IMPROVEMENTS APPLICABLE TO LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Francis Fairlie, of Victoria Strect, in the
City of Westminster, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
APPLICABLE TO LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES"
Scaled the 19th November 1872, and dated the 10th August 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Francis Fairlic
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 10th August 1872.
I, ROBERT FRANCIS FAIRLIE, of Victoria Street, in the City of West-
minster, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS APPLICABLE TO LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES," to be as follows:-
:-
This Invention relates to locomotive engines for railways having steep
inclines.
In what is known as the ordinary single boiler locomotive engine,
hitherto usually constructed for railways, the horizontal centre line of
the boiler and that of the wheels are always arranged in the construction
and maintained parallel to each other, excepting the little which the

page_text: springs acting between the wheels and the boiler permit the boiler to
move from its position, and which can never exceed 1 inch in the
whole length of the locomotive; it is therefore right to assume that the
parallelism between the boiler and wheel centres is always maintained.
This being the case, and the centres of the wheels and the rails being
also parallel to each other, it follows that when a locomotive engine is
travelling up a steep gradient with the fire-box at the lower end of the
boiler, the tubes at the upper end must get uncovered, owing to the
water collecting over the fire-box end, and the consequence of this is
that the available steam space becomes diminished, and the efficient
working of the engine becomes an impossibility.
When the position of the engine is reversed, and it is going down hill
instead of up, having the fire-box at the upper end, the water leaves the
fire-box, or, more properly speaking, the water maintains its level whilst
the fire-box is lifted to the inclination of the rails, and may be out of the
water altogether; thus, as there is no water over its crown where the
most intense heat is experienced, and where the necessity for water to
cover it exists the most, the result is that the crown plate gets burned,
and the upper row of tubes also, and an amount of injury is donc to the
locomotive which, besides totally disabling the engine for a considerable
period, costs hundreds of pounds to repair. Any means whereby the
water level and the centre line of the boiler shall be maintained parallel
to cach other on steep inclines would therefore be an undisputablo
advantage and economy to the engine.
Now the object of my Invention is to maintain the horizontal position
of the boiler on all inclines, so that it and the water in it may be level
with each other at all times and on every gradient, and the evil effects
above described entirely removed. For this purpose I so construct
single or double boiler locomotive engines that the centre line of the
boiler and the centre line through the wheels may be moved out of
parallelism by raising whichever end of the boiler happens to be on the
lower side of the incline, and lowering the other end until the boiler
becomes horizontal, so that while the wheels are ascending or descending
a gradient of, say, 1 in 20, their centres being parallel to the rails, the
centre line of the boiler will be out of parallelism to the extent of the
inclination of the line. This may be conveniently effected by providing
the boiler with a central support midway of its length (in the form of
trunnions, or otherwise), which would constitute a sort of pivot on which

page_text: the boiler is centred like a beam scales, while the boiler ends would be
carried by supports which can be raised or lowered, as required, by any
convenient arrangements. The firmness of the connection between the
boiler and frame would be maintained to any degree that may be
considered necessary.
The same object may be attained with a Fairlic double boiler loco-
motive engine, in which the fire-box is in the centre of the boiler, without
having to resort to moving the boiler on the frames, as described.
This is done by constructing the engine with the fire-box raised, so that
the upper row of tubes may incline in opposite directions down towards
the smoke boxes; this inclination should be equal to that of the maxi-
mum gradient on which the engine is intended to work. Thus on the
maximum gradient the tubes and water line are parallel to each other,
while the steam space over the fire-box is not in any way thereby affected
whether the engine be on an incline or on the level. The tubes are
fitted at the same distances apart vertically at the smoke box ends as is
now usually done; but their vertical distances apart at the fire-box arc
gradually increased from the bottom row, which is parallel with the
centre line of the boiler to the uppermost row, which is high enough at
the fire-box end to allow of an amount of inclination towards the smoke
boxes equal to the maximum gradient, as already described.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Robert Francis Fairlic in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 10th February 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
FRANCIS FAIRLIE, of Victoria Strect, in the City of Westminster.
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of August, in the year of
O our Lord One thousand cight hundred and seventy-two, in the thirty-
sixth year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Robert Francis Fairlie, Her special licence
that I, the said Robert Francis Fairlie, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Robert Francis Fairlic, my

