AN IMPROVED RAILWAY TRAVERSER
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Simons Watson, of 444, West Strand, in
the County of Middlesex, Esquire, Bachelor of Arts, for the Invention
of "AN IMPROVED RAILWAY TRAVERSER."
Sealed the 1st September 1854, and dated the 22nd March 1854.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Simons Watson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
22nd March 1854.
I, THOMAS SIMONS WATSON, of Number 444, West Strand, in the County
of Middlesex, Esquire, Bachelor of Arts, do hereby declare the nature of the.
said Invention for "AN IMPROVED RAILWAY TRAVERSER" to be as follows, that
is to say:-
. It consists in an improved mechanical arrangement for transferring railway
carriages of all descriptions across any railway, from one line of rails to another,
and it is constructed as follows:-Figures 1 and 2 of the appended Drawings
are respectively the elevation and plan of one half of a traverser adapted to a
railway of two lines.
A certain portion of the bed of the permanent way, with the rails, chairs,
and sleepers, is first removed, and a passage formed across the line and below
its level sufficiently wide and deep for the traverser to work in; then pairs of
detached rails b, b, b', b', all of equal length, depending on the length of the
carriages used on the railway, and which detached rails exactly fit. into the
spaces left in the rails a, a, of the permanent way, are placed upon moveable
chairs c, c, c', c', running upon wheels e, e, e', e', by which they traverse always

page_text: at the same level along cross rails f, f, supported as hereafter described, trans-
verse to the line of railway. Motion is communicated to the said chairs by
two endless chains k, k, k, k', to. which they are attached, and which pass over
the peripheries of two pairs of bearing wheels m, m, fixed on axles, one pair at
each side of the permanent way beyond the outer line of rail and below the
platform. The said bearing wheels. have cogs or.. teeth. n, n, fitting into
openings in the links of the endless chains k, k, k, which thereby revolve with
the wheels when they are turned by hand by the intervention of a combination
of cog wheels o; p, q,r,'t, and screws 8, s.
The cross rails f. f, on which the chairs, c, c, c¹, c¹, run as well as certain
intermediate cross rails i, i, (Fig. 2,) and rollers y, y, (Fig. 2,) intended to give
support to the rails b, b,.of.the traverser, are sustained on arches or girders h, h,
springing from the side walls of the passage in which the traverser works. One
half k, l, of each endless chain, carrying with it the chairs c, d, and travers-
ing rails b', 6¹, not in use, is always below the arches or girders h, h, while
the other half rests on the cross rail, f, and bearing wheels m, m.
21
My Invention' also comprises certain bolts or catches u, u; moved by levers
v, v, which retain the traverser in position, while a carriage passes along its
rails in the line of the permanent way, and certain wedges
or blocks x, x,
(Fig. 2) moved by the same levers 'v, v, which prevent the" carriages from
running"
ing into the spaces left open by the rails of the traverser, when it's rails are
not in line with those of the permanent way.
Having described the nature of my said Invention, I declare that I do not
claim as new 'the principle of making portions of the rails of the permanent
way moveable; "but I do claim as my Invention the principle of placing several
pairs of detached rails upon chairs, running on wheels attached to endless
chains, by which they are moved, so as by passing freely with them in either
direction upon and beneath the railway to be always ready to transfer a carriage
in either direction from one line of rails to another, and when such carriage has
been run off the traverser to receive and transfer another without the necessity
of moving back the traverser to receive it, and to move either way at one time
many carriages as there are lines of rail crossed by the traverser, less one.
as
I do not confine myself to the particular arrangement of wheels and screw,
shewn in Figs. 1 and 2, at o, p, q, r, s, t, for communicating motion to the
bearing wheels of the traverser, as this would necessarily be modified by the
particular construction of the railway platform.
"8

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Thomas. Simons Watson in the Great Seal "Patent Office
on the 20th September 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I THOMAS
SIMONS WATSON, of 444, West Strand, in the County of Middlesex, Esquire,
Bachelor of Arts, send greeting.
: WHEREAS. Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters,
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand, eight hundred and fifty-four, in the seventeenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Heir heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the,
said Thomas Simons Watson, Her special licence that I, the said Thomas
Simons Watson, my executors, administrators, and assigns; or such others
as I, the said Thomas Simons Watson, 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 RAILWAY TRAVERSER," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said Thomas Simons Watson, by an instrument in writing under my hand
and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said In-
vention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, 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 Thomas Simons Watson,. do hereby
declare 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:-
This Invention consists of an improved mechanical arrangement for trans-
ferring railway carriages across a railway from one line of rails to another, by
placing such carriages on pairs of detached rails resting on moveable chairs,
such chairs being carried on wheels, by which they traverse on cross rails
transverse to the line of railway, so as to preserve the detached rails always at
the same level as the rails of the permanent way, motion being communicated
to the chairs by two or more endless chains, which pass over wheels at each
side of the permanent way and below its level. The said wheels are put in
motion by a system of cog wheel, screw, and bevel wheels; part beneath the
platform of the railway, part contained in a hollow colunin passing up through

page_text: the platform, and moved by hand by a winch, the axle of which passes through
the side of the column.
Having thus stated the nature of my said Invention, I proceed to describe
the construction of the same by reference to the accompanying Drawings.
Figure 1 is a ground plan of the traverser, adapted to a railway of two lines
of rails. A portion of the platform is supposed to be removed for the purpose
of shewing the machinery beneath it. The arrangement for giving motion to
the axle of the screw is shewn in section; the pitch only of the bevel wheels
being given, and not the cogs.
Figure 2 is a view of a vertical section of the traverser, made in the direction
of its motion and across the line of railway through the line A, B, of the ground
plan, except in the case of the bevel wheels in the column, where the section is
through the line G, H, of the ground plan.'
Figure 3 is a view of a vertical section, made across the traverser and
parallel to the line of the railway, through the line C, D, of the ground plan,
Fig: 1, and the line E, F, Fig. 2.
A portion of the ballasting of the permanent way, with the rails, chairs, and
sleepers, is first removed, so as to form a passage across the line and below the
level of the rails, wide and deep enough for the traverser to work in, which
passage is lined with brick or other suitable material.
The same letters refer to the same parts in cach Figure wherever they occur.
a, a, are the rails of the permanent way, a portion of each having been removed
to leave a space for the traverser to work in. b, b, are pairs of moveable rails,
all of equal length, and loosely fitting the spaces left in the rails of the perma-
nent way by the removal of the portions above-mentioned. The length of
these moveable rails is determined by the length of the carriages to be placed
upon them to be transferred by the traverser. The pairs of moveable rails b, b,
are placed upon chairs c, c, each of which runs upon two grooved wheels e, e,
working within the chair, and projecting slightly beneath its lower edge, which
wheels rest upon cross rails f, f, supported, as herein-after described, trans-
versely to the line of railway. Each end of every moveable rail rests upon one
of these chairs, and passing alongside the chairs, and beneath the moveable rails
are two endless chains k, k, extending from end to end of the traverser. Each
chair is attached to a link of that chain on its own side of the traverser by two
bolts or pins, which pass respectively through one eye of that link, and one eye
of the link next to it on each side, and being continued through the sides of
the chair, form the axles for the grooved wheels e, e, working within the chair,
and on which the chair is carried.

