IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WHEELS FOR RAILWAY AND TRAMWAY ROLLING STOCK
Year: 1876

page_text: "
LETTERS PATENT to John Rayner Banks, of the City of Bristol, Engineer, for
the Invention of IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF WHEELS FOR
RAILWAY AND TRAMWAY ROLLING STOCK."
(Void by reason of the Patentee having neglected to file a Specification in
pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent.)
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Rayner Banks at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 8th April 1876.
JOHN RAYNER BANKS, of the City of Bristol, Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE CONSTRUCTION OF WHEELS FOR RAILWAY AND TRAMWAY ROLLING STOCK."
My Invention relates to the construction of disc wheels for vehicles used on
railways and tramways, and its objects are to obviate the drilling or piercing of
the tyres of the said wheels in order to fasten them to the centre or skeleton, to
dispense with the heating of the tyre or "shrinking on" as usually performed, and
to provide a continuous and safe fastening for the said tyres, such that in the event
of rupture in two or more places the several parts shall remain securely attached
to the centre or skeleton.
The improvements chiefly consist in the construction of the wheel centre of two
discs of which the outer one is movable at pleasure without disturbing the fastenings
or relation of the inner one with the boss or hub, and in an arrangement for locking
the outer disc with the boss.
My Invention will be understood by the following description of a wheel con-
structed according to my improvements.
The wheel consists of three principal parts, namely, the tyre, an inner disc forged
or cast solid with the boss or hub, and an outer disc which may be fixed to or
detached from the boss or hub at pleasure. The tyre is provided with grooves at
its back and front edges nearer to its internal diameter, and the two discs are
flanged continuously at their periphery in such manner as to fit easily into the
grooves formed in the tyre. In the boss or hub, which as before stated is forged
or cast solid with the inner disc, a groove of convenient depth and breadth is formed
on its outer circumference and near to its front or journal edge; the front of the
boss is then divided into any convenient number of segments and each alternate
[Price 2d.1

page_text: segment is cut away so far as to become flush with the bottom of the groove behind
it. The centre of the outer disc is strengthened to a thickness corresponding with
the breadth of the groove in the boss, and bored out to a diameter corresponding
to that of the boss at the bottom of the groove. Concentric with the hole thus
bored a circle is described on the face of the disc of convenient diameter (greater
than the external diameter of the boss), and is divided into segments corresponding
in number to those already described on the face of the boss, and each alternate
annular segment thus formed between the hole bored out and the outer circle
described is cut away with such convenient play or clearance that when the outer
disc is presented to the outer face of the boss the segments left standing of the one
shall coincide with and enter into the spaces formed by the segments cut away in
the other until the outer disc is in the same plane with the groove in the boss and
its flanged periphery has entered into the groove in the outer edge of the tyre.
The outer disc is then turned in its own plane so far that the segments or projections
left standing around the hole in its centre shall coincide with the similar parts on
the boss, and the disc becomes locked in the groove of the boss so as to prevent
further lateral movement. The inner and outer discs are firmly secured together,
as near as convenient to their periphery, by rivets or screw bolts, by preference the
former, passing through the two discs, and a strong ferrule which is placed between
them. These ferrules are accurately faced up square at the ends coming in contact
with the discs to a length which is equal to or slightly exceeds the breadth of the
tyre below the grooves, so that when the rivets are snapped or the bolts tightly
screwed the two discs may become solidly bound to each other without undue
pressure of their flanges into the grooves of the tyre. To provide for eventual
extension of the tyre a small clearance may be left between the under side of the
disc flange and the corresponding side of the groove in the tyre. One or both of
the discs may be dished or buckled to any desired form.
If it be desired to make the discs from ordinary merchant plates, which may not
be capable of sustaining the flanging, then a separate flanged or iron may be
rivetted on, as also the inner disc may be rivetted on to the boss or hub, but by
preference the centres are made from homogeneous metal or cast in steel.
For vehicles carrying excessive loads, or where it is desired to use comparatively
thin tyres, the space between the two discs may be filled in with wood segments
either extending from the tyre to the boss in the ordinary manner, or by preference
built upon a ring encircling the boss and forming a separate centre, and in this
latter case layers of india-rubber or other elastic material may be introduced
between the bottom of the segments and the ring upon which they are built.
The central wooden disc being thus independent may be placed in the tyre under
pressure before the tyre is attached to the discs.
In some cases instead of the locking arrangement before described, I secure the
outer dise to the boss by means of a confining ring or collar screwed to the boss.
Or both the locking arrangement and the confining ring may be dispensed with, the
screw bolts and ferrules being then depended upon to hold the parts together, but I
do not recommend this last arrangement.