CA1189180A - Dual control trailable railway switch machine - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A trailable railway switch machine which may be selec-tively power or manually operated for moving the switch points between their normal and reverse positions. The switch machine includes an energizeable electric motor, an electromagnetic clutch and a gear train transmission module for power operation. The switch machine includes a latchable hand throw lever for manual operation. The hand throw lever and gear train transmission are geared to a drive shaft which is bevel geared to an output crank having a crank arm.
The output crank is connected by an adjustable eyebolt to the throw rod which is connected to the switch points. The crank arm is connected to a spring toggle linkage which assists in moving the switch points and biases the switch points in their normal and reverse positions. A pair of cut-out and reversing switches are cam operated to provide for safe and reliable operation of the switch machine, and an overload protection relay senses excessive current to deenergize the motor during an overload condition.

Description

(Ca~ No. 712~ J~

DUAL CONTROL R~IL~BL R ~ WAY SWITCII ~ACHINE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
_ . ___ _ This invention relat2s to a railway switch machine hnd more particularly to an irnprovec1 yard switch mechanism which inc l~des a rev2rsi~1e electric rllotor for pow2r driving the switch points to their extreme posikionsO and include~ a hand throw lever :Eor manually shifting the switch points between their extreme posi.t:ion and which includes a sprin~ toggle9 a cxank, a main shaft~ a gear train and an electric clutch which permit the switch point~ to be trailed hy the wheels of a rai.lway vehicle without damage to the swi~ch mechani9mO
B~CKGROUND OF THE ~NVENTION
Generally, a railway switch machine which has universal usage may be capable of having at least two alternate mode~
of functioning such as, power and manual o erations9 ~or example, in classification yard operations, it is necessary to provide both a power operating mode as well a~ manual operating mode for mo~ing the swi~ch poink between their normal and rever~e positions. That is9 in receiving and dPparture yards as well as in mas~ transit yard~ and indus-trial siding applications, the railway switches are used to 3et up th~ routes of tho cars or train~. I'he railway switches are either automatically controlled from a remote location by either a computer or a yard master, and therefore~ power operation of the switch machines is required for such opera-tionæO Likewise, in many instances, it is necessary to pro-vlde a manual me! h~d GF manipl1lating tha railway switches.

For exam~le, du~ing certain ~ituations 3uch as, during power :Eailura, malntenarlce periods or duriny Iraln pull out at the departure yard~ ik is advantag00us to provida a manua:l. means~
such as~ a hand throw lever ~or m~ving the switch points be~
tweerl their kwo extreme positiorls~ In addi.tion, it is de~
sira~le in class.ification yard applicat:ions to provide trai.l-able ~ype of swi~ch machines in order to prevent derailmsnts of the railway vehicles and to preclude damage to the switchas which could re~ult in prolong delays in shipping as well a~
cause costly damage to the equipment and/or ladingO Accord ingly, in cla~slfication yards, a railway ~witch machine must be capable of operating in three different fashions~
namely, power operation by a suitable operator, manual opera-tion by the hand thxow lever and trailing operatlon by the wheel~ of passing railway ve!hicles. While there have been a number of pneumatic and electxic powered switch machines which are capable of functioning in ~uch a manner~ each of thase previous switch machines was pos~ess2d of certain in-~erent disadvantages~ For example~ air laaks are a problem with pneumatic switch machines and efficiency as w311 as reliability is a shortcoming of previ.ous eleckric and pneumatic switch machines~ Furthert previ.ous switch machines were diffi.cult to maintaln and service. In addition~ moisture and water accumulation within the housing resulted in power failures and caused freeze ups during the winter and periodR
of cold weathe~r. Moreover, adjustment between the OUtpllt member and the operating rod was either nonexistent cr di:Eficult to achieve in previ.ous switch machi.nes~ Likewise, prior switches were difficult to i.nstall and were not readily adaptable Eor both xight-hand and le~t~hand application~.
O CTS OF THE NVENTIONS
Accordingly, it is an object of thi3 invention to pro-vide a new and improved trailabl.e railway switch machine which alleviates the above noted shortcomings.
Another object of this inve!ntion i~ to provide a unique electric trailable switch machine which is modularly con-structed for easy ma.intenance, repair and replacementO
A further object of this invention .is to provide a novel trailable rallway switch machine in which the operating rod ~tro~e may be ea~ily int~rna71y adjusted to provide proper closure of the switch point~.
Yet another object of this invention i8 to provide a new electric trailable dual control switch machine which includes a water-tight welded housing for accommodating a ~pring toggle, a main cxank~ a main shaft~ a motor-clutch transmi~;~
sion, a structural base, a cover, a hand throw lever, and the electric control componentsO
Yet a further object of this invention is to provide an improved low pro~ile dual control ~witch machine which may be.mounted between two adjacent ties and which may be dis-po~ed next to the runni.ng track railO
Still another object of thls invention i~ to provide a new low-profil.e el~ctric trailable switch machine which is adapted to be directly installed in either left hand or .4~

