Improvements in or relating to Couplings for Railway Vehicles.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 27th May, 1899-Accepted, 4th Nov., 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Couplings for Railway Vehicles.
I, EMERY DE MARSÓVSZKY, Royal Chief Engineer, of Felso Erdösor 25, Buda-
pest, in the Kingdom of Hungary, 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:-
The employment of automatic couplings on European railway vehicles has been
very much interfered with by the circumstance that they could only be adopted
gradually in view of the necessity of continuity as regards working railway
traffic, whereby the necessity arose of providing "transition" devices which
would permit a vehicle provided with an automatic coupling, to be coupled with
one provided with only the ordinary screw or ring and hook coupling.
To attain this object several proposals were made. According to one the screw
coupling mounted on the supporting frame of the vehicle, in other words the
draw hook of the vehicle should be left undisturbed seeing that the automatic
buffer couplings in America are all arranged underneath the supporting frame of
the vehicle, as in such case the coupling of a vehicle provided with both buffer
couplings and draw-hook with a vehicle provided with screw couplings only can
be easily effected by throwing the coupling ring of the latter over the draw hook
of the former. This proposal does not however, offer an effective solution of the
problem as regards the period of transition from one form of coupling to the other,
because three circumstances of extreme importance in the working of railway
traffic have been left out of consideration. First the screw coupling must be
taken off from the draw hook of the carriage provided with buffer couplings from
which it follows that in the coupling of two carriages there would be only one
screw coupling, a circumstance which is very much against the security of traffic.
The second drawback is found in the fact that the buffer coupling is in the way
of the screw coupling, inasmuch as it impedes the rotation of the coupling lever.
The third drawback is that the space which, according to regulations, must be
left free at the ends of the vehicles is occupied by the buffer coupling, whereby
the life of workmen operating the screw coupling would be in still greater danger
than at present. From this it will be seen that the proposal in question would
not answer the purpose.
A second proposal and one which answers practical requirements even less
satisfactorily, was to construct the buffer coupling on the cross bar of the ordinary
draw-hook of the screw-coupling, by which means a carriage provided with an
automatic coupling device could be easily coupled with any other carriage, whether
the latter was provided with a buffer coupling or not. It is evident that this
proposal, besides containing all the dis-advantages of the former would be utterly
useless owing to the very unreliable construction that could be practically carried
out in the way suggested.
All the drawbacks are however removed by the present invention, according
to which the usual screw coupling is not interfered with and the automatic coup-
ling is arranged underneath the supporting frame, as is already done in America,

page_text: with the difference, however that the coupling device can be moved outwardly and
the space left free. This movement may be effected either by a longitudinal
displacement or by swinging out of the automatic buffer coupling. The inven-
tion is represented in Figures 1 to 5 of the accompanying drawings.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of the construction in which the buffer coup-
ling is movable round a vertical axis whereby it is removed from the space which
must be left free according to regulation.
Figure 2 is a plan view partly in section.
Figure 3 is a front view of Fig. 6, while
Figures 4 and 5 are cross sections on the lines 8-8 and 9-9 of Figure 7.
Figure 6 represents a side view partly in section of a construction in which the
automatic coupling together with the bar f can be moved longitudinally below
the supporting frame of the carriage, thus affording another method of removing
the coupling device out of the space to be kept free according to regulation.
The draw rod b (Figs. 1 and 2) is provided at the end with which it is to be
connected with the bar f of the buffer coupling e with a ring or eye d, which fits
into the forked end of the bar f and is connected with the latter by a pin or
bolt g. In order to ensure a movement in a straight line only, on both sides of
the eyed cheeks or projections h are arranged which engage in guides in the
longitudinal members j, as used in American couplings. The end of one of these
members is so shaped as to allow the coupling bar to be swung laterally on its
pivot into the position shown in dotted lines, Fig. 2.
Figure 7 is a plan view, partly in section, of the same.
In the modified con-
struction, Figs. 6 and 7, the connection between the coupling proper and the
draw rod as well as the cross-head shaped form of the coupling has been left
unaltered. The difference consists in a bow or like part connecting the two draw
rods b, or a tube k, which has been employed in the construction represented by
way of example, and of which the length is so calculated that it corresponds to the
extent of movement of the draw rod, when drawn out or pushed in. The longi-
tudinal displacement of the automatic coupling may of course be effected by any
means. According to Figure 6 a rod is mounted upon the coupling device,
while a transverse shaft m, carried in hanging bearings, is provided with a wheel
or pulley around which is wound a cord or equivalent o, having its ends attached
to the ends of the rod 7, so that by turning a crank, which can be applied to the
outer end of the shaft m, the draw rod 7, and therefore the coupling connected
with it, may be moved forward or backward according to the direction in which
the crank is turned, and so be either withdrawn under the car or moved forward.
To prevent the mechanism from being injured through shocks communicated
through the coupling part e it is advisable to connect this part of the mechanism
with the coupling part e in such a manner that a certain amount of yielding or
relative movement can take place. According to the arrangement illustrated this
is provided for by abutments firmly connected with the bar f and pressure
plates which are movable on the rod and between which is arranged a springs,
nuts being provided to limit the displacement of the plates r.
It is to be observed that this mechanism does not form an essential part of the
invention and can be replaced by any other contrivance answering the same
.purpose.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. A method of coupling railway vehicles by means of automatic buffer coup-
lings whilst the ordinary screw couplings are left to serve during the transition
period consisting in arranging the automatic couplings below the screw couplings
in such a manner that they can be moved aside or away from the space which is
to be left free according to regulation, substantially as described.
2. In railway vehicle couplings an automatic buffer coupling arranged under

page_text: the supporting frame of the vehicle in such a manner that it may be displaced
from the space to be left free according to regulation either by swinging it aside
or by being longitudinally displaced, substantially as described.
3. A modification of the device described in which the longitudinal members
of the supporting frame at both sides of the draw rod are provided with guides
for the cross head connection of the automatic buffer coupling bar and the draw
rod, substantially as described.
4. In a coupling device of the kind described, means for allowing the displace-
ment mechanism of the automatic buffer coupling to yield within certain limits,
substantially as described.
5. The complete coupling device substantially as described or illustrated in
Figures 1 and 2, or in Figures 6 and 7 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 27th day of May 1899.
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.