IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THE TYRES OF RAILWAY WHEELS, AND IN APPARATUS FOR SUCH PURPOSE
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frederick Tolhausen, Civil Engineer and Patent
Agent, of No. 35, Boulevart Bonne Nouvelle, Paris, in the Empire of
France, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THE
TYRES OF RAILWAY WHEELS, AND IN APPARATUS FOR SUCH PURPOSE."―A
communication from Antoine Duplay, residing at No. 17, Rue du
Faubourg, Montmartre, Paris.
Sealed the 5th August 1862, and dated the 8th February 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Frederick Tolhausen at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
8th February 1862.
I, FREDERICK TOLHAUSEN, Civil Engineer and Patent Agent, of No. 35,
Boulevart Bonne Nouvelle, Paris, in the Empire of France, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
THE TYRES OF RAILWAY WHEELS, AND IN APPARATUS FOR SUCH PURPOSE," to be as-
follows:
This Invention relates to a novel system for applying hydraulic pressure to
the rolling of the wheel tyre, and to the preparatory shipping of said tyre on
the wheel. The object of this system being to render hydraulic pressure more
obedient or subservient to the operations, and also to obtain certain advantages
both with regard to quality and cost of manual labour. In order to tyre a
wheel, I subject the iron or steel bar to three distinct operations, first, winding

page_text: the bar on a cylinder, the bar being seized between a headstock and a hydraulic
piston, which shapes the blank or hoop; second, the hoop is hammered as
usual, but I use a swage with a moveable or "universal" mandril, by which
the removing operation is greatly facilitated; third, the hoop is then rolled
under an upper horizontal roller, the axis of which is acted upon by
bydraulic pressure by means of a hydraulic pressing box. This hydraulic
press is made up of two parts, viz., the pressure colnmn or barrel, and
the distributor. The former is a tube of about three yards in length, in
which works a plunger of double that length, the upper half of the plunger
fitting the bore, and the lower half being less in diameter, so as to leave
water space, water being driven into the tube or barrel by steam power
and force pumps, and a suitable weight being put on the top end of the
plunger, it will be seen that a considerable pressure can be exerted by
these means on the rolling mill and the tyring apparatus, the force pumps
being stopped as soon as the degree of pressure required has been attained:
In order to regulate this pressure, I use what I call a distributor, which con-
sists of two barrels or vertical columns placed at a short distance from each
other, which are half conical. A plunger works in each of these barrels,
these plungers being provided at their lower ends with a conical metallic piston
covered with leather. The water coming from the pressure barrel or column
above described enters the two distributing barrels which communicate with
each other by means of a connecting pipe. At the upper end of each of the
distributing plungers I adopt a lever which being pressed upon causes the
plunger and cone to descend, and by being raised causes them to ascend. The
cone or conical piston by these means is made to regulate the inlet of the
water from the connecting pipe, and thereby affords a very nice means for
regulating the working pressure on the bydraulic piston. It remains to be
stated that the first of these distributing barrels or water columns is for mode-
rating, whilst the other is intended for the escape, hence, the latter is provided
with an escape pipe. Thus when it is desired to lift the upper laminating
roller, the lever of the first distributing barrel is left untouched, the column
of water thus being cut off by the cone, and the lever of the second plunger is
pressed upon, thus opening the connecting barrel. At the same time a lever;
provided with a balance weight acting on the hydraulic press forces the water
out of the escape pipe above mentioned. There are of course two distri-s
butors required, one for working the rolling mill, and the other for the tyring
machine, but only one pressure column for both..
$

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Frederick Tolhausen in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
6th August 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FREDERICK
TOLHAUSEN, Civil Engineer and Patent Agent, of No. 35, Boulevart Bonne
Nouvelle, Paris, in the Empire of France, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of February, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-fifth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Frederick Tolbausen, Her special licence that I, the said Frederick Tolhausen,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Frederick
Tolhausen 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF TYRES OF RAILWAY WHEELS, AND IN APPARATUS FOR SUCH PUR-
POSE," a communication from Antoine Duplay, a person resident at No. 17,
Rue du Faubourg, Montmartre, Paris, upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said Frederick Tolhausen, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,.
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 Frederick Tolhausen, 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 relates to a novel system for applying hydraulic pressure to
the rolling of the wheel tyre, and to the preparatory shipping of said tyre on
the wheel. The object of this system being to render hydraulic pressure
more obedient or subservient to the operations, and also to obtain certain
advantages both with regard to quality and cost of manual labour. In order
to tyre a wheel, I subject the iron or steel bar to three distinct operations."
first, winding the bar on a cylinder, the bar being seized between a headstock

