US1009149A - Switch-shifting device. - Google Patents

Description

A. JOHNSON. SWITCH SHIFTING DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED MAY 5, 1911.

1,009,149. Patented N0v.21, 1911.

WITNESSES.-

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ANDREW JOHNSON, OF MISSOULA, MONTANA.

SWITCH-SHIFTING- DEVICE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW J OHNSQN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Missoula, in the county of Missoula and State of Montana, have invented a new and useful Switch-Shifting Device, of which the following is a specification.

Hy invention relates to improvements in switch-shifting devices of the class which are used to shift the switch-tongue of the tracks ofstreet railways and other railroads, and of that particular class which are operated from the car while it is in motion and approaching the switch.

The object of the invention is to provide a practical, durable and eflicient device of said kind.

In the accompanying drawing Figure 1 is a top or plan view of a railway track and switch and a portion of a car standing on the track, all equipped with my improved switch-shifting mechanism; the car has its.

roof removed and a portion of its floor broken away to expose the mechanism mounted on the car. Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevation on the line a -a Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a front end elevation of the car and mechanism mounted on it in Fig. '1, and a section on the line 6-4) of the track in said view; the body of the car above the floor is omitted. Fig. 4 is an inverted or bottom view of a modification of the swiveling plate to which the operating levers are fulcrumed,

and said levers in section, as on the line c-c Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is an end view of the movable end of the switch-tongue, or switchrail.

Referring to the drawing by reference numerals, the trackrails 1, 1, which are of the usual kind, connect in substantially the usual way with the branch-rails or siding rails 2, and near the junction of one of the rails 1 and one of the rails 2 is pivoted at 3 to the frog 3* a switch-tongue 4, whose swinging end is provided with a truncated arrowhead 5, which presents two oppositely inclined cam-faces 6, 6 and has two parallel longitudinal grooves or gaps 7, 7 a in its upper side. Said head rests upon a supporting plate 8 and moves in a gap 9 in the adjacent rail 1, and in a gap 9 in the adjacent guard rail 11.

12 and 12 are two inclines on the plate 8 for purposes presently to be described, said plate 8 may be made integral with the portion 3* and the guard-rails of the frog.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 5, 1911.

Patented Nov. 21, 1911.

Serial No. 625,376.

11 are guards to prevent lateral springing of the switchshifting bars. 11 is a guard rail and plate assisting in guiding the wheel passing said guard on the main track.

The car 13 may be of any desired type, but to fully demonstrate the character of my invention, the car is of the type having two four-wheeled trucks 14, of which only one is shown in my drawing. Said truck swivels on a central stud, or bolt, 15 in the usual manner; and as such swiveling or turning movement on lateral curves of the road causes the truck to diverge more or less from a parallel position to the car, the switchshifting device is arranged as follows: Upon the forward end of the truck 14, near one corner thereof, is secured a journal or bearing block 16, in which are mounted to slide vertically two switch-shifting bars 17, 17. Each of said bars has its upper end reduced and inserted upwardly through a slot 19 in the horizontal arm 20 of an L-shaped lever 2021, and is retained in said slot by a pin 22 and a washer 23, while below the lever arm is a washer 24 resting upon the shoulder of the bar and keeping out of the slot the end of an expanding coil spring 25, which encircles the bar and by being supported on the bearing 16 tends at all times to hold the lever arm and the switch-shifting bar in raised and thereby idle position, and the hand-lever 21, which the upper arm of the lever forms, in a forward position. Said levers, 20-21, are fulcrumed at 26 to the depending lugs 27 of a plate 28, which swivels underneath the car on a bolt 29, which is secured into the floor 13 and in a plate 30 secured upon the said floor of the car. Said plate 30 is provided with two slots 31 in which the levers 21 move freely when the lower plate 28 is to tated. Said lower plate needs no slots for the levers, as long as these are placed beyond the ends of the plate, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3; but if. as in the modification in Fig. 4, the levers be placed at the inner sides of the lugs 27, then slots 32 are necessary. In said Fig. 4 the bolt 26 is passed through the lugs 27 and an intermediate tube 83, whose ends hold the levers snugly against the lugs. WVhen the nut 34 is tightened on the pivot bolt 26, the arrangement in Fig. 4 shown is very substantial and is probably preferable to the arrangement shown in the other views.

In the operation of the device, when the car is moving as from right to left in Fig. l, and it approaches the switch, if the head 5 is in the position shown in Fig. 1 and the operator, who stands as at 23 in the car, wishes to change the car from the main track 1 to the side-track 2, he simply pulls rearwardly on the lever 21 farthest to the left of him; this causes the spring 25 to yield and the lower end of the bar 17 descends low enough to act on the cam face 6 and thus throw the head 5 with the gap 7 into line with the flange of the right hand side Wheel of the truck, and thus the car is switched over onto the side track. As soon as the bar 17 has thus acted on the cam 6, it is forced upward by the incline 12 of the frog, so that the operator can not accidentally forget to lift it until it may get damaged by moving forward against rails or parts of the frog. After the bar is thus out of danger, the spring 25 elevates it farther and holds it elevated until the handlever 21 is next time operated. If the next car coming along wishes to follow the main track, the operator on such car pulls the right-hand lever 21 in his car, and the bar 17 will descend, and acting on the cam 6 will restore the switch-tongue to the position shown in Fig. 1, so that the gap 7 permits the wheels of the truck to follow the main track. After the bar 17 has thus acted and performed its duty, it is elevated by the incline 12 of the frog and is held elevated by the spring 25 on it.

As already mentioned above, when the truck turns on its center stem 15, the slots 19 in the levers arms 20 allow the bars 17, 17 to slide in the levers, and such sliding movement is essential to prevent injury to the levers. Other means could be used for the same purpose, but I prefer slotted levers as the most effective and substantial means for the purpose.

What I claim is:

1. In a switch-shifting device of the character described, the combination with a frog having a recess, of a switch-tongue having one end pivoted in said recess and its other end provided with a truncated arrow-head having in its upper side two longitudinal parallel gaps and at its sides oppositely inclined cam faces, a main rail and a side rail adjacent the frog, a car and means carried by the car for engaging either one of the cam faces while the car is in motion, and thereby shift the head of the switch-tongue so as to bring the one of its gaps in position to permit the car wheel to follow the main track, or the other gap to permit the wheels to pass onto the side track while the switchtongue prevents further progress on the main track.

2. In a switch-shifting device of the character described, the combination with a frog, a switch-tongue pivoted at one end thereto and having at the other end a truncated arrow-head formed in its top with two parallel longitudinal gaps and having two op positely diverging cam faces, a main rail and a siding rail adjacent thereto, and means carried by a car moving on the rails for engaging the cam-faces and shifting the head from one side to the other, as may be desired by a person riding on the car while the latter is in motion; said means on the car consisting of bearings on the front end of the truck of the car, two switch-shifting bars sliding vertically in the bearings, 21 horizontally swiveling plate carried by the platform or floor of the car and having two vertical lugs, an L-shaped lever fulcrumed to each lug and having one arm extended upwardly through an aperture in the floor of the car, to serve as a hand-lever within the car, the other arm extending rearwardly below the floor of the car, and having a longitudinal slot in which a reduced portion near the upper end of one of the switch shifting bars is held in such a manner that it may slide along the slot but can not escape up or down through it, and a spring arranged to hold each lever with the shifter bar in elevated position some distance above the rails.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature,

in presence of two witnesses.

ANDREW JOHNSON. lVitnesses H. D. FISHER, A. ENGBRETSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

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