IMPROVE- MENTS IN RAILWAY BRAKES
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Denton Abel, of No. 28, Southampton Buildings,
Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, for an Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN RAILWAY BRAKES." A communication from abroad by John
Hand
of Vianna in the Austrian Emniza
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Denton Abel at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 18th May 1881.
CHARLES DENTON ABEL, of No. 28, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex. "IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY BRAKES." [A com-
munication from abroad by John Hardy, of Vienna, in the Austrian Empire.]
This Invention relates to the combination with the ordinary hand screw brake
apparatus of railway carriages or vans of certain mechanism, whereby the brakesman
in working the brake spindle of one carriage or van can either actuate the brakes
of his own and adjoining brake carriage simultaneously, and with the same power
as that with which the brakes of a single carriage are applied, or he can apply the
brakes to his own carriage alone in the usual way.
For this purpose each brake carriage or van is provided, in addition to the usual
screw brake gear on the opposite side of the centre line of the carriage, and at the
same distance therefrom as the brake screw spindle, with a large elbow connecting
lever pivotted to a bracket on the buffer plank; and at the other end of the
carriage there is provided a smaller elbow connecting lever in line with the large
lever. The latter has a long arm formed telescopic, or with its outer end arranged
to slide in and out of the other part; and it is provided at its extremity with an
eye on a universal joint, by which it can either be coupled to the before mentioned
small connecting lever of the contiguous brake carriage, when owing to the one
relative position of the carriages this lever is brought opposite to it, or it can be
coupled to the elbow lever of the brake screw spindle of the said second carriage
when this is in the reverse relative position, that is to say, when those ends of the
two carriages where the brake spindles are situated are next each other. The other
arm of the said large lever, which I will call the "telescope lever," is connected to
one end of a rod or link having in its length a right and left screw-coupling, by

page_text: which it can be lengthened or shortened, and having at its other end a loop, by
which it is attached to a hook on a brake rod, both the loop and the hook being
suspended by links from the carriage framing, so that when they are detached from
each other they are held suspended by the said links, and the upper ends of these
are slid along curved slots, so as to move the loop and hook asunder. The said
brake rod has its other end connected to an intermediate point in the length of an
upright lever on the brake shaft that carries the ordinary brake levers, and to the
upper end of the said upright lever is connected a rod that extends to the before
mentioned small elbow connecting lever at the other end of the carriage.
From this arrangement it will be seen that if the two brake carriages are in the
first above described relative position, that is, with their brake screw spindles away
from each other, then on actuating the brake spindle situated at the outer end of
the one carriage its elbow lever and break rod apply the brakes of the said carriage
in the ordinary manner, while the before mentioned upright lever on the brake
shaft communicates the motion of the latter through the before mentioned con-
necting rod and small elbow connecting lever to the telescope lever of the second
brake carriage, and this in its turn communicates the motion through the before
mentioned adjusting link and hook rod to the upright lever on the brake shaft of
this carriage, whereby this shaft is actuated so as to apply the brakes. The
telescope arrangement of the large connecting lever has for its object to allow of
the ends of the two carriages moving nearer together or farther apart during the
motion of the train, while still maintaining the before described connection with
the brake gear of the next carriage, and in order to maintain the power transmitted
by the said telescope lever more or less constant, notwithstanding the lengthening
or shortening of its long arm, the following arrangement may be employed:-The
short arm of the lever has a sliding piece, to which is connected the before mentioned
link that connects it with the second brake gear, which sliding piece is connected
to one arm of a bell crank pivotted on the telescope lever, the other arm of which
bell crank is connected by a link to the sliding end of the telescope lever, so that
when such sliding end is pushed inwards, and the long arm of the lever is thus
shortened, the bell crank and connecting link at the same time cause the sliding
piece of the short arm to be drawn towards the pivot of the lever, and thus the
leverage of the short arm is reduced in the same proportion as that of the long arm
is reduced, and vice versa.
In order to double the power of the brake screw spindle when operating in the
above described manner for applying both sets of brakes; as compared with the
power for applying the one set of brakes only, the elbow lever of the brake spindle
has a slot in which the connection with the brake screw spindle can be slid either
nearer to the pivot of the elbow lever so as to reduce the leverage when only one
set of brakes is to be worked, or farther away from the pivot so as to increase the
leverage when both sets are to be worked, the said connection being held in either
position in the slot by a hinged locking piece. When the brakes are being operated
with the carriages in the above described relative position, the telescope lever at
the outer end of the carriage, whose brake spindle is being operated, being
disconnected, is raised up and secured by a fastening against the end of the carriage,
the adjusting link having been previously disconnected from the hook of the brake
rod to allow of this raising of the lever. The ordinary brake rod of the brake
screw spindle has a slotted connection to the brake levers, so that it will allow of
the motion of the latter when not actuated by its own brake screw spindle. When
the carriages are in the second above described relative position, that is, with their
brake spindles next each other, the telescope lever of the one carriage is connected
to the elbow lever of the brake spindle of the other carriage, which is then actuated
for putting on the brakes of both carriages, the telescope lever of the last
named carriage being then in the disconnected and raised position, as above
described.
