IMPROVEMENTS IN BOXES FOR RAILWAY CARRIAGE AXLES AND OTHER SHAFTS.
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Davies, of No. 1, Serie Street, Lincoln's
Inn, in the County of Middlesex, and No. 28, St. Enoch Square, in the
City of Glasgow, Civil Engineer and Patent Agent, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BOXES FOR RAILWAY CARRIAGE AXLES AND OTHER SHAFTS.".
-A communication from abroad by Isaac P. Wendell, of Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, in the United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Davies at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 31st
October 1860.
I, GEORGE DAVIES, of No. 1, Serle Street, Lincoln's Inn, in the County of
Middlesex, and No. 28, St. Enoch Square, in the City of Glasgow, Civil
Engineer and Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BOXES FOR RAILWAY CARRIAGE AXLES AND OTHER SHAFTS,"
(a communication to me from abroad by Isaac P. Wendell, of Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, in the United States of America,) to be as follows:-
This Invention relates, firstly, to a peculiar construction of axle box for
railway carriages and engines; secondly, to an arrangement or device for
packing axle and other boxes; and, thirdly, to an improved pedestal box for
ordinary shafting.
In carrying out the first part of this Invention, the improved axle box is

page_text: constructed as follows:-The exterior of the body of the box is furnished with
the usual guides adapted to the hangers of the carriage frame, and the lower
portion of the said box forms the receptacle for the oil or other lubricating
matter. Fitting against the arched interior of the top of the box are two
bearing pieces divided by a separating lug projecting from the centre of the
arched interior, and retained in their proper position by keys placed below the
same, one at each side of the axle. The keys bear against the sides of the
box and also against ledges or projections therefrom at the top and bottom.
The bearings are kept in their proper longitudinal position in front by lips pro-
jecting from the arched interior, and at the back by bearing against the end of
the box. The keys are retained in their places at the back by bearing against
the end of the box, and at the front by a cover plate.
It should be understood that the space occupied by each key must be suf-
ficient in height and width to allow (when the key is removed) one of the
bearings to be drawn laterally in the first instance clear of the collar on the
axle, and subsequently drawn out longitudinally clear of the box. It will thus
be seen that by removing the cover plate and the keys, the bearing pieces can
at any time be readily removed and replaced or renewed.
In carrying out the second part of this Invention, a chamber is formed at
the rear of the axle box, having an opening large enough to admit the thick
part of the axle which passes through it; within this chamber and surrounding
the thick part of the axle is an annular washer of leather (or other suitable
material) made of two pieces, rivetted or otherwise fastened together, and
forming the packing, to prevent the oil from escaping at the rear of the box.
Underneath this packing passes the curved portion of a strap bolt, the two
straight ends of which pass upwards (one at each side of the axle) through the
lugs of a follower placed above the axle, where they are furnished with suit-
able nuts. The curved part of the strap bolt is wedge-formed, and its upper
sharp edge passes between the two parts of the packing washer, so that on
screwing the nuts tighter, the wedge part of the strap bolt will penetrate
between the two parts of the washer, forcing them outwards against the sides
of the chamber and upwards against the under part of the axle. Between the
follower and the upper part of the packing washer is a curved strip of metal,
whose lower ends pass between the sides of the packing washer and the strap
bolt at or near the junction of the curved with the straight portions of the latter
so that the raising of the same (by tightening the nuts) forces the said ends
inwards. Hence, it will be obvious, that by simply turning the nuts, the
packing washer is pressed against the axle in all directions simultaneously, and
also at the same time expanded laterally against the sides of the chamber,

page_text: thereby entirely preventing the escape of the oil from the oil chamber of
the box.
In carrying out the third part of this Invention, a box for a pedestal or
hanger for ordinary shafting is constructed, as follows:-The body of the box
is constructed with a recess at each end for the reception of a packing ring,
strap bolt, and follower, arranged substantially as above described.
At about the centre of the lower part of the box and projecting from one
side of the same is an oil reservoir which communicates with a recess formed
in the box, for the reception of a collar on the shaft which dips into the oil and
serves the purpose of dispersing the same throughout the bearing, the packing
arrangement preventing the oil from escaping at the ends of the box.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Davies in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 30th
April 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
DAVIES, of No. 1, Serle Street, Lincoln's Inn, in the County of Middlesex,
and No. 28, St. Enoch Square, in the City of Glasgow, Civil Engineer and
Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-fourth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
George Davies, Her special licence that I, the said George Davies, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George
Davies, 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 BOXES FOR RAIL-
WAY CARRIAGE AXLES AND OTHER SHAFTS," being a communication to me from
abroad by Isaac P. Wendell, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United
States of America, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George
Davies, 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

