SELF-ACTING APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING ELECTRIC CONTACT BY PASSING TRAINS OR CARRIAGES ON RAIL OR TRAMWAYS
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alex Bernstein, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of
Prussia, Engineer, for the Invention of "SELF-ACTING APPARATUS FOR
EFFECTING ELECTRIC CONTACT BY PASSING TRAINS OR CARRIAGES ON RAIL OR
TRAMWAYS."
Scaled the 22nd July 1873, and dated the 28th January 1873.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alex Bernstein at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
28th January 1873.
I, ALEX BERNSTEIN, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "Self-acting
APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING ELECTRIC CONTACT BY PASSING TRAINS OF CARRIAGES
ON RAIL OR TRAMWAYS," to be as follows:-
This Invention bas for its object by the self-acting closing of an
electric current by a passing train to set in motion an alarm apparatus
placed in the superintendent's office or other suitable place, and thus
give intimation of the approaching arrival of the train or carriage.
This is effected by the wheels of the passing train or carriage pressing

page_text: down parts of extra spring rails projecting above the ordinary rails, such
spring rails being attached at one end by an extra cross bar to such
ordinary rails. The other end of each of the spring rails are connected
by means of an angle-iron bar running under the line parallel to the
cross bar connecting them to the rails; this angle-iron bar acts when
both spring rails are simultaneously depressed to compress a double
arched spring by pressing on a bolt having a half-round head fastened
to the upper surface of the upper blade thereof, and thereby acting by
means of a hoop to which is attached by means of nuts a bolt which
carries at its lower portion a plate, the lower surface of which is
covered with pasteboard. This plate presses on the india-rubber bladder
compressing the air contained therein, causing it to pass through a
leaden pipo to another india-rubber bladder, thereby moving a metal
plate lying freely thereon, which plate carries a pin having a platinum
point capable of moving freely up and down in a guide affixed to the
side of the box enclosing this portion of the apparatus, in order to bring
such platiuum point into electrical contact with a platinum plate carried
on the lower surface of a strip of spring metal attached at one end to
the side of the enclosing box. This platinum pointed pin is brought
back into position to be acted upon by a coiled spring thereon. Such!
platinum pointed pin and the platinum plate into contact with which
it is brought being each by suitable clamps in communication with a
connecting wire an electric current is produced, which causes an
alarm or signal to be given to the superintendent or other person
in charge at the station towards which the train or carriage is :
travelling.
In the event of one only of the spring rails being by accident
depressed the signalling apparatus will not be set in motion, but tho
opposite spring rail will be raised as the one is depressed by tho
angle iron cross bar moving around the head of the bolt on which a
it rests.
'
Lateral play in the up-and-down movement of the spring rails is
prevented by guides fixed to the angle-iron cross bar.
Parts of the apparatus are enclosed in suitable boxes or casing for
protection from water or other injury.
3

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,'
filed by the said Alex Bernstein in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 26th July 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALEX
BERNSTEIN, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Alex Bernstein, Her special
license that I, the said Alex Bernstein, my exccutors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Alex Bernstein, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no
otliers, 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 "SELF-LCTING
APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING ELECTRIC CONTACT BY PASSING TRAINS OR CARRIAGES
ON RAIL OR TRAMWAYS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Alex Bernstein, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and
scals, 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 Alex Bernstein, 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 thereof, that is to say :-
The object of the Invention is the self-acting closing of an electric
current by means of a passing train. This apparatus commences its
action every S or 10 minutes before the train arrives at the station, and
by means of this closing of the electric current an alarm apparatus
stationed in the superintendent's office or other suitable position is set

