AU2021302968A1 - Device for supporting a trolley wire - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a device (3', 3'') for supporting a trolley wire (4), which runs in a longitudinal direction (5), for supplying electrical energy to a rail vehicle on a supporting body (11) which is arranged above the trolley wire (4) as viewed in a vertical direction (7) running at a right angle to the longitudinal direction (5), comprising a guide rail (23) which guides a thermal expansion movement of at least the trolley wire (4) and has a first rail body (25) on which the trolley wire (4) is held in a positionally fixed manner, and a second rail body (26) which is held on the supporting body (11) in a positionally fixed manner, wherein the first rail body (25) and the second rail body (26) are guided with respect to one another via rolling elements (32).

Description

Device for supporting a conductor wire

Description

The present invention relates to a device for supporting a conductor wire.

From JPH07009896A, a device for supporting a contact wire extending in a longitudinal direction for supplying electrical energy to a rail vehicle on io a support body arranged above the contact wire as seen in a vertical direction extending at right angles to the longitudinal direction is known, comprising a guide rail guiding a thermal expansion movement of at least the contact wire and having a first rail body on which the contact wire is held in a stationary position and a second rail body which is held in a stationary position on the support body. The first rail body is slidably held in the second rail body.

It is the object of the invention to improve the known system.

The task is fulfilled by the characteristics of the independent claims. Preferred embodiments are the subject matter of the dependent claims.

According to one aspect of the invention, a device for supporting a contact wire extending in a longitudinal direction for supplying electrical energy to a rail vehicle comprises a support body arranged above the contact wire as viewed in a vertical direction extending at right angles to the longitudinal direction, comprising a guide rail guiding the thermal expansion movement of at least the contact wire, and having a first rail body on which the contact wire is held in a stationary position and a second rail body which is held in a stationary position on the support body, the first rail body and the second rail body being guided relative to one another via rolling elements.

Although the use of rolling elements in the specified device seems contradictory at first, because rolling bearings are known to be more susceptible to contamination, less resistant to impact by pantographs and also require more installation space, especially in tunnels, the rolling elements form a gap between the two rail bodies. This gap creates a ventilation space in the contact area between the two rail bodies, which provides the two rail bodies with better cooling, especially in the event of a short circuit. Between slide-mounted rail bodies, canting could be observed, which sooner or later led to one rail body tearing out of the other rail body. By supporting the rail bodies via rolling elements, the risk of such canting could be significantly reduced, so that the specified device is noticeably more durable.

In an embodiment of the specified device, the rolling elements are rollers aligned transversely to the longitudinal direction and transversely to the vertical direction. In this embodiment, in which the rolling elements in io the form of rollers are aligned in the transverse direction, a particularly stable guidance of the two rail bodies in the longitudinal direction can be achieved.

In a particular embodiment of the specified device, one of the rail bodies, viewed in the longitudinal direction, comprises a u-profile-shaped cross section with a connecting arm and two holding arms which are spaced apart from one another and project from the connecting arm on which the rollers are held. In this way, one of the rail partners grips around the other rail partner, and in this way effectively blocks unintentional transverse movements that can lead to disruptive mechanical stress on the contact wire to be supported.

In a particular embodiment of the specified device, the rollers have a roller diameter and, viewed in the longitudinal direction, are spaced apart from one another by at least one, preferably at least two roller diameters. In this way, mechanical stress introduced into the rail bodies by accumulated dirt in the aforementioned ventilation space can be reduced or even avoided altogether.

In another embodiment of the specified device, the rolling elements are arranged axisymmetrically to the longitudinal direction. In this way, a symmetrical loading condition is achieved in which all rollers in the specified device are equally loaded.

In yet another embodiment of the specified device, the first rail body or the second rail body is designed to embrace the rolling elements in the form of a U in a cross-section viewed in the longitudinal direction. In this way, contact between the two rail bodies is ensured via the rolling bearings even if the two rail bodies twist against each other about the transverse axis.

In an additional embodiment of the specified device, the U has, viewed in the height direction, a first leg and a second leg opposite the first leg, the rolling elements having a diameter of between 90 % and 99 % of a distance between the two legs. In this way, a comparatively small clearance is set for the aforementioned twisting of the two rail bodies about the transverse axis.

