Improvements in or relating to Fog Signals for Ralways.
Year: 1897

page_text: Improvements in or relating to Fog Signals for Ralways.
I, JAMES BOWN, of 8, Lord's-Mill Street, Chesterfield, in the County of Derby,
Grocer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
-
This invention relates to fog-signals and has for its object to so arrange them
that by the operation of the signalman in his box or of the engine driver a bell
or whistle or both can be brought into immediate action thus informing the
driver whether the signal is for or against him.
Underneath the engine on the slide bars or in some convenient position I fix
in a suitable manner a curved spring preferably one of each side of the engine.
Between the rails and in any desired position I arrange one or more levers
mounted on suitable pedestals so as to engage when required with the aforesaid
springs.
These levers are operated only by the signalman in connection with the usual
signal arm.
To each curved spring on the engine I attach a rod which passes up beside the
fire box and is connected by suitable levers or tho like with a bell whistle or
other signalling device.
If both a bell and whistle are employed they may be placed conveniently near
the fire-box, preferably one on each side of the latter.
The spindles of the aforesaid set of pedestals and levers are preferably extended
and pulleys or chain wheels are placed thereon and the wire of the signal passes
around each pulley or chain wheel and so operates them according to the will of
the signalman in accordance with the motion of the signal. One lever is raised
and comes in contact with the whistle when the signal is against the train and
the other lever strikes the bell when the signal is the reverse.
The levers operate
in different directions.
Instead of chain wheels or pulleys levers may be attached to the spindles which
pass through or under the pedestal being suitably connected to the levers in the
signal box. I preferably arrange that the motion from the spring to the hell
or whistle may be operated by suitable levers and that the spindle or levers for
bringing about the striking the hell or sounding the whistle may be loose,
arranging the action of the main levers and the springs so that in fine weather
when the signals are visible the engine driver may place either lever out of action. If
the driver wishes to know whether the signal is for or against him as in the caso
of fog the device is adjusted so that on the engine passing over the levers which
are operated by the signalman the latter come in contact with the springs and
sound the bell or whistle in the manner above described.
Dated this 9th day of December 1897
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: Improvements in or relating to Fog Signals for Railways.
I, JAMES BOWN, of 8, Lord's Mill Street, Chesterfield, in the County of Derby,
Grocer, 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:-
This invention relates to fog signals for railways and has for its object to so
arrange them that by the operation of the signal man in his box a bell or whistle
can be brought into immediate action, informing the driver of a locomotivo
whether the signal is for or against him.
In carrying out the invention one or more levers capable of being raised_and
lowered are secured to the bed of the permanent way between the rails. Each
lever is placed, so as to cooperate, when in its raised position and a locomotive
passes over the track, with a curved spring fixed in any convenient position
underneath the locomotive, and to this spring is attached a rod which passes up
within the cab and is in operative connection with a bell or whistle or other
signalling device. The lever or levers are connected with the signal box so as
to be operated by the signal man conjointly with the ordinary signals. Prefer-
ably two levers are employed to operate say a whistle and a bell respectively and
they are so connected that when one is raised the other is lowered. When the
signals are set against the train, at danger, one lever is raised and comes in con-
tact with the spring controlling the whistle, the other lever being lowered and
inoperative; when the signal is for the train to proceed, at safety, the lever
cooperating with the spring controlling the bell is raised and the first lever
lowered.
A convenient form of apparatus employing two levers constructed according
to this invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, of which,
Fig. 1 is a sectional side elevation of a portion of a locomotive and the per-
manent way.
Fig. is a sectional end elevation of the same,
Fig. 3 is a plan of the portion of the apparatus placed on the permanent way
and,
Fig. 4 is a side elevation of a portion of a sleeper showing a lever in a raised
position in its brackets.
Like letters indicate like parts in all the drawings.
Two bell crank levers A A', are pivotted in bearings formed in brackets B¹
fixed between the rails conveniently on adjacent sleepers B. These levers are
similar in construction and one description applies to both, each comprising a
cross bar A³ rotatable in the brackets B, having two arms A³ projecting from
it at an angle and forming, at their point of meeting, a bracket A, in which works
a roller A; these arms and bracket form the upper arm of the bell-crank lever, the
lower arm A6 being placed centrally as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. The free end
of the arm Aº of each lever A A¹ is pivotted to a pin C¹, one at each end of a
coupling link C.
The pin C on which say the lever A is pivotted also carries a shackle D', of a
wire 1 or other convenient connection with the sigual box D, where it is operated
by a lever in the usual manner. The other pin on which say the lever A¹ is
pivotted, is connected by a rod, wire or the like, E', to a balanced lever E, which
may also be connected by any suitable means with the usual signals.