right-hand applications without the need o:E ancillary equip-ment~
Still a further objart of this invention is to provide an ele~tric trailable switch machine for movirlg th~ ~witch pol.nts between two extrPme posit:ion~ comprising, an electric motor for power driving the swit:ch points between the two extreme positions, the elactric motor i8 coupled to an electric clutch which is energized and deenergi~ed in con-cordance with the electric motox~ the elec~ric clutch i~
10 coupled to a gear train which pxovide~ a mechanical advantage, the gear train i9 coupled to a ~pur gear which i~ mounted on a main shaft~ the main shaft drive~ a pair of beveled gears which cause angular di~placemont of an output crank, the output crank i~ connected by an adju~table membax ~o an 15 operating rod whic~ i8 connectad to the swi~ch poin~s, and a toggle mechanlsm is connect~d to the output crank for spring biasing the switch points in either of th~ two extreme posi~
tions.
An additional object of this invention is to provide a 20 new and improved electric trailable dual control railway ~witch machine which i~ economical in co~t, efficient in operationJ durable in ~ervice; reliable in use9 ea~y to repair and maintain, facile to install and ~aEe to attending per~onnelO

2 5 SUMM~ Y OF THE INVENT ION
In accoxdance with the present invention~ there i~ pro~
vid~d a low-pro:Eile dual control ~railable rai:Lway switch

3 r ~

which includes a pair of switch points ancl a modularly con-structed opera-ting machine for moving the swi-tch points he--tween -two extreme positions. ~he swi-~ch points are connected to the operating machine by an operating rod. The operating machine includes a pivo-tal output crank which is connected to the operating rod by an adjustable eyebol-t which may vary the stroke of the opera-ting rodO The pivo-tal crank includes a crank arm which is connec-ted to an over-the-center toggle mechanism which spring biases the switch poin-ts in bo-th of the two extreme positions. The toggle mechanism includes a compression spring and a pair of telescoping mernbers which have their remote ends journaled in self~aligning spherical bushings. The respective ends of the pivo-tal crank are journaled by self-aligning spherical bushings~ The pivotal crank is geared by a pair of bevel gears to a main drive shaft which is journaled by a pair of self-aligned bushingsO
The main drive shaft includes a spur gear which meshes with a gear train. The gear train is coupled by an elec-tric elutch to an electric motor which is adapted to power drive the switch points ~etween their two extreme positions. A
hand throw lever is coupled to the main drive shaft for manually shifting the switch points between -their -two ex-txeme positions. A cut~out switch disrup-ts the electrieal circuit to the electric motor and clu-tch before i-t is pos-sible to manually throw the switch. The pivo-tal crank includes a plurality of cam surfaces which cooperate with cam followers for controlling the electrical condition of ',J~

motor raversing and cut~o:Ef swit:chesD A. wat~3r tight w~:`Lded housing and r0moval cover protect the internally mount~d compononts a~gain~t inclsment weath~r and adv0r~e environ~
mental conditiorlqu DESCRXPTXON OF THE DR~WI:NGS
The above objects and oth~3r attend3nt :Eeatures and ad-vantage~ will become more :Eully eviderlt Erom th~ Eollowi.ng detai:led descriptiorl when con~idered in connect.ion with th~
accompanying drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a partial ~chematic view of a railway ~witeh and a top plan view with part~ bxoken away of the ~witch operating machine having i~8 cov~r removed to show in more d~tail the various internal a~ompon~3nt~ or elemant~! of lthe suba~sembli2~ of the operating machine~, FIG. 2 i~ a ~ectionalized elevAtional vie~ with the cover .i.n place of the ~witch operating machine taken ~ub-stantially along 7ine~ II of FIG. lo FIG~ 3 is an external and elevational vi0w of the ~witch operating machine a~ viewed from the hand throw lever end, DETRILED DESCRIPTIO~ OF TEI~ O~I
Referring now to the drawing wh0n l.ike par~ are de-picted by like refererlce numeral~ in each of the figures~
and in particular to FIG~ 1~ the nun~er 1 sche~atically de3ignates a right-hand rail.way ~witch layout with the let point closedO The .rai.lway switch 1 includes a pair oE stock or running trrlck rail~ la and lb and two movable witch point~ 2a and 2bo The ~tock running rails are generally dispos~d on tie plates (~ot sho~n~ which are secured tv wooden cross tie~ 3 in the u~ual well known manner~ e movable switch points 2a and 2b are fastened together by a head rod 49 r~he rai:L~ay switch 1 may be deined as occupying 5 iks noxmal position when khe movable switch point 2a i~
engaging the stock rail la while the movable switch point 2b is spaced from the stoc]c rail lb, a~ illuskrated in FIG. 17 Conversely, the railway ~w.itch 1 may be defined as occupyi.ng it~ reverse position whan the mova~lo point 2b engages the stoclc rail lb while the movable poink 2a is spaced from the stock rail la~
It w.ill be sean that tha ~witch machina or operating mechanism 5 cooperates with and is ~uitahly secur3d to the tvps of cross ties 3 adjacent the outer side of the ~tock rail lb~ As shown in FIGSo 1 and 3, a lateral ex~ending plate 14 and a pair of vertical end reinforcing plates 15 are w~lded to each side of khe housing 6 for facilitating the disposition between and attachm0nt to a pair of cross ties 3 with the usual spacing~ In actual practice, the switch machine may be attached to the ~op of the ties 3 by suitable lag bolts or the like in a conv3ntional manner~ The operating machanism 5 includes a plurality of individuall.y romovable subassen~lie3 or modulars which may be easily main~
tained~ repaired and replaced from the ~op side of a shallow rectanguJar metal housing or case 6. The housing 6 i3 a water--t.ight wellded casing which houses and supports the eight subasse~lies o~ tho mechanism 50 In ~iewirly FIGSo 2 and 3" it. will be s~en that a h.inged removable cover 7 cooperate~ with the top of the hou~ing 6 and includes a rubber gasket 8 which i~ glued in a paripheral slot 9 :Eormed on th~3 under~ide thereoEO The gasket 8 e:Efec-5 t:i~7ely seal~ th~ internal compon,ent o:E the mechani~m frommoisture" dirt, dust ans~ othe~ foreign material whlch i~
cornmon place in a rail:road mi:lieu., In practice;, the back~id~
of the housing is provided with a pair of adjustable T-shaped hinge pins 10 which cooperate with ~lotted ear~ 11 which are welded to the cover 7" A ha~p 12 and s:taple 13 ~re attached to th~ ~ront-~ide oLE the housillg 1 and co~er 7i. rhe ~tapl2 accommoda~te~ the shackle o~ a padlock or the like (not .~hown~
~or preventing unauthorized entry and tamper~ng with the swit~h mechani~m~ The switch mechani~m has been de~igned such that the top of the cover 7 i~ slightly below the top of the head oE track rail 2b so that ths switch machine 5 may generally be ~ituated right next to the rail without any clearance problemsO Thus, the switch machine 5 may be dis-posad as close to or as far away from the track rail a~
desired~
In viewing FIGo 1~ it will be seen that the switch points 2a and 2b are interconnected to tha operating me~hanism 5 and are moved between their normal and reverse positions by means of an operating or throw rod 16 which may be con~
nected to the haad rod 4 by a conventional adjustable switch basket (no-t shown). Vrha operating rod 16 pas~s through a suitab:Le central opening pxovided in the back side of the ¢~

