US2057474A - Signal means for rail cars - Google Patents

Description

' Oct. 13, 1936.- R. J. BURROWS El AL 2,057,474

SIGNAL MEANS FOR RAIL CARS Filed 001;. '7; 1952 I 3 Sheets-Sheet l v Zzfreci 0- Z'l/Q'ZZzdms.

R. J. BURROWS ET AL SIGNAL MEANS FOR RAIL CARS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 7, 1952 Jo 1936- R. J. 'BURROWS ET AL 2,057,474

v SIGNAL MEANS FOR RAIL CARS Filed Oct. 7, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 5 v4?! Wed 0. zm zzizzm Patented Oct. 13, 1936 PATENT OFFICE SIGNAL MEANS roe BAIL CARS Robert J. Burrows and Alfred 0. Williams, Battle Creek, Mich, assignors to Clark Tructractor Company, Battle Creek, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application October '7, 1932, Serial No. 636,676 6 Claims. (01. 246-34) The present invention relates generally to signal means for railroad cars and the like, and is particularly concerned with signal means adapted for use on rail cars of the light weight type,

such as those employing rubber tired wheels or wheels of other resilient or cushioned construction.

Conventional railway signal equipment in general use at the present time usually includes semaphore and other types of signals actuated by arranging the rails of a section of the track in the signal circuit so that the passage of the train over the section short-circuits the rails and thereby operates the signals. Ordinarily, 15, the short-circuit is established through the wheels and axles of the train; or cars. The voltage between the rails of the section involved in the signal circuit is ordinarily quite low, frequently less than one volt, and dirt, rust, corrosion and the like, which accumulate on the top of the rail, sometimes tend to interfere with the proper operation of the signals. Generally, however, the relatively great weight of standard railway rolling equipment is. sufficient to cause the car wheels to break through the dirt or corrosion and to thereby secure the proper short circuiting of the rails and to actuate the associated signal means.

With the advent of lighter rolling stock, and especially rail cars of the gasoline engine vpropelled type, the problem of operating the conventional signal circuits increases in difficulty, Moreover, frequently the wheels, of light weight rail cars and the like, are equipped with rubber tires or are cushioned with rubber or similar insulating material, and in these cases the wheels and axles of the trucks cannot themselves be u used to shortI-circuitthe rails to operate the railway signals. I

Having these factors in mind, the principal object of the present invention is the provision of short-circuitingmeans carried by rail cars and which is so constructed and arranged as to pass along the rails and to bear against them with sufiiciently high unit pressure so that a good firm contact is made with the rails. Specifically, the present invention contemplates providing electrically connected short circuiting wheels of small diameter and with very narrow faces so that the unit pressure, that is, the pressure per square inch, will be'equal to or greater than the unit pressure of an ordinary steel railway wheel under a standard railroad car. The present invention also contemplates causing the contact wheels, to be resiliently held down against t e ra s s o maintain a fi m contactt w with at all times. Further, the present invention contemplates providing adjusting means for adjusting the pressure with which the contact wheels bear against the rails.

Another important feature of the present invention resides in the provision of contact wheels of the general character set forth above in which each wheel is provided with two or more narrow tread faces. This is for the purpose of assuring that lateral shifting of the truck relative to the rails will not cause the contact wheels to ride out of contact with the rails. Still further, another object of the present invention is to provide contact wheels having portions which normally are disposed just outside the rail head but of the same diameter as the portionsthereof which normally pass along the rail. The purpose of these outer portions is to carry the contact wheels over switch and frog intersections and other interruptions in the continuity of the rails by contacting with the guard rails or other rail sections which are placed adjacent such interruptions. In this way the contact wheel is prevented from dropping into the openings between the rails, such as those provided in switches, frogs, and the like to accommodate the wheel flanges.

These and other objects of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art after a consideration of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of one of the trucks of a rail car embodying the principles of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical section taken along the line 2-2 of Figure 1 and drawn on a somewhat larger scale;

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary elevation illustrating a slightly modified form of construction; and g Figure 4 is a vertical, section taken along the line 4..-A of Figure 3. l

Referring now to the drawings, the reference numeral It] indicates the body of a rail car supported upon a frame H and provided with a car bolster 12 (Figure 2) pivotally carried upon a truck bolster l3 of more or less conventional construction. The referencenumeral I5 indicates the side frames of the truck, and the truck bolster I3 is. carried upon the side frames through themedium of semi-elliptic. springs Hi. In Figure 1 the truck illustrated is shown as the driving truck,

that is, the truck is provided with a suitable differential and bevel gearing to which power is. de-

provided with wheels 26 carried upon driving axles which are suitably journaled for rotation within axle housings 22, the latter being mounted for rocking movement within bearing means'23 car- I ried at the ends of the side frames 15. Rotation of the axle housings 22 relative to the side frames is resisted by torque arms 25 and 26, they former supporting the differential housing 21 while the latter is resiliently anchored to the truck bolster, through the medium of cushioning springs or the equivalent enclosed within a two-part casing 28. The inner end of the torque arm 25 isqanchored to the side frames l5 by means of a suitable yoke 3|. The wheels 26 are preferably of the rubber tire type, such as is disclosed and claimed in our copending application filed April 6, 1932, for a Wheel, Serial No. 603,463, although they may be of any other construction desired.

As mentioned above, where the railway rolling stock is of light weight or where the wheels employed are provided with rubber tires, the wheels and axles of the rolling stock may not be adapted to establish the proper circuit from one rail to another toactuate the railway signals, and to supply this requirement the present invention contemplates the provision of auxiliary means carried by the rail 'car truck and serving to electrically bridge the rails and to be pressed down against them with sufficient force to establish a good firm contact therewith. According to the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, this short circuiting means includes a steel or similar shaft 35 carrying at its outer ends disc-like contact wheels 36 rigidly secured thereto and spaced apart so that each rides over one of the associated rails. Each of the contact wheels 36 includes a plurality of sections 38, 39 and 46. All of these sections have narrow tread faces and the two inner discs 38 and 39 are spaced apart an amount sufficient to take care of any lateral movement of the truck relative to the wheels. Thus, during any lateral shifting of the truck there is always at least one of the inner discs 38 or 39 in firm contact with the rail. The outer disc 40 of each of the contact wheels is normally not in contact with the rail and is spaced from the disc 39 a distance somewhat less than the spacing between the inner discs 38 and 39. The function of the outer disc 46 of each of the wheels is to contact with the guard rail sections adjacent interruptions in the continuity of the main rails, such as are encountered at switches, frogs and the like where some provision must be made for the wheel flanges of the cars crossing over or turning out. At such points the outer discs 40 will ride over such interruptions and prevent the contact wheels from dropping into the openings at such interruptions. V

In order to establish a high unit pressure between the contact wheels and the rails, the disc sections are provided with very narrow faces, and in order to cause these narrow faces to break through any dirt and corrosion which may accumulate on top of the rail head, the wheels 36 are pressed downwardly against the rails by means which reacts against the 5 d? f amesfi.

sponding frame member and extending downwardly and terminating in a pair of apertured lugs 41 which receive a pivot pin 49 upon which one end of each of the arms is carried.

The arms 44 are resiliently pressed downwardly against the rails by adjustable spring means indicated generally by the reference numeral 5|. Such means includes a bracket 52 secured to the outside flange of each of the side frames l5 and :suitably threaded to receive an adjusting screw 53, the lower end of which terminates in a head 54 constructed and arranged to accommodate the upper end of a compression spring 55. The lower end of the spring 55 bears against the horizontal portion 56 (see'Figure 1) of the associated arm 44. The adjusting screw 53 carries a lock nut 51 for securely holding the screw in adjusted position. The upper end of each screw carries a thumb piece 58 to facilitate adjusting the tension exerted by the springs 55. The head 54 and the arm 44 of each side of the truck are each provided with bosses, indicated at 60 and 6|, adapted to receive the spring 55 and to prevent the latter from becoming displaced. As best shown in Figure 2, the arms 44 are formed to curve outwardly from their pivoted ends so as to dispose the bearings 4243 near the contact wheels 36. Under certain conditions it may be preferable to have each of the contact wheels mounted on the shaft 35 on a loose rotating bearing, in which case the ball type bearings 42-43 may be eliminated and the shaft 35 connected directly with the outer ends of the arms 44. However, in view of the low voltage available for actuating the railway signals, the rigid construction illustrated in Figure 2 is usually preferable to a construction in which the wheels 36 are mounted by bearings on the shaft 35.

In Figures 3 and 4 We have shown a somewhat simplified form of construction in which the arms 44 are replaced by leaf spring means 64, the inherent resiliency of which serves to accommodate angular displacement of the shaft 35 relative to the side frames I5 of the truck. In this way, the ball type of bearing 42-43 shown in Figure 2 is unnecessary. In Figures 3 and 4 each side frame I 5 carries a bracket 65 of the depending type riveted or otherwise permanently secured to the side frame. Each bracket 65 terminates in a cylindrical sleeve portion 66 which receives a pivot pin or stud 68. The stud 68 extends outwardly at each side of the truck to receive a bracket 16 which provides a spring seat H for the spring 64 and an upwardly extending arm 12 which terminates in a pair of forks 14. The forks 14 of each of the brackets 16 are apertured to receive a pivot pin "I5 upon which one end of an adjusting rod 18 is mounted. The opposite end of each of the adjusting rods 18 is threaded, as at 19, and is disposed within a small bracket 8| carried at the side of the truck. Adjusting nuts 82 are mounted on the rods 18 and bear against the brackets 8|. One end of each of the leaf springs 64 is secured to the associated spring seat H by U-bolts 85 while the other end of each of the springs 64 carries a U-bolt 86 which embraces a cylindrical bearing member 88 in which the shaft is journaled for rotation. The stud 68 may be rigidly connected with either the bracket 65 or the bracket 10 or it may be loosely received within each of them, the principal essential being that each of the brackets 10 shall be capable of rocking movement in a vertical plane relative to the side frames l5. As will be clear from Figure 3, tightening the nut 82 will occasion a counterclockwise movement of the bracket 10 relative to the side frame l5 and the bracket 65, and this will deflect the associated spring 64 and cause the associated contact wheel 36 to bear heavily against the supporting rail. Obviously, the more theadjusting nut 82 is tightened the greater will be the pressure with which the contact wheel 36 bears against the rail. Since the spring arms 64 are resilient, obviously they are capable of being flexed to a limited extent about their general longitudinal axis as well as in a longitudinal vertical plane. There is, therefore, no necessity for a universal bearing construction such as is shown in Figure 2.

