Improvements in Apparatus for Signalling and Communicating between Passengers in a Railway Train and the Guard or Driver.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Oct., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 23rd July, 1889-Accepted, 31st Aug., 1889
PROVISIONAL DI ECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Signalling and Communicating
between Passengers in a Railway Train and the Guard or
Driver.
I, JAMES ROYLE of 4 Devonshire Street, Higher Broughton, near Manchester,
in the County of Lancaster Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to Apparatus employed for the purpose of signalling or
affording, a means of communication between the passengers and the driver and
guard in railway trains.
I employ a cord of communication which is divided into sections, one section
for each coach. When the train is made up the sections of the cord of communi-
cation are connected by chains or other suitable coupling devices. The cord of
communication is by preference, carried along over and as near to the centre of
the roof of the coaches as convenient, and it is also by preference carried a few
inches above the roof. Over each compartment of the coach I fix upon the roof a
carrier through the upper part of which the cord runs over a pulley or pulleys.
A rod cord chain or the like engages with the cord of communication at each of
the carriers and passes through the roof into the compartment of the coach below,
and at the lower end of this suspended rod, cord, or chain, within the compartment,
there is attached a ring, handle or other means by which it may be grasped
conveniently. Hitherto it has been an objection to the ordinary apparatus employed
for a similar purpose that there has existed no means for identifying any person
who may have made an unauthorised or mischievous use of the apparatus. In order to
avoid this difficulty, I secure to the handle or ring by which the suspended signal-
ling cord or rod has to be grasped, a pad or pads saturated with a non-drying ink
or similar substance, such for example as is used with india rubber stamps, so as to
produce upon the hand of the person originating an alarm a stain which cannot
be easily removed and by means of which he may be identified.
The suspended signalling rod or cord engages with a trigger which again engages
with a disc or other visible signal, so that when the suspended rod or cord is pulled,
the visible signal is displayed and identifies the compartment in which the signal
was originated.
For the cord of communication, I prefer to employ metallic wire or cord, and
when it is of a rigid nature or not very easily pliable, I insert at each carrier a short
length of pliable cord or chain. I may also insert in each section of the communi-
cation cord a spiral spring to compensate for the stretching and compression of the
train. The apparatus and means for making the signal in the guard's van or upon
the engine may be similar to that or those already in use or they may be of any
suitable character.
When the suspended cord or chain within the compartment is pulled downwards,
the communication cord is pulled downwards also in a loop and this cord is thereby
shortened and the signal or communication is effected.
Dated this 22nd day of October A D 1888.
WILLIAM E. HEYS,
Agent for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION..
Improvements in Apparatus for Signalling and Communicating
between Passengers in a Railway Train and the Guard or
Driver.
I, JAMES ROYLE of 4 Devonshire Street Higher Broughton, near Machester in
the County of Lancaster, Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement :-
This Invention relates to apparatus employed for the purpose of signalling or
affording a means of communication between the passengers and the driver and
guard in railway trains.
A
I employ a cord of communication which is divided into sections, one section for
each coach. When the train is made up the sections of the cord of communication
are connected by chains, hooks, or other suitable coupling devices. The cord of
communication is, by preference, carried along over and as near to the centre of the
roof of the coaches as convenient, and over each compartment of the coach I fix
upon the roof a carrier or pulleys between or around which the cord may run.
rod, cord, chain or the like engages with the cord of communication at each or any
compartment and passes through the roof into the interior of the coach, and at the
lower end of this suspended rod cord or chain within the compartment there is
attached a ring, handle or other means by which it may be grasped conveniently.
Hitherto it has been an objection to the ordinary apparatus employed for a similar
purpose that there has existed no means for identifying any person who may have
made an unauthorized or mischevous use of the apparatus. In order to avoid this
difficulty, I secure to the handle or ring by which the suspended signalling cord or
rod has to be grasped, a pad or pads saturated with a non-drying ink or similar
substance such for example as is used with indiarubber stamps, so as to produce
upon the hand of the person originating an alarm a stain which cannot be easily
removed and by means of which he may be identified.
The suspended signalling' rod or cord engages with a trigger or other suitable
device which engages with or is capable of liberating a disc or other visible signal,
so that when the suspended rod or cord is pulled, the visible signal is displayed and
identifies the compartment in which the signal was originated.
For the cord of communication, I prefer to employ metallic wire or cord, and when
it is of a rigid nature or not very easily pliable, I insert at each point of connection
with the interior a short length of pliable cord or chain to enable it to pass around
the pulleys. I may also insert in each section of the communication cord one or
more spiral springs to compensate for the stretching and compression of the train.
The apparatus and means for making the signal in the guard's van or upon the engine
may be similar to that or those already in use or they may be of any suitable
character.
When the suspended cord or chain within the compartment is pulled downwards,
the communication cord is pulled downwards also in a loop, and this cord is thereby
shortened and the signal or communication is effected.
The connecting cord may in some cases if desired, be carried along beneath the
under-carriages of the vehicles, but usually this arrangement would be likely to be
interfered with by the brake mechanism and other causes and therefore I will not
more particularly describe its application but limit myself to the more convenient
and practical arrangements.
The accompanying drawings will illustrate in what manner my Invention
carried into effect.
may
be
Fig. 1 is a transverse section of a railway carriage having these improvements
applied thereto; Fig. 2 is a partial plan of two contiguous carriages similarly fitted
Fig. 3 is a detail for enabling the carriages to be turned in the reverse direction
Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section through the signalling device; and Fig. 5 is a
plan of Fig. 4.

page_text: In each of the Figures similar letters are employed to denote similar parts or
details.
