IMPROVEMENTS IN BREAKS, APPLICABLE TO CARRIAGES AND ROLLING STOCK USED ON RAILWAYS AND ELSEWHERE
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Michael Henry, of 84, Fleet Street, in the City of
London, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREAKS,
APPLICABLE TO CARRIAGES AND ROLLING STOCK USED ON RAILWAYS AND
ELSEWHERE."-A communication from abroad by Philippe Louis Aimé
Stilmant and Louis Anne Felix Allain, of 33, Boulevard Saint Martin,
Paris.
Sealed the 11th June 1861, and dated the 1st January 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Michael Henry at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
1st January 1861.
I, MICHAEL HENRY, of 84, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent
Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREAKS, APPLICABLE TO CARRIAGES AND ROLLING STOCK USED ON RAILWAYS
AND ELSEWHERE," communicated to me from abroad by Philippe Louis Aimé
Stilmant and Louis Anne Felix Allain, of 33, Boulevard Saint Martin, Paris,
to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of a break, in which a wedge block or variously
shaped moveable piece is brought between a wheel, pulley, or revolving object
to be stopped or retarded, and an inclined plate or surface on a bar, rod, shaft,
bearer, arm, or equivalent, and thereby effects the required retarding or stop-
ping. The break may be applied on the bearing wheels or on a pulley
keyed on the axle or on any suitable revolving part or object desired, and the
arrangements for carrying the Invention into effect may be varied without
departing from the method of construction and action. The block or "break"

page_text: piece may be readily actuated or controlled by suitable appliances, so as to
bring it into the required position between the inclined surface and the re-
volving wheel or object, so that it may push in and bear, press, or act to the
desired extent to effect the stoppage or retarding action.
I proceed to describe a particular modification, but only as an example, as
the arrangements may be varied. Here the block or wedge is to act on a
hind bearing wheel, and is jointed to a lever suitably centred and raised, or
lowered by a chain rod or equivalent, and weighted, if desired; the block has
a skid or shoe jointed to it. A rigid bar or strut is suspended under the
carriage by jointed slings or otherwise, and has at the end next the block an
inclined plate or surface, while to the other end is jointed a skid or shoe to act
on the front wheel. The depressing of the lever will bring the block between
the hind wheel and inclined plate; the revolving motion of the wheel tending
to drag the block and fix or lock it more firmly, or its descent and consequent
friction may be more or less regulated. The front skid also presses on the
front wheel. The inclined plate may have in it a slot or groove to guide the
block and facilitate its withdrawal. The bar may be in two pieces in length,
connected adjustably to adjust it for length, as required, by wear or otherwise;
the same arrangement may be modified to act on a pulley on the axle instead
of on the bearing wheel; one or more skids may act on the same wheel or
axle; one break may be for the forward and another for the reverse motion;
and for railway trains a number may be so contrived as to be worked singly
or together.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Michael Henry in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
1st July 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, MICHAEL
HENRY, of 84, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent Agent, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the First day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fourth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Michael Henry, Her special licence that I, the said Michael Henry,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Michael Henry, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-

page_text: after 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 "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREAKS, APPLICABLE TO CARRIAGES AND ROLLING STOCK USED ON RAILWAYS
AND ELSEWHERE," communicated to me from abroad by Philippe Louis Aimé
Stilmant and Louis Anne Felix Allain, of 33, Boulevard Saint Martin, Paris,
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Michael Henry, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, 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 per-
formed, 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 Michael Henry, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, as communicated to me, reference being had to the
accompanying, Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that
is to say:
This Invention consists of a break, in which a wedge block or variously
shaped moveable piece is brought between a wheel pulley or revolving object
to be stopped or retarded, and an inclined plate, plane, or surface on a bar,
rod, shaft, bearer, arm, or equivalent, and thereby effects the required retard-
ing or stopping action. The break may be applied so as to act against the
ordinary or bearing wheels of the carriage, or on a wheel keyed on the axle
or on the revolving part or object desired. The block or, as I hercin call it,
the "break piece," may be readily actuated or controlled by appliances suitable
for bringing it into the required position between the inclined surface and .the
revolving wheel or object where it pushes in and bears, presses, or acts to the
O desired extent to effect the required stopping or retarding action.
I proceed to describe a particular arrangement, by way of example, for
carrying the Invention into effect, herein-after more particularly explained,
with reference to the Drawings. Here the block or wedge is intended to act
on a hind bearing wheel, and is jointed to a suitably centred lever raised or
5 lowered by a chain rod or equivalent and weighted at one end. The block has
a friction piece (sabôt) jointed to it. A rigid bar is suspended under the
carriage by jointed slings or otherwise, and has at the end next the block an
inclined plate or surface, while to the other end is jointed a friction piece
(sabôt) to act on the front wheel. The depression of the lever will bring the