In a further embodiment, the specified device comprises a pivot bearing io arranged on the first and/or second rail body for torque decoupling between the contact wire and the support body. In this way, a decoupling of the two rail bodies with regard to torques about the vertical axis can be achieved, so that, for example, torsions of one rail body about the vertical axis caused by thermal movements in a curve are not passed on to the second rail body.

In a particular embodiment of the specified device, the pivot bearing comprises two slots which are arranged point-symmetrically with respect to one another and are guided in the height direction through the first or second rail body, through each of which slots a retaining pin with a thickened end which is held stationary with respect to the supporting body is guided in the height direction. In this way, one rail body is stabilised against swinging about the longitudinal axis relative to the other rail body.

In yet another further embodiment, the specified device comprises a resetting element arranged on the first and/or second rail body and pretensioned against the height direction for damping forces entered into the contact wire in the height direction. In this way, the above mentioned poorer impact resistance can be counteracted.

The above-described properties, features and advantages of this invention, as well as the manner in which they are achieved, will become clearer in connection with the following description of the embodiments, which are explained in more detail in connection with the drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a track section with a device for supporting a contact wire,

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of an alternative device to Fig. 1 for supporting a contact wire,

Fig. 3 is a side view of the device from Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 a sectional view of the device from Fig. 2,

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a first part of an alternative device to Fig. 1 for supporting a contact wire,

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a second part of an alternative device to Fig. 1 for supporting a contact wire,

Fig. 7a is a view of a support body in the device of Figs. 5 and 6 from a first perspective,

Fig. 7b is a view of a support body in the device of Figs. 5 and 6 from a second perspective,

Fig. 8a is a view of another support body in the device of Figs. 5 and 6 from a first perspective, and

Fig. 8b is a view of an additional support body in the device of Figs. 5 and 6 from a second perspective,

In the drawings, the same technical elements are provided with the same reference signs, and are only described once. The drawings are purely schematic and, in particular, do not reflect the actual geometric proportions.

Reference is made to Fig. 1, which shows a schematic view of a track section 2 covered with a ceiling 1 with a device 3 for supporting an electric current-carrying contact wire 4, and electrically insulating the contact wire 4 from the ceiling 1 as a supporting structure from one perspective. The covered track section 2, as indicated in Fig. 1, can be located in a tunnel, underpass or covered station, for example.

In the track section 2, a track 6 extends in a direction of travel 5, on which an electric rail vehicle not shown in further detail can move in a guided manner. In this case, the contact wire 4 is arranged above the track 6 as seen in a height direction 7, so that the rail vehicle can draw current in a manner known per se. Together with a transverse direction 8 extending transversely to the direction of travel 5 and transversely to the height direction 7, the direction of travel 5 and the height direction 7 span the space of the track section 2 in which the rail vehicle can move on the track 6.

The contact wire 4 is held in an overhead conductor rail 9 which is part of the device 3. Before the construction of the overhead conductor rail 3 is io briefly described with the aid of an enlarged profile view 10, the mounting of the overhead conductor rail 3 above track 6 on the ceiling 1 is first briefly explained.

A first support plate 11 is held to the ceiling 1 by anchoring means 12 such as bolts or heavy-duty anchors. A long rod insulator 13 is held against the first support plate 11, which is inclined to the ceiling 1 at an angle not further referenced. A second support plate 14 is attached to the end of the long rod insulator 13 opposite the first support plate 11, against which in turn the overhead conductor rail 9 is held.

The length of the contact wire 4 can change in the direction of travel 5 due to environmental influences such as temperature changes. In order to avoid mechanical stress caused by this, either the first support plate 11 is guided in relation to the ceiling 1 in the direction of travel 5 or the overhead conductor rail 9 is supported in relation to the second support plate 14 in the direction of travel 5.

To protect the guide partners from contamination, for a high load capacity of the guide partners against impact loads when passing a pantograph and for the smallest possible installation space, especially in tunnels, the guide should be designed as a sliding guide. In Fig. 1, therefore, either the first support plate 11 could be held slidably with respect to the ceiling 1 or the overhead conductor rail could be held slidably with respect to the second support plate 14.

However, in a device 3 in which the contact wire 4 carrying the electric current is suspended via sliding bearings, an increased failure rate can be observed in such a way that the sliding guide partners become canted and destroy each other. In the worst case, the entire device 3 can fail and the contact wire 4 can fall from the ceiling 1, which can have devastating consequences, especially when used for high-speed traffic.

Before presenting a proposed solution for reducing or avoiding the failures, the structure of the overhead conductor rail 9 will first be briefly discussed using the enlarged profile view 10.

Seen in the height direction 7, the overhead conductor rail 9 has a cross arm 15 on the upper side, from which two spaced clamping arms 16 io project at right angles and against the height direction 7. The overhead conductor rail 9 has a multi-part design as seen in the direction of travel 5, whereby the individual parts are mechanically and electrically connected to each other via fishplates 17, which are held on the overhead conductor rail 9 by fishplate screws. Tongue-and-groove connections 19 can be provided for secure mounting. On a side opposite the cross arm 15, each clamping arm 16 has a track 20 for an assembly vehicle not shown in further detail, each of which is directed away from a centre line 21 of the overhead conductor rail 3. From an underside of each track 20, seen in height direction 7, a clamping arm 22 extends towards the centre line 21. The contact wire 4 is clamped between the two clamping arms 22. The structure of the overhead conductor rail 9 is known per se, for example from DE 20 2004 009 420 U1, and will not be explained here in any further detail.

To reduce or avoid the previously explained failures of the device 3, the sliding guide is replaced by a rolling guide. This idea is explained below with reference to Figures 2 to 4 showing an alternative device 3' for supporting the electric current-carrying contact wire 4 and electrically insulating the contact wire 4 with respect to the ceiling 1 as a supporting structure from one perspective. In the alternative device 3', the conductor rail 9 is held via two long rod insulators 13, the two long rod insulators 13 being attached to the first support plate 11 via a guide rail 23. Opposite the first support plate 11, the conductor rail 9 is fastened to the long rod insulators 13 via a second support plate 14. For this purpose, clamping brackets 24 are screwed to an underside of each second support plate 14 as seen in the height direction 7, the transverse arm 15 of the conductor rail 9 being held between the respective second support plate 14 and the clamping brackets 24.

The guide rail 23 comprises a first rail body 25 on which the contact wire 4 is held stationary and a second rail body 26 which is held stationary on the first support plate 11 as a supporting body.

The second rail body 26 has, in a cross-section seen in the direction of travel 5, a U-profile with a connecting arm 27 extending in the transverse direction 8, from which two spaced-apart holding arms 28 extend counter to the height direction 7. Opposite to the connecting arm 27, at the other end of the connecting arms 27, one supporting io arm 29 each extends on top of the other in the transverse direction 8 and turns the U-profile into a C-profile. The connecting arm 27 is held on the first support plate 11 via clamp elements 30, which are screwed to the first support plate 11 via a counter plate 31.

Rolling elements 32 in the form of rollers, which are aligned transversely to the height direction 7, rest on the support arms 29. Because the second rail body 26 has a C-profile, it embraces the rolling elements 32 in a U-shape in the cross section as seen in the direction of travel 5. The rolling elements 32 are arranged axisymmetrically to a line of symmetry 33 running in the height direction 7, and are held on retaining walls 34 of the first rail body 25 extending in the height direction 7. The retaining walls 34 are connected to one another via a connecting wall 35 extending in the transverse direction 8, the long rod insulators 13 being supported on the connecting wall 35 in a manner to be described.

The rolling elements 32, here in the form of the rollers, have a common roller diameter 36 and, viewed in the direction of travel 5, should be arranged with a roller spacing 37 which is at least one, preferably at least two roller diameters 36. In the present embodiment, the roller spacing 37 is chosen to be 2.8 times larger than the roller diameter 36. Furthermore, the roller diameter 36 should be selected between 90 %

and 99 % of a distance 38 between the connecting arm 27 and the connecting walls 35 of the first rail body 25. In the present embodiment, the roller diameter 36 has 95 % of the distance 38. If the first rail body 25 rotates about the transverse axis 8, the rolling elements 32 will contact the connecting arm 27 so that the function of the guide rail 23 is still ensured.

A guide pin 39 extending in the height direction 7 is attached to the connecting wall 35. A first guide sleeve 40 is placed around the guide pin 39, so that a radial space 41 is formed between the guide pin 39 and the first guide sleeve 40. A resetting element 42, here in the form of a spring, is accommodated in this radial space 41, which is placed on the connecting wall 35 and aligned in the height direction 7. A cover element 43 is placed on the end of the resetting element 42 opposite the connecting wall 35, from which a second guide sleeve 44 extends radially outside the first guide sleeve 40 against the height direction 7. A retaining plate 45 is attached to the end of the second guide sleeve 44 opposite the cover element 43, and a holder 46 for the long rod io insulators 13 is screwed to the underside of the retaining plate 45 as seen in the height direction 7.

When the rail vehicle travels along the track section 2 under the alternative device 3', its pantograph lifts the retaining plate 45 in the height direction 7 when taking current from the contact wire 4. After passing the alternative device 3', the retaining plate 45 then falls back abruptly against the height direction 7, with the resetting element 42 cushioning the fall and preventing it from falling hard against the connecting wall 35.

A second alternative device 3" for supporting the contact wire 4 is now described below with reference to Figs. 5 to 7b.

The second alternative device 3" is held on the ceiling 1 via the first support plate 11 which in Fig. 5 is made of several parts. Retaining struts 47 are held on the ceiling 1 via the anchoring means 12, whereby four hinge plates 48 are held on the underside of the retaining struts 47 as seen in the height direction 7 and are arranged axisymmetrically with respect to the direction of travel 5. A long rod insulator 13 is held on each hinge plate 48. At the ends of the long rod insulators 13 opposite the hinge plates 48, a transverse rod 49 is held which runs in the transverse direction 8 and on which the second alternative device 3" shown in Fig. 6 is held.

Before describing the second alternative device 3" in more detail, an electrical overload protection 50 will first be explained which is intended to protect the second alternative device 3" from overvoltage damage in the event of short circuits of one of the long rod insulators 13. The electrical overload protection 50 electrically bypasses the second alternative device 3" and guides a current path 51 with high electrical conductivity here in the form of a cable 51 from the conductor rail 9 to the crossbar 49. The cable 51 is connected to the cross arm 15 of the conductor rail 9 via a cable lug 52. The cable lug 52 lifts the cable 51 to a bridge distance 53 above the conductor rail 9, as seen in the height direction 7, and guides it into a drag chain 54. The drag chain 54, also known as an energy guiding chain, then guides the cable 51 from the second alternative device 3" seen in the height direction 7 over the crossbar 49 to a side opposite to the cable lug 52 seen in the direction of travel 5, where it is then connected to the second alternative device 3".

The guide rail 23 of the second alternative device 3" comprises the transverse arm 15 of the conductor rail 9 as the first rail body 25, on which the contact wire 4 is held stationary. The second rail body 26 is held stationary here on the first support plate 11 as a supporting body via the crossbar 49 and the long rod insulators 13. In the present embodiment, the rolling elements 32, still in the form of rollers, are held on the retaining arms 28 of the second rail body 26, thus replacing the supporting arms 29. The first rail body 25 in the form of the transverse arm 15 of the conductor rail 9 is therefore held between the rolling 2o elements 32 and the connecting arm 27, as seen in the height direction 7, so that the conductor rail 9, as seen in the longitudinal direction 5, can expand and contract movably in its length according to temperature.

For fastening the second rail body 26 of the second alternative device 3" to the crossbar 49, a clamp 55 is provided comprising a first clamp part 56 and a second clamp part 57, both of which are screwed together. The first clamp part 56 is arranged above the crossbar 49 as seen in the height direction 7, while the second clamp part 57 is arranged below the crossbar 49, so that the two clamp parts 56, 57 embrace the crossbar 49 in the screwed-together state and thus hold the second rail body 26 on the crossbar 49.

On the underside of the second clamp part 57, viewed in the height direction 7, there are two retaining pins 58 arranged axisymmetrically to the direction of travel 5, each of which is guided through a round slot 59 in the connecting arm 27 of the second rail body 26. The two round slots 59 are arranged point-symmetrically to each other. The ends 60 of the retaining pins 58 guided through the round slots 59 are designed with a thickness which allows the connecting arm 27 of the second rail body 26 to be held positively against the retaining pins 58 against the height direction 7. Corresponding insertion openings 61 are formed for inserting the retaining pins 58 into the round slots 59. In this way a pivot bearing is formed which decouples the second alternative device 3" from the crossbar 49 with regard to torques.

