IMPROVEMENTS IN BELT CABLE RAILWAYS
Year: 1883

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Herbert John Allison, of the firm of Allison Brothers,
Patent Agents, of Southampton Buildings, London, for an Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BELT CABLE RAILWAYS" communicated to him from
abroad by The California Belt Railway Company, of San Francisco, California,
United States of America.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Herbert John Allison at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 30th October 1883.
HERBERT JOHN ALLISON, of the film of Allison Brothers, Patent Agents, of
Southampton Buildings, London, "IMPROVEMENTS IN BELT CABLE RAILWAYS"
communicated to me from abroad by The California Belt Railway Company, of
San Francisco, California, United States of America.
My improvements relate to the employment of a belt for the cable now used in
what is known as the cable railway and instead of the single cable, I employ a
belt formed of any number of lighter cables or wires forming a suitable belt which
will be more fully understood by reference to the accompanying drawings and the
letters marked thereon.
Fig. 1 is a plan view showing the position of the belt in turning a curve and the
endless belt and spurs which carry the car around a curve.
Fig. 2 is a horizontal side view showing an elevation of the car and dummy; the
subterranean tube in which the belt operates and the position of the belt and the
endless chain, as it passes around the curve.
Fig. 3 is a cross section showing the subterranean belt tube and the frame-work
of the road, with the antifriction and guide shive which supports the driving belt
cable F.
Fig. 4 shows the belt deflected by depression pulleys at the crossing of another
railway.
Fig. 5 shows a plan view of the belt formed of several small wire cables.
Fig. 6 shows a cross section of the same, and
Fig. 7 is an enlarged drawing showing, the connecting wheel. and levers for
operating the same. Where the same part is referred to in the different drawings.
the same letters are employed to represent them.
Umi .71

page_text: A represents the rails; B the car; C the supporting shives or drums; D the
dummy; E and E represent the driving wheels which carry the spurred endless
chain which propels the dummy around the curve. Frepresents the belt formed
of small wire cables with interlaced cross bars to form loops to gear with the
connecting wheel used in place of the ordinary cable grip. 'G represents the idler 5
or training pulley which is employed to take up the slack and 'regulate the tension
of the endless spur belt or chain; H represents the connecting wheel which is used
to connect the duminy with the cable belt; R represents the band break; r repre-
sents the break lever; t represents the lever by which the connecting wheel is
raised or lowered or held in position. The cogs of the connecting wheel H, are 1
represented by the figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, marked upon the
same.
P is the standard to which the jointed frame which carries the connecting
wheel H, is attached so as to allow the raising and lowering of the wheel H, as
may be required; h, represents the supporting arm in which the journal of the 1
connecting wheel H, has its bearing. D¹ represents a broken part of the dummy
frame to which the standard P, is attached. Z represents the antifriction rolls
which have their bearing upon the guard rail i in traversing the curve and conform
to the wheels E to form a close fitting gear. T.represents the guide tangent
designed to actuate the connecting wheel H automatically. L represents the endless
spur chain; 8 the spurs upon the same which gear with the cogs on the connecting
wheel H, when passing the curve.
Fig. 4 is employed to illustrate the position of the belt when deflected for the
purpose of allowing the crossing of other roads or other obstructions. A repre-
sents the rails; B and B the angle irons forming the groove b. The letters Fl
and F represent the belt or cable duct. O' and O¹ represent the depression
pulleys; the incline plane shown in Figures 1 and 2 which I generally construct
of quarter inch bar iron placed in the tube where it is desired that the connecting
wheel H is to be raised out of gear automatically. F¹ and W represent the wall of
the belt cable groove or duct.
The following is the operation of the same. Where the curve begins or at
the tangent, stand the double sheaved wheels E E, arranged upon a vertical
shaft. The belt cable is passing over the lower sheaf and imparts the required
force to drive the upper sheaf which carries the endless chain L. The idler G,
being also double sheaved serves to regulate the tension of the endless spurred
chain L. The chain L is made of the links which are provided with a strong
spur s; they are united by bolts which form the joints. They have the rolls Z attached
at each end to gear in the pulleys E and E, and carry the chain smoothly around
u on the guide rail i. The cogs and rim of the connecting or grip wheel H are
formed of half inch wrought plate iron. I generally form the hub of cast iron, and
finish the same to receive the band break R. I operate this break by means of the
lever r.
The connecting wheel H is journaled upon the arins h of the frame that
hinges upon the standard P so that it may be raised and lowered at will or
automatically when required.
When it is required to start the car forward the band break R is gradually
tightened by means of the lever r. The rotary motion of the wheel H is gradually
decreased until the friction of the break R is sufficient to cause the same to cease
revolving and the dummy is moved with the full speed of the belt cable F. The
cogs of the wheel H being in gear with one of the bars of the belt cable, and when
it is desired to slacken the speed of the dummy, the band break is loosened and
the wheel H is allowed to revolve as required to gradually check the motion of the
dummy.
In Figure 3 the training roll or cable pulley is shown clearly showing the
groove C which is designed to allow the cogs 1, 2, 3 &c. to pass down through the
links of the cable chain.
When a depression pulley is used as shown by O' and O¹ in Figure 4, then a
pulley is placed upon each side and the connecting wheel passes down between the

page_text: two; of course there is a space sufficiently broad for the wheel H to pass between
and consequently there are only outside bearings; thus the two pulleys serve
the purpose of the single grooved pulley C. Where a fire hose is laid across the
track or rail, and the usual bridge is employet to allow the passage of street cars
over the same, the connecting wheel H may be raised clear out and above the hose,
while the car is allowed to pass over by its inomentum. The belt F, composing
the endless cable, may, instead of being passed around the lower sheaf of the
wheels E, be passed upon the spurs 8 of the endless chain L, as the spars & may be
passed through the loops of the belt cable F. Of course the belt in either case will
be required to twist or turn a quarter turn to change it from a horizontal to a
vertical pulley.
In Fig. 5 is shown a plan view of the belt cable; the cross bars e, e, e, and e, are
designed to represent any abutment or loop in the belt to receive the cog of the
connecting wheel.
In Figure 8 is shown one mode of transmitting the power to the belt cable F.-
W represents the driving wheel and B3, any belt for operating the same. Should
the strain be too great, to be imparted to a single link of the chain, then it will be
readily understood that any required number of wheels may be arranged to operate
in gear with different parts of the belt cable F.
It will be readily seen that, whenever the car and dummy are standing still
over the road and the wheel H is in gear with the chain it will be revolved at a
speed corresponding with that of the belt cable and whenever it is required to start
the car, it is done very gradually by means of the band break R which I either
operate directly by hand by the lever ? or by any mechanical means well known
as a hand wheel and screw or similar device whereby the slightest change in the
friction of the band wheel R, may be effected. Thus all that sudden jerking of the
car in starting, so common to cable roads, may be avoided, and the durability of
the belt cable much increased. The incline plane T is to be employed wherever it
is desirable to raise the wheel Hout of gear, automatically to pass any obstruc-
tion, when it will be understood the car is run by its momentu:n until the wheel H
again drops into gear with the belt cable F and operates as before stated. In
stopping it is only necessary to release the band break R, and allow the wheel H
to revolve by the action of the belt cable while the car break is applied and the
car stopped in the usual manner employed in stopping cars.
•
In passing curves, the independent chain L, is passed around the curve, the
rolls Z, bearing upon the guile rail i and the spurs & extending sufficiently to
engage the cogs of the connecting wheel H. Thus the car is carried around at the
rate of the speed of the belt cable which propels the pulleys E, E, or it may be
varied by enlarging or diminishing the size of the under part of the pulleys E, in
proportion to that part carrying the independent chain with spurss which are placed
a distance apart to correspond with the distance at which the cogs of the wheel H
stand apart from each other rendering the means employed in stopping the car the
same as at any other part of the road, as it may be stopped or started upon a curve
just as easily as at any other point. When the dummy approaches to the curve the
belt cable is depressed by means of the depression pulley O' or 0¹ shown in
Figure 4 so as to be below the line of the teeth of the wheel H when it makes a
quarter turn and passes upon the lower part of the pulley E or E in a vertical
position edgewise to correspond with the position of the face of the pulley E or E.
In some cases it may be required to carry the belt cable around the curve in line
with the slot b, b, and drive the spurs 8 by engaging them, directly; the arms 1, 2,
etc. would then gear with these spurs & outside of the belt cable F. The weight of
the connecting wheel H will require to be balanced or counterpoised and I have
shown the frame P' to which the weight may be applied, although I do not confine
myself to any precise mode of counterbalancing the weight of the wheel or raising
and lowering the same.
Having now described this invention what I claim is :-
1. The wheel H, with arins or teeth adapted to engage the travelline belt cable

page_text: described in combination with the frame EI, pivoted upon the standard P, which is
attached to the car and the lever r by which the wheel H may be elevated or
depressed, as above described.
2. In belt cable railways, the belt cable F in combination with the pulleys C and
depression pulleys O' constructed and operated substantially, as and for the purposes
set forth.
3. In belt cable railways, the subsidiary chain L, having the spurs 8, to operate
in connection with the connecting wheel H, substantially as and for the purposes
set forth.
4. In belt cable railways, the incline plane T, in combination with the belt
cable F, whereby the wheel F, is lifted out of gear, substantially as and for the
purposes set forth.
5. In belt cable railways, the chain L, having the spurs 8 and bearing rolls Z,
in combination with the belt cable F, and the driving pulleys E and E, and the
guide rail i, constructed and operated, substantially as and for the purposes set
forth.
6. In belt cable railways, the belt cable F, in combination with one or more
driving wheels W₁, for the purpose of operating the dummy D, by gearing with the
connecting wheel H, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Herbert John Allison, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this thirtieth day of October in the year of our Lord one thousand
eight hundred and eighty-three.
חמת ח ה
T ATTINON