Year: 1898

page_text: We, GEORGE WOOD, of Bold Street, Moss Side, Joiner, and WILLIAM MILLS,
of 12, New Brown Street, Manufacturer, both in Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
:-
This invention relates to fog signalling apparatus for use on railways of that
type which is described in the Specification accompanying our application for
Letters Patent No. 13160 dated the 13th day of June 1898. In this apparatus
a bell crank lever is employed having one of its arms attached to the signal wire
and the other resting upon a counterweighted lever by means of which the
detonator feeding device is connected to or disconnected from the depresser rail.
When the signal was pulled to safety the bell crank lever was moved so that it
permitted the counterweighted lever to rise and disconnect the depresser rail and
the detonator feeder, so that the movement of the former was not communicated
to the latter. Connection was restored when the signal was returned to danger,
and the crank lever was moved in the opposite direction.
The object of our present invention is to provide means for restoring the
apparatus to its operative position immediately after the passage of a train, so
that a second train can not follow the first without receiving a signal even should
the signalman not allow the signal to move to danger immediately the train has
passed.
In carrying this invention into effect the signal wire is disconnected from the
cranked lever hereinbefore referred to, and which we will hereinafter call the
primary lever, and is connected to a second lever or arm mounted at some little
distance from the primary lever.
This second or secondary lever is connected to the primary lever by means
of a link one end of which is pivotted to one of the levers, and the other end of
which is connected to a pin or stud upon the other lever by an L shaped slot.
When the pin is in the vertical member of the slot, which it normally is, owing
to the weight of the link, motion communicated to one of the levers is trans-
ferred to the other.
Thus, when the signal is moved to safety the secondary lever is pulled over and
moves with it the primary lever and thus effects the disconnection of the detonator
feeder.
A secondary depresser is mounted by the permanent way rail so as to be
depressed upon the passage of a train. In its depressed condition this secondary
depresser moves the link slightly upwards through the intermediary of suitable
D
077

page_text: levers or the like, and brings the horizontal member of the slot opposite to the
pin, so that the primary lever is now free to fall into the position in which it
causes the detonator feeder to be connected to the main depresser rail. Should
a second train follow the first, therefore, it would receive a detonator even if the
signal had not been returned to danger.
When the signal is returned to danger the secondary lever is moved and the
pin again engages with the vertical member of the slot.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Fog Signalling Apparatus for Railways.
We, GEORGE WOOD, of Bold Street, Moss Side, Joiner, and WILLIAM MILLS,
of 12, New Brown Street, Manufacturer, both in Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, 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 signalling apparatus for railways, of that type
which is described in the Specification of Letters l'atent granted to us No. 13160,
dated the 13th day of June A.D. 1898. In the apparatus described in the
said specification, a bell-crank lever is employed which has one of its arms attached
to the signal wire and the other resting upon a counter-weighted lever by means
of which the detonator feeding device is connected to or disconnected from the
depresser rail. When the signal is pulled into the safety position, the bell crank
lever is moved so that it permits the counter-weighted lever to rise and disconnect
the depresser rail and the detonator feeder, so that the movement of the former is
not communicated to the latter. Connection is restored when the signal is
returned to danger, and the crank lever is moved in the opposite direction.
The object of our present invention is to provide means for restoring the
apparatus to the operative position immediately after the passage of a train, so
that a second train cannot follow the first without receiving a signal even should
the signal-man not allow the signal to move to danger immediately upon the
passage of the train.
We will describe our present improvements with reference to the accompanying
drawings in which there is represented as much as is necessary of the existing
apparatus which will first be explained.
Figure 1 shews a plan, and Figures 2 and 3, side elevations of the levers con-
nected with the signal wire, in two positions.
R, is one of the rails of the permanent way and D), the depresser rail. In
the block A, bolted on the outer side of R, the punch 1', can move freely up
and down. M, is the detonator magazine. Beneath the depresser rail there is a
lever CC upon which is pinned one end of the arm E, in the other end of
which there is an L shaped slot engaging a pin fixed in the sliding bar G, at the
opposite end of which there is a downward projection engaging with a correspond-
ing projection upon the rocking shaft I. It follows that on the passage of a
train, the rocking shaft is moved. It has, fixed upon it a counterweighted
lever JJ, connected with the feeder plate K, so that for every depression of

