AN IMPROVED METHOD OF WORKING RAILWAY BREAKS, AND IMPROVED APPARATUS CONNECTED THEREWITH
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Clark, of Kensington, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer, for an Invention of "AN IMPROVED METHOD OF WORKING RAILWAY
BREAKS, AND IMPROVED APPARATUS CONNECTED THEREWITH."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Clark at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 2nd March 1880.
"AN
JOSEPH CLARK, of Kensington, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer.
IMPROVED METHOD OF WORKING RAILWAY BREAKS, AND IMPROVED APPARATUS
CONNECTED THEREWITH."
The object of this Invention is to work railway breaks so that they shall be
self-acting in the event of the train dividing accidentally, and to fit apparatus
thereto for regulating the blocks and friction-wheels of such breaks. The said
apparatus or parts of it may be used for other railway breaks which are not
self-acting.
In carrying this Invention into practice I fit two chain pullies in pendulous
links, and suspend such links from brackets fixed to the underframe of the vehicle.
I fit also a third chain pulley between the two former pullies but at a lower
position, and connect it to a bracket which is fitted to slide upon two vertical rods
fixed to the said framing. I fit spiral springs upon the said rods in such a manner
that when the said third chain pulley is raised it compresses the said springs. I fit
compound links to connect the free ends of the said pendulous links, and connect
the latter by pulling rods to the levers of the break-blocks. I place a chain or its
equivalent along the centre line of the train to operate the breaks thereby, and
support it upon suitable pullies fixed to the framing. The said chain is fitted with
coupling hooks at each carriage to work the breaks on a series or train of vehicles
at one and the same time. The end of the chain is fastened over the two
pullies in the pendulous links, and under the said third pulley, so that when the
said chain is tightened by any suitable means on the engine or van it shall raise
the said third pulley, compress the said spiral springs, and, by means of the pulling
rods, keep the break from acting so long as the said chain is tight; but when such
chain is slackened or broken the said springs expand, and acting on the said
pulling rods and break-levers apply the break as required. I fit a detaching

page_text: hook to the bracket of the said third pulley for disconnecting the break when
shunting.
In a modification of the arrangement described I dispense with the chain and use
tension rods to operate the breaks, which by preference I fit along the centre line
of the train. I fit the said spiral springs upon the said tension rods, and arrange
them to rest upon brackets fitted to the said underframe. The said rods are jointed
to fulcrum levers fitted to the said framing, so that when the tension rod upon one
side is pulled the said fulcrum levers to which the rods are attached pull the
corresponding tension rod upon the other side to apply the break. The said tension
rods are fitted with right and left couplings to connect the break of each carriage
on making up a train.
To regulate the distance of the blocks from the wheels I fit a spring rod and
insert the end thereof inside a tube, and connect such tube by a rod having an
oblong hole near its end to a bracket fixed to the underframing, so that the blocks
shall recede from the wheels a distance equal to the length of the said oblong hole
or slot.
To regulate the friction wheels used for tightening the chain of such breaks, or
of breaks that are applied by tightening a chain, I fit a longitudinal rod from each
of the spindles of such friction-wheels, and pass the ends of such rods through
check-plates fixed on the headstocks of the vehicle. I fit a detent to fall into
a notch on the end of such rods, and thereby prevent the friction-wheels to which
they are attached from acting when not required.
To avoid the tremour and unequal strain caused by irregular wear of the friction-
wheels, I fit a spring to the pulling rod of each such friction-wheels so that irregular
wear is compensated by the action of such spring.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Joseph Clark in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 2nd September
1880.
JOSEPH CLARK, of Kensington, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer. "AN
IMPROVED METHOD OF WORKING RAILWAY BREAKS, AND IMPROVED APPARATUS
CONNECTED THEREWITH."
The object of this Invention is so to work railway breaks that they shall
be self-acting in the event of a train dividing accidentally, and to fit apparatus
thereto for regulating the break-blocks and friction-wheels of such breaks. The
said apparatus or parts thereof may be used for other railway breaks which are not
self-acting.
I now proceed to describe my said Invention particularly and refer to the accom-
panying Sheet of Drawings by the reference letters marked thereon.
Figs. 1, 2, and 3 are drawn to a scale of half an inch to the foot; Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7,
and 8 are drawn one-fourth the full size.
.
Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the frame of a railway carriage with my Invention
fitted thereto; Fig. 2 is a plan, and Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the same.
a are break-blocks fitted to the pendulous brackets b. The levers c, c², jointed
to the brackets 6 are connected at their lower ends by pulling-rods d. One lever c
of each pair is held by a pulling-rod e (or a bracket) to the frame of the carriage
as a fulcrum; and the other levers c' are jointed to two tension-rods f, f'.
Upon
the said tension-rods or connected thereto I fit two or more spiral or other springs g
in such a manner that when the tension-rods f, f¹, are pulled, by screws or other
suitable apparatus fitted on the guards' van or engine, they shall compress the said
springs which rest upon brackets h attached to the frame of the carriage. In this
manner when the springs are compressed the break-blocks a are drawn clear of the
carriage wheels, and by the recoil of the springs g the said blocks are pressed upon
such wheels when the break is required to be applied. This result may either be
attained by releasing the tension-rods f, f¹, by the apparatus on the guards' van or
engine above referred to, and be operated by the guard or driver; or in the event
of the train breaking away accidentally the recoil of the said springs would apply
the break automatically. The rods f. f, are jointed to levers i working on fulcrum-
brackets & attached to the framing of the carriage, so that when one of the rods f,ƒ³,
is pulled in the manner described the other rod is also pulled, and thereby the break
is applied on both sides of the carriage simultaneously.
To enable the tension-rods f, f¹, to work along a train over sharp curves, they
are so fitted as to converge at or near the fulcrum-pin l, where they may be
jointed to radial links to guide them; or they may be formed of steel-wire
rope, and be passed through holes in the head of the said fulcrum-pin, as shown
in Fig. 3.
The ends of the rods f, f¹, are formed with a right and left coupling of any
suitable kind to enable the rods of the several carriages forming a train to be
coupled together when required. A similar arrangement can be fitted to work- the
breaks of carriages having four wheels or any other number.
Fig. 4 shows an arrangement to regulate the distance of the break-blocks from
the face of the carriage wheels when such blocks are fitted on both sides of the
wheels. a is a rod formed at one end with an oval hole or slot b which works on
a pin in a bracket b' attached to the framing of the carriage, and at its other end
it is fitted with a piece of tube c, shown in section, inside of which tube the split
rod d is tightly fitted; this rod d is jointed at e to any moving part of the block f.
In this manner the said block is allowed to move the extent of the oval hole b,

