Improvements in Apparatus for use in Loading and Unloading Railway Trucks, Ships, and the like, and for similar purposes.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Nov., 1.90
Complete Specification Left, 8th July, 1891-Accepted, 15th Aug., 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for use in Loading and Unloading
Railway Trucks, Ships, and the like, and for similar purposes.
I, EMILE COPPÉE of Haine St. Paul, in the Kingdom of Belgium Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to apparatus for use in loading and unloading railway
trucks, ships and the like and for similar purposes.
The considerable loss of time and money incurred in the loading and unloading
of railway trucks, ships and the like, in industrial operations and during the transport
is chiefly due to the insufficiency of the means for displacing the materials from one
place to another especially when a certain distance intervenes between the said
places and the loading and unloading is effected in the horizontal direction.
The improved apparatus which forms the subject of my said invention obviates
as far as possible the inconveniences herein before referred to. It consists essentially
in the combination of a continuous or endless railway with the platform of a rolling-
bridge so that the trucks shall be enabled to transport the materials from one place
to another in a continuous manner whilst the bridge may be moved longitudinally
to adapt the same to the ship or the train which is to transport the materials.
As the railway is preferably constructed on the suspension principle it is arranged
on the lower side of a platform which constitutes an exterior overhanging portion
at the top of a frame work, and from which it is suspended, the whole consisting of
beams and cross-pieces supporting the endless rail for the trucks. These trucks
may be attached to a cable at definite distances apart, and all transported at the
same time, but I prefer trucks, adapted to move independently of each other upon a
railway having a single rail, because one or more trucks may be loaded while the
others are being emptied and the empty trucks are being returned.
It is understood that this endless railway suspended from the circumference of a
rolling bridge can be greatly varied in construction as regards the framework, the
suspension frame, and the movable or fixed way connected therewith and also as
regards the trucks themselves and the means for transporting them upon a suitable
railway. This invention is evidently susceptible of very numerous applications
which offer more or less considerable advantages and facilities according to the
locality and arrangement of the works and according to the industrial purposes for
which the apparatus is used.
My apparatus offers particularly great advantages in its application to an
installation of coke-furnaces, which I will now proceed to describe in order to point
out its great utility.
Suppose a series of coke furnaces the soles of which are flush with a quay:
Upon this latter I arrange the apparatus for loading the trucks of a railway
train in front of the quay with the coke removed from the furnaces and spread
upon the said quay.
As the quay is generally encumbered with cooled coke the bridge is so arranged
that its extremity on the side of the furnaces moves upon an elevated rail fixed to
pillars or columns so that the structure will not interfere with the removal of the
coke from the furnace and the treatment of the coke upon the quay. At its other
extremity the bridge has a frame which carries rollers moving upon a rail fixed
upon a parapet. The longitudinal motion of the bridge in front of the furnace can
be effected by means of any suitable mechanism which operates the rollers at the
two extremities of the bridge. This mechanism may itself be actuated by hand
through the medium of an endless chain hanging below the bridge.
At the outer circumference of the bridge is fixed the continuous or endless rail

page_text: upon which move the rollers supporting by means of a suitable frame the suspended
trucks at the desired height above the quay for the purpose of enabling these
trucks to be charged with facility and emptied into the trucks of the train without
any difficulty. Under these conditions the removal of the coke from a whole series
of furnaces and the loading of a railway train or a ship can take place with great
rapidity.
When the number of trucks travelling upon the horizontal endless rail contains
and transports exactly the volume of a pig of cooled coke, it is only necessary to
move the bridge forward the distance intervening between the furnaces after the
series of trucks have been loaded and unloaded. The number of these trucks may
of course be increased or diminished according to exigencies. The coke being thus
removed without interruption in proportion as it is taken from the furnaces the
calciners can also operate in a more continuous manner, because there is no need
for waiting as is the case when the coke has to be removed by means of wheel
barrows. In like manner the stacking of the coke either at the extremities of the
furnaces or along the quay, is facilitated, if the loading for the transport cannot
take place immediately. As morcover the capacity of the trucks is much greater
than that of the wheel barrows the course coke will be deteriorated less.
Another advantage consists in that less space is taken up and that the walls of
the quay are dispensed with no wheel barrows being used even for small coke and
dust which are transported to the hopper of a sorting machine by this apparatus.
According to the purposes for which my improved apparatus is employed it may
be without feet or supports and move upon two elevated rails fixed to two series of
columns, or one of the rails may be placed directly upon the furnaces, or the bridge
may have two feet or supports provided with rollers moving upon a corresponding
railway arranged on the ground. Instead of being straight the railway may be
circular in the case of furnaces or the like, so that the two combined railways shall
be continuous or endless.
Dated this 16th day of Naveronban 1000
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for use in Loading and Unloading
Railway Trucks, Ships, and the like, and for similar purposes.
I, EMILE COPPÉE, of Haine St. Paul, in the Kingdom of Belgium, Engineer, 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 :-
My invention relates to apparatus for use in loading and unloading railway
trucks, ships, and the like, and for similar purposes.
The great loss of time and money incurred during the carriage of goods in bulk
is chiefly due to the insufficiency of the means for conveying the said goods to or
from the ships, trucks or the like, especially when a considerable distance
intervenes between the said ships, trucks etc. and the place from which they are to
be loaded or into which they are to be discharged and when the loading and
unloading is effected in the horizontal direction.
The improved apparatus which forms the subject of my said invention obviates
as far as possible the inconveniences hereinbefore referred to. It consists essentially
in the combination of a continuous or endless railway with the platform of a
movable-bridge arranged so that the trucks carrying the materials may be run
from one place to another in a continuous manner, whilst the bridge may be moved
longitudinally so as to adapt the same to the ship or train into or from which is to
load the materials.

