EP0057128B1 - Railroad tie renewing machine and method of using it - Google Patents

Abstract

1. Machine for replacing railway sleepers, comprising a truck (31) provided with devices suitable for effecting the individual replacement of old sleepers (36) with new sleepers (37) and in particular with a sleeper-handling unit comprising a set of gripping members which enable a sleeper or a track rail to be grasped, these members, which are suspended from a transverse beam and are displaceable vertically and longitudinally and transversely relative to the direction of the track, comprising a first member (39) formed by a clamp able to grasp a sleeper and be moved in transverse direction on one side of the track generally relative to a vertical plane passing through a first track rail, a second member (40) and a third member (41) each able to engage one of the track rails (63, 64) so as to raise it, the first gripping member (39) being able to be moved in transverse direction independently of the other two, while these latter can be displaced together and have lateral projections (81) which can be placed respectively under each to the track rails for the purpose of the raising these latter, characterised in that the second gripping member (40), which is situated between the first gripping member (39) and the third gripping member (41) and is able to engage a rail, is similarly to the first gripping member, a clamp designed to grasp a sleeper which can thus be grasped successively or simultaneously by a first clamp (39) and by a second clamp (40), this latter itself being able to move in transverse direction generally in the space separating the vertical planes containing respectively the track rails (63, 64).

Description

The railroad superstructure is mainly made up of three elements of uneven longevity: the rails, the sleepers and the ballast. The effort to reduce track maintenance costs relates in particular to the search for better harmonization of the reliability specific to each of these three elements.

It is for this reason, and to reduce the consumption of noble woods, that for many years now, wooden sleepers have been increasingly replaced by concrete sleepers, which are much less sensitive to atmospheric agents and whose the rail fastening equipment has significantly better stability over time.

Concrete sleepers, which require heavier handling means, were preferentially introduced on the main axes with high traffic density, where maintenance operations are carried out with powerful mechanical means so that the rates of advancement are as large as possible in order to minimize the disruption caused by traffic on such lines. On the other hand, these means, which are costly in operating expenses, are not essential on the other lines, which are most often not electrified and where goods traffic generally predominates. However, it is certain that replacing the wooden sleeper floor with a concrete sleeper floor would help reduce the maintenance costs of such lines, provided that this substitution can be done in a very economical way.

The recent appearance of concrete sleepers with a thickness close to that of conventional wooden sleepers makes it possible to envisage such a substitution economically.

• - si le moule de ballast dans lequel la traverse est enfermée n'a pas été détruit et surtout si le plan sur lequel s'appuie la traverse est préservé, et
• - si les traverses adjacentes n'ont pas été dérangées.

We know that the fact of replacing a sleeper in isolation does not destabilize the track:

• - if the ballast mold in which the cross member is enclosed has not been destroyed and especially if the plane on which the cross member rests is preserved, and
• - if the adjacent sleepers have not been disturbed.

As to date the replacement sleepers are made of wood and the same thickness as the sleepers to be renewed, the two previous conditions have been met and, therefore, the substitution operations have never posed major technical problems , if not at the cost price because the methods used are essentially manual.

By replacing, for example, one out of five crosspieces in a first phase of work, then as much during a following phase and so on, we see that all the crosspieces can be changed at the end of a period whose duration can be adapted various imperatives, particularly those of a budgetary nature. However, such a method requires being able to change only one element at a time, which heavy mechanized processes do not allow, which moreover considerably disturb the operation of the track.

It is therefore necessary to be able to easily replace one by one the old wooden sleepers with new concrete sleepers, with mechanical means making it possible not to deteriorate the quality and safety of the track, not to disturb the operation and to obtain the best possible rate of progress of the works.

If the current manual methods can remain for the isolated replacement of wooden sleepers with wooden sleepers, these methods must be discarded for the replacement by concrete sleepers. Indeed, on the one hand the concrete sleepers have a mass too large to be handled manually and, on the other hand, because of the sealed studs that they comprise, the concrete sleepers have a larger size in height than the wooden sleepers, which requires, to be able to introduce them under the track without lifting it, to completely strip the ballast mold to a depth of 5 to 10 cm below each sleeper. Consequently, the ballast mold is destroyed and the new cross member will therefore have to be wedged.

