CERTAIN IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR PREVENTING ACCIDENTS ON RAILWAYS
Year: 1847

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDWARD
WILLIAM ETON, of New Windsor, in the County of Berks, Bachelor of
Medicine, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Nineteenth day of August, in the eleventh year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Edward William Eton, Her especial licence that I, the said
Edward William Eton, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Edward William Eton, my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should at
any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-
upon-Tweed, and in the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and
Man, and also in all Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad,
my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR PREVENTING ACCIDENTS
ON RAILWAYS;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso obliging
me, the said Edward William Eton, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause
the same to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being
thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said.

page_text: Edward William Eton, do hereby declare the nature of my said Inven-
tion to consist in an improved system of breaks for bringing up a train
more rapidly than those now in use, and thereby prevent many accidents
which are constantly occurring for want of this power, whether applied to the
carriages of the train or to the engine, my said improved system involving the
new principle of having a fixed break on a moveable frame stay or carriage
body, instead of a moveable break on a fixed frame stay or carriage body,
my object being to relieve the breaks by raising the frame stay or body of the
carriage or engine, and to put on the breaks, or bring them into action by
lowering the frame or carriage body, or to relieve them by the lowering action,
and put them on by the raising, as the case may be; and the following is the
description of the improved machinery by which I accomplish this object,
referring to diagrams with letters and figures marked thereon, for the purpose
of better explanation.
In the Sheet of Diagrams marked A, Figure 1 shews a side elevation of
one of my fixed breaks, being an arc of a circle fixed to the frame of a
railway carriage or tender, or to the side frame, or stays of the boiler of the
engine, and let down upon the top of the wheel beneath it, the superincumbent
weight of the carriage pressing the break down upon the upper part of the
wheel to stop its revolving action. The mode of lifting the break and carriage
to relieve the wheel, and lowering it on the wheel to stop it, will be explained
hereafter. In the Figure the break is of wrought iron, tubular, to contain
water and filled with a Papin valve.
Figure 2 is a side elevation of one of my breaks applied to the lower half
of the wheel, this is likewise fixed to the frame, but here the rising instead of
the lowering of the frame causes the arc of the break (which is here necessarily
in two parts) to act against the wheel and stop it. This Figure represents
two wrought-iron straps Y, Y, with water tubes and safety valves X, X. In each
of these Figures the parts coloured green represent those parts which constitute
the break.
Figure 3 is an end view of Figure 2, and Figure 4 is a plan of the
connecting bar and the lower part of the break.
Having thus given a general idea of the breaks, both those which act by
lowering, and those which act by raising, I will now proceed to describe the
machinery by which a carriage is raised and lowered, so as to put the breaks
in action, and which it will be seen differs from that by which an engine is
raised and lowered when the breaks are applied to it. The frames on
which the body of the carriage rests is raised by means of a series of
elevating screws or spiral inclines bolted to it, and these are turned by

page_text: means of levers acted upon by tug and connecting rods, as shewn in the
Sheet of Diagrams marked B, of which the following is a description:-
Figure 5 represents the fore end, and Figure 6 the hinder end, of parts
of the framing of a railway carriage. The parts marked A are the elevating
5 screws or spiral inclines, by the turning one way or the other of which the
carriage body and frame on which it rests are raised or lowered. These
screws A are turned partly round, as occasion requires, by the levers marked
B, which are acted upon alternately .by the buffer rods marked C, through
the medium of the cross levers R, R, and Q, Q, and by the tug rods
'marked D. These Figures 5 and 6 represent the position of the machinery
when the carriage is being drawn forwards by the tug rods D, which has
caused the levers B to turn the elevating screws A sufficiently to raise the
frame and body of the carriage just high enough to release the breaks; but
suppose the carriage in front to receive any sudden check, or to slack its
speed, the chains of the tug rods D will slacken, and the front buffer rods C
will be driven in, causing the levers B to turn the screws the reverse way,
and thus to lower the carriages and their frames, and so bring the breaks into
action and stop the rotary motion of the wheels, and bring up the train,
which is effected by these means; the levers B have slots in them at one end
fitted with friction rollers 9³, and working in slots in the tug rods D; the
connecting rod P at the end of the cross bars Q, R, have also slots, which are
longer, and allow play for back carriages and irregularity of motion, and
thus the carriages of a train so arranged may be said to throw on the breaks.
themselves when their aid becomes necessary to bring up the train, while:
the tension of the tug rods D relieves the breaks prior to the moving forward
of the train.
Now, whereas it is evident that to make the foregoing machinery applicable
to more than one carriage, some contrivance will be required for dis-
connecting the rod P with the end of the cross levers (marked a 5 in
red ink) in the event of a severe check or serious impediment arising
in front. This is accomplished by the machinery shewn in the Sheet of
Diagrams marked F. In this Sheet Figure 16 shews in section, taken
longitudinally, the end of the rod P lying over the end of the cross lever Z,
and held in connection with it by means of the tumbling click a³, which is
supported on its axis 6 resting on bearings which admit of its rising and
alling, in order to be thrown in and out of gear as required. The click in this
Figure is shewn in gear, the rod P catching against the upper point or beak r
of the click, which is prevented from tumbling over when pulled at by the
ower point or beak t coming against the projecting detent point e; but e³

