IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR STOPPING RAILWAY TRAINS
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Guyot and Lionel Ralu, of Rue de
Vaugirard, No. 127, at Paris, Engineers, for the Invention of
"IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR STOPPING RAILWAY TRAINS."
Sealed the 25th March 1875, and dated the 20th October 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Guyot and
with
Lionel Ralu at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
their Petition, on the 20th October 1874.
We, JOSEPH GUYOT and LIONEL RALU, of Rue de Vaugirard,
No. 127, at Paris, Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR STOPPING RAILWAY TRAINS," to be
as follows:-
This Invention is based on the employment of threaded nuts which
are capable of being moved horizontally, and into which at the required
-moment screws engage. These screws are fixed on the axles of the

page_text: wheels and always turn with the axles. When they engage with the
nuts they become locked therein and instantly stop the rotation of the
wheels, and consequently the train without any prejudicial deterioration
of the rolling stock or permanent way. To lessen the shock at the time
of the engagement of the screws in the nuts discs furnished with spring
rods are placed opposite the nuts and receive the first impulse, thus
preventing too sudden an impact. These springs may also serve to
withdraw the nuts from the screws after the stoppage of the train.
nuts they become locked therein and instantly stop the rotation of the
wheels, and consequently the train without any prejudicial deterioration
of the rolling stock or permanent way. To lessen the shock at the time
of the engagement of the screws in the nuts discs furnished with spring
rods are placed opposite the nuts and receive the first impulse, thus
preventing too sudden an impact. These springs may also serve to
withdraw the nuts from the screws after the stoppage of the train.
Having stated the nature of the Invention, wo now proceed to describe
the manner of carrying it into effect.
On the axles of the wheels of the carriages or wagons are firmly keyed
screws which have very inclined threads. These screws are in a piece
with strong collars or sleeves in which are fitted coiled springs; these
springs surround corresponding rods which terminate at one end in a
side disc. Opposite the screws and around the axles at a short distance
from the screws are nuts, the threads of which are of the same pitch as
the screws. The several nuts on the same carriage are connected
together by a strong bar situated near one side of the carriage and
carrying at its ends slides which are capable of receiving a transverse
movement in guides formed on the cross beams or frame of the carriage.
The bar is provided with lugs to which are fitted jointed levers, which
cause the bar to move simultaneously with the longitudinal movement
of a longitudinal pull rod situated near the other side of the carriage.
The movement is communicated to this pull rod by means of a lever
handle, which through the intermediation of jointed levers and a slotted
rod acts on the said rod. The longitudinal movement of the pull rod
has the effect through the intermediation of the jointed levers first
named to bring the nuts in contact with the rotating screws. Then
immediately the screws become screwed into these nuts and the rotation
of the wheels is thus at once stopped. The side discs before named in
combination with their springs lessen the shock or impact.
In some cases these springs being contained in the collars which are
formed in a piece with the screws may serve to push back the nuts clear
of the scrows after the train has stopped. Or this may be effected by
running back the train a few yards.

page_text: The pull rod of each carriage is formed with eyes by means of which
the rods of several carriages may be coupled together, so that all the
nuts may be acted upon simultaneously by a single hand lever under
command of the guard or engine driver.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Joseph Guyot and Lionel Ralu in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 1st April 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOSEPH
GUYOT and LIONEL RALU, of Rue de Vaugirard, No. 127, at Paris,
Engineers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of October, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in
the thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto us, the said Joseph Guyot and Lionel
Ralu, Her special licence, that we, the said Joseph Guyot and Lionel
Ralu, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we,
the said Joseph Guyot and Lionel Ralu, our 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 "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR STOPPING
RAILWAY TRAINS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the
said Joseph Guyot and Lionel Ralu, our executors or administrators,
by an instrument in writing under our, 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 we, the said Joseph Guyot and Lionel Ralu,
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what

page_text: manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being
had to the accompanying Drawings, that is to say :—
Many sorts of apparatus have at different times been proposed for
stopping railway trains, but none of them have hitherto attained the
object in a really practicable manner. The reason of their non-success
is chiefly because they are based upon the employment of frictional
devices, such as blocks, wedges, and rollers which at a given moment
should press against the wheels of the vehicles. Now the action of such
devices is always defective and even the best breaks, with block, wedges, 1
or rollers which have hitherto been introduced, have been unable to stop
a train except in a distance relatively great, and then at the price of great
deterioration of the wheel tyres and of the carriage frames.
The apparatus or machinery which forms the subject of the present
Invention overcomes these difficulties, and no frictional device either
wedge, block, or roller is used. It is based on the employment of
threaded nuts which are capable of being moved horizontally and into
which at the required moment screws engage. These screws are fixed
on the axles of the wheels and always turn with the axles. When they
engage with the nuts they become locked therein and instantly stop the
rotation of the wheels, and consequently the train without any prejudicial
deterioration of the rolling stock or permanent way. To lessen the
shock at the time of the engagement of the screws in the nuts, discs
furnished with spring rods are placed opposite the nuts and receive the
first impulse, thus preventing too sudden an impact. These springs
may also serve to withdraw the nuts from the screws after the stoppage
of the train.
The combination of parts just described applies only to railways which
have turntables to arrange the carriages necessary for making up the
trains, and acts to stop the train only when going forward or in one
given direction, and when all the carriages are placed the same way.
For railways which have no turntables or where the trains run suc-
cessively in the one and the other direction, we employ a double-acting
arrangement of the apparatus, that is to say, it will act to stop the
train when travelling in either direction.