In an attempt to resolve the problems posed by the actual handling of concrete sleepers, small machines called "sleeper substitutes" have appeared. They make it possible to extract the old sleepers and introduce the new ones. Unfortunately, these very light small machines, by resting on the track, exert on it significant transverse forces, in particular during the introduction of the new sleepers, so that they give the track local deformations that they cannot correct. In addition, the ballast mold must be stripped manually, the new crosspiece must be manually wedged and the track manually prepared. We see that all these operations remaining to be performed manually are too important for the yields to remain acceptable. In addition, the track is destabilized, which may require the setting up of a slowdown pending the subsequent ballasting and heavy mechanical stuffing operations.

The present invention therefore aims to create a machine capable of performing at high speed all the operations necessary for the replacement of wooden sleepers in particular by concrete sleepers, while keeping the track its perfect integrity.

Such a machine is, in a known manner for example from AU-B-453 660, constituted by a wagon equipped with devices capable of individually replacing old sleepers with new sleepers, and in particular of a sleepers handling group comprising a set of gripping members which make it possible to grip a sleeper or a rail of the track, these members, suspended from a transverse beam and movable both in height as longitudinally and transversely with respect to the direction of the track, comprising a first member constituted by a clamp capable of gripping a cross member and of moving in a transverse direction from one side of the track substantially from a vertical plane passing through a first track rail, a second member and a third member capable of gripping each of one of the rails of the track to lift it, the first gripping member being able to move in transverse direction independently of the other two, while the latter can move together and have side spouts which are capable of to place themselves respectively under each of the rails of the track in order to lift them.

The invention relates to a machine of this kind, further characterized in that the second gripping member, located between the first and the third and capable of gripping a rail, is, like the first gripping member, a clamp designed to grip a crosspiece, which can thus be gripped successively or simultaneously by a first clamp and by a second clamp, the latter being able to move in a transverse direction substantially in the space separating the vertical planes respectively containing the rails of the way. We see that the first clamp evolves in the space located on one side of the track and the second clamp in the space located between the two rails of the track, while the third gripper can evolve in the space located on the other side of the track.

The first clamp, which is intended to perform the major part of the handling operations of the sleepers, should be able to be pivotally actuated around its vertical axis of symmetry, by at least a quarter of a turn so as to be able to '' bring the sleepers parallel to the track, which facilitates their routing on board the machine. It is also advantageous to ensure that the second clamp can move in the transverse direction independently of the third gripping member, so that the latter remains stationary while the second clamp moves transversely to ensure, as will be seen below. , the end of the operation of installing new sleepers.

As regards the movements in height and in the longitudinal direction of the three gripping members, these perform all three of them together with the transverse beam which supports them.

In a preferred embodiment, the transverse beam of the handling group is a telescopic beam formed of an inner tube, at the end of which is suspended the first clamp and which is movable by sliding in an outer tube connected to a slide able to move in height (thanks to a motor means) along a guide column fixed by its top to a carriage movable in longitudinal direction along guide rails integral with the chassis of the wagon, and along the outer tube can move on a short stroke a sliding part to which are suspended the second clamp and the third gripping member. To ensure the independence in transverse direction of these two gripping members from each other, the third member can be suspended directly from said sliding part in the region of its end facing outwards, the second being suspended by means of displacement in transverse direction.

The amplitude of the transverse stroke which the first clamp and the second clamp can accomplish is preferably close to half the length of a cross member, while the short stroke to which the transverse displacements of the third gripping member can be limited is about the width of a rail shoe.

A machine according to the invention may advantageously further comprise an earthmoving group comprising a clamshell movable in height and in the longitudinal direction and designed to allow the removal and replacement of the ballast surrounding the crosspiece to be replaced, which leads to fully mechanical handling of the ballast.

Preferably, this clamshell is subdivided into three parts separated by two intervals forming free spaces where the rails of the track are inscribed when the grab is lowered in contact with the ballast, so that the latter can work on both sides other rails along the entire length of the sleepers. In order to be able to give at these intervals a minimum width corresponding to the width of the rail pads, despite the offset of the wagon chassis relative to the rails in a curved track, the clamshell should be subject to the curvature of the track by giving it the possibility of moving in a transverse direction under the action of a guide means maintaining said free spaces facing the rails of the track. For this purpose, the clamshell can be suspended by articulated bars forming a deformable parallelogram located in a transverse plane, these bars being attached to a carriage movable in the longitudinal direction, preferably moving on the same rails as the carriage of the group of handling.

