IMPROVEMENTS IN BREAKS, IN PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Bouch, of Shildon, in the County of
Durham, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREAKS, IN
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Bouch at th
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
11th August 1859.
I, WILLIAM BOUcu, of Shildon, in the County of Durham, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
BREAKS, IN BUFFERS, AND IN COUPLINGS TO BE USED ON RAILWAYS," to be as
follows:-
My improvement in breaks consists of a new mode of communicating
motion by action and re-action, to any number of breaks to one vehicle.
Figure 1 shows the system applied to a four-wheeled railway truck or
carriage. It is also applicable to six-wheeled carriages. A is an ordinary
lever attached in the usual way to a rocking bar. B, a short lever fixed to
the same rocking bar. C, a connecting rod, which is depressed on the appli-
cation of power to the lever A, giving motion to the cranks D, D, and also to
the rod E and the break F, against the wheel G, and by re-action through
the rod E and cranks D, D, on the break H, against the. wheel I. The
cranks D, D, work loose and free on the centre or rocking bar K, at the back
of the break H, thereby causing the two breaks F and H to act with equat

page_text: force on both the wheels G and I. The breaks F and H are suspended upon
joints at M and N.
My improvement in buffers consists in the employment of one movable
buffer head instead of two at each end of a carriage, and in fixing the buffing
spring at one end, while the other end is free to move under the action of
the buffer. I fix the buffer at one end of the carriage, on the opposite side to
that at the other end.
My improvement in couplings consists of an arrangement by which the first
link of a coupling chain is made to compensate for any inequality of length in
the two couplings, and thereby throw an equal strain on each, as shown by
Figure 2. A, A', are rings, with movable pieces B, B. Each wagon carries one
of these rings. The chain C is fixed to the ring A, and the chain D to the
ring A¹. In order to couple up, the hook at the end of the chain C is inserted
in the movable piece in the ring A', and the hook on the chain D in the
movable piece in the ring A.
SPECIFICATION filed in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Bouch in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
11th February 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
BOUCH, of Shildon, in the County of Durham, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said William Bouch, Her special licence that I, the said William Bouch, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said WILLIAM
Bouch, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREAKS, IN
BUFFERS, AND IN COUPLINGS TO BE USED ON RAILWAYS," upon the condition (amongst
others), that I, the said William Bouch, 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

page_text: 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 William Bouch, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
that is to say:-
My improvement in breaks consists in a new mode of communicating
motion by action and re-action to any number of breaks to one vehicle.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a side elevation of so much of a
four-wheeled railway truck or carriage as will be necessary to explain my
Invention, fitted with my improved breaks. A is an ordinary lever attached
in the usual way to a rocking bar. B is a short lever fixed to the same
rocking bar. C is a connecting rod, which is depressed on the application of
power to the lever A, giving motion to the cranks D, D, to the rod E and the
break F, which acts against the wheel G, and by re-action through the rod E-
and the cranks D, D, on the break H, against the wheel I. The cranks D, D,
work loose and free on the centre or rocking bar K, at the back of the
break H, (or the rocking bar may be made to work free,) thereby causing the
two breaks F and H to act with equal force on both the wheels G and I.
The breaks F and H are suspended upon joints at M and N.
Figure 2 is a side elevation of an engine tender, showing my improved
breaks applied to six wheels. A is the break rod, which is worked by the
hand wheel B. The lower part of the rod A is screw-threaded, and works
through a collar C, connected to a link D, which is jointed to the break
block E, which acts against one side of the wheel E. F is a lever linked at
one end to the link D, and at the other to a crank G, which crank is con-
nected to the break H, which acts against the opposite side of the wheel E¹.
I is another lever linked to the crank G, and to a crank J, which is connected
to a break block K, which acts against one side of the wheel L. The crank J
carries another lever M, linked to another crank N, connected to a break
block O, which acts on the opposite side of the wheel L, to that on which the
break blocks K acts. P is another lever linked to the crank N and to a similar
crank Q, which is connected to the break block R, which acts on one side
against the central wheel S, whilst a lever T, linked to the crank Q and break
block V, acts on the contrary side of the wheel S. The break blocks are sup-
ported by rods W, W, attached to the carriage. The arrows indicate the
direction in which each separate part of the apparatus moves when the breaks
are applied to the wheels.

page_text: My improvement in buffers consists in the employment of one movable
buffer head instead of two at each end of a carriage, and in fixing the buffing
spring at one end, while the other end is free to move under the action of the
buffer. I fix the buffer at one end of the carriage on the opposite side to that
on the other end.
Figure 3 is a plan of part of a carriage frame, shewing this improvement in
buffers. A, A, are the buffers, the rods of which bear against the springs B, B¹,
as shown. The dotted lines indicate the position of the spring B¹ when pressed
by the buffer A¹.
My improvement in couplings consists of an arrangement by which the first
link of a coupling chain is made to compensate for any inequality of length
in the two couplings, and thereby throw an equal strain on each, as shown in
plan and side elevation at Figure 4. A, A¹, are rings, with movable pieces B, B,
one of which only is shown in the Drawing. Each waggon carries one of
these rings.
The chain C is fixed to the ring A, and the chain D to the
ring A¹.
In order to couple up, the hook at the end of the chain C is
inserted in the movable piece in the ring A' and the hook on the chain D, in
the movable piece in the ring A.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I do not claim as my
improvement in breaks fitting cranks to any fixed part of a railway carriage
or truck, but what I claim is, fitting cranks to the movable break block of
railway trucks or carriages working and operating in the manner herein-before
described and illustrated at Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying Drawings.
I claim as my improvement in buffers the employment of one movable
buffer head instead of two at each end of a carriage, as herein-before described
and illustrated at Figure 3 of the accompanying Drawings.
.
And I claim as my improvement in couplings the arrangement by which
the first link of a coupling chain is made to compensate for any inequality of
length in the two coupling chains, as herein-before described and illustrated at
Figure 4 of the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Bouch, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Ninth day of February, One thousand eight
hundred and
WILLIAM BOUCH. (L.S.)