IMPROVEMENTS IN BREAKS APPLICABLE TO RAILWAY CARRIAGES
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREAKS APPLICABLE TO RAILWAY
CARRIAGES." A communication from abroad by Augustin Castellvi, of
Saragossa, in the Kingdom of Spain.
Sealed the 19th July 1861, and dated the 21st February 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 21st February 1861.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREAKS APPLICABLE TO RAILWAY
CARRIAGES," to be as follows:-
This Invention of improvements in breaks applicable to railway carriages
may be divided into three parts, which relate, first, to the mechanism which
puts the break in action. Second, to the form of the shaft which transmits
the power or force to different breaks. The breaks themselves and the mode
of, connecting them with the working shaft constitute the third part of the
Invention. Other mechanical arrangements are adapted for indicating the
speed,. the distance run by the trains, and also the degree or extent to which
the breaks have been brought into action. Upon one of the axletrees of the
train, by preference one belonging to the last carriage, is fixed a bevilled wheel

page_text: or cone, and which consequently revolves with the axletree as the train moves
forward; above the axletree is a vertical shaft bearing another cone or bevilled
wheel, which bears against and revolves with the other bevilled wheel, and
thereby transmits motion to the vertical shaft on which it is mounted. The
two bevilled wheels actuate one another by friction of contact, and the hori-
zontal one of the pair is raised from or lowered into contact with its fellow by
means of a lever and crank, or other suitable mechanism. The vertical shaft
also carries two conical wheels, which run loosely thereon and gear into a third
wheel; all these three wheels being of the same diameter. Between the two
wheels on the vertical shaft is a clutch, which is raised or lowered by means
of a lever and winch, so as to transmit motion to either one of the bevilled
wheels, and by that means to drive the third wheel in the required direction.
The horizontal axle upon which the third bevil wheel is mounted carries a
pinion, which gears into and drives a toothed wheel on a longitudinal shaft,
which extends throughout the train and transmits motion to the. breaks. This
longitudinal shaft is of course constructed in suitable lengths according to the
length of the carriage, and these lengths are connected together by junctions,
which will allow the shaft to lengthen or shorten, or bend round curves as the
train passes along. The junctions or parts of this longitudinal shaft consist of
cylindrical bars of iron arranged end for end as an axle, and upon each of
these bars are made two screws. Each bar is securely united at its end to
tubes, which are made with a square bore to receive the ends of a square bar,
which is capable of moving to and fro in the tubes, but cannot leave them.
Two of these square rods or bars are connected together by couplings, and
serve to connect the longitudinal rods of two carriages together, and so on
throughout the train. By this arrangement any movement, that is, by means
of the gearing, above described, imparted to the first section or length of the
longitudinal shaft will be transmitted throughout the train. The breaks are
brought into contact with the wheels of the carriages by means of a rod which
acts on the bar, whereby the pressure is imparted. If it be desired to arrest
the progress of a train, one or other of the friction cones is brought into
contact with the third wheel, and the rotation of the axletree of the running
wheels will then cause the longitudinal shafts to rotate and screw up the
breaks. When the breaks are to be taken off this operation must be per-
formed by means of a separate winch handle and gearing, as the train having
stopped the cone wheels cannot be worked, except by extraneous mechanism.
The breaks may also be worked by means of a hand wheel or winch and shaft
provided with bevil gearing to act on the longitudinal shaft. This arrange-

page_text: ment may be adopted when the moving power of the running wheel axle
cannot be employed. In order to indicate the power or pressure exerted by
the breaks, an apparatus is adapted to the carriage consisting of a needle or
pointer, which vibrates in front of a graduated arc, and is moved by a hori-
zontal bar communicating by means of levers or rods with a screw on the
break shaft.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 21st August 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD NEWTON; of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fourth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her beirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said William Edward Newton, Her special license that I, the said William
Edward Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said William Edward Newton, 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 BREAKS APPLICABLE TO RAILWAY CARRIAGES," being a
communication from abroad by Augustin Castellvi, of Saragossa, in the
Kingdom of Spain, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
William Edward Newton, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
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 Office within six calendar months next and imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edward Newton 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, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures. marked thereon (that is to say) :-

page_text: This Invention of improvements in breaks applicable to railway carriages
may be divided into three parts, which relate, first, to the mechanism which
puts the break in action. Second, to the form of the shaft which transmits
the power or force to the different breaks. The breaks themselves and the
mode of connecting them with the working shaft constitute the third part of
the Invention. Other mechanical arrangements are adapted for indicating the
speed, the distance run by the trains, and also the degree or extent to which
the breaks have been brought into action.
In the accompanying Drawings, Fig. 1 is a vertical section taken in the
line A, B, of Fig. 3; Fig. 2 shews the break van in section, in the line C, D,
of Fig. 3, which is an underneath plan of the break van.
Upon one of the axletrees A of the train (by preference one belonging to
the last carriage or break van) is rigidly mounted a bevilled wheel or cone B,
which consequently revolves with the axletree as the train moves forward.
Above the axle A is a vertical shaft Y, which carries another bevil wheel or
cone L', this latter being driven by the wheel B, and thereby communicating
rotary motion to the shaft Y. The two wheels B and L' work together by
simple friction of contact, thereby avoiding the risk of breaking the gearing
teeth by shocks. The wheel L' is shifted up and down, or in and out of gear
with the wheel B by means of a hand wheel and its screwed rod e, which
raise or lower the lever f attached to the sleeve shaft of the wheel L'. The
shaft Y has also loosely mounted on it two bevil wheels D and D¹, which
take into a third wheel E of equal diameter. Between the wheels D, D¹,
and rotating with the shaft Y, is a clutch M, which on being lowered or
raised by means of the lever f¹, actuated by the hand wheel e¹, will transmit
motion either to the wheel D or D¹, and will cause the wheel to rotate either
in one direction or the other. The wheels being of equal diameter, the axles
or shafts A, Y, and O are caused to perform the same number of revolutions.
The horizontal shaft O is mounted in bearings J, J, and carries a pinion X,
which communicates motion to the wheel L, mounted upon the main driving
shaft. In order to allow the train the necessary pliability and play and
facility for running upon curves, the shaft is formed in as many sections as
there are carriages. These short shafts are all placed under the carriages,
(see Fig. 4) with the exception of the break van, the break action not being
required upon the driving wheels of the break apparatus. I will now
proceed to describe one of these short shafts. It consists of a cylindrical
shaft or axle S, upon which are two screws 1, 1, of greater or less pitch.
This shaft is firmly connected at its extremities to the tubes q, the square

