In- PROVEMENTS IN RETARDING APPARATUS FOR THE PREVENTION OF ACCIDENTS ON RAILWAYS
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander Turiff, of Paisley, in the County of
Renfrew, North Britain, Engineer, for the Invention of "In-
PROVEMENTS IN RETARDING APPARATUS FOR THE PREVENTION OF
ACCIDENTS ON RAILWAYS."
Sealed the 25th January 1854, and dated the 5th October 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander Turiff
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 5th October 1858.
I, ALEXANDER TURIFF, of Paisley, in the County of Renfrew, North
Britain, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN RETARDING APPARATUS FOR THE PREVENTION OF
ACCIDENTS ON RAILWAYS" to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to the so arranging railway brakes and
apparatus in connection with trains on railways that the bad effects of
accidental collisions may be prevented by annihilating the momentum
of the carriages, and bringing the whole moving mass to a dead stop.
This is effected by so combining a wedge action with an effective
friction brake, such as an embracing strap on the running wheels, that

page_text: when the engine comes up against any body in its path the momentum
of the train will drive home the wedge and put the brakes into the
most powerful action. The actuating wedge may be connected with
the buffer movement, and the brakes may be arranged in any con-
venient and suitable manner, the special object of the improvements
being the causing the momentum of the train to wedge the retarding
brakes into powerful frictional stopping action, so that the whole
train will be almost instantaneously stopped on the occurrence of any
casualty which necessitates the bringing the brakes into play. Such
apparatus may be fitted to all classes of trains and rolling stock, and may
obviously be rendered capable of preventing fatalities and injuries
to stock and apparatus under many varieties of circumstance. This
Invention may be carried out in a convenient and effective manner
by forming the inner contiguous ends of the buffer rods into inclined
planes or wedges, so that each carriage has four such wedges. The
Inclined surfaces of these wedges are downwards, and their upper
plain sides bear against fixed abutment pulleys; on the lower or
inclined edges another pulley is arranged to bear in each case, such
pulley being set on the upper end of a link passing down to the elbow
joint arms of a pair of ordinary friction blocks pressing against the
wheels. In this way whenever the buffers are compressed the two
inclines on each side traverse towards each other, and pressing down
the lower pulley they bring the blocks into brake action. When the
pressure ceases a light spring relieves the brakes. In case of shunting,
or when this brake action is not required to come into force, the upper
abutting pulleys are traversed laterally to clear the inclined pieces, so that
when the latter are pushed in they cease to affect the brake blocks.
To do this a chain is passed along the whole train over guide pulleys,
and to allow for the draw spring action angular links are fitted to the
draw springs to carry a supporting pulley, round which the chain is
passed. As the springs are compressed or recede these links shift their
pulley, and regulate the tension of the chain accordingly.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Alexander Turiff in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 5th April 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
ALEXANDER TURIFF, of Paisley, in the County of Renfrew, North
Britain, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fifth day of October, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the seven-
teenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Alexander Turiff, Her special license
that I, the said Alexander Turiff, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Alexander Turiff, executors,
administrators, or 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN
RETARDING APPARATUS FOR THE PREVENTION OF ACCIDENTS ON RAILWAYS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alexander Turiff,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Alexander Turiff, 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, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:
My said Invention relates to the so arranging railway brakes and
apparatus in connection with trains on railways that the bad effects of
accidental collisions thereon may be prevented by annihilating the
momentum of the carriages, and bringing the whole moving mass to

page_text: a dead stop. This is effected by so combining a wedge action with an
effective friction brake, such as an embracing strap on the running
wheels, or a modification of the ordinary friction blocks of wood, that
when the engine comes up against any body in its path the momentum
of the train will drive home the wedge and put the brakes into the
most powerful action. The actuating wedge may be connected with the
buffer movement, and the brakes may be arranged in any convenient
and suitable manner, the special objects of the improvements being
the causing the momentum of the train to wedge the retarding brakes
into powerful frictional stopping action, so that the whole train will be
almost instantaneously stopped on the occurrence of any casualty which
necessitates the bringing the brakes into play. Such apparatus may
be fitted to all classes of trains and rolling stock, and may obviously be
rendered capable of preventing fatalities and injuries to stock and
apparatus under many varieties of circumstances. This Invention may
be carried out in a convenient and effective manner by forming the
inner contiguous ends of the buffer rods into inclined planes or wedges,
so that each carriage has four such wedges. The inclined surfaces
of such surfaces are arranged to be downwards, and their upper plain
sides bear against fixed abutment pulleys; on the lower or inclined
edges another pulley is arranged to bear in each case, such pulley
being set on the upper end of a link passing down to the elbow joint
arms of a pair of ordinary friction blocks pressing against the wheels.
In this way whenever the buffers are compressed the two inclines on
each side traverse towards each other, and pressing down the lower
pulley they bring the blocks into brake action. When the pressure
ceases a light spring relieves the brakes. In case of shunting, or when
this brake action is not required to come into force, the upper abutting
pulleys are traversed laterally to clear the inclined pieces, so that when
the latter are pushed in they cease to affect the brake blocks. To do
this a chain or rope is passed along the whole train over guide pulleys,
and to allow for the draw spring action angular links are fitted to the
draw springs to carry supporting pulleys, round which the chain or rope
is passed.
As the springs are compressed or recede these links shift
their pulley, and regulate the tension of the chain accordingly.

page_text: And in order that my said Invention may be properly under->
stood I shall now proceed to describe the several Figures on the:
Sheet of Drawings hereunto attached. Figure 1, on my Sheet of
Drawings hereunto attached is a longitudinal section or a sectional
elevation of a railway carriage or wagon frame, with its wheels.
and axles, buffers, and brake apparatus complete, as fitted up accord
ing to one modification of these improvements; Figure 2, is a cor-
responding plan of the carriage or wagon framing, with the body:
and some of the details removed to explain the mechanical arrange-
ments more clearly; Figure 3, is a transverse section of one of the
longitudinal timbers of the framing, with the adjustable pulley appa-
ratus for the wedge action in detail; and Figure 4, is a transverse
section of the draw springs with the angular jointed link apparatus
for the adjusting chain or rope in detail. The four buffer rods A, are
mounted in the usual manner, and each carries at its inner extremity
a box piece B, into which set of boxes the ends of the two combined
buffer and draw springs C, are entered. These springs C, are einbraced
at their centres by the boxes or holders D, on the inner ends of the
Each
two draw bars E, carrying drag hooks F, in the usual manner.
of the boxes B, of the buffer rods has an eye G, formed upon its
extreme end, to which eyes the wedge or inclined link pieces H, are
severally attached by joint stud pins I. These wedge pieces are set in
reversed or opposite directions, and their joint eyes are so situated that
the two free inclined ends in each action overlap and work past each
other, as more particularly delineated in the plan, Figure 2, and in
the detail, Figure 3, these overlapping ends being each wedge-shaped
or formed to an incline on the under side. Inside each longitudinal
frame timber is bolted a bracket plate k, to correspond with the
positions assigned to the wedge movement. This bracket in each case
hangs downwards a considerable distance, where it is expanded or
widened out, and has bolted to its face a guide eye L, whilst side
ledges M, are ct upon it to form abutments for the two ends of the
single curved blade spring N. The guide eye N, answers for guiding
the vertical brake spindle O, the upper end of which is formed with a
double eye to carry the loose pressure pulley P, upon a stud pin. The

page_text: centre of the blade spring N, is secured to the bottom of the recess of
the double eye, so that the upward re-acting pressure of the spring
always keep the pulley P, pressed up against the two overlapping
inclines J, of the link pieces H. In a direct vertical line above the stud
centre of the pulley P, an elongated stud spindle Q, is bolted through
the bracket and the timber frame by means of an external nut and
an internal collar R. This spindle projects considerably inwards from
the frame, and carries at this part the upper bearing pulley S, which
pulley however is not set directly upon the spindle, but is entered upon
a tubular collar piece T, which itself is loose upon the spindle, and the
extreme projecting end of the spindle has upon it a nut with a collar U,
between which and the tubular bearing collar T a helix V is entered
upon the spindle. In this way the two inclined links H work between
and in close contact with the upper and lower pulleys S, P. The
tubular collar T is prolonged, and has cast upon it a bent bracket with
a terminal double eye to receive the loose horizontal pulley W. This
pulley W forms one of a series arranged to carry the adjusting cord or
chain X, by which which the wedge brake action is put in and out of
gear at pleasure. This rope X is intended to run throughout the entire
length of the train; entering, as it may be assumed, from the right, it
passes round the first horizontal guide pulley Y, running loose on a
vertical stud secured to the bottom of the carriage. The rope thence
passes transversely across the carriage bottom, encountering in its
transit one side or division of the angular jointed link arrangement
for adjusting the tension of the rope. From this point it is passed
round the pulley W, in the bracket arm of the tubular collar T, then
returning across the framing it passes round the opposite side of the
angular jointed link arrangement in the centre of the carriage. Hence
the rope passes round the pulley Z, of the opposite wedge action, this
pulley being arranged to correspond exactly with the pulley W. The
bracket of the pulley Z, is represented in the present instance as
broken off, whilst the overhead bearing pulley and its guide stud are
removed. After passing round the pulley Z, the rope turns back, and
passes round the guide pulley a, and thence runs along in the direction
of the carriage's length to the next carriage in the train, the same