page_text: and as the block wears away by use the split rod d is drawn through the tube
surrounding it.
Fig. shows the arrangement I use to regulate the friction-wheels used for
tightening the chain of railway breaks. a is a longitudinal rod jointed to the
pendulous lever b and sliding in a check-plate c fixed to the frame of the carriage
in any convenient manner. When it is required to keep the friction-wheel d out of
contact with the drum e upon the axle fa detent g is placed in the gap h of the
rod a, and thereby prevents the said rod from sliding in the check-plate c, and thus
keeps the friction-wheel & out of contact with the said drum when so required.
A similar arrangement is fitted to the friction-wheel d¹ for the same object.
Fig. 6 shows a side elevation, and Fig. 7 an end elevation of my said Invention
as applied to operate chain breaks automatically in the event of the train dividing
accidentally, but which may also be used for working such breaks negatively for
ordinary stoppages, that is to say, the through chain along the chain for operating
the breaks is wound up and kept tight by suitable apparatus on the guard's van or
engine while the train is running, and the break-blocks are thereby kept from
pressing against the wheels; but when the break is required to stop the train the
said chain is slackened, and by the recoil of springs on each carriage the break is
applied on such carriages. a is the said through chain, supported on pullies fitted
to the carriage under-frame. Two chain pullies b are fitted in pendulous links c
from brackets d, which are fixed to the under-frame of the carriage. The chain
pulley e is fitted to a bracket f which slides upon the two vertical rods g, upon which
are placed the springs h. The bracket f is fitted with a hook i which hooks upon
the fulcrum-pin k of the compound links . In this manner, when the chain a is
tightened by means of friction-wheels worked by contact with the van axle or other
axle of the train, the chain pulley e is raised, which compresses the springs and
raises the pin k, so that the pulling-rods m (which are attached to the levers of the
break-blocks) keep the blocks out of contact with the wheels of the carriage, and
the break from acting, so long as the chain a is kept tight; but if the said chain
gets broken by reason of the train dividing accidentally, or if it be slackened by
any suitable means for the regular stopping of the train the springs h recoil and
apply the break with the force stored in them. n is a rotating rod or lever which
is connected to the hook i to disconnect the break from working when not required.
Fig. 8 shows a modification of the arrangement just described, and is lettered
with similar letters to corresponding parts. The rods g are here horizontal, and the
compound links are connected with the fulcrum-pin on which the pulley e turns.
The operation of the break is similar to that described under Figs. 6 and 7. When
the chain a is tightened it raises the pulley e, and by means of the links expands
the pendulous links c, thereby compressing the springs h which are inclosed in the
links o, one on each side. The rods m are formed with a hook which fits on the
fulcrum pin of the pullies b; the ends of these rods are connected by links or
chains to a lever on the rotating rod n, so that when such rod is turned round it
raises the ends of the rods m, disengages the said hooks from the fulcrum pins of the
pullies b, and thereby disconnects the break from working when not required.
I use other means for tightening the through chain a than the friction-wheels
described, see Fig. 5, such as a cylinder fitted with a piston therein; to the rod of
such piston the said chain is connected, so that when the said cylinder is charged
with steam, water, or compressed air, by the admission of the same through regu-
lating cocks fitted thereto for the purpose, the said piston pulls the chain a which
is connected to the rod thereof.
I also operate the through chain a (see Figs. 6 and 7) by springs fitted on the
guard's van or other vehicle of the train; these springs are of greater power than
the springs h. I use the power of the friction-wheels d, d, Fig. 5, to compress the
said springs of greater power, and when I release the power stored in such springs
they pull the chain a and thereby compress the springs h, as described in
Fios. 6 and 7.

page_text: Having thus fully described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention, and
the means whereby it is or may be carried into practice, I further declare that I do
not restrict myself to the precise details now described by way of illustration, because
from the nature of my said Invention these may be considerably modified in practice
without departing from the main characteristics of the Invention; but what I claim
as novel, and desire to secure by the herein before mentioned in part recited Letters
Patent is,
Firstly. The construction and arrangement of apparatus for self-acting railway
breaks, as described under Figures 1, 2, and 3.
Secondly. The apparatus for adjusting the blocks of railway breaks, as described
under Figure 4.
Thirdly. The apparatus for holding the friction-wheels of railway breaks out of
contact with the drum on the van or carriage axle when not required, as described
under Figure 5.
Fourthly. The apparatus for operating railway chain-breaks by releasing springs,
so as to render such breaks self-acting, as described under Figures 6, 7, and 8;
All substantially as and for the purposes described and illustrated under the
several Figures relating thereto.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph Clark, have hereunto set my hand and
seal, this First day of September, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty.