IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WHEELS AND BREAKS FOR CARRIAGES
Year: 1842

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
SMITH, of Liverpool, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Tenth day of March, in the fifth year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Henry
Smith, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the
said Henry Smith, my exors, adñiors, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Henry Smith, my exors, adññiors, or assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term of
years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WHEELS AND BREAKS
FOR CARRIAGES;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that
I, the said Henry Smith, shall cause a particular description of the nature of
my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters
Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more
fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Henry Smith, hereunto declare the nature of my said Invention, and the

page_text: manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer
tained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to the
Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon
(that is to say:
The first part of my Invention relates to a mode of making railway wheels
by combining cast-iron centres, wood felloes, and wrought-iron or steel tyre,
and in such manner that the parts of wood of which the felloes are formed may
be caused to be forced out and separated by means of wedges in order to
expand the circle of wood of which the felloe of a wheel is composed. And in
order that the Invention may be fully understood and readily carried into
effect, I will explain the Drawings hereunto annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure represent the side view of a wheel constructed according to this
part of the Invention, being partly in section. Figure 2 shows a transverse
section of the wheel. Figures 3 and 4 show another side viow of a wheel
partly in section, and a transverse section of the mode of separating the parts
of the wood felloe, being somewhat different to that at Figures 1 and 2.
Figures 5 and 6 show a side view, partly in section, and a transverse section
of another arrangement of wheel differing from those shown in the previous
Figures only inasmuch as the means of forcing out the parts of the wood
felloes. Figures 7 and 8 show a side view and section of another arrange-
ment of means for forcing out the parts of the wood felloe. In all theso
Figures the same principle of construction is retained; that is to say, t the
centre part of the wheel a, a, is of cast iron, and should be made in one
casting; the wood felloes are made in several parts, b, b, b, as is shown; and
the tyre is of steel or wrought iron. c, c, c, are screw bolts passing through
the tyre, the wood felloes, and through the outer ring of the cast-iron centre of
the wheel; and it will be seen that the only variation to be found in the dif
ferent wheels shown in the Drawing is as to the means of forcing the parts
of the wood felloes so as to encrease the diameter, and thus securely hold
the tyre; and in all cases an angular filling picco is used between each
pair of the parts of the wood felloes b, and it is by forcing these angular
pieces d, d, outwards from the centre of the wheel that the tyre is at all times
securely held and the parts of the wheel retained together. In Figures 1 and 2
the angular pieces d, d, are forced outwards from the centre of the wheel by
means of the screws e and the wedging blocks f, as is shown. In Figures
3 and 4 the pieces d, d, are each divided into two parts, and a wedge g being
introduced between them causes them to be separated, thus separating the

page_text: parts of the wood felloc. In Figures 5 and 6 the angular pieces are forced
outwards by means of the screws and nuts h, i, the screws entering hollow
spokes, and the square heads of the screws enter square holes in the angular
pieces, the nuts working in openings of the casting of the centre portion of the
wheel, as is shown. In Figures 7 and 8 the angular pieces d are forced out-
wards by wedges, which wedges are moved by screw nuts working on screws
formed at the ends of the wedges j, as is shown. It will thus be seen that the
wheels constructed according to my Invention consists of centre casting or
wheel, having around its periphery a series of wood blocks b, producing a
felloc, which are separated by the parts d, d, in order to retain the tyre.
And I would have it understood that I do not confine myself to the precise
details shewn.
I will now describe another part of my Inventien, which relates to a mode
of applying steel on the working surface of railway tyres, and consists in rolling
the iron tyre into the form shown at Figure 9, there being a groove, as is
shewn at, ; and before passing the hot bar through.between the rollers to
bring the bar to the proper shape, shown at Figure 10, I introduce into the
groove a bar of steel, which is bevilled at its sides, as is shewn at y, y, such
bar being by preference cold. I then pass the iron bar, together with the steel,
between the rolls, the grooves in the rolls being of a proper figure to complete
the shaping of the bar of tyre, by which means I close the edges of the
groove over the bevilled sides of the steel bar, and this, together with the
shrinkage of the hot iron, will securely hold the steel in its place. I would
remark, that I am aware that steel has been applied in various ways to the
working surfaces of railway tyre; I do not, therefore, claim the application of
steel generally, but this part of my Invention is confined to the mode herein
described of applying steel.
I will now describe the part of my Invention which relates to the applica-
tion of breaks to the wheels of railway carriages; and the improvements con-
sist in working breaks in such manner that the engineer may, when desired,
cause the breaks to act on their respective wheels in consequence of their
being connected by suitable apparatus to one of the axles of locomotive engines
or of the tender. Fig. 11 represents a side view, and Figure 12 a plan, of
such parts as will enable me to explain one mode of carrying out this part of
my Invention.
a represents the axle of a locomotive engine or of a tender,
and b, b, represents two of the wheels of a railway carriage. c, c, are the
breaks, which are of an ordinary construction. These breaks slide on the bar d,
which is affixed to the axle boxes, and move with them up and down, as is
well understood. e, e, are the links or connecting rods, which, by means of

