A Station Indicator for Railway Carriages.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Mar., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 13th Dec., 1892-Accepted, 4th Feb., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A Station Indicator for Railway Carriages.
I, JOHN ROSIE, Manager of the Wick and Pulteney Town Gas Company
Wick, N.B. do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Passengers in a railway carriage by looking at a dial fixed up in their compart-
ment of the carriage can be at once made aware of the position on the line of the
train by which they are travelling, and can be warned periodically of the first
station at which the train stops.
This result is produced by a fixed indicator in front of a revolving dial, on which
are inscribed from circumference to centre all the stations between the termini of
the line over which the train is travelling.
This dial will revolve by means of a ratchet and wheel wrought by a lever in
such a manner that each movement of the lever puts the dial forward from the
name of one station to that of the next on the line.
The motive power by which the lever is acted upon may be either electricity or
air at a pressure.
If electricity by a battery placed in the guard's van with a
switch or push action as in electric bells. Over the lever of the ratchet in the
carriage an electro magnet will be placed. When the current is switched on the
magnet lifts the lever which acting on the ratchet moves the dial. On the current
being taken off the lever falls and is ready for another movement.
A bell might
also be attached to the apparatus and rung every time the lever, was moved so as to
attract the attention of the passengers.
If air at a pressure be the motive power under the end of the lever will be placed
a small piston. When turned on by a cock in the guard's van the air pressure pushes
up the piston and moves the lever. Provision is made that when the cock is turned
back the pressure is at once relieved from the piston which falls back with the lever
to a position ready for another movement.
The source of the air pressure may either be an air pump with receiver or on the
principle of a gas holder working in mercury.
For connections between the carriages the present brake connections may be
utilised for couplings either for air or electricity. In the event of them not being
available a separate and similar coupling will be adopted.
To save a multiplication of the indicating apparatus it would be fixed up in the
partition between two compartments, so that one lever and ratchet could work the
two dials one on each side of the partition.
For the simplification of the apparatus also the ratchet will have a double action
so as to move the dial backwards and forwards.
The wires or pipes for electricity or air will be carried along the bottom of each
carriage and so arranged that they can be coupled up with the present brake
couplings without any extra labour.
Dated thio 24th day of March 1900
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A Station Indicator for Railway Carriages.
I, JOHN ROSIE Manager of the Wick and Pulteney Town Gas Company
Wick N.B. do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be perforined, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
The apparatus constituting this invention is intended to indicate to passengers

page_text: in railway carriages the stations on the line of railway over which they are travelling
the position of the train on the line as between the terminii and the station which
the train is approaching.
The invention is illustrated in front elevation at Figure 1 in transverse section
at Figure 2 and in sectional front elevation on the line Figure 3 of the accom-
panying drawings-the other figures being details of the apparatus hereinafter
more particularly referred to.
The apparatus consists of an enclosing circular shell or casing A one or both
faces of which is or are filled in with a disc B of glass.
On the drawings both faces are shewn so fitted as by that arrangement one
indicator serves for two adjacent compartments of the carriage.
Within the casing A and immediately adjacent to the glass circular dials C,
having the names of the stations between the terminii of the line printed upon them
radially from the circumference to the centre are mounted upon a spindle D which
is carried by discs or diaphragms E secured to or forming part of the casing. A.,
One of these diaphragms has a plate F fastened to it and on this plate is the
operating part of the apparatus.
These parts consist of a ratchet wheel G carried on a spindle. H supported in a
frame or bracket I bolted to the plate F and geared with a pawl. J which is
piyotted on an arm of a lever K the said arm being centred loosely on the
spindle. H. Details of the pawl arm and lever are shewn to a larger scale by
Figures 4, 5 and 6 of the drawings.
The pawl is wedge shaped at its lower end and at its upper part it has two horns a
which act alternately as hereinafter described on the teeth of the ratchet wheel G
according to the direction from terminus to terminus in which the train is travelling.
It is pivotted loosely on the lever K by the stud or pin b and it has on one face of
it a heel c for knocking it over from the position shewn in full lines to that shewn in
dotted lines on Figure 4. The pawl is maintained in the position to which it is
adjusted by a spring d fastened at one end to the lever Kits free end acting against
one or other of the wedge faces of the pawl. On the spindle H there is secured.
another spur wheel L which is geared with a pinion e on whose spindle there is
keyed a bevil wheel M geared with a like wheel on the upper end of an inclined
spindle N and on whose lower end a worm screw is made or secured.
The worm
screw is geared with a worm wheel g keyed on the spindle D carrying the dials C
and at a point on the said spindle where in its rotation it will act upon the heel c, a
lever O is keyed.
The lever is connected at one end by a link P to the upper end of the piston
rod of a cylinder R into which compressed air is conducted below the piston by
the branch S. The air pressure when let on forcing the piston upwards raises the
end of the lever K which action causes the pawl J to turn the wheel G round the
distance of one tooth and through the train of mechanism herein before mentioned
to the dials C to the next station. A fixed pointer T is provided in conjunction
with each dial C.
When the air pressure is released the piston sinks to its normal position and the
apparatus is ready for the next movement. The piston in the compressed air
cylinder operates against the action of a spring h one end of which is fixed at i
whilst its other end bears upon the upwardly extending arm of the lever K aud
ensures the return of the lever to its normal position and a spring ; to act as a
brake and maintain the teeth of the wheel Gin.contact with the pawls J is also
provided.
A gong or bell k carried by the plate F may also be furnished to give audible
indication when a station is reached the hammer of the said gong being operated by
a pin or arm fixed to the free end of the lever K.
The apparatus is so arranged that when the train reaches one terminus the lever
which moves synchroneously with the dial or dials C comes at the last station to be
indicated in contact with the heel c of the pawl J and knocks the said pawl over so
that the spring d on the other inclined face and thus when the apparatus is. again

page_text: put into operation the dial moves in an opposite direction until the other terminus is
reached.
The air pressure for actuating the apparatus may be supplied by means of an air
pump and receiver in the guard's van, the supply pipes from the said receiver
throughout the length of the train being coupled together at the ends of the carriage
by any usual coupling ends or the pressure may be otherwise obtained as found
most convenient. For example where air pressure brakes are used the pressure
may be got from the apparatus furnishing pressure for that purpose and in such
event in order that the coupling may not entail extra labour on the railway servants
the couplings for the air brake may as seen in side elevation at Figure 7 and in
cross section at Figure 8 have supplementary coupling heads U applied to them to
which the air pipes for actuating the indicators are connected.
Instead of employing air pressure the lever K and apparatus actuated thereby
may be operated through an electro magnet by an electric current from a battery
placed in the guard's van and having wire connections carried along the carriages
to the indicators, circuit being made and broken to cause the magnet to attract and
release the lever by pressing and releasing a switch button in the van as is well
understood.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is :-
:-
1. The arrangement and combination of parts constituting the improved station
indicator hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings annexed.
2. In a station indicator the combination of one or two indicating dials secured
on a spindle and partially rotated in successive increments of motion by a lever
carrying a double acting pawl said lever being actuated by air pressure or by an
electro magnet to operate the pawl and through a train of wheels to partially rotate
the indicating dials substantially as set forth with reference to the accompanying
drawings.
3. In a station indicating apparatus the combination of mechanism consisting of
the lever K, pawl J, train of wheels Ge M g, screw f and lever 0 substantially as
and for the purpose hereinbefore described with reference to the appended drawings.
Dated this Twelfth day of December 1892.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agents.