IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN RAILWAY ENGINES AND CARRIAGES
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Walter Butler, of Old Kent Road, Gentleman, and
Alexander Dalgety, of Shards' Terrace, Peckham, Engineer, both in the
County of Surrey, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CON-
Sealed the 10th May 1867, and dated the 1st December 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Walter Butler and
Alexander Dalgety at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with.
their Petition, on the 1st December 1866.
We, WALTER BUTLER, of Old Kent Road, Gentleman, and ALEXANDER
DALGETY, of Shards' Terrace, Peckham, Engineer, both in the County of
Surrey, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN RAILWAY ENGINES AND CARRIAGES," to bu
as follows:
The object of our Invention is to provide a connection between locomotive
engines and carriages, or between the several carriages of a railway train,
such that it shall possess all the usual and necessary strength while the
carriages are following in a right line with each other, or round the sharpest
curves, allowing at same time for any displacement from said line due to
oscillation of the carriages, or any other effects of locomotion on railways, but
which connections release themselves when any undue deviation takes place,
as,, for instance, should the locomotive or carriages run off the line, the effect

page_text: of the improved connections will be to detach the train from the locomotive
when either runs off the line of rails. In most accidents it is the locomotive
that first leaves the rails, taking with it several of the carriages of a train, and
until some of the couplings give way, which results in serious consequences,
more especially if the train happens to be on an embankment at the time.
Now according to our Invention so soon as the couplings assume the angle
to the line of travelling consequent on the locomotive or carriages leaving the
line the couplings will release themselves and the carriages following will be
free to keep the line, and so mitigate the consequences of the accident. For
this purpose we prefer to apply the detaching mechanism in the hooks used
for traction, that is to say, the drag chain hooks and draw bar hook, but it
may otherwise exist as between the couplings and the draw bar, or between
the drag chains and their attachments.
According to one arrangement which we prefer to apply to the draw bar
or main point of traction we attach the hook to a thick disc or cylinder of
metal disposed with the axis in a vertical position, and between two short
cylinders of same diameter affixed to the end of the draw baŕ; the disc piece
has two shallow circular recesses, one on either side, into these recesses are
projected from the short cylinders bolts, one above and one below; these
bolts are constantly pressed towards the recessed disc by springs contained in
the cylinders; so long as the bolts are not pushed backwards the hook will be
firmly retained by the bolts, and will resist tractive force equal to the
maximum strength of these parts as usual, and will continue to do so while
the pull is in a direct line with the line of rails; this also is 'the case up to
a certain point of deviation, the line of which the hook follows by reason of
the strain, and this may even be the case in the oscillations 'produced in
travelling. When, however, the locomotive runs off the line the deviation
and movement, of the hook becomes so great as to cause the bolts holding it
to be thrust backwards and so releasing the hook, thereby freeing the following
carriage or carriages. The backward thrust of the bolts, that is to say, their
movement in opposition to the springs pressing them up is effected by means of.
a double inclined projection above and below the disc part of the hook, which
are received into broad notches or double concave inclines formed in the
bolts; these allow a certain amount of movement without affecting or
detaching the hook, but when the lateral movement producing the circular
movement of the hook and disc on its axis is excessive, as before explained,
the detachment takes place.
A modified form which may be adopted for the coupling or for the drag chains
consists of hooks similarly detachable, in which we use somewhat the same