housing 5. A flexible rubber boot 17 has a reduced end clamped -to the operating rod 16 and has an enlarged end attached to -the exterior of the back wall of housing 6 to prevent the entrance of moisture, dirt, dust and any other foreign material.
In viewing FIGS. 1 and 2, it will be seen tha-t the switch machine 5 basically includes eigh-t separate sub~
assemblies or modules, namely~ a toggle spring mechanism 20, a main output crank 21, a main shaft 22, mo-tor-clu-tch~
transmission 23, a structural base or housing 6, a cover 7, the electrical con-trol contacts and connec-tion -terminals 24, 24a, 24b, 24c, 24d and 24e and a foot pedal and hand throw lever assembly 25.
The toggle spring mechanisrn 20 includes a pair of elongated telescopic members 30 and 31 which are surrounded by a compression spring 32 for a~sisting and biasing the switch points 2a and 2b to both of the extreme positions.
The member 30 is a rod-like bolt having an enlarged head 30a formed on one end. The enlarged head 30a accommodates the outer race of a self-allgning spherical bushing 33 which receives a pivot pin 34. The pivot pin 34 is bolted to the top of an upright block or stanchion 35 which is welded to the hottom of housing 6. The intermediate portion of the bolt like member 30 is provided with an annular collar 36 against which is seated one end of spring 32. The o-ther end of spring 32 is seated against an annular collar 37 formed on the enlarged bifurcated end of member 310 The other end of 3~

the bol-t member 30 is -threaded and is fitted into member 31 which is hollowed ou-t to receive a hexagonal spring retainer nu-t (not shown). rrhe hexagonal nu-t is adapted -to slide wi-th~
in the ma-tching hollowed out cavity as the -toggle spring mechanism contracts and expands during movemerl-t of -the switch points~ As shown, the bifurcated end of member 31 is pivotally connected to a crank arm 38 which includes a self-aligning spherical bushing 39 as shown i.n FIG. 1. A pivot pin 40 passes through aligned holes in the bifurcations and the center of bushing 39 and is held in place by a pair oE
cct-ter pins ~1.
The main output crank 21 is pivotally connected at its respective ends by bearing plates 42 and self-aligned spherical bushings 43, one of which is shown in FIG. lo The operating rod 16 is pivotally connected to an adjustable threaded eyebolt 4~. As shown, a pivot pi.n 45 interconnects the eyebolt 44 to the operating rod 16 and is held in place by a cotter pin 46. The eyebolt ~4 is screw threaded into a threaded hole formed in central body por-tion of -the mai.n ou-t-~0 put crank 21. .[t will be appreciated that the moment armo:E the eyebolt 44 may be varied by turning the eyebolt in-wardly or outwardly to adjust the stroke of the operating rod 16. Thus, the stroke of the switch machine may be ad justed to between three and one hal:E (3-1/2) inches to six (6) inches with a. switch basket or be-tween four (4) inches to six (6) inches without a switch basketO It will be seen tha-t the crank 21 includes a bevel sector gear ~7 which meshes with a bevel gear 48 mounted on -the end of the main 3~