page_text: executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, 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 "Iм-
PROVEMENTS APPLICABLE TO LOCOMOTIVE ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Robert Francis Fairlie, my executors or adminis-
trators, 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
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 Robert Francis Fairlie, do hereby
declare the nature of my 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, reference being had to the accom-
panying Drawings, that is to say :—
This Invention relates to locomotive engines for railways having steep
inclines.
In what is known as the ordinary single boiler locomotive engine
hitherto usually constructed for railways, the horizontal centre line of
the boiler and that of the wheels are always arranged in the construction
and maintained parallel to each other, excepting the little which the
springs acting between the wheels and the boiler permit the boiler to
move from its position, and which can never exceed one inch in the
whole length of the locomotive. It is therefore right to assume that the
parallelism between the boiler and wheel centres is always maintained.
This being the case, and the centres of the wheels and the rails being
also parallel to each other, it follows that when a locomotive engine is a
travelling up a steep gradient with the fire-box at the lower end of the
boiler the tubes at the upper end must get uncovered owing to the
water collecting over the fire-box end, and the consequence of this is
that the available steam space becomes diminished, and the efficient
working of the engine becomes an impossibility.
When the position of the engine is reversed, and it is going down hill
instead of up, having the fire-box at the upper end, the water leaves the

page_text: fire-box, or more properly speaking the water maintains its level, whilst
the fire-box is lifted to the inclination of the rails, and may be out of the
water altogether; thus as there is no water over its crown, where the
most intense heat is experienced, and where the necessity for water to
cover it exists the most, the result is that the crown plate gets burned,
and the upper row of tubes also, and an amount of injury is done to the
locomotive which, besides totally disabling the engine for a considerable
period, costs hundreds of pounds to repair, any means whereby the
water level and the centre line of the boiler shall be maintained parallel
to cach other on steep inclines would therefore be an indisputable
advantage and economy to the engine.
Now the object of my Invention is to maintain the horizontal position
of the boiler on all inclines, so that it and the water in it may be level
with each other at all times and on every gradient, and the evil effects
above described entirely removed. For this purpose I so construct single
or double boiler locomotive engines that the centre line of the boiler and
the centre line through the wheels may be moved out of parallelism by
raising whichever end of the boiler happens to be on the lower side of
the incline, and lowering the other end, until the boiler becomes hori-
zontal, so that while the wheels are ascending or descending a gradient
of, say 1 in 20, their centres being parallel to the rails, the centre line of
the boiler will be out of parallelism to the extent of inclination of the
line. This may be conveniently effected by providing the boiler with a
support midway of its length (in the form of trunnions or otherwise),
which would constitute a sort of pivot on which the boiler is centred,
like a beam scales, while the boiler ends would be carried by supports,
which can be raised or lowered as required by any convenient arrange-
ments. The firmness of the connection between the boiler and frame
would be maintained to any degree that may be considered necessary.
There are many methods by which the operation of raising or lowering
the ends of the boiler may be carried out, but with the object of illus-
trating more clearly the principles of this Invention I give the following
method as one of them :-
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings represents the manner in
which I prefer to apply my Invention to a double boiler or Fairlie
locomotive engine, a similar arrangement being applicable in nearly like
manner to the boiler of the ordinary locomotive engine. A, A, are the

page_text: bogic frames, and B, B, the bogic pins. J is the carrier frame on which
the boiler rests, the side of this frame being removed in the Figure. I is
a trunnion forming a support for the boiler midway of its length, and
constituting a sort of pivot on which the boiler is centred, as above
explained. E, E, are blocks bolted on to the cradles K, K, in which the
boiler cuds are carried. C, C, are bell crank levers connected by one arm
to the blocks E, E, and by their other arm to the ends of rods F, F, the
.opposite ends of which are in the form of screw sockets. G is a screw
taking into the two sockets, and provided with a ratchet lever H. By
working this ratchet lever in one direction or the other, according to
requirement, one of the rods F is moved inwards and the other one
outwards, the bell cranks C, C, receiving corresponding movements,
whereby one end of the boiler is raised and the other lowered to an equal
extent, with the object herein-before explained. D, D, are guides for the
boiler while being raised or lowered.
Figure 2 is a cross section shewing the cradles K, K, in which the
boiler rests, and the guides D, D, on the carrier frame, in which the
cradles K, K, slide as the boiler is raised or lowered. The dotted lines
shew the boiler raised to its full extent.
The same object may be attained with a Fairlic double boiler loco-
motive engine, in which the fire-box is in the centre of the boiler, without
having to resort to moving the boiler on the frames as above described.
This is done by constructing the engine with the fire-box raised, as
shown in Figure 3, a being the line of the old fire-box, so that the upper
row of tubes b may incline in opposite directions down towards tho
smoke boxes; this inclination should be equal to that of the maximum
Thus on the
gradient on which the engine is intended to work.
maximum gradient the tubes and water line are parallel to cach other,
while the steam space over the fire-box is not in any way thereby
c repre-
affected, whether the engine be on an incline or on the level.
sents the line of the old tubes. The tubes are fitted at the same
distances apart vertically at the smoke box ends as is now usually done,
but their vertical distances apart at the fire-box are gradually increased
from the bottom row, which is parallel with the centre line of the boiler,
to the uppermost row, which is high enough at the fire-box end to allow
of an amount of inclination towards the smoke boxes equal to the
maximum gradient, as already described.