IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAYS AND IN STEAM ENGINES USED THEREON, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Year: 1836

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, THOMAS
BINNS, of Mornington Place, Hampstead Road, in the County of Middlesex,
Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date
at Westminster, the Sixth day of August, in the seventh year of His reign,
did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Thomas Binns, His especial licence, full power, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said Thomas Binns, my exors, adññors, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Thomas Binns, my exors, adññors, 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 RAILWAYS AND IN
STEAM ENGINES USED THEREON, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES;" in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Thomas Binns, 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 His 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
Thomas Binns, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and the

page_text: manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
My Invention relates :-
First, to the mode of constructing the rails and supports thereof for the
passage of carriages.
Secondly, in the application of screws to propelling carriages up inclined
planes, and for-regulating the descent of carriages down inclined planes.
And, thirdly, to the construction of rotatory steam engines, particularly
applicable to the propelling of carriages on railways, and also for other pur-
poses. And in order that my Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into effect, I will describe the Drawings hereunto annexed, in
each of the Figures of which the same letters are used to denote similar parts.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 represents a side view of part of a railway constructed according to
my Invention; Figure 2. is a plan. thereof, and Figure. 3 is a transverse section
thereof. a, a, are the rails or ways on which the carriages run. These rails
are cast together with the inverted supports b, b, which consist of hollow
trunks or castings of iron, which, being filled with concrete or other, suitable
material, offers a secure support, and will be more capable of ensuring a
level and uniform surface of rail than any other means at present,in use for
the same purpose.
c, c, are stone blocks or blocks of slate, which will be
found desirable to be used when the nature of the ground requires it. The
inverted supports b, b, are combined together and retained parallel by means
of iron ties d, d, one to each joint of rails and supports a, b, and these ties
are affixed to the supports 6 by means of screws or other suitable means.
d, d, are plates of iron, affixed by screws. or otherwise to the inverted supports.
of the rails, in order to insure the rails being kept parallel, as is clearly shewn
in the Drawings.
Figure 4 is a plan of part of a railway having my second improvement
applied thereto, the rails and supports being similar to those above. described,
but this second improvement may be applied to other constructions..of...rail..
ways. Figure 5 is a transverse section of Figure 4; Figure 6 is a side
view thereof, having a suitable truck or carriage to be actuated according
to my second improvement. e, e, are screws on the shaft f. f, which turns
in suitable bearing at intervals in its length. This shaft f, f, is to be actuated
and receive rotatory motion from a stationary steam engine, or from a water
wheel or other suitable power. g represents one of the bearings of the
shaft f, and this bearing also serves to retain the rails parallel to each other.
h, h, are the flanged wheels of the truck or carriage i, i; and i, j, are two

