Improvements in Couplings for away.
Year: 1898

page_text: Improvements in Couplings for away.
I, SAMUEL JAMES PRESCOTT, of 33, Church Street, Camberwell, London, S.E.,
Pawnbroker, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention refers to improvements in means for coupling one railway carriage
or truck with another, and has for its object to provide means whereby such
vehicles may be easily uncoupled or disconnected from each other, notwithstand-
ing that the train may be at rest upon a steep incline.
Of the many and various automatic and other devices that have been invented
and called into use for coupling up railway trains, a difficulty has usually existed
in uncoupling such trains when upon an incline, by reason of the great tensional
strain upon the couplings, but my invention, while not automatic in its action,
supplies the long felt want, inasmuch as my improved coupling permits any two
carriages, trucks, or vans, to be easily uncoupled, regardless of whether such
vehicles be upon level ground or an incline.
My invention consists of a device made of wrought or cast metal, one end of
which is so constructed as to be adaptable for fixation upon the end of a truck,
van, or carriage, by a bolt and nut or other suitable means, in lieu of the hooks
in present use, and having when so fixed a certain and sufficient play laterally as
to accommodate itself to any oscillatory motion of the train. The opposite end
of the said device is preferably in the form of a short necked hook, arranged in a
downward or upward direction, the space between the end of the said hook, and
the middle of the device being occupied by a tongue of like or other metal,
swivelled upon the said middle portion, the said middle portion having an internal
chamber occupied by a suitable spring, the one end of which impinges upon the
heel of the said tongue, the said heel being so formed that the said spring operates
both for retaining the said tongue in an open position or when disconnecting from
the said hook-end for coupling or uncoupling purposes, and in a closed position
seated firmly down upon the hook-end, when the couplings are at work.
The device upon one vehicle may be connected to the device upon the next by
the means of a chain or adjustable links, as at present used, or by other suitable
means, the short neck of the said hook permitting such means of connection to be
easily dislodged from either device (when the said tongue is opened by hand) by
a slight blow from any convenient or available tool.

page_text: Improvements in Couplings for Railway Rolling Stock.
I, SAMUEL JAMES PRESCOTT, of 33, Church Street, Camberwell, London, S.E.,
Pawnbroker, 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:-
-
My invention refers to.iniprovements in means for coupling one railway carriage
or truck with another, and has for its object to provide means whereby such
vehicles may be easily uncoupled or disconnected from each other, notwithstand-
ing that the train may be at rest upon a steep incline.
To enable my invention to be more clearly understood I hereunto append a sheet
of drawings in which;-
Fig. 1 is a side elevation partly in section, of one form of device constituting
my invention.
Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of details illustrating the two positions of the tongue
as actuated and governed by a suitable spring as hereinafter explained.
Fig. 3 is a similar view to Fig. 1'of an alternative method of construction.
Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2 illustrating the operation of the spring upon
the tongue as applied to Fig. 3.
Fig. 5 is a side elevation partly in section of a further alternative method
more particularly adaptable for use upon light or portable railways while,
Fig. 6 is a view of details similarly relative to Fig. 5 as Figs. 2 and 4 are to
Figs. 1 and 3.
My invention consists of a device constructed of wrought or cast metal, one end
of which A is so made as to be adaptable for fixation upon the end of the draw-
bar of a truck, van, or carriage, by a bolt and nut or other suitable means in
lieu of the hooks in present use, and which may have when so fixed a certain and
sufficient play laterally in order to accommodate itself to any oscillatory motion
of the train. The opposite end B of the said device is preferably in the form
of a short necked hook arranged either upwardly as in Fig. 1, or downwardly as
in Figs. 3 and 5, the space between the end of the said hook B and approximately
the middle of the said device, being occupied by a tongue C of like or other
metal, swivelled by means of a rivet D upon the said middle portion, the said
middle portion having an internal chamber or passage E occupied by a spring. F,
the one end of which impinges upon the heel G of the said tongue C through
the medium of a small steel ball H, and the other upon the end of a short screw J
inserted in the said chamber or passage E, the tension of the said spring being
regulated by the said screw. The said heel G (in the arrangement shewn in
Figs. 1 and 2) has an angular projection K formed thereon, to enable the said
spring to operate both for retaining the tongue C in an open position (as indicated
by dotted outline) or when disconnecting it from the hook end B for coupling or
uncoupling purposes, and in a closed position seated firmly upon the said hook
end (as shewn by full lines) when the couplings are at work, the said open
position (which is of sufficient extent to allow of the removal and insertion of the
link L) being shewn in the right hand detail view Fig. 2, and in dotted lines in
Fig. 1, where the steel ball H is pressing firmly against the right hand side of
the said projection K by the tension of the spring F, but when the tongue C is
closed the said ball H would be pressing against the base of the said projection K
as shewn in the left hand detail view Fig. 2 and in full lines Fig. 1.
As a slight modifications of the device Figs. 1 and 2 I may arrange the hook
end B to be of the configuration shewn in Figs. 3 and 4, the said hook end B