It will be understood from the foregoing that the brake shaft has two upright
brake levers, to one of which the ordinary brake rod is attached, while the other is

page_text: connected at its end to the rod leading to the small elbow connecting lever, and at
an intermediate point to the rod leading from the telescope lever. The arrange-
ment of this rod and its adjusting link may be the reverse of that above described,
that is, the rod with its hook be connected to the telescope lever, while the link
with the screw adjustment is connected to the brake lever. Also, instead of con-
necting the short arm of the telescope lever directly to the said rod it may be
connected to a length of chain which is led over a guide roller, and has its other
end connected to the said rod. The short arm of the telescope lever may also be
employed without the before mentioned sliding connection, in which case the
power transmitted through it would of course vary somewhat when its long arm is
lengthened or shortened. Instead of the shifting connection of the elbow lever of
the brake screw spindle for increasing the brake power, as above described, the
brake rod may have its connection to the brake lever shifted to a point farther from
the brake shaft for effecting the same purpose.
When a single brake only is to be operated, the parts are arranged as first
described, the only difference being the disconnection of the small elbow con-
necting lever, whereby the brake power would be conveyed to the second set of
brakes.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Charles Denton Abel in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
16th November 1881.
CHARLES DENTON ABEL, of No. 28, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex. "IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAY BRAKES." A com-
munication from abroad by John Hardy, of Vienna, in the Austrian Empire.
This Invention relates to the combination with the ordinary hand screw brake
apparatus of railway carriages or vans of certain mechanism whereby the
brakesman in working the brake spindle of one carriage or van can either actuate
the brakes of his own and an adjoining brake carriage simultaneously, and with
the same power as that with which the brakes of a single carriage are applied, or
he can apply the brakes to his own carriage alone in the usual way.
For this purpose each brake carriage or van is provided, in addition to the
usual screw brake gear on the opposite side of the centre line of the carriage, and
at the same distance therefrom as the brake screw spindle, with a large elbow
connecting lever pivotted to a bracket on the buffer plank, and at the other end of
the carriage there is provided a smaller elbow connecting lever in line with the
large lever. The latter has a long arm, formed telescopic, or with its outer end
arranged to slide in and out of the other part, and it is provided at its extremity
with an eye on a universal joint, by which it can either be coupled to the before
mentioned small connecting lever of the contiguous brake carriage, when owing to
the one relative position of the carriages this lever is brought opposite to it, or it
can be coupled to the elbow lever of the brake screw spindle of the said second
carriage, when this is in the reverse relative position, that is to say, when those
ends of the two carriages where the brake spindles are situated are next each other.
The other arm of the said large lever, which I will call the " telescope lever," is
connected to one end of a rod or link having in its length a right and left screw-
coupling, by which it can be lengthened or shortened, and having at its other end
a loop by which it is attached to a hook on a brake rod, both the loop and the
hook being suspended by links from the carriage framing, so that when they are
detached from each other they are held suspended by the said links, and the upper
ends of these are slid along curved slots so as to move the loop and hook asunder.
The said brake rod has its other end connected to an intermediate point in the
length of an upright lever on the brake shaft that carries the ordinary brake
levers, and to the upper end of the said upright lever is connected a rod that
extends to the before mentioned small elbow connecting lever at the other end of
the carriage.
From this arrangement it will be seen that if the two brake carriages are in the
first above described relative position, that is, with their brake screw spindles away
from each other, then on actuating the brake spindle situated at the outer end of
the one carriage its elbow lever and brake rod apply the brakes of the said carriage
in the ordinary manner, while the before mentioned upright lever on the brake
shaft communicates the motion of the latter through the before mentioned
connecting rod and small elbow connecting lever to the telescope lever of the second
brake carriage, and this in its turn communicates the motion through the before
mentioned adjusting link and hook rod to the upright lever on the brake shaft of
this carriage, whereby this shaft is actuated so as to apply the brakes. The
telescope arrangement of the large connecting lever has for its object to allow of
the ends of the two carriages moving nearer together or farther apart during the
motion of the train, while still maintaining the before described connection with
the brake gear of the next carriage, and in order to maintain the power transmitted

page_text: by the said telescope lever more or less constant, notwithstanding the lengthening
or shortening of its long arm, the following arrangement may be employed:-The
short arm of the lever has a sliding piece, to which is connected the before
mentioned link that connects it with the second brake gear, which sliding piece is
connected to one arm of a bell crank pivotted on the telescope lever, the other arm
of which bell crank is connected by a link to the sliding end of the telescope lever,
so that when such sliding end is pushed inwards and the long arm of the lever is
thus shortened, the bell crank and connecting link at the same time cause the
sliding piece of the short arın to be drawn towards the pivot of the lever, and thus
the leverage of the short arm is reduced in the same proportion as that of the long
arm is reduced, and vice versa.
In order to double the power of the brake screw spindle when operating in the
above described manner for applying both sets of brakes, as compared with the
power for applying the one set of brakes only, the elbow lever of the brake spindle
has a slot in which the connection with the brake screw spindle can be slid either
nearer to the pivot of the elbow lever, so as to reduce the leverage when only one
set of brakes is to be worked, or farther away from the pivot so as to increase the
leverage when both sets are to be worked, the said connection being held in either
position in the slot by a hinged locking piece. When the brakes are being operated
with the carriages in the above described relative position, the telescope lever at tho
outer end of the carriage whose brake spindle is being operated, being disconnected,
is raised up and secured by a fastening against the end of the carriage, the
adjusting link having been previously disconnected from the hook of the brake rod
to allow of this raising of the lever. The ordinary brake rod of the brake screw
spindle has a slotted connection to the brake levers, so that it will allow of the
motion of the latter when not actuated by its own brake screw spindle. When the
carriages are in the second above described relative position, that is, with their
brake spindles next each other, the telescope lever of the one carriage is connected
to the elbow lever of the brake spindle of the other carriage, which is then
actuated for putting on the brakes of both carriages, the telescope lever of the last
named carriage being then in the disconnected and raised position, as above
described.
It will be understood from the foregoing that the brake shaft has two upright
brake levers, to one of which the ordinary brake rod is attached, while the other
is connected at its end to the rod leading to the small elbow connecting lever, and
at an intermediate point to the rod leading from the telescope lever. The
arrangement of this rod and its adjusting link may be the reverse of that above
described, that is, the rod with its hook be connected to the telescope lever, while
the link with the screw adjustment is connected to the brake lever. Also, instead
of connecting the short arm of the telescope lever directly to the said rod, it may
be connected to a length of chain which is led over a guide roller, and has its other
end connected to the said rod. This short arm of the telescope lever may also be
employed without the before mentioned sliding connection, in which case the
power transmitted through it would of course vary somewhat when its long arın is
lengthened or shortened. Instead of the shifting connection of the elbow lever of
the brake screw spindle for increasing the brake power, as above described, the
brake rod may have its connection to the brake lever shifted to a point further from
the brake shaft for effecting the same purpose.
When a single brake only is to be operated, the parts are arranged as first
described, the only difference being the disconnection of the small elbow connecting
lever, whereby the brake power would be conveyed to the second set of brakes.
Figs. 7, 8, and 9, of the accompanying Drawings shew each in side elevation and
plan two coupled railway carriages with their brake gear constructed and operating
as before described; Figs. 1 to 6, and Figs. 10 and 11, shew detached details to an
enlarged scale; Figs. 7 and 9 shew the mode of coupling when the carriages are
formed with their ends having the brake screw spindles turned away from each
other; and Fig. 8 shews them with the said ends contiguous to each other.

page_text: Considering first the carriage marked A, Figs. 7 and 9, v, k, is the before described
telescope lever, of which the part constituting an elbow lever is pivotted to a
bracket on the carriage frame, while the sliding part having the universal joint u
is connected by a pin c to the lever w carried by bracket b¹ of the carriage B. The
part is connected by means of the rod Z with screw adjustment 8 to the lever g
on the brake spindle t, whose other lever g' is connected by rod Z" to the ordinary
lever w of the brake screw spindle. The lever g is also connected by rod Z' with
the lever w of its own carriage A. The carriage B being provided with precisely
the same parts as carriage A, it will be seen that if in the position at Figs. 7 and 9,
the brake screw spindle carriage B be actuated, it will firstly apply its own brakes
through lever w¹, rod Z", and lever g'; and secondly, it will apply the brakes of A
through lever g, rod Z, lever 2, and through telescope lever r, k, rod Z, and
lever I of A. In the position at Fig. 8, where the telescope lever of A is connected
to the lever w¹ of the brake screw spindle of B, the actuating of the latter will
firstly apply its own brakes through lever w¹, rod Z", and lever g¹; and secondly,
it will apply the brakes of A through lever r, h, rod Z, and lever g of the latter
carriage. The construction of the telescope lever, shewn at Figs. 7 and 8, will be
seen more clearly at the enlarged detached views thereof at Fig. 1, Sheet III. In
this construction the part r slides through the part having the before described
universal joint u and pin c at the front end for connection with the levers w or w¹
of the next carriage, and having a stop at the rear end to prevent its being drawn
out of . The latter has a lug with a hole through which the cotter of the bolt c
is put when the part is pushed right back when out of use, thus preventing it
from sliding forward. It will be seen that as the ends of the carriages are brought
more or less near together owing to the play of the buffers, the part will slide in and
out of k so as to adjust itself to the varying distances. The part k has a lining of
soft metal as indicated by dotted lines, in order to reduce friction.