page_text: projecting surfaces affixed to the carriage i, i, and resting against the worm of
the screws. The truck or carriage will only move when the screw is actuated,
the parts i, j, being acted upon by the revolving inclined surfaces of the
screws, and the parts j, j, are at such a distance apart as to ensure the
bearing of one of them against the screw, notwithstanding the passing over
bearings of the shaft f, and consequent distance of the screws from one to
the other, all which will readily be understood on examining the Drawings.
In applying these screws on inclined planes of railways, the locomotive
carriage coming up with a train is to be hooked or connected with the truck
or carriage i, i, and the shaft f put into gear with the working power; and it
should be remarked that suitable clutch boxes should be employed for this
purpose, by which the working of the screws may be put into and out of
motion whenever required. When the truck or carriage i, i, has arrived
partly up the inclined plane, so much as to have drawn up the whole train
on to the inclined plane, a second truck or carriage i, i, should be run on in
order to push the train up the inclined plane, in order that the first truck or
carriage i, i, may, when it comes to the top of the incline, and, consequently,
no longer acted on by screws, may with the train of carriages be forced for-
ward, and arrive in a proper position for the locomotive carrriage again to
draw its train; the trucks or carriages i, i, are then to be detached. It will
be evident that the application of the screws will also be very advantageous
in passing trains of carriages down inclined planes, and inclines which would
otherwise be dangerous may be passed by the aid of screws with facility.
Figure 7 shews a side view of a rotatory steam engine constructed
according to my third improvement; Figure 8 is an end view thereof;
Figure 9, a longitudinal section; Figure 10, a plan in section; Figure 11,
'the piston shewn separately; Figure 12, the steam abutment shewn sepa-
rately. Figure 18 shews a side view of two steam engines constructed
according to my said third improvement, applied to a locomotive engine
or carriage; Figure 14 being a plan, and Figure 15 an end view of
Figure 13. k, k, is the steam cylinder, the construction of which will
readily be ascertained by an examination of the various Figures of the
Drawing. Z is the induction or steam pipe from the boiler; and m, the
eduction way; n is the main shaft passing through the covers of the cylinder,
there being stuffing boxes to keep the same steam-tight; *o is a cylinder
having affixed thereto the piston p, as is clearly shewn, the cylinder o being
bolted to the shaft n, they consequently turn together; q is what I call the
steam stop, as it prevents the steam passing in that direction. This steam
stop 9 turns on axes 7, 7, by which it can fold back and allow the piston to

page_text: pass.
Now, it will be evident on permitting steam to pass through the
steam pipe, it will press on the piston and drive it round in the direction
of the arrows, and just before it reaches the eduction way the steam is
to be shut off, and the steam stop folded out of the way in order to the
passing of the piston; and when the piston has passed the induction way,
the steam stop is again to be closed, and the steam again permitted to
flow from the boiler; this folding of the steam stop 7 may be accomplished
by a weight or spring acting on the axis 7, which being overcome by the
travelling of the piston, is brought back to its place by the spring or weight,
or by any suitable means. These operations will readily be obtained by using
two steam cylinders of like construction, the pistons of which are set at right
angles, and their shafts having cog wheels s, s, fixed thereon, geering into
each other; there will at all times be one cylinder in full action, whilst the
other is out of action. t, t, are tappets on the wheels s, s, which coming
in contact with the cranked levers v, v, on the plugs or valves of the cocks in
the steam pipes from the boiler; and u is a connecting rod to connect the
levers v, v, together; either of the levers v being acted on the other will be
reversed, hence, when the steam is turned on to one engine the other will be
turned off. Figure 16 shews another arrangement of steam cylinder having
a somewhat similar steam stop, but the piston thereof moves on an axis,
and is capable of folding when passing the steam stop. Figures 17 and 18
shew this engine applied to a locomotive carriage, the wheels thereof being
actuated by a cogged wheel on the main shaft of the engine. Figure 19
shews a longitudinal section of a boiler forming part of my steam engine,
and constituting the fourth part of my improvements. Figure 20 is a plan
in section, shewing the arrangement of the tubes constituting the flues;
Figure 21 is a transverse section of the same. w, w, is the furnace, the
flames and the heated air and vapours from the fluid being constrained to
pass in the direction of the arrows by the stop plate a, and the same are
again constrained to pass through the tubes y in consequence of the stop or
plate, and from thence they pass to the chimney. A is a casing or external
flue in which the boiler is placed.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I would remark that I lay no claim to the
various parts separately; but what I do claim is,-
First, the mode of constructing railways by means of inverted cast-iron
supports b, in combination with rails a and iron ties c, as above described.
Secondly, I claim the application of screws to facilitate the passage of
carriages up and down inclined planes of railways, as above described.

page_text: Thirdly, I claim the mode of combining the rotatory steam engines above
escribed, whether employed for railway carriages or for other purposes.
And, fourthly, I claim the combining of a tubular steam boiler for loco-
otive steam engines and other purposes within a case or flue A, as above
escribed.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Binns, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Second day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and thirty-seven.