IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ARRESTING LOCOMOTIVES AND CARS
Year: 1884

page_text: We ADOLPHUS BONZANO of Phoenixville Pennsylvania United States of
America and MAXIMILIAN FERDINAND BONZANÓ of Philadelphia Pennsylvania
United States of America Civil Engineers do hereby declare the nature of said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ARRESTING LOCOMOTIVES AND
CARS" to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to a device for gently arresting a locomotive or car as it is
approaching the terminus of a track in place of the cumbrous fixed bumper frames
which are in common use, and by violent contact with which locomotives and cars
are often more or less damaged, and my Invention consists of a device whereby the
momentuin of a locomotive or car is caused to impart such friction to a rail or
rails as will gradually absorb the said momentum the friction ceasing when the
locomotive has backed from the device.
In accordance with my Invention on each rail of the track is a shoe which has
in the underside a T-groove adapted to the rail, so that while the said shoe is at
liberty to be moved freely on the rail under the circumstances explained hereafter,
it can have no other movement independently of the said rail.
To lugs on each shoe is pivotted a lever one arm of which is vertical or extends
upward, the other arm being horizontal or nearly so, and the two arms being
connected together by a web.
A toe on each lever is arranged to bear on the shoe, and the horizontal
arm of the lever is above a block which rests on the rail the said block being
arranged to slide on the rail with the shoe and lever as it is loosely confined
between a projection on the latter and the end of a slot in the shoe.
The operation of this device may be explained as follows:
When the wheel or any other part of a locomotive or car strikes the vertical
arm of the lever the latter together with the shoe, will yield and slide on the rail,
but at the same time such pressure will be exerted on the rail through the medium
of the block as will cause friction enough to absorb the momentum of the locomotive
or car without the damaging shock which they often receive, when brought into
violent contact with the usual fixed bumper frames. In other words, the locomotive
or car is gently arrested by friction due to its own momentum.
After the locomotive or car has backed from the vertical arm of the lever, the
block will be relieved from pressure, the toe of the lever resting on the shoe which
with the lever can be moved back from the position to which it has been pushed.

page_text: It will be seen that the friction block so far as regards its functions is simply a
removeable part of the arm of the lever, the arm indeed might bear directly on the
rail, but for the wear to which it is subjected, whereas when the friction block has
become unduly worn it can be readily removed and a new one inserted in its place.
There is, however, this further advantage of the removable block. Under a
given force applied to the arm of the lever, the pressure applied to the block will
be proportionate to the difference between the lengths of the two arms of the lever,
the shorter the horizontal arm the greater the pressure.
The effective length of the vertical arm will be the distance from the point
where the arm is struck and a line drawn through the centre of the pivot pin of
the lever, and the effective length of the horizontal arm will be the distance
between the said centre and the point where the arm bears on the block, hence by
blocks differently formed at the top different leverages and different degrees of
friction may be obtained.
While a single arresting device like that above described might be used especially
if adapted to a special rail in the centre of the track, I prefer two arresting
devices, one for each of the usual rails, and to connect them together by a cross-bar
or bars or the vertical arms of the two levers may be carried upward and connected
together by a cross-beam for the beam of the engine to strike against, and there
may be one or more intermediate arresting devices adapted to special rails.
In using the term rail, I wish it to be understood that the term is intended to
include any fixed bar or plate, with which a shoe and lever may be combined
substantially in the manner described. The shoe and lever may be fixed to the
track and a rail bar or plate constructed to be struck by a locomotive or car may
slide in the shoe.
Another feature of my Invention consists in making the arresting device or
devices self-restoring to the position from which they have been moved by the
locomotive or car after the backing of the latter.
This may be done by a counterbalance either in the form of a spring or springs
or a weight contained in a pit below the track and suspended to a rope or chain
passing over guide pulleys to the cross-bar connecting the arresting devices for after
the levers have been relieved from the pressure of the locomotive or car there is no
longer sufficient friction on the rails to prevent the easy restoration of the arresting
devices to their normal positions.
The counterbalancing device may consist of a coiled spring. surrounding a rod
and interposed between a cross-bar secured to the rails in any suitable manner, and
the cross-bar connecting the arresting devices, the spring yielding when the
arresting devices are acted upon by the vehicle, but being sufficiently rigid to return
the devices to their normal positions when the vehicle has backed from them.
The rod of the spring may be attached to the bar connecting the arresting
devices and arranged to slide in the cross-bar at the other end or vice versa.
J. HENRY JOHNSON,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C.,
Agent for the said Adolphus Bonzano and
Maximilian Ferdinand Bonzanó.