page_text: Each endless chain k, k, passes over the peripheries of two bearing wheels
m, m, fixed exactly in a line with each other at each side of the permanent
way beyond the outer line of rail and below the platform, on axles parallel to
the line of railway, the ends of which axles work freely in.bearings fixed in the
side walls of the passage beneath the railway in which the traverser works.
The said bearing wheels m, m, have on their edges, cogs or teeth n, n, fitting
into openings in the links of the endless chains. 0, 0, are two wheels fixed, one
on each of the axles, which carry the bearing wheels m, m, so that all revolve
at the same time. Each wheel o, o, has cogs worked on its edge, which cogs
fit between the threads of the endless screws, s, which screw is connected with
the system of bevel wheels p, q, r, t, in such a way, that when they are moved
in either direction by the winch w, the motion is communicated through the
bevel wheels and their axles, and the screws to the wheel o, and thus through
the axle to the wheels m, which drive the endless chains in either direction by
the cogs n, which fit within the links, and thus communicate motion to the
whole traverser.
The cross rails f,f, on which the grooved wheels e, e, of the chairs run, are
sustained on arches or girders h, h, springing from the side walls of the passage
in which the traverser works. i, i, are intermediate rails, also sustained on the
arches or girders h, h, on which run the grooved wheels z, z, the axles of which
work in bearings fixed on the under side of the moveable rails of the traverser,
so as to support such rails. y, y, are bearing rollers, having axles working in
bearings in uprights springing from the arches or girders h, h, for the purpose
of giving support to the rails of the traverser when it is in a position for carriages
to pass over them. The number of these intermediate rails and bearing rollers
required to support the rails of the traverser is determined by the length of
such rails, and the weight of the carriages used on the railway.
It will be observed, that one half of each endless chain, carrying with it the
chairs and detached rails, is always below the arches or girders h, h, while the
other half, carrying the carriages to be shifted, rests on the bearing wheels m, m;
and cross rails f, f.
My Invention also comprises certain bolts or catches u, u, moving freely
parallel to the rails of the permanent way, and just below their upper edges
level, in boxes close to their extreme ends next the traverser, and driven back-
wards or forwards by the system of levers v, v, the last of which passes up
through the platform close to the column containing the machinery for moving
the traverser. These levers move on fulcrums fixed in blocks of stone resting
on the bed of the railway at 1 and 2, and on a fulcrum attached to the under

page_text: side of the platform at 3. The bolts u, u, are so adjusted; that on being thrust
forward by the levers v at that.side of the railway towards which the traverser
is moving, just before. the traversing rails come into line with the permanent
rails, spring catches i, j, projecting above the traversing chairs, are pressed down
within the chairs by the bolts u, u, as they pass under such bolts, but rise again
at the moment that the rails of the traverser come into line with the rails of the
permanent way, and retain the traverser in position for carriages to pass over
the rails of the line until released by the withdrawal of the bolts u, u, by the
reverse action of the levers v, v. The same motion of the levers v, v, which
draws back the bolts , u, also turns forward on to the rails of the permanent
way..the blocks x, x, by means of the bent lever v', v, working on centres 4
fixed in blocks of stone resting on the bed of the railway, which blocks x, x, are
intended to prevent carriages from running: into the spaces left open by the
rails of the traverser, when they are not in line with the rails of the permanent
way..
1 +
..:
The material to be used in the construction of the traverser.is.cast or wrought
iron, where not otherwise specified;. with steel or brass. bearings..for the axles
of the wheels, and for the pins of the chains...
Having thus described the nature. of my said Invention, I would have it
understood that 'I do. not claim the principle of transferring the carriages
across the lines of railway by placing them on pairs of détached rails, but I do
claim as my Invention the principle of transferring the carriages across the
lines of railway by placing them upon pairs of detached rails, where such rails
are supported upon.chairs which run on wheels, and which chairs are attached
to endless chains, whereby they are moved in such a manner as to pass with
them in either direction continuously across the railway. By these means the
traverser is always ready to transfer a carriage in either, direction from.one
line of rails to another, and while such carriage is being run off, one pair of
rails of the traverser; another pair of such rails receives, another carriage, and
then it is transferred also in either direction,, so that there is no necessity to
move back the traverser to receive such carriage, and the traverser is enabled
to transfer at one time as many carriages,, less one, as there are lines of rails
crossed, by it.
I would have it. understood that I do not confine myself to the particular
arrangement of wheels and screw shewn at o, p, q, r, s, t, w, for giving motion
to the bearing wheels of the traverser, as these. details will necessarily depend
upon the particular construction of the railway platform, nor to the particular
dimensions here indicated of the, several parts of the machine, since these will

page_text: necessarily be modified by the size, weight, and number of the carriages which
the traverser is to be adapted to transfer. The accompanying Drawings are
made to a scale of one inch to the foot.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Simons Watson, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twentieth day of September, in the year of
our Lord 1854.
T. SIMONS WATSON. (L.S.)
T. SIMONS WATSON. (L.S.)