EP0092886B1 - Displaceable apparatus on rails for levelling and profiling ballast - Google Patents

Abstract

1. A ballast regulating machine rolling on track rails (3) for levelling and shaping the ballast, comprising side ploughs (8, 8') adjustably mounted to the machine frame (1), said side ploughs can be adjusted to a desired angle with respect to the track longitudinal axis as well as be set with their lower edges to an angle with respect to the horizontal, for adapting said ploughs to the slope of the ballast shoulders, and at least one rotary brush (10, 10') having its shaft (11, 11') extending transversely to the longitudinal axis of the track, characterized in that each side plough (8, 8') is assembled of a plurality of plough blades (17, 17') disposed side by side in a common plane, and that said plough blades (17, 17') are on the one hand swivelling suspended from a shaft (18) at least substantially parallel to their lower working edges and on the other hand adapted to be driven for swivelling about said shaft (18).

Description

The invention relates to a machine according to the preamble of patent claim 1.

Such machines are known (AT-B-359 112, US-A-1343 533, DE-A 1 534 072) and are used, following track laying, track renewal, track correction and ballast cleaning work, especially following track tamping, distribute and level the ballast ballast evenly filling the sleeper compartments and profile the ballast shoulders with the ballast flanks. If such machines are used with ballast plows behind track tamping machines, then they must in particular be able to fill up the depressions created when the sleepers are stuffed on both sides of the sleepers with ballast, which for this purpose moves from the side as far as the railroad plows and upwards It must be ensured that it arrives at these points and fills the holes that have generally arisen there. With the brush rotating about a horizontal transverse axis, the ballast lying on the sleepers is then removed and distributed between the rails, the superfluous ballast being flung to the side over the rails.

Thus, the pivoted from the sideways when profiling a Bettungsflanke, obliquely forward and downward inclined plow plate detected gravel not only forwards ^g estossen, but rather along the plow plate also moves upward, and is transported on the ballast bed next to the rails, it is necessary that the machine runs at a relatively high working speed, which is much greater than the average working speed of a track tamping machine. The dynamic effect which causes the ballast to flow and thereby upward movement occurs only at a sufficiently high driving speed, so that the areas between the sleepers outside the rails and in particular the mentioned depressions are filled. On the other hand, if the driving speed is only as low as the average feed speed of a track tamping machine, which is about 1 km per hour, this dynamic flow effect of the ballast does not occur.

For this reason, it has generally been done so far that the ballast plow machine does not follow the track tamping machine evenly, but rather is used at longer intervals in such a way that it is tracked at a correspondingly high working speed whenever the track tamping machine has worked a longer section. For this reason, it has so far not been possible to simply couple the ballast plow machine to the track tamping machine, which in itself would be very economical, because on the one hand this would save a drive motor and on the other hand operating personnel for the ballast plow machine.

From FR-A-2 104 190 a machine for compacting and leveling the ballast is known, which has leveling plates, which are adjustably attached to a transversely oriented vibrating beam, for the horizontally oriented areas of the ballast bed between the rails and laterally outside the rails, but not the settlement flanks associated lateral gravel plows. The vibrating beam with the leveling plates attached to it can be driven oscillating in its longitudinal direction, i.e. transversely to the longitudinal axis of the track, whereby the ballast located directly in front of the leveling plates is given a corresponding oscillating movement, which produces a kind of flowing effect, so that the ballast is removed from the ballast Threshold required force is reduced. This flow effect, which is only used to remove the ballast from the surface of the sleepers, arises here from vibration of the leveling plates in the transverse direction and its effect is limited by the direction of this vibration.

The invention has for its object to improve a ballast plow machine in such a way that a lateral upward movement of the ballast to fill the upper areas of the ballast shoulders and especially the ballast bed areas between ballast shoulder and rail, in particular the depressions created during tamping work, even at very slow working speeds can be achieved as they correspond to the average working speeds of a tamping machine.

To achieve this object, the machine according to the invention is achieved by the features specified in the characterizing part of claim 1.

