IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR TRANSMITTING MOTION AND POWER FROM ONE PART OF A RAILWAY TRAIN TO ANOTHER FOR THE PURPOSE OF EFFECTING COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE PASSENGERS AND GUARD, OR OTHERWISE, AND FOR OPERATING THE BRAKES
Year: 1864

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Clark at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 18th August
1864. A communication from abroad by Adrien Cabarrus, of 29, Boule-
vart St. Martin, Paris.
I, WILLIAM CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer and Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR TRANSMITTING MOTION AND POWER
FROM ONE PART OF A RAILWAY TRAIN TO ANOTHER FOR THE PURPOSE OF EFFECTING
COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE PASSENGERS AND GUARD, OR OTHERWISE, AND FOR
OPERATING THE BRAKES," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to the application of small buffers in connection with
the ordinary buffers of railway carriages, and bearing one against the other
in a similar manner when the carriages are brought up close together. These
small buffers which are placed on one side, one at each end of a carriage, are
connected together and set in action, as in Fig. 1 of the Drawings, by means
of levers, small chains, iron rods, or otherwise, and may be applied either
above, below, or at the side of the ordinary buffers. The chains, levers, or
other means of connecting said auxiliary buffers together are likewise placed
either below or on one of the lateral faces of the buffer plank, they however
require to be applied in a similar manner throughout a train.
The small buffer A, Fig. 1, is carried from the large one by a strong iron
frame solidly fixed at one end to the buffer, and at the other to the side of

page_text: the small buffer by means of a hinge. At this point the rod is elbowed, its
horizontal arm being connected to a lever C acting on a bent levor D, the
vertical arm of which is connected at its end to a strong iron wire or small
rod communicating with a similar bent lever K at the other end of the carriage,
and which by means of lever E acts on the bent arm of the small buffer
mounted at this end of the carriage. The whole is so arranged that if either
of the two small buffers be pushed back, the other will be forced forward a
corresponding distance. The horizontal arms of the bent levers and other
parts are strongly attached to each other by means of bolts running in grooves,
whereby the said arms are enabled to slido freely. The groove F in the
horizontal arm of the bent lever carrying the small buffers should be of sulli-
cient length to enable the latter to partake in all the to-and-fro movements of
the large buffers, and at least equal to the extent these rods project from the
buffer plank.
Fig. 2 represents a simpler arrangement than the foregoing; the bent arm
of the small buffer at the one end is in this case furnished with a nearly
vertical extension, whilst the small buffer at the other end simply carries a
similar extension without a bent arm in such manner that instead of tho
buffers at opposite ends of the carriage being connected together by means of
levers as in Fig. 1, this is effected by a small chain passing through tubes
carried under the framing. The levers and rods are carried below the buffer
planks by iron supports, as in Fig. 1. I propose to employ this arrangement
for effecting communication between the passengers and guard of a train, and
to enable the driver to apply the brakes on all the carriages so fitted without
the aid of a brakesman. In fact, the passengers in any compartment may
effect communication with the guard by means of the small chain or iron
wiro S, passing from the interior under the carriages to the lever C, Fig. 1,
and arm C³ of the small rear buffer, Fig. 2, which wires or chains on being
pulled by the passengers, by means of cords similar to ordinary bell pulls will
impart motion to the wholo apparatus, which being communicated from one
carriage to another will strike a bell in the guard's van. Two different
methods of attaining this result may be employed, as represented in Figs. 1
and 2.
In order to apply the brakes, the driver is furnished with a lever L, Fig. 3,
placed at the rear end of the locomotive, and mounted on the large buffer,
under which is applied the small buffer previously described. By pulling
this lever towards him in any suitable manner the driver will act on the
small buffer on the following carriage, and consequently on those of all
succeeding carriages; this will be understood by substituting Fig. 3 of the

page_text: Drawing in the place of part of Fig. 2, except that the movement which in
Fig. 2 is shown as from left to right, that is, from the rear end to the front of
a train towards the guard's box, should be from right to left, and from front. to
rear, that is, from the engine to the carriages on which the brakes are to be
applied. In this right to left movement from one carriage to another, tho
vertical chain S carried by cach, and attached at the lower end to the extre-
mity of lever C, will be drawn down by said lever. The chain, which is con-
nected at its upper end to a part mounted at the upper and back part of the
carriage carrying the brake lever, carries a heavy weight at its end, and on said
chain being drawn down by lever C carries with it the part supporting the
brake lever and weight, which is thus allowed to fall, and so apply the brakes
to this carriage, and to all the others in succession in a similar manner.
This improved system of effecting communication and transmission of motion
possesses this great advantage, that when once applied to the train it causes
neither trouble nor loss of time in setting it in action, either when coupling
the carriages together or disconnecting them.