Improvements in Signalling Apparatus for Railways.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Nov., 1889
Complete Specification Left. 3rd Apr., 1890-Accepted, 3rd May, 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Signalling Apparatus for Railways.
We, JOHN HENRY ARTHUR CHILD, of 31 Creed Place, East Greenwich Signalman,
and JAMES EMERY of 66 Crayford Road Erith, Engineer, both in the County of
Kent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Our invention relates to improvements in signalling apparatus for railways, and
has for its object to provide means for stopping railway trains during foggy or snowy
weather, which means while dispensing with the use of ordinary fog signals, and
hence with the staff of men usually employed to look after will at the same time act
instantaneously with the utmost certainty and security.
In carrying our invention into practice we provide three different apparatus-1. A
spring box platform, placed between the rails on the railway track. 2. An apparatus
fixed to the front of locomotive engines. 3. An apparatus fixed on the foot-plate of the
said engines, or on any other suitable part thereof. The first apparatus consists of
two boxes fitting one inside the other, and made of wood, iron or other suitable
material. Within the larger box are placed spiral or other springs and the two boxes
are closed by an overlapping lid over which presses a contract roller forming part of
the second apparatus, which is constructed as follows: A roller turning upon suitable
bearings mounted on a shaft to which is attached a piece of wood or other material of
circular or other shape, carrying two plates of suitable metal to which are fixed
two wires passing along the shaft, and connected to the battery hereafter mentioned.
A steel or other spring is fixed within the said roller, and may be made to assume any
suitable shape. The third apparatus comprises an electric bell, and indicator or disc
connected to a bell by suitable springs, a cord to depress the indicator and an electric
battery of any suitable construction for operating the bell and disc. The spring box
platform or first apparatus is operated by the ordinary signal wire, which causes the
same to be raised above ground when foggy weather prevails, in order to be in the
way of the contract roller of a passing locomotive. In ordinary times this platform
is depressed so as to be level with the ground and unacted upon by such contact
roller.
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COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Signalling Apparatus for Railways.
We JOHN HENRY ARTHUR CHILD of 31 Creed Place East Greenwich Signalman
and JAMES EMERY of 66 Crayford Road, Erith Engineer both 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
Our invention relates to improvements in signalling apparatus for railways and has
for its object to provide means and apparatus for stopping railway trains during foggy
or snowy weather when the distant signal is at danger. These means or apparatus
permit to dispense with the use of ordinary fog signals and hence with the staff of
extra men usually employed to place them on the lines, while additional security to
life and limb is thereby afforded.
In carrying our invention into practice we provide three different apparatus. 1 a
telescope spring box platform placed on the ground in the four foot way. 2 an
electrical contact roller placed underneath the headstock of the engine. 3' an electric

page_text: bell and disc fixed on the footplate or any other suitable part of the engine.
The telescope spring box platform which is fixed to the sleepers and works in con-
junction with the ordinary outdoor signals consists of two boxes fitting telescopically
inside one another and made of wood iron or other suitable material. Within the
smaller box is placed a curved flat spring by means of which the platform can be
raised in foggy weather when the distant signal is moved to danger. The two boxes
are closed. by an overlapping lid forming the platform proper over which passes the
electric contact roller above mentioned. This roller is mounted upon a hollow shaft
fixed in suitable bearings formed in the two arms of a forked piece rigidly held by
two springs and having a shank or stem which is bolted underneath the headstock of
an engine. The contact roller is weighted at one end and turns loosely upon the
hollow shaft which carries moreover a circular core of wood or other material. The
latter core has a portion of its upper part cut away forming a flat surface which
carries two metal bars with which a circular spring bearing against the core and
arranged excentrically establishes a contact whenever the roller accomplishes an entire
revolution. The two metal bars are connected at each end with a wire passing
through the hollow shaft and leading respectively to the battery and to the bell
arranged on the foot plate of the engine.
The third apparatus comprises an electric bell and an indicator or disc connected to
the said bell by suitable springs, a cord to raise the indicator or disc and an electric
battery of any suitable construction by means of which the bell and disc-are-operated
whenever the electric contact roller passes over the telescopic spring box platform.
The latter platform is depressed so as to be level with the ground when the weather is
clear, and the signal open, it being on the contrary raised when during the prevalence
of foggy or snowy weather the signal is moved to danger. In summer the signal
may be entirely disconnected from the platform which is then permanently held in a
depressed position, or the signal may be continuously operated in conjunction with
the spring box platform for ordinary signalling purposes whatever may be the state
of the weather i.e. in summer as well as in winter.