A is the cord of communication which terminates at each end of each coach with
a swivel hook or other suitable device for connecting the ends of the cords of con-
tiguous coaches. It is preferred that the communicating cords shall be carried within
the tubes or pipes C, and that in the cord of each coach there shall be one or more
spiral springs D to compensate for the stretching of the train at starting, its
compression in stopping, and for variations in the length in rounding curves.
One end of the connected cords of communication is attached to a gong or signalling
device upon the engine and the other end to a similar device in the guard's van; or,
the ends may be attached to other suitable devices in other parts of the train as may
be required. If a pull be exerted upon any intermediate part of the length of the
cord of communication, its total length will be diminished and a corresponding pull
will be exerted upon the signalling devices in the guard's van, on the engine or else-
where, thus calling the attention of the guard or driver. Since also, the cord of
communication may be continuous between the guard's van and the engine, either the
guard or the driver may by a simple pull, call the attention of the other.
The cord of communication may be pulled or operated at intermediate points, as
for example at each compartment of each carriage in the simplest manner by forming
a hole in the roof of the carriage below the cord and between two of the short tubes C.
At each side of this hole, fore and aft, there may be placed just above the roof, two
grooved pulleys in which the cord rides. Between these pulleys there is attached to
the cord of communication a rod or cord which passes downwards through the hole
into the interior of the compartment below. When this rod or cord within the
compartment is pulled downwards, the cord of communication will be pulled with it
and the signals will be actuated. The hole in the roof may be covered by a hood or
cap to make it weather tight. Since however it is undesirable that any hole should
be made in the roof, I prefer to adopt an arrangement similar to that represented in
the drawings, although other equivalent arrangements may be employed.
Upon one side of the cord of communication and near to the ends of the tubes (
there are fixed two small pulleys E E, and between these pulleys there is attached to
the cord of communication, preferably by means of a small grooved pulley F, a
cord or chain G. This cord or chain Ĝ may pass direct to the eave of the carriage,
over a small grooved pulley H (Figs. 4 and 5) and thence through an opening under
the eave into the interior of the carriage. It is desirable however, that when the
cord of communication is pulled, it should operate a signal to indicate the point at
which it had been actuated. A convenient signal and method of operating it is to
connect the cord G to a sliding piece I held in a rectilinear path between the
guides J. J. To the sliding block I there is attached a second cord K which passes
over the grooved pulley H at the eave of the carriage and through a small opening
into the interior of the compartment. In the interior of the compartment this
cord K passes over a small grooved pulley M to the opposite eave through which
it passes over a small grooved pulley H to an apparatus similar to that on the opposite
side of the carriage so that the indicating signal may be given on each side of the
train. To any part or parts of the cord K within the compartment there may be
attached one or more pulls L so that the cord K may be pulled down between two
contiguous grooved pulleys M. and thus operate the alarm and signals.
Between the guides J J there is pivotted an arm N to the upper end of which
there is pinned a second arm O which carries a disc at its outer end and normally
lies parallel with the roof of the carriage.
When the cord K is pulled as represented to the right to the right of Fig. 2, the
block I is pulled towards the cave of the carriage and in its motion it throws over
the arm N, and the arm O is consequently thrown forward and the disc P at the end
of this arm is projected beyond the line of the carriages indicating thus the compart-
ment in which the signal has been originated. The duplicate indicating signal on
the opposite side of the compartment is also operated at the same time so that the
indication will be given on each side of the train. The duplicate indicating signal

page_text: may if desired be omitted, in which case the cord K will be terminated within the
carriage and preferably by being secured to the opposite side of the carriage to that
by which it entered.
The arrangement represented in Figs. 1 and 2 is suitable for trains which are
permanently made up or in which the coaches are always in the same direction. To
provide for possible reversals of some of the coaches, in which case the ends of the
cords of communication might not be opposite to each other because of their being
placed to one side of the roof lamps, means may be adopted to bring the ends of the
cords to the centres of the carriages. A convenient arrangement for this purpose, is
indicated by Fig. 3 according to which the cord of communication passes around a
small grooved pulley Qor between two similar pulleys at each end of the coach.
This arrangement is indicated in Fig. 3 and in dotted lines between the two coaches
in Fig. 2 where R represents the cord as it would be connected between two reversed
coaches. Alternatively, the end of the cord of communication may be brought to the
centre of the coach by being passed around two grooved pulleys.
Instead of carrying the cord of communication along above the roofs of the coaches,
it may be carried inside, in which case the cord G would be substituted by a spiral
spring U or by a similar device, by means of which the sliding block I would be
restored to its position and the tension on the cord K be preserved. In any case
the duplicate indicating signal is provided with a spiral spring U for the purpose
just herein before set forth.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven
tion and in what manner the same is to he performed, I declare that what I
claim is -
(1) In an apparatus for signalling on or in railway trains; a separate cord of com-
munication laid along or as near as practicable to the centre line of each coach, the
cords of the several coaches constituting a train being connected by hooks or suitable
couplings and capable of being operated from within each or any compartment by
means of a rod cord or chain connected with the cord of communication; substan-
tially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
(2) In apparatus for signalling in railway trains; the combination and arrange-
ment with a cord of communication laid along or near the centre of the train, of
a rod cord or chain, or rods cords or chains within the train and connected to the
cord of communication, and a device or devices for indicating in which compartment
an alarm or signal may have been originated; substantially as herein before described
and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
(3) In apparatus for signalling on or in railway trains; a device for operating
the cord of communication said device consisting of a cord or pull within the train
connected to the cord of communication between two grooved pulleys so that when
the pull is actuated the cord of communication is pulled in a loop between the
pulleys; substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accom-
panying drawings.
Data: 00-1 do..
1000
WILLIAM E. HEYS,
Agent for the Applicant.