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Davies, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement in writing, and on reference to the accompanying Drawings:
that is to say-
This Invention relates, firstly, to a peculiar construction of axle box for rail-
way carriages and engines; secondly, to an arrangement or device for packing
axle and other boxes; and, thirdly, to an improved pedestal box for ordinary 1
shafting.
In carrying out the first part of this Invention, the improved axle box is
constructed as follows:-The exterior of the body of the box is furnished with
the usual guides adapted to the hangers of the carriage frame, and the lower
portion of the said box forms the receptacle for the oil or other lubricating
matter. Fitting against the arched interior of the top of the box are two
bearing pieces, divided by a separating lug projecting from the centre of the
arched interior, and retained in their proper position by keys placed below the
same, one at each side of the axle. The keys bear against the sides of the box
and also against ledges or projections therefrom at the top and bottom. The:
bearings are kept in their proper longitudinal position in front by lips project-.
ing from the arched interior, and at the back by bearing against the end of
the box. The keys are retained in their places at the back by bearing against
the end of the box, and at the front by a cover plate.
It should be understood that the space occupied by each key must be suffi-
cient in height and width to allow (when the key is removed) one of the bear-
ings to be drawn laterally, in the first instance, clear of the collar on the axle,
and subsequently drawn out longitudinally clear of the box. It will thus be
seen that by removing the cover plate and the keys, the bearing pieces can at
any time be readily removed and replaced or renewed.
In carrying out the second part of this Invention, a chamber is formed at
the rear of the axle box, having an opening large enough to admit the thick
part of the axle which passes through it; within this chamber and surrounding
the thick part of the axle is an annular washer of leather (or other suitable
material) made of two pieces, rivetted or otherwise fastened together, and
forming the packing, to prevent the oil from escaping at the rear of the box.
Underneath this packing passes the curved portion of a strap bolt, the two
straight ends of which pass upwards (one at each side of the axle) through the
lugs of a follower placed above the axle, where they are furnished with suitable

page_text: nuts.
The curved part of the strap bolt is wedge-formed, and its upper sharp
edge passes between the two parts of the packing washer, so that on screwing
the nuts tighter, the wedge part of the strap bolt will penetrate between the
two parts of the washer, forcing them outwards against the sides of the
chamber and upwards against the under part of the axle. Between the fol-
lower and the upper part of the packing washer is a curved strip of metal,
whose lower ends pass between the sides of the packing washer and the strap
bolt; at or near the junction of the curved with the straight portions of the
latter, so that the raising of the same (by tightening the nuts) forces the said
ends inwards.. Hence, it will be obvious, that by simply turning the nuts, the
packing washer is pressed against the axle in all directions simultaneously, and
also at the same time expanded laterally against the sides of the chamber,
thereby entirely preventing the escape of the oil from the oil chamber of
the box.
In carrying out the third part of this Invention, a box for a pedestal or
hanger for ordinary shafting is constructed, as follows:-The body of the box
is constructed with a recess at each end for the reception of a packing ring,
strap bolt, and follower, arranged substantially as above described.
At about the centre of the lower part of the box and projecting from one
side of the same is an oil reservoir, which communicates with a recess formed
in the box for the reception of a collar on the shaft, which dips into the oil and
serves the purpose of dispersing the same throughout the bearing, the packing
arrangement preventing the oil from escaping at the ends of the box.
Such being the nature and object of the said Invention for "Improvements
in Boxes for Railway Carriage Axles and other Shafts," I will proceed to
describe the manner in which the same is to be or may be performed or
carried into practical effect. And in order that the same may be distinctly
understood, I have annexed hereunto a Sheet of Drawings illustrative thereof,
and have marked the same with figures and letters of reference corresponding
with those in the following explanation thereof, that is to say :-
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of an axle box with these improvements
shewn as adapted to a journal, having a central collar for the double purpose
of resisting the end strain and conveying the oil from the reservoir to the
bearing; Figure 2, a front view of Figure 1, with the cover plate removed;
Figure 3, a sectional plan on the line 1-2 (Figure 1);. Figure 4, a trans-
verse section on the line 3-4 (Figure 1); with both keys removed; Figure 5,
a section on the line 5-6 (Figure 4); Figure 6, a longitudinal section of an
axle box with the improvement adapted to an axle of the ordinary con-
struction; Figure 7, a transverse section on the line 9-10 (Figure 6) with

