Improvements in Safety Apparatus for Use in connection with "Diamond Crossings" of Railway Permanent Way.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Nov., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 21st Aug., 1895-Accepted, 12th Oct., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION..
Improvements in Safety Apparatus for Use in connection with
"Diamond Crossings" of Railway Permanent Way.
I, ROBERT CRICHTON, of 1 Brook Street, Carr House Lane, Lancaster, in the
County of Lancaster, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
'-are
This invention of improvements in safety apparatus for use in connection with
"diamond crossings" of railway permanent way has reference to the apparatus
described in the Specification of my former Patent No. 21,848 of 1891 in which
apparatus metal blocks-hereinafter referred to as "safety wedge pieces"-
caused to be introduced within the normally unoccupied spaces adjoining the.
diamond points so that when a train or vehicle is passing over the crossing
either direction or upon either of the two sets of rails which form the crossing a
practically continuous flange guard is provided throughout its entire length. My
present invention relates to the mounting and actuating of the said safety wedge
pieces.
in
According to my above-named Patent the safety wedge pieces are mounted or
carried upon the ends of bell-crank levers and in one arrangement they are
described as being actuated-that is raised and lowered when required-by means
With such an
of suitable lever and connecting rod mechanism from a signal box.
arrangement I find it in practice desirable to so mount and support the safety
wedge pieces as to impart to their up and down movement greater steadiness and
certainty of direction than is to be attained by carrying them on bell-crank levers
as herein before stated. To this end I provide each of the four safety wedge pieces
with a metal block through which-supported in a vertical guide slot or bearing-
the safety wedge piece may be slided up and down. The metal block extends
horizontally and fits closely in between the web of the running rail and the web of
the guard rail screw bolts and nuts bracing and firmly holding the block and the
rails together.
The safety wedge pieces are of such a shape and size as to drop or lower
themselves of their own weight and they may conveniently be raised by means of
arms or fingers curved so as to operate as wiper cams on the underside of the
safety wedge pieces. Or they may if thought desirable be raised and also lowered
by the operation of the curved arms or fingers arranged within slots in the body of
the safety wedge pieces. The said arms or fingers are pivotally mounted and may
be actuated from a signal box by means of lever and connecting rod mechanism of
the usual or any other suitable kind.
Dated this 01st do of Novembar 1891

page_text: Improvements in Safety Apparatus for Use in connection with
"Diamond Crossings" of Railway Permanent Way.
I, ISABELLA LUMSDEN CRICHTON, of 1, Brook Street, Carr House Lane,
Lancaster, in the County of Lancaster, Executrix of the Will of Robert Crichton,
Civil Engineer, (late of the same address, deceased) do hereby declare the nature
of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention of improvements in safety apparatus for use in connection with
"diamond crossings" of railway permanent way has reference to the apparatus
described in the Specification of my former Patent No. 21,848 of 1891 in which
apparatus metal blocks-hereinafter referred to as "safety wedge pieces "-are
caused to be introduced within the normally unoccupied spaces adjoining the
diamond points so that when a train or vehicle is passing over the crossing in
either direction or upon either of the two sets of rails which form the crossing a
practically continuous flange guard is provided throughout its entire length. My
present invention relates to the mounting and actuating of the said safety wedge
pieces.
According to my above-named Patent the safety wedge pieces are mounted or
carried upon the ends of bell-crank levers and in one arrangement they are
described as being actuated-that is raised and lowered when required-by means
of suitable lever and connecting rod mechanism from a sigual box.
With such an
arrangement I find it in practice desirable to so mount and support the safety
wedge pieces as to impart to their up and down movement greater steadiness and
certainty of direction than is to be attained by carrying them ou bell-crank levers
as herein before stated. To this end I provide each of the four safety wedge pieces
with a metal block through which-supported in a vertical guide slot or bearing-
the safety wedge piece may be slided up and down. The metal block extends
horizontally and fits closely in between the web of the running rail and the web of
the guard rail screw bolts and nuts bracing and firmly holding the block and the
rails together.
The safety wedge pieces are of such a shape and size as to drop or lower
themselves of their own weight and they may conveniently be raised by means of
arms or fingers curved so as to operate as wiper cams on the underside of the
safety wedge pieces. Or they may if thought desirable be raised and also lowered
by the operation of the curved arins or fingers arranged within slots in the body of
the safety wedge pieces. The said arms or fingers are pivotally mounted and may
be actuated from a signal box by means of lever and connecting rod mechanism of
the usual or any other suitable kind.
In the accompanying drawings,
Fig. 1 is a sectional side elevation
Fig. 2 a plan view
Fig. 3 a cross sectional view and
Fig. 4 an end view (partly in section) illustrating the nature of my improve-
ments.
In the said drawings only one safety wedge piece and attendant parts of the
four required for each diamond_crossing-are shewn as each of the other three
wedge pieces is similarly arranged and fitted to the running rail or the guard rail
as the case may be as will be readily understood.
m is the safety wedge piece or tapered metal block (corresponding to the same
part m described and illustrated in my said former Patent) capable of sliding
vertically in a guide slot or bearing in the metal block c which fits closely in

page_text: between the web of the running rail b and the web of the guard rail l-j; being
screw bolts and nuts by which the block c and rails and are braced or firmly
held together. nn are curved arms or fingers acting as wiper cams which by the
horizontal movement of the bar h cause the block m to be raised (see Figs. 1
and 3) or to be lowered (as shewn at Fig. 4 and in broken lines at Fig. 1). The
pivoting of the curved arms n n may be conveniently effected as shewn at Figs. 1, 3
and 4 by means of a bracket or clamp which is fastened to the lower part of
the guard rail (or of the running rail 6 as the case may be) by one or more screw
bolts o the inner half 2 of the said bracket carrying the studs or axes k k upon
which the fingers n n are pivoted. Recesses a are made on one side of the metal
block c to make room for the plate 2 and the head of the bolt o.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
In apparatus for use in connection with diamond crossings of railway permanent
way in which taper metal blocks or "safety wedge pieces" introduced within the
usually unoccupied spaces adjoining the diamond points are caused to be raised and
lowered the use or employment of a supporting metal block through which the
safety wedge piece may be slided up and down arranged substantially as described
and shewn in the drawings for the purpose specified.
Dated
For the Applicant,
W. LLOYD WISE,
46 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Chartered Patent Agent.