IMPROVEMENTS IN BUREAU METODORAN
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander Wood, of Edinburgh, in the County of
Mid Lothian, North Britain, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
BUREAU
METODORAN
"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander Wood at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 23rd January 1872.
I, ALEXANDER WOOD, of Edinburgh, in the County of Mid Lothian,
North Britain, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN CLEANING TRAMWAYS AND IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREFOR,"
to be as follows, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object to keep tramways free or practically
free from thick mud, snow, dirt, or other matters which hinder locomotion
thereon, and the mechanism by which this object is effected consists in
the first place in attaching to the pole of a machine (or to the shafts in
machines where only one horse is employed) a scraper or plough, which
as the machine is traversed along the tramway throws to one side any

page_text: mud, snow, or other matter which may be adherent to or lying upon the
surface of the rails.
•
The scraper or plough is constructed in segments of a breadth sufficient
to operate on one-half of the space occupied by a double line of tramway,
and it may be arranged so as to act either in front of or behind the horse
or horses. The segments are so arranged as to fall back on encountering
any obstacle, the amount of such fall being determined by an iron rod
provided for that purpose. Behind the horse or horses a revolving brush
similar in construction to the brushes at present employed in street
sweeping machines is situated, and immediately in the rear of the brush
"pickers" with plough share points depend from the body of the
machine. These "pickers" fit into the grooves of the tramway rails,
and as the machine is traversed along clean out any matter lodged
therein, and they are kept in position by means of springs or weights, so
as to yield to or pass over any solid obstruction such as a started or
projecting pin or bolt a bell may also be arranged in such close
any such
proximity to the picker, that when the latter encounters
solid obstacle it may strike the bell and warn the attendant, who could
thus remove the obstruction.
Immediately in rear of the pickers is a pair of wheels the distance
between which corresponds to the distance between the grooves in the tram
rails, and their peripheries are provided with narrow brushes made of stecl
wire or other suitable material, which wheels revolve, sweep the bottoms
of the grooves, and by the rapidity of their motion throw out of them any
solid particles that may be left therein.
In lieu of attaching the pickers and brushes last described to the same
machine as the scraper or plough, these may constitute a separate machine
and be attached to ordinary tramway cars.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-fifth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Alexander Wood, Her special
license that I, the said Alexander Wood, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Alexander Wood, my
executors, administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thercafter 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 CLEANING TRAMWAYS AND IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREFOR,”
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alexander Wood,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my;
hand and seal, 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.
4
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alexander Wood, do hereby declare,
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thercon, that is to say :-
My said Invention has for its object to keep tramways free or
practically free from thick mud, snow, dirt, or other matters which
hinder locomotion thereon, and the mechanism by which this object is
effected consists in the first place in attaching to the pole of a machine
(or to the shafts in machines where only one horse is employed) a scraper
or plough, which as the machine is moved along the tramway throws to
one side any mud, snow, or other matter which may be adherent to or
lying upon the surface of the rails and causeway.
The scraper or plough is constructed in segments and of a breadth
sufficient to operate on one-half or the whole of the space occupied by a
double line of tramway, and it may be arranged so as to act either in
front of or behind the horse or horses. The segments are so arranged as
to fall back on encountering any solid obstacle, the amount of such fall

page_text: being determined by an iron rod provided for that purpose. This scraper
or plough being only required when snow or very thick mud has to be
encountered, can be detached from the rest of the machine. Behind the
horse or horses a revolving brush similar in construction to the brushes
at present employed in street sweeping machines, is situated and
immediately in the rear of the brush "pickers" with points formed so
as to clear out the grooves depend from the body of the machine.
These "pickers" fit into the grooves of the tramway rails, and as the
machine is moved along clean out any matter lodged therein; they are
kept in position by means of springs or weights so arranged as to secure
sufficient pressure against soft bodies to effect their removal, but also so
as to yield to or pass over according to the resistance offered any solid
obstruction such as a started or projecting pin or bolt against which
had they not power of yielding they would be broken; a bell may also be
arranged in such close proximity to the pickers that when the latter
encounters any such solid obstacle it may strike the bell, and warn the
attendant, who could thus remove the obstruction.
Immediately in rear of the pickers is a pair of wheels, the distance
between which corresponds to the distance between the grooves in the
tram rails, and their peripheries are provided with narrow brushes made
of steel wire or other suitable material, which wheels revolve and thus
sweep the bottoms of the grooves, and by the rapidity of their motion
throw out any solid particles which may be left therein.
In lieu of attaching the pickers and brushes last described to the same
machine as the scraper or plough, these may constitute a separate
machine, or even be attached to ordinary tramway cars, or in the event
of steam being substituted for horses to the traction engine.
Figure 1, Sheet 1 of my Drawings, represents a side elevation of my
improved tramway cleaning apparatus, and Figure 2 is a corresponding
plan of the same.
A, A, is the main framing carried on wheels B, B, which run loosely
on the main axle C, when the apparatus is not at work, but which is
made to revolve therewith when required by throwing the detents a,
carried on centres in the webs 6 of the running wheels into gear with
the teeth of the ratchet wheels c, carried on the axle C. To the front
end of the framing A I attach a snow plough D constructed of
segments d, and of such a width as to act upon one-half of the width of
a double line of tramways. This snow plough is arranged at a con-