page_text: one of the keys removed; Figure 8, a section on the line 11-12 (Figure 7);
Figure 10, a diagram, illustrating a modified form of box and bearing, with
the improvements; and similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the
several views.
A is the body of the box, having on each side the usual guides a, a, adapted
to the hanger of the carriage, the lower portion of the box forming the
receptacle for the oil or other lubricating matter; B and B are two separate
bearings, adapted to and fitting against the arched interior of the box, their
upper ends fitting against the separating lug c (projecting from the centre of
the arched interior), and being retained in their proper position by the keys C
and C, the latter bearing at the top against the ledges d, d, formed at the
termination of the arched interior of the box, and at the bottom against the
ledges e, e, which form the upper termination of the oil cup, and also against
the sides g, g, of the recesses formed in the box for the reception of the said
keys. The bearings B and B are retained in their proper longitudinal
position in front by the lips f, f, projecting from the arched interior, and at the
back by bearing against the end of the box. The bearings may be constructed
of any of the materials usually employed for the purpose.
When adapted to a journal having a central collar j, however, they must
have recesses i for the reception of the said collar, as illustrated in Figure 5,
but when adapted to ordinary axles, as shewn in Figure 9, the bearings may
be free from such recesses, and uniform throughout. The keys may be of any
form desired, provided they have the bearing points above described, the form
illustrated being adopted for the sake of lightness. The keys are retained in
their places at the back by bearing against the inside end of the box, and in
front by the cover plate D. It should be understood that the space occupied
by each key must be sufficient in height and width to allow (when the key is
removed) one of the bearings to be drawn laterally in the first instance clear
of the central collar j or of the external collar j' (Figure 7), and subsequently
drawn out longitudinally clear of the box. Supposing the bearings B and B',
and the keys C and C¹ to be in their proper position, as seen in Figure 2, and
that it is necessary to remove the bearings from the box, the cover D having
been previously unscrewed, the box is raised to a very slight extent, sufficient
only to remove the pressure from the bearings B and B. The keys C and C¹
are now drawn out, when the opposite bearings at once drop down free from
the retaining lips f; the bearings are then drawn laterally clear of the collar
on the axle, so as to assume the position shewn in Figure 4; they may then
be readily pulled out clear of the box; it will be easily seen that they may be
as readily replaced.

