provements in Fog signalling Apparatus for Railways.
Year: 1895

page_text: provements in Fog signalling Apparatus for Railways.
1, WILLIAM GRANGE, of 108, Marsh Lane, Leeds, in the County of York,
Printer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in fog signalling apparatus for railways,
and its object is to give a visible and if required an audible indication to engine
drivers of the vicinity of a signal and the nature of the signal whether a "Distance
or "Home" signal.
"
For this purpose I employ a bar or platform of suitable width parallel to the
railway lines and capable of being bodily elevated preferably by the mechanism
employed to raise the ordinary signal and be bodily lowered when the ordinary
signal is lowered. The ends of this bar are preferable inclined downwards; and an
arm or lever pivoted on the engine preferably in an inclined position and carrying
an anti-friction roller at its free end, is arranged to engage said bar or rod, as the
engine passes, and be more or less lifted thereby according to the elevation of
the bar or rod. A rod is connected to the said arm or lever extending up into the
cab of the engine, and this rod terminates in a rack in gear with a pinion on a
rotary disc mounted in a conspicuous place in the cab. The disc is formed with a
number of openings in its face glazed with glass of different colours and a lamp is
mounted behind the disc.
It will be readily understood that each time the engine passes one of said bars
or platforms that the disc will be partly rotated through the medium of said arm
and rod according to the elevation of said bar. And the bar may be arranged at
such an elevation that when the signal is down the disc may be sufficiently rotated
to bring an unglazed opening in the disc or an opening glazed with white glass
opposite the lamp and thereby show a white light thus indicating that there is a
signal at hand and that it is down. But in case the signal is at danger the disc is
still further rotated owing to the superior elevation of the said bar and this
increased rotation is arranged to bring an opening glazed with red or other
coloured glass in front of the lamp thereby indicating that the signal in the vicinity
is at danger. This arrangement however inay be modified as desired as for instance
an opening in the disc glazed with white or coloured glass may normally lie before
the lamp and an opening glazed with green or other coloured glass employed to,
indicate when a signal is at hand but not at danger.
To distinguish between home and distance signals the bar or platform in
connection with one may be fixed higher or be lifted higher or lowered lower than
the other so as to turn the disc further than the other and thereby bring a double
opening or openings or an opening or openings of a different form or glazed with
different glass opposite the lamp.
The movement of the disc may be arranged to ring a bell or give other audible
alarm.
The said arm or lever is preferably arranged so that it may be lifted out of action
when desired. Other means of connecting the arm or lever to the disc instead of a
rack and pinion may be employed.

page_text: The apparatus is preferably made self-contained so that as far as practicable it
may be bodily attached or detached.
Dated this 28th day of January 1805
DRACUP & NOWELL,
Bradford, Agents.
I, WILLIAM GRANGE, of 108, Marsh Lane, Leeds, in the County of York,
Printer, 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 :--
This invention relates to improvements in fog signalling apparatus for railways,
and its object is to give a visible and if required an audible indication to engine
drivers of the vicinity of a signal and the nature of the signal and whether a
"Distance" or "Home" sigual.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying sheet of drawings forming a part of
this Specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding
parts in each of the figures.
Figure 1, represents a side elevation of the cab end of an engine with my improved
apparatus applied to it.
Figure 2, represents a view on a larger scale of the opposite side of my improved
apparatus together with a portion of the side of the cab.
Figure 3, represents a side view of Figure 2 looking towards the left hand side.
Figure 4, represents a similar view looking towards the right hand side of
Figure 2.
Figures 5 to 11 represent views of detail hereinafter referred to.
The bar or platform A is made a suitable length and is supported parallel to the
railway line A 2 and preferably outside the rail by the inclined links A 3 pivoted
to it and to the sleepers A 4 in such a manner that when the said bar is moved
longitudinally in the direction of the arrow Figure 1 it is at the same time
bodily lifted. Figure 5, represents a separate longitudinal view of the said bar
and a portion of the rail shown in Figure 1 in which the bar has been moved
longitudinally to lift it. Figure 6, represents a plan view of the same, and Figure 7
represents a cross section on the line y, z. Figure 1.
A roller B is mounted upon a vertical slide B 2 fitted in a guide B3 fixed to the
framework C of the engine. The upper end of the slide B2 is connected to
the lever B4 pivoted to the standard B5 fixed upon C and the opposite end
of said lever is coupled by the link B6 to the lower end of the rack B7 fitted in
vertical guides B8 fixed outside the cab C 2. The rack B7 engages a pinion E
fixed to the centre of the disc E 2 mounted upon the stud E3 carried by the cross
bar E4 fixed across the circular opening C 3 formed in the side of the cab C2
to receive the disc E 2. The disc is formed with a number of openings D and D2
and H and H 2. The opening D is glazed with white glass. or left without the
glass and the opening H is glazed with white glass aud bears the letter "H"
or is marked " Home"
or it may be glazed with green or other tinted glass, to
distinguish it from D. The opening D2 is glazed with red glass and the
opening H 2 is also glazed with red glass and bears the letter "H" or is otherwise
distinguished from D 2. A lamp G is mounted outside facing the disc and a small
opening E 5 is made through the disc to show from the inside whether the lamp is
alight when the disc is in the position shown in the drawings..
A wire or other connection capable of being operated from the signal box and
preferably coupled to the same wire and lever employed to operate the ordinary

page_text: signal is connected to the end of the bar A so that when the ordinary signal is
pulled "up" the bar is moved longitudinally and is 'more or less raised according
to the nature of the signal or its position in relation to the signal. In Figure
the signal is supposed to be down consequently the bar A is lowered to its
minimum position and does not engage the roller B when the engine passes. In
Figure 5 the signal is supposed to be " up" and the bar is raised so that the
roller B is lifted by it as it 'passes over. Assuming the bar A is placed where
the distance signal is usually "sighted" by the driver it would only be lifted high
enough to raise the roller B sufficiently to turn the disc E 2 (through the medium
of the connecting mechanism) so that the opening D is brought opposite the
lamp and indicates to the driver, that a "Distance" signal at hand. If how-
ever the bar is situated at the distance signal and the signal were "up" it would
be sufficiently high to turn the disc E 2 far enough round to bring the opening D2
opposite the lamp thus indicating to the driver that he has arrived at a "Distance"
signal. In a similar way the bar placed where a "Home" signal should be
sighted" is raised when the signal is "up" to such a height that the disc is
turned sufficiently round to bring the opening H opposite the lamp; and the bur
actually at the "Home" signal is high enough when the signal is up to turn the
disc far enough to bring the opening H 2 opposite the lamp. A pawl lever F is
preferably pivoted on a stud F2 outside the cab and is arranged to engage the
notches E 6 formed in the periphery of the disc E2 and hold the disc in any of the
above mentioned positions until released by the driver.
For this purpose
the handle F 3 is provided on the pawl lever and projects through an opening C+
in the cab. A spring F 4 is provided to keep the pawl lever pressed against the
periphery of the disc E 2.
"
When the pawl is disengaged from the disc E 2 the disc is turned back to the
position shown in Figure 1 by the rack and other parts falling to their normal
positions partly by their own weight and partly by the downward pressure on the
slide B2 exerted by the spring B 9 mounted on the said slide underneath the
guide B 3. The collar bupon B2 is made adjustable so that the height of
the slide and roller B may be thereby adjusted; and an india rubber washer b2
is preferably mounted upon B 2 immediately beneath b.
A notch e is also formed in the periphery of the disc which by turning the disc
further round may be made to engage the pawl F. This further movement of the
disc raises the roller B completely out of action.
A spring bell H 3 is fixed inside the cab adjacent to the disc E 2, and the pins E8
are provided on the face of the disc which are arranged to engage the arm H 4 of
the bell and ring it once each time the disc is moved far enough to bring D
opposite the lamp and twice each time H is moved opposite the lamp.
The bell arm H4 may be knuckle jointed or otherwise arranged so that it does
not ring the bell when the motion of the disc is reversed.
As a modification the bars situated at the "sighting" points of either the
distance or home signals or either of them may be permanently fixed at the
altitude required to turn the disc the extent required to indicate to the driver that
a "sighting" point has been reached.
As a further modification the bars A at the "sighting" points may be placed at
a minimum altitude sufficient to turn the disc and bring either D or H (according
to the nature of the signal) opposite the lamp when the signal is down but when
the signal is up these bars are lifted high enough to bring either D 2 of H 2 opposite
the lamp according to the nature of the signal sighted.
Instead of mounting the bars A on the links A 3 they may be mounted on an
inclined guide a Figure 8. This guide is fixed to the sleepers A 4 or secured, in
any other convenient manner and a slide piece a 2 is fixed on the bar A the inclined
underside of which rests upon the top of the guide a. The guide a is made with
vee edges a 3, a 3 and projections a 4, a 4 are provided along the lower edges of the
slide piece to fit these edges. Figure 9 represents a plan view of Figure 8 and.
Figure 10 represents a cross section of the same on the broken line. w.

page_text: "
It will be evident that when A is pulled in the direction of the arrow Figure 8
that the slide will ride up the incline and raise the bar; and to facilitate the return
movement of the bar a rack a 5 is formed along the underside of a 4 and the
pinion a 6 engaging this rack is fitted in the recess a 7 cast in a. The shaft a 8 of
this pinion carries a weighted arm a 9 which is lifted when the slide piece is moved
up the incline and its weight tends to bring the slide back. Two or more guide
and slide pieces may be used for each bar.
Instead of mounting the wheel B directly upon the slide B 2 it may be mounted
on an arm 63 Figure 11 pivoted upon the frame C and connected to the bottom of
the slide B 2. A guide arm 64 having a slot 65 through which the arm
3 passes
is in this case preferably fixed to the frame C to form a stay for the arm 63.
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. The improved fog signalling apparatus herein shown and described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
2. A rotary signal disc on the engine adapted to be operated by a bar or
platform parallel to the rail, substantially as herein shown and described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 28th day of October 1895.
DRACUP & NOWELL,
Bradford, Patent Agents.