page_text: Having stated the nature of the Invention, we now proceed to describe
the manner of carrying it into effect, and for this purpose will refer to
the annexed Drawings, Figure 1 of which is a sectional side elevation of
part of a carriage or wagon; and Figure 2, a plan of the under side of
the carriage.
On the axles a, a, of the wheels b, b, are firmly keyed screws c, c,
which have very inclined threads. These screws are in a piece with
strong collars or sleeves d, d, in which are fitted coiled springs f, f;
these springs surround corresponding rods 9, 9, which terminate at one
end in a side disc h. We have thus permanently the screws c, c, and
their collars d, d, which turn with the axles a, a, to which they are
fixed. Opposite the screws c, c, and around the axles at a short distance
from the screws are nuts i, i, the threads of which are of the same pitch
as the screws. The several nuts i, i, on the same carriage are connected
together by a strong bar j carrying at its ends slides k, k, which are
capable of receiving a transverse movement in guides I, I, formed on the
cross beams or frame of the carriage. The bar j is provided with
lugs m, m, to which are fitted jointed levers n, n¹, which cause the bar j
to move simultaneously with the longitudinal movement of a longi-
tudinal pull rod o situated near the other side of the carriage. The
movement is communicated to this rod o in the direction indicated by
the arrow by means of a lever handle p, Figure 1, which through the
intermediation of jointed levers q, q', and a slotted rod q* acts on the
said rod o. The longitudinal movement of the rod o has the effect
through the intermediation of the jointed levers n, n', of bringing the
nuts i, i, in contact with the rotating screws c, c. Then immediately
the screws c, c, become screwed into these nuts and the rotation of the
wheels b, b, is thus at once stopped. The side discs h, h, in combination
with their springs f,f, lessen the shock or impact.
In some cases these springs f. f. being contained in the collars d, d,
which are formed in a piece with the screws c, c, may serve to push
back the nuts i clear of the screws after the train has stopped. Or this
may be effected by running back the train a few yards.
The rod o of each carriage is formed with eyes o¹, 0¹, by means of
which the rods of several carriages may be coupled together so that all
the nuts may be acted upon simultaneously by a single hand lever under
command of the guard or engine driver.

page_text: Figure 3 is a plan on a smaller scale of our double-acting apparatus
herein-before referred to. In this case the collars d, d, carry screws c, c³,
and discs h, h¹, at both ends; the rods 9, 9, are replaced by pistons g, g',
which are rigidly fixed to the discs h, h³, and work in cylindrical
receptacles formed in the body of the collars d. In these receptacles are 5
springs f, f¹, which constantly press against the end of the pistons g, g'.
Bolts g³, g³, fixed in the discs h, h', and passing freely through the
flanges of the collar d limit the outer position of the discs. A second
bar j¹ carrying threaded sockets ³, 1, is arranged opposite the screws c', c¹,
and is worked by mechanism analogous to that of the bar j. When the 1
train is travelling in the one direction the attendant brings the bar j by
its nuts i, i, into action with the screws c, c, in order to stop the train.
When on the other hand the train is travelling in the reverse direction
the attendant actuates the bar j³, and thus puts the nuts, , in contact
with the screws c', c', on the other side of the collar. The stoppage of 1
the train can thus be effected in whichever direction it happens to be
travelling.
To effect the same object we might employ screws with a left-handed
thread concurrently with the screws with a right-handed thread. The
latter would act when the train is travelling in the one direction, and 2
the former when it is travelling in the reverse direction.
And having now described the nature of our said Invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that we claim as
our improved machinery for stopping railway trains,―
First. The general arrangement or combination of parts of machinery 2
or apparatus as herein-before described and represented in the annexed
Drawings.
Second. The combination of the screws c, c, with the nuts i, i, the
said screws rotating with the axles of the wheels, and the said nuts being
presented (when the train has to be stopped) to the screws which then 8
engage therein, and at once stop the rotation of the wheels as herein.
before described.
Third. The arrangement of the collars d with springs and discs h to
lessen the shock, and also serving in some cases to push back the nuts
from the serews after the train has been stopped.
3

page_text: Fourth. The double-acting arrangement herein-before described and
represented in Figure 3.
In witness whereof, we, the said Joseph Guyot and Lionel Ralu,
have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-fifth day
of March, One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.
Witness,
ALBERT CAHEN,
Civil Engineer,
of 1, Boulevard Saint Denis,
at Paris.
JOSEPH GUYOT. (L.S.)
LIONEL RALU.
(L.S.)