US1129204A

US1129204A - Valve-controlling mechanism.

Info

Publication number: US1129204A
Application number: US68921212A
Authority: US
Inventors: Elmer M Jones
Original assignee: JONES SIGNAL SYSTEM Co
Current assignee: JONES SIGNAL SYSTEM Co
Priority date: 1912-04-08
Filing date: 1912-04-08
Publication date: 1915-02-23
Anticipated expiration: 1932-02-23

Description

a. M. JONES. VALVE CONTROLLING MECHANISM.

APPLIOATIONIILED APR. 8, 1912.

Patented Feb. 23, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVENT- 67W 971 WITNESSES:

ATT'ORN'EA THE NORRIS PETERS CON F'HDTC-LITHO" WASHINGTON. D C.

AT T RNEY- ELMER M. JONES, or ATLANTA, enoncr COMPANY, or ATLANTA, GEORGI A, ASSIGNOR T0 JONES SIGNAL SYSTEM A, A CORPORATION OF GEORGIA.

VALVE-CONTROLLING- ME'CHANTSM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 23, 1915.

Application filed April 8, 1912. Seria1No.'G89,212.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELMER M. Jones, a citizen of the United States, residing at Atlanta, in the county of Fulton and State of Georgia, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Valve-Controlling Mechanisms, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to mechanism for enabling the automatic stopping of moving vehicles, or the giving of a signal thereon while the vehicle is moving.

The invention comprises mechanism mounted on such moving vehicle and operated by engagement with devices located along the trackway; more particularly the mechanism operates to open an air valve on the vehicle Whenever a track device is passed; then if such device is set for safety, to immediately close the air valve, while if the device is set for danger, the air valve is left open. When thus left open, the escaping air may cause the application of the brake or give a signal, as desired.

The object of the invention is to provide the vehicle equipment in a form which, while being efficient in operation, shall be extremely simple in construction, and have very few parts.

The invention is illustrated herein and hereinafter more fully described, and its essential characteristics summarized in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of the vehicle equipment. Fig. 2 is a plan thereof, sectioned through the inclosing casing. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section, as indicated by the line 3-3 on Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is aside elevation of a vehicle truck equipped with my mechanism, and a track device to cofiperate therewith. Fig. '5 is a plan of the track device. Fig. 6 is a perspective of the valve opened, its seat being shown in elevation.

As shown in the drawings, 10 represents a suitable casing, adapted to be secured to the moving vehicle. This casing is of approximately rectangular form, being in efi'ect a narrow box open at the bottom. The casing may be secured in various ways to the vehicle. Fig. 4 shows it attached to the truck, which I have found satisfactory.

indicates the casing of an air valve. This casingi's shown as provided with two flaring webs 21, which are secured by screws or bolts to the inner and

outer walls

13 and 14 of the casing. The valve chamber has a fiat annular face 23, surrounding a central opening 24, which communicates by passage-ways with the air pipe 26. The valve is closed by a cap 30, which seats on an annular face 23. This cap has an annular flange 31, adapted to loosely occupy an annular groove in the valve casing. hen the cap is held firmly on the annular seat 23, the valve is closed. When it is tipped from that seat, the valve is opened.

indicates a lever, forked at its upper end to make two arms 41, which straddle the valve casing, and are pivoted to it by thecentral bolt 42. There is a central opening in the lever which is occupied by a bolt 44. This bolt at its upper end is rigidly secured to the valve disk 30. At its lower end, the bolt is reduced in diameter, and slidably seats within a sleeve 46, carried by the lever. Surrounding the bolt and sleeve is a compression spring 47, which bears against the bottom of the lever and the under side of the disk 30. The lower end of the spring occupies a socket 48 in the lever, as shown in Fig. 3, while above this socket, the lever is open toward each end of the casing.

From the construction described, it will be apparent that the spring is adapted to hold the disk 30 firmly on the annular seat and maintain the valve closed. Furthermore, that when the lever is swung on its pivot 42, the disk is tipped away from its seat, opening the valve. This swinging tips the spring out of the line between the socket 48 and the pivot 42, and thus the spring acting ofi center tends to'hold the lever in the tipped position. This is illustrated by dotted lines in Fig. 1.

Figs. 4 and 5 show a suitable ground device, claimed in my prior application, No. 628832, filed May 22nd, 1911, with which the present vehicle mechanism may cooperate. That ground device consists of a stationary ramp 50, located parallel with the track, and a short distance outside of one of the rails, and a movable ramp, comprising two

bars

51 and 52, hinged together and located outside of the stationary ramp and some distance in advance thereof. The bar 52 is slidably guided at its free end, while the bar 51 is a rock "arm, rigid on a rock shaft 53, which is operated by a suitable lever 54. Accordingly, the stationary ramp always presents a peak, whereas the movable ramp may present a peak, as shown in Fig. 4, or maybe moved to lower the hinge point, so that the

arms

51 and 52 are substantially horizontal, in which position they are idle.

The ground'device described and the locomotive equipment are mutually so located that as the vehicle travels past the ground device, the lever 40 engages the stationary ramp 50, and is swung by it into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1. This opens the air valve. If the air valve is allowed to remain open, the brake is applied or the danger signal given. If, however, the movable ramp is in the up position, as shown in Fig. 4, vehicle mechanism is actuated thereby to restore the lever 40 to normal position and close the valve before the brake application or danger signal has become ef fective. This re-setting mechanism will now be described.

Secured to a rock shaft 60, journaled in casing 10, is an arm 61, which is designed to engage and be operated by the ramp bar 51. Rigid on this rock shaft within the easing is an arm 62, which has a rounded clownward end 63, overhanging an arm 49 of the lever 40. This arm is composed of an extension from a cross member 45, secured to the arms 41. The arms 41, cross members 45 and projections 49, may be one integral piece with the lever 40, and form a sort of yoke, or skeleton socket, loosely surrounding the valve casing. Then the lever 61 engages the ramp 51, the lever 62 is swung downwardly into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, and the rounded end 63 then comes into a depression in the upper face of the arm 49, and swings that arm downwardly, thus returning the lever 40 to normal position, where it is retained by the spring 44. As soon as the arm 61 clears the movable ramp, a spring 66 restores the arms 61 and 62 to normal position.

From the above description, it will be apparent that whenever a ground device is passed, the lever 40 is swung by the ramp 50 to open the valve; that if the movable ramp is down, the valve remains open, but that if the movable ramp is up, the valve is closed before there is time for the brake to be applied or the signal to be given.

The operation so far described relates to forward movement of the vehicle. On rearward movement, any engagement of the lever 61 with the ramp bar 52 simply raises the lever 62 idly; then the engagement of the lever 40 with the ramp 50 opens the valve, but the same is immediately restored by a lever 71 engaging the stationary ramp and forcing downward an arm 72, so that the rounded end 7 3 thereof engages an arm 43 of the lever 40,-and restores the lever and closes the valve similar to the restoration herein described. The levers 71 and 72 constitute a bell crank pivoted at aspring 76, restores this bell crank when its arm 71 clears the ramp. To prevent any possibility of the lever 40 bouncing away from its open position when the train moves rapidly forward across the ramp, I provide a detent adapted to hold it in that position. This detent as shown consists of a pair of plungers 80, mounted in sockets in the lower end of the lever 40, and pressed outwardly by springs 81 in the sockets behind the plungers. These plungers are adapted to seat in depressions made at the proper points in the

side walls

13 and 14 of the casing.

I claim,

1. The combination of a valve casing, a closure therefor, an operating lever pivoted adjacent the closure and connected thereto and adapted to be laterally swung to open the closure, and a spring connected at one end with the lever and at the other end with the closure and adapted to be laterally moved by the lever, said spring adapted to hold the closure against the valve casing when the lever is normal and adapted to hold the lever tipped when in a tipped position.

2. The combination of a valve casing having an opening, a valve disk adapted to close the opening, a pivoted lever adapted to tip the valve disk by a movement in either direction from normal, a rod connected at one end to the disk and at the other end slidably connected to the free end of the lever, and a spring tending to press the disk against the valve casing.

3. The combination of a valve casing having an annular seat, a valve disk adapted to close against said seat, a lever pivoted adjacent to the valve seat adapted to tip the valve disk by a movement in either direction from normal, a rod rigidly connected with the valve disk and extending in the same general direction with the lever and slidably connected therewith at its front end, and a spring surrounding the rod and compressing against the disk.

4. The combination of a valve casing, having an annular face, surrounded by a recess, a closing disk, adapted to seat on said face, and having an annular rib adapted to occupy the recess, a rod projecting from said disk, and adapted to move one side of the disk away from its seat, a lever pivoted adjacent to the valve casing and connected with the rod. and a spring surrounding the rod and tending to seat the disk.

5. The combination of a valve casing having an opening, a forked lever extending onto opposite sides of the casing and pivoted thereto, a closure for the open end of the valve casing, a rod connecting the same with the lever, and a spring surrounding of a rod secured j and at its other end has a ing the rod and pressing the closure against the casing, the rod and spring occupying an opening in the lever.

6. The combination of a valve casing having an open end, a lever pivotally mounted adjacent to the casing and having a laterally projecting arm, a closure for the open end of the valve, a rod rigid with the same and connected to the lever whereby the closure is tipped from the seat when the lever is swung, and mechanism adapted to engage the projecting arm to restore the lever and closure.

7 The combination of a valve casing having an opening, a bifurcated lever adapted to straddle the valve casing and pivoted thereto, and having arms projecting at opposite sides of the casing, a pair of independent members adapted to engage said arms to restore the lever when displaced, a closure for the valve, and a connection between the same and the lever.

8. The combination of a valve casing having an opening, a bifurcated lever adapted to straddle the valve casing and pivoted thereto, and having arms projecting at opposite sides of the casing, a pair of independent members adapted to engage said arms to re- 7 store the lever when displaced, a closure for the valve, and a connection between the same and the lever, said connection consistto the closure and slid ably connected with the lever, and a spring surrounding the .rod and adapted to press the closure toward its seat.

9. The combination of a valve casing, having an open end, a lever pivoted above said open end, and having a laterally projecting arm, a closure for the valve, a rod connected therewith and slidably connected with the lever, a compression spring surrounding the rod and adapted to hold the closure against the valve when the lever is in normal position, and tending to hold the lever in a tipped position after being tipped, and a restoring device adapted to act on the arm to return the lever and closure.

10. In a device of the character described, the combination of a valve casing having a seat, a forked lever extending onto opposite sides of the casing and pivoted on it, a valve disk adapted to cooperate with the seat and having a projecting rod which extends in the general direction of the lever sliding engagement therewith, and a spring tending to seat the valve 11. In a device of the character described, the combination of a valve casing having a seat, a forked lever extending onto opposite sides of the casing and pivoted to it, a

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the valve disk adapted to cooperate with the seat and having a projecting rod which extends in the general direction of the lever and at its other end has a sliding engagement therewith, and a helical compression spring surrounding the rod.

12. The combination of a valve casing having a valve seat, a lever pivoted to the casing and having laterally projecting arms, a valve disk adapted to seat on the valve seat, a rod projecting from said valve disk in the general direction of the lever and connected at its other end with the lever near its free end, said lever adapted to be swung to open the valve, and separate means adapted to engage each of the laterally projecting arms to restore the lever to normal position.

13. The combination of a valve seat, a T- shaped lever pivoted at the junction of its arms, a disk for closing the valve, a rod secured thereto and connected with the lever near its free end, said lever adapted to be swung to open the valve, and separate means adapted to engage each of the laterally projecting arms to restore the lever to normal position.

14. The combination of a valve casing, a bifurcated T-shaped lever straddling the casing and pivoted thereto adjacent to the junction of the arms of the lever, said casing having a valve seat between the sides of the lever, a closure for the valve, and a connection between the same and said lever.

15. The combination of a valve casing, a bifurcated T-shaped lever straddling the casing and pivoted thereto adjacent to the junction of the arms of the lever, said casing having a valve seat between the sides of the lever, a closure for the valve, a rod secured at one end to the closure and at the other end movably connected with the lever, and a helical compression spring surrounding the rod.

16. The combination of a valve casing, a bifurcated T-shaped lever straddling the casing and pivoted thereto adjacent to the junction of the arms of the lever, said casing having a valve seat between the sides of the lever, a closure for the valve, a connection between the same and said lever, and

' a pair of bell crank members on opposite sides of the casing adapted to respectively engage the two sides of the T-head of the lever.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto afl'ix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ELMER M. JONES. Witnesses:

ALBERT H. BATES, DARWIN G. J ones.

Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.