To avoid the prior unloading of replacement sleepers on the track and the reloading of replaced sleepers, a machine according to the invention preferably has a double conveyor, namely a conveyor for removing old sleepers and a conveyor for supplying new sleepers. , both accessible to the first clamp of the handling group. This arrangement allows direct new sleepers to be brought ment of a flat wagon coupled to the machine and to evacuate the old sleepers towards it. In addition, the machine should be equipped with a ballast reserve hopper, so as to be able to dump transversely to the track any quantity of additional ballast necessary to properly stuff the crossbar just installed, with a tamping group. ballast under this crosspiece and finally a leveling brush box to sweep and remove the excess ballast.

In order to completely mechanize all of the sleeper renewal operations, the various movements and displacements of the movable members which it comprises should be obtained by means of motors or jacks, preferably hydraulic, controlled from a control (of course with the exception of the transverse movements of the clamshell bucket of the earthworks, which depend solely on the aforementioned means of guidance on the rails).

The invention also relates to a method of handling sleepers during substitution operations using a machine as described above. This process is in particular characterized by the fact that, after removal of a crosspiece to be replaced, the installation of a new crosspiece takes place in two phases, namely a first phase where the crosspiece, captured in its central region by the first clamp is slid by the latter under the first rail of the track until said clamp is stopped by said rail, and a second phase where the crosspiece, released from the first clamp, is gripped in its central region by the second clamp beyond said rail, the latter clamp completing the positioning of the cross member under the rails of the track. This operating mode, authorized by the machine according to the invention, is of great importance. Indeed, the transverse forces inflicted by the machines known until now mainly because the new sleepers are, during their establishment, pushed under the rails by their rear end, so that they penetrate by driving back the ballast , which considerably hinders their progress. On the other hand, according to the invention, the new sleepers are grasped and always pulled by their central region, which eliminates this drawback and thus avoids any deformation of the track. As for the removal of an old crosspiece to be replaced, it is carried out by means of the first clamp preferably in two successive extraction phases, in each of which the crosspiece is pulled by this clamp of approximately half its length. A transverse stroke of reduced amplitude is therefore sufficient for this clamp, which simplifies the design of the machine.

• Les figures 1 et 2 représentent de manière simplifiée, respectivement en élévation latérale et en plan, une machine selon l'invention.
• La figure 3 représente, en élévation frontale et à plus grande échelle, le groupe de manutention de la machine et en montre plusieurs positions de fonctionnement dans les premières phases d'une opération de substitution de traverses, savoir les phases d'extraction d'une traverse ancienne.
• La figure 4 représente une vue suivant la flèche IV de l'objet de la figure 3, montrant le groupe de manutention et le groupe de terrassement.
• La figure 5 représente une vue analogue à celle de la figure 3 ; elle montre les phases opératoires suivantes et fait apparaître le groupe de terrassement.
• La figure 6 représente une vue suivant la flèche VI de l'objet de la figure 5.
• Les figures 7 et 8 représentent, à la manière des figures 3 et 4, les éléments montrés sur ces figures, mais ici dans les dernières phases opératoires (mise en place de la nouvelle traverse).

The following description, with reference to the accompanying drawings by way of nonlimiting examples, will make it possible to understand clearly how the present invention can be put into practice.

• Figures 1 and 2 show in simplified manner, respectively in side elevation and in plan, a machine according to the invention.
• Figure 3 shows, in front elevation and on a larger scale, the handling group of the machine and shows several operating positions in the first phases of a sleeper substitution operation, namely the extraction phases of a old crosses.
• Figure 4 shows a view along arrow IV of the object of Figure 3, showing the handling group and the earthmoving group.
• Figure 5 shows a view similar to that of Figure 3; it shows the following operating phases and shows the earthworks group.
• FIG. 6 represents a view along arrow VI of the object of FIG. 5.
• Figures 7 and 8 represent, in the manner of Figures 3 and 4, the elements shown in these figures, but here in the last operating phases (establishment of the new cross member).

