GB2386355A

GB2386355A - Portable rail vehicle

Info

Publication number: GB2386355A
Application number: GB0305833A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Stephen Robert Buckland
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-03-14
Filing date: 2003-03-14
Publication date: 2003-09-17
Also published as: GB0205950D0; GB0305833D0

Abstract

The vehicle (1), e.g a powered scooter adapted to be driven along a railway track, has two wheels (3, 4) disposed to travel along a first rail (13) of the track, and a detachable stabiliser (14) extending transversely from the vehicle (1) to engage a second rail (15) of the track. The stabiliser (14), comprising two arms and having a clamp (16) or roller, e.g magnetic, engaging the rail (15) and prevents lateral movement of the vehicle (1). The vehicle (1) has a platform (11) on which a user may stand, a foldable steering column (6) with handlebars (7) which the user may grasp and to which controls are mounted, and optionally a detachable seat (12) for the user. The vehicle (1) is sufficiently light-weight and compact when dismantled and/or collapsed to be transported in a motor car and carried to the railway track by hand.

Description

PORTABLE RAIL VEHICLE

The present invention relates to a portable vehicle for use on railway tracks. More particularly, but not exclusively, it relates to a collapsible two-wheeled powered vehicle for rapid access to relatively isolated points on a railway line, for example for inspection or maintenance. Railway maintenance staff are frequently required to examine suspected damage to rails, sleepers, bridges, signals or other fixed assets at locations which can only conveniently be accessed by travelling along the track. When such suspected damage is reported, it is important to assess the scale of the problem as soon as possible and decide what action may be necessary in the interests of safety.

Light rnotorised trolleys for track inspection and light repair work are well known. However, such vehicles run only on rails, and so must be driven along the track all the way from a depot, etc. in which they are stored, which may be an inconveniently long distance. The track may also be blocked with traffic waiting to pass the track section to be investigated.

Furthermore, such motorised trolleys are nowadays required to be operated by a crew of at least two trained personnel. They are thus not particularly suitable as rapid response vehicles. It is therefore frequently the practice for an inspector or maintenance personnel to drive by road to the nearest convenient access point, then walk along the track to the site of the problem. However, walking along the permanent way is slow and tiring. The sleepers are neither sized nor spaced conveniently to be walked on. Walking along the ballast is very tiring and it can be treacherous underfoot. The backside is often uneven, wet, soft or all three. Walking along the track is hence too slow, and frequently leaves the maintenance personnel weary.

As a result, minor suspected track damage, or even a bulb failure on a signal, can lead to significant delays to traffic on the line while engineers reach the problem and assess it, let alone fix it. Such delays will frequently have a knock-on effect that can badly disrupt a tightly scheduled timetable. In many cases, once an engineer reaches the site, there will prove to be no significant problem, or the problem can be fixed on the spot with the correct equipment. There would hence be great benefits from a more rapid means of transportation to get maintenance personnel to the site as soon as possible. A vehicle which could be transported easily by road to a convenient access point and then driven along the track to the site would provide an excellent solution to this problem.

It is hence an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle which can transport an individual user along a railway track to a desired point, and which can be easily stored off the railway track and brought to the track close to the desired point when required.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle adapted to be moveable along a railway track, said vehicle having two wheels disposed to travel along a first rail of the track and detachable stabilising means extending transversely therefrom to engage a second rail of the track and so travel there along that lateral movement of the vehicle is prevented.

Preferably, the vehicle is a motorised vehicle.

Advantageously, the vehicle is propelled by an electric motor.

Alternatively, the vehicle may be powered by an internal combustion engine.

Preferably, the vehicle is provided with platform means on which a rider may stand.

Advantageously, the vehicle may be provided with upstanding handle means which may be grasped by a rider, for example to stabilise him or herself.

Control means for the vehicle may be mounted to said handle means.

The vehicle may be provided with lockable steering means.

The handle means and/or the steering means may be foldable or otherwise collapsible for storage and/or transportation.

The vehicle may be provided with seating means for a rider, optionally detachable seating means. Preferably, the stabilising means comprises at least one elongate member, extending transversely from the vehicle towards the second rail.

There may be at least two such elongate members.

In a first embodiment, the or at least one such elongate member may be provided at an end remote from the vehicle with roller means adapted to engage with a railhead of the second rail. The roller means may comprise a cylindrical roller so mounted to rotate about a generally horizontal axis that it rolls along an upper surface of the railhead as the vehicle moves along the track.

The roller means may be provided with one or more flange means extending transversely to said axis of rotation and disposable adjacent one or each side of the railhead.

Preferably, two said flange means are mounted one to each end of the cylindrical roller and co-axially therewith.

The roller means may be provided with magnetic means, optionally within the roller, to urge the roller means into contact with the railhead.

In a second embodiment the or at least one such each elongate member may be provided at an end remote from the vehicle with clasp means adapted to engage with a railhead of the second rail.

The clasp means may have a generally horizontal bearing surface adapted to contact an upper surface of the railhead and to slide therealong as the vehicle moves along the track.

The clasp means may also be provided with a first lateral element extending generally downwardly from the bearing surface adjacent a side of the railhead of the second rail remote from the first rail.

Said first lateral element may have an inwardly extending lip to engage below the railhead.

The first lateral element may be hinged mounted to the clasp means, optionally with means to lock it in a downwardly extending disposition.

The clasp means may further be provided with a second lateral element extending generally downwardly from the bearing surface adjacent a side of the railhead of the second rail facing the first rail.

In either embodiment, the vehicle is preferably provided with attachment means, to which the stabilising means may be detachably mounted.

The attachment means may be provided on each side of the vehicle so that the stabilising means may be alternatively mounted to extend either rightwardly or leftwardly from the vehicle. The vehicle may be provided with cargo carrying means, detachably mounted to the stabilising means.

The wheels of the vehicle may each be configured to contact in use an upper surface of the first rail.

Alternatively, the wheels of the vehicle may each be configured to contact in use an upper surface of the first rail and at least a part of at least one side of the railhead of the first rail.

The wheels of the vehicle may each be provided with a tyre.

The vehicle may be provided with means to locate one or each wheel thereof securely on top of the first rail.

The vehicle may advantageously be of a weight sufficiently low as to be portable by an individual user.

The vehicle preferably has maximum dimensions, in a dismantled and collapsed/folded configuration, sufficiently small to be transportable in a luggage space of a conventional motor car.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a railborne vehicle comprising a foldable two-wheeled scooter adapted to travel on a first rail, and a detachable outrigger means adapted to engage a second rail.

Embodiments of the invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a vehicle embodying the invention, in position on a railway track; Figure 2 is a plan view of the vehicle of Figure 1 in position; Figure 3 is a frontal elevation of the vehicle of Figure 1 in position; Figure 4 is a scrap view of part of a stabiliser unit of the vehicle of Figure 1, engaging a rail head; Figure 5 is a scrap view of part of an alternative stabiliser unit, engaging a railhead; and Figure 6A to 6D show, schematically, four alternative forms of wheel for use on the vehicle of Figure 1, each in contact with a rail head.

Referring now to the drawings and to Figure I in particular, a rail scooter 1 comprises a platform 2, on which a user may stand, which is supported on a front wheel 3 and a rear wheel 4. The front wheel is rotatably mounted to front forks 5, which are connected to a steering column 6, provided at its upper end with a set of handlebars 7. The front wheel, 3, forks 5 and steering column 6 are pivotably mounted as a unit to a head tube 8, allowing the rail scooter 1 to be steered as a conventional scooter when off the rails. When the rail scooter 1 is being used on a railway track, the steering column 6, etc. may be fixed in position or

substantially restricted in their pivoting movements, since only relatively gentle curves will be encountered on a railway.

The head tube is mounted to the platform 2, in this case via a lockable pivoting mounting 9, which allows the front wheel 3, steering column 6, etc. to be folded as a unit towards the platform 2 for storage. A further folding joint 10 is provided partway along the steering column 6. (In other embodiments, this may instead be a telescopic arrangement; in further embodiments, only one of the pivoting mounting 9 and the folding/telescoping joint is present). The rear wheel 4 is rotatably mounted to the platform 2, and is driveable by an electric motor 11 located beneath the platform 2. Controls for the electric motor 11 are mounted to the handlebars 7, but are not shown for clarity.

A detachable seat 12 is mountable to the platform 2, though it is omitted from all subsequent Figures for clarity.

A headlight 26 and tail light 27 are provided as a safety measure, particularly when the rail scooted I is to be used in poor visibility or at night. The headlight 26 and tail light 27 are also omitted from all subsequent Figures for clarity.

The rail scooter 1 is shown in position for use on a railway track with both wheels 3, 4 on a first rail 13. To keep it in position on the first rail 13, the rail scooter 1 is provided with a pair of stabiliser bars 14 which extend transversely from the platform 2 across to a second rail 15 (not visible in Figure 1).

As shown in Figure 2, each stabiliser bar 14 is provided, at an end remote from the platform 2, with a clasp unit 16, which rests upon and extends around an upper part or head of the second rail 15. The two stabiliser bars are here linked by bracing struts 17, forming a single stabiliser unit, although in other embodiments, the two stabiliser bars 14 are independent.

The stabiliser bars 14 are mounted to the platform 2 by means of two mounting units 18, and may be detached therefrom for storage and transportation.