page_text: rope arrangement being continued in each of the carriages. The
detail, Figure 4, indicates more clearly the arrangement of the annular
jointed links for the adjustment of the rope's tension. A bracket b,
formed with forked eyes to carry the four pulleys c, is bolted at d, to
the under side of the carriage bottom, so as to hang down between the
draw springs. Each of the draw spring boxes D has an eye e, for the
purpose of forming joints for the two links f, which are similarly
jointed at their lower ends to eyes g, on the open frame piece h, carry-
ing two loose pulleys i. This arrangement is so set that as the rope X
passes across the centre of the carriage from the pulley Y, for example,
it passes over the nearest of the set of four upper pulleys 6, and then
descending it goes round the right-hand pulley of the pair i, beneath;
then rising up, the rope is passed round the upper pulley, which is set
in the same plane as the one over which it first descended, and it now
passes onward to the pulley W, when it returns across the carriage,
and pursues the same course round the opposite set of pulleys, and
reaches the pulley Z. By this means as the angular distance measured
along the links f, in the line of the rope's route is a constant amount,
it follows that the working of the draw springs, and the consequent
variation in the length of the train, will not interfere with the due
action of the rope, whilst the system of jointed links allows of the
necessary working movement between each carriage. The sectional
elevation, Figure 1, and the contiguous side of the plan, Figure 2, show
the apparatus as in due order for the brake action, the upper stop or
bearing pulley S, being in working position above the wedge links H.
Thus when any undue longitudinal pressure comes upon the buffers
from collision or other cause, the force so acting will traverse the over-
lapping wedge links H, towards each other or in reverse directions, so
as to overlap still further. This brings the two inclined portions J, in
each case further over the pulley P, beneath; and as the upper stop
pulley S prevents the links from rising, it follows that the inclines J
act in concert to press down the pulley P, and thus traverse the vertical
spindle O and bring the brake into frictional action. The motion of
the spindle O is communicated to the brake movement by a bottom
eye j, to which are jointed the inclined links k, the lower eyes of which

page_text: l, are similarly jointed to the two central brake blocks M. These
brake blocks are suspended by link pieces from eyes N, from the
carriage framing in the usual way, as are also the two outside brake
blocks O, and the two sets of blocks M, O, are connected together
to work in concert by the reverse links P. In this way the descent of
the spindle O, traverses the whole set of blocks, and causes the whole
set of wheels to be powerfully embraced on each side, so as to give a
most effective brake action. When the pressure on the buffer rods
ceases the springs N elevate the spindles O as the wedges J recede,
and thus all the blocks are released from contact with the wheels.
But in cases of shunting, or under other circumstances when the
wedges are not intended to act, the engine driver or guard draws the
rope X by either end so as to traverse the pulleys W, Z, towards the
centre line of the carriage against the pressure of the helix V. This
withdraws the pulleys S from their position above the wedges H, so
that in case of end pressure on the buffers the wedges have liberty to
rise upon their joints G, without giving any descending movement to
the spindles O; but when the brake action is required to be set ready
for actual operation the slackening of the rope X allows the helices V
to press back the pulleys S to their position as stops.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used
or carried into effect, I may observe, in conclusion, that I do not
confine or restrict myself to the precise details or arrangements which
I have had occasion to describe or refer to, as many variations may be
made therefrom without deviating from the principles or main features
of my Invention; but 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,―
First, the general arrangement and construction of machinery,
apparatus, or means for the prevention of accidents on railways, as
herein-before described.
Second, the system or mode of bringing railway brakes into action
by means of wedges or inclined surfaces actuated from the buffers or
buffer connections.

page_text: Third, the application and use of wedges or inclines for pressing
frictional brake surfaces into action.
Fourth, the system or mode of throwing brake movements out of
action by means of traversing pulleys or stops, as herein-before
described.
Fifth, the application and use of angular jointed links for adjust-
ing the continuous lines of connection from carriage to carriage.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexander Turiff, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, the Third day of April, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.