page_text: We ADOLPHUS BONZANO, of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, United States of
America and MAXIMILIAN FERDINAND BONZANO of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
United States of America, Civil Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of said
Invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR ARRESTING LOCOMOTIVES AND
CARS, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
My Invention relates to a device for gently arresting a locomotive or car as it is
approaching the terminus of a track in place of the cumbrous fixed bumper frames
which are in common use and by violent contact with which locomotives and cars
are often more or less damaged, and my Invention consists of a device fully
described hereafter whereby the momentum of a locomotive or car is caused to
impart such friction to a rail or rails as will gradually absorb the said momentum,
the friction ceasing when the locomotive has backed from the device.
Other objects of my Invention are too fully explained hereafter to need
preliminary description.
In the accompanying Drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of the device for
arresting locomotives and cars arranged according to my Invention; Figure 2 is a
sectional elevation taken on the line 1-2, Figure 1. Figure 3 is an end view of
the device, the rails being in section. Figure 4 is a transverse section taken on the
line 3-4, Figure 1. Figures 5, 6 and 7 are perspective views illustrating parts
separated from each other; and Figures 8 and 9 are diagrams illustrating a feature
of my Invention.
Referring to Figures 1 to 4, A and A¹ are portions of the two rails of a track.
On each rail is a shoe B, which has in the underside a T-groove a, best seen in the
perspective view Figure 7, the groove being adapted to the rail, as shewn in
Figure 3, so that while the said shoe is at liberty to be moved freely on the rail
under the circumstances explained hereafter, it can have no other movement
independently of the said rail.
To lugs b, b, on each shoe is pivoted a lever D, one arm d, of which extends
upward, the other arm e, being horizontal or nearly so, and the two arms being
connected together by a web f, forming part of the lever.
A toe h, on each lever is arranged to bear on the shoe, and the arm, e, of the
lever is above a block, i, which rests on the rail, as shewn in Figure 2, the said
block being arranged to slide on the rail with the shoe, and lever, as it is loosely
confined between a projection m, on the latter and the end n, of a slot in the shoe.
The operation of this device is as follows:
When the wheel or any other part of a locomotive or car strikes the arm & of the
lever D, the latter, together with the shoe, will yield and slide on the rail but at
the same time such pressure will be exerted on the rail through the medium of the
block i, as will cause friction enough to absorb the momentum of the locomotive or
car without the damaging shock which they often receive when brought into
violent contact with the usual fixed bumper frames. In other words the locomotive
or car is gently arrested by friction due to its own momentum.
After the locomotive or car has backed from the arm & of the lever, the block I
will be relieved from pressure, the toe h, of the lever resting on the shoe, which
with the lever can be moved back from the position to which it has been pushed.
It will be seen that the friction block i, so far as regards its functions, is
simply a removeable part of the arm e, of the lever D, the arm indeed might bear
directly on the rail, but for the wear to which it is subjected, whereas when the

page_text: friction block has become unduly worn it can be readily removed and a new one
inserted in its place.
There is however, this further advantage of the removable block. Under a
given force applied to the arm & of the lever D, the pressure applied to the block
will be proportionate to the difference between the lengths of the two arms of the
lever, the shorter the arm e, the greater the pressure.
The effective length of the arm d, will be the distance from the point where the
arm is struck by the vehicle and a line x, drawn through the centre of the pivot
pin of the lever, and the effective length of the arm e, will be the distance between
the said centre and the point where the arm bears on the block, hence by blocks
differently formed at the top, different leverages and different degrees of friction
may be obtained.
The use of a block of the character shewn in Figure 8 for instance would be
equivalent to the shortening of the arme of the lever and the block Figure 9 would
be equivalent to a lengthening of the arm.
While a single arresting device like that above described might be used especially
if adapted to a special rail in the centre of the track I prefer two arresting devices
one for each of the usual rails and to connect them together by a cross bar or
bars G or the arms d of the two levers may be carried upward and connected
together by a cross beam for the beam of the engine to strike against and there
may be one or more intermediate arresting devices adapted to special rails.
In using the term rail I wish it to be understood that the term is intended to
include any fixed bar or plate with which a shoe and lever may be combined
substantially in the manner described. The shoe and lever may be fixed to the
track and a rail bar or plate constructed to be struck by a locomotive or car may
slide in the shoe.
It is not essential moreover that the lever and shoe should be constructed
precisely as shown.
Another feature of my Invention consists in making the arresting device or
devices self restoring to the position from which they have been moved by the
locomotive or car after backing.
This may be done by a counter balance either in the form of a spring or springs
or a weight contained in a pit below the track and suspended to a rope or chain
passing over guide pulleys to the cross bar G for after the levers have been
relieved from the pressure of the locomotive or car there is no longer sufficient
friction on the rails to prevent the easy restoration of the arresting devices to
their normal positions.
The counter balancing device shown in the Drawing consists of a coiled spring W
surrounding a rod H and interposed between a cross bar I secured to the rails in
any suitable manner and the cross bar & the spring yielding when the arresting
devices are moved in the direction of the arrow (Figure 2) but being sufficiently
rigid to return the devices to their normal positions when the locomotive or car
has backed from them."
The rod H may be attached to the cross bar G and arranged to slide in the
cross bar I or it may be secured to the latter and arranged to slide in the cross
bar G.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
First The combination of a shoe B adapted to the rail with a lever D pivoted
to the shoe and serving with the same as a medium by which a locomotive or car
will cause friction on the rail substantially as set forth.
Secondly-The combination of the shoe and its lever with counter balancing
mechanism substantially as hereinbefore described.
Thirdly The combination of the shoe B adapted to the rail and the lever D
pivoted to the shoe with a removable block i interposed between the arm e of the
lever and the rail substantially as hereinbefore described.

page_text: Fourthly The combination of the shoe B with the lever D having a toe h for
limiting the movement of the lever as herein before described.
Fifthly The combination of two or more shoes B adapted to rails on a track
and each shoe having a lever D with a bar or bars for connecting the shoes together
substantially as herein before described.
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