IMPROVEMENTS IN APPLIANCES FOR SIGNALLING ON RAILWAYS ESPECIALLY DURING FOGS
Year: 1885

page_text: Í WALTER EDMONDS of Bendigo Cottage, Higham, Kent, Farmer do hereby
declare the nature of my said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPLIANCES FOR
SIGNALLING ON RAILWAYS ESPECIALLY DURING FOGS" to be as follows:-
The chief features of this apparatus are as follows:
A tube box or equivalent placed near the rail contains the detonators which may
be of the ordinary kind.
The bottom of the tube is closed by a slide provided with a recess or equivalent
means for holding the detonator (such as a sticky coating or the like) so that as
the slide is propelled forward it carries with it the lowest detonator of the lot
enclosed in the tube, the other portion of the slide closing the opening at the
bottom. The slide is projected forward upon or into a recess in the rail so as to
place the detonator in proper position for the wheel of the engine to set it off.
When a recess is made in the rail it is well to do this at the junction of two lengths
of rail where they are supported by a chair or equivalent so that a small portion
only may be removed from each rail; a fish plate or equivalent may be employed
to cover the break of continuity if desired.
When the discharged detonator is returned a suitable lever or arm strikes it off
the slide thus making room for a fresh detonator. A weight or spring may if
required be employed to force the detonators down the tube.
This apparatus may be operated direct from a signal or otherwise, but I prefer
to make an attachment to the existing signalling devices so that the signalman
merely uses his ordinary levers.
This attachment would consist merely of the necessary levers rods and connections
to cause the apparatus to work with the existing signal..
To assist the slide in its forward motion a spring or weight may be used; by
this means also should the connections break the slide would be propelled: forward
with its detonator thus calling attention to the breakage.
1

page_text: especially during Fogs.
I WALTER EDMONDS of Bendigo Cottage, Higham, in the county of Kent 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:-
The chief features of this apparatus are as follows:-
A tube box or equivalent placed near the rail contains the detonators which may
be of the ordinary kind.
The bottom of the tube is closed by a slide provided with a recess or equivalent
means for holding the detonator (such as a sticky coating or the like) so that as
the slide is propelled forward it carries with it the lowest detonator of the lot
enclosed in the tube, the other portion of the slide closing the opening at the
bottom. The slide is projected forward upon or into a recess in the rail so as to
place the detonator in proper position for the wheel of the engine to set it off-
Where a recess is made in the rail it is well to do this at the junction of two lengths
of rail where they are supported by a chair or equivalent so that a small portion
only may be removed from each rail; a fish plate or equivalent may be employed
to cover the break of continuity if desired.
When the discharged detonator is returned a suitable lever or arm strikes it off
the slide thus making room for a fresh detonator. A weight or spring may if
required be employed to force the detonators down the tube.
This apparatus may be operated direct from a signal box, or otherwise, but I
prefer to make an attachment to the existing signalling devices so that the signal-
man merely uses his ordinary levers.
This attachment would consist merely of the necessary levers rods and con-
nections to cause the apparatus to work with the existing signal.
To assist the slide in its forward motion a spring or weight may be used; by
this means also should the connections break the slide would be propelled forward
with its detonator thus calling attention to the breakage.
In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a plan of the apparatus shewing the
detonator in position on the rail; Figure 2 is a like view showing the slide with-
drawn and the exploded detonator thrown off, Figure 3 is a detail of the ejecting
arm and Figure 4 a sectional side view of the box and slide.
A is the box or tube which contains the detonators in a pile one on top of
'another; this box is open at the bottom having room for the slide B which fills
the opening and moves to and from the rails by the action of the curved lever D
which is pivoted at D¹ upon the bed plate F and connected with slide B by the
slot joint D' and pin B¹ which works therein. The lever D receives motion from
the rod G which is jointed to it at G¹ and is in connection with the usual signal
apparatus and moves as the semaphore arm rises or falls.
In slide B is a recess B' and when the slide is withdrawn from the rail as in
Figure 2 this recess comes exactly under the box A and receives the lowest of the
pile of detonators C which falls by its own weight into it,

page_text: When the semaphore arm is set at danger the slide B is moved forward simul-
taneously with it, carrying forward the detonator C which is thus placed upon the
rail ready to be crushed by the wheel of the engine as it passes over it.
It is
preferred to make a slight recess in the rail to admit the end of B, so that the
detonator lies at about the same position that it would occupy if placed upon the
rail in the usual manner.
The object of the arm E is to push the exploded detonator off the slide B as it
returns to the box A for a fresh one. E is jointed at G¹ to G and D and moves
with them, and has a stud E¹ which slides in the slot H which is formed in or upon
the bed plate F, this controls the movement of E so that the plate or flap E2 (shown
on an enlarged scale at Figure 3) approaches the slide at precisely the right time
to push off the exploded detonator thus leaving the recess B2 empty and ready for
another one which it receives as soon as it comes properly under the pile of
detonators in A and carries it forward to the rails with the next movement of the
signal.
The arm E returns as the slide comes forward and the flap E' rises when it
touches the detonator (which is retained in place by the shape of the recess) and
slips harmlessly over it leaving it on the slide."
The receptacle A may be filled with a fresh stock of detonators from above or
by a side door A¹.
It will thus be seen that every time the signal is set at danger a detonator is
placed automatically upon the rail and every time the signal is taken off the
exploded detonator is automatically removed and a fresh one placed upon the slide
which is in its turn moved forward and placed upon the rail when the arm is again
raised.
This series of operations is repeated as long as there are any detonators left in
the receptacle which can be replenished as often as desired; when the fog clears
off or the signal is not required the detonators may be removed or any suitable
means (such for instance as a sliding bottom controlled by the signalınan in his
cabin) adopted to stop the supply of detonators.
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
1. In an apparatus such as described the combination with the receptacle A of
the slide B which moves with every movement of the semaphore arm and is
adapted to close the lower end of A and to receive a fresh detonator at every stroke
substantially as specified.
2. In an apparatus such as described the combination with slide B of arm E
moving simultaneously with B and adapted to remove the exploded detonator as B
returns from the rail substantially as specified.
3. In an apparatus such as described the combination with arm E of a flap
pivotted to E for the purpose of striking the exploded detonator and removing it
from the slide B and sliding over the unexploded detonator so as not to remove it
from the slide substantially as specified.