IMPROVEMENTS IN. THE MEANS OF AND APPARATUS FOR COMMUNICATING BETWEEN PASSENGERS, GUARDS, AND DRIVERS OF RAILWAY TRAINS
Year: 1864

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Robert Wheble at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 24th November
1864.
I, ROBERT WHEBLE, of Pall Mall East, in the County of Middlesex, Esquire,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN.
THE MEANS OF AND APPARATUS FOR COMMUNICATING BETWEEN PASSENGERS, GUARDS,
AND DRIVERS OF RAILWAY TRAINS," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to certain improved means and apparatus wherein
electricity is employed and applied for the purpose of communicating by
signals and alarums from passengers to the guard, or from the guard to the
driver of a railway train. I am aware that electricity has been before
suggested as a means or power of effecting such communication, and I now
proceed to describe the means and apparatus whereby such electric agency
may be practically and usefully applied.
I propose, firstly, to arrange in the guard's van in front of the train a gal-
vanic battery of any convenient form, but by preference an ordinary Woolaston
battery of zinc and copper elements excited by dilute sulphuric acid in sand;
in contiguity to this battery I place an alarum or bell of the well-known kind
used in telegraph stations for attracting the notice of the telegraph clerk, and
I also employ in conjunction therewith an indicating box, having one indi-
cating board, such indicator being actuated as hereafter described. Now
from the positive pole of the battery a wire or wire rope consisting of several
fine twisted copper wire insulated is extended above and beyond both ends
of the van, and a second wire is brought from the indicator and alarum and
continued in both directions like the first.

page_text: Along or within the roof of every carriage I likewise arrange two similar
insulated wire ropes, the extremities of which hang down beyond the ends of
the carriages for two or three feet. These wires may be conducted along and
within the rods or tubes serving to support the window curtains. These wires
may be inserted in tubes or otherwise protected from injury. In each com-
partment transverse wires are arranged in connection with the longitudinal
wires. In first-class carriages such transverse, wires may be passed through
the brass rod which supports the netting, or they may be protected or con-
cealed by tubes or otherwise. These transverse wires approach each other
from the lateral wires, but are not united.
I now proceed to describe the means whereby I effect contact between
these transverse wires whenever necessary. In a first-class carriage this com-
munication may be made at the roof of the compartment at two points
equidistant between the centre and the door, or in the brackets which support
the netting rods. In a second or third-class carriage in the roof.. Thus two
communicators would be in the roof of each compartment convenient for any
passenger to actuate.
The communicator consists of a button or stud, which when pressed by the
finger easily yields, and presses down a spring and metal plate on to the two
terminals of the transverse wires and thus establishes contact. Immediately
the call button is released the spring forces it back into position and breaks
contact. An indicating box is placed at the end of each carriage underneath
a projecting ledge from the roof. This indicating box has four or six indi-
cating boards or signals numbered to correspond with the compartments of
the carriage, and all the transverse wires are so conducted as to pass through
this apparatus. It consists of a box containing a series of electro-magnets,
with armatures, which form catches, and secure the indicators in position; but
when the armatures are attracted to the magnets the catches are released,
and one of the indicating boards is forced out by the action of a spring. It
will thus follow that the indicating board will project corresponding with the
compartment in which the call button may be touched. In addition to the
projecting numbered board, a small flagstaff may be applied, which will be
elevated above the roof, and permit of a flag being unfurled by the action of
the air.
It now remains to explain the working of these arrangements. Let us
assume that the train is composed, when the carriages are being coupled the
suspended ends of all the longitudinal wire ropes are also connected end to
end throughout the train; this may be done in many ways, a convenient
method is to form each terminal with a small metallic flat plate, which should

page_text: be formed doubly, and clamped together with a spring; it will therefore be
easy to use one as a plate and the other as a clamp, to insert the plate in
the clamp, and the connection is made. The clamp, when shut, may be con-
sidered as the plate, and vice versa.
It will now be obvious to any person acquainted with the science of
electricity how this uniform series of wires in connection with the battery is
made to perform the work required by the objects of the Invention. While
the train is travelling or at rest the battery is not in action, because the contact
between the positive and negative poles is not established, but the instant any
passenger presses the call button in any of the compartments the contact is
established. The consequence is that every apparatus embraced within the
circuit is instantly and simultaneously put in action. It therefore follows,
that on a passenger wishing to call the attention of the guard in case of per-
sonal danger or other cause he presses the call button, the alarum rings in
the guard's van, the indicator is also thrown out in the van, and also the
particular indicator at the rear of the carriage from which the alarm was given,
shewing the exact compartment whence it proceeded; the flag also being
exposed. Should the guard have left the van at any time while an alarm was
given, on his return he sees the board projecting and knows that the bell has
been sounded. There is no need of any arrangement for maintaining the
signals in their exposed position so as to detect any person wantonly calling
the guard. There is no power by which the passenger can restore the signal.
He can press the button, but cannot restore the signal. The guard only can
do so by access to the indicating box. The flag is useful at night time.
By similar connecting wires, and an alarum and indicator on the engine,
the guard inay communicate with the driver of the train; and the guard of
one van with the guard of another; and the engine driver with the guards.
An alarum may be placed within the circuit, and in a central position in
each carriage, so that all the passengers in the carriage may be aware of an
alarum, and their attention or assistance obtained. The alarum in the
guard's van may be of a continuous nature as is well understood, so that it
may ring till stopped by the guard.