In the modified construction shewn at Fig. 2, the part is of greater length, and
the part r does not slide right through the same, the play of the latter being limited
by a pin on its side passing through the slot of k. For facility of construction the
part is formed trough shape, provided with a lining as before, and the part r being
inserted it is enclosed by a cover secured by bolts as shewn.
Although with the above constructions of the telescope lever the short arm of
the lever remains constant while the long arm varies in length, this does not
practically cause any variation in the power applied to the brakes as would at first
sight appear to be the case; an arrangement will however be presently described
in which the leverage of the short arm is made to vary in proportion to the long
arm. Although the parts and are shewn of rectangular section, yet it will be
evident that they might also be of circular or other desired section.
When the telescope levers are out of action with the long arm r pushed right
back, as described, its rear end is made to enter a box K¹ fixed on the underside of
the carriage frame, which supports it and protects it against injury. In the con-
struction of telescope lever, shewn at Figs. 9 and 10, the sliding part has a
projection passing through a slot in the part k, and connected by link m with a
bell crank lever o pivotted to the short arm of k, and connected by a piece p to a
pin g in the slot of the arm, which pin forms the attachment for the brake rod Z.
Thus it will be seen that as the part is pushed inwards, thus shortening its
leverage, it also causes the pin g to be moved upwards towards the fulcrum of the
lever to an extent proportionate to the motion of r, thus maintaining the proportion
of the leverage in all positions of r. With this construction, as also with that last
described, when the lever is disconnected it is raised up and placed within a loop,
as indicated at the left hand end of carriage B, Fig. 9. To allow of this the brake
rod Z is made with a hook connection at h, so that the screw adjustment & con-
nected to the lever can be uncoupled from the hook, as shewn, both parts being
suspended by links d and f when in the uncoupled position.
Fig. 11 shews enlarged views of the screw adjustment a; in the construction at
Figs. 7 and 8, where the above mentioned disconnection is not required, this

page_text: adjustment is situated at the brake lever end of the rod Z. Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6,
shew variously modified forms of the lever w² for providing greater or less leverage
power to the screw spindle. In the construction at Fig. 3 the lever is merely
provided with two holes 3 and 4, so that when greater power is required the
connecting pin of the screw spindle is shifted to the hole 4, and for less power
(when only one carriage has its brakes applied) it is shifted to the hole 3. The
telescope lever of the other carriage is connected to the hole 6.
In the arrangement shewn at Figs. 4 and 5 the lever is formed both with a
transverse slot 3, 4, and a vertical slot, in which is placed a sliding piece or wedge,
as shewn; thus when the connecting pin is at 4, it is held by the wedgo in the
position shewn, while for shifting the pin to 3 the wedge is withdrawn, and
after the pin has been slid over the wedge is again inserted so as to keep the
pin at 3.
In the arrangement at Fig. 6 the lever is slotted for receiving the pin as before,
but in place of the wedge there is here provided a hinged locking piece which is
turned down on its lower hinge when the pin has to be shifted. As before stated,
instead of adjusting the power by altering the leverage of w¹, this may be effected
by forming the lever of the brake shaft t with two holes at different distances from
the shaft, the connecting pin of the rod Z being shifted from the one to the other
as required.
The connections of the rods Z and Z" to the brake-levers g, g', are both slotted,
so that the levers can always both move for putting on or taking off the brakes,
although the one or the other rod Z or Z¹¹, is for the time being out of action. It
will be seen from the above description that by disconnecting the telescope lever
between the carriages the brakes of cach carriage can be worked separately by its
own screw spindle as usual.
Having thus described the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent,
I claim,-
First. The herein described combination with the ordinary hand screw brakes of
a railway carriage or van of additional brake gear, wherein the brake shaft of the
carriage is connected to a telescope lever which can be coupled to the brake gear of
the contiguous brake carriage so as to enable either the brakes of both carriages to
be operated simultaneously by means of the brake screw spindle of the one carriage,
or each brake carriage to have its brakes operated separately.
Second. The various arrangements of additional brake gear with telescope con-
necting lever herein described with reference to the accompanying Drawings.
Third. The constructions of telescope levers herein described with reference to
Figs. 1, 2, and 10 of the Drawings.
Fourth. The construction of brake screw levers w₁ with shiftable connections for
the screw spindle herein described with reference to Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Denton Abel, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of November, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.
CHAS. D. ABEL. (L.S.)