Improved Means or Appliances for Increasing the Adhesion of the Driving Wheels of Motor Vehicles for Railways with Suspended Vehicles.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Aug., 1896-Accepted, 17th Oct., 1896
[Communicated from abroad by EUGEN LANGEN'S ERBEN, in Vertretung, of
Werthstrasse 14, Cologne, Germany.]
Improved Means or Appliances for Increasing the Adhesion of the
Driving Wheels of Motor Vehicles for Railways with Suspended
Vehicles.
I CHARLES DENTON ABEL of No. 28 Southampton Buildings Chancery
Lane in the County of London Consulting Engineer and Chartered Patent
Agent 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 relates to motor vehicles of that description of railways in which
the vehicles are suspended from the rail or rails, more particularly such as were
described in the Specification to Patents 4189 of 1893, 5937 of 1895 and 10028 of
1895, it consists in increasing the adhesion of the driving wheels of such motor
vehicles to the rail or rails by causing the guard rollers or wheels arranged on the
under-side of the rail to be pressed with more or less force against the latter. By
means of such pressure the pressure of the driving wheels is correspondingly
This arrange-
increased, resulting in a proportionally increased tractional force.
ment is in particular effective when not only the ordinary driving wheels above the
rails, but also the guard wheels below are driven by the motor engine.
Figures 1 to 6 of the accompanying drawings shew two arrangements for the
application of this invention to a single-rail railway.
Figure 1 shews a vertical cross section at W W Figure 2. Figure 2 shews a
part side view, and Figure 3 a cross section at X X. Figure 2 of one arrangement,
Figure 4 shews a cross section at Y Y Figure 5, Figure 5 shews a side view and
In Figures 1
Figure 6 a cross section at Z Z. Figure 5, of the second arrangement.
to 3 not only the driving wheel R but also the guard wheel F receives direct
rotary motion from the motor engine by means of the worm C C' and the worm
wheels D D': the shaft B of the worm passes down to the motor carried by the
body of the vehicle (not shewn) which is suspended by a suitable pivotal connection
from the plate P. The shaft B may be the motor shaft itself or a shaft driven
thereby.
The arrangement is such that the pressure of the guard roller E against the
underside of the rail F is rendered proportional to the amount of the tractional
force exercised by the motor vehicle upon the other vehicles of the train through
the draw hook Z. For this purpose the draw bars Z1 Z2 are pivotally connected
to elbow levers H H which in their turn are connected by links to levers S having
their pirot on the framing Q, and connected to the axle boxes of the roller E.
Thus the greater the tractional force exerted upon the hook Z, the more forcibly
will the guard roller E be pressed upward against the rail through the medium of
the elbow levers H H. In like manner, when a pull is exerted in the contrary
direction, indicated by the arrow G, upon the draw rods Z Z such pull will exert
a pressure on the roller through the elbow levers H H. The draw hook Z is
connected to two draw bars Z Z and the elbow levers H H H H are connected
to slotted parts of these, so that only one set of levers is acted upon when the
traction is in one direction.

page_text: In the arrangement shewn at Figures 4 to 6 a pinion on the motor shaft B gears
with two spur wheels D D on the axles of the guard rollers EE, which spur
wheels gear with spur wheels D' D' on the axles of the driving wheels R R so that
all four wheels are thus driven simultaneously by the motor, which is carried in
any suitable manner by the frame Q, carried by the wheels, and being of any
suitable known construction, is not shewn on the drawings.
The guard rollers E are in this case also pressed against the underside of the
line of rail F, in proportion to the tractional force exerted by the motor carriage
through the medium of the draw hook Z, the pull of the latter being transmitted
through the elbow lever H pivotted to the draw bar Z' to levers S which are made
to press the rollers upward against the rail, such levers S being connected by a
link to beams T the ends of which embrace the two axles, so that the two rollers E
are pressed with equal force against the rail.
In the arrangement at Figures 4, 5 and 6 the framing Q with the wheels,
motor &c. comprises the entire motor vehicle, or locomotive, in the arrangement
at Figures 1, 2 and 3 there are two frames such as Q connected together by
beams U, U and which with the body (not shewn) suspended from them, constitutes
the motor vehicle.
This construction is more particularly suitable for locomotives of light field
railways, and the like, while the construction at Figures 4 to 6 is very suitable for
mountain railways.
The guard rollers E are made without flanges so that if the locomotive should
assume a somewhat inclined position, the rail-girder F would not be jammed or
twisted thereby. The system of freely. suspended vehicles can therefore be
maintained with these constructions.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
In a motor vehicle or locomotive for railways with suspended vehicles having
driving wheels acting on the upper side of the line of rails and guard rollers bearing
against the under side of the rail, an arrangement for automatically increasing the
pressure of the driving wheels upon the rail, wherein the guard rollers E are
pressed against the rail by means of elbow levers connected to the draw bar, so
that such pressure is directly proportional to the tractional force applied to the
draw bar, substantially as described.
Dated this 1st day of August 1896.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant..