US1130477A

US1130477A - Pneumatic railway-switch.

Info

Publication number: US1130477A
Application number: US69617012A
Authority: US
Inventors: Charles Chappelle
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1912-05-09
Filing date: 1912-05-09
Publication date: 1915-03-02
Anticipated expiration: 1932-03-02

Description

G. GHAPPBLLE.

PNEUMATIG RAILWAY SWITCH.

APPLIOATION FILED. MAY-9, 1912.

' Patented Mar. 2, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

4HE MORRIS PETERS CUWPHOTC-LITHD.. WASHINGTON. D. C.

G. GHAPPELLE.

PNEUMATIG RAILWAY SWITCH.

APPLIUATION FILED MAY e, 1912.

1,1 30.477. Patented Mar. 2, 1915 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

*HE NURRIS PETERS CO4. PHD7DL-ITHO., WASHINGTON, D. C4

ENTE@ STAT PATNT FFQE.

CHARLES CHAPPELLE, OF OKLAHOMA, OKLAHOMA, ASSIGNOB 0F ONE-'LIALF TO DOCTOR JOI-IN HAYDEN, 0F OKLAHOMA, OKLAHOMA.

PNEUMTIC RAILWAY-SW'ITCI-I.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 2, 1915.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, CHARLES CHAPPEILE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oklahoma city, in the county of Oklahoma and State of Oklahoma, have invented certainY new and useful Pneumatic Railway- Switches, of which the following is a specifcation, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention has reference to the art of railways, and more particularly to the art of railway switches.

An object of the invention is to provide improved means whereby the tongue of a switch may be shifted from one position to the other by suitable operating means carried by or operating in conjunction with some portion of a car or train.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the ensuing description.

' Referring to the accompanying drawings,

which show one embodiment of the invention in practical form z-Figure 1 is a plan view of ,a portion of railway, in connection with which the invention is shown in use. Fig. 2 is an enlarged plan view, partly in section, of parts shown in'Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a railway track and the trucks of a car, showing the invention in use in connection therewith. Fig. 4 is a sectional View of a certain cylinder and its piston, in the same direction as Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5 5 of Fig. 3, but showing no parts in the rear of the line A-A. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a bracket for supporting certain tripping means-carried Vby the car-trucks. Fig. 7 is a perspective view, in different direction, showing a tripping-arm. Fig. 8 is a sectional View of a check-valve.

Like characters of reference designate like parts throughout all the gures of drawings.

Suitably positioned on the outer sides of the track-rails 9 and 10 are cylinders 1l and 12, respectively, which are supported by brackets 13 secured by bolts 14 to the webs 15 of said rails.

Within each of the cylinders 11 and 12 is 'a piston 16, which is made hollow to allow room for a tension spring 17. This spring 17 has one of its ends attached to the front or closed end of the piston 16 by an eyebolt 18, and its other end to the rear end of the cylinder by a similar eye-bolt 19, and said spring yieldably holds said piston to the rear or normal end of its throw in said driven forward by a suitable projection from a car or train and thenrevolve to avoid further forward movement by said projection. 1n further arrangement,

cylinders

23 and 24 are located in juxtaposition to the switch, the cylinder 23 being connected with the cylinder 11 by a pipe-line 25 and the cylinder 24 with the cylinder 12 by a similar pipe-line 26. The cylinder 23 is provided with a piston 27 and the cylinder 24 with a piston 28, the

stems

29 and 30, respectively, of these pistons passing through the guard-

rails

31 and 32 in position to have their

ends

35 and 36 act against opposite sides of the switch-tongue 37. vTo hold the

pistons

27 and 28 at the normal or initial ends of their cylinders, the stem of each piston is embraced by a compression helical spring 38 which is interposed between said piston and the opposite end of said cyliner. Y

Each of the pipe-lines 25 and 26 is provided with a check-valve 39 to check the back How of air from the

cylinders

23 and 24 to thecylinders 11 andv 12, each checkvalve having a hinged gate 40 adapted to close against a seat 41, as shown in Fig. 8. The gate 40 is provided with a very small opening 42, through which the air which is placed under compression between the check-valves 39 and the

cylinders

23 and 24 may slowly leak to relieve the compression.

In operation, the piston 16 of one of the cylinders, say the cylinder 11, is driven forward by a suitable projection' on the car or car-trucks, thereby setting up pressure Vof the air in thev pipe-line 25 and against the piston 27 in the cylinder A23. Since the pipelines 25 and 26 must be small in order to avoid excessive range of expansion of the contained air, the compression between the piston 16 of the cylinder 11 and the piston 27 of the cylinder 23 may not instantly equalize; so that when said piston 16 is moved by a car at high speed it may instantly set up high pressure and as quickly release it by return to normal position, leaving the piston 2'? and switch-tongue 39 unmoved or only partly moved. But the check-valve 39 traps the air under compression in the pipe-line 25 and cylinder 23 and allows said compression to release only by leakage of air through the small opening 42 aforesaid, thus allowing the compression to move the piston 27 and switch-tongue 37 their full throw.