It has surprisingly been found that such an oscillating movement or vibration carried out by the plow plates, which is particularly easy to implement because of the subdivision of the large flank plates previously used for side plowing into several, correspondingly smaller plow plates, the desired dynamic flow effect of the ballast already generated at such slow driving speeds as they correspond to the average working speed of tamping machines. This offers the very economical possibility of simply coupling a ballast plow machine according to the invention to a track tamping machine without its own drive motor, if one ensures that the ballast plows move at least approximately at a uniform speed relative to the track. A correspondingly controlled drive device, which is longitudinally displaceable on the chassis Device mounted on a track tamping machine in such a way that it advances at an approximately uniform speed with respect to the track when this machine is gradually advanced is known per se for a ballast compactor.

In a particularly expedient embodiment of the machine according to the invention, the ballast plows and the brushes are therefore mounted on a frame which is mounted on guide rails so as to be longitudinally displaceable relative to the machine frame and can be moved back and forth by a drive device known per se such that when the machine is coupled an intermittently advancing track tamping machine moves this frame relative to the track at an at least approximately uniform speed which corresponds to the average working speed of the track tamping machine. In this case, the ballast plow machine does not require any operating personnel. Such a jointly advancing machine cluster comprising a track tamping machine and a ballast plow machine according to the invention therefore permits particularly economical and time-saving track processing.

In order to prevent interruptions in the work when one or more of the plow plates encounter an obstacle, in particular one of the marking pegs that are usually anchored in the ballast bed at short intervals, the suspension of the individual plow plates is set up in such a way that they hit when they hit can give in individually to an obstacle against the action of a spring, preferably can be folded backwards.

A further expedient embodiment consists in that at the outer end of at least one of the lateral ballast plows a ballast milling machine is installed, which can be rotated about an axis that is at least approximately vertical in its working position, which, together with the ballast plow, can be adjusted between a lower working position and a raised rest position, and preferably as desired can be driven in one or the other direction. With such a ballast milling machine attached to the outer plow end, at the same time as the bedding shoulder is profiled, the footpath generally provided at the foot of the bedding shoulder along the track, along which the inspector walks during visual track inspections, can be cleaned in a simple manner. The optional direction of rotation of the ballast milling machine also allows the ballast lying on this footpath to either be thrown in front of the plow slabs and thus used to fill up the upper ballast bed area or, if the ballast milling machine is reversed, to be flung to the side if ballast is available in abundance is.

Further expedient refinements of the invention result from the dependent patent claims.

• Figur 1 eine schematische Seitenansicht einer erfindungsgemässen Schotterpflug-Maschine, die an eine nur teilweise dargestellte Gleisstopfmaschine angekuppelt ist,
• Figur 2 einen Schnitt längs der Linie 11-11 nach Figur 1 in etwas vergrössertem Maßstab,
• Figur 3 eine Draufsicht auf die Maschine nach Figur 1 unter Fortlassung einiger auf dem Maschinenrahmen installierter Teile,
• Figur 4 einen Schnitt längs der Linie IV-IV nach Figur 3 durch einen Schotterpflug, in vergrössertem Maßstab, und
• Figur 5 einen Schnitt längs der Linie V-V nach Figur 4.

The invention is explained in more detail with reference to the drawings using an exemplary embodiment. Show it:

• FIG. 1 shows a schematic side view of a ballast plow machine according to the invention which is coupled to a track tamping machine which is only partially shown,
• FIG. 2 shows a section along the line 11-11 according to FIG. 1 on a somewhat enlarged scale,
• FIG. 3 shows a top view of the machine according to FIG. 1, leaving out some of the parts installed on the machine frame,
• 4 shows a section along the line IV-IV of Figure 3 by a gravel plow, on an enlarged scale, and
• 5 shows a section along the line VV of Figure 4.

