IMPROVEMENTS IN AUTOMATIC COUPLINGS FOR RAILWAY AND OTHER CARRIAGES
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Green, of 92, Croft Street, Hyde, in the
County of Cheshire, Architect, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Green at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
9th April 1873.
I, WILLIAM GREEN, of 92, Croft Street, Hyde, in the County of
Cheshire, Architect, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN AUTOMATIC COUPLINGS FOR RAILWAY AND OTHER
CARRIAGES," to be as follows:-
The objects of these improvements are to obtain greater safety and
various facilities for the rolling stock of railways and others, and
consist of an improved automatic coupling for railway or other
carriages.

page_text: I construct my automatic coupling in the form of an elbow lever,
having one of its arms parallel to and the other at right angles with the
longitudinal line of the carriages or thereabouts. This lever is made
capable of taking a horizontal movement upon a fulcrum fixed on the
spring draw bar in the usual place. The end of that arm of the lever &
which is parallel to the longitudinal line of the carriage is formed
into a hook by being bent in the line of its motion in such manner
that when formed at each end of the carriages exactly alike they are
capable of hooking together, the coupling at the back of one carriage
forming the interlocking hook with the coupling at either the front or
back of the other and vice versa. The hook is held in position by means
of a spring draw bar attached in any suitable manner to that arm of
the lever which is at right angles to the length of the carriage, or a
plate spring may be applied thereto or to the hook itself, which be
constructed as a single radial arm only.
may
By means of a sliding rod or cam motion or other suitable mechanical
appliance the radial hooks may be pushed out of gear when desired
from the side of the carriage or any convenient part thereof. The radial
hooks are constructed sufficiently wide to prevent them lifting one over
the other and thus becoming detached.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, a
filed by the said William Green in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 9th October 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
GREEN, of 92, Croft Street, Hyde, in the County of Cheshire, Architect,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of April, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the thirty-
sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said William Green, Her special licence that
I, the said William Green, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said William Green, executors, adminis-
trators, 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,

page_text: поши али латину шидно тако
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN AUTOMATIC COUPLINGS
FOR RAILWAY AND OTHER CARRIAGES," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said William Green, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and
seals, 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 immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Green, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
The objects of these improvements are to obtain greater safety and
various facilities for the rolling stock of railways and others, and they
consist of an improved automatic coupling for railway and other
carriages.
fixed to the end
I construct my automatic coupling in the form of an elbow lever, or
by preference as a radial arm of a hooked formation. This radial arm
or lever or hook is constructed to turn upon a fulcrum
of a spring draw bar at the end of the carriage, or to the end of the
carriage itself, and takes a line of movement parallel to the horizon or
nearly so. The outward end of this arm or lever is formed into a hook
bent sideways, that is in the direction of its line of movement, and is
held in position by a spring, which may be either a plate spring applied
to the lever hook or arm itself or may be a spring draw bar attached
When each end of
thereto, or a weight may be used in lieu thereof.
the carriage is constructed in this manner alike they are capable of
hooking or interlocking with another carriage constructed in like
manner, the coupling at the back of one carriage forming the inter-
locking hook with the coupling at either the front or back of another
carriage, and vice versa.
By means of a sliding rod actuated by a lever, pinion, worm and wheel,
cam motion, or any other suitable mechanical appliance, the radial arms,
levers, or hooks may be pushed or drawn out of gear (when desired)

page_text: from the side of the carriage or from any convenient part thereof. The
radial hooks, arms, or levers are constructed sufficiently wide to prevent
them lifting one over the other and thus becoming detached.
But that the improvements may be better understood I will by the aid
of the accompanying Drawings proceed more fully to describe means
numoned by me
Fig. 1 shews a side view, and Fig. 2 a plan view of the various
portions of the coupling. In each of these Figures the same letters
indicate corresponding parts wherever they occur.
A represents a portion of the spring draw bar of a railway carriage
formed at the end with a head so as to be capable of carrying the radial
coupling hook B, which is attached by means of the strong pin C
passing through the radial hook and also through the head of the draw
bar, thus forming a pin joint around which the radial hook is partially
free to turn. The radial hook is prevented from turning beyond a
certain point by means of the stop pin D which passes through pro-
jections B¹, B¹³, on the radial hook, and is so arranged that when the radial
hook is in the proper line of action the stop pin comes in contact with
the draw bar A, thus forming a dead stop to work up to. The radial
hook is held in this position by means of the spring E. It will be
seen that this radial hook turning upon the fulcrum or pin C in the
draw bar A and held in position by the spring E is all that is required
for automatic coupling purposes, which takes place by gentle collision,
whereupon the inclined surface of the hook on one carriage strikes the
corresponding inclined surface of the hook on the other carriage, by
which means the radial hooks are forced asunder until such time as the
points of the hooks pass each other when they are again forced together
by the springs and the two hooks are interlocked.
The small lever F turning freely upon the fulcrum or pin C is for
uncoupling purposes only and forms part of one method of accom-
plishing that object. For this purpose the stop pin or projection D is
made to project above the radial hook, or it may be below, so that when
the lever F is drawn forward by any means it will come in contact
with the projecting pin D, and so press open the radial hook B, and
thus become disengaged from a similar hook on another carriage with
which it may be at the time in contact.

page_text: But I would here observe that various methods of uncoupling may
be used according to the parts of the carriage from which the operation
is sought to be effected. It may be by means of the rod G attached
at one end by pin joint to the small lever F, and being attached at the
other end to a lever of the requisite power and in a convenient position
for actuating the lever F; or it may be by means of a screw, or by
worm and wheel, cam motion, or any other suitable mechanical appliance,
any of which may be fitted with suitable apparatus for locking the radial
hook in either the coupled or uncoupled position.
Having thus described my improvements and means which I adopt
in carrying the same into effect, I would have it understood that I do
not confine myself to the exact details shewn and described, as variations
may be made in them without departing from the peculiar character of
my Invention, but what I do claim is, the so arranging a hook in the form
of an arm or lever that it is constructed to turn upon a fulcrum fixed
to the spring draw bar or end of a railway or other carriage, and taking a
line of movement parallel or nearly so with the horizon, that is to
say, the bend of the hook and the movement thereof are lateral or side-
ways, such hook being held in position by means of a spring or weight,
thus forming an automatic coupling that has for its apparatus at one
end a counterpart of that which is at the other end of the vehicle in
manner substantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Green, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Sixth day of October, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.
WILLIAM GREEN. (L.s.)
Witness,
WILLIAM GADD,
Consulting Engineer,
1, Corporation Street,
Manchester,
Agent to the Patentee.