• - deux convoyeurs à rouleaux 34, 35 jumelés, permettant respectivement l'évacuation des traverses anciennes 36 à remplacer et l'approvisionnement en traverses neuves 37 à mettre en place. Certains au moins des rouleaux de ces convoyeurs sont motorisés de manière à assurer le déplacement des traverses dans le sens des flèches portées sur la figure 2 ;
• - un groupe de manutention 38 comportant trois pinces de préhension 39, 40 et 41 et destiné à effectuer d'une part l'enlèvement des traverses anciennes 36 de la voie ferrée 42 et leur dépôt sur le convoyeur d'évacuation 34 (qui les dirige vers un wagon plat voisin non représenté) et d'autre part la prise en charge des traverses neuves 37 (acheminées du même wagon plat par le convoyeur d'approvisionnement 35) et leur mise en place dans la voie 42 ;
• - un groupe de terrassement 43 permettant, grâce à une benne preneuse 44, d'enlever ou de déverser du ballast dans la région d'une traverse de la voie 42 ;
• - une trémie à ballast 45 située à peu près au milieu du wagon et dotée d'un obturateur de sortie 46 ; cette trémie peut être réalimentée, à partir d'un autre wagon voisin également non représenté, à l'aide d'un transporteur à bande 47 ;
• - un groupe de bourrage mécanique lourd 48, complété d'un dispositif de maintien à niveau par vieillissement artificiel et d'un dispositif de damage ;
• - un caisson-brosse de régalage 49 destiné à parachever l'opération de remplacement de traverses par balayage du ballast excédentaire, ce dispositif étant complété par un volet 50 de reprofilage de banquette.

A machine for replacing the sleepers or “sleeper substitute according to the invention is, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in the form of a wagon 31 with bogies 32, comprising a raised frame formed by two strong longitudinal members 33. This wagon is essentially equipped with the following devices, listed in the order in which they appear from one end to the other of the wagon:

• - Two twin roller conveyors 34, 35, allowing respectively the evacuation of old sleepers 36 to be replaced and the supply of new sleepers 37 to put in place. At least some of the rollers of these conveyors are motorized so as to ensure the displacement of the crosspieces in the direction of the arrows shown in FIG. 2;
• - A handling group 38 comprising three grippers 39, 40 and 41 and intended to effect on the one hand the removal of the old sleepers 36 from the railway 42 and their deposition on the evacuation conveyor 34 (which directs them towards a neighboring flat wagon not shown) and on the other hand taking charge of the new sleepers 37 (routed from the same flat wagon by the supply conveyor 35) and placing them in track 42;
• - An earthmoving group 43 allowing, thanks to a clamshell 44, to remove or pour ballast in the region of a cross member of the track 42;
• - a ballast hopper 45 located approximately in the middle of the wagon and provided with an outlet shutter 46; this hopper can be replenished, from another neighboring wagon also not shown, using a conveyor belt 47;
• a heavy mechanical tamping group 48, supplemented with a level-keeping device by artificial aging and a tamping device;
• - A leveling brush box 49 intended to complete the operation of replacing sleepers by sweeping the excess ballast, this device being supplemented by a flap 50 for reprofiling the seat.

Wagon 31 is self-propelled thanks to a propulsion assembly, not shown.

We see in particular in FIGS. 3 and 4 how the handling group 38 is made up. It comprises a telescopic transverse beam 51 carrying the three clamps 39, 40 and 41 mentioned above and formed of an outer tube 52 of square section and of a inner tube 53 also of square section, capable of moving by sliding in the tube 52 under the action of a long jack 54. The tube 52 is fixed to a slide 55 which can move, by means of a motor means not shown, along a vertical column 56 of circular section, which is suspended from a carriage 57 movable in the longitudinal direction of the wagon 31 in guide rails 58 integral with the side members 33.

The clamp 39 is fixed under the end of the tube 53 emerging from the tube 52, by means of a motorized connecting member 59 enabling it to rotate a quarter of a turn, in one direction or the other, around its vertical axis of symmetry.

The clamps 40 and 41 are carried by a sliding part 60 capable of moving, over a short stroke, thanks to a jack 61, below and along the tube 52 to which it is suspended by rollers resting on wings 62 which the tube 52 offers laterally. The clamp 41 is suspended at one end of the movable part 60 close to the end of the tube 53 opposite that to which the clamp 39 is suspended. The clamp 40 is suspended from said part 60 , between the clamps 39 and 41, by means of a translation means constituted by a rotating threaded rod 29 and a nut 30 through which the latter passes, which is mounted under the part 60 parallel to the longitudinal direction of the latter and tubes 52 and 53 forming the telescopic beam 51.

It can thus be seen that the clamps 39, 40 and 41 can move in the three directions of space; more precisely, all of said clamps are movable relative to the chassis of the wagon 31, longitudinally by displacement of the carriage 57 along the rails 58, vertically by displacement of the slide 55 along the column 56 and transversely, respectively by sliding of the tube 53 in the tube 52 for the clamp 39, by displacement of the part 60 for the clamps 40 and 41 and, moreover for the clamp 40, by rotation of the threaded rod 29. Of course, said clamps are each provided with 'an actuating means at the opening and closing of their branches. However, one can dispense with providing such an actuating means the clamp 41, because, as will be seen, unlike the other clamps 39 and 40, it is not used to grip the crosspieces, so that its branches can remain stationary when open.