According to the figures, the machine advanced in the direction of arrow F in the working direction has a frame 1 with undercarriages 2 which roll on the rails 3. Guide rails 4 are provided on the frame 1 in the longitudinal direction of the frame, on which a frame 5 with rollers 6 is mounted so as to be longitudinally displaceable. In the example considered, the guide rails 4 are formed by horizontal, U-shaped hollow profiles of the side parts of the frame 1, which prevent the frame 5 from being lifted or tilted. The frame 5 has a stable support 7 located below the frame 1, on the two sides of which a lateral ballast plow 8 or 8 'is installed and on which, in addition, two axially adjacent rotating brushes 10 and 10' with axes 11 and 11 oriented transversely to the longitudinal direction of the track 11 '(Figure 2) are attached. These brushes 10 and 10 ', which can be driven by hydraulic motors 9 and 9' mounted on their axes, are each located at the end of a lever 12 (FIG. 1) which is articulated on a lower projection 13 of the frame 5. A cylinder-piston system 14 acts on this lever 12, the other end of which is articulated to an upper frame projection 15 and which allows the brushes 10 and 10 'to be adjusted from their lowered working position shown in the figures into a raised rest position.

The two ballast plows 8 and 8 'have the same structure. The ballast plow 8 'lying on the right in the direction of arrow F and its parts have the dashed reference numbers of the left ballast plow 8 and are therefore not mentioned every time in the following description. Each ballast plow has a supporting part 16 with a plurality of plow plates 17 which are articulated to it and which lie side by side in a common plane and are pivotably suspended about an axis 18 oriented parallel to their lower working edge. Parallel to this axis 18, an eccentric shaft 19 is also rotatably mounted in the supporting part 16 and has the axis of rotation 20 (FIG. 4). This eccentric shaft 19 is with all plow plates 17 by two articulated eccentric levers 21 and one with these at 22 articulated transmission rod 23 (Figures 4 and 5) coupled such that the plow plates 17 can be driven oscillating about its pivot axis 18 in the sense of the double arrow (Figure 4) when the eccentric shaft 19 rotates. A hydraulic motor 25 located on the inner end thereof serves to rotate the eccentric shaft.

The arrangement is also such that each of the plow plates 17 can individually give way when hitting an obstacle. For this purpose, each plow plate 17 can be folded back against the action of springs 24 when it encounters an obstacle which does not give way. As FIGS. 4 and 5 show, the springs 24 designed as helical springs surround the axis 18 on both sides of the point of application of the transmission rod 23, on which the plow plates 17 with bearing sleeves 17a are rotatably seated. One end of the springs 24 is supported against stops integrally formed on the bearing sleeves 17a or the plow plates 17, while the other spring ends, which face one another, rest against stops 23a, which are formed on the transmission rod 23. The plow plates 17 can also be mounted in such a way that they give way individually against the action of a spring when hitting an obstacle.

The entire drive mechanism for the plow plates 17 is covered by an upper sheet metal housing 26.

At the outer ends of the ballast plows 8 and 8 'there is also a ballast milling machine 30 or 30' mounted on the respective supporting part 16 (FIGS. 1 to 3), which either in one or about a vertical axis 31 or 31 'in the working position other sense of rotation can be driven by a hydraulic motor 32 or 32 'located directly on this axis.

Each ballast plow 8 or 8 'can be adjusted relative to the frame 5 or frame 1 of the machine about a horizontal axis 27 or 27' (FIG. 2) oriented essentially in the longitudinal direction of the machine and from its obliquely downward working position, which is shown in Figures 1 to 3 for the ballast plow 8, are pivoted into a raised rest position, which Figures 1 to 3 show for the other ballast plow 8 'and in which this ballast plow is oriented practically vertically upwards, so that it is at a crossing of the machine lies within the clearance profile 49 indicated by dashed lines in FIG. For the aforementioned adjustment of the ballast plow 8 or 8 ', there is a substantially horizontal cylinder-piston system 29 or 29' (FIG. 2) arranged below the machine frame 1, one end of which is at an angle to the supporting part 16 or 16 'is articulated on this attached lever arm 28 or 28' and the other end of which is connected in an articulated manner to a downward projection 5a or 5'a of the frame 5. The axes 27 and 27 'are located at the junction of the support part 16 and 16' with the relevant lever arm 28 and 28 '.

