IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR PREVENTING COLLISIONS ON RAILWAYS
Year: 1868

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Frank William Moss and George
Moss at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 8th December 1868.
We, FRANK WILLIAM Moss and GEORGE Moss, both of the Town
and County of Leicester, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR PREVENTING
COLLISIONS ON RAILWAYS," to be as follows:-
In carrying out our Invention we dispose between the rails of a
line of railway projections in the shape of double inclined planes
placed at suitable distances apart. Each of these double inclined planes
is made to slide transversely in a guide placed between the line of rails
by means of a chain or wire attached to each side of said inclined planes,
each of which chains is connected to a bell crank placed at opposite
sides of the line. One of these bell-crank levers communicates by
means of a chain or wire with a bent lever or other device pivotted
at one side of the line a short distance in advance of the inclined
projection in such manner that it will be on á level with or above the
rail near which it is placed so as to be depressed by one of the wheels
of the engine when passing. Each engine is provided with a central

page_text: vertical rod projecting downwards beneath the foot plate and communi-
cating with the engine whistle and with the lever for cutting off the
steam. The end of this rod is provided with a friction roller, so that
on its coming into contact with one of the inclined projections above
mentioned the rod will be raised so as to sound the whistle and
turn off the steam. On the bent lever before referred to being depressed
by the engine wheel as described the inclined projection will be
moved from its normal position near one side of the line to the
centre of the same, so that the central vertical rod on the engine of
the train following will come into contact therewith, and the progress
of the latter engine be arrested by turning off the steam, should it be
following too closely upon the first. When however the first engine
has arrived at a safe distance beyond the inclined projection the
latter will be moved back to its normal position by the engine wheel
meeting with and depressing a second bent lever similar to the first,
but placed near the opposite rail at a safe distance ahead and
communicating with the other bell crank before mentioned, so that
the engine or train having travelled a safe distance past the projection
the latter will be withdrawn from its central position between the
rails to allow the second train to pass without coming into contact
with the inclined projection. Before however this inclined projection
is thus returned to position by the first engine a second one is set
at a suitable distance from the first, which is thrown out of gear in
its turn, and so on throughout the line, one at least of the inclined
projections being interposed between any two trains on the same
line of rails. It will be understood that both lines are similarly
provided with apparatus of our Invention. By connecting the inclined
plane to a third bent lever pivoted on the same side as the first and
at a suitable distance therefrom the inclined planes may be set in
advance of carriages or trucks should they become detached from
a train and run backwards down the line, thus warning the driver
of a train on the same line of their approach.
In adapting our Invention to junctions, the inclined projections
which are operated as before may be so arranged that a train running
from a branch on to the main line will set an inclined plane on both
the up and down lines of the main line, so as to prevent the advance
of another train in either direction until the first train shall have reached
a safe distance on the main line and similarly for trains leaving the
main line. Also a main line train in passing a junction will by the

page_text: same means set an inclined plane on the branch line to prevent the
advance of a train therefrom until the other has safely passed the
junction. Springs or other means may be applied to the wires or
chains connecting the inclined planes to allow for expansion and
contraction.