Each stabiliser bar 14 may be provided with an insulating section 19 partway along its length, to prevent an electrical connection being made between the two rails 13, 15. Many railway systems use track circuiting, i.e. an electrical connection between the rails, through the wheels and axles of a train, as a means of controlling signalling. In some circumstances, however, it may be desirable for the rail scooter I to be detected by such a "track circuit" system, and the insulating sections 19 may then be omitted.

Each stabiliser bar 14 may be dismantled into two or more sections for transport or storage.

A cargo platform 28 may be detachably mounted across the stabiliser bars 14 to carry spares and equipment. It may be provided with retaining walls, tie-downs or the like as desired.

Although the rail scooter 1 is shown in Figure 2 with the stabiliser bars 14 extending rightwardly therefrom, it is equally possible for the wheels 3, 4 of the rail scooter I to be disposed on the second rail 15 and for the stabiliser bars 14 to extend leftvardly from the rail scooter I to the first rail 13. A preferred form ofthe rail scooter I has two mounting units 18 on each side thereof, such that a user may assemble and use it in either configuration.

Figure 3 shows how the rail scooter I is disposed across the two rails 13, IS, with the clasp unit 16, engaging with the second rail 15 and thereby ensuring that the wheels 3, 4 cannot slide laterally off the first rail 13.

Figure 4 shows the clasp unit 16 in more detail. An upper section 20 is disposed in contact with an upper surface of a rail head 21 of the second rail 15, and is free to slide along the second rail 15 as the rail scooter 1 moves along the track. A clasp section 22 is mounted to the upper section 20 via a hinge 23. The clasp unit 16 is positioned around the rail head 21 as shown, with the clasp section 22 extending generally downwardly beside and beneath the rail head 21, and the clasp section is then locked in position. The separation between the clasp section 22 and the rail head 21 is sufficient to allow for minor variations in the gauge between the rails, but prevents substantial lateral movements of the rail scooter 1 which would be sufficient to cause it to leave the first rail 13.

In place ofthe clasp unit 16 shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4, a wheeled support unit 29 as shown in Figure 5 may be provided at a distal end of each stabiliser bar 14. A cylindrical roller 30 is disposed in contact with the upper surface of the rail head 21 of the second rail 15, and is so rotatably mounted to the stabiliser bar 14 that it is free to roll along the second rail 15 as the rail scooter I moves along the track.

A discoidal flange 31 is mounted co-axially to each end of the roller 30, such that the flanges 31 extend downwardly on opposite sides of the rail head 21, leaving sufficient clearance to allow for minor variations in the gauge between the rails. The flanges 31 thus prevent

substantial lateral n;lovements of the rail scooter I which would be sufficient to cause it to leave the first rail 13.

A magnet may be provided within each roller 30 to attract it to the second rail 15. This helps to keep the wheeled support units 29 securely located on the second rail 15 as the rail scooter I is being assembled and/or positioned on the track, and until the rider is mounted. The weight of the rider should then hold the rail scooter I firmly to the track.

Either the clasp units 16 or the support units 29 may be resiliently mounted to a respective stabiliser bar 14 to allow for minor variations in the gauge between the rails and/or to damp out uncomfortable vibrations.

As Figures 6A and 6D demonstrate, a wheel 3, 4 of the rail scooter may be configured to ride on the rail head 21 in several different positions. In Figure 6A, the wheel 3, 4 has a single flange 24 and is adapted to run in contact with an upper surface and part of one side of the rail head 21.

In Figure 6B, the wheel 3, 4 has two smaller flanges 25, and is adapted to run generally symmetrically in contact with the upper surface of the rail head 21. Each wheel 3, 4 may be provided with a tyre, for example of solid rubber, of the required predetermined profile.

In Figure 6C, the wheel 3, 4 has two more substantial flanges 32, extending at their lower extremities on opposite sides of the rail head 21. The wheel 3, 4 may be provided with a tyre of this profile, or the flanges 32 themselves may comprise discs of e.g. steel mounted to respective sides of the wheel 3, 4.

The wheel 3, 4 of Figure 6D is provided with a pair of flange plates 33, which are mounted non-rotatably to the rail scooter 1, for example to the front forks 5 thereof. The flange plates 33 extend downwardly on opposite sides of the rail head 21.

The wheels 3, 4 of Figures 6C and 6D allow the rail scooter I to be placed stably on the first rail 13 before the stabiliser bars 14 are connected to the rail scooter I and located over the secondrail 15.

The rail scooter I shown can thus be carried in a collapsed and/or dismantled configuration in a luggage space of a car, van or truck until required. A member of railway maintenance personnel can then drive to a convenient point of access to the railway track, remove the rail scooter I from the car, etc. erect the steering column 6, attach the seat 12 (if desired) and mount the stabiliser bars 14 to the required side of the platform 2. The wheels 3, 4 are then positioned on one rail, and the clasp units 16 are placed over the other rail and locked in place, or the wheeled support units 29 are located over the other rail with the assistance of their magnets, as appropriate. The user may then climb aboard the rail scooter I and drive it to the site of a problem, deal with the problem or assess its magnitude, and then proceed further or lift and turn the rail scooter round and return.