In addition, each ballast plow 8 or 8 'can be adjusted in its orientation relative to the longitudinal direction of the track, that is to say with regard to the angle which the ballast plow or its supporting part forms with the rail 3. For this purpose, each ballast plow 8 or 8 'can be pivoted about an axis which is at least approximately vertically oriented in the working position of the ballast plow. The position of the axis 33 for the ballast plow 8 is indicated in FIG. 3, which can be adjusted in the sense of the double arrow 35 by means of a cylinder-piston system 34 which acts on the carrier 7 on the one hand and on the ballast plow 8 on the other hand. The other ballast plow 8 'can be adjusted in the same way.

A frame 38 is also installed on the frame 1, in which the cab for driving or feeding the hydraulic motors 9, 9 ', 25, 25' and 32, 32 'mentioned and for adjusting the cylinder-piston systems 14, 29 mentioned , 29 'and 34, as well as the power supply and drive units serving for the cylinder-piston system 40, which will be explained later, ie essentially a hydraulic pump in the example under consideration, and the necessary control devices are accommodated. The relevant pressure medium lines are not shown in the figures. Finally, the machine is also equipped with a water tank 39, from which the ballast bed can be sprayed with water to prevent excessive dust formation.

The machine according to the invention is preferably intended to be coupled to a track tamping machine 50 which operates in intermittent, step-by-step operation and is indicated in FIG. In order that the ballast plows 8,8 'and the brushes 10,10' on the frame 1 of the machine move at least approximately at a uniform speed corresponding to the average working speed of the track tamping machine, despite the jerky advance, is a special known per se Drive device 40 (Figures 1 and 3) is provided in the form of a hydraulic cylinder-piston system, which moves the frame 5 back and forth relative to the frame 1 of the machine in the desired rhythm. One end of the drive device 40 is connected to an attachment 41 attached to the frame 1, while its other end is connected to an attachment 42 attached to the frame 5. This drive device 40 is controlled in a known manner as a function of the intermittent feed movement of the track tamping machine 50 to generate an alternating movement of the frame 5 relative to the frame 1 in such a way that the frame 5 with the plows and the brushes relative to the track 3 is at least approximately uniform at a speed which is the average working speed of the track tamping machine 50 corresponds. The brush 10a indicated by dash-dotted lines in FIG. 1 illustrates a position of the frame 5 that is shifted forward.

The operation of the machine is illustrated in Figure 2. The ballast plow 8 is swung out laterally into an inclined position corresponding to the inclination of the bedding shoulder 43 to be profiled, in which it also assumes the obliquely forward-pointing orientation shown in FIG. During the journey, the majority of the ballast gripped by the plow plates 17 is shaken upwards along these plow plates 17 due to the dynamic effect which is generated by the oscillating drive of the plow plates 17 and thus reaches the bedding and into the direction of the arrow 45 by plugging the sleepers 44 depressions on the outside of the rail in question 3. The frequency of the oscillating drive of the plow plates 17 and 17 'can be changed by changing the speed of the motor driving the eccentric shaft 19 or, if necessary, by changing the reduction depending on the working conditions and the condition of the ballast can be set and vary, for example, between 300 and 1000 vibrations per minute. The vibration amplitude of the plow plates 17 or 17 'or their maximum deflection angle can be a few centimeters, preferably for example 5 centimeters, and can also be adjustable if necessary.

At the same time, the driven ballast milling machine 30 cleans the path 47 running along the track at the foot of the bedding shoulder 43, on which the inspector walks along for the purpose of visual track inspection. If the ballast milling machine 30 is driven in the direction of the arrow 36 according to FIG. 3, the ballast milling machine 30 caught by the ballast milling machine 30 comes in front of the plow plates 17 and is therefore moved upwards; on the other hand, if the ballast milling machine 30 rotates in the other direction, the excess ballast is flung to the side.

The rotating brushes 10, 10 'clean the sleepers 44 in a known manner, the ballast being distributed evenly between the rails, while filling the sleeper compartments and the depressions formed by the plug, and the excess ballast located between the rails 3 laterally across the rails is thrown outwards. For this purpose, ballast baffles 37 and 37 '(FIG. 3) which are inclined upwards and outwards are fastened to the frame 5 in the region of the brushes 10, 10'.

