US735544A - Air-brake system. - Google Patents

Description

PATENTED 'AUG. 4, 1903-.

w. B. MANN. AIR BRAKE SYSTEM. I APILICI.A'JJIOH' I'iLE-D JUNE 3,1903.

H0 MODEL.

INVENTOR WITNESSES.-

Atforneyd c. m: Noam vzrziws co, PHOTO-LIYNQ, WAS-(INGTON, o

Patented August 4, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM B.. MANN, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

AIR-*BRAKE SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 735,544, dated August 4, 1903.

Application filed June 9,1969. Serial No. 159,920. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM B. MANN, a resident of Baltimore, Maryland, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Air- Brake Systems, which invention is fully set forth in the following specification.

This invention relates to air-brakes, and more particularly to automatic air-brakes designed for conditions of use where it is undesirable to carry an air-compressor on the car or train on which the brakes are employed. In many cars, such as electric streetcars and electric cars generally, it has been proposed to employ an electric pump on the car for compressing the air employed in operating the brakes. These pumps are not altogether satisfactory in operation, are heavy and expensive and give rise to a very disagreeble noise and jarring of the car. It has heretofore been proposed to place a storagetank on each car which should be charged with compressed air' at a central station and this charge utilized as the braking power during a given run. This has many advantages over the proposal for carrying an electric aircompressor on the car, since it is lighter, cheaper to install and operate, and is free from jar and noise. There are, however, certain objections or defects in the storagetank system as heretofore proposed which have prevented its general or extensive use; and it is the object of the present invention to overcome these objections and eliminate the defects to the end that this desirable system may be generally applied for street-car and suburban car service.

With this object in view the invention consists of a storage-tank of relatively large ca,-

pacity and of sufficient strength to enable it to safely carry air compressed to a high degreeof say two hundred and fifty to six hundred pounds per square inch-which tank is located on a car and is provided with connections leading through a suitable reducingvalve to the ordinaryor any desired form of auxiliary reservoir, from which the air is admitted to the brake-cylinder through any suitable triple valve-for example, the triple valve shown in my United States Patent No. 650,018. As now operated electric street and suburban cars are frequently run in trains of two or more cars, and the principal features of my invention are designed to facilitate the use of the storage-tank system above described in such trains. Proper braking requires that each car of a train should be provided with a separate auxiliary reservoir and brake-cylinder, and economy and efficiency of operation demand that the brakesof all the cars should be controlled through the medium of a single motormans brake-valve. Moreover, since the amount of compressed air required to brake a plurality of cars exceeds the amount required to brake one car it is necessary that means be provided whereby the air stored in each storagetank on the train can be utilized. I therefore provide a line of train-pipe connecting the several storage-tanks of the train to the end that the several tanks may constitute one combined storage-reservoir. In addition to thisI provide the usual train-pipe leading rearward through the train from the motormans brake-valve (corresponding to the engineers valve in steam-railway trains) to each auxiliary reservoir. By this means all the air in the connected storage-tanks of the train isfed through a single motormans brake-valve to the train-pipe and thence to the auxiliary reservoirs. In order to retain the air in the several storage-tanks when the cars of the train are uncoupled or the train is accidentally broken in two, I provide means, preferably automatic, for closing the exit conduit or conduits from each storagetank. Preferably, also, I provide each tank with an independent connection between the tank and the train-pipe and a reducing-valve and motormans brake-valve controlling said connection, so that each individual car may have the means for efiectively operating the brakes of the entire train or the brakes of the said individual car when it is taken out of the train and run alone.

Other specific details of theinvention will be hereinafter described and then defined in the claims. The inventive idea involved may receive various mechanical expressions, one of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a diagrammatic View showing a plurality of storage-tanks connected according to my invention in combination with the train pipe, auxiliary reservoirs, and

reservoir, 2 a brake-cylinder, and 3 an auxiliary reservoir of any suitable or usual construction and all designed to be located on a single car. The usual train-pipe 4 extends under the car and is connected to the auxiliary reservoirthrough the branch pipe 5, in which is a stop-cock 6. Another branch pipe 7 connects the storage-tank 1 with the trainpipe 4, a reducing-valve 8 being interposed therein between the tank and pipe 4. On the train-pipe side of the reducing-valve 8 is a motormans brake-valve 9 of any desired construction for controlling the passage of air from the storage-tank to the train-pipe to charge the auxiliary reservoir or the escape of air from the train-pipe to the atmosphere in operating the brakes. The train-pipe 4 is provided at each end with coupling's 1O 10, whereby it may be connected to a like trainpipe on another car, and the usual stop-cocks 11 11 to prevent the escape of air from the pipe 4 to the atmosphere.

As thus far described the construction relates to the equipment of a single car, as illustrated in the right-hand section of Fig. 1, and the operation is as follows: Assuming air in the storage-tank to be compressed, say, to thirty atmospheres, the cooks 11 11 closed, and the motormans valve set so as to permit air to pass from pipe 7 to the train-pipe 4, the reducing-valve 8 acts to permit air at any desired pressuresa v sixty poundsto pass via pipes 7 and 4 to charge the auxiliary reservoir, and the air thus charged in the auxiliary reservoiris utilized to apply the brakes by reducing the train-pipe pressure through the motormans valve 9 in the usual and wellknown manner. This combination of a storage-tank, reducing-valve, brake-valve, trainpipe, auxiliary reservoir, and brake-cylinder is old and well known, and I do not claim the same as of my invention.

\Vhen it is desired to unite a plurality of cars thus equipped into a train, I provide a second line of pipe directly connecting the storage-tanks in the several cars, such as the continuous pipe 12 of Fig. 4, with the branch pipes 13, leading therefrom to the storagetanks, or I connect the adjacent ends of the several tanks by sections of pipe 14, as in Fig. 1, and in order that the air may not escape from the several tanks to the atmosphere when the cars of the train are separated I interpose between the tank and the coupling ends of the second pipe 12 or the sections 14 means for automatically preventing the escape of the air from the tank. Preferably this takes the form of a valve 15, interposed in the branch pipes 13 of Fig. 4.0r

placed at opposite ends of the tanks in the form shown in Fig. 1. The preferred construction of valve is shown in Fig. 2, wherein 16 is a valve-casing whose end 17 is adjacent to the storage-tank. In this casing the valve 15 has a seat 18 and a spring 19, acting to unseat the valve toward storage-tank pressure. A by-pass 20 leads around the valve 15, and a cock 21, with a conduit 22 therethrough, acts to open or close the by-pass 20, depending upon the position of the cook 21. The stem 23 of this cock extends out through the casing 16 and has handle 24 attached thereto, whereby the cock may be manipulated. Preferably a spring 25, Fig 3, is applied, so as to normally hold the cock closed, as shown in Fig. 2.

The operation is as follows: The several cars of the train being coupled together, the sections of the train-pipe 4 being coupled, and the sections of the secondary pipe connecting the storage-tanks being also coupled, the valves 15 are held closed by reason of the fact that the pressure within the tanks overcomes the springs 19 and forces the valves to their seats. The handle 24 of the cook 21' is is now turned in the direction indicated by the arrow 26, Fig. 2, so as to open the bypass 20 and permit storage-tank pressure to pass to the opposite side of valve 15, and when the pressures on the two sides of the valve have been thus equalized the spring 19 acts to open the valve, thereby placing all the storage-tanks in free communication via the connecting-piping. When the handle 24 is released by the attendant, spring 25, Fig. 3, acts to restore the cock 21 to the position shown in Fig. 2 and close the by-pass. All of the motormans brake valves being in blank position, whereby pressure is prevented from passing from the storage-tanks via the train-pipe to the auxiliary reservoirs, the brake-valve on the front car is turned to charging position and air passes out of the front storage-tank via the front brake-valve and the train-pipe and charges all the auxiliary reservoirs in the Well-known manner, the pressure in all the storage-tanks being maintained uniform by reason of their connection. The lowering of pressure in the front storage-tank does not cause any of the valves 15 at the other tanks to close, because the action is so gradual that equalization takes place past the valves 15 without overcoming the spring 19. The combined volume of air in all the storage-tanks is thus available for braking purposes. Should the train break in two or the cars thereof be uncoupled forswitching onto branch lines or for other purposes, the valves 15 promptly close and prevent waste of air from the storagetanks on each car. Furthermore, each car is left with a complete brake equipment, which may be used alone or in combination with another similarly-equipped car.

What is claimed is 1. In an air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of connected storage-tanks containing compressed air, and means preventing the escape of air therefrom when said tanks are disconnected.

2. In an air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of connected storage-tanks containin g compressed air, and automatically-0perating means preventing the escape of air therefrom when said tanks are disconnected.

3. In an automatic air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of compressed-airstorage tanks, piping connecting said tanks, a braking train-pipe in communication with said connected storage-tanks, a plurality of auxiliary reservoirs and brake-cylinders connected to said braking train-pipe, and a motormans brake-valve interposed between said connected tanks and the braking train-pipe.

4. In an automatic air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of compressed-airstorage tanks, a corresponding number of auxiliary reservoirs and brake-cylinders, a trainpipe, communications between each storage-tank and the train-pipe and between each auxiliary reservoir and the train-pipe, a motormans brake-valve interposed between each storage-tank and the train-pipe, and means connecting the several storage-tanks.

5. In an automatic air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of compressed-airstorage tanks, a corresponding number of auxiliary reservoirs and brake-cylinders, a train-pipe, communications between each storage-tank and the train-pipe and between 6. In an air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of storage-tanks for compressed air, open communications between said tanks, and a valve closing the exit from each stor age-tank'when said communications are severed.

7. In an air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of storage-tanks for compressed air, communications between said tanks, an inwardly-opening valve in said communications in proximity to each tank, and a spring tending to open said valve.

8. In an air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of storage-tan ks for compressed air, communications between said tanks, an inwardly-opening valve in said communications in proximity to each tank, a spring tending to open said valve, a by-pass around said valve, and a cock controlling said by-pass.

9. In an air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of storage-tanks for compressed air, a pipe-line extending along said tanks, connections between said tanks and said pipeline,and a check-valve preventing the passage of air through said connections when said pipe-line is severed.

10. In an air-brake system, the combination of a plurality of storage-tanks for compressed air, a pipe-line extending along said tanks, connections between said tanks,and said pipeline, a check-valve preventing the passage of air through said connections when said pipeline is severed, and a normally closed bypass around said valve.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

" WILLIAM B. MANN.

Witnesses:

LEVEN J. GWINN, E. .T. GODMAN.

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