page_text: siderable angle to the line of draught, and is connected by hinges e to the
main framing in such a manner as that upon any of the segments & coming
in contact with an unyielding obstruction, they will fall back or yield
and pass over it. E are pickers which are centred at a¹ to the lower
extremity of the arms F, one being situate at each side of the main
framing. These pickers are provided with plough share or other points f,
which traverse the grooves of the rails and clean out any mud or other
matter accumulated therein; G are blade springs carried by the arms F,
which springs bear upon the pickers E so as to keep them down in the
grooves. H, H, are revolving brushes situated in the rear of the
pickers E, and arranged at an angle similar to the snow plough D, so as
to cast the dirt to one side of the tramway. These brushes are carried in
the arms I and I³, and are of such a length as to act upon one-half of
the width of the double line of tramways. Rotatory motion is imparted to
the brushes H from the main axle C, through the bevil gearing K,
shaft L, and chain pulleys M., as is clearly shewn in Figure 2 of my
Drawings. The shaft or axle C carries a pulley N over which pulley
passes the cross strap O, for imparting motion to the two revolving
brushes P, carried in the hinged frame Q at the rear of the apparatus.
These brushes are composed (by preference) of steel wire, and are intended
to clear any dirt from the grooves in the rails that may have escaped the
action of the pickers E and brushes H.
The brushes H, H, when not required in action may be raised and
kept elevated by depressing the lever R, until the detent g takes into the
tooth h on the projecting bracket S. T is a blade spring connected at
one end to the lever R, its opposite end being connected to the centre
one of the three arms I, I', which carry the brushes H, H, so as that
upon depressing the lever R the arm I will be clevated; the arms I
being at the same time raised by means of the chains V which connect
the arms I with the crank arms W carried on the bar or rocking.
shaft U, to which bar the lever R is connected. The brushes P when
not in action are suspended by a chain provided with a hook X, which
engages with the eye i in the hinged frame Y, Z, are the shafts for
attaching horses to.
In lieu of attaching the "pickers" and brushes for cleaning out the
grooves in the tramway rails to the same machine as the scraper or
plough as herein-before described and shewn on Sheet 1 of the Drawings,
the said "pickers" and brushes may constitute a separate machine, as

page_text: shewn in longitudinal section at Figure 1, and in plan at Figure 2, Sheet 2,
of the Drawings. Under this arrangement the apparatus consists of a
pair of wheels B, on the axis of which are supported the inner ends of
the shafts C.
In front of the wheels B "pickers" D are arranged, and which are
formed with plough share or other points a, which fit into the grooves
of the tramway rails as shewn at Figure 1, and as the machine is drawn
along by a horse harnessed to the shafts C, these points a clean out any
matter lodged in the grooves of the rails.
the
Springs 6 are provided in order to keep the "pickers" in position in
grooves as shewn at Figure 1, and which springs permit the "pickers"
to fall back on encountering any solid resistance in the grooves, such for
example as the head of a started or projecting pin or Bolt. Bells E are
also arranged in close proximity to the "pickers" D, so that when one of
the said "pickers" encounters any solid obstacle and is thrown back, a
rod F with which such "picker" or scraper is provided as shown at
Figure 1 strikes the bell E in close proximity to that "picker" and
warns the attendant, who is thus enabled to remove the obstruction.
Immediately in rear of the "pickers" D a pair of wheels or rollers G
are situate, the distance between which corresponds to the distance
between the tramway rails, and the peripheries of the wheels or rollers G
are provided with brushes made of steel wire or other suitable material,
which when the wheels or rollers G revolve, sweep the bottoms of the
grooves of the rails, and by the rapidity of their motion throw out of
them any solid particles that may be left therein. The wheels or rollers
G are caused to rotate with the required velocity by ropes or bands c
passed over pulleys H on the axes of the said wheels or rollers, and also
over pulleys I on the shaft or axis of the carrying wheels B. The
shaft M on the extremitics of which the wheels or rollers G and brackets
N carrying the " pickers" D are situate, is carried on the lower
extremities of a double lever J, centred on a shaft L carried in
brackets A, as more particularly seen in plan at Figure 2. The upper
part of the lever J is terminated in a handle K, and when it is desired to
raise the "pickers" D and wheels or brushes G from contact with the
tramway rails and thereby to place them out of their operating position
the handle K is drawn backwards, as shown by the dotted lincs on
Figure 1, which has the effect of raising the lower extremities of
the lever J, and with them the shaft M, wheels or rollers G, and
pickers D.