US2106990A - Remote control system - Google Patents

Description

1938. H. c; VANTASSEL REMOTE CONTROL SYSTEM Filked Jan. 23, 1935 LHBO-A S-T-T I. M J Tr N N m mm H wlvA w a m ml H P my B Patented Feb. 1, 1938 UNITED STATES "5 OF F'ICE.

Application January 23, 1933, Serial No. 653,023

26 Claims.

My invention relates to remote controlsystems for the control of devices at a remote point over a small number of line wires, and is particularly adaptedfor, though in no way limited to, the control of railway switches and signals from a centrally located point, such as a dispatchers ofiice or interlocking tower. My present invention is an improvement upon the systems disclosed in my copending application Serial No. 334,081, filed January 21, 1929, now U. S. Letters Patent 2,053,-

928 granted September 18, 1936, and of my Patent No. 1,854,967, dated April 19, 1932, and contemplates the control of a railway switch and of signals governing traffic over the switch by means of but two line wires and a common return.

One object of my present invention is the provision, in a system of this character employing sources of current of reversible polarity at both ends of the line wires, of selecting apparatus so sources to the same line wire at the same time.

Another object is the provision, in a system in which two line wires are at times utilized for the control andindication, respectively, of a track switch, and are at other times utilized for the control and indication of the signals governing traffic over the switch, and in which the control is effected by means of levers which are not locked and are free to be moved at any time, of an arrangement of apparatus by which the movement of the signal lever when the switch and switch lever do not correspond in position is without effect, the apparatus being arranged so that the signal lever may be moved during such time and will become effective to, control the signal as soon as the switch completes its movement and is in agreement with the switch lever.

Other objects and features of my invention will become apparant as the description proceeds.

I will describe one form of apparatus embodying my invention, and will then point out the novel features thereof in claims.

The accompanying drawing is a diagrammatic view illustrating one form of apparatus embodying my invention.

Referring to the drawing, a stretch of single track railway is shown diagrammatically including a detector section T containing the track switch W and having a track circuit with the usual track bat-tery Bi and a track relay TS. Adjacent section T is a section of single track including approach section RA occupied when a train approaches the switch from left to right, having a track circuit including a track battery B2 and track relay BAR. At the right of section T is a passing siding or stretch of double track, including an approach section LA occupied when a train on the main track approaches the switch from right to left, having the usual track bat: tery B3 and track relay LAR. Signals RI-IA and RI-IB control. train movements from the single track section over the switch to the main track section or siding, respectively, and signals LHA and LI-IB control train movements over the switch in the opposite direction. The switch W may be operated by a mechanism M of any suitable type and this mechanism is in turn controlled by a polarized switch control relay WR. Signals LHA, LHB, RHA and RHB are controlled by signal relays LAHR, LBHR, RAI-IR, and RLBHR, respectively, which in turn are controlled by a poralized signal control relay HR. When any of the signal relays, such as LAI-IR, is deenergized, the corresponding signal displays a stop indication, and when such relay is energized, the corresponding signal is caused to display a proceed indication, the circuits for the control of the signal lamps or mechanism by the signal relay being omitted for simplicity.

I also provide the usual approach locking relays LMR and RMR, including one for each direction of trafl'ic, together with a time element relay TER. for releasing the locking under certain conditions.

The operating mechanism M for the switch includes the usual switch machine comprising a motor and a set of circuit controller contacts operated in the usual manner. The cutout con-.- tacts 3| and ll are controlled by the switch machine so that BI is open only when the switch is normal, and I1 is open only when the switch is reverse. The indication contacts 62, 38, 49 and 23 may be controlled, for example, as disclosed in the Zabel Patent No. 1,293,290. The apparatus includes a pair of thermal relays TI and T2 for protecting the motor against overload in the event the switch becomes stalled due to an obstruction in the switch points or from any other cause. The thermal relays control a stick relay S in a manner described in a copending application of R. M. Gilson, Serial No. 637,243, filed October 1, 1932, now Patent No. 1,996,198, dated April 2, 1935. The switch machine may be of the well known dual selector type, having amanually operable selector lever which in one position closes a contact DS and also couples the shaft of the motor M by means not shown, to the mechanism for moving the switch so that the switch is thereby adapted to power operation, and which in another position opens contact DSand connects a hand throw lever to the switch mechanism in lieu of the motor so that the switch may be operated manually. Contact DS is included in the circuit for relay S, which relay therefore not only is deenergized to open the switch motor circuit in event of an overload, but also be-.

comes deenergized when the selector mechanism is moved to the hand-throw position. Relay S controls the signal circuits, so that all signals are caused to display stop indications when the switch is to be operated by hand.

The apparatus for the control of the switch 'and signals so far described is preferably located adjacent switch W and is conveniently referred to as the station apparatus. Connecting this station with a remote control point or dispatchers office are three line wires comprising two control wires X and Y and a common return Z. The dispatchers ofiice equipment for the control of a single switch and the signal governing traf fic .over it, comprises the apparatus enclosed within the dot-and-dash rectangle at the left of the drawing and includes a two-position switch lever I having a contact l a three-position signal lever 2 having contacts 2 and 2 a switch indication relay WK, a signal indication relay HK, a stick relay HS; a slow pick-up slow release selector relay P; and threelamps TE, WE and. HE. Lamp WE is controlled over front contact 39 of relay WK and is lighted when relay WK is energized, as is the case when the switch lever is in control of the switch so that the switch control relay WR is energized and its polar contacts correspond in position to the position of the switch, provided track section T is unoccupied so that relay TS is energized, and provided time element TER is in its normal deenergized position and the dual selector lever is in the motor position and relay S is energized. Relay I-IK is a polarized relay and may be en ergized to close its neutral and polarized contacts when any signal is cleared, or to close its neutral contact and to reverse and open its polarized contact when all the signals indicate stop, provided the signal lever is in control of the signals and track section T is unoccupied. The signal indication'lamp HE is controlled over the neutral and polarized contacts 41 and 48 of relay I-IK and is therefore energized when a signal indicates clear. Lamp TE is controlled by neutral contacts 28 and 46 of relays WK and HK in multiple so that it is lighted when either relay WK or HK is energized and therefore indicates that track section T is unoccupied.

It isto be understood that local sources of direct current are provided, both at the oilice and at the station, but for simplicity, I have illustrated the circuits diagrammatically, and in lieu of showing the local sources and the wires lead ing thereto in detail, I have shown only the terminals of the sources which I have designated in each case by the reference characters B, C, and N, of which B refers to the positive terminal, N to the negative terminal, and C to the middle connection of the usual double battery source of current of two polarities. In order that the circuits may be more readily traced, I have in some instances shown relay contacts remote from the relays which operate them, but in each such instance the contact is identified by the reference for the corresponding relay. For example, relay TS has, in addition to contact 55 shown below the relay, a contact I in the circuits including line wire X, contacts such as 60 in the circuits for relays LMR and RMR, and a contact 20 in the common portion of the circuits for the signal relays LAHR, etc., and of the circuit for relay WK, as will be made clear in the following detailed description of the circuits.

As shown in the drawing, the switch lever I is normal so the switch W is in the normal position, the track is unoccupied, and the signal lever is in its mid-position so that all the signals indicate stop. I will assume that the operator desires to reverse the switch. To do this, he will move lever i to the reverse position, thereby applying current of one, polarity, which I shall term reverse polarity, from terminal N of the office source of energy, over contact I of the switch lever, back contact t of relay HS, wire 5,

back contact 6 of relay P, line wire X leading to the station, front contact I of relay TS, wire 8, back contact 9 of relay HR, wire l2, front contacts ill and H of relays LMR and RMR, respectively, winding of relay WR to terminal C at the station, and thence over common return wire Z to terminal C of the source at the ofiice. Relay WR then becomes energized in the reverse direction so that its polarized contacts become closed to the right, closing the motor circuit which may be traced from terminal B, through front contact E3 of relay WR, contact M of relay S, right-hand polar contact [5 of relay WR, the armature of motor M, right-hand polar contact lo, the heating element of thermal relay T2, switch circuit controller contact H, the field winding of motor M to the other terminal N of the station source of energy, this circuit being opened at contact I! in the usual manner when.

the switch completes its movement in the reverse direction. If relay S is deenergized due to the operation of one of the thermal relays T! or T2, or due to the opening of contact DS, it (S) may be picked upby reversal of relay WR, which causes a momentary release of its neutral contacts and closes a circuit from terminal B, through back contact l3, contact DS, and relay S to terminal C. When relay S picks up, it

closes a stick circuit from terminal B, through 23 closed in the reverse position, wire 24, front contact 25 of relay WE, line wire Y to the office, back contact 26 of relay P, wire 21, and relay WK to terminal C at the oiiice, thence over line wire Z to terminal C of the station source of energy, so that indication relay WK becomes energized to close a circuit from terminal B, through contact 28 of relay WK, lamp TE ,to terminal C, and a circuit from terminal B, contact 3t, lamp WE to terminal C so that both lamps TE and WE become lighted.

I will now assume that the operator desires to restore the switch to its normal position. To do this, he will return lever I to the normal position, as shown in the drawing, thereby energizing switch control relay WR by a circuit, the same as that described, except that it includes terminal B and the left-hand contact l of the switch lever so that relay WR will be energized in the normal direction to close its left-hand polar contacts, and switch motor M will be energized by a circuit similar to that already described except that current will flow in the motor armature in the opposite direction and the circuit will include the heater of thermal relay T and switch circuit controller contact 3| which becomes opened when, the switch completes its movement to normal. When relay WR becomes energized in the normal direction, the circuit of the indication relay WK is opened at contact 2| of relay WR. When the switch completes its movement from reverse to normal, relay WK will again be energized over a circuit similar to that described except that it includes a branch path extending from the left-hand contact 2| of relay W'R, back contact 32' of relay HR and normal switch circuit controller contact 23, so that lamps TE and WE will again become lighted.

I will now assume that with switch W in the normal position, the operator desires to clear the signal LHA. To do this, he will move signal lever 2 to the left, closing a local circuit from terminal B, over front contact 29 of relay WK, left-hand contact 2 of signal lever 2, and relay HS-to' terminal C so-that relay HS will become energized to open its back contact 4 in the switch control circuit to release relay WR. Relay WR will then open its contact 25 and disconnect the station source of energy from line wire Y, so that relay WK becomes deenergized.

When relay HS picked up, it closed its stick circuit from terminal B, over contact 33, switch lever contact 2 and relay HS to terminal C, so that relay HS remains energized after relay WK is released as long as lever 2 is in either the lefthand or right-hand position. Relay HS also closes a circuit from terminal B, through contact 34, relay P to' terminal C so that relay 1? becomes energized and picks up after a short time interval to close the signal control circuit from terminal B at the ofiice, through contact 2' of the signal lever, wire 35, front contact 26 of relay P, line wire Y, back contact 25 of relay WR, wire 31, relay HR to terminal C at the station,

and common return wire Z to terminal C of the office source. Relay HR then picks up and closes its polar contacts in the normal or left-hand direction, completing the signal control circuit from terminal B, over contact l8 of relay S, contact IQ of relay TER, contact 20 of relay TS, left-hand contact 2| of relay WR, front contact 32 of relay HR, normal contact 38 of the switch circuit controller, left-hand contact 39 of relay HR, front contact 40 of track relay RAR, and signal relay LAHR to terminal C so that relay LAHR becomes energized to clear signal LHA.

When relay LAHR is energized, a signal indication circuit is closed from terminal N of the station source, through front contact 4| of relay LAHR, back contacts 42 and 43 of relays RBI-IR and RAHR, Wire 44, front contact 3 of relay HR, wire 8, front contact I of relay TS, line wire X, front contact 6 of relay P, wire 45, and relay HK to terminal C at the ofiice, line wire Z to terminal C of the station source so that relay HK becomes energized in its reverse direction closing its neutral contact 46 to complete a circuit to energize lamp TE, and closing its neutral contact 41 and polarized contact 48 to complete a circuit for lamp HE, thus lighting both lamps TE and HE when the signal is clear, while lamp WE is extinguished.

If lever 2 is moved to the left when the switch is in its reverse position, signal LHB will clear in lieu of signal LHA, the signal relay circuit extending in this case from terminal B over contacts l8, l9 and 20, right-hand contact 2| of relay WR, front contact 22' of relay HR, reverse switch circuit controller contact 49, left-hand contact 50? of relay HR, contact 5| of relay RAR, and relay LBHR to terminal C. When relay LBHR is energized, signal LHB will clear, and relay HKwill. become energized over an indication circuit simi lar to that already described except that it includes front contact 52 of relay LBHR, and back. contact 4| of relay LAHR in lieuof front contact 4 I. If the operator moves. lever 2 to the right, when the switch is normal, signal RI-IA will clear in lieu of LHA, the signal relay circuit being from terminal B, over contacts |8, |9, Zll, 2|, 32, and 38, right-hand contact 39 of relay HR, contactv 53 of relay LAR, and relay RAHR to terminal C, so that relay RAI-IR will become energized to clear signal RHA, and will close the signal indication circuit. at. its front contact 43. If lever-2' is moved to the right when the switch is reversed, a signal relay circuit is closed from terminal B,

over contacts l8, I9, 20, 2|, 22 and 49, right-hand;

contact 50, front contact 54 of relay LMR, and relay RBI-IR to terminal C so that relay RBHR will become energized to clear signal RHB, and

to close the signal indication circuit at its front.

contact 42.

It will be noted that track relay TS for section T is a stick relay, it being energized fromsource Bl, over the track rails of section T by means of a circuit. including its own front contact 55, and in multiple therewith a back contact 55 of relay HR. It follows therefore that.

if a train accepts a signal and passes through section T, relay TS will become deencrgized and will remain so after the train leaves the section as long as relay HR is kept energized. Under these conditions, contact 2|! of relay TS, in the signal relay circuit will be open and the signal will remain at stop. To clear the signal again, the operator is required to move lever 2 to the center position to deenergize relay HR and thereby close the pickup circuit for relay TS over back contact 56 and after this has beenv done,

lever 2 may again be moved to the left or right to energize relay HR to clear the signal as de sired, and relay TS will remain energized over its front contact 55 so that contact 20 in the signal circuit will be closed.

When a train enters section T, relay TS opens its contact 1 in the circuit of indication relay- I-IK so that this relay becomes deenergized and;

extinguishes lamps TE and HE. When the operator moves lever 2 to the middle position, the

ofiice source is disconnected from wire Y, at con-' tact 2 relays HS and HR are deenergized, and:

relay HR opens its front contact 9 to'disconnect the station source of energy from wire X. Relay HS closes its back contact 4 to connect the ofiice source from the switch lever contact to wire 5, and deenergizes relay P. When relay P closes: its back contact, the switch control circuit is again completed over wire X. Relay WR picks up, and as soon as the train leaves the section relay TS picks up, so that the switch indication circuit is again completed over wire Y. If the operator now moves lever 2 to the left or right to pick up relay HR, for example, to clear signal LHA, and if the track beyond section T governed by this signal is occupied, so that relay EAR is deenergized, contact 40 will be open and signal LHA will not clear and the stop signal indication circuit will be closed from terminal B of thestation source over back contacts 52, 4|, 42 and 43 of the signal relays, wire 44, and over wire X,

as already described to energize relay HK in the normal direction to move polarized contact 48 to the left. Contact 46 will close to light lamp TE but lamp HE will be deenergized indicating that the track is unoccupied and that all signals are at stop. When section RA becomes unoccupied, signal relay LAHR will become energized to reverse the polarity of the current supplied to relay HK, and lamp HE will become lighted.

It will be noted that the line circuits including wire X, which I have described, include contact I of relay TS, and that when wire X is employed for an indication circuit, this contact controls'lamps TE and HE. in accordance with the condition of section T. When line X is employed for a control circuit, contact I prevents the control of relay WR by lever I if section T is occupied.

The operation of relay WR is prevented when.

the train is approaching a clear signal, or if a signal is put to stop in front of an approaching train, by reason of contacts I9 and II of the approach locking relays in the circuit for relay WR. The approach locking relay RMR has a pickup circuit from terminal B, over back contacts 51 and 58 of the signal relays RAHR,.RBHR, front contact 59 of approach relay RAR, and relay RMR to terminal C, so that relay RMR becomes deenergized whenever either signal RHA or RHB iscleared, and may be energized when these signals are put to stop provided no train is approaching. Relay RMR may also be picked up when a train enters section T, over a circuit including back contact 60 of relay TS which is bridged around contact 59 in the circuit for relay RMR just described. Relay RMR may also be picked up even though section RA is occupied when signal RHA is put to stop, by the apparatus I will now describe, but in this case only after a considerable time interval. When the signal is put to stop, a circuit is closed from terminal B, over contacts 5'! and 58, back contact6l of relay RMR, front contact 64 of relay LMR, and relay TER to terminal 0. Relay TER will then become energized and at once open its back contact I9, and after a considerable time interval will close its contact 63 bridged around contact 59 in the circuit of relay RMR, so that relay RMR will pick up. When relay RMR is energized, it closes its own front contact 6! bridged around contact 59, so that when once energized, it will remain so, as long as the signal relays are deenergized. The approach locking relay LMR for the opposite direction is controlled by signal relays LAHR and LBI-IR and by relays TS and TER in a manner similar to that described for relay RMR. except that the pickup circuit including front contact 65 of approach relay LAR also includes a normal contact 62 of the switch circuit controller, from which it follows that if the switch is reversed, relay LMR can not be picked up immediately following the movement of signal LHB from proceed to stop.

It will be seen from the foregoing that I have provided means for controlling and indicating a track switchv and a group of signals from a remote point by the use of but two line wires and a common return, and that the selection of the use of these wires is effected by means of the signal lever through the medium of a slow acting relay P in such a manner that it is not possible to connect a source of energy to one end of line wire X or Y until after the source of energy at the opposite end of the line wire has been disconnected; thus, for example, when relay P is deenergized, the source of energy for wire X is at the office and for wire Y is at the station.

If lever 2 is moved to the left or right, it first causes contact 4 of relay HS to open to disconnect the ofiice source from wire X. This releases relay WR, opening contact to disconnect the station source from.wire Y. Relay. P also becomes energized and after a short time interval picks up to connect the ofiice source to wire Y to energize relay HR, which picks up to close front contact 9 to connect the station source to wire X. The ofiice source is disconnected from wire Y by the movement of lever 2 to the center position, and the station source is disconnected from wire X by the release of HR, before relay P releases to again connect the ofiice source ,to wire X and the station source to wire Y.

It will also be noted that the apparatus is .50 arranged that operation of the switch by. the switch control relay WR can not be interfered with by premature movement of the signal lever 2 while the switch is being operated, and that by means of the stick relay HS, levers l and 2 may be operated sequentially in a single operation without waiting for the switch to complete its movement. The movement of the signal lever in this instance to the proceed position does not interfere in any way with the control of the switch by the switch lever, but when the switch reaches a position corresponding to thatof the switch lever, so that relay WK picks up, stick relay HS becomes energized and the signal lever is thus automatically made effective to control the signals. This feature. is of considerable advantage in many instances as it requires less at-f tention fromthe operator than would otherwise be the case and is an arrangement that is ob-; viously applicable to many other situations and to arrangements of track layouts difierent from the simple single switch shown. In a more complicated layout, several routes may be governed by a single signal control lever, and the routesmay include several switches each of which is provided with an indication relay WK. In this case, the signal lever may be moved to a clear position While these various switches are being operated by manipulation of their respective switch levers, and the proper signal may be caused to clear automatically when each switch of the route completes its movement to a position corresponding to that of its switch lever. This may be accomplished in an obvious manner by controlling relay HS of such signal lever overfro-nt contacts 29 of each of the relays WK in,

series.

Although I have herein shown and described only one form of apparatus embodying my invention, itis understood that various changes and modifications may be made thereinwithin the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, whatl claim is: I

1.In combination, a railway track switch, a

plurality of signals for governing the movement of trafiic over the switch, svwltch and signal control relays adjacent the switch, a first and a second control wire and a common return wire extending from the switch to a remote point, switch and signal indication relays and a selector relay at said remote point, means for energizing the switch control relay over the first control and common return wires when the signal control relay and the selector relay are deenergized, means for energizing the switch indication relay over the second control and common return wires when the switch control relay is energized and the selector relay deenergized, meansfor energizing the selector relay, means for energizing the signal control relay over the second control and common return wires when the switch control relay is deenergized and the selector relay is energized, and means for energizing the signal indication relay over the first control and common return wires when the signal control relayan-d the selector relay are energized.

.2. In a remote control system, an office and a station, a first and a second control relay at the station, three line wires extending from the :office tothe station, a first and a second indication relay and a selector relay at the office; a circuit for the first control relay including an office source of energy, the first and third line wires and back contacts of the selector relay and of the second control relay; a circuit for the first indication relay including a station source of energy, the second and third 'line wires, a front contact of the first control relay and a back contact of the selector relay; a circuit for the second control relay including the ofiice source of energy, the second and third line wires, a back contact of the first control relay and a front contact of the selector relay; and a circuit for the second indication relay including the station source of energy, the first and third line wires, and front contacts of the selector relay and of the second control relay.

3. In a remote control system, an o-flice and a station, a slow-acting relay and a manually operable lever at the office; a line circuit adapted to the closed when said lever is in a first position and including a source of energy at the station, a. line 'wire and a relay at the office; means responsive to the movement of said lever to a sec-- ond position to energize the slow-acting relay andto disconnect the station source of energy from the line'circuit; and a second line circuit closed when the slow-acting relay becomes energized including a source of energy at the office,

the manually operable lever, said line wire, and

a relay at the station; whereby either the ofifiice or station relays may be controlled over said line wire-in accordance with the position of said lever.

4. In a remote control system, an ofiice and a station, a manually operable lever and a slowacting relay at the ofice; a first line circuit including a line wire and common return, a source of energy at the station and a relay at the o ifice, and adapted to be closed when the manually operable lever and the slow-acting relay each are in a'first position; a second line circuit including the same line wire and common return, a source of energy at the ofiice and a relay at the station, and adapted to be closed when the manually operable lever and the slow-acting relay each are in a second position; and a circuit for the slowacting relay closed when the manually operable lever is in one position and open when the lever is in'the other position, whereby the movement of the lever from either position to the other causes one source of energy to be disconnected from the line wire and the slow acting relay to be actuated to subsequently connect the other source of energy to the line wire.

5. In a remotecontrol system, an oflice and a station, a railway track switch and signals for governing the movement of traffic over the switch; a switch control circuit comprising a switch control relay at the station, line wires and contacts of a switch lever at the oflice, and adapted to be closed to energize the relay'to operate the switch; a signal control circuit comprising a signal control relay at the station, line wires and contacts of a signal lever at the olfice, and adapted to be closed in certain positions of the signal lever to selectively clear said signals; a normally open contact at the oiliceincluded in said signal control circuit; a switch indication relay energized when the switch and its control relay occupy corresponding positions and the switch control relay is energized, and means operating when the switch indication relay becomes energized to close said normally open contact to complete the signal control circuit provided the signal lever contacts are then closed.

6. In a remote control system, an ofiice and a station, a railway track switch and signals for governing the movement of trafiic over .the switch; a switch control circuit comprising a switch control relay at the station, line wires and contacts of a switch lever at the office and adapted to beclosed to energize the relay to operate the switch; a signal control circuit comprising a signal control relay at the station, line wires and contacts of a signal lever at the ofiice and adapted to be closed in certain positions of the signal lever to selectively clear said signals; a normally open contact at the oflice includedlin said signal control circuit; a switch indication relay at the oifice, adapted to indicate the condition of the switch; means controlled by the switch when fully operated to energize the switch indication relay, andvmeans rendered effective when the switch indication relay becomes energized for closing said normally open contact to thereby render the signal control relay responsive to the condition of said signal lever contacts.

'7. In a remote control system, an office and a station, a railway track switch and signals for governing the movement of trafic over the switch; a switch control circuit comprising a switch control relay at the station, line wires and contacts of a switch lever at the ofiice, and adapted to be closed to energize the relay to-operate the switch; a signal control circuit comprising a signal control relay at the station, line wires and contacts of a signal lever at the office, and adapted to be closed in certain positions of the signal lever to selectively clear said signals; a normally open contact included in the signal control circuit, a switch indication relay adapted to indicate the condition of the switch, a stick relay having a pickup circuit including a front contact of the indication relay and signal lever contacts closed when the lever is in a position to clear a signal and having a stick circuit independent of said indication relay, and means controlled by said stick relay when energizedfor closing said normally open contact. I

8. In a remote control system, an oflice and a station connected by line wires, a railway track switch and signals for governing the movement of traffic over the switch at the station, switch and signal levers, a switch indication relay, 'a stick relay and a slow-acting relay at the ofilce, a polarized switch control relay and a polarized signal control relay at the station, a switch-connal control relay, contacts controlled by the signal lever and a front contact of the slow acting relay; a switch indication circuit including the switch indication relay, a back contact of the slow-acting relay, front neutral and polarized 7 contacts of the switch control relay and contacts controlled by the switch and including a branch circuit closed only when the switch and its control relay correspond in position; a pickup circuit for the-stick relay including a front contact of the switch indication relay and a contact controlled by the signal lever, a stick circuit for the stick relay including said signal lever contact and its own front contact, and a circuit for the slow-acting relay including a front contact of the stick relay.

9.'In a remote control system, a section of railway track including a track switch, a signal governing the movement of traflic through the section, a switch machine for operating the switch, a dual selector operable to one position for conditioning the switch for manual operation and to another position for conditioning the switch for operation by said machine, a'switch control relay for operating the switch machine, means for energizing said relay from a remote point, a stick relay, a pickup circuit for the'stick relay including a back contact of the switch control relay,

'a stick circuit for said relay including its own front contact, each of said circuits also including a contact opened when the dual selector is in the position for conditioning the switch for manual operation, and a control circuit for the signal including a front contact of the stick relay.

10. In combination, a railway track switch, a plurality of signals for governing the movement of traffic over the switch, a switch control relay and a signal control relay adjacent the switch, a first and a second line wire extending from said switch to a remote point; switch and signal indication relays and a selector relay at said remote point; means for energizing the switch control and indication relays over the first and second line wires respectively when the selector relay is in one condition and for energizing the signal control and indication relays over the second and first line wires respectively when the selector relay is in another condition, each indication relay being energized only if the corresponding control relay is energized and means for controlling said selector relay efiective only when both said control relays are deenergized.

11. In a remote control system, an ofiice and a station, a first and a second control relay at the station, a first and a second indication relay at the ofilce, a first and a second line wire extending from the ofiice to the station, means including a source of current at the station for controlling said indication relays, manually operable means including asource of current at the ofiice for controlling said control relays, and manually operable circuit selecting means effec tive in one position to permit the energization of the first control and indication relays over the first and second line wires respectively, and ef" fective in another position to permit the energization of the second control and indication relays over the second and first line wires respectively, said selecting means being arranged to prevent the connection of both sources of current to thesame line wire at any time.

12. In a remote control system, an oflice and a station connected by line wires, a manually operable lever, slow acting means associated with said lever, sources of energy at the oflice and station connected respectively to a first and a second line wire to control devices at the station and oflice, means responsive to the opera-. tion of said lever to disconnect said sources of energy from said line wires and to initiate the operation of said slow acting means, and means controlled by said slow acting means when oper ated for connecting the oifice and station sources of energy respectively to the second and first line wires to actuate other devices at the station and oflice.

13. In combination, a railway track switch, a signal for governing the movement of trafiic over the switch, switch control means for operating the switch, a manually operable switch lever for controlling said means, a manually operable signal lever having a proceed and a stop position,

a stick relay, a pickup circuit for the stick relay closed only when the switch and its control means are in corresponding positions and the signal lever is in its proceed position, a stick circuit for the stick relay independent of the switch and its control means, means effective when the stick relay is energized for preventing control of the switch control means by the switch lever until the signal lever is restored to the stop position, and means for preventing the clearing of the signal when the signal lever is in the proceed position unless the stick relay is energized.

14. In combination, a railway track switch, switch control means for operating the switch, a manually operable switch lever located at a point remote from said switch for controlling said means, locking means for at times rendering said lever inefiective to control said means, an indication lamp associated with said lever, and means for lighting said lamp only when the switch and its control means are in corresponding positions and said lever is efiective to control said means.

15. In combination, a section of railway track including a switch, a signal for governing the movement of traffic over the switch, a track circuit for said section including a track relay, switch control means for operating said switch,

signal control means for operating said signal,

a switch indication relay controlled by said track relay and by said switch and said switch control means, a polarized signal indication relay controlled by said track relay and by a pole changer controlled by said signal, means controlled by a contact of said switch indication relay, signal indication means controlled by neutral and polar contacts of said signal indication relay, and track indication means controlled by neutral contacts of both said switch and said signal indication relays. V

16. In a remote control system, two movable devices, a control relay and an indication relay for each device, a first and a second line wire extending from said devices to a remote point, a selector relay at said remote point, circuits for energizing the control and indication relays for one device including the first and second line wires respectively and closed only when the selector relay is deenergized, circuits for energizing the control and indication relays for the other device including the second and first line wires respectively and closed only when the selector relay is energized, the circuit for each indication relay being closed only when the corresponding control relay is energized, and manually operable means for controlling the selector relay and said control relays, said selectorv relay being controllable only when both said control relays are deenergized.

17. In combination with a railway track switch, a power operated switch machine for operating the switch, a dual selector operable to one position for conditioning the switch for ill" aroopoo manual operation and to another position for conditioning the switch for operation by said switch machine, a polarized relay controlled from a distant point to operate said switch machine, a stick relay, a stick circuit for said stick relay including its own front contact and a selector contact closed only when the dual selector is in the position for conditioning the switch for operation by said switch machine, a pickup circuit for said stick relay including said selector contact and a contact which closes momentarily when said polarized relay is controlled to operate the switch machine, and an operating circuit for said switch machine including contacts of said polarized relay and a front contact of said stick relay.

18. In combination with a railway track switch, a power operated switch machine for operating the switch, a dual selector operable to one position for conditioning the switch for manual operation and to another position for conditioning the switch for operation by said switch machine, a polarized relay manually controllable from a distant point, operating circuits normally effective to cause the switch machine to operate when the polarized relay is manually controlled, and means rendering said circuits inefiective when the dual selector is operated to said one position, said means being efiective to maintain said circuits ineffective after the dual selector is returned to said another position until said polarized relay is again manually controlled.