Figure 3 shows the clamps 39, 40 and 41 in the initial position, in which the clamps 39 and 41 are located above the sleeper heads of the track 42, therefore on either side of the rails 63, 64 of that -this, while the clamp 40 overhangs the space between these rails, the clamps 40 and 41 lying directly above areas respectively of the rail 63 and of the rail 64 of the track 42 and located on the same side relative to these rails (to the right of these in Figure 3). This is provided so that the clamps 40 and 41, distant by a length equal to the spacing of the rails 63, 64 of the track, can be introduced together under these rails by nozzles 81 which their articulated branches present laterally, in view raise track 42.

The earthmoving group 43 (FIGS. 4 and 5) is suspended from a carriage 65 movable in longitudinal direction, like the carriage 57, along the guide rails 58. Its clamshell bucket 44 is subdivided into three parts 44a, 44b and 44c making two free intervals 66 appear corresponding to the location of the rails 63, 64 of the track 42. The jaws of this multiple bucket, which makes it possible to carry out transverse earthwork of the ballast in a single operation, despite the presence of the rails, are actuated by four jacks 67 by means of articulated rods 68. The pivot axis 69 of the jaws of the bucket, likewise subdivided into three parts, is supported by vertical plates 70 welded to a common transverse plate 71, to which are also welded sleeves 72 sliding on guide bars 73 during movements in height of this plate 71 and of the bucket 44 under the action of a jack 74 connecting the carriage 65 and the pivot axis 69 of the jaws of the bucket.

The guide bars 73 are articulated on the one hand to the carriage 65 at 75 and on the other hand at 76 to parts 77 connected by a horizontal rod 78 so as to form a deformable parallelogram in transverse direction. At the rod 78 are articulated arms 79 carrying small liftable wheels 80 which, applied to the rails 63, 64 of the track 42 and guided by them, cause the aforementioned parallelogram to deform in the event of a curve in the track, so that the bucket 44 is offset transversely by the desired quantity so that the intervals 66 between the parts which compose it always remain in line with the rails 63, 64. In order not to hinder this movement, the jack 74 is arranged parallel to the bars 73 and articulated like them at its ends.

The operation of a machine according to the invention will now be described. The different phases that make it up are numbered in the order of their progress and the corresponding movements of the machine's components are indicated in the figures by arrows bearing the same numbers.

• 1. Le groupe de manutention 38 est amené à l'aplomb de la traverse 36 par. déplacement de son chariot 57 sur les rails 58.
• 2. Les pinces 39, 40, 41 en position d'ouverture sont abaissées (par descente du coulisseau 55 le long de la colonne 56 et, par suite, de la poutre télescopique 51 qui vient en 51'). Les pinces 40 et 41 viennent ainsi en 40' et 41' à côté des rails 63 et 64, encadrant par leurs branches ouvertes la traverse 36, leurs becs 81 se trouvant au-dessous du niveau des patins desdits rails.
• 3. Les pinces 40' et 41' sont déplacées latéralement d'une petite quantité (par actionnement du vérin 61) de manière que leurs becs 81 viennent se placer au-dessous des rails 63, 64. La poutre 51 est alors remontée de quelques centimètres le long de la colonne 56 afin de soulever d'autant lesdits rails et de dégager ainsi la traverse 36.
• 4. La pince 39, venue en 39', est fermée sur la traverse 36, puis déplacée transversalement jusqu'en 39" (par actionnement du vérin 54) de manière à extraire la traverse 36 de dessous les rails 63, 64.
• 5. La course du tube 53 porteur de la pince 39 dans le tube 52 étant insuffisante pour permettre l'extraction de la traverse 36 en une seule fois, la pince 39" lâche la traverse, vient en 39', la saisit de nouveau, en achève l'extraction et s'ouvre.
• 6. Les pinces 40' et 41' redescendent et se dégagent de dessous les rails 63 et 64, qui reprennent leur position normale.
• 7. La pince 39" reprend la traverse 36 et soulève celle-ci au-dessus du niveau du champignon des rails 63, 64, par montée d'une trentaine de centimètres de la poutre 51 (les pinces 40 et 41 exécutent évidemment les mêmes mouvements que celle-ci, mais restent inopérantes).
• 8. Le groupe de manutention 38 se déplace le long des rails 58 en direction des convoyeurs 34, 35.
• 9. La pince portant la traverse 36, venue en 39"', fait tourner celle-ci d'un quart de tour (grâce à son dispositif rotatif 59) de manière à la mettre en 36"' parallèlement à la voie 42.
• 10. Par remontée de la poutre 51, la traverse 36 est soulevée un peu au-dessus du niveau du convoyeur 34.
• 11. Le tube 53 rentre dans le tube 52 sous l'action du vérin 54 et la traverse 36 vient au-dessus du convoyeur 34 ; la pince 39 s'ouvre et libère ladite traverse, qui est évacuée par ledit convoyeur.
• 12. Le tube 53 rentre à fond dans le tube 52, ce qui amène la pince 39 au-dessus du convoyeur 35, où attend, arrêtée par une butée 82, une traverse neuve 37 (en béton à blochets) que la pince 39 vient saisir.
• 13. Le tube 53 est remis en extension.
• 14. La poutre 51 descend.
• 15. La pince 39 fait faire un quart de tour à la traverse 37.
• 16. Le groupe de manutention 38 retourne dans sa position initiale.

