AN IMPROVED CONSTRUC- SION OF RAILWAY WHEELS
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Adolphus Lahousse, of Brussels, in the Kingdom
of Belgium, Mechanician, now rosiding at Lupus Street, Pimlico, in
the County of Middlesex, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED CONSTRUC-
SION OF RAILWAY WHEELS."
Sealed the 16th January 1863, and dated the 25th July 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Adolphus Lahousse at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th July 1862.
I, ADOLPHUS LAHOUSSB, of Brussels, in the Kingdom of Belgium,
Mechanician, now residing at Lupus Street, Pimlico, in the County of
Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention. for "Ax
IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF RAILWAY WHEEL," to be as follows:-
In
This Invention relates to a novel construction of railway wheel,, which will
admit of the application of tires in a cold state, and of their ready removal
when required to be renewed. The nave is formed with a conical periphery,
and has a flange at the base of the cone pierced with bolt. holes.
lieu of spokes, two discs divided radially into segments are used, a space
being left between the radial edges of the segments. The outer ends of
the segments are bent over inwards, and the adjacent edges may, if
.desired, be coupled together by means of a strap piece and rivets. The

page_text: inner ends of the segments of the two discs are kept apart by filling
pieces, through which, as well as through the segments, bolts from the
flange of the nave pass, for holding the segment firmly in position. Between
the segments and the nave wedge picces are inserted, and when driven
home an annular cap is placed over their outer ends, to prevent them from
working loose. The bolts from the flange of the nave pass through this
cap, and nuts being applied to the ends of the bolts the whole is firmly
secured. Before driving up the wedges the wheel tire is applied. Its
inner periphery is formed with a dish-shaped face, to receive the turned
over ends of the segment pieces. When therefore the wedges are driven
up, the segments will be caused to bind against the tire, and hold it firmly
without further attachment. When the tire is worn or otherwise injured
by removing the cap and knocking out the wedges, it may be discon-
nected from the wheel, and may be readily replaced by a new one.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Adolphus Labousse in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
24th January 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ADOLPHUS
LAHOUSSE, of Brussels, in the Kingdom of Belgium, Mechanician, now
residing at Lupus Street, Pimlico, in the County of Middlesex, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did; for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
the said Adolphus Lahousse, IIer special license that I, the said Adolphus
Lahousse, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Adolphus Lahousse, my executors, administrators, and 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 "AN
IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF RAILWAY WHEEL," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Adolphus Lahousse, 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,

page_text: 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 Adolphus Lahousse, do hereby declaro
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 bad to the Drawing hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
:-
This Invention relates to a novel construction of railway wheel, which will
O adinit of the application of tyres in a cold state, and of their ready removal
when required to be renewed.
In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 shews the improved wheel in side
elevation; Fig. 2 is a cross section taken in the line a, b, c, Fig. 1; Fig. 3
shews the boss of the wheel in face view with one of a series of segment<,
5 used in lieu of spokes attached thereto; and Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the
same.
A is a wrought iron nave, formed with a conical periphery, and having
a broad flange at the base of the cone, which flange is to be pierced with
bolt holes, for the purpose to be presently explained. In lieu of spokes, I
o employ discs B, B', which are divided radially into segments, as shown at
Fig. 1. The outer ends 1, 1, of these segments, I bend over inwards, so
that when the segments are brought together, the bent in, or perimetal
edges of the discs will butt against each other, as shown at Fig. 2. If
thought desirable the adjacent edges of the segments may be coupled
5 together by means of a strap piece and rivets. The segments of the two
discs B, B', are arranged in pairs, and their inner ends are kept apart by
means of filling pieces F, which are pierced with bolt holes, as shewn at
Fig. 3. Through these filling pieces, and also through the segment, bolts f
are passed for securing the pairs of segments together. The segments I
0 arrange around the boss A, within the cold tyre C, which is formed on its
inner periphery, with a dish-shaped face or annular trough (see the cross
section Fig. 2), to receive the turned over ends of the segment pieces. I
then insert between the filling pieces F and the nave A, wedge pieces E
one for each pair of segments. These wedges I drive inwards, until the
5 pairs of segments have moved sufficiently radial, (by the pressure thus
applied to them,) to bed themselves firmly in the annular recess formed
in the inner periphery of the tyre. When the wedges are driven home,
and the consistence of the wheel is secured, I bore out the nave, and
turn down the projecting ends of the wedges E; I then apply an annular

page_text: plate or cap D over the outer ends of the wedges, to prevent them from
working loose, and secure this plate in place, by applying the screw bolts d,
which pass through the flange. of the nave A, through the segments and
filling picces, and through the plate or cap D, and receive on their tapped
ends the nuts e, e. When the tyre is worn or otherwise injured, by merely
removing the cap D, and knocking out the wedges, it may be disconnected
from, the wheel, and may be readily replaced by a new one.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention, of "An Improved Con-
struction of Railway Wheel," and explained the manner of carrying the same
into effect, I wish it to be understood, that under the above in part recited
Letters Patent, I claim. the means above described for maintaining wheel tyres
in position and ensuring their ready displacement, when they are required to
be removed.
In witness whereof, I, the said Adolphus Labousse, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, the Twenty-first day of January, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.