19. In combination with a railway track switch, a power operated switch machine for operating the switch, a dual selector operable to one position for conditioning the switch for manual operation and to another position for conditioning the switch for power operation, a polarized relay subject to manual control, a stick relay, means deenergizing said stick relay when the dual selector is operated to said one position, a pickup circuit for said stick relay closed only when the dual selector is in its other position and said polarized relay is released, and normal and reverse operating circuits for effecting the power operation of said switch. machine controlled by normal and reverse polar contacts of said polarized relay and by front contacts of said polarized relay and of said stick relay.

20. In combination, a railway track switch, a plurality of signals for governing the movement of traffic over the switch, switch and signal control relays adjacent the switch, a first and a second control wire and a common return wire extending from the switch to a remote point, switch and signal indication relays and electroresponsive selector means at said remote point, means for energizing the switch control and indication relays over the first and second control wires respectively and the common return wire, when the electro-responsive selector means is deenergized; means for energizing the electro-responsive selector means; and means for energizing the signal control and indication relays over said second and first control wire respectively and the common return wire, when the electro-responsive selector means is energized.

21. In a railway traflic controlling system, a. control oflice, a distant field station, a first line wire connecting the control office and the field station, a track switch control means at said field station positioned according to the polarity of energy applied at said control ofi'ice to said first line wire, a second line wire connecting the control office and the field station, an indication circuit including said second line wire, means-effective when the polarity applied to said firstline wire is changed to condition said indication circuit to transmit an indication to the control oflice when the track switch has responded to such change, means in said office for registering the indication transmitted over said second line'wire, and means for transmitting controls to the field station over said second line circuit only after said indication has been registered at the control oifice.

22. Incombination, a control office, a first and a second line wire extending from the control office to a distant track switch, a switch control circuit including said first line wire, a. signal control circuit including said second line Wire for controlling signals associated with said track switch, means for transmitting a switch indica tion momentarily over said second line wire after each change in position of the track switch, means at the ofiice responsive to said switch indication for energizing the second line wire, and means rendering said first line wire available to transmit signal indications when the second line wire is energized from the control oflice.

23. In combination, a control ofilce, a field station, a first line wire connecting the control office and the field station, means for controlling a track switch at the field station in accordance with the polarity of energization of said line wire, a second line wire connecting the control office and the field station, means for energizing said second line wire when the track switch is operated to a position corresponding to the polarity of energization of said first line wire, storing means for said energization arranged to condition said second line wire to be selectively energized by a signal control means at said control ofllce, indication means at said control ofiice, and means for conditioning said indication means to be responsive to energy applied to said first line wire in accordance with the response to said signal control at the, field station.

24 In combination, a control ofilce, a field station, a first line wire connecting the control oflice and the field station, means for controlling a track switch at the field station over said first line wire, a second line wire connecting the control ofiice and the field station, means for indicating at the control ofiice the operated position of said track switch by the energization of said second line wire, and means at the control oflice and at the field station for establishing a circuit including said second line wire for selectively clearing signals at the field station from the control oilice rendered effective only when an indication of the operated position of said track switch has been registered at the control oflice.

25. In a centralized trafiic controlling system for railroads, a control office and a field station connected by a first and a second control line wire, a switch control lever and a signal control lever at said ofiice, a track switch and associated signals at said station, means responsive to the operation of said switch control lever for controlling the operation of said track switch over said first control line wire, means responsive to the operation of said signal control lever for controlling the operation of said signals over said second control line wire, a relay directly responsive to the operation of said signal lever and energizable independently of said line wires for transferring said first line wire from a switch control to a signal indication circuit at said control ofiice, and means for transmitting signal indications over said first line wire.

26. In a centralized trafiic controlling system for railroads,v a control office and a field station connected by a first'and a second control line wire, a switch control lever and a signal control lever at said ofiice, a track switch and associated traflic signals at'said station, means controlled by the position of said switch control lever for distintively energizing said first control line wire, means responsive to the distinctive energization of said first control line wire for distinctively operating said track switch, means controlled by the position of said track switch for energizing said second control line wire, means responsive to the energization of said second control line wire for indicating in said ofiice the condition of said track switch, means responsive to the operation of said signal control lever for transferring said second control line wire from a switch indication circuit to a signal control circuit, means controlled by the position of said signal control lever for distinctively energizing said second control line wire whereby said trafiic signals are selectively controlled, and means for preventing the energization of said second control line wire in accordance with the condition of said track switch until said condition corresponds to the energization of said first control line wire in accordance with the position of said switch control lever.

HARRY C. VANTASSEL.

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