IMPROVEMENTS IN AXLE-BOXES FOR RAILWAY VEHICLES."
Year: 1880

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Harris Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, &
Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for an Invention of
IMPROVEMENTS IN AXLE-BOXES FOR RAILWAY VEHICLES." A communication
from abroad by Sumner Alexander Bemis, of Springfield, Massachusetts,
United States of America, Manufacturer.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Henry Harris Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 12th August 1880.
HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN AXLE-BOXES FOR RAILWAY
VEHICLES." A communication from abroad by Sumner Alexander Bemis, of
Springfield, Massachusetts, United States of America, Manufacturer.
The object of this Invention is to provide an axle box for railway vehicles which
is convenient of access, uniform and even in the bearing and wear of its movable
parts, strong and durable, and which shall permit an easy motion of the vehiclo
body with which it is connected.
In the accompanying Drawings,
Figure 1. is a side view of an axle box constructed according to my Invention,
and
Figure II. is an end view of the same.
Figure III is a vertical longitudinal section of the axle box on the line x, x,
Figure II.
Figure IV. is a half plan of the pedestal and box together and a half plan of the
box alone.
Figure V. is a plan of the brass which takes the bearing of the axle.
B represents the box proper or that portion which contains the oil, and in which
are located the bearing portions of the axle, and upon the lower side of the upper
portion of which is cast a lug 3, shown in Figure III., which lug projects down by
the side of the stud 2 on the brass 16 to prevent the latter from moving inward
out of place, the forked key 4 at the outer end of the axle preventing the brass
from moving outward; this forked key 4 which is movable in vertical grooves 17
in the sides of the box also straddles the grooved outer end of the axle and keeps
the latter in its proper relative position in and with regard to the box.

page_text: The cap
C is provided at its upper end with a projection 8 on the inside, which
is inserted in a recess 10 in the upper side of the box near its outer end, and the
cap is provided with a recess a with a hole in the bottom to receive a bolt 1 passsd
down through the outer end of the box and provided with a nut on its lower end
which secures the cap in place upon the box.
The pedestal D is secured to the sill E (shown in dotted lines) of the vehicle by
bolts b, and is provided with jaws D¹ which extend down over each side of the
box B. A spring F is secured to the inner end of each bolt b by check-nuts 1, 1, 1, 1,
and extends down one each side of the box with its lower end arranged to bear.
against the housing A and its upper part to bear against a lug 5 cast upon the
inside of the upper part of the pedestal; this spring is prevented from vibrating in
one direction, that is to say, in a direction lengthwise of the vehicle by the lugs
or projections 6 on the pedestal The said spring may be adjusted to bear more
or less against the housing A by turning the nuts 1, 1, more or less on the bolts b.
The steps 7 (one on each side of the box) to support the spring are each secured
by two braces, one as at I' extending from the step to the housing A, which
construction renders the whole much stronger and more rigid than would otherwise
be the case.
The brass 16 which sustains the bearing of the axle H is made with both ends
alike, so that the brass may be inserted either end first, and its ends are elongated
with a hole 18 in each if desirable by which to draw the brass out of the box
conveniently with a hook when the cap C is removed for that purpose.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent and the manner of performing the same, I wish it under-
stood that I claim,-
First. The combination in an axle box for railway vehicles of the box adapted
to contain the axle and its bearings, and a cap constructed to lock or hook over
the top of the outer end of the box and secured by a suitable fastening below,
substantially as above described.
Second. The combination in an axle-box for railway vehicles of the box adapted
to contain the axle and its bearings provided with a lug projecting down inside,
and a movable brass provided with a stud projecting upward to bear against said
lug, substantially as and for the purpose herein set forth.
Third. In an axle-box for railway vehicles a movable brass provided with an
upwardly projecting stud to bear against the upper side of the box and with two
opposite elongated ends, each having a hole therein, substantially as and for the
purpose above described.
Fourth. The combination in an axle box for railway vehicles of the box adapted
to contain the axle, the housing for the same at the inner end of the box, a step
on each side of the box to support the spring of the vehicle, and two braces
extending from each step, one to the box and the other to the housing and made
solid therewith, substantially as herein described.
Fifth. The combination of the spring F with the retaining nuts 1, 1, the pedestal
provided with the lugs 6 to prevent the side vibration of the spring, the lug 5 as
a bearing for the said spring, and the box with its housing for containing the axle,
substantially as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Harris Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twelfth day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty.
HENRY H. LAKE. (L.S.)