page_text: is a plane at one end and an incline at the other, and when the rod P has
dragged the click and end of the cross lever far enough up the incline to
produce the effect, the click has been forced up in its bearings sufficiently
to clear the detent point e, the click tumbles over, and the rod P is
released:
Figure 17 is a cross section, and Figure 18 a plan, of those parts of
Figure 16 requiring to be so shewn. In order to throw the rod P and the
click a again into gear, it is only necessary to put the tug rods at the fore
end of the train in motion, when the end of the slot in the tug rod in which
the cross lever moves will come against the cross lever and draw it again
into the position shewn at Figure 5 in Sheet B, which is in gear. Now it
is evident that this arrangement would require modification, in order to adapt
the carriages to being drawn forward by either end, which is always desirable,
and may be effected by having a break of each kind, that is, a rising and
falling break, to each carriage, and having the ends of the tug rods P fitted
with a tumbling click and inclined plane, as herein-before described, at
each end.
In the Sheet of Diagrams marked C Figure 7 is a side view of my
improved machinery for raising and lowering the carriage, seen in section;
and Figure 8 is an end view of a carriage to which it is affixed..
Having now described my improved machinery for stopping or checking the
speed of railway trains, as applied to carriages, and which is put into action
by the dragging power or the relaxed speed, as the case may be, of whatever
is in advance of it on the line, I will now describe my improved machinery
for stopping or checking the speed of a railway train as applied to engines
which occupy the first position on the line, and therefore have nothing in
advance of them from which the said dragging power can be obtained, and
which must consequently have some other motive power applied to it. In
this case the power which I apply is steam, and it is done in the manner
described by the Sheet of Diagrams D. In this Diagram, Figure 9 shews
my machinery, or that part of it which is necessary for its description in
plan.
Figures 10 and 11, two end views taken on different planes. E is a cylinder
with piston and rod F, the outer end of which rod F. is connected with the
lever G, which being actuated by the piston rod, instead of the tug rods herein
before described, it will of course require that the piston rod should be driver
out whenever it is required to relieve the breaks and start the engine, while
the piston rod must be driven in whenever it is required to put on the break
and stop the engine. This motion is obtained by the two steam pipes H and I

page_text: which being fitted with proper steam valves, worked by levers and connecting
rods, admit the steam on either side of the piston at the pleasure of the
engine driver.
The Sheet of Diagrams marked E shews, on a large scale and more
clearly, the action of the elevating screw for raising and lowering the body of
the engine for the purpose of putting on or taking off the breaks. In Figure 12,
J is the spring of the engine; K, the links connecting it with the bridge-
piece N, upon which the elevating screw A acts; M is a guard plate, against
which the lower end of the screw acts; A is the screw, and B the lever which
turns it, L, L, L, being the side frame of the engine.
Figure 13 is a sectional view of Figure 12. Figure 14 is a plan of a part
of the same; and Figure 15 a separate sectional view of one of the elevating
screws employed for raising and lowering the breaks when applied to carriages
in which A is the elevating or male screw, fixed to the carriage frame; N is
the female screw, fixed to the carriage spring J, having shoulders for moving
up and down in the cap P2, which is bolted to the carriage frame L. The
elevating screw A works in a bush M.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I hereby declare that I claim as new the
following improved machinery, that is to say:-
First, the breaks made to contain water, and with safety valves, and fixed
to the carriage or engine, which act upon the wheels by being lowered down
upon them, or by being drawn up to them, as herein-before described.
Secondly, the screws or spiral inclines applied to raise or lower the carriages
or engines by acting against the springs, in order to cause the breaks to act in
manner herein-before described.
And, lastly, the machinery of tumbling clicks and inclined planes, cross
levers, tug rods, and connecting rods; and, in the case of my machinery being
applied to an engine, the additional cylinder and piston rod, herein-before
described, for elevating and depressing the said screws or spiral inclines, all
which improved machinery, inasmuch as it very much facilitates the ready
checking of the speed and stopping of trains on railways, tends greatly to
prevent accidents thereon.
And such my Invention being, to the best of my knowledge and belief,
entirely new, and never before used within that part of Her said Majesty's
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, Her Dominion
of Wales, and Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, I do hereby declare this to be
my Specification of the same, and that I do verily believe this my said Speci-
fication doth comply in all respects, fully and without reserve or disguise, with

page_text: the proviso in my said Letters Patent contained; wherefore I do hereby claim
to maintain exclusive right and privilege to my said Invention.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edward William Eton, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of February, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty-eight.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Nineteenth day of February,
in the year of our Lord 1848, the aforesaid Edward William Eton came
before our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the
Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified,
in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped
according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Nineteenth day of February, in the year of our Lord One