page_text: A lug A' is provided, at each end of the cross bar A³, which engages a bracket B',
when the lever is in a vertical position and prevents it from being pulled over
beyond that point.
A trough B³ is formed in the bed of the track to receive the lever arms coupling
link and connections.
Underneath the locomotive, with their ends held by links G¹ on a frame G
are two curved springs F, F, in such a position as to come in contact with the
rollers As of the levers A, A', respectively, when these are in their raised position.
On the springs F are fixed rods H H respectively, which are carried up into
the cab of the locomotive conveniently one at each side of the fire-box front; these
rods are supported in brackets G³ and may be furnished with spiral springs H³ to
assist the curved springs F F to resume their normal position when released
from contact with the levers A A¹. The upper ends of the rods H II' are pro-
vided with levers or other suitable connections for operating, when raised, the
whistle I or bell J respectively.
The operation of the apparatus is as follows:-When the sigual man desires
to set the signals at safety, he operates the lever in his box to pull on the wire D¹,
which, through the coupling link C, lowers the lever A and raises the lever A';
as the train passes over the apparatus the roller A of the lever comes in con-
tact with the spring F, and raising the rod H' strikes the bell J. When the
signal-man releases the wire D', the balanced lever E falls to tho position shown
in dotted lines in Fig. 2 drawing the coupling link C towards that side of the
link thus raising the lever A and lowering the lever A', so that as the engine
passes the rod H is raised and opens the whistle I, giving notice to the engine
driver that the signal is against him, the apparatus remaining in this position
until the sigual man sets it again at safety.
If it be desired in fine weather to trust to the usual signals and not to employ
those on the engine, the driver can readily disconnect the rods HH' from the
whistle and bell respectively when the apparatus will be inoperative.
It is evident that if the position of the engine on the rails be reversed the
signals will also be reversed the lever A operating the bell J and the lever A¹
operating the whistle. But if desired means may be provided for connecting
either rod to the bell or whistle so that after the engine is turned on the turn
table the connections may be reversed in order that the danger signal may
always be given by the whistle, the bell being reserved always for the line clear
signal.
Many modifications may be made in the construction of the apparatus without
departing from the spirit of the invention; for instance the shape of the upper
arm of the levers A A¹ may be varied, and in place of connecting the coupling
link C with the signal box and balanced lever E, one end of the cross bar A³ may
be extended beyond the bracket to carry a pulley or chain wheel, around which
a wire or chain may be passed to connect the lever with the signal box and line
signals.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. In railway signalling apparatus a lever such as A on the road way, and a
spring such as F on the locomotive capable of cooperation substantially as and for
the purpose described.
2. In railway signalling apparatus the combination with levers such as A. A¹
capable of cooperation with springs such as F F of a coupling link such as C
substantially us and for the purpose described.
3. In railway signalling apparatus the combination of a lever such as A with
a lever such as A', so that when either lever is raised the other is lowered sub-
stantially as and for the purpose described.

page_text: 4. The combination and arrangement of parts constituting a signalling
apparatus substantially as described or illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
JAMES BOWN.
Boult & Wade,
Agents for the Applicant.