page_text: the arms f, affixed on the axis g, when that axis is moved, either by the
means at present resorted to, by the apparatus hereafter explained, will causo
the links or rods e, e, to force the blocks c, c, against their wheels. h is the
rod by which the breaks are worked by a person riding with the particular
carriage. The remainder of the apparatus for that purpose, however, is not
shown, but the same is well understood. On the axis g is affixed an arm i, to
which the link or connecting rod j is attached by a pin joint, the other end of
the rod j being attached to the quadrant k. This quadrant is put in motion by
means of a revolving rod I, which receives motion from one of the axles of the
locomotive engine or of the tender, by means of the screw m, which takes into
and moves the quadrant, and thus causes the axis g to move, and thus bring
the breaks into action. There is a similar rod to each carriage, and also
a quadrant and connecting rod j, the revolving rods being connected
together by means of universal joints at n, and the revolving rods are
made in parts, so as to slide into each other, to compensate for the varying
distances of the carriages from each other. The parts of the rod 1, though
they slide into each other they revolve together, as is shown at o, o; and it will
be seen that there is a slot in the end of the rod j, which allows of the breaks
being used by the ordinary apparatus attached to the carriage, without calling
the apparatus into action, which is in connection with an axle of the locomo-
tive engine or of the tender. The requisite rotatory motion is communicated to
the rods by means of friction surfaces p. y, one applied to the axle of the
locomotive engine or of the tender, and the other to the rod Z which comes
next thereto, and a lever is applied to slide the friction surface q into and out
of contact with the surface p, and thus by the friction of the surfaces give
motion to the rods of the train of carriages; and when it is desired to put off
the breaks the other friction surface r is to be brought .into action, which will
reverse the motion of the rods I, and then the friction surfaces are to be left in
such a position as not to act on the friction surface of the rods l.
I will now describe another arrangement of apparatus for carrying out this
part of my Invention. Figure 18 shews a side view of this apparatus; ; is a
bar or connected rod which is connected with the arm i by a pin joint, there
being a slot in the barj to allow of the arm i moving separately, when the
breaks are being put in motion by the ordinary apparatus attached to the
particular carriage. The bar j of each carriage is attached to the bar of
the next carriage by means of an apparatus consisting of the following
parts (1), (1), are two links attached to the ends of each earringe by pin
joints, their other ends being attached by pin joints to rods (2), (2), and
the rods jj. of two carriages are connected together by means of the links

page_text: (3), (3), which are attached by pin joints to their respective bars j, j, and
to each other, and to sockets (4), (4), by pin joints, as is shown, the sockets
(4) sliding on the rods (2), (2), hence the two carriages may vary in their
distance apart, and yet any movement given to the first bar j will be trans-
mitted to all the bars j. And I prefer to give motion to the first bar j
in the following manner :-On the axis a of the locomotive engine or of the
tender is affixed a drums, and the chain passes partly around such drum 5,
and is then attached to the lever v, the other end of the chain being attached
to a short bar j, which connects the apparatus above described with the bar j
of the first carriage. When the lever vis in the position shown the breaks will
be out of action, but immediately the lever vis moved, and causes the chain
to bend on the surface of the drums, that drum will by friction move the
chain on the bars j, and thus bring the breaks into action.
I would remark, that I do not confine myself to the details shown in
carrying out this part of my Invention, as variations may be made therein,
and the character of apparatus used for moving the breaks employed may be
varied, provided the peculiar nature of this part of the Invention be retained,
whereby one of the wheel axles of the locomotive engines of the tender be
brought to act on the breaks of a train of carriages. And I would have it
understood that what I claim is,—
First, the mode of separating the parts of wood felloes of railway wheels
by means of wedges forced outwards in radial lines, in a direction from the
centre of the wheel, as described in respect to Figures 1, 2, 3, & 4.
Secondly, I claim the mode of separating the parts of wood fellocs of railway
wheels by means of two wedge pieces between each two parts of the wood
felloes, such wedge pieces being caused to separate by a wedge, as described in
respect to Figures 5, 6, 7, & 8.
Thirdly, I claim the mode of applying steel to railway tyres, whereby the
sides of a groove formed therein is pressed over bevilled sides of a steel bar
introduced into such
groove. And,
Fourthly, I claim the mode of working breaks by putting them into action
by means of one of the axles of the wheels of the locomotive engine or of the
tender, whereby the engineer may, when it is desirable so to do, cause the
breaks to act on the wheels of the railway carriages of a train.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Smith, have hereunto my hand
and seal, this Tenth day of September, One thousand eight hundred
and forty-two.
HENRY (L.B.) SMITH.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Tenth day of September, in
the year of our Lord 1842, the aforesaid Henry Smith came before our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.