page_text: in motion, which thus informs the superintendent of the approaching
arrival of the train and gives him time to make the necessary
preparations connected with the same.
""
In Figures I. to IV. of the accompanying Drawings the "self-acting
electro-pneumatic contact is shown to a scale of 15th of the real size,
while Figure V. represents a portion of the same full size. Figure 1 is
a plan view of this apparatus; Figure 2 is a cross section of the
same taken through the lines A, B, of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a section
of the same taken through the lines C, D, in Figure 1; Figure 4 is
a section taken through the lines E, F, G, in Figure 1; Figure 5 is a
section of the second portion of this apparatus. 8 and 8' represent the
two rails of the arrival line in a position about 8 to 10 minutes distanco
from the station. These two rails are connected by a cross bar, whoso
ends are somewhat broader outside the rails and are bent outwards.
One end of the two spring rails n, n', is fixed to the part of the cross
bar which is bent upwards.
The form and position of these two spring rails, each situated on the
outside of the main rail, is plainly shewn in the accompanying
Drawings. The same form an extended curve which has its highest
point laying about half an inch above the level of the rails. The other
ends of the two spring rails n, n', are connected by means of an angle-
iron bar W running under the line parallel to the cross bar t, and which
is bent upwards so as to take the form as represented in Figure 3.
To prevent any lateral play in the up-and-downward motion of these
two spring rails n, n¹, two small pieces of angle iron 10³, 10', are fixed to
the angle-iron to to serve as guides, as shown in Figure 3. A cast-iron
box K is placed underneath the angle iron to in a position parallel with
the sleepers, as shown in Figures 1, 3, and 4, and a double-arched
spring plate ff, the form of which is plainly to be seen in Figure 3 is
fastened on the bottom of the box. To the upper blade of the spring
plato is fastened a bolt i having a half-round head on which the angle
iron 10 rests in its middle. On the inner side of the two arches of the
spring is to be found a hoop 6 to which is attached by means of two
nuts a bolt which carries at its lower portion a round plate p.
By means of the nuts the bolt and plate p may be moved either
upwards or downwards as required. By the compression of the spring
the above-mentioned plate p whose lower surface is covered with

page_text: pasteboard presses on the india-rubber bladder m, compresses the air
contained in the same, and allows the air mentioned to escape through
the leaden pipe ". Such compression of the double-arched spring
plate ff, takes place however every time that a pair of wheels pass
over that portion of the rails to which the extra spring rails n, n¹, aro
attached, as the tires of the wheels press upon the extra spring rails
and thus depress the head of the bolt i by means of the angle-iron
cross bar 10. The bolt i moves within a stuffing-box fitted to the lid of
the box to prevent the entrance of water or any dirty substance to
the mechanism contained in the box.
"
As already remarked the head of the bolt is round and passes into a
ball-shaped cavity in the angle-iron cross bar, the latter resting on the
head of the said bolt. By this means a joint-like communication is
produced between the angle-iron cross bar and the bolt, as well as with
the mechanism contained in the box as mentioned, so that a depression
of the bolt i can only take place when both spring rails are simul-
taneously depressed, while should the pointsman accidentally step on
the extra rail and thus depress one end of the angle-iron cross bar, the
same would move itself around the head of the bolt and the other end
would be elevated, so that should any person thus accidentally tread on
the one side of this apparatus it would produce no action whatsoever on
the part of the alarm contact.
The air current passing through the leaden pipe caused by the
compression of the spring plate f¹, and the india-rubber bladder mis
now used to produce the electrical contact and to free (or permit the
action of) a common alarm apparatus.
The apparatus which is represented full size in Figure 5 serves to
perform this operation by closing the electric current.
In a wooden box of about the same depth as breadth is a second
india-rubber bladder m² into which the before-mentioned leaden pipe "
opens. On the upper surface of this india-rubber bladder m¹ lies (free)
a metal plate p'; this plate carries a pin q with a platinum point,
which can move freely up and down in the guide b'; between the
plate p' and the guide b' is a spiral spring which is compressed by the
ascending movement of the plate p'. Above the platinum point is a
strip of spring metal g the end of which is attached to the wooden box.
The aforesaid strip of spring metal carries at its lowest surface a small

page_text: platinum plate opposite to the platinum point. Tho two clamps v
and ' are brought into connection with tho strip g and the plate p¹ by
means of wires. If a train now passes over the line of rails the tires
of the wheels which are considerably broader than the head of the rails,
will
press
down the ends of the two extra spring rails n, n', compress 5
the double-arched spring ƒ, ƒ, and produce a current of air in the
pipe, as already described above. Through this air current the
india-rubber bladder m' is extended or inflated, which raises the plate p
until the platinum bolt comes in contact with the strip g and thus
closes an electric current in which the connecting wires held by the 1
clamps v, v', are inserted, through which the superintendent can be
apprised of the approaching arrival of the train.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and means which
I adopt in carrying the same into effect, I would have it understood
that I do not confine myself to the precise details shewn and described, 1
but what I claim is,―
First. The application of two extra spring rails, laying parallel to
the main rails of the line, capable of being depressed by the flanges
of the wheels in manner and for the purpose, substantially as
described.
Second. The employment of pneumatic apparatus to transfer the
motion of such moveable rails to electric contact apparatus, in manner
and for the purposes substantially as explained.
20
Third. The arrangement and combination of parts forming contact
apparatus, acting in manner and for the purpose, substantially as 2
explained.
In witness whereof, 1, the said Alex Bernstein, have hereunto
set my hand and scal, this Sixteenth day of July, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
three.
30