The machine 31 is first brought to the site in a position (FIG. 1) such that the middle of the guide rails 58 supporting the groups 38 and 43 is located approximately above the crosspiece 36 to be changed, previously removed - shaped.

• 1. The handling group 38 is brought into line with the cross member 36 by. displacement of its carriage 57 on the rails 58.
• 2. The clamps 39, 40, 41 in the open position are lowered (by descent of the slide 55 along the column 56 and, consequently, of the telescopic beam 51 which comes in 51 '). The clamps 40 and 41 thus come at 40 'and 41' next to the rails 63 and 64, framing by their open branches the crosspiece 36, their beaks 81 being below the level of the pads of said rails.
• 3. The clamps 40 'and 41' are moved laterally by a small amount (by actuation of the jack 61) so that their beaks 81 are placed below the rails 63, 64. The beam 51 is then raised by a few centimeters along the column 56 in order to raise the said rails accordingly and thus to release the cross-member 36.
• 4. The clamp 39, coming in 39 ′, is closed on the cross-member 36, then moved transversely to 39 "(by actuation of the jack 54) so as to extract the cross-member 36 from below the rails 63, 64.
• 5. The stroke of the tube 53 carrying the clamp 39 in the tube 52 is insufficient to allow the extraction of the cross member 36 at one time, the clamp 39 "releases the cross member, comes at 39 ', grasps it again, completes the extraction and opens.
• 6. The clamps 40 ′ and 41 ′ descend and disengage from below the rails 63 and 64, which return to their normal position.
• 7. The clamp 39 "takes up the crosspiece 36 and lifts it above the level of the head of the rails 63, 64, by mounting about thirty centimeters from the beam 51 (the clamps 40 and 41 obviously perform the same movements than this one, but remain inoperative).
• 8. The handling group 38 moves along the rails 58 in the direction of the conveyors 34, 35.
• 9. The clamp carrying the cross-member 36, coming in 39 "', makes it turn a quarter of a turn (thanks to its rotary device 59) so as to put it in 36"' parallel to the track 42.
• 10. By raising the beam 51, the cross-member 36 is raised a little above the level of the conveyor 34.
• 11. The tube 53 enters the tube 52 under the action of the jack 54 and the cross-member 36 comes above the conveyor 34; the clamp 39 opens and releases said cross member, which is evacuated by said conveyor.
• 12. The tube 53 fully returns into the tube 52, which brings the clamp 39 above the conveyor 35, where waits, stopped by a stop 82, a new cross member 37 (in concrete with blocks) that the clamp 39 comes grab.
• 13. The tube 53 is returned to extension.
• 14. The beam 51 descends.
• 15. The clamp 39 causes the cross-member 37 to make a quarter turn.
• 16. The handling unit 38 returns to its initial position.