page_text: and a hydraulic piston which shapes the blank or hoop; second, the hoop is
hammered as usual, but I use a swage with a moveable or "universal"
mandril, by which the removing operation is greatly facilitated; third, the hoop
is then rolled under an upper horizontal roller, the axis of which is acted upon
by hydraulic pressure by means of a hydraulic pressing box. This hydraulic
press is made up of two parts, viz., the pressure column or barrel and the
distributor. The former is a tube of about three yards length, in which works
a plunger of double that length, the upper half of the plunger fitting the
bore, and the lower half being less in diameter, so as to leave water space,
water being driven into the tube or barrel by steam power and force pumps,
and a suitable weight being put on the top end of the plunger, it will be seen
that a considerable pressure can be exerted by these means on the rolling mill
and the tyring apparatus, the force pumps being stopped as soon as the degree
of pressure required has been attained. In order to regulate this pressur, I
use what I call a distributor, which consists of two barrels or vertical columns
placed at a short distance from each other, which are half conical. A plunger
works in each of these barrels, these plungers being provided at their lower
ends with a conical metallic piston covered with leather. The water coming
from the pressure barrel or column above described, enters the two distributing.
barrels, which communicate with each other by means of a connecting pipe.
At the upper end of each of the distributing plungers, I adapt a lever,
which being pressed upon, causes the plunger and cone to descend, and by being
raised causes them to ascend. The cone or conical piston by these means is
made to regulate the inlet of the water from the connecting pipe, and thereby
affords a very nice means for regulating the working pressure on the hydraulic
piston. It remains to be stated that the first of these distributing barrels or
water columns is for moderating, whilst the other is intended for the escape.
Hence the latter is provided with an escape pipe. Thus when it is desired to
lift the upper laminating roller, the lever of the first distributing barrel is left
untouched, the column of water thus being cut off by the cone, and the lever
of the second plunger is pressed upon, thus opening the connecting barrel.
At lever the same time a lever provided with a balance weight acting on the
hydraulic press forces the water out of the escape pipe above mentioned.
There are of course two distributors required, one for working the rolling mill,
and the other for the tyring machine, but only one pressure column for both.
Having thus given a general outline of my improvements, I will now enter
upon a full and detailed description of the way in which they are or may be
carried into execution. On the annexed Sheet of Drawings, Fig. 1 shews the

page_text: winding or bending headstock; Fig. 1ª, the blank; Fig. 2, the die or matrix
for welding the blank; Fig. 3, the pressure column; Fig. 3, the columns for
regulating the pressure; Fig. 4 represents the arrangement of the rollers.
With reference to the description preceding, the operation may be described
as follows: First, a bar of iron or steel is bent or coiled round a coiler or
headstock A. This bar is squeezed between said coiling cylinder, and a roller B,
acted upon by a hydraulic, piston on my improved plan; second, the blank
thus obtained, Fig. 1, is then hammered out by the steam hammer, so as to
perfectly weld all its parts. The die in which this operation is performed,
consists of an upper portion, which is .recessed at C. in the centre,, and the
lower portion having a moveable mandril D projecting in the centre. The
welding having been performed, the wedges or keys that held the mandril in
its place, are withdrawn by means of a lever, and the blank can then taken
out. In order to fit the matrix for different sized blanks, it may constructed
with the portion E being moveable; third, the rough blank thus obtained, is
finished by means of a rolling apparatus, consisting of two top and bottom
rollers F, F¹, and two side rollers G, G. The top roller is free to move, and
actuated by hydraulic pressure in the manner following:-The pressure column
consists of a hollow barrel I, about three yards in height, which can be moved
vertically on a rod or plunger K, having double the length of the barrel, the
upper half of said rod being of a larger diameter than the lower half, so as
to leave an empty space L. The water is forced in by steam pumps through
a pipe M, and thus raises the plunger K, which is loaded at its upper end with
a box containing about five tons weight. The column is fully charged when
the plunger reaches nearly the end of the barrel I; the force pumps are then
stopped, and the weight exerts its entire force on the water column, whose
pressure is conveyed by a pipe M', I thus obtain an available pressure of
about 35 tons, to be used either for the hydraulic piston of the headstock
Fig. 1, or for the rolling cylinders. For regulating this great pressure by
hand and instantaneously, I use two columns O, O¹, of about 16 inches height,
the former being for regulating, and the latter for the escape. For this pur-
pose each of these columns certains a rod or plunger P, P¹, having a conical
portion Q, Q. These plungers are actuated by suitable levers, thus when it
is desired' to increase the pressure, depress more or less the lever of the regu-
lating column, thereby causing the cone Q to descend, and open more or less
the waterway into the pipe R, which conveys the pressure to the box H of
the rolling apparatus through the escape barrel O¹. When it is desired to
raise the roller F, the conical valve Q' in the column 0¹ is opened by depressing
its lever, thus allowing the water continued in the pipe R and box H to

page_text: escape through the waste pipe S into the reservoir. The pressure being thus
removed, the roller F is made to ascend by the action of a balance weight, or
any other similar contrivance. Thus, both for the coiling headstock and the
rolling apparatus, the pressure can be regulated by means of the levers of the
two columns 0, 0¹, and the action of said regulating apparatus is so sensitive
and instantaneous, that the tyre can be pressed more or less at any given
point of its periphery as may be required by the nature of the blank, and a
truly' round and perfect tyre is at once obtainst without the aid of finishing
tools or lathes, which are entirely dispensed with.
In witness whereof, I, the said Frederick. Tolhausen, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fourth day of August, A.D. 1862.