CERTAIN IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF RAILWAYS
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henri Adrien Bonneville, of the British and
Foreign Patent Offices, 18, Chaussée d'Antin, Paris, in the Empire
of France, and 10, Sackville Street, Piccadilly, in the County of
Middlesex, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF RAILWAYS."-A communication from
Louis van der Smissen, residing at Brussels, in the Kingdom of
Belgium, Civil Engineer.
Middlesex, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF RAILWAYS."-A communication from
Louis van der Smissen, residing at Brussels, in the Kingdom of
Belgium, Civil Engineer.
Sealed the 13th November 1868, and dated the 27th May 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henri Adrien Bonne-
ville at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 27th May 1868.
I, HENRI ADRIEN BONNEVILLE, of the British and Foreign Patent
Offices, 18, Chaussée d'Antin, Paris, in the Empire of France, and
10, Sackville Street, Piccadilly, in the County of Middlesex, Patent
Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF RAILWAYS," a communication
from Louis van der Smissen, a person resident at Brussels, in the King-
dom of Belgium, Civil Engineer, to be as follows:-
The Invention communicated to me relates to certain improvements

page_text: in the permanent way of railways, and consists in the use of a sector,
the essential characteristic and main advantage of which is the sup-
pression of the needles and consequently of the counterpoint now used
to operate the transfer of a train off one pair of rails on to another,
the same presenting continual danger and often being the cause of
the carriages running off the rails.
These improvements are set forth in the accompanying Drawing,
which represents a plan view of the permanent way according to the
said Invention. B, B', E, G, are moveable rails; E, G', the stationary
rails; Q, R, S, T, are connecting rods; I, I', are levers with friction
rollers; L, L', K, K', are the sectors fixed on to the rails B, B¹; J, J¹,
are connecting rods; P, O, the lever and counterweight actuating the
apparatus. The motion imparted to this lever is transmitted to the
rods J, J, to the levers I, I', and to the moveable rails E', G. The
lever I describes the arc of a circle a, b, setting the sector K¹ free,
and the lever I describes inversely the arc of a circle c, d, on pressing
the sector K', and then the moveable rails B, B, and E', G, are dis-
placed, the former by reason of the pressure exerted by the lever I,
and the latter by that of the connecting rod J¹ in such wise that the
extremities of the said rails B, B', place themselves respectively in the
axis with or opposite to the stationary rails G, G', by which the changing
of a train off one pair of rails on to another is effected. The inverse
operation would bring the rails back into their former position.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Henri Adrien Bonneville in the Great Seal Patent 2
Office on the 25th November 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRI
ADRIEN BONNEVILLE, of the British and Foreign Patent Office, 18,
Chaussée d'Antin, Paris, in the Empire of France, and 10, Sackville
Street, Piccadilly, in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, send 3
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of May, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in

page_text: the thirty-second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Henri Adrien Bonneville, Her
special licence that I, the said Henri Adrien Bonneville, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Henri Adrien
Bonneville, 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 "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF RAILWAYS," a com-
munication from Louis van der Smissen, a person resident at Brussels,
in the Kingdom of Belgium, Civil Engineer, upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Henri Adrien Bonneville, my executors
or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or
one of their hands and seals, 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 six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent...
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Henri Adrien Bonneville, 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:-
The Invention communicated. to me relates to certain improvements.
in the permanent way of railways, and consists in the use of a sector,.
the essential characteristic and main advantage of which. are the.
suppression of the needles or pointers and consequently of the counter-
point now used to operate the transfer of a train off one pair of rails
on to another, the same presenting continual danger and often being:
the cause of the carriages running, off the rails.
These improvements are set forth in the accompanying Drawings,
Fig. 1 of which is a plane of the eccentric disposed for the main way,
and Fig. 2 a section by the line V, W, of Fig. 1; Eig. 3. is a detailed
view of the sector I', the friction roller G¹, and. its. lever. H' on the
right side reduced to a fourth of their natural size; Fig. 4 is a plane-
of the eccentric disposed for the crossing of the train from one pair.
of rails on to another; and Figure 5 a. section by the line. X, Y,, of

page_text: Fig. 4. A, B, C, D, A, B, C, D, are the moveable rails (Vignole's
systems); E, F, E, F, the stationary rails; Q, R, S, T, U, connecting
rods; H' and H, levers set square pivotting on the axes a and b and
furnished with friction rollers G and G¹; I, I', sectors connected with
the moveable rails A, B, A', B'; M, M', transmission rod; N, working
rod; J, K, L, J, K, L', counter rails; P, counterweights of the working
rod; O, box.
Working of the Eccentric.-If the eccentric be so worked as to
cause the moveable rail C, D, to form a prolongation of the moveable
rail A, B, and at the same time that the stationary rail E, F, form
a prolongation of the moveable rail A¹, B', the eccentric will then
be disposed in the manner required to cross from one pair of rails
on to another; in other words to quit the main way. In order to
effect this crossing it is merely necessary to revert the counterweight P
so as to describe an arc of circle m, n, o, and thus to throw it back
towards the outside of the permanent way; when thrown into this
position the pressure exerted by the counterweight on the arm of
the fork g, h, 1, will compel this latter to topple over, thereby forcing
the rod N to advance in the direction of the rails; now this rod N
being connected with the levers and the moveable rails will simul-
taneously impart the following movements:-The lever H' will turn
around its axis b and describe a circle c, d, whilst the lever H describes
a circle e, f, in the contrary direction in such wise that the friction
roller G disengaging itself from the right-hand side of the sector I'
will operate the rail A¹, B, and that the roller G of the lever H will
engage itself upon the sector I, compress this latter, and force the
rails A, B, A', B', to move from left to right whilst the rails C, D, C', D',
will move from right to left by the action of the rod N until the
ends B and C and those B' and E¹ are brought in front of each other;
the rail C, D, will then prolong the rail A, B, and the rail E, F,
will prolong the rail A', B'. This arrangement constitutes the crossing
from one pair of rails on to another represented in Fig. 4.
The essential characteristic of the said Invention consists chiefly
in the suppression of the pointers, which present great danger when
the train comes along in the direction contrary to the ends of the
pointers, and which in the eccentrics actually in use repeatedly occasion
accidents by causing the carriages to run off the rails. The saving
effected in wear is obvious; solid rails will resist much longer than

page_text: the pointers actually in use, which lose much of their strength from
their tapering at the extremities and therefore rapidly deteriorate; on
the other hand, the manufacture of these pointers is difficult and more
expensive than that of the moveable rails of the said Invention. When
the train comes along in the direction contrary to the ends of tho
pointers the speed must necessarily be slackened so as to guard as
much as possible against the very great danger the eccentrics actually
used especially present, and which cannot be wholly avoided when
one line branches into another.
The proposed improvement will allow of trains crossing where rails
join in perfect security and without slackening speed. As on main
lines, save where two main lines meet, railway trains are not made to
move in a direction contrary to the extremnities of the pointers, it is
necessary to dispose siding rails in accordance with the lines of arrival
and of departure; from this disposition of lines it happens that the
trains manoeuvring in stations are often compelled to perform long
and useless circuits in order to pass from off the main line on to a
siding line, and vice versa. These manoeuvres, which occasion great
loss of time, will be avoided by using the eccentric herein-before described,
which may be placed on a main line without fear of danger to the
moving train whatever its direction may be. This eccentric may be
applied as rapidly as ordinary eccentrics; its keep would be the same
as in the system actually in use.
The system herein-above described further presents a real and serious
advantage when the moveable rails become worn, they can as promptly
and as easily be replaced as ordinary rails by the workmen employed
on the line without having recourse to engineering men. This advantage
is of great importance, as the eccentrics actually employed necessitate
in case of need and so that no accident may arise spare pieces which
are manufactured at considerable expense in special workshops.
In case the eccentric above described should be placed in a direction
contrary to that of the moving train engaging itself upon the eccentric
on the rear side, its working, as in the eccentrics actually in use, may
be effected by the very action of the train so as to obviate against
running off the rails. The working of the said eccentric is as easy
as that of the eccentrics now in use, and may at will take place by
the single or double action of the counterweight.

page_text: Having thus described the nature of the said Invention, and the
manner of carrying the same into effect, what I claim is the suppression
of the eccentrics now in actual use, and their being replaced by solid
rails disposed and worked substantially in the manner herein-before
fully set forth and described, and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henri Adrien Bonneville, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this 22nd day of October,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
sixty-eight.