page_text: block between the hind wheel and the inclined plate, the revolving motion of
the wheel tending to drag down the block, and jam or lock it more firmly; or
its descent and the consequent friction may be more or less regulated. The
front friction piece also presses at the same time on the front wheel. The in-
clined plate is formed with a slot or groove to guide the block and facilitate
its withdrawal. The bar may be in two pieces in length connected adjustably,
to adjust it for length, as required, by wear or otherwise. The foregoing
arrangement of break may be modified to adapt it for acting on a wheel on
the axle instead of on the bearing wheel; and one or more friction surfaces
may act on the same wheel or axle; and one break may be for the forward
and another for the reverse or back motion. And for railway trains the breaks
may be so contrived that any number of these breaks may be worked
together.
The accompanying Drawings particularly exemplify a break constructed
according to the present Invention. I may here mention that these breaks
may serve either for stopping carriages instantaneously, or for stopping or
retarding them gradually. Figure 1 is an elevation, and Figure 2 a plan of a
portion of a railway carriage, with this improved break attached.
A is a wedge block or appliance, herein called a "break piece," attached
by a jointed link to a lever B. This lever B has a weight y attached to it at
one end, and it is connected at its opposite end to a shaft S at a point midway
of the shaft's length in such manner as to rest and work on the shaft, which
thus forms its fulcrum. The shaft S is attached to the under framework of
the carriage by brackets H. The break piece A is attached to the lever Bat
a point between the latter's fulcrum on S and the weight y. The lever B is
raised and lowered at pleasure by means of a chain & attached to it at one end.
This chain passes over a pulley E, and is retained when not required to move
the lever by a catch at F; C is a firm or rigid rod or bar, which I call the
break bar, slung from the bottom of the carriage at one side thereof (between
the front and back wheels) by links, slings, or attachments D, D, fastened to
the bottom of the carriage by brackets G. The details of the arrangements
D, G, may be varied to suit the particular construction of carriage. The bar
C is formed in two pieces in respect of its length, the pieces being joined end
to end at d; and they are flanged at the ends & where they meet, and are fas-
tened together by bolts and nuts, so that as the breaks get worn the bar may
be adjusted as to its length to accommodate itself to the same. At one end
the break bar C terminates in an inclined plate or surface T, which is grooved
or morticed from top to bottom to guide and steady the block A when the
latter is in action, as herein-after explained. O is a friction piece (sabót),

page_text: common break block, or rubbing surface attached at the opposite end of the
bar C (I call O a "friction piece," to avoid confusion in the description); I
and J are ordinary stays for preventing the guards from coming asunder when
the breaks are put on. The position and arrangement of the parts are such
that when the lever B is depressed it will bring the block A between the
inclined plane T and the wheel P, so that when it is desired to put on the
breaks to retard or stop the carriage the chain is released from the catch F,
thereby depressing the lever B, and consequently lowering the block A, so
that this block drops between the inclined plane T and the wheel P, and
becomes pressed between them; the motion of the wheel P in continuing or
tending to revolve, (supposing the carriage to be travelling in the direction of
the arrow,) necessarily forces the block A further down between itself and the
plate T, dragging the block downward as if towards the rail, and jamming it
in more and more until the required friction or pressure is produced, and the
retarding or stopping action effected. At the same time the break bar C is
forced forward so as to bring its friction piece O against the front wheel P',
and allow it to exert the required friction or pressure thereon. As the block A
moves down the plate T it slides along the groove therein, whereby the block
is steadied in its descent, and also by this arrangement when the block has
done its work it can be more easily pulled up again from between the wheel
and plate. By presenting a certain amount of resistance to the descent of the
block A, when interposed between the plate and wheel its downward progress
may be duly regulated, so as to allow it to exert a greater or less amount of
friction on the wheel and thus retard or stop it more or less suddenly or gra-
dually. There is a similar bar C with ends O and T at the opposite side of
the carriage to that shewn in the Drawing, and a corresponding block A at
that side also suspended to the lever B, so that the lever actuates both blocks A
at once, and thereby puts breaks on the four wheels at the same time.
Instead of a chain x and catch F a rigid rod or bar may be used, which can be
worked by hand; the handle of this rod might work in a toothed catch plate
or segment to control the break action, as desired. By an arrangement
of levers a single chain might work several break pieces at one and the same
time.
Figure 3 is an elevation, and Figure 4 a plan of a modification shewing the
break adapted for acting on a wheel K fixed for the purpose in the middle of
the carriage axle. The block A is operated by a lever B, as before, and acts
in a similar manner to that before explained, except that it bears against the
wheel K instead of the wheel P, the bar C being suitably placed to adapt it

page_text: for this modified arrangement with a friction piece O at the opposite end for
acting against a wheel K on the other axle.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same may be carried into effect, I declare that I wish it to be understood
that I do not restrict myself to the particular form of wedge block or
appliance A shewn, nor to the precise details represented, as the same may be
varied without departing from the method of construction and action or nature
of Invention herein described. And I declare that my Invention relates to
breaks for carriages and rolling stock used on railways and elsewhere, and that
what I claim as constituting the said Invention is,―
First, constructing a break, in which a moveable piece or appliance is so
arranged as to be inserted at pleasure between an inclined plane or surface
on a suitably hung firm or rigid bar, rod, or bearer, and a wheel axle or
revolving body forming part of or attached to the carriage or vehicle, thereby
producing the required retarding or stopping action; the said moveable
appliance being a piece independent or distinct from the inclined and revolving
bodies between-and-in-contact-with which it acts.
Second, the arrangement and combination of break, that is, of the wedge
block, or break piece with the break bar having a friction piece at one end and
an inclined plane at the other, as represented in Figures 1 and 2 of the
Drawings, and herein-before described.
Third, the arrangement and combination of break, represented in Figures 3
and 4 of the Drawings, and herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Michael Henry, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this First day of July, One thousand eight hundred
and sixty-one.
Witness,
S. E. A. NEWSOME,
Patent Office, 84, Fleet Street.
M. HENRY. (L.S.)