In the example considered, the other ballast plow 8 is folded up into its rest position. However, if, as indicated in FIG. 2, there is a horizontal ballast bed section 46 on the side of the track facing away from the bed shoulder 43, as is located between adjacent tracks of a multi-track route, then of course the other ballast plow 8 'is used at the same time to level this horizontal ballast bed section 46, for which purpose this ballast plow 8 'is brought into a horizontal position. If, in the illustration according to FIG. 2, the ballast bed to be profiled were located on the other side of the track, then the ballast plow 8 'would of course take over this profiling, while the ballast plow 8 would either be folded up into its rest position or set horizontally for leveling the horizontal ballast bed section becomes. If both bed shoulders are to be profiled on a single-track line, this can of course be done simultaneously with the machine according to the invention by the two appropriately oriented ballast plows 8 and 8 '.

The invention is not restricted to the exemplary embodiment described, but rather permits numerous variants. Pneumatic or electric drives can also be provided instead of hydraulic drives. In principle, the drive motors can also be accommodated in the cabin 38 and the parts to be actuated or driven can be connected to these motors by means of appropriate gears or motion transmitters. Of course, the number of plow plates 17 or 17 'per ballast plow 8 or 8' and its geometric shape can be chosen as desired.

Claims (9)

1. A ballast regulating machine rolling on track rails (3) for levelling and shaping the ballast,comprising side ploughs (8, 8') adjustably mounted to the machine frame (1), said side ploughs can be adjusted to a desired angle with respect to the track longitudinal axis as well as be set with their lower edges to an angle with respect to the horizontal, for adapting said ploughs to the slope of the ballast shoulders, and at least one rotary brush (10, 10') having its shaft (11, 11') extending transversely to the, longitudinal axis of the track, characterised in that each side plough (8, 8') is assembled of a plurality of plough blades (17, 17') disposed side by side in a common plane, and that said plough blades (17, 17') are on the one hand swivelling suspended from a shaft (18) at least substantially parallel to their lower working edges and on the other hand adapted to be driven for swivelling about said shaft (18).

2. The machine according to claim 1, characterised in that the plough blades (17, 17') are adapted to yield separately against the resilient force of a spring when said blades hit an obstacle.

3. The machine according to any of claims 1 or 2, characterised in that all the blades (17, 17') of a side plough (8, 8') are adapted to be driven by means of a common eccentric shaft (19) parallel to their swivelling shaft (18).

4. The machine according to claim 3, characterised in that the drive motor (25) controlling the swinging movement of the plough blades (17), preferably a hydraulic motor, is mounted directly to said eccentric shaft (19).

5. The machine according to any of claims 1-4, characterised in that the outer end of at least one side plough (8, 8') is provided with a ballast milling device (30, 30,) which, in its operative condition, is adapted to rotate about an at least substantially vertical axis (31) and adjustable jointly with the side plough (8, 8') between a lower operative position and a raised inoperative position.

6. The machine according to claim 5, characterised in that said ballast milling device (30, 30') is adapted to rotate optionally in one or the other direction.

7. The machine according to any of claims 4 or 5, characterised in that the motor (32, 32') that drives said ballast milling device (30, 30'), preferably a hydraulic motor, is coupled directly to the rotary shaft of the milling device.

8. The machine according to any of claims 1-7, characterised in that said side ploughs (8, 8') and said brush or brushes (10, 10') are mounted to a frame (5) that is adapted to slide longitudinally on guide rails (4) with respect to the frame structure (1) of the machine, and to move to and fro under the control of drive means (40) in such a way that when the machine is coupled to an intermittently driven tamper machine (50) said frame is moved forwards relative to the tracks at a substantially uniform speed corresponding to the average working speed

9. The machine according to any of claims 1-8, characterised in that each side ballast plough (8, 8') is adjustable for operating both in a substantially horizontal position for levelling the ballast between adjacent tracks in multiple-track railway sections and in an oblique position for shaping the ballast shoulders.

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