page_text: Upon this latter I arrange the movable bridge P for loading the trucks T of a
railway train stationed in front of the said quay the coke removed from the furnaces
being spread upon the said quay.
As the quay Q is generally encumbered with cooled coke the end of the said
bridge which is next to the furnaces moves upon an elevated rail supported on pillars
or columns C so that the removal of the coke from the furnace and its treatment
upon the quay will not be interfered with. At the other extremity the bridge is
provided with a frame H which carries rollers G moving upon a rail fixed upon a
longitudinal support or parapet. The longitudinal movement of the bridge in
front of the furnaces, can be effected by means of any suitable mechanism which
operates the rollers at the two extremities of the bridge. This mechanism may be
actuated by hand through the medium of an endless chain hanging down below the
bridge.
At the outer edge of the bridge is fixed the continuous or endless rail R upon
which run the rollers carrying the suspended trucks W by means of a suitable
frame at the desired height above the quay for the purpose of enabling the said
trucks to be charged and discharged from or into the train. Under these conditions
the removal of the coke from a whole series of furnaces and the loading of a railway
train or ship may be effected with great. rapidity.
When the number of trucks W travelling upon the horizontal endless rail
contains exactly the volume of the charges of cooled coke, it is only necessary to
move the bridge forward the distance intervening between the furnaces after the
series of trucks have been loaded and unloaded. The number of these trucks may
of course be increased or diminished according to the exigencies of trade. The
coke being thus removed without interruption in proportion as it is taken from the
furnaces they can operate in a more continuous manner, because there is no longer
any need for waiting as is the case when the coke has to be removed by means of
wheel barrows. In like manner by my improved apparatus the stacking of the
coke either at the extremities of the furnaces or along the quay is greatly
facilitated.
Moreover the capacity of the trucks is much greater than that of the wheel
barrows the deterioration by breakage the coke will be much less.
Another advantage consists in that less space is taken up and that the walls of

page_text: the quay are dispensed with, no wheel barrows are used even for small coke and
dust may be transported to the hopper of a sorting machine by this apparatus.
According to the purposes for which my improved apparatus is employed it may
be arranged without feet or supports and move upon two elevated rails fixed to two
series of columns, or one of the rails may be placed directly upon the furnaces, or
the bridge may have two feet or supports provided with rollers moving upon a
corresponding railway arranged on the ground. Instead of being straight the
railway may be circular in the case of furnaces or the like so that the combined
railways shall be continuous or endless.
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 =
First: A movable loading and unloading bridge which consists essentially of a
platform or frame forming a continuous exterior framework relatively to supports'
of the same or different length, provided with wheels or rollers moving upon
straight, curved or endless ways, the rails of which may be in the same plane or in
different planes, the platform or balcony of this rolling bridge having an endless
track provided with one or more fixed or movable rails, upon which or with which
move the rollers supporting, at the desired height from the ground on a suitable
frame, small trucks for the continuous transport of materials.
Second. The movable loading or unloading bridge in combination with any
industrial enterprise or installation or for transhipment upon rails of goods in bulk
substantially as hereinbefore described and represented in the accompanying
drawing.
Dated this 8th day of July 1801
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant: