Improvements in Bearings suitable for the Wheels of Railway and other Vehicles, and for Axles and Shafting.
Year: 1895

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Bearings suitable for the Wheels of Railway and
other Vehicles, and for Axles and Shafting.
We, ROBERT HUDSON and WALTER SKELTON HUDSON, both of Gildersome
Foundry, near Leeds, in the County of York, Engineers, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improved constructions and arrangements of antifriction
bearings suitable for the wheels of railway and other vehicles and for axles and
shafting, and in which a ring of connected anti-friction rollers are arranged to
work between two annular surfaces one of which rotates around the other.
In one construction of railway or tramway vehicle bearing according to this
invention, the antifriction rollers are spaced apart and rotatably mounted in a
frame consisting of two rings between which the rollers work. The rollers are
arranged to rotate around a lateral support or projection of circular cross section
carried by a bracket secured or adapted to be secured to the under frame of the
vehicle, and they are surrounded by, and bear against, the internal periphery of
the rim or tyre of the vehicle-wheel which is open on one side to admit of their
insertion. The rings and the rollers journalled therein are or may be of such
diameters that the peripheries of the rollers only bear simultaneously against the
said lateral support or projection and the wheel rim or tyre whilst the rollers are
passing around the lower surface of the lateral support or projection the annular
bearing surfaces of the wheel rim or tyre and support or projection being in this
case eccentric to each other. The rollers may be kept in place within the wheel
by means of an annular shoulder on the aforesaid projection and an annular
projection on the wheel. In a modified construction, each roller is made with
parts of two different diameters, the part of larger diameter being arranged to
bear against the internal periphery of the rim or tyre of the wheel and to travel
in an annular groove made in the lateral stationary support or projection, or in a
part carried thereby, on which the part or parts of small diameter, will then run.
The vehicle-wheel may be rotatable or not on the axle, which may or may not
pass through the stationary projection according as the wheel is arranged outside
or inside of the aforesaid bracket.
By the construction of bearings in the manner described, the weight of a
vehicle will be transmitted through the brackets and antifriction rollers to the
peripheries of the wheels, without passing through the arm or plate of the wheel
and the axles are relieved of vertical pressure and serve only to laterally connect
opposite wheels together.
When using a bearing such as above described for carrying an axle or shaft, the
aforesaid wheel is fixed to the axle or shaft and run upon the, for the time being,
uppermost rollers which will bear against the upper surface of the lateral support
or projection of the bracket which will be suitably attached to a stationary
carrier.
With bearings according to this invention not only is the friction, and
consequently the useless work required to be done against the same, reduced very

page_text: considerably, so that lubrication can be dispensed with, or practically so, but the
wearing away of the shafts or axles is entirely obviated.
Dated this 30th day of November 1895.
Improvements in Bearings suitable for the Wheels of Railway and
other Vehicles, and for Axles and Shafting.
We, ROBERT HUDSON, and WALTER SKELTON HUDSON, both of Gildersome
Foundry, near Leeds, in the County of York, Engineers, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention has reference to improved constructions and arrangements of
antifriction bearings specially suitable for the wheels of railway and other vehicles,
whereby the wheel centres or spokes and the axles connecting the wheels can if
desired be relieved of vertically acting strains due to the load carried, as I shall
now proceed to explain by the aid of the accompanying drawings wherein
Fig. 1 is a transverse vertical section and Fig. 2 a side elevation showing one
construction of railway or tramway vehicle bearing according to this invention.
1 are connected antifriction rollers mounted to rotate out of contact with each
other on pins 2 fixed in a frame consisting of two rings 3 between which the
rollers 1 are arranged to work. The rollers are arranged to run on the external
periphery 4 of a lateral projection 5 of circular cross section and forming a hub or
boss carried by a bracket or hanger 6 secured or adapted to be secured to the
underframe 7 of the vehicle, and they are surrounded by, and bear against, the
internal periphery 8 of the rim or tyre 8 of the vehicle-wheel 9, which is open on
one side to admit of their insertion. This open side of the wheel may, if desired,
be normally closed by a removable annular plate arranged to fit around the larger
part of the hub or boss 5, as indicated at 9* in dotted lines in Fig. 1, for the
purpose of preventing dust freely entering the interior of the wheel.
In order to reduce friction to a minimum, the rings 3 and the rollers 1 mounted
therein, are preferably made of such diameters relatively to the diameters of the
annular bearing surfaces 4 and 8ª, that each roller will be in contact with both of
the surfaces 4 and 8* simultaneously only whilst passing around the lower portion
of the surface 4; the ring of rollers not fitting closely either of the two relatively
rotating annular bearing surfaces, which will therefore be eccentric to each other
as shewn. By this arrangement, it will be seen that only the lower roller or rollers,
for the time being, will be simultaneously in close frictional contact with both
annular surfaces. The rollers 1 may be kept in place within the wheel 9 by an
annular shoulder 10 on the hub or boss 5 and an annular projection 11 on the
wheel 9.
Fig. 3 is a similar view to Fig. 1 but showing the bracket 6 with lateral
projection 5 at the outer side of the wheel 9 instead of at the inner side as in
Fig. 1.
Figs. 4 and 5 are similar views to Figs. 1 and 2 respectively, showing a modified
construction wherein each antifriction roller 1 is made with annular parts 1ª and 1
of two different diameters, the central part 1 of large diameter being arranged to
bear against the internal surface 8 of the wheel rim or tyre 8 and to travel in an
annular guide groove 5* made in the hub or boss 5 which in this case bears against

page_text: only the outer side parts 1' of the rollers which are of smaller diameter than the
central part 1. The groove 5* may be made in a ring carried by the boss 5.
By the construction described, the weight of a vehicle provided with bearings
according to this invention is transmitted through the brackets 6, hubs or bosses 5
and anti-friction rollers 1 direct to the rims or tyres 8 of the wheels without passing
through the wheel centres or spokes and that the axles 12 are relieved of vertical
pressure and serve only to connect opposite wheels together laterally. Furthermore
with bearings according to this invention, the friction, and consequently the useless
work required to be done against the same, is reduced very considerably, so that
lubrication can be dispensed with, or nearly so, and the wearing away of the shafts
or axles 8 is entirely obviated.
Bearings such as herein before described can also be advantageously used for
carrying axles and shafting. The accompanying drawings will serve also as
diagrammatic representations of axle or shaft bearings according to this invention,
12 representing the axle or shaft to be carried, 8 a wheel of suitable size fixed on
the said axle or shaft and running upon the for-the-time-being uppermost of the
connected antifriction-rollers 1, which then bears against the upper surface 4 of
the hub or boss 5 of a bracket 6 attached to a suitable carrier corresponding to the
part 7. In this case of course the wheel will not need a flange or tyre.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. A bearing comprising a relatively stationary hub a wheel encircling said hub
and a ring of connected antifriction rollers mounted to rotate between and work
against said bub and wheel, substantially as herein described.
2. A bearing of the kind referred to in the preceding claim in which each of the
antifriction rollers is made with annular parts of different diameter one of said
parts being adapted to work against the hub carried by the bracket and the other
or others against the inner periphery of the encircling wheel, substantially as
herein described.
3. The construction of bearings suitable for the wheels of railway or other
vehicles and for axles and shafting, substantially as herein before described with
reference respectively to and shown in Figs. 1 and 2; in Fig. 3; and in Figs. 4
and 5 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 26th day of August 1896.