US3422931A - Railway car brake mechanism - Google Patents

Railway car brake mechanism Download PDF

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Publication number
US3422931A
US3422931A US611860A US3422931DA US3422931A US 3422931 A US3422931 A US 3422931A US 611860 A US611860 A US 611860A US 3422931D A US3422931D A US 3422931DA US 3422931 A US3422931 A US 3422931A
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Prior art keywords
brake
braking
toggle joint
piston
railway car
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US611860A
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Edward G Goods
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Buffalo Brake Beam Co
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Buffalo Brake Beam Co
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    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60TVEHICLE BRAKE CONTROL SYSTEMS OR PARTS THEREOF; BRAKE CONTROL SYSTEMS OR PARTS THEREOF, IN GENERAL; ARRANGEMENT OF BRAKING ELEMENTS ON VEHICLES IN GENERAL; PORTABLE DEVICES FOR PREVENTING UNWANTED MOVEMENT OF VEHICLES; VEHICLE MODIFICATIONS TO FACILITATE COOLING OF BRAKES
    • B60T17/00Component parts, details, or accessories of power brake systems not covered by groups B60T8/00, B60T13/00 or B60T15/00, or presenting other characteristic features
    • B60T17/08Brake cylinders other than ultimate actuators
    • B60T17/081Single service brake actuators
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61RAILWAYS
    • B61HBRAKES OR OTHER RETARDING DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR RAIL VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR DISPOSITION THEREOF IN RAIL VEHICLES
    • B61H5/00Applications or arrangements of brakes with substantially radial braking surfaces pressed together in axial direction, e.g. disc brakes

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to railway car brake mechanisms, especially of the freight type, and is an improvement upon the inventions shown and described in Busch US. Patents 2,903,096, 2,903,097 and 2,903,098.
  • the present application is a oontinuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 417,658 filed Dec. 11, 1964, now US. Patent No. 3,307,659.
  • a toggle joint mechanism is highly desirable for the application of railway brakes because it has the characteristic of progressively increasing its mechanical advantage, as the articulated arms of the mechanism move towards alignment.
  • the rate of increase of mechanical advantage of the toggle joint mechanism is high, especially towards the terminal phase of its braking stroke, so that the decrease in the rate of air pressure used to power such a mechanism would be overcompensated by this mechanism.
  • the sudden increase of braking power applied by the air-powered toggle joint mechanism during the terminal phases of the braking stroke of the mechanism is excessively shocking to the railway car and the other cars of the train.
  • One object of the present invention is to provide new and improved air-powered toggle joint means, which apply the brakes to a railway car, and which avoid the disadvantages described.
  • each toggle joint mechanism is powered by a fluid power unit, comprising an air cylinder into which air under pressure from the main pressure air reservoir of the car is delivered upon application of the brakes.
  • a fluid power unit comprising an air cylinder into which air under pressure from the main pressure air reservoir of the car is delivered upon application of the brakes.
  • Acting against power transmitted to the toggle joint mechanism by the air in said air cylinder is a coil spring.
  • This coil spring is maximal- Patented Jan. 21, 1969 "ice sively compressed during the braking stroke, and reduces progressively thereby, the power transmitted to the toggle brake mechanism during its braking stroke.
  • the resultant power transmitted by the toggle joint mechanism during its braking stroke will be leveled off by the progressively counteracting effect of the coil spring, so that the braking power transmitted by the toggle joint mechanism to the brake shoes is substantially more uniform during its stroke than would be the case in the absence of such a coil spring.
  • the coil spring also serves to return the toggle joint mechanism and its associated movable parts into inoperative position away from braking position upon release of the brakes, so that the brake shoes are moved away from the braking surfaces of the brake system.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a railway brake system with toggle joint mechanisms designed to apply substantially constant braking pressures, regardless of wear on the brake shoes.
  • a further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved hand-operated transmission system, employable as an alternative to a fluid-operated power applying system, for operating the toggle joint mechanism of a railway brake system.
  • FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a railway car truck having a braking system constituting an embodiment of the present invention
  • FIG. 2 is a top plan view of part of the railway car truck shown in FIG. 1, but on a larger scale;
  • FIG. 2a is a perspective of the end of an equalizer bar forming part of the support structure for the braking system
  • FIG. 3 is a section of the railway car truck taken on lines 33 of FIG. 2;
  • FIG. 4 is a detail section of the brake system taken on lines 44 of FIG. 2;
  • FIG. 5 is a detail section of the brake system taken on lines 5-5 of FIG. 2;
  • FIG. 6 is a detail section of the railway car truck taken on lines 6-6 of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 7 is a detail section of the railway car truck taken on lines 77 of FIG. 6;
  • FIG. 8 is a detail section of the brake system taken approximately on lines 8-8 of FIG. 4;
  • FIG. 9 is a top plan view of part of one of the equalizer bars forming part of the support structure for the braking system.
  • FIG. 10 is a top plan view of part of the other equalizer bar forming part of the support structure for the braking system
  • FIG. 11 is the end view of the equalizer bar shown in FIG. 9;
  • FIG. 12 is an end view of the other equalizer bar shown in FIG. 10;
  • FIG.13 is a detail section taken on lines 13-13 of FIG. 9;
  • FIG. 14 is a detail section taken on lines 1414 of FIG. 12;
  • FIG. 15 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in section of the fluid power unit operable to power one of the toggle joint mechanisms of the brake system, the view being taken approximately along the lines 15-15 of FIG. 16;
  • FIG. 16 is a partial end view of the fluid power unit shown in FIG. 15;
  • FIG. 17 is a graph showing the force in the air brake cylinder due to air pressure for different travels of the piston operating the toggle joint mechanism
  • FIG. 18 is a graph showing the braking force on a brake disc by a toggle joint mechanism operating without a return spring for different travels of the piston operating said mechanism;
  • FIG. 19 is a graph showing the force delivered by the piston resisted by a return spring and operating the toggle joint mechanism, said force being shown for different travels of said piston;
  • FIG. 20 is a graph showing the braking force on the brake disc due to the force delivered by the toggle joint mechanism operating with a return spring.
  • FIGS. 1-3 of the drawings there is shown a railway freight car truck comprising a pair of side structures or frames having respective guide openings 11 to receive the ends of a conventional truck bolster 12 extending between said frames and projecting at the ends into said openings, where they are supported on coil springs (not shown) and are guided by side columns 13 of said openings for vertical shock-absorbed movement.
  • the bolster 12 is provided at its ends with lugs 14 engaging the inboard sides of the side columns 13 of the side frames 10 and lugs (not shown) engaging the outboard side of the side columns. These lugs 14 guide the bolster 12 for vertical movement.
  • the bolster 12 is also provided with a center conformation 16 for direct pivotal connection to the underside of the railway car body in a conventional manner.
  • a center conformation 16 for direct pivotal connection to the underside of the railway car body in a conventional manner.
  • two parallel axles 17 carrying on opposite ends, flanged car wheels 18 which ride on rails 19.
  • the side frames 10 are shown of the conventional type employed with brake mechanisms having brake beams with their ends slidable in guides on the inboard sides of said side frames.
  • these brake beam guides are defined by the brackets 22, and since these guides usually slant downwardly towards each other, the equalizer bars 20 and 20a, which are in the form of channels, correspondingly slant transversely of their longitudinal direction towards each other, as shown in FIG. 3 with their open sides facing downwardly.
  • the ends of the equalizer bars 20 and 20a are cut away to form tongue extensions 23 at the ends, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 2a, and a block 24 is snugly fitted at each end to provide a bearing for the corresponding hinge pin 21 as shown in FIGS. 2, 2a, 6, 7, 9, 11 and 13.
  • the equalizer bars 20 and 20a and the truck side frames 10 form a parallelogram, and since these are pivotally joined through the brackets 22 and the hinge pins 21, they operate as a parallel motion permitting the side frames to shift relatively endwi-se and into limited angular positions with respect to the equalizer bars 20 and 20a when the wheels 18 are rounding a curve.
  • the equalizer bars 20 and 20a also serve to support the weight of the brake mechanism.
  • the brakes for the four car wheels 18 of each car truck are operated by four similar brake head levers or brake support arms 25 (FIGS. 1 and 2), each pivotally secured at one end to one of the equalizer bars 20 and 20a by means of a pivot or hinge pin 26, while its other end carries a brake head 27 by means of a pivot pin 28.
  • the brake head 27 carries a face plate 30 with a brake shoe 31 for application to a brake rotor or disc 32, which is affixed to the corresponding car wheel 18 on the inboard side thereof, to stop said disc, and which presents a brake face on its inboard side.
  • the construction described is similar to that shown and described in the aforesaid copending application Ser. No. 417,658.
  • each equalizer bar 20 and 20a in each of the regions where a brake head lever or brake support arm 25 is pivotally connected to said equalizer bar has welded thereto a reinforcing plate 35 and welded to said plate is a bearing 36 for a corresponding hinge pin 26.
  • Power for operating the brakes in each car truck is derived from two similar individual axially aligned fluid power units 40 (FIGS. l5, 8, 15 and 16) on opposite sides of the bolster 12.
  • Each of these power units 40 comprises an air cylinder 41, rigidly secured to the corresponding equalizer bar 20 and 20a with its axis horizontal and in the vertical plane extending along the length of the truck and along the railway car and through the center of the bolster 12.
  • each of said equalizer bars is cut out to produce a recess 39 into which the lower section of the cylinder extends, and the equalizer bar is reinforced where it has been weakened by this recess by an angle iron 42 welded to the underside of the equalizer bar underneath the recess.
  • a bracket 43 with a yoke extension 44 serving the purpose to be described has base ears 45 secured to the outer inclined side webs 46 of the corresponding equalizer bar 20 and 20a by bolts or studs 47, and a body 48, offset upwardly into vertical position from these base ears.
  • Each cylinder 41 is secured to the corresponding bracket 43 by means of bolts or studs 50 passing through the outer end wall 51 of the cylinder and through the body 48 of said bracket, and the yoke 44 extends horizontally from said bracket body.
  • Each cylinder 41 includes a piston 55,slidable therein, and connected to a peripheral end ring 56 at one end of the cylinder by a reversely, progressively foldable skirt 59 made of rubber or other suitable resilient material, to seal the peripheral gap between the periphery of said piston and the peripheral wall of the cylinder in all positions of the piston.
  • Air is introduced into one end of the cylinder 41 on one side of the piston 55 by means of pressure air inlet 57, and a piston rod 58, connected to said piston, extends through the wall 51 at the other end of the cylinder, so that the piston and rod serve as a power transmission means to the toggle mechanism.
  • a relief valve 64 in the cylinder end wall 51 permits the air on one side of the piston 55 to escape, as the air under pressure acts on the other side of the piston.
  • the two inlets 57 on the two air cylinders 41 are connected to a main air pressure reservoir or chamber (not shown) of conventional type and having an outlet, which is opened when the brakes are to be applied, and which when opened delivers air to the four cylinders 41 on the two trucks carrying each railway car.
  • the power transmission between each cylinder 41 on each side of the bolster 12 and the two brake heads 27 on the same side of the bolster comprises a toggle joint mechanism having two push rods at an angle to each other, connected at their outer ends to the brake head levers or brake support arms 25 respectively by means of the pivot pins 28 and articulated at their inner adjoining ends together and to the outer end of the corresponding piston rod 58 by means of an angular swivel connector 71, pivotally connected to said rod and guided for movement along the yoke 44.
  • This swivel connector 71 is channelform with two similar parallel opposed web plates 73 having aligned holes 74 in the apex region of the connector and is located between two oppose-d arms 72 of the yoke 44 for islidable movement therealong.
  • a hearing sleeve 75 extending between the swivel connector plates 73 and the holes 74, is integral or otherwise rigidly connected to the piston rod 58.
  • a pivot pin 76 passes through the holes 74 and through the sleeve 75 and passes with a slide fit through two aligned elongated slots 77 extending along the yoke arms 72 to guide the swivel connector 71 as well as the piston rod 58 along said yoke arms, while permitting said connector to swivel about the axis of said pin.
  • the swivel connector 71 has two angularly related arms 80 and the inner adjoining ends of the two push rods 70 of the toggle joint mechanism are pivotally connected to the outer ends of said connector arms by means of pivot pins 81.
  • the outer ends of these two push rods 70 are pivotally connected to the outer ends of the brake head levers 25 by means of the pivot pins 28.
  • the main air pressure chamber contains a definite volume of air under pressure before the initiation of the braking operation, and as the elements of the braking system are moving in braking position, the pressure in the pressure chamber falls.
  • the power air available for that purpose expands, causing thereby the force on the pistons 55 to decrease at a substantially constant rate.
  • FIG. 17 is a graph showing this reduction in the piston force in each cylinder 41, as this piston moves through its full stroke, which in the specific form shown would be approximately 4 inches.
  • the braking force at the end of the piston stroke in the absence of a restraining spring is not ashigh as it should be.
  • a toggle joint mechanism is employed to transmit power from the cylinders 41 to the brake head levers 25.
  • the mechanical advantage of the toggle joint mechanism increases progressively as its two push rods 70 move towards longitudinal alignment, as shown in FIG. 18.
  • the rate of increase in mechanical advantage of this mechanism is high, at least during the terminal stages of brake application, and consequently, the braking force during these stages is applied at such excessive rates during these stages as to create undesirable shocks, impacts and concussions to the railway cars, and attachments thereto. If the toggle joint mechanism with its mechanical advantage increasing at such high rate as shown in FIG.
  • the toggle joint mechanism If the toggle joint mechanism is powered by the cylinder 41 with the piston 55 restrained by the spring 61, the resulting braking force delivered by the toggle joint mechanism will be almost uniform through most of its stroke, and at its terminal braking stages, the rate of increase of the braking force delivered by the toggle joint mechanism would be comparatively slow, and certainly much slower than it would be in the absence of the restraining spring 61, as shown in FIG. 20. The application of the brakes therefore will not be attended with such shock and concussion.
  • the brake system described can be operated in conjunction with a hand brake system, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, l0, ll, 12 and 14.
  • This hand brake system shown in conjunction with the air-powered brake system described comprises a horizontal pull rod operated from a hand-controlled device (not shown), such as a bell crank and worm.
  • a hand-controlled device such as a bell crank and worm.
  • One end of this pull rod 90 is pivotally connected to one end of a horizontal lever 91 on one side of the bolster 12 by means of a pivot pin 92, the other end of this lever having a rotatable bearing connection to the right hand pivot pin 76 adjacent to the equalizer bar 20a, as shown in FIGS. 1-3.
  • the intermediate section of the lever 91 is supported for horizontal movement on a horizontal support arm 93, secured to the top web of the equalizer bar 20a.
  • a horizontal support arm 93 secured to the top web of the equalizer bar 20a.
  • the connecting link extends through the bolster 12, and has pivot pin-elongated slot connections 97 and 98 at its opposite ends to intermediate sections of the levers 91 and 94 respectively, permitting said levers to turn about the pivot axes at these connections.
  • the connecting link 95 is moved to the left, causing the lever 94 to elfect angular movements of this lever about the axis of its corresponding pivot pin 76 and about the pivot axis at the pivot connection 98, either in sequence or simultaneously, thereby effecting the movement of this pivot pin along the corresponding guide yoke 44 away from the bolster 12.
  • This operation causes the push rods 70 of the corresponding toggle joint mechanism to straighten out and to apply the brakes to the corresponding brake discs 32.
  • a toggle joint mechanism extending between said wheels and comprising two rods, means articulating the inner adjoining ends of said rods to form a toggle joint between said rods, comprising a swivel connector, said rods being pivotally connected at said adjoining ends to said swivel connector at spaced points thereof, and means for confining the movements of the other outer ends of the rods in directions to bring said rods towards and away from alignment, means for applying braking pressure to said toggle joint including a power transmission member pivotally connected to said swivel connector at a region thereof between said adjoining rod ends, and movable in a direction to bring said rods towards alignment, and means responsive to the aligning action of said rods for braking said wheels.
  • said means for applying braking pressure to said toggle joint including a fluid pressure cylinder, said power transmission member constituting a piston in said cylinder movable by the pressure of the fluid delivered to said cylinder, and a piston rod secured to said piston and pivotally connected to said swivel connector at said region.
  • said swivel connector being in the form of an angular plate having arms diverging from an apex region, said rods being pivotally connected at their inner adjoining ends to the outer ends of said arms respectively, and said power transmission member being pivotally connected to the apex region of said swivel connector.
  • a pair of opposed side frames extending along the longitudinal direction of the truck, four wheels supported on said side frames with two wheels on each side of the truck and with each wheel on one side coaxial with the corresponding wheel on the opposite side, the axes of said wheels extending parallel between said side frames and transverse to said longitudinal direction, a truck bolster extending between said side frames for support from said side frames and located between the two pairs of coaxial wheels, and means for applying brakes to the wheel comprising brake discs on the inboard sides of the wheels respectively, rigid with the wheels respectively for rotation therewith, and presenting brake faces on their inboard sides, a pair of toggle joint mechanisms extending between said side frames on opposite sides of said bolster, each of said mechanisms comprising two rods articulated at adjoining inner ends out of alignment to form a toggle joint therebetween, and means for confining the movements of the other outer ends of the rods in direction to bring said rods towards and away from alignment, and means for applying braking pressure to said toggle joint, including a first lever located

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Description

Jan. 21, 1969 E. G. GOODS RAILWAY CAR BRAKE MECHANISM Sheet- Filed Jan. 26, 1967 4 INVENTOR. Z'b/t A/Qfl 6. Q1060:
ATTORNE n- 1969 E. G. GOODS RAILWAY CAR BRAKE MECHANISM Sheet 2' of Filed Jan. 26, 1967 INVENTOR. thaw/Pp Q 5000:
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Jan. 21, 1969 Filed Jan.. 26, 1967 E. G. GOODS 3,422,931
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United States Patent 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Railway brake device having brake discs rigid with car wheels, and brake means in the form of toggle joint mechanisms with rods movable into alignment for braking actions against these discs by the action of air pressure cylinders and pistons therein having connections to articulated adjoining ends of these rods by means of piston rods. Springs in these cylinders resist the movements of the pistons of the toggle joint mechanisms for braking actions. A swivel connector is provided between adjoining ends of the corresponding pair of rods in each toggle joint mechanism. The rods of the corresponding toggle joint mechanism and the corresponding piston rod are pivotally connected at spaced points to the corresponding swivel connector.
The present invention relates to railway car brake mechanisms, especially of the freight type, and is an improvement upon the inventions shown and described in Busch US. Patents 2,903,096, 2,903,097 and 2,903,098. The present application is a oontinuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 417,658 filed Dec. 11, 1964, now US. Patent No. 3,307,659.
In the application of railway brakes by power derived from air under pressure, a single air storage reservoir is usually employed for each railway car for the operation of the brakes on the two trucks of the car. As the air under pressure is discharged from the reservoir during the application of the brakes, the pressure progressively decreases due to the expansion of the air. It is important that as the air pressure decreases, the braking force increases, to compensate for this decrease in air pressure and to assure thereby that the braking force applied is effective.
A toggle joint mechanism is highly desirable for the application of railway brakes because it has the characteristic of progressively increasing its mechanical advantage, as the articulated arms of the mechanism move towards alignment. However, the rate of increase of mechanical advantage of the toggle joint mechanism is high, especially towards the terminal phase of its braking stroke, so that the decrease in the rate of air pressure used to power such a mechanism would be overcompensated by this mechanism. As a result, the sudden increase of braking power applied by the air-powered toggle joint mechanism during the terminal phases of the braking stroke of the mechanism, is excessively shocking to the railway car and the other cars of the train.
One object of the present invention is to provide new and improved air-powered toggle joint means, which apply the brakes to a railway car, and which avoid the disadvantages described.
To obtain the objective described, each toggle joint mechanism is powered by a fluid power unit, comprising an air cylinder into which air under pressure from the main pressure air reservoir of the car is delivered upon application of the brakes. Acting against power transmitted to the toggle joint mechanism by the air in said air cylinder is a coil spring. This coil spring is progres- Patented Jan. 21, 1969 "ice sively compressed during the braking stroke, and reduces progressively thereby, the power transmitted to the toggle brake mechanism during its braking stroke. The resultant power transmitted by the toggle joint mechanism during its braking stroke will be leveled off by the progressively counteracting effect of the coil spring, so that the braking power transmitted by the toggle joint mechanism to the brake shoes is substantially more uniform during its stroke than would be the case in the absence of such a coil spring.
As a further feature, the coil spring also serves to return the toggle joint mechanism and its associated movable parts into inoperative position away from braking position upon release of the brakes, so that the brake shoes are moved away from the braking surfaces of the brake system.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a railway brake system with toggle joint mechanisms designed to apply substantially constant braking pressures, regardless of wear on the brake shoes.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved hand-operated transmission system, employable as an alternative to a fluid-operated power applying system, for operating the toggle joint mechanism of a railway brake system.
Various other objects, features and advantages of the present invention are apparent from the following description and from an inspection of the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a railway car truck having a braking system constituting an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a top plan view of part of the railway car truck shown in FIG. 1, but on a larger scale;
FIG. 2a is a perspective of the end of an equalizer bar forming part of the support structure for the braking system;
FIG. 3 is a section of the railway car truck taken on lines 33 of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a detail section of the brake system taken on lines 44 of FIG. 2;
FIG. 5 is a detail section of the brake system taken on lines 5-5 of FIG. 2;
FIG. 6 is a detail section of the railway car truck taken on lines 6-6 of FIG. 1;
FIG. 7 is a detail section of the railway car truck taken on lines 77 of FIG. 6;
FIG. 8 is a detail section of the brake system taken approximately on lines 8-8 of FIG. 4;
FIG. 9 is a top plan view of part of one of the equalizer bars forming part of the support structure for the braking system;
FIG. 10 is a top plan view of part of the other equalizer bar forming part of the support structure for the braking system;
FIG. 11 is the end view of the equalizer bar shown in FIG. 9;
FIG. 12 is an end view of the other equalizer bar shown in FIG. 10;
FIG.13 is a detail section taken on lines 13-13 of FIG. 9;
FIG. 14 is a detail section taken on lines 1414 of FIG. 12;
FIG. 15 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in section of the fluid power unit operable to power one of the toggle joint mechanisms of the brake system, the view being taken approximately along the lines 15-15 of FIG. 16;
FIG. 16 is a partial end view of the fluid power unit shown in FIG. 15;
FIG. 17 is a graph showing the force in the air brake cylinder due to air pressure for different travels of the piston operating the toggle joint mechanism;
FIG. 18 is a graph showing the braking force on a brake disc by a toggle joint mechanism operating without a return spring for different travels of the piston operating said mechanism;
FIG. 19 is a graph showing the force delivered by the piston resisted by a return spring and operating the toggle joint mechanism, said force being shown for different travels of said piston; and
FIG. 20 is a graph showing the braking force on the brake disc due to the force delivered by the toggle joint mechanism operating with a return spring.
Referring to FIGS. 1-3 of the drawings, there is shown a railway freight car truck comprising a pair of side structures or frames having respective guide openings 11 to receive the ends of a conventional truck bolster 12 extending between said frames and projecting at the ends into said openings, where they are supported on coil springs (not shown) and are guided by side columns 13 of said openings for vertical shock-absorbed movement. The bolster 12 is provided at its ends with lugs 14 engaging the inboard sides of the side columns 13 of the side frames 10 and lugs (not shown) engaging the outboard side of the side columns. These lugs 14 guide the bolster 12 for vertical movement.
The bolster 12 is also provided with a center conformation 16 for direct pivotal connection to the underside of the railway car body in a conventional manner. Between the two side frames 10 and supported thereon by suitable bearings are two parallel axles 17 carrying on opposite ends, flanged car wheels 18 which ride on rails 19.
To support certain operating parts of the brake mechanism land at the same time to sustain the side frames 10 against the stresses of the braking action, there are provided two equalizer bars 20 and 20a (FIGS. 1-14) on opposite sides of the bolster 12, each bar being pivotally connected at its ends by means of hinge pins 21 to brackets 22 integral or otherwise fixedly secured to the side frames.
The side frames 10 are shown of the conventional type employed with brake mechanisms having brake beams with their ends slidable in guides on the inboard sides of said side frames. In the specific shown, these brake beam guides are defined by the brackets 22, and since these guides usually slant downwardly towards each other, the equalizer bars 20 and 20a, which are in the form of channels, correspondingly slant transversely of their longitudinal direction towards each other, as shown in FIG. 3 with their open sides facing downwardly.
For the pivotal attachment of the ends of the equalizer bars 20 and 20a to the brackets 22, the ends of the bars are cut away to form tongue extensions 23 at the ends, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 2a, and a block 24 is snugly fitted at each end to provide a bearing for the corresponding hinge pin 21 as shown in FIGS. 2, 2a, 6, 7, 9, 11 and 13.
The equalizer bars 20 and 20a secured to the side frame brackets 22 through the hinge pins 21 as described, assist the bolster 12 in maintaining the truck side frames 10 in alignment or parallel to the respective rails. The equalizer bars 20 and 20a and the truck side frames 10 form a parallelogram, and since these are pivotally joined through the brackets 22 and the hinge pins 21, they operate as a parallel motion permitting the side frames to shift relatively endwi-se and into limited angular positions with respect to the equalizer bars 20 and 20a when the wheels 18 are rounding a curve. The equalizer bars 20 and 20a also serve to support the weight of the brake mechanism.
The brakes for the four car wheels 18 of each car truck are operated by four similar brake head levers or brake support arms 25 (FIGS. 1 and 2), each pivotally secured at one end to one of the equalizer bars 20 and 20a by means of a pivot or hinge pin 26, while its other end carries a brake head 27 by means of a pivot pin 28. The brake head 27 carries a face plate 30 with a brake shoe 31 for application to a brake rotor or disc 32, which is affixed to the corresponding car wheel 18 on the inboard side thereof, to stop said disc, and which presents a brake face on its inboard side. The construction described is similar to that shown and described in the aforesaid copending application Ser. No. 417,658.
As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 9, 10 and 14, the lower side of each equalizer bar 20 and 20a in each of the regions where a brake head lever or brake support arm 25 is pivotally connected to said equalizer bar, has welded thereto a reinforcing plate 35 and welded to said plate is a bearing 36 for a corresponding hinge pin 26.
Power for operating the brakes in each car truck is derived from two similar individual axially aligned fluid power units 40 (FIGS. l5, 8, 15 and 16) on opposite sides of the bolster 12. Each of these power units 40 comprises an air cylinder 41, rigidly secured to the corresponding equalizer bar 20 and 20a with its axis horizontal and in the vertical plane extending along the length of the truck and along the railway car and through the center of the bolster 12.
For supporting each cylinder 41 on the corresponding equalizer bar 20 and 20a, each of said equalizer bars is cut out to produce a recess 39 into which the lower section of the cylinder extends, and the equalizer bar is reinforced where it has been weakened by this recess by an angle iron 42 welded to the underside of the equalizer bar underneath the recess. A bracket 43 with a yoke extension 44 serving the purpose to be described, has base ears 45 secured to the outer inclined side webs 46 of the corresponding equalizer bar 20 and 20a by bolts or studs 47, and a body 48, offset upwardly into vertical position from these base ears. Each cylinder 41 is secured to the corresponding bracket 43 by means of bolts or studs 50 passing through the outer end wall 51 of the cylinder and through the body 48 of said bracket, and the yoke 44 extends horizontally from said bracket body.
Each cylinder 41 includes a piston 55,slidable therein, and connected to a peripheral end ring 56 at one end of the cylinder by a reversely, progressively foldable skirt 59 made of rubber or other suitable resilient material, to seal the peripheral gap between the periphery of said piston and the peripheral wall of the cylinder in all positions of the piston. Air is introduced into one end of the cylinder 41 on one side of the piston 55 by means of pressure air inlet 57, and a piston rod 58, connected to said piston, extends through the wall 51 at the other end of the cylinder, so that the piston and rod serve as a power transmission means to the toggle mechanism. A spring 61 shown in the form of two coil units 62 and 63, one inside the other, bears against the piston 55 and against end wall 51, and resists the movement of the piston as it is powered by the air pressure towards said end wall. A relief valve 64 in the cylinder end wall 51 permits the air on one side of the piston 55 to escape, as the air under pressure acts on the other side of the piston.
The two inlets 57 on the two air cylinders 41 are connected to a main air pressure reservoir or chamber (not shown) of conventional type and having an outlet, which is opened when the brakes are to be applied, and which when opened delivers air to the four cylinders 41 on the two trucks carrying each railway car.
The power transmission between each cylinder 41 on each side of the bolster 12 and the two brake heads 27 on the same side of the bolster, comprises a toggle joint mechanism having two push rods at an angle to each other, connected at their outer ends to the brake head levers or brake support arms 25 respectively by means of the pivot pins 28 and articulated at their inner adjoining ends together and to the outer end of the corresponding piston rod 58 by means of an angular swivel connector 71, pivotally connected to said rod and guided for movement along the yoke 44. This swivel connector 71 is channelform with two similar parallel opposed web plates 73 having aligned holes 74 in the apex region of the connector and is located between two oppose-d arms 72 of the yoke 44 for islidable movement therealong. A hearing sleeve 75 extending between the swivel connector plates 73 and the holes 74, is integral or otherwise rigidly connected to the piston rod 58. A pivot pin 76 passes through the holes 74 and through the sleeve 75 and passes with a slide fit through two aligned elongated slots 77 extending along the yoke arms 72 to guide the swivel connector 71 as well as the piston rod 58 along said yoke arms, while permitting said connector to swivel about the axis of said pin.
The swivel connector 71 has two angularly related arms 80 and the inner adjoining ends of the two push rods 70 of the toggle joint mechanism are pivotally connected to the outer ends of said connector arms by means of pivot pins 81. The outer ends of these two push rods 70 are pivotally connected to the outer ends of the brake head levers 25 by means of the pivot pins 28.
In the operation of the brake mechanisms shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, when the brakes are not applied, these mechanisms are in the phase position shown in the drawings, with the brake heads 27 spaced from the brake discs 32, due to the positive action of the springs 61 on said brake heads through the pistons 55, the push rods 70 and the brake head levers 25 carrying said brake heads.
Upon application of the brakes, air is admitted through the air inlets 57 into the air cylinders, by the opening of the main valve (not shown) from the main air pressure chamber (not shown). This causes the pistons 55 to be moved by braking air pressures outwardly in their cylinders away from the bolster 12 against the action of the springs 61, and this, in turn, causes the push rods 70 to straighten out and the brake head levers 25 to turn about the axes of their pivot pins 26 in directions to apply the brake shoes 31 to the brake discs 32 with braking pressure.
The pivotal connections between the push rods 70 and the swivel connectors 71, and between the swivel connectors and the piston rods 58, permit the elements of the toggle joint mechanisms to adjust themselves and to compensate automatically for uneven wear among the different brake shoes 31, so that regardless of such uneven wear, the braking pressures applied by all of the brake shoes in each truck are substantially the same.
Upon release to atmosphere of the air braking pressure on the pistons 55, the compressed springs 61, in their releasing movements positively move the toggle joint mechanisms in a manner to move the brake heads 27 into inoperative positions away from the brake discs 32, shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3.
In the conventional type of air pressure systems for applying air pressure for braking operations, the main air pressure chamber contains a definite volume of air under pressure before the initiation of the braking operation, and as the elements of the braking system are moving in braking position, the pressure in the pressure chamber falls. In the system shown herein, as the pistons 55 move in the cylinders 41 under the action of air pressure away from the bolster 12, the power air available for that purpose expands, causing thereby the force on the pistons 55 to decrease at a substantially constant rate. FIG. 17 is a graph showing this reduction in the piston force in each cylinder 41, as this piston moves through its full stroke, which in the specific form shown would be approximately 4 inches. As a result, the braking force at the end of the piston stroke in the absence of a restraining spring is not ashigh as it should be.
To compensate for this progressive drop in cylinder force, a toggle joint mechanism is employed to transmit power from the cylinders 41 to the brake head levers 25. The mechanical advantage of the toggle joint mechanism increases progressively as its two push rods 70 move towards longitudinal alignment, as shown in FIG. 18. However, as noted in the graph of FIG. 18, when such a toggle joint mechanism is used without a restraining spring, the rate of increase in mechanical advantage of this mechanism is high, at least during the terminal stages of brake application, and consequently, the braking force during these stages is applied at such excessive rates during these stages as to create undesirable shocks, impacts and concussions to the railway cars, and attachments thereto. If the toggle joint mechanism with its mechanical advantage increasing at such high rate as shown in FIG. 18, is powered by an air cylinder having decreasing power delivery characteristics, as shown in FIG. 17, this power delivery characteristic is not only compensated but is overcompensated by the toggle joint mechanism, so that the rate of delivery of braking power by the toggle joint mechanism towards the terminal brake applying stages of its stroke is of excessive shock producing intensity.
As a coil spring is compressed, its resistance to compression is progressively increased, and the restraining force offered by a spring to a piston operating under the conditions here contemplated would result in a force delivered by the spring-pressed piston, progressively decreasing during the stroke, at a rate greater than the rate of force delivery of the piston in the absence of the restraining spring. The difference in rates of decrease in power delivery is apparent from a comparison of FIGS. 17 and 19.
If the toggle joint mechanism is powered by the cylinder 41 with the piston 55 restrained by the spring 61, the resulting braking force delivered by the toggle joint mechanism will be almost uniform through most of its stroke, and at its terminal braking stages, the rate of increase of the braking force delivered by the toggle joint mechanism would be comparatively slow, and certainly much slower than it would be in the absence of the restraining spring 61, as shown in FIG. 20. The application of the brakes therefore will not be attended with such shock and concussion.
The brake system described can be operated in conjunction with a hand brake system, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, l0, ll, 12 and 14. This hand brake system shown in conjunction with the air-powered brake system described, comprises a horizontal pull rod operated from a hand-controlled device (not shown), such as a bell crank and worm. One end of this pull rod 90 is pivotally connected to one end of a horizontal lever 91 on one side of the bolster 12 by means of a pivot pin 92, the other end of this lever having a rotatable bearing connection to the right hand pivot pin 76 adjacent to the equalizer bar 20a, as shown in FIGS. 1-3. The intermediate section of the lever 91 is supported for horizontal movement on a horizontal support arm 93, secured to the top web of the equalizer bar 20a. As the lever 91 is pulled by the pull rod 90 by the actuation of the hand brake system, the lever rotates about the axis of the pivot pin 76.
The angular movement of the lever 91 on one side of the bolster 12 about the corresponding pivot pin 76 is transmitted to a horizontal lever 94 on the other side of the bolster by means of a horizontal connecting link 95. This lever 94 is pivotally secured at one end by means of a pivot pin 96 to an arm 97 secured to the top web of the equalizer bar 20. The other end of this lever 94 has a rotatable bearing connection to the left hand pivot pin 76 adjacent to the equalizer bar 20, as shown in FIGS. 1-3.
The connecting link extends through the bolster 12, and has pivot pin-elongated slot connections 97 and 98 at its opposite ends to intermediate sections of the levers 91 and 94 respectively, permitting said levers to turn about the pivot axes at these connections. A pair of guides 100 secured to the equalizer bars 20 and 20a by means of brackets 101, guide the link 95 translationally endwise crosswise of the bolster 12.
In the operation of the hand brake system, when the pull rod 90 is pulled to the left (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3), the lever 91 rotates clockwise about the axes of the cor responding pivot pin 76, and about the pivot axis at the connection 97, both angular movements taking place either successively or simultaneously. These angular movements of the lever 91, cause the pivot pin 76 to move along the guide yoke 44 away from the bolster 12 and cause the push rods 70 of the corresponding toggle joint mechanism to straighten out and to apply the brakes to the corresponding brake discs 32. At the same time or subsequent or prior thereto, the connecting link 95 is moved to the left, causing the lever 94 to elfect angular movements of this lever about the axis of its corresponding pivot pin 76 and about the pivot axis at the pivot connection 98, either in sequence or simultaneously, thereby effecting the movement of this pivot pin along the corresponding guide yoke 44 away from the bolster 12. This operation causes the push rods 70 of the corresponding toggle joint mechanism to straighten out and to apply the brakes to the corresponding brake discs 32.
Although the different operations of the hand brake system have been described as possibly taking place in sequences, these steps, in every case, take place substantially simultaneously, so that braking forces are applied to all four of the brake discs 32 almost at the same time.
What is claimed is:
1. In a railway car truck, the combination comprising a pair of coaxial car wheels, a toggle joint mechanism extending between said wheels and comprising two rods, means articulating the inner adjoining ends of said rods to form a toggle joint between said rods, comprising a swivel connector, said rods being pivotally connected at said adjoining ends to said swivel connector at spaced points thereof, and means for confining the movements of the other outer ends of the rods in directions to bring said rods towards and away from alignment, means for applying braking pressure to said toggle joint including a power transmission member pivotally connected to said swivel connector at a region thereof between said adjoining rod ends, and movable in a direction to bring said rods towards alignment, and means responsive to the aligning action of said rods for braking said wheels.
2. The combination in a railway car tnick as described in claim 1, said means for applying braking pressure to said toggle joint including a fluid pressure cylinder, said power transmission member constituting a piston in said cylinder movable by the pressure of the fluid delivered to said cylinder, and a piston rod secured to said piston and pivotally connected to said swivel connector at said region.
3. The combination in a railway car truck as described in claim 1, said swivel connector being in the form of an angular plate having arms diverging from an apex region, said rods being pivotally connected at their inner adjoining ends to the outer ends of said arms respectively, and said power transmission member being pivotally connected to the apex region of said swivel connector.
4. The combination in a railway car truck as described in claim 2, comprising a guide yoke connected to one end of said cylinder and having means for guiding said piston along said yoke in directions to move said rods into and out of alignment and for correspondingly guiding the pivotal connection of said piston rod to said swivel connector in the latter directions along said yoke.
5. The combination in a railway car truck as described in claim 1, comprising side frames for the truck, said car wheels being supported on said side frames respectively, said means for braking said wheels comprising brake discs on the inboard sides of said wheels respectively mounted for rotation with said wheels respectively, a pair of brake head levers, means for pivotally supporting said levers at substantially fixed points with respect to said side frames, and for pivotally connecting said other outer ends of said rods, brake heads carried by said brake head levers respectively and movable towards braking positions as said rods are moved into alignment.
6. In a railway car truck, the combination of a pair of opposed side frames extending along the longitudinal direction of the truck, four wheels supported on said side frames with two wheels on each side of the truck and with each wheel on one side coaxial with the corresponding wheel on the opposite side, the axes of said wheels extending parallel between said side frames and transverse to said longitudinal direction, a truck bolster extending between said side frames for support from said side frames and located between the two pairs of coaxial wheels, and means for applying brakes to the wheel comprising brake discs on the inboard sides of the wheels respectively, rigid with the wheels respectively for rotation therewith, and presenting brake faces on their inboard sides, a pair of toggle joint mechanisms extending between said side frames on opposite sides of said bolster, each of said mechanisms comprising two rods articulated at adjoining inner ends out of alignment to form a toggle joint therebetween, and means for confining the movements of the other outer ends of the rods in direction to bring said rods towards and away from alignment, and means for applying braking pressure to said toggle joint, including a first lever located on one side of the bolster and extending therealong, a pull rod pivotally secured to one end of said lever means pivotally connecting the other end of said lever to the toggle joint on said one side of the bolster, a second lever located on the other side of said bolster and extending therealong, means for pivotally supporting said second lever at one end, means pivotally connecting the other end of said lever to the toggle joint on said other side of the bolster, and a connecting link having pivotal connections at its ends with the intermediate sections of said levers respectively and extending across said bolster for transmitting braking power from said first lever to said second lever.
7. The combination in a railway car truck as described in claim 6, comprising a pair of parallel equalizing bars on opposite sides of said bolster, extending between said side frames and pivotally connected at their ends to said side frames, the means for pivotally supporting said second lever at one end pivotally supporting said second lever on the equalizer bar on said other side of said bolster.
8. The combination in a railway car truck as described in claim 6, comprising fluid pressure power means for applying braking forces to said toggle joints in directions to bring each pair of articulated rods towards alignment, said levers, link and pull rod being manually operable as an alternative to said fluid pressure power means.
References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,307,659 3/1967 Goods 188-59 DUANE A. REGER, Primary Examiner.
U.S. Cl. X.R. 188153
US611860A 1967-01-26 1967-01-26 Railway car brake mechanism Expired - Lifetime US3422931A (en)

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US61186067A 1967-01-26 1967-01-26
US1562870A 1970-03-02 1970-03-02

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DE2443095A1 (en) * 1974-09-09 1976-03-25 Bergische Stahlindustrie UNIVERSAL DISC BRAKE DEVICE FOR RAIL VEHICLES
GB1540222A (en) * 1975-06-09 1979-02-07 Girling Ltd Brake assemblies
US4531877A (en) * 1983-01-31 1985-07-30 Carroll Curtis E Rail car dumping system and method
AT508608A1 (en) * 2009-07-16 2011-02-15 Siemens Ag Oesterreich BRAKE SUPPORT IN CHASSIS FRAME FOR RAIL VEHICLES

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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3307659A (en) * 1964-12-11 1967-03-07 Buffalo Brake Beam Co Railway car brake mechanism

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* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3307659A (en) * 1964-12-11 1967-03-07 Buffalo Brake Beam Co Railway car brake mechanism

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