• 17. Le groupe de terrassement est déplacé sur les rails 58 pour être amené au-dessus de l'espace 136 où se trouvait la traverse 36.
• 18. La benne preneuse 44, préalablement ouverte, est descendue par mise en extension du vérin 74, et elle se saisit du ballast entourant l'espace libre 136.
• 19. La benne 44 remonte avec sa charge de ballast.
• 20. Le groupe de terrassement 43 revient dans sa position initiale en dégageant l'emplacement de l'espace 136 afin de permettre dans les opérations suivantes la mise en place de la traverse neuve 37.
• 21. Les pinces 39, 40 et 41 descendent avec la poutre 51, la traverse 37 venant se placer à un niveau inférieur à celui du patin des rails 63, 64.
• 22. Le tube 53 de la poutre 51 se rétracte, de sorte que la traverse 37, toujours saisie par la pince 39, est introduite dans l'espace 136 sous le premier rail 63 jusqu'à une position 37' correspondant à la position 39' que la pince 39 ne peut dépasser à cause de la présence dudit rail 63.
• 23. La traverse 37' est alors lâchée par la pince 39' et saisie par la pince 40, par-delà le rail 63.
• 24. La pince 40 vient en 40" et amène la traverse 37' dans sa position finale 37", étant commandée en translation par la vis 29 mise alors en rotation.
• 25. La traverse 37", toujours tenue par la pince 40" est, par légère remontée de celle-ci, plaquée sous les rails 63, 64. Elle est alors (manuellement) fixée à ceux-ci.
• 26. La pince 40" s'ouvre et revient en 40.
• 27. Les pinces 39, 40 et 41 sont remontées au-dessus du niveau des rails 63, 64.
• 28. Le groupe de terrassement 43 vient prendre la place du groupe de manutention 38. La benne 44 s'ouvre et lâche le ballast qu'elle contenait à l'emplacement de la nouvelle traverse 37.

While operations 8 to 16 take place relating to the sleepers, other operations - numbered 17 to 20 - are carried out, the latter relating to the earthmoving group 43.

• 17. The earthmoving group is moved on the rails 58 to be brought above the space 136 where the crosspiece 36 was located.
• 18. The clamshell bucket 44, previously open, is lowered by extension of the jack 74, and it takes hold of the ballast surrounding the free space 136.
• 19. The bucket 44 rises with its ballast load.
• 20. The earthmoving group 43 returns to its initial position, clearing the location of the space 136 in order to allow, in the following operations, the installation of the new cross-member 37.
• 21. The clamps 39, 40 and 41 descend with the beam 51, the cross-member 37 coming to be placed at a level lower than that of the runner of the rails 63, 64.
• 22. The tube 53 of the beam 51 retracts, so that the cross-member 37, still gripped by the clamp 39, is introduced into the space 136 under the first rail 63 to a position 37 'corresponding to position 39 'that the clamp 39 cannot exceed because of the presence of said rail 63.
• 23. The cross-member 37 'is then released by the clamp 39' and gripped by the clamp 40, beyond the rail 63.
• 24. The clamp 40 comes in 40 "and brings the crosspiece 37 'into its final position 37", being controlled in translation by the screw 29 then rotated.
• 25. The cross member 37 ", still held by the clamp 40" is, by slight rise thereof, pressed under the rails 63, 64. It is then (manually) attached to them.
• 26. The 40 "clamp opens and returns to 40.
• 27. The clamps 39, 40 and 41 are raised above the level of the rails 63, 64.
• 28. The earthmoving group 43 takes the place of the handling group 38. The bucket 44 opens and releases the ballast it contained at the location of the new cross member 37.

After which, the assembly 38, 43 returns to the initial position.

Given that in this example, a wooden sleeper 36 has been replaced by a concrete sleeper 37, there is a ballast deficit for the latter. In order to remedy this, the wagon 31 is advanced until its hopper 45, containing a reserve of ballast, comes into line with the cross-member 37, and a suitable additional quantity of ballast is poured into it by momentary opening. shutter 46.

Then, the wagon is further advanced so as to be able to successively actuate the tamping group 48 and the adjustment brush box 49 in the region surrounding the cross member 37.

The substitution of sleepers is then complete. We see that it was carried out in a single pass of the machine according to the invention, that two agents are enough to drive, thanks to the mechanization of all operations. In addition, the new sleepers are not only fixed, but definitively established by stuffing the ballast. In addition, the old sleepers are recovered and not deposited along the way. Thus, after the work of replacing sleepers, the track is perfectly stabilized and cleared, without the need for any additional tamping or pickup operation.

The extraction or introduction of the sleepers can be done either on the side of the runway or on the side of the cross-section, by simply inverting the handling group 38 around the column 56.

