IMPROVEMENTS IN SEMAPHORES
Year: 1886

page_text: I, DAVID TAPLEY, of Woodstock, in the County of Carleton, in the Province of
New Brunswick, Dominion of Canada, track-master, do hereby declare the nature
of my invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN SEMAPHORES and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, that is to say:
:-
My invention relates to Semaphores for railways, and has for its object the
construction, of apparatus which is easily operated, reliable, keep in good working
order in severe weather, and which is more easily produced.
.
The principal features of my invention consist in counterbalancing the signal wire,
providing means for taking up the slack of the latter and connecting the signalling
board direct to the lamp rod by means of a double universal coupling.
Referring to the drawings.
Fig. 1 is an elevation of the signalling post at the station, showing the balance lever
and slack-taking-up device on a large scale.
Fig. 2 is an elevation of the same post and a semaphore post, the intermediate wire
being omitted.
Fig. 3 is an elevation of the semaphore post from the other side.
Figs. 4 and 5 are top and side view of the universal joint on a larger scale.
Fig. 6 is a top view of the lever R and its connections.
S is the semaphore post carrying the signal lamp L and the signal arm A: The
lamp is fast at the top of the lamp rod R, which is carried in bearings on the post
and is provided at its lower end with a slotted lever R'. This lever is operated from.
a distant station or post P by means of a bell-crank lever B, to which it is connected
by a shackle W working in the slot in the end by a chain or pull-wire W. The
lever B is pivoted to the post P or other object from which the semaphore is operated
A similar lever,
and bears against a segment b on which it may be locked.
B', is also pivoted to the semaphore post S, and connected by a chain b¹ to the
shackle W working on the lever R. Both levers are counterbalanced by the
weights B moving in opposite directions to each other, thereby keeping the
The wire W is connected
wire W taut, causing an easy motion of the levers.

page_text: to the lever B by a chain W₁ passing through a clevis w fast on the lever
and provided and secured with a slip-link to. Cis chain secured to the post P and
provided with a grab-hook C. The signal arm A is fast upon a pivot a journalled in
the post S and connected to the rod R by means of the universal joint U u. Opposite
this pivot the rod R is provided with a bent or gap to leave room for the working
of the joint U u. I prefer making the rod R of gas pipe and the bent is easily and
cheaply formed with a T and three-quarter bends.
In figs. 2 and 3 the semaphore is shown open, i.e. the signal arm is down, and the
lamp in the corresponding position, the dotted lines showing the position of the levers
when the semaphore is closed and the arm is up.
It is self evident that in operation the lever B has merely to be raised or depressed
to close or open the signals, the lamp and arm moving simultaneously and doing away
with the bevel-gear, which is apt to get clogged in severe weather. The wire W being
kept taut and the levers balanced, a boy can easily operate a long distance signal, and
the wire is not apt to be damaged at the sheaves. If the wire becomes slack from
expansion or other cause the slack is easily and quickly taken up by hooking the
chain C by the hook C₁ into the chain W₁ then lifting the lever B and shortening the
chain W to the desired extent by means of the slip-link w¹.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is.
1. The combination with the pull-wire of a semaphore, the chain C, grab-hook (",
chain W and slip-link w', substantially as shown and described.
2. The combination with a signal lamp of the rod R; hend », universal joint U u,
pivot a and arm A, substantially as shown and described.
3. The combination of the counterbalanced levers B and B', wire W, chain,
slotted lever R', and rod R, substantially as shown and described.
4. The combination of the levers B and B', segment, chain W, wire W, chain &,
lever R¹, rod R, bend r', universal joint Un, pivot a and arm A, substantially as
shown and described.
DAVID TAPLEY.
Per A. Harvey,
His Attorney.