IMPROVEMENTS IN TRAMWAY RAILS
Year: 1878

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Hight, of Old Kent Road, in the County of
Surrey, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN TRAMWAY RAILS."
Sealed the 21st March 1879, and dated the 26th September 1878.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Hight at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 26th September 1878.
JAMES HIGHT, of Old Kent Road, in the County of Surrey.
IN TRAMWAY RAILS."
"IMPROVEMENTS
My Invention relates to improvements in tramway rails, having for their object
diminishing the wear and tear of such rails, and facilitating the crossing thereof by
the wheels of ordinary vehicles, and also providing a better foot-hold for horses.
In carrying out my Invention, in order to effect these objects I form on each side
of the rail, at the upper part thereof, alternate projections and recesses, the
projections on one side of the rail being opposite the recesses on the other side of
the rail, and vice versa, and on the inner side of the rail, at the parts where the
projections on that side occur, I form angular or shaped notches or recesses
debouching or opening into the groove of the rail. The projections are arranged at
such a distance apart as will admit of the paving blocks being laid between them,
thus protecting the paving blocks and alternating the line of paving so as to
facilitate the crossing of the rails by wheeled vehicles and provide a better foot-hold
for horses, whilst the angular notches or recesses with which the rail is provided on
its inner side serve to arrest the sliding motion of the wheel of a vehicle along the
groove of the rail in attempting to cross the line, and thus further facilitate the
crossing of the rails.
The projections are made by preference alternately of varying extent laterally,
and those on the outer side may also be provided with angular notches or recesses
opening outwards, if found desirable.
Rails of this construction may either be used on wooden or other sleepers, or may
be formed with a girder on their under side so as to constitute a sleeper upon which
the paving may be supported.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said James Hight in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 24th March
1879.
JAMES HIGHT, of Old Kent Road, in the County of Surrey.
IN TRAMWAY RAILS."
"IMPROVEMENTS
My said Invention relates to improvements in tramway rails, having for their
object diminishing the wear and tear of such rails and facilitating the crossing
thereof by the wheels of ordinary vehicles, and also providing a better foot-hold for
horses.
In carrying out my said Invention, in order to effect these objects I form on each
side of the rail, at the upper part thereof, alternate projections and recesses, the
projections on one side of the rail being opposite the recesses on the other side of
the rail, and vice versa, and on the inner side of the rail at the parts where the
protections on that side occur I form angular or > shaped notches or recesses
debouching or opening into the groove of the rail. The projections are arranged at
such a distance apart as will admit of the paving blocks being laid between them,
thus protecting the paving blocks and alternating the line of paving so as to
facilitate the crossing of the rails by wheeled vehicles and provide a better foot-
hold for horses, whilst the angular notches or recesses with which the rail is provided
on its inner side serve to arrest the sliding motion of the wheel of a vehicle along
the groove of the rail in attempting to cross the line, and thus further facilitate the
crossing of the rails.
The projections are made by preference alternately of varying extent laterally,
and those on the outer side may also be provided with angular notches or recesses
opening outwards if found desirable.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood, I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose shall refer to
the several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the same letters of reference
indicating corresponding parts in both the Figures.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings represents a plan of a tramway rail
constructed in accordance with my said Invention; and Figure 2 is a transverse
section of the same taken along the line 1, 2, in Figure 1.
The
A is the upper part of a tramway rail, a being the outer side thereof on which the
wheels of the cars run; b, the inner side; and c, the groove for the reception of
the flange of the wheels. On each side of the upper part A of the rail I form
alternate projections B and recesses C, each projection on one side of the rail being
situate opposite one of the recesses on the other side, and vice versa, and on the
inner side b of the rail at the parts where the projections B occur I form angular
or > shaped notches D debouching or opening into the groove c of the rail.
projections and the recesses are made of such a length as will admit of the paving
blocks being laid between them the length of from d to d' of each recess, or from e
to e' of each projection corresponding to the length of a paving block; and the
projections are by preference made of varying extent laterally, the width from f
to f¹ of each alternate projection being greater than the width from g to g' of the
intervening projections. By means of the arrangement herein-before described of
the projections and recesses protection is afforded to the paving blocks and the line
of paving is alternated, one of the metal projections B intervening between two of
the blocks, whereby the crossing of the rails by wheeled vehicles is facilitated and
a better foot-hold is provided for horses. These results are augmented when the
projections are made of varying widths, as shewn in the example illustrated, as by
this means the longitudinal lines of junction of the consecutive transverse layers
of paving blocks are made to break joint, and the surface is consequently more
interrupted and diversified than when the longitudinal joints of the consecutive
transverse layers coincide. The notches D with which the rail is provided on its

page_text: inner side also facilitate the crossing of the rails by ordinary vehicles, as the said
notches form a purchase for the wheels in the act of crossing the line, and arrest the
sliding motion along the groove of the rail which takes place when rails of the
ordinary construction are employed. The projections B (or some of them) on the
outer side of the rail may also, if found desirable, be provided with similar
notches D opening outwards, as shewn in the case of the wider projections in
Figure 1.
Rails of this construction may be formed with a girder E on their under side, as
shewn, so as to constitute a sleeper which may be of any required width, and
upon which the paving may be supported, or the said rails may be used upon
wooden or other sleepers of any ordinary or suitable description.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into effect, I
would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and original, and
therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent is,-
The combination in a tramway rail of alternating projections and recesses on
each side at the upper part thereof, and of angular or shaped notches formed on
the inner side of the rail at the parts where the projections on that side occur, such
notches debouching or opening into the groove of the rail in conjunction or not
with angular or shaped notches on the outer side of the rail, all substantially as
and for the purposes herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Hight, have to this my Specification
set my hand and seal, the Nineteenth day of March, One thousand eight
hundred and seventy-nine.
JAMES HIGHT:
(L.S.)