the wheels and truck, being set correctly to the angular
position with the drivers and the curvature of the track, will continue to move
in the correct direction and pass over any obstacles or broken rail and attain
the uninjured part of the track; and in running on a straight track the truck
is held correctly in position, and will run over quite considerable obstructions
without being turned aside.
In running on either a straight or curved track one of the truck wheels
often breaks off, and the truck swivels around on its centro pin in consequence,
and throws the engine off the track; but with my device, one wheel or oven the
two wheels on the opposite sides diagonally of the truck might break off and

page_text: still the truck would not run off, because its position is set, and it has no axis
of motion around which it would swing when injured, as above noted, or when
meeting a broken rail or any obstruction, but is given a direct forward pro-
pulsion. And in all cases the axles of my wheels have only a strain and tor-
sion due to the difference of length between the outer and inner rails, instead
of a strain due to the binding of the flanges of the wheels from the diagonal
positions of the axles in addition to the above-named strain; hence axles so
often break. when running around a curve. With my engine the friction on
the rails in running curves is avoided, and I am enabled to maintain a nearly
uniform speed without any unusual strain or wear on any parts.
The outer rails on curves always have to be more or less elevated to over-
come the centrifugal force and the tendency before mentioned to run off, as
shewn in Fig. 1 & 2; but inasmuch as this tendency is obviated in my
engine, the outer rails need not be so much elevated; and in consequence of
the amount of elevation usually given to the outer rail, a surplus of weight is
thrown on the inuer rail, particularly with slower speeds, causing considerable
wear and often breakage, and there is a constant tendency to spread the track
and wear the inner sides of the rails and the flanges, all of which are avoided
by my Invention.
In the Drawing, e, e, are the 'truck wheels; ff, the truss or truck frame;
g is the centre pin, which in my arrangement changes its character from a
centre of motion simply to that of a draft block or pin, while the centre of
motion is thrown back to the point h, which is slightly forward of the centro
between the pin g and the centre between the drivers d, d.
k is a block, curved from the centre h, in a similar curved slot in the top
plate of the frame f, which slot is sufficiently long to allow of the lateral move-
ment of the truck before mentioned, when the locomotive is on a curve of the
smallest radius that it ever has to travel over. The block k might be bolted
directly to the under side of the engine, and the curved slot 7 would bring the
axles of the wheels c, e, parallel with the radial line, or nearly so; but to allow
an easier motion to the parts, the said block k may be prevented from turning
by radius bars to the centre h; 1, however, prefer that said radius bars i
should be attached as at 3, 3, to the frame f (see dotted lines, Fig. 3, and full
lines, Fig. 5), so as to cause the truck to swing on the centre h, in which case
the block k may be made use of, or the pin g be fitted to move in a curved
slot, as shewn in Fig. 5.
If the curved block k and bars i alone were used, there would be a vibration
of the engine on the truck when running on a straight line, and a tendency to

page_text: move too far by the centrifugal forco when entering a curve; I therefore
obviate this difficulty by providing two inclined planes o, o, Figs. 5 and 6,
formed double, as shewn, and of an angle proportioned to the weight of the
forward part of the locomotive and the velocity of the same, and fit blocks n,n,
on the cross bars m surrounding the centre pin. The position of these inclines
is such the the blocks n, n, rest in the lowest part of the double inclines when
the engine is on a straight track, and on coming on a curve the inertia of the
engine (tending to move in a straight line and cause the truck wheel flanges
to mount the outer rail) is expended in going up the inclines o, o, as the truck
moves laterally towards the inner part of the curve; and on coming on to a
straight line the blocks n descend to the bottom of the inclines, and the engine
The same
is prevented from acquiring a sideways or oscillating motion.
result will be produced by fitting a thimble p on the lower end of the centre
ping, which rests on inclines 7, suspended from the frame f, or said inclines q
might be placed centrally on the frame f.
Rollers might be substituted for the blocks n and thimble p, and when
required, springs may be applied to arrest the motion and prevent the blocks
n sliding too far up the inclines o, o, thus regulating the lateral motion of the
truck.
I am well aware that trucks have been fitted with a lateral motion to swing
on a curved slot, of which the draft head is the centre; therefore I do not
claim the same, and it will be apparent that my manner of attachment is the
reverse of that above alluded to, for if my truck were attached by a bar
extending forward of the truck, the axles would be set in the wrong direction
by the lateral motion, and tend to run off the track; but by causing my truck
to swing on an axis of motion located centrally, or in the desired position
between the drivers and truck, the aforesaid difficulty is overcome, and the
correct position and angle between the axles of the drivers and truck wheels
is ensured.
What I claim, as my Invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is,
attaching trucks having four or more wheels to locomotive engines, in tho
manner substantially as specified, so that the said truck is allowed a lateral
motion under the engine, and moves upon a centre located between the drivers
and the centre of the truck, in such a manner that the relative positions of
the four or more truck wheels with the driving wheels, as determined by the
straight or curved track, shall cause the body of the engine to assume the
correct position relatively with said track, substantially as specified.
I also claim the inclined planes o or q, and blocks n, n, or p, or their equiva-

page_text: lents, in combination with a truck of four or more wheels having a lateral
motion under the locomotive engine, the whole constructed and acting sub-
stantially as and for the purposes specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said Levi Bissell, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witnesses,
Interlination being first made in page 1 [page 2], line 8 [line 25],
and in page 2 [page 3], lines 22 and 24 [lines 36 and 38].
LEMUEL W. SERRELL,
980 Broadway Now York NV
LEVI BISSELL. (L.S.)
Witnesses,
Interlination being first made in page 1 [page 2], line 8 [line 25].
and in page 2 [page 3], lines 22 and 24 (lines 36 and 38].
LEMUEL W. SERRELL,
980 Broadway Now York NV
THO® G. HAROLD,
150, Canton St., Broooklyn, N. Y.
LEVI BISSELL. (L.S.)