And in order that our invention may be more fully understood we have shown the
same in the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a side view of a locomotive
provided with our improved contact roller and passing over a telescopic spring box
platform of an improved construction, Fig. 2 being a front or end view thereof.
Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the said spring box platform and Fig. 4 is a
horizontal section on line x x of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation showing the
connection between the signal and the spring box platform. Fig. 6 is a front view and
Fig. 7 an end view of the electric contact roller and its supporting frame. Figs. 8 or 9
show at an enlarged scale a longitudinal vertical section partly in elevation and a
central cross section of the electric contact roller.
The spring box platform (Fig. 3) consists of a box a fitting telescopically within
another box b over which is placed the overlapping lid c. The latter rests upon the
bent springs d d' arranged symmetrically on each side of the box a.
Two similar springs e, e¹, are fixed at one end to the underside of the lid c and form
a contact when the spring box is depressed by bearing with their other ends upon a
metal plate / carried upon two supports g, g¹; such contact causing an electric current
to flow through the wires b and 81 and to sound a gong attached to a suitable signal
post or disc erected in the 6 foot way.
Upon the central part of the underside of the lid c are fixed two brackets h h¹ to
which are fixed by means of a pin the upper end of a wire chain or cord i the lower
end of which passes over two pulleys j j¹ and is connected to a pivotted quadrant k
communicating by suitable leverage with the signal arm as clearly shown in Fig. 5.
The electric contact roller (Fig. 6 and 7) consists of a roller m mounted upon the
shaft n by means of the moveable end bearing plates o, o¹, Fig. 8. The shaft n is
rigidly suspended in bearings formed in the arms p, p, which terminate at their
upper ends in a shank or stem q bolted underneath the headstock r of an engine.
The ends of the shaft n are screw threaded and firmly bolted to their bearings. The
stem q is secured in a vertical position by the two springs u u¹.

page_text: Upon the said shaft n is likewise mounted the core s a portion of the upper surface
of which is removed forming a flat plane carrying the two metallic contact bars t, t¹,
(Fig. 9).
Two circular springs v, v¹ arranged excentrically bear at one part against the core s.
The roller m is weighted at its lower end corresponding to its lowermost or normal
position and if so desired that on accomplishing an entire revolution, the springs v vl
will be brought into contact with the plates 1,1¹.
An electric bell w is fitted above the footplate of the engine and is connected to a
disc or indicator y, an electric battery z being also provided. The electric connection
is from the roller m to the bell w and disc or indicator y, thence to the battery z,
there being a return wire x¹ to the roller so that when the contact is established by
the said roller passing over the spring box platform and accomplishing an entire
revolution so that its weighted part comes at the top and the springs v, v¹ come into
contact with the plates t, t¹, the circuit is closed and the bell rings while the disc drops
into its position of danger. By means of any convenient arrangement the bell is
kept ringing and the disc maintained at danger after the contact roller has passed
over the spring box platform until the engine driver pulls a cord a and raises the
signal to its safety position, likewise stopping the bell.
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
1. The improvements in signalling apparatus for use more particularly in foggy or
snowy weather arranged constructed and operating substantially as and for the
purpose set forth.
2. In signalling apparatus for use more particularly in foggy or snowy weather the
arrangement in the four foot way of a telescopic spring box platform capable of being
raised above ground or depressed to the level thereof by means of the ordinary
signal arms, this platform establishing moreover a contact enabling a gong attached
to a signal post erected in the 6 foot way to be sounded substantially as and for the
purpose set forth.
3. In signalling apparatus to be used more particularly in foggy or snowy weather
the application of a weighed electric contact roller under the headstock or other
suitable part of an engine in such a manner as to establish an electric contact when
such roller passes over the spring box platform claimed above in order to ring a bell
and drop a disc above the foot plate of the said engine substantially as described and
shewn and for the purpose set forth.
4. The construction of the abovementioned weighted electric contact roller
mounted upon a rigid and hollow shaft carried in a frame whereby a contact is
established between an excentrical spring and two contact metal bars arranged upon
the flat portion of a partly circular core mounted upon the same shaft through which
pass the wires connected to the contact bars substantially as and for the purpose set
farth
Dated this 2nd day of April 1890.
HUGHES, SON & Co.,
38, Chancery Lane, London, Agents for the Applicants.