While the truck shown in Figures 1 and 3 is the driving truck of a rail car it is to be understood that the present rail short circuiting means may be mounted on a trailing truck and that each truck of a car may be provided with such rail short circuiting means, whether the trucks be driving trucks or trailing trucks. It is also to be understood that each truck may be provided with more than one set of rail short circuiting means if necessary or desirable.

While we have shown and described above the preferred structural embodiment of the present invention, it is to be understood that our invention is not to be limited to the specific details shown and described, but that in, widely different means may be employed in the broader aspects of our invention.

What we claim, therefore, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In alight weight rail car, a truck having side frames and supporting wheels, means carried by each of said side frames adjacent the supporting wheel at that side and presenting a limited area for continuous contact with the adjacent rail, resilient means reacting against each of said side frames for independently pressing each of said contact means against the associated rail with a greater unit pressure than that with which said supporting wheels bear against said rails, and con ducting means independent of said resilient means for connecting said contact means to shortcircuit said rails.

2. In a rail car, a truck having side frames and supporting wheels, bracket means carried by each frame between said supporting wheels, a spring arm pivotally supported in each of said bracket means, a contact member at the outer end of each of said spring arms and provided with a narrow face presenting a limited area for contact with the associated rail, means for urging each of said spring arms downwardly to cause said contact members to resiliently bear against said rails with a high unit pressure, and conducting means separate from said spring arms electrically joining said contact members for short-circuiting said rails for signal purposes.

3. In a rail car, a truck having side frames, a bracket secured to each of said frames, a rigid arm pivotally supported by each of said brackets and extending to a point adjacent the rail on that side, a transverse shaft formed of conducting material, spherical bearing means connecting said shaft and the ends of said arms, thereby providing for angular movement of said shaft with respect to said side frames, rail contacting wheels mounted at the ends of said shaft and having relatively narrow tread'surfaces to bear against said rails, and means reacting against each of the side frames for resiliently pressing said rigid arms downwardly to force the associated wheel into firm contact with the associated rail.

4. In a rail car, a truck having side frames, a bracket secured to each of said frames, a spring arm pivotally connected with each of said brackets and extending to points adjacent the corresponding rail, rail contacting means carried by said spring arms and presenting a limited area for continuous high pressure contact with the rail, means associated .with each of said arms for adjusting the tension exerted thereby through said contact means against the associated rail independently of the tension exerted by, the other spring arm, and rigid means connecting said contact members and movable angularly by virtue of the flexibility of said spring arms with respect to said side frames.

5. In a rail car, a truck having side frames, a bracket secured to each of said frames, a rigid arm pivotally supported by each of said brackets and extending to a point adjacent the rail on that side, a transverse shaft formed of conducting material, spherical bearing means connecting said shaft and the ends of said arms, thereby providing for angular movement of said shaft with respect to said side frames, rail contacting wheels mounted at the ends of said shaft and having relatively narrow tread surfaces to bear against said rails, a second bracket secured-to one side of each of said side frames and substantially over the free end of the associated arm, spring means disposed between said arm and said sec-0nd bracket, and means supported by said bracket for adjusting the tension of said spring means.

6. In a rail car, a truck having side frames, a depending bracket secured to and extending downwardly from each of said frames, an arm pivotally connected at one end to each of said brackets and including a resilient part, rail contacting means carried adjacent the other end of said arms and presenting a limited area for continuous high pressure contact with the associated rail, separate means carried, respectively, by said side frames and reacting against the resilient part of the associated arm for adjusting the pressure exerted thereby through said contact means against the associated rail independently of the pressure exerted through the contact means for the other rail, and rigid means connecting said contact members and connected to said other ends of said arms, and rigid means movable angularly by virtue of the flexibility of said resilient parts.

ROBERT J. BURROWS.

ALFRED O. WILLIAMS.

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