page_text: extremities of which receive square rods p, these rods. being capable of sliding
in their tubes, and yet not of being entirely drawn out. These rods are
severally connected together between the carriages by a coupling or universal
joint n; by this means the wheel L, which is, as above stated, mounted upon
the shaft S, will carry round this latter with it, the rods p will yield readily
to all the movements of the train, and the universal joint will allow of their
yielding to the curves. The breaks are brought into action upon the wheels
of the carriages by means of rods r acting upon the bart (see Fig. 5); in this
case the breaks are the same as those now employed upon railways. The
rods are actuated by means of the lever P, to which they are jointed at o,
the lever P being connected to female screws, which move. backwards and
forwards upon the screwed portions of the main shaft S as this latter rotates,
and thereby putting the breaks in or out of action, according to whether the
shaft S turns to the right or left. It is unnecessary to observe that the
threads of the screws must be in the same direction upon all the sections of
the shaft.
The method of putting the break into operation is as follows:-If it be
required to cause the breaks to act upon the wheels, and retard their motion,
the two friction wheels are brought into action by means of the hand wheel e.
The hand wheel e¹ is then. screwed up or down, according to the direction of
motion of the train, and rotary motion is thereby imparted to the shaft S,
which causes the breaks to act upon the wheels. If it be now required to
bring the breaks out of action, the hand wheel e' is to be maintained in its
position, and a movement contrary to that which was employed for bringing
the breaks into operation should be effected in this case; and when the action
of the breaks upon the wheels is complete, it is impossible to bring the breaks
out of action with the apparatus above described. In order to remedy this,
upon the shaft O is mounted a wheel T, gearing with the pinion T¹, worked
by the hand wheel u', so that by turning this hand wheel the shaft S will be
caused to turn, and bring. the breaks out of action. If, for the purpose of
subdividing the trains, or for any other purpose, it be required to work the
break independently of the motive force, and with any other carriage than the
break van, this may be effected. without in any way changing the general
arrangement of the apparatus by the simple arrangement shewn at H, H,
Fig. 7. This arrangement consists in keying upon the rod or shaft P an
arrangement of gearing, which transmits to that shaft the rotary motion com-
municated to the vertical additional shaft by means of a hand wheel, winch,
or any other analogous combination.

page_text: The framing Z (Figs. 4, 5, & 6), which supports the main driving shaft,
bears upon the bearings for the axles of the carriage wheels. It is com-
posed of iron and wood suitably united, and assists, as may be seen by the
Drawing, in making the carriages more solid. This arrangement of the
framing has for its object to render the shaft independent of the carriage body,
which rests upon springs, and also to avoid shocks. It is only in the break
van that the framing forms a portion of the carriage body. An accessory
apparatus, composed of a needle or pointer m (see Fig. 2), which moves over
a graduated segment, and which is actuated by a horizontal bar in connection
with the female screw h, and following its movements indicates, according to
the position which this female screw occupies in moving backwards or forwards,
the exact distance between the breaks and the carriage wheels.
Having thus described this improved construction and arrangement of
break apparatus, and the operation of the same, as communicated to me from
abroad, I will now proceed to point out in a few words the principal advantages
which may result from its application.
Firstly, a very powerful action of the breaks upon the wheels is obtained
without any extraneous power other than that obtained from the momentum
of the train itself being required. This facility in the double operation allows
of the speed of the train being regulated, without depending upon the locomotive,
by offering greater or less resistance to the draught.
Secondly, the breaks being brought into action almost instantaneously,
shocks. become impossible at whatever distance two trains may be from each
other, when on approaching one another they come into collision, for in that
case the distance is much greater than is necessary for the purpose of allowing
of stopping in time.
Lastly, the apparatus is not complicated, and is not liable to fracture, for
the reason that the motive force is derived from the axle in motion, which
force being transmitted by friction avoids too violent shocks. As these points
principally concern the passengers, this improved break offers them greater
security when travelling upon railways, and at the same time it offers many
advantages to companies who may employ it. For instance, this break can.
be worked by one man, hence economy is effected in the number of persons
employed; shocks are avoided, there is therefore little liability of damage, and
consequently there will be economy in the rolling stock. There is also economy
in the fixed stock, and in. the wear and tear of the wheels, as the distances to
be traversed by the trains while under the action of the breaks will be less than
is now the case, and the friction of the wheels upon the rails will be diminished.

page_text: Finally, the resistance of the train rendering it independent of the power of
the engine, and the duration of that resistance becoming less, the stoker of the
engine can work with greater regularity, and economy of the fuel.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Newton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of August, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
W. E. NEWTON. (L.S.)