Claims (15)

1. Machine for replacing railway sleepers, comprising a truck (31) provided with devices suitable for effecting the individual replacement of old sleepers (36) with new sleepers (37) and in particular with a sleeper-handling unit comprising a set of gripping members which enable a sleeper or a track rail to be grasped, these members, which are suspended from a transverse beam and are displaceable vertically and longitudinally and transversely relative to the direction of the track, comprising a first member (39) formed by a clamp able to grasp a sleeper and be moved in transverse direction on one side of the track generally relative to a vertical plane passing through a first track rail, a second member (40) and a third member (41) each able to engage one of the track rails (63, 64) so as to raise it, the first gripping member (39) being able to be moved in transverse direction independently of the other two, while these latter can be displaced together and have lateral projections (81) which can be placed respectively under each to the track rails for the purpose of the raising these latter, characterised in that the second gripping member (40), which is situated between the first gripping member (39) and the third gripping member (41) and is able to engage a rail, is similarly to the first gripping member, a clamp designed to grasp a sleeper which can thus be grasped successively or simultaneously by a first clamp (39) and by a second clamp (40), this latter itself being able to move in transverse direction generally in the space separating the vertical planes containing respectively the track rails (63, 64).

2. Machine according to Claim 1, characterised in that the first clamp (39) can be moved by pivoting about its vertical axis of symmetry.

3. Machine according to Claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the second clamp (40) can be moved in transverse direction independently of the third gripping member (41).

4. Machine according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the transverse beam (51) of the handling unit (38) is a telescopic beam formed by an inner tube (53), at the end of which is suspended the first clamp (39) and which is movable by sliding in an outer tube (52) connected to a slide (55) able to move vertically along a guide column (56) fixed at its top to a carriage (57) movable in longitudinal direction along guide rails (58) securely connected with the structure of the truck, and in that a sliding member (60) can move along the outer tube (52) over a short travel and from which sliding member are suspended the second clamp (40) and the third gripping member (41).

5. Machine according to Claims 3 and 4, characterised in that the third gripping member (41) is suspended directly from the said sliding member (60) in the region of its end facing towards the outside, whereas the second clamp (40) is suspended therefrom by way of a means for displacement in transverse direction.

6. Machine according to any of Claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the amplitude of the transverse travel of the first clamp (39) and of the second clamp (40) is close to half the length of one sleeper.

7. Machine according to any one of Claims 1 to 6, characterised in that it further comprises a ballast unit (43) comprising a grab bucket (44) movable vertically and in longitudinal direction and designed to carry out the removal and relaying of the ballast surround the sleeper to be replaced.

8. Machine according to Claim 7, characterised in that the grab bucket (44) is divided into three portions (44a, 44b and 44c) separated by two gaps forming free spaces (66) into which the track rails (63, 64) are introduced when the bucket is lowered into contact with the ballast.

9. Machine according to Claim 8, characterised in that the grab bucket (44) can also be moved in transverse direction under the action of a guide means maintaining said free spaces (66) relative to the track rails (63, 64).

10. Machine according to Claim 9, characterised in that the grab bucket (44) is suspended from articulated bars (73) forming a deformable parallelogram situated in a transverse plane, these bars being coupled to a carriage (65) movable in longitudinal direction.

11. Machine according to any one of Claims 1 to 10, characterised in that it comprises a conveyor (43) for removing old sleepers and a conveyor (35) for supplying new sleepers, both conveyors being accessible to the first clamp (39) of the handling unit (38).

12. Machine according to any one of Claims 1 to 11, characterised in that it is further provided with a ballast supply hopper (45), with a tamping unit (48) and with an encased levelling brush (49).

13. Machine according to any one of Claims 1 to 12, characterised in that the various movements and displacements of the movable members which it comprises are brought about by means of motors or actuators, preferably hydraulic.

14. Method of handling sleepers in the course of operations for replacing sleepers by means of a machine according to any of Claims 1 to 13, characterized in that, after removal of a sleeper (36) to be replaced, the laying of a new sleeper (37) is effected in two stages, namely a first stage in which the sleeper, gripped in its central zone by the first clamp (39) is slid by this latter under the first rail (63) of the track (42) until said clamp is arrested by said raii, and a second stage in which the sleeper, released by the first clamp (39), is gripped in its central zone by the second clamp (40) on the other side of said rail (63), this latter clamp effecting the positioning of the sleeper (37) under the rails (63, 64) of the track (42).

15. Methods according to Claim 14, characterised in that the removal of an old sleeper (36) to be replaced is effected by means of the first clamp (39) in two successive removal stages, in each of which the sleeper is drawn by said clamp by about half its length.

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