page_text: kind of hold as that established between the recessed disc receiving the bolt:
ends, but with the recess and projections reversed, while the parts pre-
senting the bolts are stationary and fixed. In order that the one may free
from the other we remove the greater portion of the circle of said disc and
holding parts forming a flat on each side and reducing the circle so that the
whole is comprised in a narrow strip across the centre in the line of the
traction when the hook deviates in excess from the right line of traction
it slips out at the side from the fixed holding parts and releases itself.
To keep the two parts together under all ordinary circumstances we apply
slight bars or other stops which give way to excessive strain; these are
merely to prevent separation when the connections are not in use. Various
other mechanical equivalents may be substituted for the particular arrange-
ments described and with like effects, as will be readily understood, and
therefore unnecessary to be given in further detail.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Walter Butler and Alexander Dalgety in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 1st June 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WALTER
BUTLER, of Old Kent Roal, Gentleman, and ALEXANDER DALGETY, of Shards'
Terrace, Peckham, Engineer, both in the County of Surrey, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the First day of December, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the thirtieth year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
Walter Butler and Alexander Dalgety, Her special licence that we, the said
Walter Butler and Alexander Dalgety, our executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as we, the said Walter Butler and Alexander Dalgety,
our 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 CON-
NECTIONS BETWEEN RAILWAY ENGINES AND CARRIAGES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that we, the said Walter Butler and Alexander Dalgety,
our executors or administrators; by an instrument in writing under our, or .
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and

page_text: 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 we, the said Walter Butler and Alexander Dalgety,
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, reference being had to the Sheet of Drawings
hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say):
:
The object of our Invention is to provide a connection between locomotive
engines and carriages or between the several carriages of a railway train, such
that it shall possess all the usual and necessary strength while the carriages
are following in a right line with each other or round the sharpest curve,
allowing at same time for any displacement from said line due to oscillation of
the carriages or other effects of locomotion on railways, but which connections
release themselves when. any undue deviation takes place, as, for instance, on
the locomotive or carriages running off the line. The effect of the improved
connections will be to detach the train from the locomotive when it runs off
the line of rails. In most accidents it is the locomotive that first leaves the
rails, taking with it several of the carriages of a train until some of the
couplings give way, which results in serious consequences, more especially if
the train happens to be on an embankment at the time.
Now according to our Invention so, soon as the couplings assume the angle
to the line of travelling consequent on the locomotive or carriages leaving the
line the couplings will release themselves, and the carriages following will be
free to keep the line, and so mitigate the consequences of the accident; for
this purpose we prefer to apply the detaching mechanism in the hooks used
for traction, that is to say, the drag chain hooks and draw bar hook, but it
may otherwise exist as between the couplings and the draw bar, or between
the drag chains and their attachment.
According to one arrangement which we prefer to apply to the draw bar or
main point of traction we attach a hook to a thick disc or cylinder of metal
disposed with the axis in a vertical position and between two short cylinders
of same diameter affixed to the end of the draw bar; the disc piece has two
shallow circular recesses, one on either side; into these recesses bolts are
projected from the short cylinders, one above and one below; these bolts are
constantly pressed towards the recessed disc by springs contained in the
cylinders, so long as the bolts are not pushed backwards the hook will be

page_text: firmly retained by the bolts, and will resist sufficiently a tractive force equal
to the maximum strength of these parts, as usual, and will continue to do so
while the pull is in a direct line with the line of rails; this also is the case up
to a certain point of deviation, the line of which the hook may follow by reason
of the strain; and this may even be the case in the oscillations produced in
travelling. When, however, the locomotive runs off the line the deviation
and movement of the hook becomes so great as to cause the spring bolts
holding it to be thrust backwards and so releasing the hook, thereby freeing
the following carriage or carriages. The backward thrust of the bolts, that is
to say, their movement in opposition to the springs pressing them up is
effected by means of a double inclined projection above and below the disc
part of the hook, which are received into broad notches or double-concave
inclines formed in the bolts; these allow a certain amount of movement
without affecting or detaching the hook, but when the lateral movement
producing the circular movement of the hook and disc on its axis is excessive,
as before explained, the detachment takes place.
:
A modified form which may be adopted for the coupling or for the drag
chains consists of hooks similarly detachable, in which we use somewhat the
same kind of hold as that established between the recessed disc receiving the
bolt ends, but with the recess and projections reversed, while the parts pre-
senting the bolts are stationary and fixed. In order to free the one from the
other we remove the greater portion of the circle of said disc, and holding
parts forming a flat on each side, and reducing the circle so that the whole is
comprised in a narrow strip across the centre in the line of the traction, when
the hook deviates in excess from the right line of traction it slips out at the
side from the fixed holding parts and releases itself.
To keep the two parts together under all ordinary circumstances we apply
slight bars or other stops, which give way to excessive strain; these are merely
to prevent separation when the connections are not in use. Various other
mechanical equivalents may be substituted for the particular arrangements
described, and with like effects, as will be readily understood, and therefore
unnecessary to be given in further detail.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 represents an end view, and Figure 2 a plan of the end frame of
a railway carriage furnished with hooks according to our Invention, one
arrangemont of the hook connection A being represented on the draw bar a,
and another B for the drag chains. The connection A being the most
complex I will first describe it as shown separately in side view at Figure 3,