The drag chain 54 is connected to the second rail body 26 via the screws 62 shown in Fig. 7b on the underside of the connecting arm 27 as seen in the height direction 7.

Fig. 8a shows an alternative second rail body 26.

The second rail body 26 is equipped with only two rolling elements 32 which are arranged opposite each other as seen in the transverse direction 8. The retaining arms 28 holding the rolling elements 32 are each held on a connecting arm 27, resulting in two angle profiles not further referenced, which are connected to each other at the retaining arms 27 via screws 63. Also screwed on via the screws 63 is a plate 64 below the two connecting arms 27, as seen in the height direction 7, on which the clamp 55 is held as in Figs. 7a and 7b. A detailed illustration is therefore omitted below.

Fig. 8b shows another alternative second rail body 26.

In the further alternative rail body, the upper clamp parts 56 are designed as brackets and the lower clamp part 57 is designed as a plate to which the brackets are screwed. Below the plate, a block 65 is screwed to which, again in the transverse direction 8, a connecting arm 27 is held on the left and right with a holding arm 28. A rolling element 32 is held on each holding arm 28.

Both alternative rail bodies 26 of Figs. 8a and 8b are clearly lighter in construction.

The devices 3', 3" described in Figs. 2 to 8b can be installed in suitable positions in Fig. 1. The first alternative device 3' can be extended by the pivot bearing of the second alternative device 3", while the second alternative device 3" can be extended by the resetting element 41.

Claims (10)

Claims

1. Device (3', 3") for supporting a contact wire (4) extending in a longitudinal direction (5) for supplying electrical energy to a rail vehicle comprising a support body (11) arranged above the contact wire (4) as viewed in a vertical direction (7) extending at right angles to the longitudinal direction (5), comprising a guide rail (23) guiding a thermal expansion movement of at least the contact wire (4) and having a first rail body (25) on which the contact wire (4) is held in a stationary position, and a second rail body (26) which is held in a stationary position on the support body (11), the first rail body (25) and the second rail body (26) being guided relative to one another via rolling elements (32).

2. Device (3', 3") according to claim 1, wherein the rolling elements (32) are rollers (32) aligned transversely to the longitudinal direction (5) and transversely to the vertical direction (7).

3. Device (3', 3") according to claim 2, wherein one of the rail bodies (25, 26), viewed in the longitudinal direction (5), comprises a U shaped cross-section with a connecting arm (27) and two holding arms (28) which are spaced apart from one another and projecting from the connecting arm (27), on which the rollers (32) are held.

4. Device (3', 3") according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the rollers (32) have a roller diameter (36) and, viewed in the longitudinal direction (5), are arranged at a distance from one another with at least one, preferably at least two roller diameters (36).

5. Device (3', 3") according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the rolling elements (32) are arranged axisymmetrically to the longitudinal direction (5).

6. Device (3', 3") as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein the first rail body (25) or the second rail body (26) is designed to embrace the rolling elements (32) in the form of a U in a cross-section viewed in the longitudinal direction (5).

7. Device (3', 3") according to claim 6, wherein the U has, viewed in the height direction, a first leg (27) and a second leg (29) opposite the first leg, and wherein the rolling elements (32) have a diameter between 90 % and 99 % of a distance (38) of the two legs (27, 29).

8. Device (3', 3") according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising a pivot bearing (58, 59) arranged on the first and/or second rail body (25, 26) for torque decoupling between the contact wire (4) and the support body (11).

9. Device (3', 3") according to claim 8, wherein the pivot io bearing (58, 59) comprises two slots (59) which are arranged point symmetrically with respect to one another and are guided in the height direction (7) through the first or second rail body (25, 26), through each of which slots (59) a retaining pin (58) with a thickened end (60) which is held stationary with respect to the supporting body (11) is guided in the height direction (7).

10. Device (3', 3") as claimed in one of the preceding claims, comprising a resetting element (42) arranged on the first and/or second rail body (25, 26) and pretensioned against the height direction (7) for damping forces entered into the contact wire (4) in the height direction (7).

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