Improvements in Fences for Protection against Snow.
Year: 1889

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Fences for Protection against Snow.
I, CARL KLAUKE, manufacturer, of Müncheherg near Berlin, in the Kingdom of
Prussia, Germany, 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 :-
The means employed up till now by railway companies and departments for pro-
tecting the permanent ways against snow drifts, consisted for the most part of fences
made of old, used up sleepers, boardings, fir-plantations or hurdles.
The great
disadvantage of sleeper-fences, and boardings is that they cannot be transported or at
least only with difficulty; boardings and hurdles are not durable and must be
repeatedly renewed causing constant expense.
My invention consists of an improved fencing and is constructed with a view of
avoiding these disadvantages.
As a ground work for the fencing 1 use a fabric, woven of wire and vegetable fibres
(nettle, hemp, line,) which is protected against moisture by a coating of tar or asphalt
or a mixture of both which also increases its strength.
It is possible, to make the ground work in two ways: firstly, I can take a fabric
woven of vegetable fibres and cover it on both sides with wire netting, the whole being
woven together by wire or fibres or secondly by weaving vegetable fibres into the wire
netting in which case it is most advantageous to weave two vegetable threads into
each mesh of the netting, the two vegetable threads crossing each other in the mesh,
which results in a strong and durable combination of the two materials.
The fabric thus formed is then drawn through melted tar or asphalt which makes
it impenetrable to the dampness. In order to prevent the surfaces from sticking
together when the fabric is rolled up for packing, it is advisable, to strew both
surfaces with a thin layer of sawdust which soon dries into the tar or asphalt.
The fabric is fixed to the posts in the following manner: Two angle irons
of 135° are attached to each end of the fabric; these angle irons are longer than
the fabric is broad, so as to extend about 14 over each side, holes are bored
through the projecting ends of the angle irons and the latter are then fastened
together, the fabric being tightly held between them. The other two shanks of
these angle irons stand up from the surfaces of the fabric at an angle of 135° to
their respective surfaces, so that the angle between them will be 90°; into this
angle the corner of the supporting post lies, and these shanks can be attached to
the post.
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 :
1. A fencing for protection against snow drifts, consisting of a fabric woven of
line or hemp fibres, covered on each side with wire netting and having a coating
of tar or asphalt, for the purpose substantially as described.
2. A fencing for protection against snow drifts, consisting of wire netting inter-
woven with hemp, nettle, or line fibres and coated with tar or asphalt, in the
manner described.
3. The attachment of the fabric to its supporting posts by means of angle irons
in the manner described.
Dated this 17th day of December 1889.