page_text: being shewn as pointing downwardly in this case, while the tongue C is also of
slightly modified form having its heel portion G formed with a curved extension
piece A, provided with recesses a and b in lieu of the angular projections K
shewn in Figs. 1 and 2, the object of such curved extensions M and its recesses
being to impart a double action to the said tongue C, that is to say, when the
tongue C is in the position shewn by full lines in Fig. 3, and by the left view
of Fig. 4, the ball H engages with the recess a and holds the tongue in close
connection with B, but when C is raised from the position shewn in full lines to
that shewn in dotted lines in Fig. 3, the ball H would engage with the recess b
and hold C so raised, the tension of the spring F upon the ball H serving to
keep the said ball in contact with either of these recesses as long as desired, while
the ball C finds no impediment to its action along the smooth curved surface
of M when passing from one recess to the other.
The construction shewn by Fig. 5 is designed more particularly for use upon
light or portable railways, the heel portion G of the tongue C being formed with
an inclined surface N, which gives to the spring F and ball H a continuous action,
so that when C is lowered, as shewn by dotted outline in Fig. 5, the heel N forces
the ball H upwards, and compresses the spring F, but when the tongue C is
released, the force of the spring F upon the heel N operates to return C to its
normal position, abutting against B.
The device upon one vehicle may be connected to the device upon the next by
the means of a chain or adjustable links such as L, as at present used (or by other
suitable means) and when two vehicles are to be uncoupled, the brake would be
put upon the hindmost, vehicle and the engine then be backed until all the
coupling chains L were hanging loose, when, if the device Fig. 1 be used, and the
tongue C thereof be lowered the said link L may be lifted out of connection
with B, or if the position of Fig. 1 is used reversed the said link would fall out
or be easily removed by a slight blow from any convenient or available tool, which
for this and the purposes of coupling, may be of tridential formation at the end.
In the case of the device Fig. 3, if the tongue C be held up in the position
shewn by dotted outline, the link L, when loosened, by the backing of the engine,
would fall out by the action of its own weight alone.
In the case of Fig. 5, which is adapted for light or portable railways only, if
the link L be lifted over the end of B, when the engine has been backed, the
weight of the said link alone may be sufficient to force down the tongue C and
relcase the link.
It is obvious that either of the formations of the heel portions G as shewn,
particularly in Figs. 2, 4 and 6, may be employed with any or all of the devices
illustrated by Figs. 1, 3 and 5, according to requirements, while the said devices
may be placed with their hook ends B downwardly or upwardly as desired.
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:-
1st. The improved device for coupling railway carriages, trucks and the like,
substantially as herein described and shewn.
2nd. The improved device for coupling railway carriages, trucks and the like,
consisting of the combination of a flat end A for fixation to the draw-bar of the
vehicle, and a hook end B, in combination with a tongue C, swivelled to the
middle portion of the said device by means of a rivet D, the said middle portion
having a chamber or passage E, enclosing a spring F, adjustable by a screw J,
the tensional force of which said spring is directed against the heel G of the
tongue C through the medium of a ball H, for retaining the said tongue C in the
desired position, the said hook end B being adapted to receive the link L of the
opposing vehicle, substantially as described and shewn.
3rd. In an improved coupling device for railway and tramway vehicles, the
combination of a body such as A adapted for connection to the ordinary. drawbar,

page_text: the said body being prolonged, to form a hook portion B and to have pivotally
connected thereto a coupling tongue C, and to conceal within itself a spring such
as E, adjusted by means of a screw J, the tension of which said spring operates
upon a ball H, adapted to impinge upon the heel portion of the said tongue C
constructed as at K, M or N substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth 5
and shewn by the appended drawings.
Dated this 7th low of Ontation 1000
GEO. THOS. HYDE,
1, Broad Street Buildings, Liverpool Street, London, E.C.,
Agent for the Applicant.