shaf-t 22. The bevel gear ~8 includes a collar portion 48a which is secured by a suitable set screw 48b and by a nut and lockwasher ~8c for attachmen-t to shaf-t 22. The shaft 22 is rotatably supported by a pair oE spherical bushings 49 and 50. The bushing ~9 is carried by a pillow block 51 while -the bushing 50 is bolted to the front wall of -the housing 6. As shown, a spur gear 53 is carried by -the main shaft 220 The spur gear 53 meshes with the output gear of a gear -train transmission 5~ which provides a mechanical advan-tage to necessitate less torque and places less demand of the elec-tric motor 56. The input of the gear train 5~ i5 connec-ted to the armature plate of an electromagnetic clutch 55. The electromagnetic stator of the clutch 55 is connected to the drive shaft of an instantaneously reversible d.c. ~r a.c.
electric motor 56. In practice, the electric motor, clutch and gear train are constructed as a unitary assembly so that all three units are bolted together and are replaceable a-t any given time.
As previously mentioned, the switch points 2a and 2b may be manually shifted between their two extreme positions.
Thus, an externally mounted hand throw lever 58 is disposed at the front end of the switch machineO The hub 59 of the lever 58 is connected -to -the end o r the drive shaft 22. A
handle 60 is provided at the free end of the lever 58 to allow a maintainer, yardman or brakeman to manually throw the railway switch. A foot pedal pivotal ~a-tch 61 is normally locked by passing the shackle of a lock (not shown) through a - lL -staple 62. The latch 61 may he secured to the front wall by suitable -threaded s-t.uds (not character~ ecl). The latch 61 in-cludes an upper hook por-tion 63 which prevents -the lever 58 from being lifted when in its loc]ced position. The latch 61 includes an inward depending finger 64 which cooperates with a r -shaped interlocking lever 65 which is pivoted about the bolt 66 and spacer 67 centrally mounted to -the fron-t wall of the housing 6. When the latch 61 is unlatched by step--ping on the serrated pedal por-tion 68, the lifting of the lever 58 will cause the cam 69 to engage the right hand end or leg of i.nterlocking lever 65 as viewed in FIG. 3. This causes the interlocking lever 65 to rotate in a cockwi.se di-rection so that the left hand end of the lever engages the finger 6~ which prevents the latch 61 from ~eing returned to its latched position until the throw lever 58 is returned to the position shown in the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 2, a slide or plunger rod 70 has one end pivotally connected to the pedal latch 61 and includes an adjustable cam member 71 which is screw threaded on the other end thereof. As shown, the cam member 71 cooperates with a roller operated lever 72 of a conventional miniature cut-out switch 73 which controls a pair of internal electrical.
contacts to open and close the control circuit for the elec-tric motor 56. Normally, the lever roller 72 rests on the smaller diameter surface of cam 71 so that the contacts of the cut-out switch 73 are closed. However, when the pedal latch 61 is pivotally depressed by foot of a maintainer or _ 12 -.~