Similar scooters are available for road or pavement use, with a weight of no more than 10 to 15 kilograms, and which can travel at up to about 15mph (or about 25km.h') carrying a full-

grown man. The stabiliser bars do not add greatly to the total loaded weight, so the rail scooter can be handled easily by a single user, and will be able to reach similar speeds along the track - approximately five times the speed achievable by walking along the track, and

without the problems of fatigue associated with walking long distances along the permanent way. It is also sufficiently light to be manhandled over points or crossings where necessary.

Small amounts of equipment may also be carried on the rail scooter, for example on the detachable platform 28 or in a container mounted across the stabiliser bars.

Instead of an electric motor, some embodiments of the rail scooter are powered by an internal combustion engine, for example of the two-stroke type conventionally used to power mopeds and the like.

The user can thus arrive at the site of a problem on a railway line much sooner than is presently possible, and in better condition to handle the problem. Even if further assistance is required, such matters can be set in motion far sooner than is presently the case. The consequent delays to traffic, and their potential knock-on effects can thus be significantly reduced. The rail scooter may also be useful for routine inspection and preventative maintenance, where only one person is required to do the job. It is also sufficiently portable to be carried on a train, for example for train staff to use to place detonators or other warning signals at sufficient distance behind an immobilised train. Current British regulations require the placement of detonators out to a distance of 1/. miles (2km) from such a train, which could leave it unprotected for up to 15 or 20 minutes before a guard or driver could walk that distance.

Claims

A vehicle adapted to be moveable along a railway track, said vehicle having two wheels disposed to travel along a first rail of the track and detachable stabilising means extending transversely therefrom to engage a second rail of the track and so travel therealong that lateral movement of the vehicle is prevented.
2. A vehicle as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the vehicle is a motorised vehicle, for

example an electrically-propelled vehicle.
3. A vehicle as claimed in either Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the vehicle is provided with platform means on which a rider may stand.
4. A vehicle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vehicle is provided with upstanding handle means which may be grasped by a rider, optionally with control means ofthe vehicle mounted thereto.
5. A vehicle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vehicle is provided with lockable steering means.
6. A vehicle as claimed in either Claim 4 or Claim 5, wherein the handle means and/or the steering means are foldable or otherwise collapsible for storage and/or transportation.
7. A vehicle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vehicle is provided with detachable seating means for a rider.
8. A vehicle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the stabilising means comprises at least one elongate member, extending transversely from the vehicle towards the second rail.
9. A vehicle as claimed in Claim 8, wherein there are at least two such elongate members.
10. A vehicle as claimed in either Claim 8 or Claim 9, wherein the or at least one such elongate member is provided at an end remote from the vehicle with roller means adapted to engage with a railhead of the second rail.
11. A vehicle as claimed in Claim I 0, wherein the roller means comprises a cylindrical roller so rotatably mounted that it rolls along an upper surface of the railhead as the vehicle moves along the track, and flange means extending transversely to an axis of rotation of said roller and disposable adjacent one or each side of the railhead.
]2. A vehicle as claimed either Claim 10 or Claim 11 wherein the roller means is provided with magnetic means to urge it into contact with the railhead.
13. A vehicle as claimed in either Claim 8 or Claim 9, wherein the or at least one such elongate member provided at an end remote from the vehicle with clasp means adapted to engage with a railhead of the second rail.
14. A vehicle as claimed in Claim 13, wherein the clasp means has a generally horizontal bearing surface adapted to contact an upper surface of the railhead and to slide therealong as the vehicle moves along the track, and a first lateral element extending generally downwardly from the bearing surface adjacent a side of the railhead of the second rail remote from the first rail.
15. A vehicle as claimed in Claim 14, wherein the first lateral element is hingedly mounted to the clasp means, optionally with means to lock it in a downwardly extending disposition.
16. A vehicle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vehicle is provided on each side thereof with attachment means, to which the stabilising means may be alternatively mounted to extend either rightwardly or leftwardly from the vehicle.
17. A vehicle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the wheels of the vehicle are each configured to contact in use an upper surface of the first rail and at least a part of at least one side of the railhead of the first rail.
18. A vehicle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vehicle is provided with means to locate one or each wheel thereof securely on top of the first rail.
19. A rail borne vehicle comprising a foldable tvo-wheeled scooter adapted to travel on a first rail, and detachable outrigger means adapted to engage a second rail.
20. A vehicle substantially as described herein with reference to the Figures of the accompanying drawings.