page_text: in plan at Figure 4, in vertical section at Figure 5, in side view at Figure 6
with the hook 6 removed. Figure 7 represents the hook part in plan, while
Figures 8 and 9 represent the same part in longitudinal and transverse
section; the hook 6 is fixed to or formed on a disc piece c having recesses d, d,
one on either side; this disc is received and fits accurately between cylinders e, e,
formed on the end of the draw bar; these cylinders contain two bolts f, f,
constantly forced towards each other by springs g, g; the ends of these
bolts ff, enter the recesses d, d, when part c is in position for traction;
i, i, are double inclines in the recesses d, d, received in and bearing on cavities
or surfaces oppositely inclined formed in the end of spring bolts f, f. It will
be obvious that so long as the pull of the coupling of the carriages on the hook
is in the due direction the hook band disc c will be held firmly by the bolts f, f,
while on the other hand if the strain is excessive and towards one side the
hook will move round with the disc c as indicated by the dotted lines at A,
Figure 2, the inclines i, i, of which will force the bolts f, f, to recede within
cylinders e, e, and thus free disc c and hook; this detaching action will take
place in whichever direction the deviation may take place, and so freeing the
carriages from one another.
Figures 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 represent the detaching arrange-
ment of hook B, Figures 1 and 2; Figure 10 shows a side view complete;
Figure 11, a plan of same; Figure 12, a horizontal section, while Figure 13
shows a side view with the hook part removed, which is separately represented
at Figures 14, 15, and 16 in plan, side, and end view. 1, 1, is the fixed part
of this connection, secured to the end frame of the carriage or otherwise;
the part m is solid with the hook b, and is received between the arms of 7, to
which it is accurately fitted, being the section of a cylinder, as seen in plan,
Figure 14; it will turn or rotate partially and freely within the arms of
without becoming detached, and will afford all necessary facilities for traction
required of the coupling, so long as the strain or pull is in the proper direction,
whereas on any derangement taking place by reason of a carriage leaving the
line the part m will turn so far on its centre as to slip out at the side of , as
indicated by the dotted lines at B, B, Figure 2, and therefore the hook will
become detached. In order that the part m may be prevented continually
moving or working in part 1 by reason of oscillations of the carriages we bore
a hole in m, and insert a spiral spring and small bolt p with wedge or
conical point; this bolt p is continually forced out by the pressure of the
spring, and the nose entering a small recess in holds it as required, but
readily recedes on any considerable strain taking place. A like arrangement
of bolt p may be applied to part c in connection A; connection B, Figures 1

page_text: and 2, may also be used in the position of A, and vice versa; and further, the
parts may be variously modified and differently arranged without departing
from our Invention, see Figures 17 and 18, so long as the act of self-detaching
is effected by a deviation or certain inclination of the strain on the coupling,
as and for the purpose herein-before described.
Having described the nature of our Invention, and the manner of per-
forming the same, I declare that what we claim as our Invention to be
protected by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the arrange-
ment of parts for connecting railway engines and carriages which become
detached, as and for the purposes herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Walter Butler, for myself and on behalf
of the said Alexander Dalgety, have hereunto set my hand and seal,
this First day of June, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-seven.
WALTER BUTLER. (L.S.)