CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAYS AND RAILWAY CAR- RIAGES
Year: 1846

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSLPH
CLINTON ROBERTSON, of Fleet Street, in the City of London, Civil Engineer,
send greeting
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent most Excellent Majesty Queen
Victoria, by Her Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain,
bearing dato at Westminster, the Fourth day of June, in the ninth year of
He reign, did, for Herself, Hei heirs, and successors, give and giant unto
me, the said Joseph Clinton Robertson, my exors, adiñois, and assigns, IIer
especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said
Joseph Clinton Robertson, my exors, adiñors, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Joseph Clinton Robertson, my exors, admors, or assigns, should at
any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, excicise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-
upon-Tweed, and also in the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark,
and Man, and in all Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad,
the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN RAILWAYS AND RAILWAY CAR-
RIAGES," being a communication from a Foreigner residing abroad; in which
said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Joseph Clinton
Robertson, should cause a particular description of the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled

page_text: in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent,
as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at
Jaige appear
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Joseph Clinton Robertson, hereby declare that the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner it is to be performed, are (according as the
same have been communicated to me) fully described in and by the piesent
Specification thereof, reference being had to the Diawings hereunto annexed,
that is to say -
The said Improvements in Railways and Railway Carriages consist in a
certain aangement here-after described, by which the probability of acci-
dents from the bicaking of the axles of the wheels of the carriages (whether
engine, or passenger, or goods carriages or tenders), or fiom the carnages
running off the line, is greatly diminished. The Inventor effects this by keeping
the carriages in such a position that they may not materially deviate from the
position on the railroad which they are intended to occupy, whereby he is
enabled to run carriages on railways safely at a velocity much greater than
has leen heretofore practicable with safety With this view he places-in-the-
centre of each line of railway a centie rail much more clevated than the two
side rails, and attaches to the bottom of each of the carnages one, two,
or more triple sets of rollers, one of which is placed horizontally so as to come
in contact with and run on the top of the centie rail in the event of an axle
beaking, while the two other rollers are placed vertically one on each side of
the centre rail, to prevent the carriage from swerving to either side These
rollers i un always free of the centic rail, except when any accident occurs, or
the making of a sharp curvo bungs them into action. The number of sets
attached to each carriage varies with the length of such canage
Figure 1 of the annexed Drawings is a side view, shewing the elevated
centre rail before referred to, which may be made of wood or any other con-
venient material.
Figure 2 is a side view of the lower part of a waggon, with the additional
wheels applied to it. And
Figure 3, a fiont view of a line of railroad, with a waggon advancing upon
it, shewing at one view the whole of the arrangements. The rails are repre-
sented in these Figures as resting on plain longitudinal beams, whereby the
chains usually in use are dispensed with, but the Inventor desires it to be
understood that his Invention is equally applicable to all railroads, whatever
may be the description of beams made use of. In Figure 1, A represents the

page_text: sleepers, B, the longitudinal beams which carry the rails, C, the rails, D, the
block which supports the centre rail, E, the centre rail, which may be of woord,
iron, or other suitable material. In Figures 2 and 3, A, A, are the sicepeis,
B, the longitudinal beams; C, the rail, D, the blocks placed on the sleepers to
support the centie rail, E, the centie rail, F, F, (in dotted lines) moitices and
tenons of wood or iron, one uniting the block D to the sleepers, and the other
the top rail E to the block D. F*, F*, are two triangular blocks or stays let into
the sleepers, as indicated by dotted hnes G, the body of the waggon, II, the
longitudinal timbers on which the waggon is supported; I, I, the cross pieces;
J, the wheels; K, the axles, 1, 1, are two plates of non about three inches
thick and twelve inches deep, provided with square openings ten inches long
and six and a half inches broad, in which are placed rolleis m, m, of metal or
hard wood, of six inches diameter, and nine and a half inches long, with axles
accurately turned and running vertically in biasses. The mode of attaching
these plates (1, 1) to the bottoms of the carnages, the exact part of the
caniages to which they should be fixed, and the number of sets of rollers
which should be attached to each camage, will all depend on the length of the
carriages, and must be left to the judgement of the constructor The Inventor
himself prefers placing the plates near the axles. n is a plate of non which
passes through openings in the plates 1, 1, and, being united thereto, add
materially to their strength. 0, 0, are strong iron stays, for which, in some
cases, strong non straps may be substituted Between the on plates (1, 1,)
another horizontal roller P, of 11on or other suitable material, is placed, eight
inches in diameter and twelve inches long This roller is very accurately turned.
and has its bearings in brasses placed in the sides of the plates, as indicated
in the Drawings by dotted lines. Q, Q, are bars which connect longitudinally the
plates 1,1 (see Fig 2), and are flush therewith The centre rail is constructed in
the following manner -Blocks of wood, D, (Figure 3) are placed in the centre
of the sleepers of about ten inches in thickness and twelve inches in breadth,
and firmly united thereto by means of bolts or mortise and tenon joints, and
supported on cach side by blocks of wood, F, of a triangular shape let into
the sleepers and bolted thereto. On the block D is placed the longitudinal
beam or centre rail E, about eight inches in thickness and twelve inches in
breadth. The pieces of timber chosen to construct this ail should be as long
as possible, and when two ends are united, as shewn in Figure 1, the support-
ng blocks may be placed on two sleepers next each other, whereas in other
cases they need only be placed on every other sleeper. The centie 1ail must
e united to the block D, as well as the blocks D to the sleepers A, by means

page_text: of mortises, as shewn at F, and marked in dotted lines, or by means of non
bolts, so that the whole may become one immoveable mass
Although the
centre rail is described as being made of wood, it is to be understood that the
Inventor does-not limit himself to that material, for it may be made also of
ion, when the dimensions would require to be somewhat modified in pro- 5
portion to the difference in strength between the two materials. The Inventor
also reserves to himself a right to make the rollers of any materials which may
be found suitable for the purpose, and to vary the relative proportions of the
different parts as circumstances may determine. From what has been stated,
it will be readily understood that on the breaking of an axle the centre roller p 1
will run on the centre rail and support the carriage; and that in the event
of any obstructions or accidents occurring on the 1oad it is impossible that
the caninges should deviate from the proper course, being maintained in
their position by the rollers m, m The carriages will also be enabled by these
contrivances to run safely round sharp curves without danger, as the side
rolleis would bear against the centre rail and keep the train from running
out of its course. It may be farther observed that by the adoption of this
-Invention-engineers will be enabled to make railways less expensive, without
increasing the danger attending them, since with safety-guards, such as before
described, asphalte and other kinds of tramioads may be substituted for
the edge rails now in use, and the locomotives, tenders, and passsenger and
goods carnages may all be made of much less weight and strength than at
present
And having now described the nature of the said Invention communicated
to me as aforesaid, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, I
declare that the improvements claimed as constituting the said Invention, are,
Fust, the employment in railways of elevated centre rails of wood or iron
in conjunction with tuple sets of rollers formed of iron or other suitable
material placed underneath the carriages (whether engine, or passenger, or
goods camages, or tenders,) employed on such railways.
And, secondly, the employment of the before-mentioned elevated centre
rail, in combination with two side 1ollers, as before described, whether used or
not used in conjunction with a third or top roller.
In witness when cof, I, the said Joseph Clinton Robertson, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Fourth day of December, One
thousand eight hundred and forty-six.
J. CLINTON (LS) ROBERTSON.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Fourth day of December, in the
year of our Loid 1846, the aforesaid Joseph Clinton Robertson came before
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specifi-
cation aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in
form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped
according to the tenor of the Statutes made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Fourth day of December, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-six.