1n arranging the vehicle portion of the apparatus, a suitable tripping-arm 43 1s pivoted between brackets 44 depending from the Jtrame of the car-trucks, these brackets having holes 45 in which the shaft 46 of said tripping-arm is journaled. The hub portion of the tripping-arm 43 1s provided with a stop 47 which plays 1n an arc-shaped recess 48 in one of the brackets 44 and is adapted to abut either end of said recess to limit the movement of said tripping-arm. For operating the tripping-arm 43, its shaft 46 is provided with a gear-pinion 49 which receives motion from gear-teeth on the lower end of a piston-rod 50 of a piston 51. The piston 51 is contained within a cylinder 52, which is bolted to the frame of the carv trucks, and said piston may be moved by compressed air from the train-pipe of the car or train in order to swing the trippingarm 43 into or out of tripping position.

Having thus described this invention, 1 claim:

1. A pneumatically operable railway switch, consisting of a switch located at the intersection of railway lines, of a switch tongue associated with said switch and adapted to be urged to normal positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juxtaposition with said switch, pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against the tongue alternately, cylinders located remotely from the rst named cylinders, pistons operable therein for creating air pressure, means Jfor operating said last named pistons, means for positioning said pistons normally, and an air line communicating with each set of cylinders.

2. A. pneumatically operable railway switch, consisting of a switch located at the intersection of railway lines, of a switchtongue associated with said switch and adapted to be urged to normal positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juxtaposition with said switch, springactuated pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against said tongue alternately, cylinders located remotely from the first named cylinders, spring-actuated pistons operating therein, means carried by incoar? the second named pistons for urging them to pressure-creating positions, and an air line communicating with each set of cylinders.

3. A pneumatically operable railway switch, consisting of a switch located at the intersection of railway lines, of a switch tongue associated with said switch and adapted to be urged to normal positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juxtaposition with said switch, pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against said tongue alternately, cylinders located remotely from the iirst named cylinders, pistons operable therein for creating air-pressure, means tor operating said last named piston, means for positioning said pistons normally, an air-line communicating with each set ot cylinders, and means interposed in the air-line for relieving pressure in the system.

4. A pneumatically operable railway switch, consisting o1 a switch located at the intersection of railway lines, of a switchtongue associated therewith and adapted to be urged to normal positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juxtaposition with said switch, pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against said tongue alternately, cylinders located remotely from the first named cylinders, pistons operable therein for creating air-pressure, means for operating said last named pistons, means for positioning said pistons normally, an air-line communicating with each set of cylinders, and means suitably located, for relieving pressure in the system.

5. A. pneumatically operable railway switch7 consisting of a switch located at the intersection of railway lines, of a switchtongue associated therewith and adapted to be urged to normal positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juxtaposition with said switch, spring-actuated pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against said tongue alternately, cylinders located remotely from the first named cylinders, spring-actuated pistons operating therein, means carried by the second named pistons for urging them to pressure-creating positions, an air-line communicating with each set of cylinders, and a pressure-relieving medium suitably located in the system.

6. Apneumaticallyoperablerailwayswitch, consisting of a switch located at the intersection of railway lines, of a switch-tongue associated with said switch and adapted to be urged to normal positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juxtaposition with said switch, pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against the tongue alternately, cylinders located repistons, means for partially revolving said pistons, means for positioning said pistons normally, and an air-line communicating with eachset of cylinders. Y

7. Apneumatically operablerailway switch, consisting of a switch located at the intersection of railway lines, of a switch-tongue associated with said switch and adapted to be urged to normal positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juxtaposition with said switch, pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against the tongue alternately, cylinders located remotely from the rst named cylinders, pistons operable therein for creating air-pressure, means carried by the last named pistons and by which they may be operated, and which are so associated with the cylinders as to cause the latter to partially rotate during a portion of their reciprocation, means for positioning the pistons normally, and an air line communicating with each set of cylinders.

8. A pneumatically operable railway switch, consisting of a switch located at the intersection of railway lines, of a switch-tongue associated with said switch and adapted to be urged, to normal positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juxtaposition with said switch, pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against the tongue alternately, cylinders located remotely from the irst named cylinders, and which are provided with guides, pistons operable therein for creating air-pressure, means for operating said last named pistons,

and adapted to be controlled by said guides for partially turning the pistons, to remove the piston-operating means out of the path of means to co'perate with the piston operating means, means for positioning said pistons normally, and an air line communicating with each set of cylinders.

9. Apneumaticallyoperablerailwayswitch, consisting of a switch located at the intersection of railway'lines, of a switch-tongue associated with said switch and adapted to be urged to norma-l positions with respect to each line, cylinders located in juXtaposi-- tion with said switch, pistons operable in said cylinders and adapted to operate against the tongue alternately, cylinders located remotely from the first named cylinders, and which are provided with guides, pistons operable therein for creating air-pressure, means for operating said last named pistons, and adapted to be controlled by said guides for partially turning the pistons, to remove the piston-operating means 'out of the path of means to coperate with the piston operating means, means for positioning said pistons normally, an Aair-line communicating with each set of cylinders, and an interposed pressure relieving device.

Signed at Oklahoma city, in the county of Oklahoma and State of Oklahoma, this 25 day of April, 1912.

CHAS. OHAPPELLE.

Witnesses:

Enw. BARNAcLo, Gmo. R. TRUE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.