bra]c~man~ tha slide rocl 70 is moved to the right as viewed in FIG~ 2r and the larger diameter cam surface of mernber 7L
depress~s the roller levPr 72~ I'he depression oE the roller lever 7~ causes the opening of the electrical cut-out. con-S tacts which causes the inlterr1lptic)n o:E the motor controlcircuit and prevents automatic operation o.f tha switch mechan.i~m 5.
In viewing FCG~ lt it will be scen that the main output crank 21 is providad with our adju~table sector cam surfaceæ
81a, 81b and 81c, 81d ~ich cooperat0s the roller levar~ 82a~
82b and 82c, 82d o the conventional miniatura motor rever~
and cut-out swikches 83a, 83b nd 83Co 83d~ respectivaly~
The reversa and cut-out switches are mountad to the respective tines of a Y-shaped bra~ket 84 which i~ bolted t3 the in~ide ~5 o~ k~e back wall of case 6. Tha cam surface~ depres~ and releas~ the roller levers to open and close the internal electrical contact~ of the reverse and cut-out ~witches to interrupt and establish the appropri.ate circuits ~o thak the switch machine may be power driven between its normal and rever~e position~. ~he element 24a is an electrical power supply which converts the 110 vo1t a/c. voltage into a ~uit-able dnc~ voltage for operation of the d~co electromagnetic clutch 55. The element 24b is a current sensor and ovaxload relay which senses when excessive ~urront is being drawn by the motor 56r For examplo~ if the swit~h points are blocked by a piece of coal, a stone or an ice build~up~ the motor 56 wi.ll draw excessiva current which causes the over I oad relay tQ interrupt the control CirCIlit to the motor 56 so that the s~i.~ch poin~s may be returned to their unobstructed po~ition~
The elemant ~.4c i3 a æt.andard terminaL board having a plur-ality of A~R connectors which permit~ all the nece~sary conrlecti.ons between the internal and ext.e.rnal e:lectrical leads~ Irhe element ~4d i~ a Jon.es strip which allows easy ~onnection o:E the el~ct:r:ical leads of motor 56 to the wire harness 75 o~ the switch machine~ The element 24e is a magnetic type of revers.ing contactor which i~ controlled by 10 the revar~ing switches B~b and 82c., Let us now assume that the ~witch points 2a and 2b are in thei.r normal po~ition as shown in FIG O 1 and that it i~
necessary to automatically move the swit~h points from their normal to their reverse po~;i.tion by energiæirlg the reversible electric motor 56~ As previously mentioned, automatic opera~
tion of the switch machine 5 may be remotely controlled by either a computer in a fully automated classification yard or a yardmastex in a semi automated clas~ification yard.
When the contxol circuit is closed, the alectric motor 56 as well as the electromagnetic clutch 55 ~ecome enorgizedO The rotational movement of the armature of the a~cO or d,c.
motor 56 is coupled hy engaged clutch 55 to the input of gear train 54~ The gear train 54 transposes the high speed rota-tion into a lower speed so that the output gear o~ the gear train 54 conveys a relative high torqua to the spur gear 53O
~he rotational movement of gear 53 is coupled by shaft 22 to the bevel year 48 which drives the beval sector gear 47O The - 14 ~

3~

bevel sectox gear 47 rotates approxlmataly 90 degree~ sc that the main crank 21 al~o undergoe~ count0rclockwi~e displacs~-ment of approximately 90 degxees, as v.iewed in FIGg 2. Thu~, the crank arm 38 will be displac~sd :Erom the position ~hown by solid 1ine to the position shown in phan~om 90 th~ the pivotal eyebolt 44 irnparts an inward longituda]. movement to the operating rod 16~ Thus, the sw:it.ch points are moved from their normal to their re~er6a position in which the switoh point 2b engages running rail lb while tho ~witch point 2a is 6paced from the runn.ing rail la~
Let U6 now regress a moment to the point where the bevel sector gear 47 has drivan the output crank 21 and crank axm 38 to approximately 45 degree~ of their total movement~
Under this oondition, the telescopic membar3 30 and 31 axe ~ully depre~sed and khe coil spring 32 i6 fully ~ompre~sed~
Now the cam 81c releases the le~er 82c so that khe xeversing switch 83c closes the normal motor circuit so that the switch machine may be moved ba~k to its norrnal posiition in case the switch point 2b encounters an obstruction. ~ow when the crank 21 and crank arm 38 pass the top dead center point, namely, the 45 degrees mark, the ~pring 32 begln~ ~o expandr and the toggle spring rnechanism 20 ~tart6 to assist the electric motor in driving the switch points to kheir reverse posi~ionO At ,some point be.Eore the end of the full stroke~
the cam surface 81a causes the opening of the normal cut~out switch 83a for deenergizing the clutch 55 and motor 56~ It will ~be appreciated that in addition to assisting in the - 15 ~

movem~nt of t:he switch point, the spring 32 biases the swit~h points 2a and 2b in ei~her of their extrem~ positions~ Xn actual practice~ the spxing 3~ provide~ a minimum holding or bia~ing :Eorce of 1000 lb~ when the ~pring i~ 600 lb~o per .inch, and when it is preload~d at 1-2~3 inches, The cycie tlme ~or operating the ~witch po:Lnts betwe~n their two extrelne po~itions i~ approximately 2 ~conds. It will be appr~ciated that ths hand thr~w lever 58 remains ~tation~
ary during the power operating mode due to a di~engagemsnt featuxe built into the hub 59~
If it i5 de~ired to mo~e the ~witch po.int~ back to their normal position~ it is simply n~ce~ary to re0nergize the electric motor 56 and th~ electromagnetic clutch 55 so that a rever~ing procedure o~cur3, Th~ motor 5~ now rotates in the opposite direction ~nd drives the output crank 22 in a cloc~wise direction through the clutch 55, gaar train 54 spur gear 53, shaft 22 and ~he bevel g~ar 47 and 48~ The cam 81b release~ tha levsr 82b and close~ tha reversing switch 83b near mid stroke9 and the cam 81d opens the raverse cut-out switch 83d near the end of the operating ~troke~
Thuso th~ motor 56 and the toggle spring linkage move the output crank 22~ crank 47 and eyebolt 44 in a clockwise dir~c-tion to shift the op~rat.ing rod 16 outwardly so that the switch points assuma their normal po~ition as 3hown in FIG~ lo Let us assume that the railway switch ls in its normal position as sh~wn in FIG~ 1, and that a railway vehicle is appr~aching the switch po~ition on the ~witch point 2~ and ~ 16 ~

3~

the vppoC~ite sid ~ ng or turll~out rail (not characterlxed) ~
Urlder thi.s concliti.on~ a tra:iling action ~will oc~ur when -the :Eor~ard ~heel of the railway veh.icle forces t:he switch point 2a to operl~ ~husO both o:~ the switch point:3~ which axe tied togethe:r by xod 3 j, will be shi~ted Erom their normal to reverse positiorl as the vehicle pa~ses through the rail way switcllo Ik will be ~een that the throw rod :1.6 move~
in~Arardly and f~auses countercloc}cwise rotation of the crank 21 and crank arm 3B through eyebolt 44, The movement o the crank arm 22 cau~e~ the compress.ion of the spring togglo link 20~ The rotation of the crank 21 is tran~mitted by bevel gears 47 and 48 as will spur ~ear 53 to the year train transrnis~ion 54D Ho~7ever, since ~the clutch 55 i~ desnergi~ed~
the motor 56 is decoupled by the gear train S3 so that the ~orce due to the residual magneti~m of t~e motor need not be overcome during a trailing actionO lt will be ~een that once the crank arm 38 pa~ses dead centert namely~ the 45 degree pointO the compressive force of the ~pring 32 will drive the switch point3 to their rever3e position, AgainO the spring orce o~ a 1000 lbsJ/inch will hold the point~ in the rever6e positionO The oper~tion of a t.railing action from the re~ersa to the norma] position ifi sub~tantially the ~ame except the movements are rever~ed and the switch point 2b is angaged ~y th~ front wheel of the pa~ing railway ~ehicle.
Let us again assume that the railway ~w.itch is in it~
normal position as shown in FIGo 1~ and that it iB desirable to manually ma.~ipulate the ~witch points to their reverse position~ Under thi~ conditionO a yardman; brakeman or maintainer will normally unlock and remove the lock from the ~taple 62 and then will step on the foot pedal. 68~ This pivots the latch member 61 which cau~e~ the rod 70 to shift and re~ult~ in the depression of lever 72 by the cam 7]..
Thus~ the contact~ or cut~out 6witch 72 are opened to inter-rupt the circuit pakh to the motor 56 and ciutch 55 ~o that thP operating lever may be ~aEel~y thrown by hand without dangex of injury to a worhman by an inadvertent remote powor operation9 ~axt, the maintainer will normally grab the handle 60 and will permit the hub 59 to be engagoable to the drive shaft 22~ As the lever S8 is pick*d up and rotated, the cam 69 engages the intarlocking lever 65 and prevents the latch 61 from being closed. ~ha rotation is tran~mitted via spur g~ar 53 to the gear txain 54 and via bevel gears 48, 47 to the output crank 21 and crank arm 389 The angular displacement of crank 21 i~ tran3posed to linear movement of the throw rod 16 via eyebolt 44~ The angular di~placemant of the crank arm 38 causes the contraction of the ~pring toggle 20 linkaga 20t and at slightly boyond the mid-strokl3 the com-preR~ivn spring 32 completes the movement of th~ ~witch points to their revar~e positionO The disengay~ment feature of the hub 59 and the end of ~ha~t 22 allcws the lever 58 to be safely lowerQd to its oppo~ite position or to be ~a~ely 25 returned to the :la tch stand~ Thusp no tor~ue i~ applied to the lever 58 when the spring 32 dxive~ switch point to eithar of the two extreme positionq so that there i~ no L~t.;3~

danger of injury to the irldlvldual dur.irlg t~e manual throw~
ing of the railway ~twitch. It wi.~ 1 be appxeciated that th~
proei3dure for moving the sw.ikch polntct from their reverse to normal po.si.tion i~ sub~:tantially the ~aml3 exc~spt the lever 5 58 i~ rot:at~d in a counte3.rclockwi te d:Lrectior~ as viewe~l in FIG. 3i Further~ ~he shaft 22" ~pur gear 53" gear trairl 54~
k:)evel gear 480 47, the crank 21" t~ae eranlc arm 38 and eyebolt 44 ar~? rotatad in th~ opposit~ direction whil~ the ~hr~w rod 16 is moved outward:Ly to move the ~witch ps: ints to theix 10 normal pos i t ion~ .
ThusO there has boerl described th~ variou~ al~ernative method~ of operating the switch bet:we~n its normal po~ikion, a~ shown in the drawing~ and it~ reverse po~ition~ According ly, the Rwitch points may be effectively moved rom one ex-treme po~ition to the other extreme pG~ition in any one ofthreo difarent way~, namely~ power driving the ~witch point~ by energizing the electric motor 56~ manually m~ving the switch points by throwing the hand operating l~ver 58, and trailing the switch point~ by the wheel~ of a railw~y vehicle pas~ing through the 3witch by moving ths operating rod 160 Although I have herain illustrated and d~cribsd only one form o~ apparatu~ embodying my inventionO it is under-stcod that various changes, alt2ra~ion~l modifications and oquival2nt~ may ba made and used by tho~e skilled in th~
art which fall. within the spirit and scop~ o~ the claim~ of m~ inventionO

Claims (9)

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patents is:

1. An electric trailable switch machine for moving the switch points between two extreme positions comprising, an electric motor for power driving the switch points between the two extreme positions, said electric motor is coupled to and electric clutch which is energized and deenergized in concordance with said electric motor, said electric clutch is coupled to a gear train which provides a mechanical ad-vantage, said gear train is coupled to a spur gear which is mounted on a main shaft D said main shaft drives a pair of beveled gears which causes angular displacement of an output crank, said output crank is connected by an adjustable member to an operating rod which is connected to the switch points, and a toggle mechanism is connected to said output crank for spring biasing the switch points in either of the two extreme positions .

2. The electric trailable switch machine as defined in claim 1, wherein said adjustable member is screw threaded to said output crank so that the strike of said operating rod may be varied to ensure proper closure of the switch points.

3. The electric trailable switch machine as defined in claim l, wherein a hand-throw lever is connected to main shaft for manually moving the switch points between the two extreme positions.

4. The electric trailable switch machine as defined in claim 1, wherein said output crank includes a plurality of cam surfaces which cooperate with cam followers for con-trolling the electrical condition of motor reversing and cut-off switches.

5. The electric trailable switch machine as defined in claim 1, said main shaft is rotatably supported by a pair of spherical bushings.

6. The electric trailable switch machine as defined in claim 1, wherein said toggle mechanism includes a com-pression spring and a pair of telescoping members which have their remote ends journaled by spherical bushings.

7. The electric trailable switch machine as defined in claim 1, a cut-out contact deactivates said electric motor and said electric clutch to permit safe manual movement of the switch points.

8. The electric trailable switch machine as defined in claim 1, said adjustable member is a screw threaded eyebolt which is pivotally connected to said operating rod.

9. The electric trailable switch machine as defined in claim 1, wherein the respective ends of said output crank are journaled by spherical bushings.