page_text: The advantages gained by the above described mode of removing and
replacing the bearings may be briefly enumerated as follows:-
First, the box requires but the slightest lift prior to effecting the desired
removal.
Second, the centre of the axle is nearer to the top of the box than in
ordinary boxes.
Third, the general arrangement is much more simple than in other boxes.
Fourth, the axle and bearings are removed and replaced with the greatest
facility.
In some instances the bearing or step may be in one piece, as illustrated in
the diagram, Figure 10, one edge of the bearing resting on a permanent lug
inside the box, the other edge being supported by the single key C, on the
removal of which the bearing will fall into the reservoir, from which it may be
removed through an opening in front. Figure 11 is a side view, partially in
section, of an axle box with these improvements applied; and Figure 12, a
transverse vertical section on the line 1-2, Figure 11. The body A of the axle
box has the usual oil chamber a, and is furnished with the step or steps B,
adapted to the journal c of the axle C. In the rear of the box is formed a
chamber D, having an opening large enough to admit the enlarged portion of
the axle C, which passes through the chamber as best observed on reference
to Figure 11. Within the chamber, and surrounding the enlarged portion of
the axle, is the annular washer E, of leather, or other suitable material, forming
the packing, to prevent the oil from escaping at the rear of the box. Into
the upper end of the chamber D is inserted the follower H, the concave under
side of which is adapted to the bent strip F, the latter being arranged to lap
over the upper portion of the packing E. Underneath the packing passes the
bent portion of the strap bolt G, the two ends of which pass upwards, one end
on one side, and the other end on the opposite side of the follower H, and
through lugs & projecting from the follower, above which lugs the ends of the
bolts are furnished with suitable nuts e, e, as seen in Figure 12.
It will be observed on reference to Figure 11 that the packing washer E is
made of two pieces rivetted or otherwise secured together, and that the strap
bolt G is of a wedge form, its sharp edge penetrating between the two pieces
which form the washer, as seen in dotted lines, Figure 12, so that on screwing
the nuts e, e, tight, and thereby elevating the strap bolt, the latter acting as a
wedge, will force apart the two halves of the washer at the lower end of the
same, thereby forming a tight joint within the chamber, at the point where
the oil is most apt to escape from the box, at the same time the lower portion

page_text: of the washer is elevated and presses against the axle; thereby increasing the
tightness of the joint. Simultaneously with the raising of the strap bolt by
the turning of the, nuts e, e, the follower H will be depressed; consequently
forcing the upper portion of the washer against the axle.
It will be observed that the strap bolt, near the junction of its bent with its
straight portion, is in contact with the ends of the bent strip F, so that on
depressing the follower and elevating the said strap bolt; the latter will force
the bent strip in the direction of the arrows, thereby forcing the packing
against the opposite sides of the axle. Without further description it will be
evident that by simply turning the two nuts e, e, a simultaneous tightening of
the packing to the axle C in every direction,. as well as a pressure of the lower
portion of the packing against the inside of the chamber, will be produced,
thereby preventing the escape of the oil from the oil chamber of the; box.
Figure 13 is a longitudinal section of a box for a pedestal, or hanger for
ordinary shafts; Figure 14 is a transverse section of the same.
A is the body of the box, having at each end a recess for the reception of
the packing ring B and follower C, which, together with a strap F, are applied
substantially in the same manner as that exhibited in Figures 11 and 12,
Near the middle of the box, and projecting from one side of the same, is an
oil reservoir D, which communicates with a recess E formed in the box for the
reception and free revolution of a collar on the shaft, which serves the purpose
of dispersing the oil throughout the bearing, the packing arrangement pre-
venting the oil from escaping at the ends of the box.
Having now described the nature and object of the said Invention, for
"Improvements in Boxes for Railway Carriage Axles and other Shafts,"
together with the manner in which the same is to be or may be performed or
carried into practical effect, I would remark, in conclusion, that I claim as
the Invention communicated to me by the aforesaid Isaac P. Wendell, with
reference to Figures 1 to 10 inclusive, of the annexed Drawing, the
bearings or steps B and B', either connected or separately adapted to the
arched interior of the box, substantially as set forth, in combination with one
or more keys C and C adapted to the said bearings, and to the box in the
manner and for the purpose specified.
With reference to Figures 11 and 12 of the said Drawings, I claim, firstly,
the application to the rear of an axle box or pedestal of a packing so con-
structed that it can be tightened to the axle in every direction simultaneously
by the devices herein described, or their equivalents, for the purpose specified.
Secondly, the double washer E, of leather or other suitable material, the

page_text: wedge-formed strap bolt G, and the follower II, the whole being arranged
within the chamber D of a journal box, substantially in the manner and for
the purpose herein set forth.
Thirdly, the follower H and the bent strip F, in combination with the
packing E and strap bolt G, the whole being applied to the journal box, in
the manner and for the purpose specified.
And with respect to Figures 13 and 14 of the annexed Drawings, I claim
the combination of the packing device with a collar on the shaft, and the oil
reservoir D, the whole being applied to boxes for hangers or pedestals,
substantially as set forth.:
In witness whereof, I, the said George Davies, have hereunto set my.
hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
GEORGE DAVIES. (L.S.)