AN IMPROVED MECHANICAL APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED FOR PLACING AND SECURING FOG" OR DETONATING" SIGNALS UPON THE RAILS OR METALS OF RAILWAYS
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Challender, of Manchester, in the County-
of Lancaster, and Benjamin Kitchen, of Manchester, in the said
County, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED MECHANICAL APPARATUS
TO BE EMPLOYED FOR PLACING AND SECURING FOG" OR DETONATING"
SIGNALS UPON THE RAILS OR METALS OF RAILWAYS."
Sealed the 9th March 1869, and dated the 10th September 1868..
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Challender and
Benjamin Kitchen at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, .
with their Petition, on the 10th September 1868..
We, JOSEPH CHALLENDER, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
and BENJAMIN KITCHEN, of Manchester, in the said County, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED MECHANICAL
APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED FOR PLACING AND SECURING 'FOG' OR 'DETONATING'
SIGNALS UPON THE RAILS OR METALS OF RAILWAYS," to be as follows:-
Our Invention. relates to a novel mechanical expedient to be employed
for placing "fog," "detonating," or other like signals upon the metals..

page_text: or rails of railways, and is more particularly designed for the purpose
of enabling the guard or other authorised person in charge of the break
or guard's van or other carriage of a railway train to place and per-
manently secure by mechanical means such signal or signals upon the
rails or metals during the transit of the train, in order to check the too
rapid advance of a train following, preventing thereby any accidents by
the too close proximity of trains when they are following cach other on
one line during foggy or inclement weather.
66
The improvements consist in securing a vertical inclined groove,
channel, race, or slide to any convenient portion of the break or guard's
van that will form the terminal to a train beyond the hind wheels. The
inclined slide is constructed so as to receive a "fog," detonating,"
or other like signal, which when placed in the orifice at the top of the
slide in the guard's van and released it will slide or pass downwards to the
lower extremity of the groove, which is provided with a stop or rest
formed on the front portion or arm of a bell-crank lever, which when in
its normal position remains flush or on the said level or plane with the
groove, forming thereby a receiver for the signal, the space in front
being open so as to allow of the free movement or action of the lever,
the opposite end of the bell-crank lever is connected by a rod (running
parallel with the grooves) with a handle in the guard's van that forms
the medium through which motion is given to the lever and stop holding
or retaining the detonating signal; the fulcrum or centre upon which
the retaining lever turns admits of a slight lateral movement to be given
to such lever by reason of a finger or other equivalent that comes into
contact with the metals, prevents the vibration or unsteadiness of the
carriages when running interfering with the true and respective positions
of the rail and signals relative to each other. The detonating signals are
each provided with spring clips or fasteners, which when forced upon
the rail firmly close upon the upper flange of the metals, by which a
means such spindles become permanently secured thereto until exploded,
by the passage of a train over them.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Joseph Challender and Benjamin Kitchen in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 10th March 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOSEPH
CHALLENDER, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, and BENJAMIN
KITCHEN, of Manchester, in the same County, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of September, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said Joseph Challender and Benjamin
Kitchen, Her special license that we, the said Joseph Challender and
Benjamin Kitchen, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as we, the said Joseph Challender and Benjamin Kitchen, our
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter 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 "AN
IMPROVED MECHANICAL APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED FOR PLACING AND SECURING
FOG' OR DETONATING' SIGNALS UPON THE RAILS OR METALS OF RAILWAYS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Joseph Challender
and Benjamin Kitchen, our executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under our, or one of our, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Benjamin Kitchen, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement and accompanying Drawings (that is to
say) -
=
Our Invention relates to a novel mechanical expedient to be
employed for placing "fog" or detonating signals upon the metals or

page_text: rails of railways, and more particularly designed for we purpose of
enabling the guard or other authorized person in charge of the break or
guard's van of a railway train to place and permanently secure by
mechanical means such signal or signals upon the rails or metals during
the transit of the train in order to check the too rapid advance of a train
following, preventing thereby any accidents by the too close proximity of
trains when they are following each other on one line during foggy or
inclement weather.
The improvements consist in securing a vertical or inclined grooved
channel, race, or slide to any convenient portion of the break or guard's
van that will form the terminal to a train beyond the hind wheels. The
inclined slide is constructed so as to receive a fog or detonating signal,
which when placed in the orifice at the top of the slide in the guard's
van and released will slide or pass 'downwards to the lower extremity
of the groove, which is provided with a stop or hinge formed on the
front portion or arm of a bell-crank lever, which when in its normal
position remains flush or in a line with the slide, forming thereby a
receiver for the signal, the space in front being open so as to allow of the
free movement or action of the lever. The opposite end of the bell-crank
lever is connected by a rod running parallel with the slide, with a handle
in or on the guard's van that forms the medium through which motion is
given to the lever and to the stop or finger holding or retaining the
detonating signal; the fulcrum or centre upon which the retaining lever
turns admits of a slight lateral movement of such lever by means of a
grooved wheel that comes into contact with the metals and prevents the
vibration or unsteadiness of the carriages when running from interfering
with the true and respective position of the rail and signals relative to
each other. The detonating signal is provided with spring clips, or
fasteners, which when forced upon the rail firmly close upon upper
flange of the metals, by which means such signals become permanently
secured thereto until exploded by the passage of a train over them.
the
As a modification we propose to dispense with the slide or channel,
mounting the bell-crank lever on a fixed bracket attached to the frame.
of the carriage, weighting one arm of the lever and making the other
arm sufficiently long that when raised it will bring the finger at its end
within reach of the guard, so that he can place the fog signal on the
finger by hand, and then by depressing the lever fix it on to the rail as
in the former case.

page_text: Such being the nature and object of our said Invention we will
now proceed to describe more in detail the manner in which the same is
to be or may be carried into practical effect; and in order that the same
may be clearly understood we have annexed hereunto a Sheet of
Drawings illustrative thereof, and have marked the same with figures and
letters of reference corresponding with those in the following explanation
thereof.
In the annexed Drawing Fig. 1 is a side view, and Fig. 2 an end
view of part of a guard's van or break with the first arrangement of
our Invention shown as applied thereto. a, a, is the grooved slide,
which is carried in brackets b, b, attached to the frame of the carriage, so
that it can be raised up out of the way when not in use by means of a
treadle, and lowered when required till the grooved wheel c, c, at its basc
runs on the rail. The guard or other person in charge now places one.
of the fog signals (shown detached and on a larger scale at Fig. 3) in
the grooved slide a, a, in such a position that it clips the rail * inside
the slide, which steadies it whilst it slides down the groove until the
loop d at the back of the signal slips on to the finger e, which forms one
arm of a bell-crank lever mounted on a stud at the bottom of the slide.
The other arm e" of the said lever is attached to a rod f, which extends
upwards within reach of the guard or other person in charge, and
terminates in a knob or button. On the guard or other person striking
this knob downwards it will press down the finger e and cause the spring
clips g, g, of the fog signal to embrace the rails, the finger e at the same
time slipping out of the loop d, and leaving the signal firmly attached
to the rail. It will be evident that this apparatus may be so arranged if
preferred that the top of the slide and the handle shall be within the
guard's vau.
A modification of this arrangement, whereby the grooved slide a, a, is
dispensed with, is shown in side view at Fig. 4, and back view at Fig. 5.
In this arrangement the bell-crank lever e, e*, is mounted on a fixed
bracket h, h, the rod f being attached to the arm e, the end of which
terminates in the finger for holding and placing the signal, the other
arm ex being provided with a counterbalance weight i, i. The grooved
5 wheel c, c, is mounted in a bracket k, k, hung to the lever e, a spring
being interposed to ensure that the grooved wheel c, c, shall meet the
rail first, but will still allow the finger to be depressed sufficiently to
place the signal on the line.

page_text: This arrangement when not in use is raised up out of the way into the
position shown in the dotted lines, the finger being in such a position
that the guard or other person can reach it to place a signal thereon;
he then depresses the lever by means of the rod f till the grooved wheel
rests on the rail; as soon as he feels the wheel touch the rail by a smart
blow or push he depresses the lever still further (compressing the
spring) and causes the finger e to leave the signal on the rail, as
before.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, together with
the method of carrying the same into practical effect, we wish it to be
distinctly understood that we claim as our Invention the improved
mechanical apparatus herein-before described and represented in the
Drawings annexed, or any mere modification or imitation thereof, con-
structed and operating in substantially the same or a similar manner,
and more especially we claim the combination for such purpose of bell-
crank lever finger and corresponding form of clips on signal and grooved
wheel in connection with a rod or handle within reach of the guard or
other person in charge, either with or without the grooved slide.
In witness whereof, I, the said Benjamin Kitchen, on behalf of
myself and the said Joseph Challender, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine.
Witnessed by
JOSEPH CHALLENDER.
B. KITCHEN. (L.S.)