page_text: the rail D, a detonator may be thrust under the punch. To secure that a detonator
shall be thrust under the punch only when the signal stands at danger, there is
a transverse weighted lever Q Q", one end of which is bent to come under the
arm E. Above the lever Q on the side of the fulcrum further from the weight Q",
there is a longitudinal cranked weighted lever S S", to the upper member of
which the signal wire is at present attached. When the line is clear and the
signal wire is pulled in the act of setting the signal to the safety position, the
limb S" is lifted out of contact with the lever Q, whereupon, by the action of
the weight Q", the bent end of Q lifts the arm E, so that the pin on the bar G
is in the horizontal member of the L-shaped slot in the arm and, consequently,
the motion of the arm E is no longer communicated to the sliding bar G and the
feeder plate K.
According to our present improvements, the signal wire T, is disconnected from
the cranked lever S, and is connected instead, to a similar second lever Z Z",
fulcrumed at a little distance nearer to the signal box. This lever is connected
with the lever S by means of a rod or link which may have an adjustable
length. The connection of this rod or link with the lever Z may be by means of
a pin, and with the lever S, it is connected, by an L-shaped slot and a pin as
indicated by Figures 2 and 3. When the pin s, is in the vertical member
of the slot, which, owing to gravity, is its normal position, motion communicated
to either of the levers SZ is communicated by the rod or link Y to the other.
Thus, when the signal is moved to safety, both the levers Z S are pulled over,
and the detonator feeder is disconnected.
Outside the rail R, there is fulcrumed, at right angles, a lever X, having
a greater weight on that side of its fulcrum nearer to S. The end of this lever
next to the rail R has an upward projection a, normally standing above the level
of the rail R and thus acting as a depresser when a train passes. The opposite
end of the lever comes just under the slotted part of the link Y.
In the event of a second train following a preceding one while the signal still
stands at safety, by neglect or inadvertence on the part of the driver or signal-
man, the apparatus last described ensures that a detonator shall be supplied for
explosion by the second train.
The passage of every train, in whatever position the signal may be, operates the
lever, the end of which momentarily lifts the slotted end of the link Y, so that
for the instant, the horizontal member of the slot is in line with the pin s. The
result is that if the signal is standing at safety, so that no detonator would be
supplied under present conditions, the passage of the first wheel of the train
causes the end of the link Y to be momentarily thrown up, so that the pin s
is brought to the horizontal part of the slot and the lever S at once falls upon
the lever Q. The flange of the passing wheel being now upon the depresser
rail D, a detonator is at once supplied and is then in position to be exploded by
the following train.
When the signal is restored to the danger position, the link Y moves to the
right as viewed in the drawings, and the vertical member of the slot comes over
the pins, whereupon that end of the link falls and engages the link with the
lever S, as shewn by Figure 2.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :-
1. In fog-signalling apparatus of the type set forth, the combination and arrange-
ment of the weighted levers ZS with a connecting link one end of which is pinned to
the lever Z, and the other end of which is connected with the lever S by means
of a pin and L-shaped slot, and a lever acting to throw up the slotted end of the
link on the passage of a train, substantially as herein before described and as
illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
2. In fog-signalling apparatus of the type set forth, a second depresser such

page_text: as a, in combination with a lever X, a counterweighted lever S, and a link
operated by the signal wire and having a pin and L-shaped slot in connection
with the lever, constructed and operating substantially as and for the purpose
hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1
.
W. E. HEYS & SON,
Agents for the Applicants.